Tenku wasn't working, but Toma could definitely feel Ryo getting closer by the moment. He felt a thrill of excitement course through his blood at the close proximity. Maybe, for once, it wouldn't be so hard to get back to his brothers. Beside him, Makoto Kino coughed a bit as she huffed along next to him, and he felt a stab of concern move through him as he slowed their pace. She really wasn't looking very good. Though she'd been in bright spirits when they'd started out, her skin looked downright…..grey now. A shudder swept through her body, and he stopped them.

"You ok?" he asked carefully. She uttered a deep groan and slumped against him. Touma inhaled sharply and bent, turning towards her and using his free arm to support her other side. "Makoto?!" he forced out between clenched teeth. Shit, they'd been moving a lot. What if the poison was in her system? What if all this time it'd been moving through her veins thanks to all the activity?

"Mm….ok. I'm ok." She murmured, making an effort at pushing herself up. Touma frowned, at an impasse. She probably needed to lie down. But Ryo was so close. So very close. With more of them, their odds of surviving improved. He had a feeling Ryo would have one of the senshi with him, and they might know how to help Makoto. Firming his jaw, he reached down and gently swung her legs into his arms, carrying her.

She let out a small gasp, wrapping her arms around his neck instinctually, and he tried to ignore the flash of warmth that flooded his system. She smelled so good. Was so close. Touma shook himself abruptly. This was not the time or the place. "Hashiba-san, you really don't have to carry me." Her voice sounded too soft to his ears, only firming up his decision.

"This is safer Kino-san. I want to get us somewhere with more protection, so you can rest. You really shouldn't be pushing yourself too hard right now."

Any reply Makoto could make was cut off when something slammed into him from behind, throwing both he and his cargo through a wall. He managed to wrap himself around Makoto in an effort to save her from the brunt of the impact, but as soon as they landed with the first bounce, she flew from his arms, and went tumbling out of sight into the darkness of the room beyond.

Shit.

Enraged, Touma turned, intending to deal with their attacker as quickly as possible so he could get to her. He needed a vent for all this anger and anxiety anyways. Except that before he could even face the enemy they were on him. Touma flailed blindly, hoping to get a hit in, smothered in darkness suddenly.

He felt his fists slam into something solid a few times, but it didn't seem to phase his attacker, and given the force and frequency behind the hits he was receiving, he wasn't going to be able to make much impact for much longer. The edges of his vision started to strain, and he felt claws tearing at his skin. He pushed with everything he had in him, but the claws were around his neck now, cutting off his air. Dimly he realized the air felt strange, charged somehow, but his mind was graying out, and he couldn't figure out what the sensation was.

Until the entire world went blindingly light and suddenly he could breathe again.

Touma blinked and took deep, gasping breaths, massaging his throat and trying to swallow. He scrambled backwards until his back hit a wall, stopping him. He coughed, and tried to understand what was happening. There was still lightening flickering through the room. It crawled across the ceiling and fumbled along the walls, flashing in and out of existence. Strangely, it was all tinged with a rich, emerald green color. He followed the flickers to their source, and inhaled sharply when he saw Makoto, leaning against the door frame, head down, hair obscuring her face. The lightning was actually radiating off of her, crawling along her skin and drifting into the room.

"If you think I'm going to let you hurt my friend, you're dead wrong. Hope you like it hot, because I'm gonna fry you to a crisp!"

She looked up, and her eyes were glowing electric green. Mesmerized, Touma watched as the lightening seemed to intensify, her hair lifting up with the energy of it as she crossed her arms in front of her chest and then flung them outwards towards the shadowy monster that'd ambushed them. With a yell, the lightening coalesced into one huge spear of electricity that arced across the room, straight into the shadow.

It shrieked, and then ashed out, bits of charred monster drifting to the floor. Touma just stared at the scene stupidly until Makoto suddenly dropped, hitting her knees. He sprinted to her side, catching her up in his arms before she could face plant. Touching her skin was like touching a live wire. His hair stood up a bit, and he couldn't help the chuckle that came out of his mouth.

"Neat trick." He murmured.

"Yeah. I'm….super fun at parties." Makoto mumbled back. Her eyes were fluttering shut and she stubbornly willed them open. She looked, if it were possible, even paler. Touma frowned, all trace of amusement gone, as she lost the battle and her eyes closed, brows furrowed in pain. He rose, cradling her carefully. This incredible, brave, and stoic warrior was quickly taking up residence under his skin, making his chest ache.

"Does it hurt badly?" he murmured. A fine tremble went through her as he began to move and Touma felt the dark mood he'd been under before returning.

"I'm….ok. I'm so sorry to be a burden on you. You can….leave me here so I don't slow you down." Touma stopped moving and stared at her. It hurt, that she'd even think he'd be willing to leave her behind, but he pushed past it. He understood not wanting to be a liability on others, not wanting to be weak, better than most. But she must really be in bad shape if she didn't remember saving his ass not five minutes ago. Touma re-aligned himself with Ryo's energy and started moving again, holding Makoto securely in his arms and picking up the pace.

"I'm gonna pretend you didn't say that, because I'd never leave a friend behind." he huffed as he moved. Her eyes fluttered open as he glanced down to check on her, and a dreamy expression flitted across her face. He tried to ignore the way it wanted to grab at his heart and squeeze.

"S-sorry. You're just….so nice. I'd….I'd hate it if….you….got hurt…." She was fading, he realized with alarm. He picked up the pace, trying not to jostle her. She moaned softly, her brows furrowing more deeply, and he grit his teeth, trying to smooth his stride.

