[BitP:R] Hueco Mundo 3

[InyutheBeatIs]

At first, Pico is shocked at the sudden ability Cuerva seems to possess. "What the..."

He does notice, however, that everyone else seems to think that Cuerva is lying. At that point, he goes from being surprised to being almost annoyed, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "Yeah, the others have a point. I don't even remember the last time I've seen one of the Shinigami use their magic. How do we even know that's a real Kido anyways?"

[Nicklance]

Vicente's eyebrows both nearly joined his hairline as he observed Cuerva apparently casting Shinigami Kido. His expression shifted to a deep frown as he rapidly ran through a multitude of possible answers.

"Three slipshod theories come to mind.

One, you possess the ability to call up individual powers and skills of those you've consumed, including Shinigami skilled in Kido usage.

Two, you have some measure of a "copycat" ability and recently fought a Kido-using Shinigami.

Three, you're doing something entirely different, and fooling us into thinking it's Shinigami Kido."

"Simple. They're not the same thing at all." Rouga replies, deadpan. "What you've done is an imitation. It's the simplest explanation."

"Excellent." Cuerva smiles.

"Firstly, all of us possess the ability to mold and shape our reiryoku into a series of special abilities. We have seen it as a Bala, as a Cero, as our Garganta. These abilities that seem so natural, so instinctive, that with little to no instruction we know how to accomplish them."

"Secondly, these are not copycat abilities, or even a direct imitation of the Kido that Shinigami possess. Those two spells earlier are poor imitations, a show-acting, to shake up your beliefs that we as Hollows are not capable of using our reiryoku in anymore ways than what we already have."

"And thus lastly, these are abilities that perhaps for the first time in our existence, something that we need to consciously learn and master. Necromancia, the ability to shape and project our reiryoku into various special effects, is based on our own individual aspects of death, and manifested through our own unique reiatsu signature."

Cuerva smiles again, this time in full humor.

"And the best part of Necromancia is, you have to figure it out yourself. There is no set list of abilities unlike Kido, there is only what you can come up with within your own boundaries of creativity and imagination. Necromancia is an expression of our individual uniqueness. I will leave the rest for our King to address, but suffice to say, Necromancia combined with Vincente's Tonics and Philters will be more than sufficient for us to gain an edge over the Shinigami. And that concludes my announcement." she gives a bow and remains at the center of the arena for awhile to receive any questions.

At first, Pico is shocked at the sudden ability Cuerva seems to possess. "What the..."

He does notice, however, that everyone else seems to think that Cuerva is lying. At that point, he goes from being surprised to being almost annoyed, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "Yeah, the others have a point. I don't even remember the last time I've seen one of the Shinigami use their magic. How do we even know that's a real Kido anyways?"

Cuerva shrugs a little. "It largely depends on your experience. If you are young enough to have not stepped out of Hueco Mundo and fought Shinigami, or had the Shinigami not deem you a big enough threat to directly invade your home, then yes, you would have no idea what a Kido is." a slight jab at Pico for his youth and inexperience perhaps, but Cuerva's tone quivers a little at the mention of Shinigami invading Hollows in their home grounds.

[Kuroimaken]

"I was wondering why you went for imitating the black hole spells." Rouga laughed. "I guess I'm screwed then, because my aspect of death isn't going to help me much."

[maximus25]

Absalon seems a little shocked, but doesn't speak, leaving this to others more accustomed to talking in public.

[Nicklance]

"I was wondering why you went for imitating the black hole spells." Rouga laughed. "I guess I'm screwed then, because my aspect of death isn't going to help me much."

Cuerva looks at Rouga with a look of mock surprise. "Not useful for yourself perhaps, but useful for others. I remember observing from afar how you led your pack into battle, and your battle chants and war howls carry not just morale but strength and power to your allies. Or did you hit your head so hard that you forgot about them?" she smiles.

[Kuroimaken]

"You know that despite that I've always been better at fighting by myself, Cuerva. Besides, it wasn't exactly all me." Rouga shrugged. "My 'pack' could each do some serious harm on their own. I was just telling them which necks to go for."

