[3rd/8th/9th/11th][Closed] Week --: To the Wire, To the Limit, To the Soul

[too_lazy]

To the Wire, To the Limit, to the Soul​

Cast (In order of appearance):
[9th] Fiona Kincade
[8th] Katsuji Ishin
[9th] Noboru Sho
[9th] Ryuku Keiji
[11th] Seraf Moichi​

***Occurs directly following the Verus Deus Ex Machina collab.***​

________________________​

Thousands of feet in the sky, soaring through a near endless expanse of clear blue, were the pair of cannonballs hurtled from the Ninth Division. Nothing but the howl of wind cried as the spheres ripped through the air at breakneck speeds, one of the traveling orbs particularly silent.

Instead of enjoying her first chance at flight in Soul Society, Fiona Kincade had nearly exhausted herself supplying enough Kidouryoku necessary to complete the second incantation in their mode of travel; her skills in the Demon Arts were considered mediocre at best in comparison to the rest of her abilities. Thusly did she have some difficulty in maintaining the speed in which the cannonball traveled, along with steadying their course. Beads of sweat gathered at her brow, but with the hood of her cowl on and her head hung low she avoided the direct stares of her teammates and dared not distract them in keeping the entirety of their transport intact.

Currently they were all stabilizing their shell; giving Fiona the time to somewhat relax seeing as how basic Reiatsu manipulation was far less complex than casting Kidou. Although she wanted to congratulate her comrades on a job well done so far, her mouth was puckered tight regardless and she could only harbor ill will towards her Captain for making her do such a thing like this. Shying her head to the side, the ashen haired valkyrie could only think of throttling Saika once this mission was completed...

But out the corner of her eye she saw it.

Their destination, at first appearing to be a black grain of sand in the sea of azure became larger and larger with each passing moment. Her deep orange irises opened wider in accordance; a slight gasp could only be heard muttering from her pale and full lips.

An ebony mass revealed its true form, contorting and twisting, ultimately displaying a sight that would transcend the traditional rationale of the Arcane Sciences. Not quite alive, not quite dead, she could discern the near countless splaying digits of hands and deformed limbs, faces of agony, faces of pain, faces of pleasure, faces in limbo all writhing in this floating mass, held together by pieces of scrap metal and the like. All sorts of luminescence flashed and swirled about this living ship in a hypnotic and mesmerizing show, almost masking the horror of its entirety.

The all too familiar voice of her Captain buzzing in Fiona's ear piece interrupted her ingestion of the scenery, and she was at least grateful for that. Before she would answer she directed some focus to her group. She eyed the others sternly, a tone of importance clear and resounding in her voice.

“I want you all to remain calm. Focus on the barrier. If you don't we die.”

Taking one of her multiple limbs she pressed it tightly against her ear before continuing, “Yes I see it, Saika-Taichou... It's almost unbelieva-”

Without warning all the shocks of light that were once swarming freely about the... ship now poured their brightness upon the cannonballs, nearly blinding the group in a multicolor haze. Despite the howl of wind raging about their speeding transport, another cry wailed from beyond- the moaning of human voices.

“Keep it together!” barked Kincade. “Focus-”

The only color now was crimson surrounding them. A magnanimous pulse of Reiatsu flooded the skies, as the aerial mass began to shower the sky in radiant and dangerous beams of Cero. Indiscriminately they blasted, quaking the very air, sporadic yet firing from set points upon it. A large gulp issued from the only female in their group; considering their trajectory and the speed involved, it seemed that any moment they could head straight into one of the beams of this relentless bombardment.

“Steady... Steady! We can make it!” Fiona shouted, assuring both herself and her teammates that everything would be all right.

Though with each passing second as they neared their location, it felt like the next could be their last. Closer and closer the tremors shook their sphere, rattling his potentially fragile shell and threatening to rip it into shreds. Everything was bathed in red, and the only thing she could do about it was keep her hands steady in place, trying her best to concentrate upon holding their craft still in a veritable minefield of destructive Reiatsu.

“Almost... there...!” the goal drew agonizingly near, so near that she wanted to grab a hold of it. Until she saw it; they all saw it, but had no control over their fate. What was once a pin prick from not so far away was a mammoth channel threatening to swallow them whole.

A Cero beam clipped the side of their barrier, instantly eroding that particular flank of its encasing.


[ 802 ]

 

[IshinOnigami]

This was hard.

That was the only thing Ishin could think as he adjusted his reiatsu to match that of the other people inside the sphere. They were flying through the air faster and higher than Ishin had ever been before. After the shock of the initial takeoff, he had stabilized himself and focused on maintaining the integrity of the field around them. He didn't know what would happen if it failed, and he really didn't feel like being some sort of guinea pig.

After a few moments, Ishin noticed that Fiona was looking up, her mouth seeming to drop open. She was still controlling her output, but Ishin was curious as to what was up ahead of them that had her so enraptured. He looked and his eyes got caught. His mouth very nearly emulated Fiona's.

Ishin had his eyes on the speck of black since it had first come into view. It was strange, almost hypnotic. It seemed to keep his mind off of the bumping. That was, until, he finally could make out what he saw. The myriad faces that seemed to almost swim across the surface were of different emotions, but for the most part were of a nightmarish quality. Ishin felt like if he stared too long he would never be able to look away, yet at the same time he also felt that if he looked away he would be losing something irreplaceable.

What finally shook him from his daydream were the crimson bolts of Cero blasts lancing around them. Ishin saw Fiona's beautiful orange eyes widen, with almost a hint of fear, and he could tell that this had not been part of the plan. He could hear her muttering under her breath, could feel her desperation as they neared the target.

He could also sense the shock as a Cero ripped through the barrier right underneath his feat.

Suddenly, Ishin was sent flying through the air. He was hurtling along at breakneck speeds, unable to control where he was going. Cero blasts seemed to miss him by mere inches, screaming by as he was thrown towards the target zone. He looked around and noticed that the others were all fairly close to him. Maybe, if he stretched everything to the limit.....

He decided it was worth a shot. Reaching down, using every ounce of strength to fight against the air current flowing past him, Ishin drew his sword. He could just barely make out the words that escaped his mouth when he uttered the release phase.

“Crush, Fuyutsuki!”

The axe seemed to skip the spinning phase that it usually went through. Perhaps Fuyutsuki could tel that they were currently in a very serious life or death situation. Perhaps he had just gotten past that part. He didn't know and either way didn't care. Closing his eyes, he concentrated on finding each of the people that had been in the barrier. There was Fiona. She had the strongest signature. Next he found Seraf, then Sho, and finally Keiji. He couldn't tell them what was about to happen, so he just had to hope they would know it was him.

He waited a few more seconds, allowing them all to get underneath the range of the Cero blasts. When they finally stopped screaming past, Ishin activated the effect of his Kai. He hoped this would work.

