[center][h3][color=C0392B]Rudolf Sagramore[/color][/h3][/center]

His first warning was the blur, sailing in from the edge of perception. The next, a quarter-breath later, was the plume of sand kicked up at the screaming warrior's feet, didn't even have time to register before the third, the final, was sent. His skittish demeanor notwithstanding, the danger sense every swordsman shared was for him usually a stern command, a whisper in the lull.

[color=c0392b][i]"Himstus—"

So sharp the air sings— Masterwork— Crashing in from above— FA[b]ST! MOVE! MOVEMOVEMOVEMOVE![/b][/i][/color]

Today, it [i]roared[/i], drowning out all else. Frozen lightning burned through him in filaments that wiped his concerns from afar clean. No time to think any more, else he split in two—!

Steel bit deep as he, miraculously, brought the cross of his twin swords high in the nick of time, meeting the thunderbolt with impact that, even in the soft sand, rattled him all the way down to the teeth. What immense force! Forget dropping the armor for the heat, even in full gear that thing would have torn right through him!

They broke. He gave space, kicking up a plume of sand to cover his retreat, hope to catch the eyes beneath the helm, but the initiative was already the Revenant's. He heard the crimson blade slicing through the air again—

[color=#736AFF][i][b]”Begin.”[/b][/i][/color]

And the image of Izayoi snapped through his mind, shifting his guard before even his own reactions might have managed. Sure enough, another overhead strike slammed home, this time from another angle, this time hard enough to force him away. What was that? Luck? Premonition? Precognition? No, all too slow.

He took a swipe where things felt most natural, knowing he was dead if he didn't offer some kind of threat in response, if he didn't fight to get off the back foot. He'd crumple if he kept letting the swings come unanswered, first at the positioning, then at his defenses, and then finally his bones. A mid-line cut came out, a wide arc drawn through the air in the hemisphere he faced, little more then bearish, desperate swinging. The thing caught it upon a heavy gauntlet, checking Rudolf's attempt to press in behind—

And then blurred away before he could follow through, wheeling off to accost one of the others almost too fast for the eyes.

He'd seen that opening, but far less tight than he could exploit. He'd seen that opening, but only because his body had known it would be there. He'd seen that opening... well before now, hadn't he? Studied it, and turned it over tirelessly.

He looked down with the instant he had, grip white-knuckled upon the hilt of either sword, and shaking. either reverb from the force, or from the fear... not that it mattered which. Much more concerning was the end result of slamming his workhorse steel into Kugane's magnum opus (it had to be that to draw Izayoi's reaction, he reasoned) with all the power his mortal terror had drawn from him. Hairlines along the length caught the sun, hard gouges in the edge of the ricasso drew far too close to the most important areas of the blade for his liking. He'd felt them creak beneath the strikes they'd endured.

Much more of this, and they were gonna be toast. Resorting to a blade that cut nothing would be his only recourse—

Thunder and gunpowder cracked, and the young man forced the rest of the thought back into the pit where it belonged, as he kicked off the sand to strafe, regroup, and importantly get clear of all the ordinance headed their foes' way. This took him in a quarter circuit that culminated, roughly, nearby Robin and Miina.

[color=c0392b]"Izayoi,"[/color] he barked, before stopping a moment to draw in two, then three ragged breaths. He eyed his fellow youngsters, their builds, what he knew of their combined skillset as a trio... Then, he snapped his ideas off like bullets from Eliane's gun. [color=c0392b]"That thing's a big, strong, fast [i]Izayoi![/i] While they've got him reeling— Robin, you think you can up the tempo on the openings you forced out of her that spar?"[/color]

He drew low, ready to set off again at a moment's notice, fighting stance returned to his frame. He had to admit. He had no idea of how well this set of three they made worked, but he could at least play off of Robin decently as swordsmen if the breakout proved anything. That was [i]something[/i]. If they got out of this one alive, he had to change it for the better.

[color=c0392b]"We gotta keep pressure on him once they're clear! If we pincer, Miina can come up the center from below!"[/color]

Precious moments separated them from throwing back into the fray with their peers. If they [i]all[/i] dove in now, the Kirins would crowd themselves out in melee, and cripple Elly and Eve's ability to pound the thing from afar with their wider areas of effect. Staggering the assault would alleviate that. If he could use this time to slap together some structure to their approach, if the other two were on board, then maybe...

The sand was beginning to clear. Now or never!