[Nicklance]

"You know that despite that I've always been better at fighting by myself, Cuerva. Besides, it wasn't exactly all me." Rouga shrugged. "My 'pack' could each do some serious harm on their own. I was just telling them which necks to go for."

Cuerva nods. "And we both represent an aspect of what a 'pack' means in a way. That said, there are many things we are going to rediscover and bring back to Las Noches. So much had been forgotten in the past thousand years." she sighs.

[Kuroimaken]

"One thing at a time, Cuerva-chan. One thing at a time." Rouga offered with another shrug. "First we should train our legions up a bit better. I've got some ideas I've been knocking around in my head. Goki-kun will be having some busy days ahead of him."

[Nicklance]

"One thing at a time, Cuerva-chan. One thing at a time." Rouga offered with another shrug. "First we should train our legions up a bit better. I've got some ideas I've been knocking around in my head. Goki-kun will be having some busy days ahead of him."

Cuerva nods. "My Storm Legions will be ready as I have planned. My new Fraccion Absalon Herrera is commanding the Core Defenders and in-charge of their training. But I will assign him under your instructions and training if you have the slot for another one. All Arrancar will take their own time to figure out their own way into Necromancia, and with that we'll be stronger in due time."

[InyutheBeatIs]

Cuerva shrugs a little. "It largely depends on your experience. If you are young enough to have not stepped out of Hueco Mundo and fought Shinigami, or had the Shinigami not deem you a big enough threat to directly invade your home, then yes, you would have no idea what a Kido is." a slight jab at Pico for his youth and inexperience perhaps, but Cuerva's tone quivers a little at the mention of Shinigami invading Hollows in their home grounds.

Pico seems to almost laugh at the idea of him being called 'young' and 'inexperienced'. "Oh believe me, I've faced Shinigami before. But thanks to the cold war, I haven't seen one of them be too stupid to fight us, aside from a couple of crazy guys here and there, and I haven't seen one of them use Kido very much. Who knows what crap they've come up with nowadays."

"This Necromancia thing, though." Pico adds. "Sounds neat. I'm definitely gonna try it, see what I can come up with."

Pico looks over at Rouga when Cuerva implies that she has been gone for a thousand years. It appeared that there would need to be a lot of answers tonight. After a short moment of looking back at Cuerva, he shakes his head ever so slightly, looking off into the distance.

Thinking about his Aspect of Death, he cringes, trying to shake the feelings that want to choke him and the memories that want to bury him. The man keeps showing up, reminding him of the painful events that his souls have experienced. After a moment and a shake of his head, they manage to leave him alone, but not without leaving him feeling somewhat hollow inside. This Necromancia stuff might end up being more pain than it's worth.

[Nicklance]

Cuerva nods.

"Take your time, but time is not our ally as well. No doubt the Shinigami are developing new tricks. For those who are not present to hear this announcement, I suppose they will be surprised when they see you come up with new spells and abilities, if anyone of you need some pointers, I am available."

[Callos_DeTerran]

Spoiler

Show

[White Sands of Hueco Mundo]

Fell wind blows across the eternal dark, caused by titans of the desert clashing and falling down in the distance. A small, lizard-like creature scuttles from its hiding place, readying to hunt down some prey.

It doesn't get far, before a hand shoots from a mound of dust, crushing it in its grasp. The small beast flails feebly, trying to scratch and bite its captor, but its attempts are cut short when a man emerges from the sand and bites its head off.

A faint, crunching sound echoes between the dunes as the man sits idly, chewing on his catch. Pale scars, some old, some fresh, crisscross his bronze hide. The small reptile isn't much of a supper, but it'll keep him going... prepare him for larger game.

He's been on the desert for a while now, and it's slowly divulging its secrets to him. It's all oddly familiar, maybe he'd seen it passingly in his past life, looking through a window between worlds, but the days he's spent there have opened his eyes to see it in a way he never had before.

The desert is just a surface - a lifeless facade, to draw away attention from the world lurking beneath. Only the pathetically weak, and the horrendously strong, would choose to travel above ground.

The rest are hiding, creeping in the abyss stretching miles and miles below the sands. The man had stumbled upon it by accident, when he'd observed a monster crossing over to the dark realm from the void beyond.

