[BitPR2] Renewed Revolution OOCV

[Spacewolf]

Is there any point to him though? He doesn't look like he would fit into any of the currently running stories, unless your planning to have Satoshi fight him to show that Satoshi is more than just your average student.

[strawberryman]

"Why" would be my question as well.

[Kuroimaken]

Well, for one thing, Gotei is dangerously short on badasses right now. Koutarou's still on the mend, Masaru is incarcerated for fear of Izanami going all mindrape on his bum, and the Cult grows nearer as they plan on releasing their King (when are we going to get a freaking buzzing alarm on that prison, by the way?!). Oh, and then there's the Quincy Civil War, which is on the brink of happening and may or may not come knocking on doors.

Besides, all of my characters are reasonable people. I NEEDS ME SOME BATGUANO CRAZY IN HERE!

EDIT: Incidentally, I just had a thought. Jehoel's bunch may be cool with the Shinigami at this point, but Las Noches isn't the only faction in Hueco Mundo. Can't we get someone stupid enough to try a mass invasion on "soft" Soul Society? We could even sectorize it so we don't get bogged down in mass combats!

It would give Engineering a chance to test those gun emplacements~~

[Draken]

Well, for one thing, Gotei is dangerously short on badasses right now. Koutarou's still on the mend, Masaru is incarcerated for fear of Izanami going all mindrape on his bum, and the Cult grows nearer as they plan on releasing their King (when are we going to get a freaking buzzing alarm on that prison, by the way?!). Oh, and then there's the Quincy Civil War, which is on the brink of happening and may or may not come knocking on doors.

Besides, all of my characters are reasonable people. I NEEDS ME SOME BATGUANO CRAZY IN HERE!

EDIT: Incidentally, I just had a thought. Jehoel's bunch may be cool with the Shinigami at this point, but Las Noches isn't the only faction in Hueco Mundo. Can't we get someone stupid enough to try a mass invasion on "soft" Soul Society? We could even sectorize it so we don't get bogged down in mass combats!

It would give Engineering a chance to test those gun emplacements~~

I am not sure if there is a point to an alarm going off. The only person on SS side who knows where the prison is meant to be is Izanagi himself.

[strawberryman]

I would go with "there being an alarm would make it easier to actually track the prison". Also what Draken said.

However honestly I'm still not bought on the new character.

[Draken]

The only issue I see with the new character is "he looks like he has no reason to take part in anything that is going on at all".

And the alarm for the Cult's final success was always meant to be the tide of maleficent reiatsu washing forth from the broken seal and oozing from the Dangai into the other realities.

[Kuroimaken]

I am not sure if there is a point to an alarm going off. The only person on SS side who knows where the prison is meant to be is Izanagi himself.

Point, but isn't it HORRENDOUSLY short-sighted to design a prison to hold an eldritch abomination that, if released, has the potential to DROWN the world in pain and mutating lichen, and then go ahead and NOT add in a contingency mechanism in case oh I don't know, said eldritch abomination has friends willing to risk life and limb to bust him out? Which is exactly what's happening here?

Or perhaps more like: after each of the former knights has been freed, shouldn't one of the first priorities for Gotei leadership be to find out if there's anyone WORSE than the ones already freed in other prisons they don't know about? I get that releasing Von Geister is necessary to the plot, but come ON, "we were too busy dealing with Las Noches" is NOT a good enough excuse. Especially after Reene has been busted out in what was essentially large-scale urban warfare!

As for Tatsuya, I plan on starting him out as an antagonist. His carreer as one is bound to be short-lived, because he's stupid enough to try and take on Gotei as a whole by himself, but hey, I miss some goddamn conflict in here!

[Kuroimaken]

Or perhaps to ask a different question: so you make a nigh-unbreakable prison that you make sure only you knows where it is, you add no alarms so it can't be tracked down (except if one of those alarms is tripped, that's because the location for said prison is already known), and then someone manages to find it anyway, but the wardens of said prison CAN'T? Doesn't it strike ANYONE else as odd?

[Draken]

Or perhaps to ask a different question: so you make a nigh-unbreakable prison that you make sure only you knows where it is, you add no alarms so it can't be tracked down (except if one of those alarms is tripped, that's because the location for said prison is already known), and then someone manages to find it anyway, but the wardens of said prison CAN'T? Doesn't it strike ANYONE else as odd?

Fine. I will have an alarm be tripped that I had under consideration before. Just a second.

[TherianTheorist]

I see that Naito has turned into a murakumo unit, I guess this means I should rethink that Carl expy I had in mind before the entire cast of blazblue shows up.

[KnightDisciple]

This pretty much sums up Chuck's plan in MW.

Let me know if that's a bit much for you guys, Kuroi, Dorizzit, but Chuck's response at this point is "GTFO NOW NOW NOW" without speechifying.

He can be confused about "NAITO IS A GIRL????" later.

Also, it's time to reveal....The New Build For Thomas Abel. Props go to Draken for assistance on the naming of his sword.

Thomas Abel, Bishop of the King

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Full Name: Thomas Gregory Abel
Aliases: "The Mad Preacher", aka "The Apostle of Insanity", aka "Brother Thomas", aka "The White Bishop"
Age: Mid-30s
Gender: Male
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 200 lbs.
Species: Living Arrancar
Station: Bishop and Grand Proselytizer of the Cult of the First Hollow King
Speech/Reiatsu: #000840

Description:

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In his Mortal body, Thomas looks like he always has.

