(Sometime when our characters get to Soul Society. I think I'll let you control Renji, Ayumi will control the captain, and Stella will control Ichidan's girlfirend. Since Stella doesn't post too often I'm going to be controlling her most of the time, as well as Renji and the captain to be named at a later date just so the story doesn't run off course.)
"Can you hear me, Kai?"
Kai woke up to the sound of a voice. His eyes slowly adjusted to the change of light as he opened them. When he could see he noticed he was in an empty city. Looking from left to right he saw that the entire city itself was rotated on a 90 degree angle, and Kai was literally sitting on the side of one of the buildings.
"Where is this?"
"This way," a voice from behind said. Kai looked over his shoulder and saw a man standing on a flag pole. He had long black hair, wore sunglasses and what seemed to be a cape. The cape was wrapped around his entire body. The hem of the cape was ripped and torn as the wind blew it to the side.
"Who are you?" Kai asked.
"Who, you ask? What are you talking about? It's me, ________." Kai was confused. For some reason he couldn't hear the man's words when he spoke his name. The man seemed to take notice of this and said, "I see. It still can't reach you. Such a sad thing. How many times must I make my voice hoarse before it may reach your ears when there is no other than you in this world who knows me more?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," he said. "I've never even met you before." Kai looked around at his surroundings, still wondering what this place was. When he turned back to the man he was standing on the side of the flag pole, as if everything was right side up again. "How did you do that?"
"I'm quite surprised. How can you remain seated at a place like that?
As soon as he spoke the words, Kai felt gravity take over. He was suddenly falling down the side of the building. He screamed as he plummeted to the street below.
"You've got quite some time to spare, screaming like that. You're promising." Kai looked to his left to see the man plummeting with him. "Do not worry. Death Gods are the managers of death. They control a great deal of spirits."
"But, I'm not a Death God anymore!" Kai said. He had to shout to be heard over the rushing wind as he continued to fall.
"Recall! The fact that the Death God power, which was destroyed by Byakuya Kuchiki, is simply the Death God's power you got from Ichidan Hatsuga. It was obvious he only aimed for that power, because he thought he could end this whole thing by simply destroying it.
"He was careless. The fact that Death God power exists in you... He overlooked it!"
Kai couldn't believe what he was hearing. If he indeed had has own power, that would mean he had always been a Death God, even before Ichidan ever showed up. "My own Death God power?"
"That's right. The power that was waking up as it came in contact with Ichidan's power secretly hid itself at the bottom of your spirit an instant before Byakuya Kuchiki's attack." The man flipped his body so he was upright. He was no longer falling. "Now, find it!" All the buildings began to crumble from the top down, creating boxes that fell the the bottom of this world along with Kai. "If there comes a time when you can find the hidden power of your Death God, then it is no other than now, when this world is beginning to collapse. In only one of the countless number of boxes that are raining down shall you find your Death God's power hidden within. Seek it out."
"There's no way I can search them all!" Kai shouted.
"I won't listen to excuses. There is no time. If you don't find it before this world completely collapses, you will become a Hollow."
Kai was almost at the bottom. As he got closer, the ground beneath him began to open up into a black pool. The water splashed high when Kai fell in. Even though he was underwater, he continued to fall.
(This is what I've got so far. I'll take a break now and write more later when my mind is refreshed.)
Last edited by Dynamo on Sat Nov 22, 2008 3:05 am, edited 2 times in total.
Chicken <-- Egg <-- Rocket Powered Fist Take that, science!
What should I do? Kai thought as he sank to the bottom of the black pool. All the boxes that had come off of the buildings as they collapsed had fallen into the water, too. There's just too many boxes, I don't have the time to search them all one-by-one. He closed his eyes for a moment to think. What should I do? I never had the ability to search for spiritual energy to begin with. I think Ishida said the same thing as well. His eyes suddenly widened. Wait, that reminds me...how did he find out I was a Death God, again?
Kai's memory of his second encounter with Ishida began to play back in his mind...