It'd been wounded, cuts across its hide and spears stuck in its body. The scent of its blood, it lured others out of their cover, snarling beasts of all sorts circling and surrounding the wounded one. The man observed in wonder as the wounded one had let out a shrill shriek - was it a cry of challenge, or begging for mercy? Did it desire for them to leave it alone, or put it out of its misery? Nonetheless, the others lunged at it - tore it apart, devoured its flesh. But they didn't stop there, oh no. When nothing was left of the wounded creature, they turned at each other - fighting and eating each other until only one was left.

The man watched it rise, a towering black form looming above the sands. The man expected it to maybe howl in joy, to announce its great victory - to move on to fight stronger prey. But it just... stood there, crimson eyes staring forward, without focus or reason. It stayed in place for what seemed like ages, not moving, not speaking, not doing anything.

When it finally budged, the man followed it, curious of what could draw such a creature out of its stupor. And he followed it, until the ground gave away under their feet, and they fell down into the caves.

To think there was a whole forest down there! Mighty pillars of stone, the dead remnants of trees from some long-gone age, the tops of which he's seen above the ground sometimes. The man could only stare in wonder at them for a while - where had they come from? What disaster had seen them buried under layers and layers of dust? How far would their roots reach?

But those fossilized corpses weren't the only kind of trees. The other kind was even stranger, black forms swaying and humming themselves, their numberless red eyes being the only source of illumination for those travelling at their feet. The man recognized them as the same kind of creature as the one that was spawned from the blood of its lesser kin. He felt pity watching them.

Not interacting with anything, just being. What kind of existence is that?

If such thing as oblivion exists, those creatures had found it.

Gotten trapped in it.

The man wandered through the forest, wary of the giant feet treading the ground around him, careful to not catch attention of the myriad eyes. In the forest, there were animals too - they tried to attack him, but he slew them all, and ate them to sate his hunger. It was a grim place, reminding him too much of the life he'd left behind, the life he'd sought to leave behind for so long, but there was no exit in sight - until something set the whole forest in motion.

At first, the man though it was an earthquake, a natural disaster - would such events happen in a dead world? The animals fled before the rampaging trees, so they wouldn't be crushed under their roots. There was no choice for the man but to follow them. What greeted him was a familiar sight - monsters, fighting and killing one another, howling challenges that echoed through the abyss and called everyone to take part.

The trees acted. Why? Maybe, they hoped for something to end their suffering, but that might ascribe too much thought for creatures like them. Bolts of crimson fire lit up the dark, striking the floor, the walls, the ceiling... dozens of trees fell, hundreds of animals were crushed to paste. The man fought for his life, struggling against the tide, desiring to flee the mayhem - but then the cave collapsed..

Once again, he was buried under sand and stone.

But he made it out.

He was glad to arrive back on the bleached surface, to gaze at the moon above. But he was not alone.

From the wreckage, another emerged - a girl, or at least the man thought of her as such. He could not see her face, for it was covered by bleached bone.

But he could see her eyes.

He stared at her, and she stared back. What were they supposed to do then?

In her eyes, he saw a reflection of himself - the enemy.

So they fought.

Why?



Was it really necessary?



Sitting on the desert, the man reaches up, as if grasping something invisible against the moonlight. There should be something there... something is missing.

A sword.

He had not understood then why she had hated him so. It was like back under the mountain again. He couldn't grasp any of it. But in hindsight... why would she not have hated? Why would she not have considered him an enemy?

In her eyes, he saw fear of oblivion. Oblivion that everything in this dead world is around to cause. He understands that fear, for he'd tasted it as well, dying in his cell.

But somewhere there, there was also desire. Desire to cease suffering. Maybe from that viewpoint, even oblivion would seem like salvation.

Salvation one of his kind had failed to grant her, thousands and thousands times over.

Either way, there was but one way forward, with nothing to lose for, or everything to lose for not, trying.

But I abandoned that duty.

Yes... that, he has done. But just as she had only the choice between oblivion and fighting, just as he had only the choice to climb up or forever linger in the abyss, now he only has the choice to keep fighting or starve.

