MOSQUITO vs TEAM TWO

4m/2w after Asura

Black*Star hated being saddled with Kid sometimes, if only for the fact that the reaper had a nasty tendency to slow them down. For instance, they missed their plane to the island because someone -who will not be named- needed to light their candles and melt them all the same amount. And when they actually managed to catch a plane, it only got them to California; thankfully, with their student ID's, they managed to hop a plane. It still took them six hours to even hit land, but at least they were here.

They had no real clue where to head, but the rumbling and nasty sulfur smell told them that they should consider looking at the volcano. It had been their big plan; maybe they would run into someone on the way.

"Black*Star, slow down."

"Kid, we're already late backing them up! We gotta hurry, what will they do without having me there to guide and inspire them!" Tsubaki's form swirled to life in the blade of his kusarigama, and her expression was stern; and it was clearly telling him to listen to Kid.

The reaper took this moment to listen to his surroundings. The entire island was silent, except for faint sounds of fighting coming from the northeast. He hoped their forces were still alive; their intelligence had said that Arachnophobia's numbers had dwindled greatly, but they still had powerful opponents.

"Hello? Who's there?" Jackie and Kim popped out of a thicket before waving the meisters over. They sighed in relief; neither of them seemed to be in great distress, though Jackie's knee was twisted and Ox had a cut on his forehead. They dared to hope that the others were alright as well.

"Jackie, Kim, what's the situation?"

"Me and Ox got separated from Kilik, who lured Giriko away from us. We fought some grunts, and now we're trying to meet back up with him. I haven't seen Mosquito or Justin Law. Crona went to engage Soul a while ago, and we haven't heard anything since." Ox and Harvar came through the thick flora and they tiredly greeted the duo.

"Will you be alright to continue on alone?"

"You have to back up Crona; we can help Kilik, don't worry about us." Kid stared at Ox for a long time, who kept eye contact; his gaze was filled with determination, and he wouldn't back down. It comforted him a bit, because it made him think of Maka. He didn't know how he and Black*Star had made this this far without her, and if he was being honest, Black*Star felt just as weird as he did.

They bid the others farewell before beginning their trek once more; they heard the sounds of Kilik's fight draw to an abrupt end, only for them to resume once more. If he had to guess, Black*Star would say Ox and Kim had found Kilik. He thought about going back, but Kid tackled him to the ground before he got any further than thinking about it.

He looked around wildly, his eyes landing on a figure that had their back turned. Their hair was black and long, a top hat adorning their head. They were maybe 5'8, and they were wearing a crisp suit. When he turned around, they were shocked to see it was Mosquito. He laughed, deep and rich, before fixing them with a cocky glare.

"Impudent rats, this is what you get for standing against us! My form from 600 years ago!" His nose extended and stabbed Black*Star in the shoulder; the shock of Mosquito's new body was canceled out by the sudden shock of pain, and he managed to avoid a more serious wound. Tsubaki was worried about them; they had fought Mosquito before, but that was with Soul channeling their wavelengths while they group resonated.

Black*Star and Kid had tried to resonate without Maka, but their powerful wavelengths were completely unsyncable without a third party to link them. Now they had to face an ancient and powerful foe who was in the peak of his powers. Mosquito jumped into the air and activated his Police Stinger, circling above the canopy of the sparsely-wooded area before diving back down. Kid was shooting at him, but to no avail; he brought down his fists to shatter the Earth beneath the reaper's feet.

Kid managed to dodge, but Mosquito was faster; he smacked him out of midair and he hit Black*Star, sending both of them into a tree. Black*Star didn't even need to say anything; Tsubaki transformed into the enchanted sword. He rushed Mosquito, sending a shadow out to distract him before he landed a blow; his opponent grabbed Tsubaki with his bare hand, only for it to be pierced by the shadows. He released it and Black*Star spun around him, delivering a hit to the center of his back that was packed with his wavelength.

Mosquito grunted in displeasure, but was otherwise unaffected as he turned around and smacked Black*Star into the ground. He bounced up from the impact, and Mosquito beat him down; repeating the process again and again until the meister's blood stained his hand and the ground. He walked away from Black*Star, who was little more than a stain on the ground, to pursue Kid.

The reaper fired mercilessly at his opponent; Mosquito shrugged off the shots as he leisurely approached Kid.

"Why do you always insist on opposing us?" Mosquito grabbed Patti and threw her, before smacking Liz out of his other hand while the meister was still shocked. He grabbed Kid by the throat, staring into his golden eyes.

"Because... You're trying... To hurt people." Kid struggled against the tightening grip, feeling one of the nerves in his neck pop; his arm tingled before going numb. Thankfully, Mosquito discarded him - though he crashed into Black*Star, who was trying to stand back up. The two meisters were tangled together, Kid's head whipping around in search of his weapons. Mosquito was coming again; Tsubaki transformed into a kusarigama just in time for Black*Star to block the stinger pointed for his heart.

