Whether Espio's thoughts were getting through again or the boy had come to the same decision, it didn't matter -- he released the man's arm like it was on fire, stumbling backwards and falling on his butt. The deletion stopped the moment the hand was removed, but the wound was still there, and immediately began to bleed heavily. The scientist clapped a gloved hand over the affected part of his arm, now yelling in pain himself while another panicked and a third rushed into the red-roofed building.

"I-I --" Okay, his voice still worked, but was cracked. "I didn't... I..."

The scientist simply stared at him, before starting to back away quickly, yelling something behind him. The boy heard it something like 'harghadhg.'

But the meaning was clear enough, and he scrabbled on all fours, seeing but apparently not registering that even the ground was deleting wherever he touched it; it was only once he hauled himself up on a building that he realized he was deleting part of the building as well.

Which was replied with another scream and falling over himself.