He still has to eat, after all.

He'd abolished his chains, but reality isn't as easy to shake off.

But isn't this what I wanted? Isn't this what I'm for?

A cold breeze shakes him out of his thoughts, and he lifts his hand to shield his face. He's sewn his face back together with bone and sinew of his prey, but the wound still hasn't healed properly. It aches in the wind.

Salvation... freedom of choice. Freedom from hunger and needless suffering.

If I burn the forest down, I'll grant it to them.

He would not need his sword. After all, his sword had been a part of him. I'm still here.

But for now, he'd need to find something else to eat. He turns to look at the battle raging in the horizon, and smirks...

"No no...NOOOOOOooooooooooooooooooo!" The speaker freezes in mid-scream, a horrified look on the Adjuchas' face as it looks down at it's hollow hole. A dark light bursts forth from within, filling the air about it and then...gone, nothing to note it had even existed besides a pair of foot prints in the white sand. They weren't the only desolate pair either, over three dozen littered the small pit, each a testament to someone who was and then was not. The fragments of hollow masks, and here and there the entire things, were littered about the area, looking as if someone or something had forcibly ripped them off and discarded them without a shot but then...so were arrancar zanpakuto. Here a massive axe, there a whip-dagger was hap-haphazardly discarded.

There was no one else but the one who had caused it, not anymore.

They hadn't been worth the time it had taken to find them, and so they had been done away with to fill a monstrous need. Blood drips down unto the sands from an empty shoulder, a spattering trail that lead all around the sandy pit as if it had been raining the crimson droplets in some freakish display of weather. Now sand shifts about ruined black tabi boots, a shadowed face staring down at the empty spot where a fellow Hollow had stood but moments before. Silence. Isolation. Perfection. A fresh surge of strength that tickled the back of the Privaron Primera's mind. And yet...

She wasn't smiling.

Quite the opposite in fact. Her mouth was turned down in a fanged frown, brow furrowed with irritation at the wasted time of bringing together all the discontents of Geister's rule and disposing of them in the end. There wasn't even a sign that she'd been wounded by the rabble, beyond what she had already been. Already her head is twisting as the flare of reiryoku out in the desert began to dwindle with the lack of enemies around to warrant the display. Something was close by...but what was it?

[Frozen_Feet]

On a dune not far from her, a man is standing, his form visible as a dark silhouette against the white dust. He stays put for quite a while, before taking few, wary steps towards the Arrancar.

[Nicklance]

Cuerva de Sangre - Palacio Uno

This is it. This is it. The announcement that will plant a seed of further enlightenment and growth in the minds of her fellow Arrancar. This was once knowledge that was selfishly kept within the individual practitioners who would cloak Necromancia as natural talents, not a journey of further self-discovery. This is the true education that intelligent Hollows deserve, because collectively Hueco Mundo is stronger for it, every single sentient Hollow who would and could afford to put aside bestial needs for intellectual pursuits can reach a vista of understanding and development.

And with the effective immortality that the Arrancar enjoy, compared to measurable lifespans of the Shinigami. It will be a matter of time when the Shinigami through sheer attrition of time, be unable to cope with the vast numbers of re-awakened Arrancar. And the darkness of Hueco Mundo shall fall even on Soul Society itself.

Giving a graceful bow at Von Geister and a nod of acknowledgement to Pico and Rouga, Cuerva flies back to Palacio Uno and instructs Tadzio to bring Adam to the kitchen, and to prepare dinner for herself and her guests. Being pretty intrigued by how much cuisine has developed over the millennial she was away from, this time some mortal food would be a nice touch.

[Callos_DeTerran]

On a dune not far from her, a man is standing, his form visible as a dark silhouette against the white dust. He stays put for quite a while, before taking few, wary steps towards the Arrancar.

Her head twists, the fringe of her blond hair falling across one squinted eye as she appraises the man who was approaching. He was different, that much was blindingly obvious, but it was how he was different that was interesting.

