Siege of Las Noches: Science and Steel

Once, Hikari and Mitsutaka had clashed blades, each swearing their enmity for the other. Once, both had glared at each other with hate in their eyes, wishing nothing more than to send each other screaming into the abyss. Of course, both fought for the same thing. Of course, both wished to change the Soul Society for the better. Mitsutaka could not deny that a deep rot poisoned the Seireitei like a cancer; rather, his experience with the Central 46 had been quite illuminative on that front. But he and Hikari would never, ever see eye-to-eye—not by dint of outcome but rather by the means.

Change could not come from the outside. Any change that was forced on a system would cause it to shut down, cause it to shatter and stagnate. This, he knew intellectually; it had been drilled into him in every book or journal he’d ever read: you cannot fix the unwilling. This, he knew personally; when he had pushed his own, selfish help on Kasumi, Hikari and Cho Ah, they had met with horrors he shuddered to think of.

No, you could not change a system from the outside-in. The only way was from the inside, and so Gilgamesh had done. Aside from the clinical excising of the Central 46, the revolution had been almost painless and completely bloodless. And now, they had stability. Now, they had prosperity, free from the hidden machinations of faceless chair members and simpering attendees. It was an unstable freedom, but it was a freedom nonetheless. And yet there were these traitors that could not see what was right in front of their eyes. They saw a tyrant where Mitsutaka knew Gilgamesh to be the first real, wholesome change in the Seireitei’s history in far too long—and with a society so stagnant as this, change was dearly needed.

So yes, the Captain Commander was taking this risk by fighting on the front lines. Yes, he knew the danger of his own death loomed on the horizon. It would be a lie to say he did not shiver when the hordes of Las Noches began to spread forth, and though he did not show it there was more than a small division in his motivations. But for now, he had orders. And orders were enough. He was good at following orders. He didn’t look to his left, and he didn’t look to his right; these were details that would only restrict him in battle. With how volatile his emotions were nowadays, that was a liability he could not afford. There were no speeches to be made, or at least none he cared to voice. He had his own strength, anyway: if he wavered he would only need to think of what he was protecting by putting his own life in danger. He would just have to think of Cho Ah, worrying after him in the Fourth Division building. He would do whatever it took to see her smile again.

And so it wasn’t hard, stepping forward to a small copse of trees, drawing a few dozen Arrancar towards him. It wasn’t hard, taking a deep breath to center himself. It wasn’t hard, pulling forth his mask for the first time and gazing emotionlessly towards the horde rushing towards him. And it wasn’t hard remembering what love felt like.
He simply thought of Cho Ah. The rest was easy.

And so only a single tear slipped from his eye when the words, clearly spoken, came from his mouth:
”If you loved me, you would die.”
And no shudder ran through his body when thirty Arrancar, expressions of the purest, loving bliss, slit their own throats and fell to the bloodstained sand.
He did not beg forgiveness when only three of their companions—two men and one woman, all too far to be identified visually—remained standing. ”Why do you resist?” he murmured quietly, just loud enough for the three to hear.
And he did not fall to his knees when he felt Salzabor Vasquez and Tori Saio among them; no, he remained standing proud.

He thought of Cho Ah.

The rest was easy.






MITSUTAKA'S MASK HAS BEEN REVEALED!

For your enjoyment, have fun falling in love with Mitsutaka/committing suicide and then coming back to yourselves before it's too late.

[OOC: I'm giving you each a post before the fighting starts, a post that will to a large part determine how Mitsutaka treats you. Do not waste it.]
{Stamina = 200 (-0; Mask used for RP effects only}

For the first time in his life, Salzabor was not happy about entering battle. For the first time in his life, he was defending something he loved more than his life instead of fighting to take more. He could hear the screams of hundreds of Hollows as their lives ended violently, and the shock waves that shattered acres of quartz trees were visible from his current location. He was not alone on the sands in front of Hueco Mundo, both the Primera and the Quinta Espada were with him. Even with three Espada, the force approaching them might still not be stopped.

