Suspended Animation (PG/Group/Open)

Titus walked through the sandstorm unimpressed; he had to admit however it was a particularly strong sandstorm and earned his respect however it wasn’t doing a good job knocking him over and Titus was bored. This is what he got for walking for days out into the farther beyond of Hueco Mundo on the search for strong enough Hollow to bring back to Las Noches. Personally he’d been hoping he’d come across a Vasto Lorde, he had yet to meet one and the closest he’d come to was Yaksha who Titus was sure was about to become one.

He patted the pocket of his black overcoat and heard Hermes make a crooning noise and travel deeper down into the smaller recesses of the coat, he wondered what Hermes actually did in there apart from sleep, fine dining with his hollow pals maybe? Titus chuckled at the thought and continued to walk.

The good thing about having a band that covered ones eyes was that sand didn’t get into them and so Titus could walk through the sandstorm fairly well without having to open his mouth and get a mouthful of the fine delicacy of Hueco Mundo. It was then that he heard a familiar noise, a noise he wasn’t likely to forget, it was the noise of a bell… no, not just one bell, two bells and out of the entire time Titus had been an Arrancar there was no other creature who he had met which owned two bells.

He changed direction heading towards the sound of the bells; it had been a while since he had seen the hollow with the two bells. What was his name? Kildred, that was it, his name was Kildred the Hollow and Titus had given him a glass bell to match his own. It had been a while since he had seen this particular Hollow, in fact his last meeting with Kildred dated back before Titus had even been a Fraccion to Hakuren- and that in itself had been a long time ago.

He wondered what Kildred had been doing all this time, probably hunting Hollow like all hollow did and then devouring them. It was a sad existence Hollow led right up to that time when they became an Arrancar. In Titus’s opinion that was when a hollow became alive, when they ditched their hollow forms and became Arrancar, Hollow like Yaksha had proved Titus wrong but the point was still made.

It was then that he saw Kildred clinging to what seemed to be a rock. Titus called out “Hey Kildred, having a bit of trouble?” he called. Whilst using his reiatsu to form a small bubble that the sand was denied entry into around him and Kildred.

458 9 GP

The emptiness he felt did little to solidify his hold on the structure, his claws slowly carving a line through the granite and wood as he was pushed by the wailing winds of the desert. Hunched over and as tired as he was, Kildred let out a sigh and released his grip on the structure. He felt the sensation of being lifted into the air and let his limbs hang loose as he ascended. As quickly as the feeling came, however, it left and he was faced with the fresh impression that a face-full of sandy ground can give. He didn't let his arms touch the ground as he laid there, his legs hung behind his head. With an annoyed grunt, he forced his back downward and planted his feet, twisting and warping his body to and fro to get back to his preferred standing position.

He gazed at the upside-down visage before him. The man was recognizable, but only just so. It had been a long time since they had interacted, the man having given him an extra bell, but there wasn't much else he could recall about him. They only met the one time, if he remembered correctly. Still, he was far better than most things he could find in the desert, and he greeted him in his most jovial way possible. Swinging his torso back and forth, Kildred jutted his head up and down and odd intervals. He had found during his travels that while the bells made wonderful noise, it was even better when he could make them move to a tune. Much like the one he heard at the human building he visited so long ago. His body shifted in place, the bells carefully bouncing and forming a song. Each jingle moved to a steady beat, as his mask moved to make a smile. This was especially pleasing.
----

Word count - 313

GP count thus far - 6 / 14

It had been a long time since he seen this hollow, he wondered if he comprehended the fact that Titus was now much younger than he originally had been and was now in fact a young man, his eyes even though they were rejuvenated were hidden behind a band and his hair now covered his hollow hole making it almost impossible to tell who he was except for his reiatsu.

He reached out his hand to pat the Hollow, he seemed as happy as always with his dual bells swinging in the wind, he wondered what still drove this Hollow to be a Hollow still, it looked as if before he had arrived that he was just about to give up completely, a prospect that Titus hadn’t been amused by. He wondered if this Hollow was finally being driven physically to become an Arrancar, an interesting prospect to examine to say the least.

He wondered if the Kildred’s repertoire of words had increased “Kildred” he asked, “What do you feel?” a simple question, one that could possibly be answered more in actions than words, but Kildred was that sort of Hollow, he didn’t speak much but everything he said was more described in the actions he demonstrated, rudimentary actions.

Nodding went happy, shaking when sad, etc. It’d be interesting to see what Kildred thought of this question and how he would react to it. Kildred was one of the few Hollow Titus hadn’t been compelled to kill because of their overwhelming stupidity at trying to kill him, Kildred had never tried that and perhaps that was why Titus had formed a mutual friendship with him.