"Who are ye den? Ya ain't an arrancar...but ya ain't wholly a shinigami either, are ya?" Genoveva says shortly, turning to face the man fully. Despite her missing arm and previous battle, there's not an ounce of hesitation or worry in her aggressive posture, as if she believed the loss of an arm didn't even bring her down to this man's level. He looked familiar though, as if she should recognize him...

[Frozen_Feet]

The man stops, only four or so yards away from the girl, his form casting a shadow on her in the moonlight - he must be nearly half a foot taller, and is certainly built much heavier. She can tell he's equally wartorn, fresh scratches and bitemarks across his body and right side of his face hastily stitched together. He's barely clothed, only stained shreds of a crimson Hakama tied around his waist.

There's wariness in his purple eyes, but above all - surprise, and confusion. Her question seems to go unheard, since no answer comes out - only wonderment.

"Ye dun have a mask", he blurts out plainly, wavering slightly on his spot - it's not easy to tell if he's simply feeling faint, or adjusting his stance in anticipation of striking.

There's a slight pause, and her blinks, squinting at her.

"Ye dun have a mask", he repeats deadpanly. "What's a lil' gal doin' in a place like this?" His eyes seem so focused on her face, the hole in her chest seems to go unnoticed for the moment.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Genoveva

She remains silent as he begins to approach, twisting so she can just barely see the beaten and battered man approaching. His words illicit a brief look of surprise, though why is unknown. When she does move, it's a blur, too fast for even well-trained eyes to follow completely as the arrancar disappears in the unmistakeable sound of sonido. There's no blaze of disturbed sand, no rush of power, just...one moment she was there and the next she was to the man's left, delivering a vicious knee to his ribs as the moon-light finally falls across her face...and the teardrop shaped mark below her eye.

Just like that she's back across the pit, standing at ease with her only hand stuffed into her ragged pocket, before reaching up to tap the hard piece of hollow mask with a single finger.

"Whadda ya call dis dum'ass?" Finally her grin returns, stretching across her face to bear those pearly white teeth sharpened into dangerous points, "Yer lookin' at the Primera, Genoveva. Seriously, wat kinda retard thinks a lil girl could even be found here and not be eaten?"

There's an incredulous look on her face, as if she believed it impossible for someone to be that dense, but then she's snickering malevolently, "Den again, ya ain't exactly a hollow or arrancar either, are ya? Can't shake da feelin' that you feel like one dough...whaddaya say? Ya got a hollow hole somewhere yer hiding from me?"

[Frozen_Feet]

The man's eyes shoot wide open from pain, and he stumbles sideways... for the grand total of two steps. He reaches to rub his side, grimacing. The gal sure could kick.

At her words, his reaction is just a non-chalant shrug. "Ain't much of a mask, if it dun hide yer face." He straightens up, glaring at the aggressive Arrancar. "'sides, if it looks, walks 'n' clucks like a chicken, it prolly is one. So, lil' girl... or whaddid ye call yerself? Genevieve? Why dun ye have one? Everyone else I've met so far had 'em."

The man holds his hands before his body, palms towards the girl... but despite its deceptive peacefulness, it's plainly a guard stance. He isn't keen on the idea of being sucker-punched again.

At the implication he feels like a Hollow, he snorts. "Funny, that. Ye know, I was thinkin' ye felt bit like a Shinigami."

[Kayne650]

"Kneel." Talon is hardly in the mood for playfulness, after all there is work to be done! She sets right to circling around the twins like a shark.

"You have come a long way. But now that you have seen how much more I have to offer than Sereg..." She traces a nearly ice-cold finger across each of the lines of their shoulders. "...are you prepared to serve me?"

"Are you prepared to overthrow your old 'master' who gave you no respect? Who forced you to fight for his perverted pleasure? To honor the one who has forged you into a stronger bond? To receive your reward if you succeed?" That word. Reward. She had strategically used it so little, it was like the metaphorical bell that she could use to induce salivating. Every time she had used it before it was associated with feeding on a captured hollow.

She holds up the key to the locks on each of the twin's collars. Sure, she was still wary, as any proper schemer needed to be. But enough time had been wasted, she needed to at least gauge their reaction to finally being freed. At the worst, she could beat them into submission again and teach them what it truly meant to fear her.