Part of the Septima was still in disbelief, he had not expected the full Shinigami force to attack. There had been a part of him, albeit small, which had hoped that at least some of them had seen reason and refused to be sent on this deathtrap of an invasion. And now here he was, facing down the strongest of them all with only two Arrancar backing him. ”If we can’t face death, we can’t overcome it. True perfection has no fear for there is no force that can stand in its way.” Salzabor mumbled to himself. The words surprised him, like they were coming from a foreign entity. Perhaps my mind has already left me, fled to safety in some far off land. The psychopath thought to himself as he adjusted his posture, straightening his back and seemingly growing two inches. The suit he was wearing was special, the only one of its kind out of the hundreds of suits he had access to. It was pure white, like someone took snow and wove fabric with it, and he wore a white dress shirt, tie, and dress shoes with it. Tailored to his body perfectly, Salzabor looked exquisite and powerful, his shoulders held in perfect posture and hands held loosely, gripping each other behind his back. This suit had been with him for as long as he had been an Arrancar, and it held special symbolism to Salzabor. It was identical to the suit he had worn when he was hung from the gallows so very long ago in a town long forgotten in history. It was the suit he had died in and the suit he had been born in, and he had promised himself to wear it only one more day. The day which he would die.

Behind his back, his hands gripped his only salvation if things took a turn for the fatal. In his hands was a small, harmless, purple cube. He had specifically designed this cube to be used only in a situation where his death was imminent, and it was the only invention like it as far as he knew. Earlier, he had given a single one to both Tori Saio and Titus Arkhan along with three of his stimulants, the one designed to help increase the user’s reflexes, the one that hardens the user’s skin, and the one that send the Saketsu and Hakusui into overdrive, as well as the neutralizer.

Another shockwave erupted from the forest, just out of view over the rolling dune, but close enough for Salzabor to feel it in his chest. The Septima exhaled calmly, it felt odd waiting on battle to come to him, like he was standing in the eye of a storm and waiting to step outside into the winds. He reached inside of the right side of his suit and grabbed hold of something solid. Pulling it out, it looked like nothing, but metaphorically and literally, as if he was holding tightly onto air. He reached upwards and placed the invisible object on his face, feeling each and every one of the thousands of connections as the mask grafted itself to his face. The sensation was more uncomfortable than painful, like a cold, microscopic sucker attaching itself to every pore. To someone looking at Salzabor, nothing had changed and it would continue to look this way until Salzabor activated his artificial mask with a burst of Reiatsu, and hopefully even that would be unnecessary.

It was then he appeared, Mitsutaka Karahashi, the Captain Commander of Soul Society, and one of the few men Salzabor had ever truly respected. There was something on his face, a mask of sorts, and in that instant Salzabor knew what he was looking at. Images of Artix Von Creg flashed through his mind as he understood that if the Captain Commander was powerful before, now his strength was unmatched. With that realization, another thought hit the Septima Espada, and out of all the things he could have done, the man smiled.

”Captain Commander Mitsutaka Karahasi. You are a fool.”

Salzabor spoke clearly and with enough volume so the man could easily hear him. If he was to die today, he would die knowing he did everything possible to save the things he loved, even if it meant insulting the Captain Commander.

”You are not a fool for attacking us, nor are you a fool for believing you can win. No, you are a fool because you follow blindly when you should question, take orders from a man weaker than yourself, and most importantly of all; you are a fool for sending the men who entrusted you with their lives to their deaths. What do you hope to gain by attacking us? Do you attack us for land? You invaded a desert filled to the brim with an infinite amount of creatures determined to devour you. We don’t even want to live here, that’s why we always find excuses to venture into the world of the living. Do you attack us in an attempt to wipe us out? A man of your intelligence should know that is not only impossible but suicidal in and of itself. Shinigami and Hollow form a cycle, and without one the other ceases to function. Not only is attempting to disrupt the cycle suicidal, but to eradicate our race is impossible. Thousands of Hollows are born every day; we were not made to be wiped out. Why do you come here Captain Commander? Because Gilgamesh told you to do so? Why do you take orders from a man who only wishes to conquer when you could overthrow him and rule Sereitei in the way you see fit. Do you not see that whatever good he has done will be outweighed by the bad he will make you do? What if you win here today? Do you march on the world of the living and attack the people you swore to protect? Where do you draw the line? Do you not understand how many of your men will die because of your foolishness? How many families will be shattered because of your arrogance? Mitsutaka Karahashi, I respected you; not only as a scientist but as a man. But these actions are not that of a scientist, and they are certainly not that of a genius. Your actions are those of a fool given too much power before his time!” Salzabor spoke with clarity, as if he had practiced the speech countless times before now, but he paused and took a breath at this moment because he could feel the anger rising in him, and angry words were rarely effective.