"You have Death God powers, yet you do not know what these are. That only proves how inept you are. These are spirit threads, spiritual energy in the atmosphere condensed and visualized. Every creature in this world, living or dead, has one." Ishida suddenly vanished into thin air, only to reappear a fraction of a second later in front of Kai. He reached forward and grabbed something in front of Kai's face. It materialized in his hand as a long thread just like the others, except this one was red. "This is your spirit thread."
"Why is it red?" Kai asked. He fought to keep his voice as calm as possible.
"Didn't you know? Death Gods' spirit threads have a different color."
Kai smiled and shouted, "That's it!" He recalled how he felt when Ishida had shown him the spirit threads and tried to reproduce that feeling. A moment later, all the boxes had spirit threads of their own. In the sea of white threads Kai could see a glint of red. He willed the thread to come closer. As if acting on its own, the thread snaked through the black abyss toward Kai. He grabbed it once it was within reach and pulled as hard as he could. The box it belonged to came forth. He tugged even harder to pull the lid open.
Kai had been expecting something flashy to happen, and explosion of energy, some kind of light show, anything. But when the lid was open, all that was inside was the handle of a Zanpakutou. Suddenly feeling a pressense behind him, he looked over his shoulder and saw the mysterious man from before.
"You've donw well in finding it. I hope my name will reach your ears next time."
Kai looked from the Zanpakutou handle, then back to the man. Realization slowly lit up in his eyes when he said, "Are you...can you be...?" A thunderous rumble shook the world. Above, through the hole Kai had fallen through, he could see the buildings beginning to crumble to nothing.
"What are you doing? It's going to collapse! Pull me out fast!"
Kai nodded and reached for the handle. He grabbed it and pulled with all his might.
_____________________________
Urahara, Ururu, and Jinta continued to watch as Kai changed into a Hollow. The mask had almost finished covering his entire face. His screams began to sound more strained and animal-like. The metal binding his arms behind his back began to bend and snap.
Tessai released the spell at that moment. "This is the limit, Manager. I'll switch into suppression mode!" He drove both his fists into the ground. "Binding Art 2: Bankin!" A giant wave of what looked like bandages rushed out of the ground toward Kai. "First song, Constriction!" The bandages wrapped around Kai until he was bound from head to toe. Next to come out of the ground were small spikes with springs on the end. "Second song, Hundred Bolts!" The spikes struck Kai's body in several places, ensuring that he could not remove the bandages.
Jinta yelled, "Hey, Tessai! He's going to die if you give him those!"
"There is no other way now. I can barely hold him down. I have to destroy him before he becomes a Hollow!" Tessai clapped his hands together. "Final song, Bankin Taihou!" A giant metal cube materialized at the top of the pit. As it began to fall, the bandages around Kai's body began to rip. White light started shining through the seams. "This is it!" Time seemed to freeze for a moment for everyone just before the cube landed on Kai.
The entire pit exploded, litterally turning into a volcano of energy. Urahara shielded the kids with his body as the energy climbed to the very top of the room. Jinta couldn't help but stare at the massive power. The energy seemed to falter for a bit in one spot, then a small portion of it jumped out from the raging mass of light.
"Something came out!" Jinta shouted. The small portion of energy bounced from wall to wall, eventually hitting the ground like a meteorite. It force of the impact tossed dirt all over the place. Jinta and Ururu shielded their eyes. "What the hell is that?" Jinta asked.
They could see a figure standing in the crater as the dust began to settle. Jinta got to his feet and shouted, "Hey! Is it you?" No answer. He tried again, "Say something, college boy!"
Two points of red light shone at the figure's face, like glowing eyes. When the dust finally settled, they could see exactly why was in the crater. Standing before them, covered in ripped bandages and spikes, wearing a Hollow mask, was Kai.
But he wasn't completely a Hollow. Although he wore a mask, he still bore a human body. What's more, he was now wearing Death God robes. "A Death God...with a mask? Is he a Hollow, or a Death God?" Jinta asked.