The twins remain still as Talon begins circling them, their heads still facing straight forward, though their eyes follow Talon as best they can. They shake slightly as Talon moves around them, though it's uncertain whether this is from fear or anticipation. The shaking gets worse as Talon's finger drags over their shoulders, though their heads still don't move to face her. It was almost as if they felt themselves unworthy to face her.

Their bodies straightened as Talon mentioned Sereg. Mentioning him still angered the twins, due to Talon's heavy conditioning. They had become like mad dogs, reverting almost back to the state of ordinary Hollows. But that only meant that their instincts and powers were greater than they were before.

"Yes, Mistress!" They answered in unison, their heads snapping back to look at Talon. They were almost salivating.

[strawberryman]

[Talon's Lair]

"Good." Talon unlocks the collars, letting her slaves free for the first time in weeks. First, she studies their reaction for a few minutes. Then, she continues.

"Go to Sereg. Make him trust you once more. Say whatever you can, do whatever you will to convince him that you were just hapless victims to my power. Then, when the time is right... strike. If you cannot kill him, then wound him. Understood?"

[Kayne650]

The twins stood, rubbing their necks as they turned towards Talon. "Yes, mistress!" Cashin said, her hand reaching out to take Kaitin's. Kaitin took hold of her hand, but the motion seemed to be more to reassure Cashin than anything else. "We'll do as you ask, mistress," she said, bowing her head slightly. Taking their leave, the two began to move towards the exit. Even though Talon had spent the last however long breaking them, their stride seemed somehow more confident than usual, as though they had found some inner strength that the didn't have before.

[Terry576]

Cecilia's usual grin fades as the others leave. A dark look covers the unusually cheery Espada.

"Caiphus. We're leaving." The lack of any added words, sarcastic jokes, and anything substantial merely re-enforces the fact that the bizarrely sunny blonde is actually worried.

She begins to leave, completely ignoring the cat-like Arrancar she'd been aiding in his mockery of Caiphus.

[strawberryman]

The twins stood, rubbing their necks as they turned towards Talon. "Yes, mistress!" Cashin said, her hand reaching out to take Kaitin's. Kaitin took hold of her hand, but the motion seemed to be more to reassure Cashin than anything else. "We'll do as you ask, mistress," she said, bowing her head slightly. Taking their leave, the two began to move towards the exit. Even though Talon had spent the last however long breaking them, their stride seemed somehow more confident than usual, as though they had found some inner strength that the didn't have before.

Talon lets the twins go for a little distance through her main hall, before turning to follow at a slow pace. She lifts her hand up, charging energy... then makes it painfully obvious what she was doing to the twins by shouting out.

"Cero."

She had to keep the appearance of a daring escape up, after all. The energy is released, heading for the twins dangerously.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Spoiler

Show

The man's eyes shoot wide open from pain, and he stumbles sideways... for the grand total of two steps. He reaches to rub his side, grimacing. The gal sure could kick.

At her words, his reaction is just a non-chalant shrug. "Ain't much of a mask, if it dun hide yer face." He straightens up, glaring at the aggressive Arrancar. "'sides, if it looks, walks 'n' clucks like a chicken, it prolly is one. So, lil' girl... or whaddid ye call yerself? Genevieve? Why dun ye have one? Everyone else I've met so far had 'em."

The man holds his hands before his body, palms towards the girl... but despite its deceptive peacefulness, it's plainly a guard stance. He isn't keen on the idea of being sucker-punched again.

At the implication he feels like a Hollow, he snorts. "Funny, that. Ye know, I was thinkin' ye felt bit like a Shinigami."

For the first time...in some time, Genoveva is faced with someone who didn't go flying through the air when she hit them, and caused a bit of soreness in her knee to compound matters. It felt like this man was built out of iron, but it doesn't seem to bother Genoveva that much. If anything it makes her more curious. Up until the lout opened his mouth again.

"Ya never seen an arrancar? We're hollows dat ripped off er masks ta gain powuh." she espouses boredly, as if she's had to explain this one too many times to one too many people. And seriously, what kind of shinigami didn't recognize an arrancar in this day and age? Still, Genoveva's head tilts to the side as she gives a shrug, "An almost...Mah name is GENOVEVA!"