”I come before you now not as an enemy, but as a man of science like yourself. I implore you to reconsider your actions before it is too late for either you or the men you command. Not one of us has to die today, and if you believe similarly I will personally give you the means to leave the battlefield unnoticed.” As Salzabor spoke, he tossed the purple cube towards the Captain; its trajectory would cause it to hit him square in the chest if he did not catch it. ”That cube will be your escape if you choose to leave; I designed it myself as it was originally to be used for me. It will send you to a pocket dimension, where a man of your power would take only a few hours to break out, returning you to the exact same spot you left with no harm done to you. I do not wish for us to fight Mitsutaka, but make no mistake, if you wish for me to become your enemy I will stand strong. I have no intention of letting you pass while I am still capable of stopping you.” Salzabor finished his speech and stood with his shoulders held high. If he had succeeded in his speech, no blood would be spilled on this spot, and if he had failed his death would come so quickly it wouldn’t matter.

---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---___---

Word Count: 1458
GP Gained: 29
Stamina: 109/109
Combat Data: None

“Dear Celesyne, today, I will die”

Six months ago Titus has foreseen this in a different setting, he had seen the death, he had seen the destruction but never at this magnitude. Prophecies could easily be told and could easily be changed and that was exactly what had happened. If you had asked Titus where the invasion would have taken place, he would have almost certainly said that it would take place in the Soul Society, he was wrong. The sands were stained with blood, the reiatsu reeked death. He had planned for months and nothing matched up to this, the Shinigami had came like a wave of black death and the Arrancar had countered, in the first few seconds hundreds were wounded, in the next few, thousands. This was the Golden War, this was what it had came to, the penultimate moment before the end because if they failed the Golden King would win, Earth would be doomed and the true Golden Age would begin.

He was in his Vasto Lorde form; the skeleton of Las Noches, the purple black robes seemed to heave and shudder at each breath and pulsed with an eerily dark presence. His left hand was charred black, the once pure white bone now corrupted as black blood oozed from the joints and splattered on the ground. Last night he had mastered it, the techniques that made him a monster. The technique that made the whole of Hueco Mundo one walking defence system, he could purge the world of it all, he could purge the world of it’s suffering and these men who looked to destroy everything and he could do it at anytime but currently he was weighing up his decisions.

He had the power to end this invasion. Yet he was almost curious as to why this man, this Mitsutaka Karahashi thought himself strong enough to take on three Espada, him, Tori Saio and Salzabor Vasquez. He could not even remember how he arrived here, he remembered commanding a squad of Arrancar and blitzing multiple Shinigami with a cero and then being called up here by Salzabor but apart from that… everything else seemed a dream. He remembered seeing Celes just before he left, feeling like he should have said something, but he dared not show her the toxic left hand, she would ask questions and he knew he would have to tell her. Maybe that was why he did not want to use it as well? Possibly. Though curiosity killed the cat.

The man was a Vizard, somehow in the back of his mind he knew this, he remembered having the discussion with countless others and a part of him wanted to reach out and converse with the man’s inner Hollow, the convocar power was strong, it called out to anyone in range. Every passing moment he felt hollow die and he would feel their anguish. He could learn to love this man with the Hollow Mask, he could do anything for him after all, would it not be so easy to activate the power now? And kill everyone? Just for him? He could do it, all he would need to do was raise his hand and – wait. He was there enemy and Titus watched, as Arrancar around him dropped dead by their own hand, was this, the man’s power? To command the emotions of those around him? What sick sordid individual commanded emotion? The same sick sordid individual who commands memory he replied to himself.

Salzabor seemed to start off brash and threw one of his cubes at the Vizard, why didn’t he think that would work? Titus decided he would speak to the man who was almost curious as to why they hadn’t succumbed to his power. “We do not have to fight Mitsutaka, we could all come out of here alive” his words were melancholy, he was not looking forward to dying again, this time he was not even sure he actually wanted to come back, half of him just wanted to launch his final mark on the world and then be done with it all.

“Or we could fight Karahashi-san and you would have the possibility of death” he snapped his fingers and his spiritual pressure resounded out into the desert as a distinctive snap, he could see everything and he knew key things about the man in front of him, he looked for the people he loved and then he searched more recently, he sorted through names that rang a bell once but had been forgotten by time and then came across a name that Mitsutaka revealed to him. “Would Cho Ah be happy if you died today? Would she be happy about the death you would cause for a man who created a war?” his voice sounded mournful as he appealed to the man, he did not want to fight him.

Titus wasn’t afraid of the man’s power.

He was afraid of what he had seen.