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He stands tall, is handsome and in his prime, and dresses impeccably.
His head is always shaved, leaving only a well-trimmed, stylish brown goatee. His blue eyes glitter with cunning, but sometimes with genuine joy. He is tall and fit, though not exceedingly so; generally average, if not for the fact he's clearly not of Japanese descent. Instead, he bears the looks of a man from Eastern Europe, though his skin bears a healthy bronzed tan.
Most of the time, he is dressed in simple black clothing with a slate-gray collar that makes him appear, at a glance, to be a priest from another, slightly older faith. Tucked in his pocket is a fine silver pendant formed in the image of the symbol of the cult; emeralds help give the three-lobed eye a beautiful contrast. Thomas will sometimes grasp the pendant in one hand, and sometimes drape it around his neck. His right hand's ring finger bears a sturdy ring with three polished pieces of jade. Outside he often wears stylish sunglasses, and on particularly bright or rainy days may don a simple black fedora.
During formal occasions, he dons a robe over his "basic blacks", a dark green affair trimmed in silver, bearing a large version of the Cult's symbol on the back, and patterned with traceries composed of strange words from dead languages.
He always has his beloved, well-worn book, the Utterances of the King, with him, whether tucked in a pocket or grasped in one hand.

His True body, his Living Arrancar form, is a bit taller and more filled-out than his mortal form. His clothing is something of a "photo-negative" of his Mortal clothes; his pants, shirt, boots, and coat (always buttoned up) are pure white, while his "priest's collar" is pure black. He has no jewelry in this form, and his only accessory is the sheathed dagger tucked inside his coat.

Personality:

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Having had his greatest dreams fulfilled, Thomas is, if anything, even more fanatical in his devotion, and perhaps a bit less pantheistic in his "sermon" content, now emphasizing devotion to the First Hollow King a bit more. As well, he is somewhat more hostile toward Shinigami.
Beyond that, he's largely the same as before. This includes his sometimes doting care for his adopted daughter Isabelle, as well as his occasional bouts of over-protectiveness.

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Thomas Abel merely wishes to spread the glorious word of the First Hollow King to the deserving masses. Few may find belief yet, but eventually even more will know the glory of the First Hollow King.
Brother Thomas is likely nearly as insane as Alexandra, but perhaps more disturbingly, it's very difficult to tell so. Oh, he's quite passionate about the message he spreads for the Cult, but in the same way others who are passionate about their beliefs work to convince others. To those in his "flock", Thomas is a helping hand, a friendly smile, and a wise, listening ear. This is what makes him truly dangerous; his ability to seem completely, utterly sane, when the truth is likely the opposite.
This is not to say that his care for the average member of the Cult is in any way insincere. Thomas truly does care about them, and really does try to help them.
No, his insanity is two-fold. First, the fact that he believes that the First Hollow King not only cares about Mortals, but would reward them in any significant way, especially the rather radical manner he proposes in his "sermons". And Second, the fact that he has literally no compunctions about doing whatever it takes to further the aims of the Cult. Just as he can be a kind, caring leader for those within the Cult, for those outside of it, he can be an unholy terror willing to commit terrible, dark deeds...

History:

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Much of who Thomas Abel is today can be laid at the feet of his childhood, and the person who raised him from an early age.
You see, Thomas was always a bright boy, but once upon a time, he was growing up in Romania with his family. Then, some tragedy that's just a haze of fear, blood, and death struck, and much of his village was left dead. Including his parents. Thomas himself, a lad of perhaps 6 years old, was left in the ruin of his house, smeared with the blood of his parents. And that was when Alexandra Dubois found him. And on a whim, decided to raise him as what she thought a son might be like (at least to her already-fractured mind).
So Thomas grew up in the "care" of Alexandra and Clovis. He learned early on to be fairly independent, as his caretakers would often disappear for days at a time. Yet for all that they were flawed in their general child-rearing, both of them did an excellent job of not only indoctrinating him into their mission of freeing the First Hollow King, they also helped foster his staggeringly brilliant mind. They taught him multiple languages, and Alexandra in particular introduced him to the idea of both a semi-formal set of doctrines (something Thomas has solidified on his own initiative), and the use of arcane scripts to reach desired effects. Of course, the latter has only been enhanced by his nature as a Fullbringer. He has taken to (when it's just the 2 or 3 of them) calling her "Aunt Alexandra".
Today, Thomas is only just below Alexandra in rank and prestige within the Cult, and is most often the "public face" of the group, whether it's to try and win converts, or convince concerned authorities that they are a harmless religious sect, who only preaches brotherhood, peace, and hope, after all. In the dark of the night he has done terrible things, but many of his days are spent doing what most perceive as simple good works. But nothing is ever quite simple with the Cult of the First Hollow King...

Story So Far:

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The Cult succeeded beyond its wildest dreams. First the Knights were freed one by one. Then the Queen.
Finally, the First Hollow King was retrieved from his prison in the void between worlds.
As part of his reward, those among the Cult who still lived and had not been blessed with Hollow powers were given said powers, Thomas among them.
Now he moves back and forth between the Mortal World and Hueco Mundo, still doing what he can to recruit mortals to the Cult, while also helping see to the business of re-establishing the holdings of the King.
Thomas has assisted in acquiring the freedom of all of the Knights of the Court, the Queen, and has finally found the being he worships as a god. Said being has, in part of his effort to free himself and reward his faithful servants, transformed Thomas into the "next stage of life itself".