Almost instantly, Ishin felt the effects on him. His pace slowed, though he was still going incredibly fast. He opened his eyes, extending the field to the maximum he could sustain. If he stretched out to the very limit of his ability he could just barely get them all inside. When he felt the last of them in his sphere of influence he extended the ability to be effective on them. At least, that was the idea.

Ishin watched, intently willing for it to work. He held his breath for a split second, the ground of the target zone getting ever closer. He almost shouted for joy when he saw the others start to slow down. He gradually but surely increased the effect until they were hardly falling at all. In fact, if one had to venture to describe it, the word that would best be used would be floating.

Seconds later, Ishin's feet hit the ground. He looked around, noted that everyone was okay, then breathed a sigh of relief.

“Well, I'll tell you what. The first part was a ten for fun, but the second part couldn't have been more than a three. That landing was nice though, eh?”

Ishin suddenly felt a little light headed. Using the ability like that made him consume a large amount of reiatsu. He sat down and waited for the others to regain their composure before they started out again.

One thing was certain in Ishin's mind. After a start like that, he knew that this would not be a dull mission.

[824]

 

[PeaCe]

It was slightly disappointing to say the least, or to be more accurate, it was fantastic, although Sho had expected a much more unstable atmosphere within the shell they were using to travel; alas, it was not to be. Comfortably blasting out of the cannon, Fiona was the senior within this shell as their shell diligently followed the other shell containing within it the three Captains – one of which was Sho’s own.

What was just as fantastic as he had anticipated however, was the scenery. Whilst still keeping his reiatsu output stable, the Ninth Division member took several glances around, watching as everything grew smaller and smaller. The sheer size of Soul Society frightened him, while the numbers were impressive within a book, nothing beat flying thirty-thousand feet into the air and still not being able to see where one end met the other.

The height itself began to frighten him, but not as much as he supposed it should have. Thinking on this for a moment, the researcher deduced that he would be more scared if he were stationary within the air and freaking out if he were heading down, Sho guessed that the sensation of moving up removed some of the danger from his mind and he relaxed a little, returning his gaze to the group within the shell.

Glancing around, he noticed everyone was at the very least, the slightest bit worried, even Fiona looked slightly nervous – but Sho did concede that she hid it well under the pressure of being the main one keeping all of them in the air. It was at that point some glancing went on between her and the Captain and Sho guessed that something was going on. When the group began to all turn their heads to face upwards, Sho decided it must be highly interesting and he himself looked up.

He almost lost concentration in sheer fright. What had once been a sheer black dot in the sky – something he’d long seen and overlooked without much care, whilst still knowing it was their intended destination – this “dot” within the sky was now a monolithic structure; only it wasn’t quite a structure at all.

What was that thing? Was it some sort of Hollow? That seemed like the most likely explanation, and despite his shock, Sho intently focused his glasses on the beast and he began to record footage in the hopes of studying it further later; hopefully his experience on this mission would grant him access into the team that would inevitably be asked to study it, something this exciting would be given the utmost of attention with the research and development division.

Saika began to converse with Fiona and Sho sensed something was going wrong. It was then he realised that his hypothesis was correct, this was a hollow – or perhaps, many hollows? It wasn’t exactly something he cared so much about at this point, what he did care about was the crimson red blasts shooting from the foul beast.

This was Cero he observed keenly, recognising the attack from his studies; he wasn’t happy to see it in action though – something not characteristic of Sho – rather, he was more interested in praying for all of the attacks to miraculously miss.

He felt a surge of reiatsu and the Captain’s shell began to swerve from side to side, dodging the Cero attacks, no doubt Saika or one of the other Captains was responsible for it, but before Sho could even reflect on how they might possibly be able to do it, his glasses brought to his attention a bright red blast that clipped at the side of the Shell. Before Sho even had time to cry in despair, a second blast connected and together they had completely obliterated the Shell.

Sho attempted to grab for his Hecate but the sheer speed he was being flung around disabled him from being successful and he silently prayed for a miracle. From the corner of his eye he saw Ishin release and what happened next was a blur to him.

Finally regaining some sense of where he was, Sho stood up, now on solid ground – if it could be called that – and looked at the group, all thankfully safe. “Nice work,” he muttered, staring at Ishin, “Quick thinking, saved us all. Works well under pressure, I feel all the more reassured now.” As if Sho was in any place to judge, but nevertheless, he raised his hand as a sign of gratitude and raised his thumb, grinning.

[755]

 

[The Liar]

653​

Flying through the air, inside a protective cage fueled by the collective reiatsu of four different shinigami was something so very amazing that the fact he wouldn’t be seeing Daedalus was almost livable. Yes, he was quite disappointed, although he was excited nonetheless for what was left of the current mission. His hands were occupied and thusly he couldn’t use his Athena to take more copious notes—he felt that a video feed just wasn’t enough for the current situation. Keiji took in a breath, prepared to proclaim his excitement and wish the group luck with dealing with the threat while he did his best to monitor from the back.

“Gwah!”

A bright flash flooded his eyes, and Keiji hardly had enough time to diagnose it before a massive surge of reiatsu came into contact with his senses. Keiji furrowed his brow as he concentrated on locking his concentration on the sphere his hands were locked onto, doing his best to keep his body from quaking too terribly with fear. Cero was an amazing thing for him to witness, but this was far too close for his comfort—if one came too close, the entire vessel could be expunged. Then as if by magic a cero blast obliterated part of the vessel, causing all of those aboard to begin freefalling. Flying through the air, staring down the volley of Cero blasts, Keiji couldn’t help but momentarily give up his heightened intelligence and crack open his mouth.

“WAAAAAAAAARRGGH”

Keiji ran out of breath, which was probably for the best; he knew for a fact that seeing a genius lose his cool was cause for panic. Just as he started reaching for his Hecate tool—only to find himself being lifted by some invisible force. He looked over, and none other than Katsuji Ishin had released his zanpakutou and was using his gravity-manipulating ability to save their tails. Keiji heaved out a sigh of relief when he touched the ground, safe and alive. After looking around and noting that everybody else was alive and well, he let himself fall right onto his bottom and try to relax. A several-thousand foot fall, safely-landed or not, was quite a stressful thing. Keiji hiccupped and “accidentally” started to laugh when he realized he had captured it all on his Prometheus cameras.

“Well.”

Keiji trailed off, rubbing his spinning head before managing to stand up on both feet. Taking in a breath, he forced his consciousness to take control of his quaking body long enough for him to speak.

“Katsuji Ishin, that was an impressive display of force! Us Junior shinigami can only hope we’ll develop the foresight and ability to avoid catastrophe in a desperate situation to the degree that you have!”