830 16 GP

[RP Effect. Since you are allowed one Mittens <img src='http://www.bleach-gotei.com/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/icon_e_wink.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' /> no harm to you. Since it was barely an effect, however if necessary I will pay the ten stamina]

Combat Data

How long had she been poisoned for? The Espada couldn't even begin to guess at that. But ever since that day, she had felt a burning hatred for Jack the Ripper. A hatred that she hadn't even known she could muster up. For her entire existence, she had always sought a way for people to co-exist with one another, to work with each other. And yet she wanted power then, she needed power in order to obliterate Jack. But no matter how hard she tried, the woman couldn't muster up the power that was needed in order to obtain Segunda Etapa. No matter how much she tried, it didn't matter. And yet despite that fact, she felt nothing for the sacrifices that had come, the Hollows she had fought in order to try and get stronger. Yes, she had fought Hollows in order to gain strength, something that she had once thought would be despicable for her to do. But it...wasn't. She actually quite liked it, fighting. But was it because she liked fighting for its sake, or because she wanted to use it for a purpose?

She had always denied what she was, but enjoying fighting...it was exactly what one would expect an Arrancar to like. All of these thoughts, and more, went through her mind as she kept her gaze on the man known as Jack the Ripper. Oh sure, he had a fancy mask on and everything, a Vaizard's mask no less, but that changed nothing. Even right then, as Salzabor tried to talk him down, Tori wanted to do nothing less than lunge at him. But she tried her best to restrain herself. She wasn't just a wild animal. But...the woman could not deny that she was an animal, a restrained one. A civilized person wouldn't want to tear Jack apart. Through this all, she was trying to get herself to not feel hate for the man, to try to think things as Salzabor was and really hope that Jack would just go away. But that part of her was a small part, then, given that she was in the presence of the one that had shattered her world. Who had just come barging into it as if he owned everything.

Maybe he had been right back then, though. Maybe she was just as impure as everyone else was. She even felt a sort of disdain for the fact that she had to be saved by Tova. Never mind the fact that she would have died were it not for him, it made her feel weak and pathetic to have to rely on someone else all of the time. Tori briefly contemplated assaulting Jack as Salzabor gave his speech. To just pump all those things Salzabor had given her into her system, but no. That would be foolish, as Salzabor had explained that the stimulants would not work in conjunction with one another. And there was a cube, too, that he had given them, explaining that it would let them be safe from the battle for a time. It would keep them in a sort of separate dimension. An interesting invention, though Tori had to doubt how much use it would see from her.

Then again, it would enable her to go all out against Jack and not worry about the consequences afterward. Unless it got out of her possession, but pfft. She would not let that happen, because then she couldn't go all out against Jack. Because then she couldn't rip the man apart with her own two hands. Salzabor had finished speaking, finally, and Tori had to wonder just what Jack would choose. For some reason, these two seemed to be insistent on calling him Mitsutaka, or Karahashi, acting as if Jack the Ripper had never existed. Could they not see that he was still the same man as he was the day he had chosen to obliterate her life? A small scowl appeared on her face, though she tried her best to hide it. No reason to show her distaste for the actions of her comrades after all. Though she dearly wished they would stop being thick. Titus was speaking too, and was even acting as if Jack had FEELINGS.

He was a monster, there was no way he had feelings. As evidenced by the fact that he had made many Arrancars with them just drop and kill themselves. Tori wanted to throttle him even more for that. She tuned Titus out as she kept her gaze on Jack. It was funny, everything seemed to get tinted red just a little. Was this what true rage felt like...? The woman had to admit that she had always felt rage was bad, but right then, it felt right. Very, very right. "Jack, these two may refer to you as Mitsutaka, but I know you're an evil monster. Even if you DO choose to take Salzabor's offer and banish yourself for a set of time or whatever nonsense he said, I will still choose to fight you when you come back. You decided what would happen today when you tried to kill me." Tori said, somehow managing to keep herself under control, though the rage she felt still creeped through. Well. Her bit had been said too. All they needed to do now was wait to see what he would say.

Words: 912
GP: 18/18

”You are a fool.”

A small smile crept on the Captain Commander’s face, but it was a tired and weak little thing, hidden by the mask he wore. ”Hearing that from you is painful, Salzabor. You have always been one of the most intelligent people I’ve ever known.” He didn’t call him an Arrancar, didn’t shout at him for the monstrous things he’d done or the way he had to devour to survive. Many on his side, he was sure, would have similar problems with the enemy but Mitsutaka found no issue with the nature of a Hollow; it was simply what they had to do to survive. No one could ask for anything more. ”And believe me, I do not intend to wipe your people out any more than I wish to destroy mine.” His words trailed off, dying like fireflies beneath the sun. ”I thought better of you. As scientists we should be able to look beyond the current day, should be able to see the future and what it will bring. People will die in this war, yes. That’s inevitable. But if you call yourself a researcher you will understand why it must be done.” He spoke no more; if Salzabor were to realize the necessity of this battle the Arrancar would have to chance upon it himself. Change from the inside, not the out. And so when his opponent spoke of alternatives, Mitsutaka’s temper flared. ”Overthrow him and rule the way I see fit? Did you understand nothing of me from our small encounter, Salzabor? I am not Jack the Ripper any more than I am the King of the Soul Society. I am not fit to rule and do not wish to in any case. Leave the trials and hardships of a cold throne to someone else; I am not strong enough to sit straight.” His Reiatsu spiked and flared, weighing down on the battlefield with an insane pressure that he could see taxed both two of his opponents, though the third seemed less affected. Breathing slowly, Mitsutaka restrained his incredible Spiritual Pressure, reining it back lest it cause any real damage. No, he would have this battle be fair or nothing at all. His enemies deserved that much. And so the small, purple cube landed in the sand with a small noise as he stepped out of its trajectory; he didn’t give it another thought. There was no way out that was preferable to another. As usual, the correct path was straight through any opposition.