Abilities:

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Arrancar Nature:

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Aspect of Death: Conviction
Mask Fragment: Thomas's Mask Fragment is fairly large, covering the upper left half of his skull (from the bottom of his ear to the top of the skull, stopping exactly halfway across the skull), though on the front only his left eye and upwards is covered. Over his ear there is a small dome shape which, if examined closely, has many small holes (likely to mimic a normal ear. His left eye is covered by a semi-translucent lens that is shaded a navy blue from the outside, but from the inside might as well be clear or not present. The whole mask is covered with intricate fine traceries carved into the bone, all in the Hollow Language.
Hollow hole: Rather than a single hole, Thomas has a total of 12 very small (perhaps a 1/4 of an inch) holes. Four are on each side (2 left 2 right) of his upper chest, just below his collarbone, while the rest run down the side of the front of his chest, spaced evenly. These do not affect his breathing in any way, but do sometimes give his voice slightly odd intonations.

Skills:

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Intelligence, Cunning, & People Skills: Thomas is a brilliant man. He actually holds a Doctorate in Psychology from Oxford (mostly remote study, and he chose not to attend his graduation), with an additional Masters of Business Administration. He is a master of putting people where their talents match up best. As well, he makes what resources he has go as far as possible, a legacy of the beginnings of the Cult and the very meager funds they had.
Thomas is an incredible manipulator of people, able to turn friends against one another with a few carefully-placed words. Despite occasional suspicion from authorities, it is his razor-sharp wits that have kept the Cult from ever being thoroughly investigated. As well, while not a military genius by any means, he is capable of (if necessary) giving competent directions for those few members of the Cult who might take up fisticuffs in defense of their Brotherhood. Thomas is also an advocate of preparedness, manifesting itself in several "backup plans" for himself, Alexandra, Isabelle, and Clovis to (if necessary) leave wherever they are and move halfway around the world within 12 hours.
Fighting Skills: He is skilled in the basics of several forms of unarmed combat, though by no means an expert in any of them; his true strength lies in his unusual combination of them, an approach that seems slightly insane (which fits him perfectly). Recently these skills have had a natural, instinctive boost due to his new-found power. As well, he is an accomplished broadsword fencer and knife user.

Base Power and Abilities:

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General Strength/Speed/Endurance: Thomas's general physical attributes are fairly standard for an Arrancar formed from a newborn/low-end Adjuchas. He tends to favor Strength over Speed a bit, but not by a large amount. His Endurance is more notable, as he seems to be able to keep fighting and operating for long periods of time without tiring overmuch.
Polyglot: Thomas can speak, read, and otherwise understand and interpret any and all languages ever spoken by sapient beings (including Baby and Dog).
Silver Tongue: Thomas is really, really, really convincing. Supernaturally so; he can often charm his way through whatever he feels like with regular mortals. Particularly encouraging or discouraging words might have more than the usual effect on those with spiritual power, though the stronger or more willful they are the less this power affects them. He also sings like an angel.
Cero: Thomas's Cero is not notable in power or scope, being average for someone of his particular level of power. However, it does have an odd sound, a deep *thrum* as it passes by that might occasionally disorient those who are missed by the beam but still close. Beyond that, it is distinguishable only by its color
Bala: Thomas's Bala are somewhat more unique. They are very pale compared to his Cero, and seem to rely entirely on physical impact, rather than physical impact and a small explosion of energy. They seem to compress all their energy into said impact, however; this makes them perhaps a bit more potent than average, depending on the circumstances. They also have an odd hum to them, rather than the more normal hollow echo. His speed with firing them is average.
Hierro: Thomas's hierro is a bit more potent than average in his sealed form, but otherwise isn't very remarkable.
Regeneration: Thomas's recovery does well with smaller wounds, but he needs time and outside assistance with more major wounds.
Sonido: Thomas is, again, of average skill with Sonido. He has no special tricks with it. As well, his tend to be louder than normal, which makes stealth a bit hard.
Garganta: Completely normal and average, though he's generally pretty accurate with them, and has excellent control of his energy to allow for a nice stable platform to move on.
Pesquisa: Extremely accurate. Very easy to perform and requires no words or gestures, and is quite subtle. He also has an always-on sense of direction.

Zanpakuto: Hongo Escarabajo

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Description: A simple dagger with a black hilt bearing the TriFold Eye in green. The sheath is also black and bears the same design.

Resurreccion: Speak the seven thunders, Hongo Escarabajo!