"Makoto. Stay with me. Please" he murmured. She didn't respond, and her head began to loll against his shoulder. A shot of adrenaline skittered up his spine and he started to sprint, feeling a sense of urgency. What if she was dying? He felt a pulse of energy and the hallway in front of him was cast suddenly in a familiar blue glow he recognized as the kanji on his forehead. His toes lifted from the floor. He made a desperate bid to reach Tenku, but slammed into a wall of dark energy. Something or someone was keeping his armor from him. And as he felt the weight of Makoto sagging in his arms, Touma let his fury have reign. Whoever they were, they were going to get what was coming to them. He'd make sure of it.

Thankful he at least had access to Tenku's fleet-footedness, he half sprinted, half glided down the hall towards Ryo. He was nearly on top of the energy signal when he suddenly began to lose footing on what appeared to be a thick coating of ice encasing the entire hallway.

Touma slowed, sliding clumsily to a stop. The chill in the air seemed to penetrate his bones, and given that the ice had begun so abruptly, he had an idea that it wasn't naturally occurring and whatever had made it could be around the corner. To his surprise, Makoto stirred in his arms suddenly, opening her eyes, blinking and looking around.

In fact, in the soft glow of the ice surrounding them, her skin seemed to lose a bit of pallor.

"Mercury?" she breathed, her gaze falling on his face. He frowned, surveying their surroundings with caution again.

"Mercury?" he asked her.

She nodded against his arm. "It's …Mercury is nearby. This ice….it's her. Put me down." Reluctantly, he obeyed, setting her feet down on ice. She dropped to her knees slowly with his assistance, and he crouched down beside her as her delicate fingers pressed with urgency against the ice. Beneath and around them, the ice pulsed gently, and as he watched, when she lifted her fingers, a small pool of water lingered where her hand had sat. Makoto let out a weak, happy laugh, and then put both her hands down in the spot now. Without thinking, he put his hands down near hers, touching the ice. It felt….alive. But Pure. It felt calm and refreshing. It felt like being near Shin. Touma couldn't help but smile. When they lifted their hands, a small puddle had formed. Makoto dipped her hands into it, cupped them, and brought the water to her lips, drinking greedily.

She went back for more. Her face seemed rosier, more relaxed. Touma dropped his hands back down to the ice and pressed as she continued to drink. He watched, feeling awed, as she improved. She still looked haggard, definitely weak, but she was getting better with every sip. His heart was pounding as he watched her. His chest felt full. His anxiety eased.

She finished another sip, and then turned, putting her hand on his. "Drink. You need water too." She urged. Touma hesitated as she went in for another helping. He didn't want to take any away from her. She needed it more. She urged him again, and he gave in, cupping his hands into the melted water and bringing it to his lips.

It felt amazing sliding down his throat. Cool and relaxing, it brought a lingering sense of peace as it settled below his chest. It didn't heal his aches and pains, not exactly, but they felt somehow….less potent. He took a few more sips, feeling the darkness that had lingered at the edge of his energy, sapping his strength, fading bit by bit, and thought he understood.

The water wasn't healing them, as he'd thought, but it was cleansing their energy – just a bit. And if Makoto's wound had wrought an infestation of negative energy, then this was probably going a long way to clearing some of that away. He heard a sigh, and looked up.

Makoto smiled at him, tired but radiant. Her brows had eased, and she looked to be more comfortable. She rose gracefully to her feet, and he shot to his, reaching hands out in case she needed support. But she stood tall, and strong, and he couldn't help but grin at her.

"Feeling better, yeah?"

She smiled and nodded shyly at him. "Yeah. Thanks for helping me. I wouldn't have made it here without you." Her cheeks colored prettily and she averted her gaze to stare at her toes. Touma didn't really care how forward it was. He reached out and grabbed both her hands in his, squeezing gently.

"You scared me. I'm glad you're ok. I'm confused though. I can't call my armor. You can't seem to call your uh….transformation. But you can use lightning, and I was able to float a bit on the way here."

Makoto shrugged, then frowned in concentration as she stared at her hand. Tiny licks of pale green lightning crawled along her fingers, coalescing into a tiny ball of light.

"I don't know. I mean. I've never tried to actually use my powers when I'm not Jupiter. I guess…..Maybe they're just really a part of me now, even if they weren't when I first became a soldier. But if I concentrate hard, I can feel them. Touch them. I just can't transform. But it takes a lot out of me to use them. Like…..Like when I'm Jupiter, they're just there, near the surface. But now, it's like I have to pull them – I have to work to get them through whatever barrier is holding Jupiter back."

The lightening vanished, and she looked up at him. "I'm just glad I was able to use them." She smiled, and Touma's heart mountaineered up into his throat and set up base camp as he stared down at her. To his utter mortification, he felt his cheeks heating, and tried to get his composure back. He cleared his throat, looking away for a moment. When he looked back, he felt more in control of his reflexes. Even if he did kind of want to just lean in and…kiss her right now.

Shit Hashiba. Get it together. She needs you to help her, not maul her.

He blinked. "Ah. Yeah. That was really awesome actually. Thanks for helping me out. I guess without my armor I'm kind of….useless." He frowned, feeling the dark mood embrace him again. A gentle touch on his shoulder brought him back. Makoto was looking up into his eyes with sincere understanding radiating from her own.

"I understand. You're not useless, okay? I wouldn't have made it here without you. I probably still need your help, right? We'll figure out how to get you connected to your armor again, and then we're gonna find who did this and make them regret it."

He nodded feeling better. "Yeah, we are. Think you're up to a little more walking? Ryo's close by, and I bet your friend is with him." He held out an arm for her, pleased when she took it, leaning on him slightly with a gentle pressure. Her touch filled him with warmth, and he tried not to think too hard about what it might mean.

He should not be having serious type feelings for someone who'd likely be gone very soon.

Touma felt his mood go dark again.