He turned his gaze to the man who appeared a skeleton, inquisitive eyes roving over the surprising form and returning slightly disappointed: he would have loved to learn something more about this creature’s condition. And yet this Arrancar was the same as all the rest; lacking in foresight and damnably unintelligent. ”You who embodies death, you who have lived a dozen lifetimes: you should know the pain of living. I do not fear the end, nor have I ever. I know the horror of remaining alive when the world should have let you go. Better by far to simply… shuffle off this immortal coil.”

”Cho Ah.”

A great shuddering gasp ran through the man and he buckled, untamed emotion playing havoc with his body. He could feel keenly the agony either one of them would experience if the other died. Perhaps… perhaps he’d been wrong to be in this fight! Perhaps he should flee, turn back, run to his Lieutenant and sweep her up in his arms… he could kiss her, hold her close, reassure her and make sure no harm ever befell them…
Hands that were not his own crept up to the half-mask, splayed fingers across the smile and the frown. He felt all the fear draining from him, replaced by a warmth that spread from his core to reach the farthest parts of his body. Love, he knew this emotion to be, and slowly the Captain Commander rose. ”Of course she would not be happy,” he whispered barely loud enough for the three to hear. ”But it would be worse to flee. It would be worse by far to be so selfish; it would destroy me and through that, destroy her. You can’t save anyone by caging them: that too she has taught me. Better I die--” again, that wretched fear nearly caught hold of him— ”than destroy the man she loves.”
Two of the three exhausted, he turned to the final opponent he would face this day, steeling himself as best he could; this was his last creation, the last result of a twisted mind. She was his final blasphemy. He looked to her with eyes completely hidden: Tori Saio, the girl he might as well have murdered.

He could feel the hatred pouring off her like so much smoke; that more than anything almost dropped him to his knees. The poison he’d left inside her had been real enough and perhaps it had created this horrendous anger as well. Certainly she had been pure, calm before he as Jack had defiled her. It made him sick. How odd, it seemed to him, that he and Tova would find so many opportunities to clash. Truly, neither hated the other—not really. But both seemed to find no end of reasons for hate. ”Now what,” he murmured too low for any of the three to hear: ”will I truly kill your lover this time, Tova?” The thought was almost too much to bear, but he was just selfish enough to continue. If it was between Cho Ah and Tori, he had no illusions about which he’d choose. He raised his voice, choked with sorrow though it was. ”I am sorry, Tori Saio. But this is larger than either one of us and though I might allow you your retribution any other day…” slowly, he drew his Zanpakuto. Slowly, he raised it to point at the three. ”I cannot allow myself to lose.”

Reaching deep within himself, Mitsutaka found the lock he’d placed over his Bankai. Truly, he deemed it too powerful to waste on anything but a fight to the death, and never had its timing been more appropriate than at this moment. Turning within, he sought acceptance for the pain he knew this would cause. Kowareta hissed in righteous fury, spitting venom at his enemies: he had one true ally. A profound feeling of acceptance swept through him, buoying and settling him on this course. He nearly wept at the intensity of the emotion; he had two true allies. And finally, Mitsutaka knew the decision fell to him. The reasons didn’t really matter, not anymore. Perhaps it was simply too far to turn back now, and perhaps that was good enough.

”Bankai.”