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Description: Thomas undergoes a radical change in his Resurreccion.
He now stands at 7'6", though due to his insectile legs, he can conceivably extend himself to 8' even. His whole body, barring his face, is covered in white bone armor that is shaped to resemble hard chitin.
His legs are thick and powerful, bearing reverse-jointed knees and feet that end in 5 (4 at the front 1 at the back) powerful talons.
His original arms are covered in flexible white plate, with the hands bearing many small plates to allow the same level of flexibility as before. But Thomas has a full 14, not 4, limbs.
On the side of his torso, spaced out evenly from his "true" arms, he bears 2 pairs of small "manipulator" arms. These arms are perhaps 1/3 the size of his (now proportionally larger) true arms, though they are approximately the same length. They have many, many joints, leaving them to operate almost like tentacles. They terminate in 4-digit hands, with each finger equally spaced out from the others, and bearing the same manual dexterity of his true hands.
Growing from his back and coming forward are 3 pairs of "fighting" arms. Each of them bears 4 joints, not counting the wrists; this gives them a good range of motion while still making them sturdy. These arms are about the same size as his true arms, albeit a bit more heavily armored. They terminate in 3 equally-spaced taloned digits that are still remarkably precise.
His True and Manipulator Hands are able to extend claws to become talons similar to his Fighting Hands.
His torso bears his Hollow Holes in the same general locations, and without a size increase (making them proportionally smaller). Otherwise it is heavily armored but still rather flexible.
His face is now completely uncovered, with his eyes retaining their original color, and his beard unmodified. However, beyond his face, his whole head is covered with the same chitin-like bone armor, including both ears being covered by the same dome-like structure he has in his sealed body. From his "scalp", a large collection of what seem to be limp antennae and chitinous tendrils fall down to his shoulders; these tendrils and antennae are almost constantly twitching. He is capable of extending a featureless plate of bone to cover his face, with only a seam down the middle giving a hint it might not be the natural state of his head.
Power(s):
-General: Thomas's Hierro is now very powerful, as it is somewhat "merged" with his protective bone plating. It is incredibly resistant to physical and energy attacks, though obviously not immune. Acidic and strong piercing weapons or powers have the best chance of getting through.
His Regeneration has been slowed further, however; at best it can take care of small, minor wounds, or stave off death if not aggravated further.
His Sonido is barely there at all; his regular speed has increased, but his Sonido is reduced to very short bursts of speed that simply make him a blurrier runner, rather than vanishing from view due to speed for a few moments.
His Bala and Cero themselves are gone, replaced by other abilities.
Garganta still work as normal.
And he can still speak all languages, and sings even better than before!
-Echolocation: Thomas's Pesquisa is now almost constantly on, run through the new appendages attached to his scalp. Now using extremely high and low frequencies (beyond the detection range of even bats and dolphins/whales) along with reiatsu, Thomas is able to achieve 360-degree vision at all times (and process it with no ill effects), in all lighting conditions. Fogs, mists, clouds, miasmas, and similar obstacles server little barrier to this 6th sense. It cannot go through any but the thinnest of solid walls (perhaps rice paper or the like). Rain or a similar situation would blunt the effects but not eliminate them. Submersion in liquid ultimately blunts it less due to the consistent nature of the medium (the range increase of sound is offset by the different way it handles the sound). It has a range out to 500 feet, with the reiatsu-based Pesquisa ranging out to about half a mile by itself.
-Strength of Conviction: Thomas's strength is expanded alongside his Hierro. His increased foot speed is due to the powerful leg muscles he possesses. This also allows him to leap great heights and distances. Further, his Fighting Arms can fully hold his weight if anchored in stone or a similar material. He sometimes likes to anchor into a wall with 4 of his Fighting Arms and scuttle about, using his remaining limbs to fight and harry an opponent.
His strength in this form is sufficient to tear metal and crush rock with almost terrifying ease.
-Harrying Song: The first of Thomas's unique abilities, the Harrying Song is when he starts making clicking sounds with his Manipulator Hands that begin echoing strangely. These echoes (even if he's in a wide, flat expanse of sand) begin to disorient opponents (he can target who is and isn't affected). It is not a true illusion or the like; rather, it starts to induce the equivalent of fatigue or other such symptoms, causing slightly blurred senses, shaky hands, slowed reactions, and other similar detrimental effects. Skilled or powerful opponents can often ignore the effects, but as it is composed of sub- and ultra-sonic sound waves, someone who is deaf is just as vulnerable.
-Encouraging Song: By carrying a snappy tune with his True or Manipulator Hands, or by actually singing, Thomas can insert his own energy into the words and give them an uplifting affect. It can help encourage and uplift allies, giving them a chance to gather themselves again (though not actually restoring energy), or clearing their mind of something muddling, or even helping them focus against an illusion (though not breaking it in and of itself).
-Rending Song: A combination of his affinity for sound, his strength, and his excellent control Rending Song is Thomas's greatest offensive weapon. By concentrating his energy and clicking his talons on his limbs, he is able to generate powerful sonic shock waves of varying intensity. A single Manipulator hand can produce something about half as powerful as his sealed-state Bala. All 4 at once make something somewhere between his Bala and Cero. Each Fighting Arm can generate a wave not unlike a Cero. Each True Arm generates one about 25% stronger than his Cero. All of these shockwaves are invisible, and show themselves only by their impact, their sonic boom after passing by, and perhaps the disturbance of dust and the like.
By combining arms, he can generate stronger and stronger blasts. If using all 12 arms, it's an enormously powerful blast of sonic energy, though it can be quite draining for him.
If he adds in a verbal yell to the larger blasts, it can shape it into a cone, rather than the more straight-line or projectile-like blasts his arms themselves create.

Segunda Etapa: *Not Achieved*

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Description: *Not Achieved*
Power(s): *Not Achieved*

His released state is inspired by this image.

Anyways, if no one has any major problems, I'll plug this into the Char Reg after I've slept. I'll plug in something about his ability for the Demon Arts tomorrow (Draken, bit of insight would be helpful as to what he might be able to accomplish; I'll probably say his release makes it where he can't do a lot of spells).

I'll also try to write out my thoughts on the differences between Traditional (aka dead) Arrancar and Living Arrancar, just for funsies.

[Mina Kobold]

Curses, now I want Alice to reference that song, even if she died decades before any member of Monty Python was born. >_<

I am wondering about one thing, though: What would happen if Alice used the punch-the-soul-out gloves that Rukia uses to get Ichigo out of his body in the manga on Naito? Would it push out Naito or the new artificial soul? Or would it simply not work?

[Draken]

This pretty much sums up Chuck's plan in MW.

Let me know if that's a bit much for you guys, Kuroi, Dorizzit, but Chuck's response at this point is "GTFO NOW NOW NOW" without speechifying.

He can be confused about "NAITO IS A GIRL????" later.

Also, it's time to reveal....The New Build For Thomas Abel. Props go to Draken for assistance on the naming of his sword.

Thomas Abel, Bishop of the King

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Full Name: Thomas Gregory Abel
Aliases: "The Mad Preacher", aka "The Apostle of Insanity", aka "Brother Thomas", aka "The White Bishop"
Age: Mid-30s
Gender: Male
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 200 lbs.
Species: Living Arrancar
Station: Bishop and Grand Proselytizer of the Cult of the First Hollow King
Speech/Reiatsu: #000840

Description:

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In his Mortal body, Thomas looks like he always has.