Kai reached over his shoulder and grabbed the handle of his sword. He pulled out his Zanpakutou, but it was still broken from his encounter with Byakuya. Jinta and Ururu braced themselves. "Don't underestimate us, come if you wish!" Jinta shouted.
Kai did something unexpected. He held out what was left of his sword, and smashed the butt of the handle against his mask. The bottom half of the mask shattered to pieces, littering the ground with white shards. He lifted what was left of the mask over his face, letting it rest on his head. The kids were shocked, but Urahara didn't seem too surprised. "He didn't become a Hollow after all," Jinta said.
Urahara clapped his hands in aplause. "Congratulations! Did you return to a perfectly fine Death God, or what? Excellent! Lesson Two: Clear!"
"Shut the hell up!" Kai rushed forward and jabbed Urahara in the face with the butt of his sword, knocking him to the ground. "You guys tried to kill me while I was down there. But now you're luck has finally run out now that I came back to life!" He pointed at Urahara and shouted, "While I was down there, I swore that if I came out alive I would kill you!"
Urahara smiled as he got back to his feet, using his cane to support his weight. He rubbed the spot on his forehead where Kai hit him and said, "Well, that's good. With that spirit, shall we enter Lesson Three?"
Kai's brow twitched with anger. "Another lesson?"
"Lesson Three has no time limit." Urahara pointed at his hat. "Use your Zanpakutou to knock my hat off. Then, the lesson will be cleared."
Kai swung his broken sword upward. A stream of feirce blue energy followed in its wake. Urahara managed to step back before he could actually be hurt. A moment later, a small split appeared on the edge of his hat.
"Well done, with a broken Zanpakutou," Urahara said calmly.
Kai pointed his broken sword at him. "Of course! If I use all my strength, it's not going to be anything like this. Quit acting so leisurely! I'll finish this lesson in five minutes!"
Urahara's eyes narrowed. "I guess so." He grabbed his cane with both hands. "Then, shall we, in five minutes..." He pulled back on his cane to reveal the blade of a sword. His cane wasn't a cane at all, it was his Zanpakutou. "...finish this up?"
(I suppose you guys can have your characters come down to check on Kai. Urahara told them not to desturb them for the next three days, if I remember correctly. Since the three days are over, they can come down. Sorry this took so long, but it's crutial to the story.)
(As you can see, I've started adding pictures to my posts. Hopefully with these you guys will get a better feel for the story. I know that my writing sometimes becomes boring and repetative.)
Last edited by Dynamo on Sat Nov 22, 2008 3:07 am, edited 1 time in total.
Chicken <-- Egg <-- Rocket Powered Fist Take that, science!
It had been...how long? Five days? Or three? I couldn't tell anymore, except that I was dying to see Kai. Despite what Uruhara and this cat said, I simply had to see Kai.
I eased off the bench, putting just my toes on the ground. I continued to ease forward, pretending to listen to the conversation my friends were having. I waited...they laughed at a joke I didn't hear...
I bolted. I was already across the courtyard by the time they noticed; I felt like I was flying. I raced down the path, heading straight for Uruhara's. They were coming behind me, trying to catch up. I stretched, using the length of my legs to carry me farther and faster.
I burst through the front door, went to the stairs, and took them two at a time. I arrived at the basement door and finally stopped. I knocked on it tentatively. "Kai? Uruhara?" No answer. I tried again. Still nothing.
Kes and the others appeared at the top of the stairs, but I was already opening the door.
**Spontaneous, I know. That's just how I am. **
"Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery." Timothy 4:14 KJV
It was determination and a striking realisation that this was Kai's last day that drove Kestrel to Uruhara's shop against her will. She hovered at the top of the steps, (I thought it was a ladder?) watching as Audra entered the basement, disappearing into the gloom.
"Should we?" Stella half suggested. Kes nodded warily, swallowing hard. What if something went wrong, what if...? But she trusted Uruhara to take care of their friends and followed Stella with an outward appearance of calm.