Her last word is accompanied by a crackling of power as an orb of red light quickly gathers in front of her hollow hole, growing in size and power before blasting forth with the all-too-distinctive sound of a cero. Bloody crimson light washes over the crystal sand, turning it to glass and then shattering the glass in it's wake as the destructive beam of energy zeroes in on the man who had mangled her name like so many others. A great plume of sand is kicked up into the air when it explodes, a tiny shape blurring into sight at the top of it as Genoveva looks down to where the man had been, casting her arm forward in a contemptuous arc that spits a hail of bala across the location from above, setting off a multitude of lesser explosions that pepper the pit and the area around it. Still, she grins like a madwoman, as her hand points down at the glassed area as she waits for the dust to clear.

[Frozen_Feet]

The man's purple eyes widen in surprise, reflecting the crimson glow. "Crap." He doesn't have the time the dodge, so he does just what instinct tells him to: last Genoveva sees of him, he throws his hands before the on-coming blast, as if to catch it like a ball.

Numerous blasts dig a deep crater where the man stood. When the dust clears, all that's left of him is a charred-black corpse lying on its back at the middle, last shreds of its clothes completely burned away...

... except then, the "corpse" slams its palms to the grounds and pulls itself to a crouching position, then stands up. Wait, he's still conscious? Still moving? It lifts its chin to look at the girl with blackened eyes, a guttural growl sounding through the air.

"RAAAAAH!"

Then, it blurs, launching itself high in the air, momentarily rising above Genoveva before changing its direction and lunging at her in an attempted tackle. For a moment, she could swear ash is flaking off the face of the corpse, revealing something white underneath...

[riccaru]

Sector 2 - Alexander Yori

The young man walks through the hostile city without care of where he's actually going. His body is dead, and it shows. His chest looks withered from his wounds and the chain shattering and his entire being aches from the long trek through the dark desert. Luckily he'd acquired a taste for hollows early.

But now, now was different. For days he'd been walking in a straight line through the endless desert, something within himself driving him toward this spot. And he was almost there. Now he feels it, the burning hatred of life and the unmistakable energy of one of his own in the Primera Sector. Now he heads toward the wasp nest, unknowing of the fate which would once again bring him to meet his murderer.

The mask sits affixed to his face, the hollow reiatsu being enough to cast away immediate suspicion from himself as he treks the city streets, for the Hollows had felt that type of power before. And it was a mixture they were afraid of, for where the quincy energy mixed with hollow fury, the King was present. His drones had taken the form of quincy before, and angering the King was best left undone. Alex had stolen a white hakama from someone's laundry and a sandy brown cloak which hid his body in it's bulk.

[Kayne650]

Cecilia's usual grin fades as the others leave. A dark look covers the unusually cheery Espada.

"Caiphus. We're leaving." The lack of any added words, sarcastic jokes, and anything substantial merely re-enforces the fact that the bizarrely sunny blonde is actually worried.

She begins to leave, completely ignoring the cat-like Arrancar she'd been aiding in his mockery of Caiphus.

Caiphus stands up straight. It was extremely rare for Cecilia to take matters seriously. Whatever had happened, it had upset her considerably, and Caiphus should probably attempt to minimize any damages.

"Understood, my lady. Out of our way, Sterling." Caiphus moved ahead, checking the way ahead to ensure that nothing else would disrupt their path. When he was sure, he turned back to Cecilia. "The way is clear, milady." With that, he vanished, the air behind him crackling with Sonido.

Talon lets the twins go for a little distance through her main hall, before turning to follow at a slow pace. She lifts her hand up, charging energy... then makes it painfully obvious what she was doing to the twins by shouting out.

"Cero."

She had to keep the appearance of a daring escape up, after all. The energy is released, heading for the twins dangerously.

The two turn back in horror as the Cero rockets toward them, and they both run towards the only exit available to them; a secret exit that took them through tunnels, over underground rivers, and past caves until they came out...