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He stands tall, is handsome and in his prime, and dresses impeccably.
His head is always shaved, leaving only a well-trimmed, stylish brown goatee. His blue eyes glitter with cunning, but sometimes with genuine joy. He is tall and fit, though not exceedingly so; generally average, if not for the fact he's clearly not of Japanese descent. Instead, he bears the looks of a man from Eastern Europe, though his skin bears a healthy bronzed tan.
Most of the time, he is dressed in simple black clothing with a slate-gray collar that makes him appear, at a glance, to be a priest from another, slightly older faith. Tucked in his pocket is a fine silver pendant formed in the image of the symbol of the cult; emeralds help give the three-lobed eye a beautiful contrast. Thomas will sometimes grasp the pendant in one hand, and sometimes drape it around his neck. His right hand's ring finger bears a sturdy ring with three polished pieces of jade. Outside he often wears stylish sunglasses, and on particularly bright or rainy days may don a simple black fedora.
During formal occasions, he dons a robe over his "basic blacks", a dark green affair trimmed in silver, bearing a large version of the Cult's symbol on the back, and patterned with traceries composed of strange words from dead languages.
He always has his beloved, well-worn book, the Utterances of the King, with him, whether tucked in a pocket or grasped in one hand.

His True body, his Living Arrancar form, is a bit taller and more filled-out than his mortal form. His clothing is something of a "photo-negative" of his Mortal clothes; his pants, shirt, boots, and coat (always buttoned up) are pure white, while his "priest's collar" is pure black. He has no jewelry in this form, and his only accessory is the sheathed dagger tucked inside his coat.

Personality:

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Having had his greatest dreams fulfilled, Thomas is, if anything, even more fanatical in his devotion, and perhaps a bit less pantheistic in his "sermon" content, now emphasizing devotion to the First Hollow King a bit more. As well, he is somewhat more hostile toward Shinigami.
Beyond that, he's largely the same as before. This includes his sometimes doting care for his adopted daughter Isabelle, as well as his occasional bouts of over-protectiveness.

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Thomas Abel merely wishes to spread the glorious word of the First Hollow King to the deserving masses. Few may find belief yet, but eventually even more will know the glory of the First Hollow King.
Brother Thomas is likely nearly as insane as Alexandra, but perhaps more disturbingly, it's very difficult to tell so. Oh, he's quite passionate about the message he spreads for the Cult, but in the same way others who are passionate about their beliefs work to convince others. To those in his "flock", Thomas is a helping hand, a friendly smile, and a wise, listening ear. This is what makes him truly dangerous; his ability to seem completely, utterly sane, when the truth is likely the opposite.
This is not to say that his care for the average member of the Cult is in any way insincere. Thomas truly does care about them, and really does try to help them.
No, his insanity is two-fold. First, the fact that he believes that the First Hollow King not only cares about Mortals, but would reward them in any significant way, especially the rather radical manner he proposes in his "sermons". And Second, the fact that he has literally no compunctions about doing whatever it takes to further the aims of the Cult. Just as he can be a kind, caring leader for those within the Cult, for those outside of it, he can be an unholy terror willing to commit terrible, dark deeds...

History:

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Much of who Thomas Abel is today can be laid at the feet of his childhood, and the person who raised him from an early age.
You see, Thomas was always a bright boy, but once upon a time, he was growing up in Romania with his family. Then, some tragedy that's just a haze of fear, blood, and death struck, and much of his village was left dead. Including his parents. Thomas himself, a lad of perhaps 6 years old, was left in the ruin of his house, smeared with the blood of his parents. And that was when Alexandra Dubois found him. And on a whim, decided to raise him as what she thought a son might be like (at least to her already-fractured mind).
So Thomas grew up in the "care" of Alexandra and Clovis. He learned early on to be fairly independent, as his caretakers would often disappear for days at a time. Yet for all that they were flawed in their general child-rearing, both of them did an excellent job of not only indoctrinating him into their mission of freeing the First Hollow King, they also helped foster his staggeringly brilliant mind. They taught him multiple languages, and Alexandra in particular introduced him to the idea of both a semi-formal set of doctrines (something Thomas has solidified on his own initiative), and the use of arcane scripts to reach desired effects. Of course, the latter has only been enhanced by his nature as a Fullbringer. He has taken to (when it's just the 2 or 3 of them) calling her "Aunt Alexandra".
Today, Thomas is only just below Alexandra in rank and prestige within the Cult, and is most often the "public face" of the group, whether it's to try and win converts, or convince concerned authorities that they are a harmless religious sect, who only preaches brotherhood, peace, and hope, after all. In the dark of the night he has done terrible things, but many of his days are spent doing what most perceive as simple good works. But nothing is ever quite simple with the Cult of the First Hollow King...

Story So Far:

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The Cult succeeded beyond its wildest dreams. First the Knights were freed one by one. Then the Queen.
Finally, the First Hollow King was retrieved from his prison in the void between worlds.
As part of his reward, those among the Cult who still lived and had not been blessed with Hollow powers were given said powers, Thomas among them.
Now he moves back and forth between the Mortal World and Hueco Mundo, still doing what he can to recruit mortals to the Cult, while also helping see to the business of re-establishing the holdings of the King.
Thomas has assisted in acquiring the freedom of all of the Knights of the Court, the Queen, and has finally found the being he worships as a god. Said being has, in part of his effort to free himself and reward his faithful servants, transformed Thomas into the "next stage of life itself".