They caught up with Audra, and Kestrel stared blankly at the scene before them: both Kai and Urahara were holding swords and appeared to be... fighting? There, see. The training is still under-way and Kai is not hurt. Silly of you to worry.
"How is he doing?" Stella asked of Jinta who was watching hungrily.
"Well he didn't turn into a hollow, so-"
"A hollow?" Audra demanded.
"Yeah, I really thought he had but then, nope. But this is the real test."
Audra turned back to the fight. It seemed as though Kai had succeeded in regaining his Death God powers, but she couldn't help but notice the remnants of the mask that sat on his face just above his head. Although it was broken, she knew immediately what that mask was.
A Hollow's mask.
She turned angrily toward Jinta. "What did you guys do to Kai while I wasn't around?"
Jinta took a step away from Audra, fear plastered across his face. "D-Don't get mad at me! Be mad at Urahara, he's the one in charge of his training!"
Audra repeated herself, enunciating each individual word. "What. Did. You. Do?"
Stella sat on the ground and continued to watch the fight. "He may have his powers back, but his sword is still broken." She looked up at Kestrel. She was staring at Kai with wide eyes, as if seeing something the others couldn't. Considering her powers, that was probably what it was. "What's wrong, Kes?"
"It's Kai, his aura is different."
Stella raised an eyebrow in question. "Different? Like how?"
"Before, it was bright red. But now it's... blue. It's almost the same shade as a Hollow's aura. Except..." She concentrated harder on Kai's aura. "At the center of his body, there's a small point of dark purple, so dark it's almost black..."
Chicken <-- Egg <-- Rocket Powered Fist Take that, science!
"Black?" Jinta interrupted. "Wait, that can't be good!" he leaned forward, staring intently at Kai as if to try and discern what Kestrel saw.
"Shut it!" Audra demanded, pushing him back. "Kai would never turn bad so don't you even dare suggest it!" Jinta nodded eagerly and then shook his head when she continued to glare.
"Yes... I mean no, no, I'm not suggesting that."
"Quiet," Kestrel murmured, not expecting the silence that greeted her response. She squinted carefully, looking closely at the hue against all the others scattered within her possible radius.
"Let's not worry before there comes a need," Kestrel said gently.
"Do you think we should let Uruhara know?" Stella asked from her position cross legged on the ground. Kes looked down thoughtfully.
"I don't think we need to," Kes said. "This is his doing. Perhaps it was intended and if not, we can not give him any reason to hold Kai here. We have few days of training left and all of our abilities will be needed but his most of all. I will watch Kai Okami and tell you when there is a need to worry."
Kai finally noticed that Audra and the others were watching. He called out to them, "Hey, what are you guys doing here!?" Urahara chose that moment to strike. He rushed forward and swung his sword at Kai. Kai managed to get out of the way just in time.
"Do not worry about them," Urahara told him. "If you let yourself be distracted during a fight, you will be killed."
Kai smiled. "You don't have to tell me twice," he said before getting back into the fight.
"He's really giving it his all, isn't he?" Stella said. They heard the sound of rocks crumbling behind them. They turned to see Tessai climbing out of the pit. He adjusted his now broken glasses as soon as he was on his feet.
Jinta whipped around to face him. Ururu was surprised as well, but not as much as Jinta. "Are you all right, Tessai!?"
"What are you talking about? My glasses are in critical condition."
Jinta glared at him. "Which means that you are fine." He shook his head and turned back to the fight. "Oh, well. You should leave those broken glasses on. The manager has taken out his sword and things are starting to get interesting." The red haired boy folded his arms over his chest and smiled. "You're not going to want to miss it."
Kai jumped back to evade another one of the shop keeper's attacks. Urahara's sword swung into a nearby rock, knocking it to pieces. "Not bad, with such a thin sword," Kai said.
"Oh my, I'm flattered. But that doesn't mean I will cut you any slack!"