From the tip of his sword grew a small sphere of pure blackness. It slowly expanded outwards until it was a foot in diameter, then exploded out in a rush. The four it passed through felt no pain: simply a small tingling as the perimeter went through them. On each of the four, their skin began to ripple and shine translucently: this shimmer faded slowly as the sphere expanded and disappeared by the time it had reached its full size. At fifty feet in radius the sphere stopped expanding, affording each combatant a closer look at the material it was made up of: thousands of quickly whirling and darting motes of blackness formed the surface of the sphere but appeared to slow down as all four peered out: these dots came to a stop with a snapping sound and spread out until they’d covered the sphere completely and all within was dark. A ghostly glow illuminated all four and picked out several more spots of detail: seven trees caught within the area, dunes on the ground, the unmoving bodies of the Arrancar who’d sacrificed themselves for love of Mitsutaka. These bodies did not shimmer and the Captain Commander did not devote more than a second of thought to them, instead choosing to sheathe his sword and step back several feet. The mask still clung to his face, mocking the three who dared to oppose him. Small bits and pieces of words, screams, pleas—these tugged at the ear just quietly enough to evade understanding but disconcerting enough to evoke an uneasy dread.

”Your move.”

[OOC: We're going to take a little detour. I'll PM you with the details.]

Inside the sphere, the muted sounds of a conflict can be heard: two shots from some device are fired and two explosions--the second less fierce than the first--fade slowly. Then, the sound of blade against flesh, once and then again.

Explosions once again sound, once and then again. A flash of muted white light reveals six indistinct figures, but the illumination dies too quickly for more to be made out.
From within, a jumbled mass of sounds screams chaotically.

A half-distant laugh, crazed beyond normalcy, floats through the ether and is joined by a shout. No further sounds are heard.

The blinding light of the desert exploded into the sphere, banishing the shadows that penned them and discorporating the sphere. Just as the light entered Mitsutaka sprung forward with sword outstretched, blade aimed to bisect the skeleton between his ribcage and hips.

He had faith Kyousuke would understand. After all, between a small girl and a man clad in menacing mechanical armor there wasn't much of a question of whom to stab in the back.

[Releasing Bankai, keeping Mask for total stats of 440/200/150/140/100/50]
[Making a Shunpo Strike at 180 Spd, 180 to-hit and 180 Damage.]

[Stamina -5 for a total of 150ish, let's say]

SOME HELPFUL DESCRIPTIVE DATA:

The dunes of Hueco Mundo passed in a blur as Kyousuke Tsukimiya sped toward the inky black sphere of the Captain-Commander’s Bankai. Had he not known better, Kyousuke would have guessed he was currently in a meditative state; around him he saw only black and white. The color of his hair matched that of the sky, the color of his mask matched that of the sands. The spear in his hand, however, was emitting a dull light, like the glow from the core of an ember: orange-red and menacing. He could hear his breath echo inside his mask, he could feel the unity of the three facets of his soul as they moved toward the inevitable, and it felt good. He was armed. He was dangerous. He moved with purpose.

The squat black dome loomed ahead, and Kyousuke could only vaguely identify the spiritual signatures of those within; it seemed to Kyousuke there were several Mitsutakas, each subtly different from the other. There were also, Kyousuke noted with some interest, several Arrancar in there with him.

Had he not known what Mitsutaka was capable of, he might have been been worried.

Kyousuke came to a halt not far from the edge of the sphere—he guessed it must have been thirty or so meters—skidding on thin air, spear poised and at the ready. By now, Mitsutaka would have realized he was here. By now, he would have formed a plan to end this.

A moment passed.

Kyousuke felt the blood pounding in his ears.

Then the sphere was gone, and in its place stood four figures. One, he instantly recognized as his younger brother, and noted with some satisfaction that he was about to cleave one of the Arrancar in two. Of the two figures that remained, one—a woman—was trying to run. The other, Kyousuke noted with some interest, seemed to find himself at the center of a swirling vortex of light.

Picking a target had never been so easy. Kyousuke wound up, feeling his muscles loosen and suddenly go taut, then hurled Kannaduki at the figure in the vortex, coaxing her gently with a whispered command.

‘Sase, Kannaduki.’

For a split second, the spear almost seemed to hang mid-air, before it suddenly shone brightly and doused the area in ruddy light. The pale dunes lit up with the color of fire and blood, and a sound unlike anything else in the world filled the air. It differed from the static that had filled the air as Kyousuke had fought the Noveno Espada, this sound was cleaner, and bore with it a note of finality, of conclusion. It sounded like the end.

The spear—closer now to a beam of light that seared the sky itself—hurtled toward its target at an incomprehensible speed, as if it wasn’t quite on its way but rather already there, and the world around it was simply trying to catch up. Kyousuke’s expression matched the mask he wore, blank and uncaring. He knew what would come next, he had seen it before.

Kyousuke prepared to call her back to his side, waiting for her purpose to be fulfilled. He would throw her as many times as it would take for his enemies to disappear, and he was certain of one thing.

Kannaduki would not disappoint him. She never had.