With a grin, he swiveled his head to get a better look at the others. Fiona, Sho, and Ishin were obviously okay—but he wondered how this could have happened. There were no hollows (that he could see) in the immediate area, and the fact that there were several Cero beams meant that there were several very powerful and very informed Hollows. Connecting this with the technopathic zanpakutou was impossible, unless he was an extremely powerful Vizard—which was impossible still, because the trajectories of the blasts meant several points of origin, and so numerous enemies had to be a given. Quickly, Keiji pulled out his Athena tool and began typing furiously. Drake and Daxis could surely provide help with this situation; namely, looking for any evidence of Hollows invading the Seireitei, or if they could possibly identify anything from the footage he had recorded. After sending the message off, Keiji put it away and rubbed his eyes wearily. The day had been extremely entertaining and groundbreaking; literally; so far, and yet, he could still imagine how interesting their prospective enemy would be, even despite the chance of there being an overwhelming force up against them.

 

[Shapeshifter]

It was a magnificent feeling, hurtling through the air at a ferocious speed, and yet continuing to increase in velocity all the same. It must have been one extensive kidou that Fiona was sustaining and the concentration also needed to sustain the barrier was straining. Seraf’s small skill in reiatsu manipulation was being tested and strained and overused to the point of breaking. He wasn’t sure how much longer it would have been possible to hold it. It was movement in the orb that brought Seraf out of his distracting daydream, he had been imagining himself as a bird of prey soaring through the skies and wondered if this is what they felt as they flew…he somehow doubted it.

It appeared that something had caught everyone’s attention, and it was an appalling sight to behold indeed. The faces, if that’s what he could call them were moving and swaying in a nauseating way and it seemed as if the whole floating monstrosity was alive and teeming with malice. He wasn’t sure about the alive part but it seemed full of malice was spot on as the first cero blast came into sight and missed them by only a few inches.

He knew he should have been worried for their lives yet this was his first experience with a cero and he could not help but be awed by the sheer force and mobility of the thing. Concentrating on the little ball was becoming too hard and Seraf was sure that he would give in at any moment, but it seemed that the encouragement of Fiona backed with the fact of certain death, he managed to hold on to that thread and continue to match the others, that was until the ball started moving and jerking around, he lost his footing and fell to one knee, it saved his life as the cero blasted through the side of their ball and past right were the top portion of his body should have been. The realization of that fact and the shock that should have came with it were pushed to the side as he began to hurtle through the air, buffered and blasted by the raging air currents.

“Crap, I take it all back, forget flying, I am staying planted on the firm ground no matter what! I hate being in the air!”

Ha! You do seem to have some problems with flying Seraf, take for instance your original death… The snicker that floated through his mind was infuriating, here they were about to die and Raijū was bringing up his first death by plane, it was just plain insensitive…really.

“How on earth can you joke at a time like this? If I die so do you…err right?”

Pay attention and you might notice that we are not finished just yet. And indeed they were not, for a force had latched onto Seraf with a mighty grip if slightly strained and the velocity of his falling decreased significantly until he stopped altogether. Feet planted firmly he felt instantly more at ease. His smile came back along with his self assurance. He turned to Ishin, for he was the only one who could have done such a thing, his Zanpakutou was certainly amazing, and who would have thought it could extend to such a wide range.

He patted the man on the back and let out a sigh, “Man that was a close one huh. You saved our asses and for that I can’t thank you enough. You are pretty amazing! Anyways, enough of that admiration drivel, lets get started! So…Fiona, what’s next?”

[601]

 

[too_lazy]

Instead of answering Seraf right away or praising the talents of Ishin, Fiona seemingly disappeared from the group. For looming behind the squad was an enlarged black hand, its powerful claws larger than their bodies, and it sought to rip apart each and every one of them after having been spared from a second death.

With a low grunt the ashen valkyrie reemerged behind this monstrous palm, wrapping the multitude of her arms about a single digit- the middle finger- and tearing it from the socket in a feat of herculean strength. She was angry that she couldn't properly fulfill her duty.

Swinging the clawed finger at the pointer, she aimed the tree trunk like weapon's edge at the other's lower knuckle, shearing it off in a blur of ebony. She was angry that she couldn't have saved them all at the right moment, and had to rely on a lower seated officer than her to save her.

Spinning around in a full circle, she let go of the finger, letting the momentum hurtle the digit at the ring finger. The clawed middle finger lanced itself into the ring's middle knuckle in a bone crunching snap. She was angry that she lacked the necessary talents in Kidou and that was why they were in this current predicament.

A bright arc of steel flowed down the middle of the hand, splitting it in twain. Fiona following suit in the wake of the rent palm, guiding her Zanpakutou all the way down in a scream of rage- her cries just as loud as the bellowing howls of faces beside them. While the halves of a whole collapsed in a ground-quaking force she sheathed her blade, panting lightly. That was a good way to get off frustrations as their threat was taken care of in a matter of eye blinking moments.

"I'd say thanks but I think we're even now," grumbled the woman as she recapped the hood of her cowl over her head. With her thoughts becoming clearer she kept at her task at hand and unveiled an Athena. She ripped off a piece of the split hand before her and placed it into her device for analysis.

While the readouts were loading Saika chimed in to her communicational ear piece, demanding a status report. How Fiona wanted to kill that man right now... but deep down she knew that this call was more so out of concern then of protocol.

"All present members alive and accounted for," she barked back with a light grin on her face. "We landed... relatively fine and encountered resistance from one of those hands, but for now, we're in the clear."

Rakushun answered back, adding his own egotistical comment.

"Yes, I just did take a sample..." her dark orange irises widened at the technological development she was now standing upon and having just thrashed. Nanotechnology was interwoven throughout the Menos; machinery had been programmed to act as if they were cells and working parts of the spiritual composition of the body. Meanwhile her Captain issued her a new set of orders, one that she figured made perfect sense after having just realized what this floating construct was.

"Understood."

Saika wanted additional status reports on her mission, but that was a given. He always secretly worried about his subordinates but masked it with a sense of duty.

"Roger. Over and out."

Fiona turned to this group of relative newbies, the back of her mind wondering if splitting off from them would be such a good idea. The inkling of doubt meant nothing when there was a chance they would all crash land into Seireitei or Rukongai after having successfully completed their mission though.

"You're the highest seated officer out of the others, correct?" she pointed at Ishin, but didn't bother for a response.

The valkyrie continued, "I'm leaving you in command of our crew. I've received a new set of orders from Saika-Taichou; this... thing we're standing on is multiple Menos grafted together, as you probably surmised. However, a great deal of it is maintained by technology. This means that there must be a CPU to this mass... and I'm to personally hack into it to ensure a safe landing."

"You are all to resume your mission..." her head swiveled about the landscape. "Given the fact that there are no real entrances, bust in through one of those face's mouths. Since the Captains and I will be entering in separate places, we should provide an adequate distraction from the majority of forces while you slip in a side entrance on the outskirts of this construct."

Nodding to her comrades she gave a light smile.

"I'll keep contact with you guys though. Ryuku-kun, Noboru-kun, keep an ear out for your Athena." Fiona disappeared yet again, this time for good- her voice lingering in the air while the others were left standing upon the skin of multiple Menos Grande weaved with biotechnology.

"Good luck."


