Respect and Fear (Mei)

One month. That was how long it had taken her to find it. Two weeks of pouring over documents, of scouring reports and scraping together what little data there was on the beast, just so she could form a patchy framework of the creature’s feeding habits. One week of studying Erek’s report, of dissecting it, of breaking down the battle from every angle she could think of. Four days of planning, of mapping out the terrain, of gathering supplies, of perfecting her strategy so that every little thing was in place. Three days of searching, of late nights and early mornings, of frustration and the slow, empty chill of resolve as she forced herself to keep looking, to keep her senses tuned to the max for any sign of her would be prey. One lucky break, one simple glance down an almost completely empty alleyway, one long slow trek across the ruins of Karakura and suddenly, she was there.

Mei let loose a long, low breath as the tiny not-Hollows crawled their way into the mouth of the cave, slender fingers brushing aside a stray lock of ivory-hair from her face. This was it. She’s found it, found the hole that wretched monster had crawled into to heal. She wanted to head in there right away, wanted to tear through whatever defenses it might have erected and shred that detestable, disgusting, pathetic excuse of a former human life to pieces- but she didn’t. No, instead the Quincy waited, spiritual pressure held tight against her frame as she drew in Reishi from the air around in, filtering it through her skin and into her blood. Blut Arterie. A skill she had not used in years yet one she understood all too well; her ace in the hole, the tool she had that Erek didn’t, the edge she need to bring this thing down, once and for all.

Her approach was slow and methodical; every step measured, every breath controlled as the woman inched her way closer to the beast’s lair. Her gaze was empty, devoid of emotion, her movements as languid and graceful as a lioness on the hunt. It didn’t take her long to cross the distance between her little hidey-hole and the cave’s entrance- two, three minutes tops- but those few minutes felt like hours to her. She’d been able to control it before, been able to hold herself back from exploding in sheer, primal fury at the thought what it had done. She had held it back, pushed it down with the promise of this moment, but now that it was here… Now that it was here, she wanted nothing more than to let it go.

A breathe, long and heavy, left her as she stopped just shy of the entrance, her face twisting to form a deep, almost ugly frown. The spiritual pressure that she had once held so tight against her chest flowed free now, a storm of ice that surged and swelled around her in a maze fractals with every breath she took. Her bow sprang to life from the tempest of her reiatsu, the fingers of her other hand pulling a slender piece of dull ceramic free from her back holster even as she channelled a portion of the reishi under her control into it, activating the blade. Another breath entered her lungs and, before she could dispel it, she moved, body blurring in her fastest Hirenkyaku as she charged into through the proverbial front door, her song spilling out in every direction but the one she came from.

Sliding to a halt at the bottom of the long, sloped floor that served as the cave’s first line of defense, Mei exhaled, her ice-blue gaze widening at just how dark it truly was inside. Only the light from her weapons saved the woman from being completely blind, and even that only illuminated so much. But that was ok. She’d expected this- there were only so many places a Hollow could hide in Karakura without being immediately caught, and an underground cavern was among the best of the scant options available to the monster. Still, a part of her had hoped that this would be a quick, easy victory- charge in, find the beast, kill it, be home in time for supper. “Too late for that I suppose…”

She’d hoped for it, but that didn’t mean she hadn’t come prepared. The light from her bow and Seele Schneider, while dim, wouldn’t go out so long as she kept them active, and despite the four paths that branched out before her, the woman did have an idea of where to go. She could see scratch marks on the walls of the third opening, deep, near inch wide gouges where the creature (or one of its underlings) had scraped it’s claws against the stone. It wasn’t much, but it would have to be enough for now- at least until she found the beast itself. And when that happened… Well, her family didn’t call her a Hunter for nothing. I am the Hunter here. I am the stalker, the killer of beasts. And you, my dear Hollow?

“You are the prey.”
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[ P: 863]
[ T: 863]