From the side of a building in the middle of the Cuarta Espada's territory. Huh. They wandered briefly in the outside world, unsure of where to go, before they remembered their mission, and began heading towards Sereg's territory.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Spoiler

Show

The man's purple eyes widen in surprise, reflecting the crimson glow. "Crap." He doesn't have the time the dodge, so he does just what instinct tells him to: last Genoveva sees of him, he throws his hands before the on-coming blast, as if to catch it like a ball.

Numerous blasts dig a deep crater where the man stood. When the dust clears, all that's left of him is a charred-black corpse lying on its back at the middle, last shreds of its clothes completely burned away...

... except then, the "corpse" slams its palms to the grounds and pulls itself to a crouching position, then stands up. Wait, he's still conscious? Still moving? It lifts its chin to look at the girl with blackened eyes, a guttural growl sounding through the air.

"RAAAAAH!"

Then, it blurs, launching itself high in the air, momentarily rising above Genoveva before changing its direction and lunging at her in an attempted tackle. For a moment, she could swear ash is flaking off the face of the corpse, revealing something white underneath...

There was no hesitation, no waiting. When her slitted gaze alighted on the 'corpse' another crackling cero began to glow within her palm to launch itself at the man in another crackle of oppressive reiatsu. The man's leap up into the air is what gets him out of the way, just narrowly missing the blast until he raises above the arrancar girl and lunges down towards her. "Dat's more like it..."

Only at the last second does she see the flicker of white beneath black ash, her smile faltering at the last second. The "corpse's" arms close around the girl, only for her to fade away into nothing, Genoveva skidding back through the air where she had stopped with eyes wide open and staring at him. Those freakish bloody yellow eyes stare in surprise and then begin to narrow down with a fiendish intensity as her grin dies to be replaced by a scowl.

"It can't be...you're Hannibal?! Wat da hell are ya doin' in Hueco Mundo!? Ah thought Ah'd still haf to bust you out of da Maggot's Nest to get mah payment fer playin' smoke-screen fer Kujo!" she snarls as she begins to glow yellow, the same cancerous yellow that had so disrupted the efforts of the 11th Division and it's captain not so long ago. If Hannibal was paying more attention, he might even notice that the white garment gusting about Genoveva's slender body is the ripped and torn haori for the captain of the 11th.

"Ah lost two good beasts and one exceptional scape-goat tryin' to get to you!"

[Mina Kobold]

Forward Command Camp near the Aerie of Slaughter

The call for experiment subjects creates a bit of a dilemma for Toriyama Alice. On one hand, the study of Hollowfication will be of unparalleled usefulness in their fight against Hueco Mundo and it's inhabitants, but Takeshi might be getting a bit too close to their enemies.

As the initial stir of arguments and discussion wears off, Alice consults Kurarantou in the sword's Inner World, seeking the advice of her companion.

While the twin-tailed cat's answers remain as cryptic and casual as they always have, Alice makes up her mind and signs up to help the experiment and their further study of Hollowfication.

She steadfastly refuse to ever take the serum herself, however. Her hatred of the Hollows still too deep to overcome.

[Frozen_Feet]

[White Sands]

The man does not answer. Only sound to emerge from his mouth is perpetual, low rumble, like the growling of some grand beast - and at the edges of her hearing, Genoveva can just hear something else too, a high-pitched wailing, slowly growing in intensity.

As the ash flakes off his face, she can more clearly see a bone Hannya mask with clipped horns on it. There's hole, surrounded by cracks, struck through the forehead, almost like a third eye. Small trickles of blood run down from it and both of the mask's eyeholes... though the man's eyes, she can't see. From where she's looking, it seems there's nothing but blackness behind it.

As the man realizes he grasped only air, his hand squeeze into tight fists, his tense posture radiating barely restrained fury - while observing, she might notice that he feels strange. Her eyes can tell he's there, but he's not giving out any Reiatsu. Even Pesquisa returns just the reflection of her own aura, nothing more. It's like he's just a steel shell, with nothing inside.

This detail might distract her just as his form blurs again in rapid acceleration, circling the Arrancar girl slightly to send a double punch towards her armless side.

((OOC: The Aura's lunacy, right?))