[ 839 / 1,641 ]


-Fiona's out of the collab for now. Write on without me guys; I trust your judgment in handling this. I'll randomly post in here like she said she would though... but for the most part just write on. Sorry for the wait. ^^;

 

[IshinOnigami]

Ishin looked up and watched as Fiona handled the Menos, single handedly taking out the enormous appendage. It was like watching a dance. She was definitely a strong person, and the fire in her eyes only made him more attracted to her. When she landed, her hair billowing from the speed with which she had just moved, Ishin couldn't help but have his breath catch in his mouth. She was something else.

When she addressed him, Ishin just shrugged and started to stand up. There was only one thing going through his mind. Well, two to be exact. The first was the thought that he was glad that she was on his side, with an added note to ensure that it stayed that way. She was definitely not someone he wanted mad at him.

The second, well, it wasn't a very appropriate thought to have about a superior.

When he got fully vertical, he saw that she was using her communicator, probably to talk with Saika-Taichou. She picked up one of the fingers and pressed it against the Athena device that she always used, then put her finger to her ear. He couldn't hear the conversation, she was too far away. Then, he got the shock of his career.

She put him in charge.

Before he could protest, she used Shunpo and was gone. He watched where she had been just moments before. Things were getting annoying, and they were doing so rather quickly.

Ishin shook his head, resigning himself to being in charge of them all. As a tenth seat, it was his job to keep this bunch of unseated officers alive until they finished the mission. He turned to them and addressed them all.

"Well, it looks like we are on our own. I would much prefer not to be in charge, but I don't have much choice it appears. Anyway, we have to start moving, or we will get into some serious trouble. Keiji, I want you and Sho to have your Athena's on at all times. I don't want to risk missing any important communications. Once we start moving, we won't stop until we find the target. Well then, lets get a move on. I want to wrap this up as soon as possible."

Through the mouth? Easy for her to say. She could probably handle one of those Cero blasts. None of us would be able to. Then, he thought of an idea. If he could create a hole in the roof of the training room with his meteors, why wouldn't it work with this? Maybe he could rip through and they wouldn't have top worry about the Cero.

Ishin unsheathed and released Fuyutsuki for the second time in less than twenty minutes. This time, though, he didn't have to expend as much energy on this ability, so he wouldn't get tired from using it.

Ishin held his axe into the air, starting the motion that would create the meteors. Pulling the axe down, he brought forth three meteors, all hurtling at the nearest exposed head. The meteors crashed through the back of the head, creating a large hole in the process. Once this was done, he resheathed his weapon, and walked over to the hole.

It seemed to bleed darkness, but it was a hole they could all fit through. Ishin decided that since he was in charge, not to mention the strongest of the current group, he should head in first. He turned to the others.

"Here is the plan. I am going to enter, then Keiji, then Sho. Seraf, you will enter last. Make sure that nothing sneaks up behind us. When I get down there, I will signal for the rest of you to come down."

With that said, he turned and jumped through the hole. When he landed, it was on a cold steel floor. There was a soft light throughout the corridor, for that is what it was, a corridor. Other than the fact that he couldn't tell where the light was coming from, it seemed like a normal hallway. He checked both sides, then called up to the rest of them.

"Alright, let's go. Get down here."

[701/1525]

 

[Eidolon]

The red illumination from the warning lights cast a dark shadow across the visage of Hiroshi, his brow furrowing deeply. Casually turning his chair from the monitor he had been studying, the thin man swiveled ninety degrees to his left and pressed a few buttons on the keyboard in front of the monitor. The furrow in his brow lifted as the images from the monitor reached his eyes and reflected off his glasses.

“Oh really, a group of shinigami attacking us here,” he declared aloud. Hiroshi leaned forward and pushed the glasses on his brow higher before flicking several switches. As each was moved, a monitor suddenly came to life with a large stream of text flowing by. It was the text that captivated the pale-skinned man.

So, their power levels are not high at all. What the hell are these shinigami doing attacking my beautiful fortress? Even as he pondered the actions of the invading force he witnessed an act that caused his jaw to drop, leaving him staring at the monitor with a expression of disbelief. “You . . YOU!” Hiroshi exclaimed while pointing an accusing finger at the monitor. Rising to his feet and puffing out his chest, he called out “You are breaking my precious machine! I shall summon forth my . . .”

However, his epic speech was cut short when his hand went down to his side and found no hilt to grab on to. Emitting a soft sigh, the Hiroshi slumped back down into his chair and placed his hands back behind his head, sighing. Yes of course, my precious blade is busy holding the rest of the shinigami away from the Master’s interest. This leaves me with but one choice.

Quickly, the man sprang to action, his familiarity with the controls around his large desk apparent in the decisive strokes his hands made as he first compiled then executed his plan. “You simple shinigami, you shall follow my proffered path and come right to me, where you shall see how prepared I am to deal with infiltrators such as you. And you will not harm my precious station!”

For now, he was content to watch their progress, when they were given a choice, he would simply open the appropriate door for them. Hiroshi was certain their arrogance would leave them to believe their operatives were providing assistance. Truly, these shinigami were no match for his skill. And for dispatching them without allowing collateral damage to his precious station, the master would reward him significantly.

Still, it couldn’t hurt to observe their battle tactics and determine what might be the best course of action to take against them. Grabbing the communicator from inside a drawer, Hiroshi placed it to his ear and connected to the appropriate receiver. “This is Hiroshi. The intruders are attempting to breach in sector seven, quadrant gamma. Dispatch an intercept team immediately. I will be watching their progress, leave their fate in my hands.”

An acceptable “yes sir” came through the other end and Hiroshi closed the connection. Now, he could watch them perform for his pleasure before he drew them to his lair for the kill. It was just like when he played those games with humans. They were always the prey, and he was always the predator. This was a battlefield where his mental acumen would allow him to triumph utterly.

wc: 564

 

[Shapeshifter]

Seraf was glad that the senior officer was in charge, he had proved himself a capable man who had quite a few tricks up his sleeve and a good bit of battle experience as well. He would trust Ishin until he had reason to otherwise.

The smell emanating from the hole was rather horrendous, still sizzling flesh along with the exposed interior of the "ship" tended to create a very unpleasant combination of smells, nauseating in fact. Seraf had to focus on keeping his stomach from heaving its contents all over the floor as he neared the hole. His eyes never rested in one place for long, if he was to bring up the rear then he would do a good job, he exposed his blade just enough for a glint of sunlight to reflect off of it.

The hole in the menos head was starting to close up, a soft hiss as flesh began to knit and connect itself together. “Damn, high speed regeneration is a bitch.” He looked to Keji and Sho who seemed to be rooted to their spot and felt a prick of irritation.
“Alright guys, move your asses!” A slight widening of eyes and an increasing shadow alerted Seraf to the giant hand that was coming down with immense force. With a swift and practiced motion he had his sword completely unsheathed and had it up to avoid being crushed. The immense force behind the thing, the power, it was almost overwhelming, Seraf had never fought a menos before and in all common sense had never planned on it until he was at a much higher level, if this hand was enough to strain his strength, he knew that against a fully fledged menos he would surely fall.