°561

According to Shiki, I’m at 123 Stamina after my other fight, and I’m just going to assume that y’all want me fighting with all my shit as if it was still January.

–(16+x) Stamina, Total 107–x {
–6 for one +90 Strength Tsukihanase boost;
–5 for Sase;
–5 for Kaminashi;
–x for a variable amount of stat-piercing (more on this below);
}

Right, so

Bankai release bonus is +40 Strength, my soft cap is +80, and my base Strength is 90. That means Salzabor is the target of a 90+40+80 = 210 Strength attack that is traveling at 90+40+100 = 230 Attack Speed.

Add a tier of Attack Speed from Zanjutsu Mastery, and then take into consideration that this attack fits snugly into a Long Range attack, which means at this range (‘bout 30-40 meters), we’re at Intermediate, so that’s a dodge check that needs to reach Advantaged Defender in order to dodge.

Now that we know how it’ll hit you, let’s talk about what’ll happen when it does:

You get hit at Base Defense, which given the fact that you’re in Resurrection (right?), should be 105. Anything you’ve buffed beyond that I pay 1 stamina per 20 stats or tier to ignore unless it’s magical in nature, but a cursory glance through your techs reveals that you have no such abilities. Same goes for blocking, only with an extra stam paid on my end for the base amount.

If you attempt to block with a magical attack, I get two tiers from Kaminashi when breaking through that block, but this doesn’t translate into more damage.

After she’s done doing her thing, Kannaduki is then returned to me for a combat action because Vaizardism and shit. My total paid stamina will depend on how you choose to respond to this attack, and as such will be included in my next post.

Salzabor: you have 5 days from Kyousuke's post to post. Else, you'll be skipped and treated as if you stood still.

If that's not acceptable lemme know. I'd like to finish this all up.

So let's assume Titus goes for the grapple as Mitsutaka bears down on him. He's currently at 100 Defense and I'm at 150 Strength +1 tier. That means the slice is in no way going to get hung up on dem bones.
Let's further assume that Mitsutaka's moving in a straight line (via Shunpo, there's not much else he can do) and stops directly in front of Titus as he sweeps his blade cleanly through Titus' midsection, just below his ribs. I wouldn't say he's spineless, but he certainly doesn't have a leg to stand on.
So as Titus' bottom half is falling away, he goes for a grab. This would directly oppose Mitsutaka's 150Str with his own 140, making it fairly even. I had some techs that were chipping away at my opponents' stats/buffing Mitsutaka's but I think it's fair to assume I let them slip by not including them in my previous post.
Except he doesn't get the time to grapple. As soon as he opens the portal (right as Mitsutaka cleaves through his brittle bones) a thin stream of superheated magma sprays out for quite a ways, cooling as it flies through the air but not quickly enough. It is, however, not spraying very quickly by comparison to how fast Bleach characters can move.
Mitsutaka sees this. No way around that fact; a solid body would block the garganta's beginning but we're dealing with a skeleton, remember? Also, Reiatsu Perception is not a dump stat.

So:

As his blade bit deep Mitsutaka could feel the hollow emptiness of a portal opening behind the grinning skeleton's back. The sensation of a hollow's Garganta was one he'd learned well: after that first portal long ago had brought Tova's minions to the Seireitei Mitsutaka had honed his senses so carefully that he would never again miss something so vital. As his blade made its snicker-snacking way through the Arrancar's spine he felt an arm curl around his back and he clucked his tongue in annoyance. Wasn't cutting the Arrancar down to size enough? Slowly his eyes flicked to the portal and he felt his breath catch in his throat. Even the fraction of a second it took to reflexively squeeze his eyes shut was enough to leave an afterimage: a small square of the sun.

The howl from his lips was hardly human; on reflex he dropped his Zanpakuto and raised his hands to his face. In a frenzy he shoved away from the Arrancar, breaking the suddenly feeble grip and madly flash-stepping away from that light--the light! As he slowed a fire burst up all around him and he rolled, the sand of Las Noches stinging him in odd patterns he did not understand. His legs felt weak and they callously gave out under him, forcing the Commander down to his hands and knees. The fire had ceased as soon as his clothes had been consumed but he still felt pain everywhere. It was like to drive him mad.

Behind him he heard the inhuman cry of a soul being extinguished--or perhaps just the creak and groan of bones being shattered, it was impossible to tell. The Garganta closed immediately, winking out like it had never been. Then: hissing as if a thousand snakes had been torn from some hell. Glass cracked, shattered, cracked again. He turned his head back to see what the noise had been, tried to blink but found he couldn't. With an uncomprehending horror he reached with trembling hands for his mask.