Abilities:

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Arrancar Nature:

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Aspect of Death: Conviction
Mask Fragment: Thomas's Mask Fragment is fairly large, covering the upper left half of his skull (from the bottom of his ear to the top of the skull, stopping exactly halfway across the skull), though on the front only his left eye and upwards is covered. Over his ear there is a small dome shape which, if examined closely, has many small holes (likely to mimic a normal ear. His left eye is covered by a semi-translucent lens that is shaded a navy blue from the outside, but from the inside might as well be clear or not present. The whole mask is covered with intricate fine traceries carved into the bone, all in the Hollow Language.
Hollow hole: Rather than a single hole, Thomas has a total of 12 very small (perhaps a 1/4 of an inch) holes. Four are on each side (2 left 2 right) of his upper chest, just below his collarbone, while the rest run down the side of the front of his chest, spaced evenly. These do not affect his breathing in any way, but do sometimes give his voice slightly odd intonations.

Skills:

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Intelligence, Cunning, & People Skills: Thomas is a brilliant man. He actually holds a Doctorate in Psychology from Oxford (mostly remote study, and he chose not to attend his graduation), with an additional Masters of Business Administration. He is a master of putting people where their talents match up best. As well, he makes what resources he has go as far as possible, a legacy of the beginnings of the Cult and the very meager funds they had.
Thomas is an incredible manipulator of people, able to turn friends against one another with a few carefully-placed words. Despite occasional suspicion from authorities, it is his razor-sharp wits that have kept the Cult from ever being thoroughly investigated. As well, while not a military genius by any means, he is capable of (if necessary) giving competent directions for those few members of the Cult who might take up fisticuffs in defense of their Brotherhood. Thomas is also an advocate of preparedness, manifesting itself in several "backup plans" for himself, Alexandra, Isabelle, and Clovis to (if necessary) leave wherever they are and move halfway around the world within 12 hours.
Fighting Skills: He is skilled in the basics of several forms of unarmed combat, though by no means an expert in any of them; his true strength lies in his unusual combination of them, an approach that seems slightly insane (which fits him perfectly). Recently these skills have had a natural, instinctive boost due to his new-found power. As well, he is an accomplished broadsword fencer and knife user.

Base Power and Abilities:

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General Strength/Speed/Endurance: Thomas's general physical attributes are fairly standard for an Arrancar formed from a newborn/low-end Adjuchas. He tends to favor Strength over Speed a bit, but not by a large amount. His Endurance is more notable, as he seems to be able to keep fighting and operating for long periods of time without tiring overmuch.
Polyglot: Thomas can speak, read, and otherwise understand and interpret any and all languages ever spoken by sapient beings (including Baby and Dog).
Silver Tongue: Thomas is really, really, really convincing. Supernaturally so; he can often charm his way through whatever he feels like with regular mortals. Particularly encouraging or discouraging words might have more than the usual effect on those with spiritual power, though the stronger or more willful they are the less this power affects them. He also sings like an angel.
Cero: Thomas's Cero is not notable in power or scope, being average for someone of his particular level of power. However, it does have an odd sound, a deep *thrum* as it passes by that might occasionally disorient those who are missed by the beam but still close. Beyond that, it is distinguishable only by its color
Bala: Thomas's Bala are somewhat more unique. They are very pale compared to his Cero, and seem to rely entirely on physical impact, rather than physical impact and a small explosion of energy. They seem to compress all their energy into said impact, however; this makes them perhaps a bit more potent than average, depending on the circumstances. They also have an odd hum to them, rather than the more normal hollow echo. His speed with firing them is average.
Hierro: Thomas's hierro is a bit more potent than average in his sealed form, but otherwise isn't very remarkable.
Regeneration: Thomas's recovery does well with smaller wounds, but he needs time and outside assistance with more major wounds.
Sonido: Thomas is, again, of average skill with Sonido. He has no special tricks with it. As well, his tend to be louder than normal, which makes stealth a bit hard.
Garganta: Completely normal and average, though he's generally pretty accurate with them, and has excellent control of his energy to allow for a nice stable platform to move on.
Pesquisa: Extremely accurate. Very easy to perform and requires no words or gestures, and is quite subtle. He also has an always-on sense of direction.

Zanpakuto: Hongo Escarabajo

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Description: A simple dagger with a black hilt bearing the TriFold Eye in green. The sheath is also black and bears the same design.

Resurreccion: Speak the seven thunders, Hongo Escarabajo!