With a grunt and tremendous effort on his part he managed to push back the hand, adding a horizontal gash in the tough skin. Seraf could only imagine the strength Fiona possessed to so easily take care of such a thing, perhaps she could even take out a menos all on her own. It was an interesting prospect; a sparring match against her could be fun, or probably humiliating. Angrily he shoved the thoughts aside; it was no time to lose himself to idol fancies. The hand was coming back again with increased speed and velocity; he wouldn’t be able to stop it this time so instead he used shunpo. As the hand crashed down it seemed as if Seraf had been crushed beneath and yet he appeared on top of the thing sword crashing down to split a finger down the middle.

The front of the menos head seemed to roar in rage, a red beam of immense energy gathering at the tip of its mouth, it fired uselessly in the air as it could not reach them with the cero yet it proved a point regardless. No time to bother with this. He turned back to see if the others had made it into the hole growing ever smaller and felt the irritation come back, Sho and Keji were watching as if it was some performance on display. “Now would be a good time to move!”

The hand started to fling in a furious wide arc, Seraf only just jumped off in time before the hand would have sent him flying, probably right off of the horrible floating mass of menos bodies. He was glad to see that the others had finally started moving.


[579/1174]

 

[PeaCe]

Irritating, what did Seraf think he was doing? Did he truly believe the two of them to be that weak? It was quite obvious that the two of them – or at least Sho assumed Ryuku was also doing as such – were taking some footage and making some notes on the structure they now resided on; study, did the eleventh division brute not understand it?

“Will you relax?” Sho asked, drawing his Zanpakutou, “I’m quite capable of defending myself. Don’t feel the need to jump at the chance to play a hero.” After all, Sho could feel the reiatsu within him, it was growing stronger at an impressive rate – by his standards, anyway – and the whispers regarding the name of his Zanpakutou had grown clearer since they had begun.

Keeping his Zanpakutou withdrawn and ready to counter attack against any surprises, Sho slowly made his way to the hole that Ishin had created and Seraf had been directing them too, but he made no attempt at rushing the process; if he was short of information because he’d rushed around and not taken his time closely recording and making mental notes, he’d have a hard time forgiving himself, let alone those that were responsible for his hole-filled research.

“I’m just taking some quick notes,” he assured his companion as he drew nearer to the hole and slowed himself down just a little more as he felt that he was approaching it just a little too fast, “If you could just hold on for a little longer.” This was perhaps some of the most interesting research and he was being rushed? No, no, he would not allow such a travesty, he would take all the time he needed, making sure that he got every tiny bit of detail. He hadn’t been this frustrated since his encounter with the Captain of the 12th Division, although that was on a whole other level. He’d take piles and piles of paperwork over heading back there ever again any day.

He had his doubts though, he’d already covered everything he could see and was sure that if Ryuku, Fiona and Saika-Taichou were also doing the same, any gaps that he had left would be appropriately filled. This was not the only factor affecting his decision to make haste though, in fact there were several. The most important one was the fact that the hole itself seemed to be closing up and he didn’t want to be left outside with all the danger and he would also never forgive himself if he did not complete the mission successfully or impeded it to the point that such a failure – or something of a similar equivalent – was reached; yes, a failure of the mission would haunt him much more than a missing piece of data preventing him from furthering his research ever would.

He struggled with his decision to abandon further recording for several seconds but reassured himself that there would be much more within for him to enjoy, “Ok, ok, I’m ready.” Sho rushed forward and slid into the hole, landing next to Ishin who he hoped had been waiting patiently, “Howdy.”

[523/1378]

 

[The Liar]

449​

Keiji’s mouth dropped open as he marveled at the gigantic Minus. He didn’t shake or quiver in fear, nor did he try to step back or forward. He was frozen in utter amazement, and he slowly reached for his Athena without moving his head. Keiji’s thumbs flew across the miniature keypad and began messaging Drake and Daxis. What he was seeing—it was so impossible that there was no way he could prove that it was actually happening without testimony from others. Just as Keiji realized that he would have to look down to see the response, an irate Fiona appeared on the Menos, and began to dispatch it. Keiji zoomed in to get a better view, and it was a simply astounding display of power and grace. His heart began beating quick enough that he could nearly hear it in his ears.

Yet, Keiji felt some degree of remorse; this seemed to be the pinnacle of the experience, aside from the approaching technopathic shinigami. Without a clipboard or more expansive analyzation equipment, Keiji was unable to fully appreciate what he was seeing. Until, of course, it was sliced right down the middle. Before anybody could say anything, Keiji would step closer to it after it had fallen, and look at the nanoscopic machines that existed within it. There, he was staring at the most impressive piece of machinery that had ever appeared before his eyes. His skin was crawling with excitement, breathing had increased exponentially, and his heart was ready to burst from his chest. Keiji couldn’t handle what he was seeing, but he had to move on. The order had come for them to enter through the mouth, but he had to get a sample—he pulled out his Hephaestus tool, turned the dial to a little analyzation/storage tool, and took a sample. This was going to affect the rest of the machines he’d make for the rest of his life.

“What?”

Keiji thought he heard something, and it was the silence that came when he was the last to leave. Snapping into motion, Keiji pocketed Hephaestus and leaped into the mouth.

“AAALLLGEEEBRRRAAAA”

With lack of something better to say, Keiji decided to yell the first thing that came to his mind, and this time it was math. As soon as he hit the bottom, he just spread a wide grin across his face to greet his fellows with.

“Heeey there comrades. Shall we proceed?”

Keiji felt that his staying back just to send the sample data back to Drake and Daxis might have caused his fellows to wait up for far too long, and he felt guilty. His wide grin was only slightly tinged with remorse.

 

[IshinOnigami]

Ishin nodded to Sho and Keiji, glad that the two ninth division people had made it down. It seemed as though Keiji was on his way, at least Ishin hoped so. He also hoped he could trust rearguard duty to Seraf. He had assumed he could handle it since he was from the eleventh, a very heavily combat oriented division.

Not that he thought they could hold a candle to the thirteenth. The sheer fact that the thirteenth was focused on the true core of a shinigami, the zanpakutou. Ishin doubted he would ever leave the division he called his own.

Turning to look down the tunnel, Ishin had an odd feeling that they were being watched. He scanned the corridor, looking to see if there was anyone there. When he didn't see anything, he shrugged off the feeling. No doubt it was because he was inside a Menos Grande. Sort of anyway. He turned back to Sho.

“Stay here and wait for Seraf to come down. Hopefully he shouldn't be too long. I am gonna go scout ahead. I won't be father than three hundred meters away at any one time, so if you need me, just yell.”

He felt a little bad about chastising him like a child, but with the ninth you could never be sure. Sometimes it seemed like they were more interested in taking notes and observing than in getting the job done. Ishin had seen it first hand when he had worked with Keiji as an instructor at the ninth division headquarters. It had been a maze of passages, and all the time Ishin had felt like he hadn't really made any forward progress. He didn't like that place very much.