Urahara unleashed another flurry of attacks, forcing Kai to back-pedal in order to evade them. One of the attacks got too close to his arm. He knew he needed some distance before he could counter attack. Kai stepped to the side and started to run. Urahara chased after him, swinging his sword at Kai any chance he had. The situation had changed, now Kai couldn't stop running without being hit by one of his opponent's attacks.
"Stop moving so much, you bastard!" Kai shouted. He realized something as he ran. He knew that a Zanpakutou was the only kind of sword that could cut through Death Gods and Hollows. Urahara had pulled his out of his cane. There was no way it could be a Zanpakutou, so even if he were to get hit, it wouldn't matter. He stopped running and turned to face his opponent with this in mind. As soon as he did, though, Urahara swung his sword upward at Kai's head. The tip of the blade passed just over his cheek and knocked the piece of his mask off his head. A few seconds later he felt something cold oozing from his cheek. He put his hand up to it and it came away with blood.
"You've let down your guard yet again. A sword that does not look like a Zanpakutou is not one, so it would be fine even if I got hit. That is what you were thinking, is it not?" Urahara narrowed his gaze at Kai's shocked face. "You are just too naive. Awaken, Benihime." His sword glowed with an eerie red light as the blade began to morph, thickening in width and becoming flat at the tip. The handle changed as well, instead of being the curved end of a cane it was now a hilt. There was no guard though, as the hilt seemed to be built into the blade itself.
"This Zanpakutou is one hundred percent authentic," Urahara told him.
Seeing Urahara's sword change brought back memories of Kai's fight with Renji. His sword had changed as well. "Benihime...is your Zanpakutou's name?" Kai asked.
"Yes." Urahara explained, "Each Zanpakutou has a name, and that is her name." He pointed his newly shaped sword at Kai. "Here we go, Benihime." He reared his sword to one side and slashed horizontally at Kai. A wave of white energy was expelled from the blade, blowing up the ground in front of Kai. Kai was thrown off his feet, and the blast was strong enough to be felt by the others who were watching. Tessai had pulled Jinta and Ururu behind a rock for cover. The girls hadn't moved from their spot, though, and when the shock wave hit them they were almost knocked off balance.
Kai rolled on the ground a few times before stopping on his knees. He looked up in time to see Urahara emerging from the cloud of dust, running toward him with his sword ready to strike. Kai lifted his own broken sword to block the attack. He struggled with all his might pushing against his opponent's sword to keep him at bay.
"I shall compliment you on not running away and stopping my blade with that broken one of yours," Urahara said without a hint of strain in his voice. "You have guts, I'll give you that much. But, Benihime isn't generous enough to let a broken blade stop her." Urahara began to add more pressure as he pushed against Kai. Then, his sword began to cut through the remnants of Kai's blade like paper.
Last edited by Dynamo on Sat Nov 22, 2008 3:08 am, edited 1 time in total.
Chicken <-- Egg <-- Rocket Powered Fist Take that, science!
With an absurd pride, Kestrel found herself smiling as Urahara splintered Kai's blade. Ever since her training, Kestrel had been sure that Urahara was a much stronger spiritual being than he'd let on and now the others were finding out.
"If Urahara can take on Kai so easily, why isn't he coming with us?" Audra wondered, chewing her lower lip worriedly. Stella looked up, her eyes wide.
"Say, that's a good point. What happened to Kai being our only chance?" she said. Kestrel shushed them both gently.
"Let's wait and see shall we?" she suggested. "Maybe Urahara has more training in mind and after he has defeated Kai he will show him how to get stronger."
"Yes but why doesn't he just come with us?" Audra repeated. Kestrel thought for a moment, watching the battle absently, barely taking in Kai's horror and surprise at what was happening to is weapon.
"I'm sure he has his reasons," Kestrel said. "We will have to trust him."
With one last push, Urahara cut through the rest of Kai's blade. As the piece of metal dropped to the ground Kai thought, This is bad! With no other option, he turned and ran from his opponent. He cut through my Zanpakutou like paper! Does that even count?