He nearly lost a hand in the process: the material was so scorchingly hot that it immediately took from him the top layer of his palm. With an anguished cry he tore the mask away; it shattered on the sand with a sound not unlike a scream. It was echoed by something far away and then there was a tortured snap of steel. Mitwsutaka gasped in anguish as part of him seemed as if torn away. It was unspeakably painful, but he couldn't see what had made the noise. He heard a footstep and looked up in terror. "Kyousuke, is that you?" He called hoarsely. "I can't... I can't..."

He swallowed, reaching up to eyes that had been melted from his head. An imprint of a skeleton on his torso showed reddened, scorched flesh: where the bones had not blocked the light there was only charred blackness.

"I can't see..."

FOR EMOTIONAL IMPACT/VISUAL AID


COMBAT DATA

Certain that Kannaduki would accomplish her task without fail, Kyousuke had turned his attention to Mitsutaka and the skeletal man he was fighting, eager to see the outcome—as if there was any doubting his junior. He watched as Mitsutaka struck a blow that would have evaporated lesser beings on the spot, and as Mitsutaka’s blade cleaved his opponent in two just below the ribcage, Kyousuke couldn’t help but feel a certain satisfaction setting in. The woman had had made her escape—she had slipped through a Garganta while the Vaizards were preoccupied with her unfortunate allies—and to Kyousuke, that was an acceptable loss. Two out of three wasn’t bad, and there would no doubt be other opportunities.

What happened next, however, was something the captain of the Second Division could never have been prepared for.

Mitsutaka’s opponent—easily the strongest of the three he had been facing—did the unthinkable: he opened a Garganta of his own, through which Kyousuke caught the briefest glimpse of what could only have been the blazing inferno of Hell itself. The Garganta spat liquid fire and incinerated its master in an instant, and the shriek Mitsutaka let out as he instinctively fled the fire chilled Kyousuke’s blood. Even at this distance, the heat and light was overwhelming, Hazuki strained to keep him safe but her protection was only skin-deep; the front of Kyousuke’s uniform ignited, and he fervently tried to extinguish it. The shihakushou had already taken quite a beating when the Cero had enveloped him earlier, and now real flakes of ash were falling off the black fabric, intermingled with the ethereal effects of his Bankai state. The haori was charred and blackened, the edges singed and falling apart.

Kyousuke’s gaze fell on Mitsutaka’s writhing form and through the soft tink of his own mask cooling, he could hear the sizzle of flesh on hot ceramic as Mitsutaka pulled his Hollow mask off, and the sight that greeted Kyousuke was so horrifying that he barely even registered the weight of his spear suddenly returning to his grasp.

In an instant Kyousuke was at Mitsutaka’s side to survey the damage, and something indescribable was welling up inside him. It was like pain, but with no physical root—Kyousuke frantically tried burying it but it would not stay down, and he tore off his own mask in frustration and Hazuki evaporated into thin air as his eyes faded from bright, ice blue back to flat grey.

Mitsutaka had been lucky—lucky, the word sounding somehow sour to Kyousuke—his clothes had disappeared in a flash, but his frantic rolling in the sand to extinguish the flames had proved disastrous. This was far, far from a clean burn, and the risk of infection was high, but that wasn’t even the worst of it: his face was almost burned beyond recognition—the hellfire had heated his mask to the point where it had destroyed what lay hidden behind it.

A loud crack echoed off the dunes in the direction Mitsutaka had fled from, and without thinking, Kyousuke’s head snapped to attention and he raised his fists to utterly destroy the source of the sound, but he could see no-one.

Get a grip, Shinigami, came Hazuki’s voice, taut with something Kyousuke couldn’t quite place. Irritation? Apprehension? Whatever it was, she was right. Kyousuke had to calm down. He took a deep breath, surveying his surroundings. Slowly, his mind sunk back into the icy depths of rationality, just as Mitsutaka’s ragged voice reached his ears.

‘It’s me,’ he replied, his voice sounding more strained than he had intended. Remain in control of the situation. ‘You’re badly hurt, Mitsutaka. You need medical attention. We’re not safe here, I need to move you. We need to get you to the Third right away.’

Kannaduki vanished into thin air, and Kyousuke bent to lift Mitsutaka to his feet, and he almost hoped that the pain would be excruciating—in this case, it was a better sign than no pain at all. He gingerly lifted Mitsutaka’s arm over his shoulders and steadied him, silently wishing the Captain-Commander was not going to issue the command Kyousuke knew was coming.

Nobody had ever accused Mitsutaka Karahashi of not being thorough.


°710