Now hat he thought about it, much the same seemed to be happening here. It might have been from the way they were moving, but Ishin could swear he wasn't getting anywhere. He had to be getting somewhere, though, as he came to an intersection in the passageway. It was a four way intersection, but it wasn't like a cross. It was more of an elongated x. That combined with the fact that tunnels were nearly perfect circles made him wonder about where he was. When had he seen things like that before? He knew it had been somewhere, but couldn't recall.

Suddenly it hit him. He was inside a blood vessel. The place he had seen things like this was in the anatomy drawings at the academy! He looked around. He was actually inside of a Menos Grande blood vessel! How many people would any member of the ninth kill to get this kind of information?

He thought immediately of Sho and Keiji. He would have to make sure that they got some of this, or else he doubted they would ever forgive him.

As he was thinking this, he heard something at the edge of his hearing. It sounded like wet footsteps, possibly from one of the side tunnels. He looked over his shoulder and notice a shadow moving towards him. He slowly turned and started back towards the entrance, making it seem as if he hadn't noticed anything. He had to get back to Sho and make sure that these new enemies didn't ambush him or the other two when they got down there.

As if realizing what he was doing, the footsteps stopped being light and semi-stealthy and suddenly picked up speed and intensity. Understanding that they meant to attack him, Ishin turned and drew his sword. He didn't think he had it in him to use his Shikai yet, but by the feel of the reiatsu signatures coming towards him, he wouldn't need to. They seemed to be weaklings, probably there to test them. His second epiphany for the day hit him, this one being the realization that the feeling of being watched was probably from some sort of recording device.

As if on cue, the first of the enemies rounded the corner. They had on white versions of the shinigami uniform, and they were all wearing the same exact mask. Ishin knew them anywhere. He was about to face down members of the SQN. Ishin called out over his shoulder.

“Sho, Keiji, get ready, we are gonna be having company!”

With that he turned back and started his attack. The first few came at him from the front. They weren't smart, he knew that much at least. They were more akin to fodder than anything. Ishin dodged a blade aimed at his midsection, then parried the next attack. Bringing his sword down, he cut the arm off of one of them and sliced into the face. The mask fell off, revealing the face of a middle aged man. He fell back, clutching at the wound that was spraying blood every where. Ishin found it a little ironic that the blood in the blood vessel didn't actually belong there.

The next wave came at him, though not as quickly or as determined as the first group. Ishin held them off for a while, pushing here, retreating a little there only to gain the ground when he pushed back again. He started to feel his rhythm kick in. It was almost fun, letting out his frustrations on these weaklings. Suddenly, he stopped. There was one of them in the group that wasn't as weak as he thought. As he stepped forward, the man drew a true zanpakutou, not one of the faux blades that the others were using. This man's zanpakutou was about three feet long, and razor sharp. He was one of the rogue shinigami that had defected to the side of the SQN. The man sneered at Ishin.

“Well, looks like I get to play with a shinigami. Why don't you try this on for size! Chop, Copperhead!

The sword became a hatchet, and he waved it around menacingly. Ishin looked at it, then back up at him. He couldn't help himself. He laughed. The other man started to shake with rage.

“What's so funny you bastard? You think my Shikai can't handle you?”

Ishin shook his head. He felt like he had regained some of the strength he had used up, so it was time to end it.

“Sorry, I just couldn't stop myself. You see, that's not an axe. This is an axe. Crush, Fuyutsuki!”

Ishin's blade became his axe. Instantly the expression on the man's face changed from anger to pure abject fear. His proud axe now looked like a toothpick in comparison. Ishin wielded the giant axe like it was made of paper, not metal, and swung it in great arcs that took up the entire passage. The space between the man and Ishin that had been filled a moment ago with men was now devoid of anything except blood, guts, and pieces of white fabric died red with blood. Ishin, hardly fazed by the mass destruction he had just caused, looked at the man. He readied his weapon.

“Let's go!”

[1175/2700]

 

[Shapeshifter]

Seraf couldn’t help but laugh as Keji hopped through the hole in the menos’s head. Algebra? The Ninth Division was truly full of odd people, completely ignoring the danger of the giant hand just to get research samples. And yet Seraf had to give them credit, they were not dumb, they were probably aware of the danger just as much as he was. Now whether them staying was out of bravery or not…well Seraf wasn’t sure that they were not all just insane.

Checking the hole where everyone had entered Seraf saw that even though the menos had high speed regeneration, it was taking a while for it to close. There was still plenty of room for him to fit through and he estimated it would be at least another two minutes before the hole sealed shut. “That should be plenty of time I think.”

Once again he seemed to vanish as he managed yet another shunpo, appearing beside the gargantuan hand to sink his sword in deeply. It was plainly obvious that he would have to expend more strength to sever the thing completely. With a heave Seraf exerted his full strength on the thing and was surprised to find his sword slashed through bone and tissue rather easily. The now partly severed hand slopped to the side; the menos head screaming its rage charged and fired another Cero uselessly. It was an amazing attack, this Cero. It had the ability to completely obliterate a Shinigami of his power. One day he would be able to stand up against it, but it would certainly not be soon.

Managing to hope over the flailing fingers, he quickly severed the rest of the hand and was satisfied to see it slowly begin to disintegrate. Now that that was taken care of he could join the others at the bottom of wherever the hole lead. Peering inside he couldn’t really see much, with a bit of a struggle he managed to squeeze through the shrinking hole. Seraf hadn’t bothered to widen it since he wanted it to close behind him. No sense in giving the enemy an open door to follow them through. As he landed in the dank dark pit the smell hit him first. It was disgusting. The insides of a menos were squishy and the squirting liquid getting on his shihakushou would most likely never wash out. He only hoped that they had not landed in the bowel area of the menos, though with the smell, it was possible they had.

The screams of men dying and the clang of steel on steel caught Seraf’s attention, “Shit, looks like they have met with the enemy already. Time to go Raijū.”

Will you be unleashing me upon your enemies Seraf?

“No, well not yet at least. I want to keep you later in case we need a trump card later. I have this feeling that our progress will be analyzed and our techniques verified. So until it is a last resort, I do not want to use shikai.”

If that’s what you want.

Finally catching up to the others he saw what could only be described as a massacre. Bodies of men dressed in white were strewn everywhere, the dead and the dying all left behind to be forgotten, to rot away in a menos. He put them out of his mind and focused on the enemies still alive. Isshin had his axe out again and Keji and Sho were hacking and slashing away with their sealed swords. It seemed that they had everything easily taken care of. “Why are they sending such weaklings against us?”

To gauge your power levels I would assume, whoever is controlling them wants to be sure he can beat us.