He pushed Mosquito back before launching at him; he began to perform his Trap Star, Tsubaki's chains wrapping around Mosquito tightly. He gave them a pull, aiming to kill Mosquito, only to realize he had escaped. He heard Liz and Patti sound off, hitting something that seemed to be close to him; he blindly rolled out of the way, Mosquito destroying the ground he had just occupied.

"Kid, what're you gonna do? None of our attacks seem to be working," Liz mumbled in vague irritation; Kid was very aware of the truth in her words. Black*Star seemed to be at the peak of his game, and he had been training recently as well; but here they were, struggling to keep up with an 800 year old vampire butler. His skin seemed too hard, and their attacks were too weak to even dent him-

Except for that one.

He barely remembered the attack, but the strain it put on him was enough to make it real. When they had fought Asura, the kishin had apparently killed him; only for the Lines of Sanzu to activate and exponentially up his powers. It had damaged Asura greatly; enough for Maka to be able to destroy him later. If he could pull it off, then there was no doubt about it; Mosquito would fall before it.

The question he couldn't answer, however, was how could he activate such a power without being killed? He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't see Mosquito come up behind him; he wrapped his hands around the reaper's middle, lifting Kid into the air and squeezing. His fingers dug into the flesh, pushing the bones to their breaking point. They slowly began to snap, and after the second rib broke, he screamed.

Black*Star was there in an instant, shadows piercing Mosquito's neck and arm. The meister ripped Kid from his grasp before hopping away, leaving Mosquito trapped between the shadows and a tree.

"Black*Star, I have an idea but I need you to back me up."

"Yeah, right. In case you didn't notice, you're only here as my back up!" He said haughtily, posing and twirling Tsubaki around in his palm.

"I don't have time for this right now - just keep Mosquito busy while I prepare, and I'll... I'll come back you up." He had hesitated before deciding to allow Black*Star's ego to win this fight. They didn't need to waste time arguing; he didn't even know how to activate the Lines of Sanzu, but as long as Black*Star kept Mosquito busy, he would be alright.

He sat down in a meditative pose, his weapons held tightly in his hands. Kid drew in a deep breath, focusing on Liz and Patti's souls-

He didn't have the time to scream, but he had time to examine the severity of the wound. Mosquito had ripped a hole through his side; it was about a foot in diameter, almost touching the his navel. Mosquito laughed heartily somewhere behind him, and he was still staring down at his own insides when Patti and Black*Star started yelling at him. He fell to his knees, sweat forming on his forehead. His entire body was numb - he wasn't sure if it was from the pain, or if it was him dying.

Liz and Patti were still in his hands, their wavelengths erratic and terrified; or was that him? His back hit the ground and he bled there, trying to find Mosquito and Black*Star amidst the encroaching darkness. They were engaged only a few feet away, Black*Star wrapping his kusarigama chains around his extended stinger.

"Kid, get up!" The reaper only closed his eyes, and Black*Star could swear he heard his heart stop. Mosquito retracted the stinger and instead kicked the meister in his side, landing him a few feet away from Kid. He looked at his friend's wound and reached out to try and punch him, to wake him back up-

The blast was so loud, he almost didn't hear it; but he felt every inch of it, digging Tsubaki into the ground so they wouldn't be blown away. The wound on his side was now cloaked in shadows, and his body began to rise in an unnatural way; Black*Star couldn't help but feel vaguely unnerved by Kid's sudden display of power as he and Tsubaki struggled to hold on to something, anything - Mosquito was approaching him rapidly, and without a thought he pushed off of the ground hard, hopping over the attack.

"Yahoo! You just keep getting slower and slower old man!" Mosquito rolled his eyes before attacking the meister again, giving him little time between his stinger and his fists. Black*Star caught a glimpse behind Mosquito and watched Kid's wound finish healing, and his Lines of Sanzu connected. Liz and Patti transformed into two large, gold cannons; he recalled them from their battle with Asura. He parried Mosquito's stinger and rolled out of the way, running behind Kid as the cannons fired and their opponent was caught in the blast.

As the dust began to settle, they were almost surprised to see the only thing left of Mosquito was his top hat and a smudge on the ground. The Lines faded from his hair, the bottom one fully connected still. Kid felt weak, but the enemy was taken care of. Now they just had to go and help Crona-

His body went cold and an impending sense of doom filled him. Had he truly forgotten this important task? He fell to his knees, Liz questioning his sudden distress.

"I think I forgot to fold the toilet paper into a triangle...!" His hands were gripping his face and he took a fetal position, slamming his fist into the ground and crying out, almost painfully, that he couldn't remember and thus, was garbage. His weapons transformed back and tried to comfort their meister, only to find he was inconsolable.

Black*Star tapped his foot impatiently before huffing at Kid and turning his back.

"Let's go meet up with Crona, who cares about some toilet paper?" He glanced over his shoulder only to find a very neat paper crane resting there. He blinked in confusion before carefully unfolding it; Kid had left him a note saying he had to go home right at that instant to check on the toilet paper situation, and that he was sure Black*Star had this handled.

Man, he hated that guy sometimes.