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Description: Thomas undergoes a radical change in his Resurreccion.
He now stands at 7'6", though due to his insectile legs, he can conceivably extend himself to 8' even. His whole body, barring his face, is covered in white bone armor that is shaped to resemble hard chitin.
His legs are thick and powerful, bearing reverse-jointed knees and feet that end in 5 (4 at the front 1 at the back) powerful talons.
His original arms are covered in flexible white plate, with the hands bearing many small plates to allow the same level of flexibility as before. But Thomas has a full 14, not 4, limbs.
On the side of his torso, spaced out evenly from his "true" arms, he bears 2 pairs of small "manipulator" arms. These arms are perhaps 1/3 the size of his (now proportionally larger) true arms, though they are approximately the same length. They have many, many joints, leaving them to operate almost like tentacles. They terminate in 4-digit hands, with each finger equally spaced out from the others, and bearing the same manual dexterity of his true hands.
Growing from his back and coming forward are 3 pairs of "fighting" arms. Each of them bears 4 joints, not counting the wrists; this gives them a good range of motion while still making them sturdy. These arms are about the same size as his true arms, albeit a bit more heavily armored. They terminate in 3 equally-spaced taloned digits that are still remarkably precise.
His True and Manipulator Hands are able to extend claws to become talons similar to his Fighting Hands.
His torso bears his Hollow Holes in the same general locations, and without a size increase (making them proportionally smaller). Otherwise it is heavily armored but still rather flexible.
His face is now completely uncovered, with his eyes retaining their original color, and his beard unmodified. However, beyond his face, his whole head is covered with the same chitin-like bone armor, including both ears being covered by the same dome-like structure he has in his sealed body. From his "scalp", a large collection of what seem to be limp antennae and chitinous tendrils fall down to his shoulders; these tendrils and antennae are almost constantly twitching. He is capable of extending a featureless plate of bone to cover his face, with only a seam down the middle giving a hint it might not be the natural state of his head.
Power(s):
-General: Thomas's Hierro is now very powerful, as it is somewhat "merged" with his protective bone plating. It is incredibly resistant to physical and energy attacks, though obviously not immune. Acidic and strong piercing weapons or powers have the best chance of getting through.
His Regeneration has been slowed further, however; at best it can take care of small, minor wounds, or stave off death if not aggravated further.
His Sonido is barely there at all; his regular speed has increased, but his Sonido is reduced to very short bursts of speed that simply make him a blurrier runner, rather than vanishing from view due to speed for a few moments.
His Bala and Cero themselves are gone, replaced by other abilities.
Garganta still work as normal.
And he can still speak all languages, and sings even better than before!
-Echolocation: Thomas's Pesquisa is now almost constantly on, run through the new appendages attached to his scalp. Now using extremely high and low frequencies (beyond the detection range of even bats and dolphins/whales) along with reiatsu, Thomas is able to achieve 360-degree vision at all times (and process it with no ill effects), in all lighting conditions. Fogs, mists, clouds, miasmas, and similar obstacles server little barrier to this 6th sense. It cannot go through any but the thinnest of solid walls (perhaps rice paper or the like). Rain or a similar situation would blunt the effects but not eliminate them. Submersion in liquid ultimately blunts it less due to the consistent nature of the medium (the range increase of sound is offset by the different way it handles the sound). It has a range out to 500 feet, with the reiatsu-based Pesquisa ranging out to about half a mile by itself.
-Strength of Conviction: Thomas's strength is expanded alongside his Hierro. His increased foot speed is due to the powerful leg muscles he possesses. This also allows him to leap great heights and distances. Further, his Fighting Arms can fully hold his weight if anchored in stone or a similar material. He sometimes likes to anchor into a wall with 4 of his Fighting Arms and scuttle about, using his remaining limbs to fight and harry an opponent.
His strength in this form is sufficient to tear metal and crush rock with almost terrifying ease.
-Harrying Song: The first of Thomas's unique abilities, the Harrying Song is when he starts making clicking sounds with his Manipulator Hands that begin echoing strangely. These echoes (even if he's in a wide, flat expanse of sand) begin to disorient opponents (he can target who is and isn't affected). It is not a true illusion or the like; rather, it starts to induce the equivalent of fatigue or other such symptoms, causing slightly blurred senses, shaky hands, slowed reactions, and other similar detrimental effects. Skilled or powerful opponents can often ignore the effects, but as it is composed of sub- and ultra-sonic sound waves, someone who is deaf is just as vulnerable.
-Encouraging Song: By carrying a snappy tune with his True or Manipulator Hands, or by actually singing, Thomas can insert his own energy into the words and give them an uplifting affect. It can help encourage and uplift allies, giving them a chance to gather themselves again (though not actually restoring energy), or clearing their mind of something muddling, or even helping them focus against an illusion (though not breaking it in and of itself).
-Rending Song: A combination of his affinity for sound, his strength, and his excellent control Rending Song is Thomas's greatest offensive weapon. By concentrating his energy and clicking his talons on his limbs, he is able to generate powerful sonic shock waves of varying intensity. A single Manipulator hand can produce something about half as powerful as his sealed-state Bala. All 4 at once make something somewhere between his Bala and Cero. Each Fighting Arm can generate a wave not unlike a Cero. Each True Arm generates one about 25% stronger than his Cero. All of these shockwaves are invisible, and show themselves only by their impact, their sonic boom after passing by, and perhaps the disturbance of dust and the like.
By combining arms, he can generate stronger and stronger blasts. If using all 12 arms, it's an enormously powerful blast of sonic energy, though it can be quite draining for him.
If he adds in a verbal yell to the larger blasts, it can shape it into a cone, rather than the more straight-line or projectile-like blasts his arms themselves create.

Segunda Etapa: *Not Achieved*

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Description: *Not Achieved*
Power(s): *Not Achieved*

His released state is inspired by this image.

Anyways, if no one has any major problems, I'll plug this into the Char Reg after I've slept. I'll plug in something about his ability for the Demon Arts tomorrow (Draken, bit of insight would be helpful as to what he might be able to accomplish; I'll probably say his release makes it where he can't do a lot of spells).

I'll also try to write out my thoughts on the differences between Traditional (aka dead) Arrancar and Living Arrancar, just for funsies.

His kidõ abilities are simply meant to be greater than his spellcasting was before the transformation (and in a nondescript manner sufficient to cast a specific, very potent, spell). Any specifics of how it interacts with his releases are up to you.

I would guess somatic components for kidõ would be a problem in his pincered release.

[Kuroimaken]

I see that Naito has turned into a murakumo unit, I guess this means I should rethink that Carl expy I had in mind before the entire cast of blazblue shows up.

Not quite. It's just the jumpsuit for now, not stripperrific armor.

[Draken]

I think you quoted the wrong post to respond to Kuroi (or wrote the wrong response to the post you quoted, either works).