With that thought in mind he changed his battle strategy from kick easily killing the guys to a bumbling idiot who just gets lucky. He fervently hoped that his battle with the menos hand had not been observed. It would be best if their enemy thought he was a weakling himself so that in their confrontation he would be caught off guard. So Seraf purposely tripped as a sword swung for his head and missed, he got up and bumped into another white masked man, so conveniently having his sword go through the man’s middle. As he pulled his sword out he did it too hard and hit the man sneaking up behind him in the face with his elbow. “God I feel like an idiot…”


[752/1926]

 

[Eidolon]

With a quick extension of his pointer finger, Hiroshi opened one of the many biomechanical eyes he had staying near the pack of intruders. His lips drew down into a tight frown as he watched the patrol clash with the shinigami force. "One crude cretin meets another, yet is outclassed by a bigger barbarian weapon? How disappointing." He mumbled to himself. Watching the eye's sensor input, he saw that the man who had unleashed an axe was a surprisingly strong shinigami, and he suspected the groups leader. It would be unfortunate if the sacrificed pawns didn't even serve their most basic purpose, wouldn't it?

Steeping his hands, Hiroshi couldn't help but feel somewhat excited now. The prospect of meeting a team of shinigami truly enticed him. It was both a chance to use all the accumulated items and traps he had waiting for them, and a chance to exact revenge on several shinigami for their sins of both ignorance and arrogance. Ignorance is perhaps the most vile of sins to Hiroshi, for it was used as a crutch to loyally serve those who would do wrong or bring injustice to the world. To walk in the light of knowledge frees you from the burden of ignorance and allows you to use your own morality and senses to guide you, not be directed by your overlords.

And as overlords, these shinigami possessed arrogance. They think themselves the golden knights of the after life, championing all causes just and fair, seeking to control all other spiritual beings so that their vision is the only one. Overlords who spawn ignorance and spread it about the world like a pestilence: that is a shinigami.. And all this at the beck and call of their master in the central forty-six. Such realizations as this made it easy for Hiroshi to dehumanize his enemy, to think of them not as sentient beings, or souls, but as nothing more then hollows with a sword.

"Time to guide you along the right path, SHINIGAMI!" With that Hiroshi stood and walked over to the other side of his sweeping console. Plotting a course, he laid out a small program and then executed it. "Let us see how you deal with this problem, You shall have no choice but to come visit me, now that I've seen you for what you really are!"

Even as the final keystroke was settled, the ship around the death gods sprang to life. From behind the squad of SQN members, the menos-mechanical hallway began to rapidly constrict, a compression that roiled forwards towards the group of combatants with deadly intent. The several pathways they might have choosen would become blocked to them, each now a living weapon that would guide his guests to his grand audience chamber.

And for a proper audience, one needed to be prepared. Hiroshi quickly began double checking all of his dormant circles about the room, and a few of his mechanical devices. Affixing his stygian gauntlet to his left hand, he used the right to push his glasses further up upon the bridge of his nose. These shinigami need to see I am nothing less then the full master of this domain, even without my precious zanpakutou. For if they had anything less then reverence for my power they may not treat me with the proper respect. And not receiving the proper respect from sinners such as these "death gods" would simply be an insult to her, she who was clouded by and died in ignorance. No, I will not allow her memory to be tarnished.


wc: 597 / 1161

 

[IshinOnigami]

Just as he was about to attack, Ishin noticed movement over the other man's shoulder. It seemed like the tunnel was getting smaller. Not only that, but it was getting closer as well.

Ishin lowered his axe, then turned and ran. The other man turned, saw the same spectacle, then followed suit. He pushed his way past the other members of the SQN and ran after Ishin, though not to fight him. They just wanted to get away.

Ishin rounded the corner to find the two ninth division members and Seraf hot on his tail. They were running like their lives depended on it, which they did. The fighters hadn't gotten to them, but they were not very far behind. Without stopping, Ishin called out to them.

“RUN! DON'T LOOK BACK, JUST GO!!”

[133/2833]

 

[The Liar]

516​

Inside a mechanical Menos—no, inside its artery—Keiji was ready to pass out. So much was in front of him, and yet he’d come ill-prepared to analyze it! Keiji took out his Hephaestus tool and gathered another sample, this time of the artery, but he took as much as possible. Then, Ishin made the call, and Keiji instinctively pulled out his Athena tool. Messages forwarded to both Drake and Daxis about their SQN comrades. His goggles were collecting such footage—Keiji wasn’t sure if he’d ever get out of the Lab once this was over. Ishin quickly dispatched the troops, and so they were to start moving once again. Keiji rushed after them, pocketing his Athena and adjusting his goggles; there was some jealousy in him for being unable to release his own zanpakutou. Keiji let out a disappointed sigh, but one more look at the fact that he was running around within the circulatory system of a Menos Grande and his spirits were boosted back up.

Before Keiji could stop and admire it, however, the artery started to close up, and Ishin instructed the lot of them to run without looking back. Keiji listened and ran as fast as his legs would take him, but the feeling came on the back of his neck that there was something more to what was happening. It wasn’t just closing because of some biological function, and especially not Rigor Mortis. No, the reason that nanobots riddled this Menos was because somebody was remotely controlling it, clearly. However, he never would have imagined that it was so extensive. Obviously he had expected company in order to have such an advanced apparatus, and if it was happening here, then those troops were meant to die. Keiji’s brow furrowed as he mentally raced through all of the evidence and clues; he didn’t like the ulterior motive that was clearly present. Keiji pulled out his Athena when a glow and rumble indicated a response to his earlier message

“Keiji.

We’ve researched any and all evidence that would connect an advanced Scientist to a high-rank in the SQN. Results have been inconclusive. We’re quite jealous of you, and are currently analyzing the samples you sent. The first can be reproduced, the second will jump our studies ahead by decades. Neither of us can wait to push this into further studies. Don’t die.

-Drake”

Keiji slipped his Athena into his pocket again, and took in a breath. He did, in fact, want to live.

“Make my flesh adhesive, and bind my soul to stone. Bestow upon to me the reptile’s birthright, Bakudo #23. Bansoukou!”

Spiritons gathered on his hands and feet, and his legs gained strength and flexibility. He stopped for just a second, and used the added jumping power to spring forward and land on the side of the passage with his feet. Keiji had effectively raced ahead of some of the group, but had made sure that he’d get out quick. Running along the wall, he turned his head only momentarily to get the word out to the others.

“DON’T TARRY!”

 

[Shapeshifter]

“Don’t Tarry? That was the last thing on my mind…” The kid said it as if the fleshy walls of death closing in behind them where not a motivator to run their asses off. It was a huge motivator; Seraf had no plans whatsoever to die in here by something so…stupid. So he kept running, and running, with only the path ahead and his companions beside of him.
-
The sky was bright and cheery, the birds were singing their happy songs, and there was a gentle breeze lightly drifting through the air. As it drifted, it met upon a group of gossiping Shinigami. All of the 11th Division, they were laughing and enjoying themselves thoroughly, so feeling confident it wouldn’t bring down their humorous mood, a man asked a question that had been on his mind for a while now.

“So how did that Moichi guy die? I heard he was sent on some dangerous mission by the Captain himself! It must have been a glorious thing, his death.” His question brought snickers from a few and questioning glances from others. Another person raised his voice.