275 5GP

Kildred paused his makeshift symphony, the bells jingling to a stop, and looked at the man. His words had a strange tinge to them. It was something he didn't understand, though speech in itself was rather foreign to him. Still, he made an effort to respond in kind. Raising his head a bit, his voice rang out in the eerily calm atmosphere. "Pointing with me, might understand. Hado, number one. Claw!" He still had no idea what he was saying, but people seemed to pay attention to him when he spoke. It was a nice feeling. Every word was emphasized with a dramatic movement of a limb. A spreading of the arms here, a swaying of the leg there. It felt natural to do, and he did it with as much energy as he could.

Being able to interact with someone in a positive manner was phenomenal. He had stayed in the desert for so long merely because the hollows were far tastier here. However, he had a bit of a dry spell since he couldn't keep up with their energy blasts or whatever those were. After this, he'd return to the human realm. It was prettier, and he could take on the hollows that resided there. With a flourish, Kildred leapt and did a backflip onto the sand-beaten structure. "Understand! Feel and speak with me!" As he looked down at the man, it occured to him that he looked more different than he initially thought. As a matter of fact, his hair was much different now. Maybe this wasn't the man he remembered, but a relative? Well, whatever. He seemed nice enough. Approaching the edge, he leaned forward and hung upside-down by his feet. Twisting his torso to look him in the eyes, he gave a wide grin. "Form Shō? Someone might."

-----

Word count - 303

GP count thus far - 6 / 20

He sat watching the Hollow named Kildred move about, he seemed to be attempting to convey something by the words he said and the actions he demonstrated, then again he could just be speaking to garner attention because he liked it, he knew some Hollow who did that and then advanced again and were still like that, Yaksha came to mind. He chuckled softly at the thought of the last time he had seen Yaksha, he had came to the meeting and killed a couple of Hollow for good sport, Yasha was always one for an entrance.

He tilted his head at the peculiar Hollow; he really wasn’t giving him much to work with and with Arkhan off on one of his imaginary tangents within his head there wasn’t really much he could work off of. He sighed and wondered if he could attract some attention of the Hollow around Hueco Mundo but thought better of it, currently he wasn’t too fussed at all.

He found the Sandstorm had calmed down a bit, it wasn’t as intense as it had been a few minutes ago but it was still blowing, he caught the sight of a Hollow flying passed obviously caught in the strong gales and being blown across the desert. Most likely he would never land, he’d be killed by then ripped apart by the miniscule grains of sand tearing at his body. A sad thought but it would happen, all Hollows must die if they are too weak and that Hollow if he had been caught by the storm obviously was weak.

He turned to Kildred who seemed to still be enthralled by his activities and smile slightly, however it was obvious Kildred wouldn’t rip his mask off soon, he doubted it even occurred to the Hollow, it hadn’t even occurred to Hermes who was lost somewhere in his overcoat.

“Kildred, Earth, do you want to go there?” Kildred had seemed bored here and he knew Hollows enjoyed Earth because of the pluses and the Humans, why not let him go there, he’d get stronger and eventually return anyway.

351 Words 7 gp

Kildred swung from the perch back and forth as a pendulum, eying the man as he did so. The change he now noticed was rather extreme. He could definitely see him as being the same person since there were too many similarities to match. The man chuckled to himself, garnering his interest. Was it that he was funny? Perhaps. His voice was a little hoarse compared to the other hollows that he had heard speak. One of these days, he'd really have to learn about talking. Nearly everyone he met did it. It had to be good.

Perking his head up, he caught the faint smell of a hollow beyond the veil of sand. Leaping to the edge, he peered out and spied one flailing in the dusty winds. Knowing full well that he, too, would be at the mercy of the storm, Kildred paced back and forth. He hadn't eaten in a while, and his stomach, though subdued, was baiting him to go and feed. He huffed at his inability to withstand the storm. He knew there were others out there, ones able to keep their composure in the face of such power. He envied them. Not because he wished for that power himself, but because it would help him eat right now. Man, that one looked real good too...

As he walked in place, the man asked him something. He barely paid attention, catching only one word. Whining as he scratched the ground, he merely repeated the word. "Earth..."

------

Word count - 251

GP count thus far - 5 / 25

He snapped his fingers and a Garganta opened, whining was the usual code for reaction and or sadness so Titus guessed that he Hollow wanted to go to Earth, he wasn't going to stop him infact he didn't see a problem with Kildred wanting to go to Earth it was a Hollow's natural job as a Hollow to want to escape the confines of Hueco Mundo and be free.

69 Words 1 GP

(My muse is dead for this thread and I might as well let you move along)