[strawberryman]

So I have to go to class for the day.

Please try not to resolve the whole Naito thing before I get back. XD

[Spacewolf]

Haven't these alarms been routed though IS is the past?

[Kuroimaken]

I think you quoted the wrong post to respond to Kuroi (or wrote the wrong response to the post you quoted, either works).

Nothing a quick edit can't fix, but thanks for the warning anyhow.

And Spacewolf, this is a pretty nonstandard alarm (as well as a nonstandard prison). Plus Koutarou would never be able to get to Setsurou because A) dude doesn't know how to use his Reiphone and B) they're both my characters and I'd rather not talk to myself.

[Spacewolf]

Makes sense

[Frozen_Feet]

Any thoughts on hot-blooded cold man?

It will be fun if he ever encounters the hot-and-cold Quincy sisters.

On that note Neknoh, are you going to make a second post of them arriving at Japan, or...?

---

As far as the alarm and Geister subplot goes, there are many reasons why Izanagi might've seen it fit to omit or limit information concerning the nature and location of Geister & Co. Some were speculated in Ep. 1, some are good, some are bad, some boil down to simply "Izanagi-no-Mikoto wasn't infallible and screwed up".

As for this part:

Or perhaps more like: after each of the former knights has been freed, shouldn't one of the first priorities for Gotei leadership be to find out if there's anyone WORSE than the ones already freed in other prisons they don't know about? I get that releasing Von Geister is necessary to the plot, but come ON, "we were too busy dealing with Las Noches" is NOT a good enough excuse. Especially after Reene has been busted out in what was essentially large-scale urban warfare!

The Gotei Leadership already did that. It backfired spectacularly because Li did not anticipate Izanami actually being friends with Reene. In any case, Li already knows exactly who is the worst and last to be freed, not in small part because the Cult announced it themselves.

This does not mean dealing with the Cult jumps to the top of Gotei's priority list. Oh, it's there, somewhere between "maintain peace with Las Noches" and "doing laundry", and there is a fairly obvious and logical path through which Gotei can learn the Cult's location. I'm just not inclined to hurry it.

---

EDIT: Here's a link to Masaru's training episode. Please add a mention to the first OOC post.

[Kuroimaken]

Incidentally, folks, I admit I didn't create Tatsuya with any specific plot in mind, but that's never really stopped me before.

Anyone got any ideas on what he could be used FOR, or any plot ideas come to mind where he could be used?

[KnightDisciple]

His kidõ abilities are simply meant to be greater than his spellcasting was before the transformation (and in a nondescript manner sufficient to cast a specific, very potent, spell). Any specifics of how it interacts with his releases are up to you.

I would guess somatic components for kidõ would be a problem in his pincered release.

No, see, that's the thing; with his True and Maniuplator Hands, he could do all the somatic components. If they were Silent spells he could do, like 3-6 spells, depending on the complexity of the somatic components.

So I'm leaning toward some explanation of how his release makes it difficult to do more than a few very basic spells. So he could perform any spell, but it takes enough concentration he's better off relying on his innate abilities in that form. Trade-off is the name of the game with the Bishop of the King.

So I have to go to class for the day.

Please try not to resolve the whole Naito thing before I get back. XD

I'm basically just having Chuck keep running until they reach Shinji's family's shelter. Up to Dorizzit if Naito pursues or whatnot.

[Draken]

Just limit it by his total spiritual power then. Simple.

Doesn't matter if you can speak all the chants and choreograph all the gestures at once if the batteries are only good for one Sho, after all.

Disclaimer: The above statement is an extrapolation.

[Kuroimaken]

Ah yes, that reminds me how Soushi cheated in that regard.

SO. MuCH. HAX.

[KnightDisciple]

Eh, I figured it out. Anyways, tremble ye Mortals and despair, The Mad Apostle has become that which he sought for so long!

[TherianTheorist]

Kuroi, I think you might have missed my post from before the page changed.

Edit: finished my long promised powerset rewrite for Bernadette, went for simple while keeping the spirit of the original design, the finished version should be both easy to understand and playable this time.

[5a Violista]

EDIT: Incidentally, I just had a thought. Jehoel's bunch may be cool with the Shinigami at this point, but Las Noches isn't the only faction in Hueco Mundo. Can't we get someone stupid enough to try a mass invasion on "soft" Soul Society? We could even sectorize it so we don't get bogged down in mass combats!

It would give Engineering a chance to test those gun emplacements~~

I could do that.
Actually, I could have Hikari direct that, since she is Hollow, and I could easily say she convinced one of the various Hueco Mundo Factions to attack the Seireitei. Would be a good starting point. But will this not draw plot attention away from the Cult? (So, basically, is everyone fine with an attack happening on the Soul Society? If so, are some people willing to control some of the vile Hollows?)



Also, Kuroimaken, have you responded to this post of Miya in the Mortal World yet? If so, I can't find the response, so...

[Kuroimaken]

All a matter of timing, I never said it needed to happen NOW.

[Mina Kobold]

I am wondering about one thing, though: What would happen if Alice used the punch-the-soul-out gloves that Rukia uses to get Ichigo out of his body in the manga on Naito? Would it push out Naito or the new artificial soul? Or would it simply not work?

Dorizzit, any thoughts on what would happen if Alice tried this? Would it be possible to push either soul from Naito's body or would Alpha-1's powers prevent it? It seems like a logical thing for Alice to try if Alpha-1 ends up refusing to return Naito.

Well, that or trying to feed Alpha-1 a Soul Candy, but there are enough souls in there as is. X3

[Dorizzit]

I'd be pretty impressed if Alice could connect with the glove long enough to get it off.