“Yah, I never heard the story about that. If he was chosen by the Captain he must have been pretty skilled.” One man took it upon himself to inform his friends of the truth in the whole situation; after all, it was a pretty funny thing. He couldn’t help but burst out in laughter.

“Ok…Ok, get this…” He managed to squeeze out in between his heaving laughter. “The guy is off fighting inside that huge menos thing that the Captains killed, and…” He drifted off into another fit of giggles. “He doesn’t even get to fight anything really because he gets squished!! SQUISHED!! I kid you not, the guy gets squished by a closing blood vessel or soothing like that!!” Once again he burst out laughing, this time joined by the others of his group, all laughing at his foolish demise…
-
Seraf shook himself out of his grim daydream and chided himself for being so foolish. If he daydreamed while running there was a good chance that he would trip, then fall, and then he would die by the stinking, fleshy grossness that was all around them. “The hell I will!! I am going to get to whomever is controlling this thing and I will kill the bastard!!”

In order to do that you have to survive first, so stop being an idiot…

Grim determination now gripped at his heart, keeping stride with the others and keeping a close eye on his footing, Seraf continued to run, towards the enemy he hoped. A small smile crept on his face as he continued on into the dark vessel set before them.

[456/2,382]

 

[Eidolon]

Hiroshi was greatly pleased with the expediency of his decided course of actions. Mere minutes after executing his plan the ship he was aboard, and master of, had guided several shinigami to his doorstep. He had spun his chair so that over the immense room that he was stationed in, he was both at opposite ends and elevated up from his new guests. Hiroshi had constructed this grand entrance in his mind ever since the idea blossomed in his mind, and now was the time to execute this intimidating endeavor.

Slowly rising from his seat as all the shinigami barreled forth, he made sure all eyes were upon him. “That is enough, Daiaku. Stay your weapon and do not interfere, no matter what occurs. If you get in the line of fire I suspect you won’t be spared.”

“But sir,” the SQN member started to object as he took his feet, but the glare from over the rim of Hiroshi’s glasses silenced him. He stepped back against the door he had just come from, nervously glancing at all the shinigami around him.

“You would be wise to pay attention to me, O great Overlords of Ignorance. Do you know why you are here? Were you even given knowledge against whom you fight or why you must fight them? Or do you simply accept your roles as carriers of the plague of ignorance and guilt?” Hiroshi felt the anger and hatred of shinigami swell up inside him as he continued his practiced speech.

“Or worse yet, do you knowingly engage in the spread of ignorance and loss, merrily doing this business without regard to those you oppress? Regardless, you have chosen to take up the sword and robes of a death god. That choice, your greatest follow, will now come to light as you face me, Hiroshi. Upon you I shall exact hundreds of years of revenge and hatred.”

Having completed his speech for the gathered crowd, Hiroshi lifted his left hand and mentally placed the appropriate amount of reiatsu into the gauntlet. He was now in control. “Witness my power. Bakudou number three, Blue Mist.” With that, a wide area was blotted out in a cube of hazy mist, impairing sound and sight to all who attempted to sense through it. Lastly, Hiroshi adjusted his position and raised the gauntlet in front of him, in a protective open palm. Let us see how the shinigami handle my game of dissecting my foes!

WC: 413/1574

 

[IshinOnigami]

Coming to a stop in an enormous room, Ishin saw the passage finish closing up. Looking around, it seemed only the shinigami, including the one he would have fought, had made it. Suddenly, there was a voice followed by a spiritual presence. The voice addressed the man, who's name was apparently Daiaku, telling him to get out of the way.

"You should listen to him. Right now, the best advice would be to stay put of our way. You are in deep enough shit as it is."

Ishin was about to add more when the other man chimed in with a little speech. Ishin listened, first just to listen but with ever increasing rage. He had accused them of being ignorant? Didn't he know that they were all just being used tools? Not that he thought it would have mattered. This man thought he was in the right. Something like that would turn him into a fanatical fighter, but more importantly, it would make him a dam nuisance.

Suddenly, there was a haze before him. Ishin knew this spell. Not only that, but the man was well versed in Kidou apparently, as he had bypassed the incantation, and there didn't seem to be a diminished effectiveness to the mist.

Suddenly, Ishin got an idea. This man was so hell bent on painting them as the bad guys, maybe it was time for him to do the same thing right back. He called out through the mist.

"Let me get this straight. You lock down the Senkaimon gates so that we can't get to the physical world, which puts the entire planet at risk, and we are the ignorant ones? You have a lot of nerve. Now, I'm not saying the current form of leadership we have is perfect, but I think it is better than anarchy. While we are on the topic of soul society, do you realize how many people you have put in danger? Because of this monstrosity that we are currently riding in, we are on high alert. If this thing falls anywhere in soul society, half of rukongai would go down with it. Is that what you want? Honestly, what kind of revenge is worth that many innocent souls lives? They aren't shinigami. Maybe one out of one hundred of them could become a shinigami. Does that mean the rest are just shit out of luck? How are they ignorant?"

The entire time he had been saying this, his voice had gotten louder and louder. He was truly starting to get upset. He walked into the mist. He didn't care anymore. This guy was going to pay.

"By the way, I believe it is customary for opponents to give their names. My name is Ishin Katsuji, tenth seat of the thirteenth squad. Who do I have the mispleasure of so ignorantly addressing?"

[476/3309]

 

[Eidolon]

Hiroshi was tempted to answer the man’s challenge; he deserved to hear the reason for his flaws, to understand the sheer magnitude of the coming events. But indeed, to speak now would be to give away a massive tactical advantage. Hiroshi would have time to gloat over his opponent when he was in a stronger, perhaps assured position. Although the mist had obstructed his form from the enemy, he was not certain of the enemy’s exact position either. Then, the idea struck him.

Stepping softly to the back of the mist, Hiroshi squatted down and bypassed a low level bakudou, “Bakudou number Thirty seven, Yusuru.” Gesturing his hand wide, he created the needed arc for the reaper to travel at about knee level. From there, he skittered off on all fours to the western side of the mist. Against his better judgment, he offered a bit of dialogue to his enemy. “So, you admit your masters are flawed, perhaps even corrupt creatures, and yet you serve them still? You choose to sell your sword to those who give you nothing but orders and expected obedience in turn? Why do you think it is the Shinigami have so many enemies? But I’ll give you one thing, my name is Hiroshi Takama.”

With that, he skittered further away from his position and crouched in waiting. From the spiritual pressure being unleashed in the area, he could tell this was the one who had used his shikai. This made his opponent a dangerous one, especially since Hiroshi’s own Zanpakutou was indisposed keeping the senkaimon under check. This gave him only his glove and his prepared traps as a means of staving off the attacks of his enemies. Pushing the glasses he wore higher on the bridge of his nose, Hiroshi pondered the coming battle. Yes . . . he could lead him into that trap.


wc: 311/1885