"Weren't you told?" Kai's heart skipped a beat as he peered over his shoulder to see Urahara right behind him. "Your blade is just big, there is no spiritual energy inside to hold it together." Kai spun around and swung what was left of his sword at Urahara's face. Urahara merely leaned back to dodge the attack. He continued, "It retains its shape by expanding softly. That is why I can crush it..." With a quick slice he cut through the guard of Kai's sword. The piece of metal fell to the ground, leaving nothing left but the Zanpakutou's hilt. "...Like that."
"Now you've lost your blade," Urahara said as Kai stared at the sword handle in his hand with horror. "Are you still going to attack me with that? Well, you only have to knock my hat off, it's not as if you can't do it with the handle alone. But, then it's not only about bravery or guts." Urahara's gaze turned serious when he said, "Let me inform you first," as his sword began to glow bright red. "If you are still planning to fight me with that toy, I will kill you."
The mere mention of those words struck fear into Kai's heart. He bolted, determined to put as much distance between him and Urahara as possible. Thoughts of death and dismemberment raced through his head as he ran. Movement to his right caused him to turn his head and see Urahara right beside him, about to strike. He screamed as his opponent swung his sword. Kai managed to duck in time to dodge the attack, but just barely.
The others could do nothing but watch helplessly as Kai was being chased down. "What is Urahara doing!?" Audra shouted. "This is supposed to be a training session, isn't it? Why is he trying to kill Kai!?"
"Audra," Kestrel said softly, "you have to believe in him. Kai will get through this, but he needs our support."
"But..."
"I know what he's going through, all too well," Kestrel explained. "He needs to overcome his fear, or he cannot move forward. We have to believe that he'll make it through this, doubt is an enemy we can't afford to have right now." Audra didn't look satisfied, but she didn't say anything else. Kestrel sighed and thought, If he can overcome his fear, then so can I.
How shameful. What am I doing? Why am I running away!? Is this the extent of my determination? Urahara reached out and grabbed Kai by the neck of his robe. He pulled him off balance and threw him to the ground. Kai rolled out of the way just in time as his opponent chopped his sword at him, hitting the ground instead. Kai rolled to his feet and started running again as Urahara pulled his sword out of the dirt. How shameful! I'm such a stupid, helpless, naive-
"What are you doing?"
Kai suddenly stopped running as the world around him turned gray. Before him stood the old man from before, the one from the strange sideways city. "Old man..."
"Why are you running, Kai?" the old man asked. "You haven't called me yet." He suddenly disappeared and re-appeared behind Kai. "Look forward, Kai. You should be able to hear it now. What's blocking your ears, is simply your meaningless fear." Kai stopped running as he was suddenly filled with determination. "There is but one enemy, and only one you. Is there really anything to be afraid of?"
Urahara had stopped running after Kai, as if he had just done something interesting. Audra and the others were confused. "What's going on?" Audra asked. "They both stopped."
"I don't know," Stella said, "but something tells me something very interesting is about to happen."
Urahara lifted his sword, preparing for the next strike. Even as he did, Kai did not move. He simply stood there, his back turned to his opponent.
"Throw away your fear!"
Kai's grip around the blade-less handle tightened.
"Look forward!"
Kai lifted his arm, making it level with his shoulder as he bent his knees.
"Step forward!"
The wind began to pick up, swirling around Kai's body like a vortex.
"Don't you ever stop!"
The wind grew stronger after each passing second, picking up the dirt on the ground and tossing it in every direction. Kai's muscles tensed as he prepared himself for whatever came next.
"You'll grow old if you step back. You'll die if you are afraid. Shout it out! My name is:"
Kai spun his body around, swinging his sword arm in the process. At the top of his lungs, and with all his might, he screamed, "ZANGETSU!!!"
His Zanpakutou's handle exploded like a super nova of bright blue energy. It was too bright to see past the massive burst of energy as a blade of light rocketed toward Urahara, ripping through the ground below it like a razor blade made of diamond. Urahara took a step to his left as the attack passed his body. The energy blade continued on its course, growing in size the further it went. It only stopped when it hit a rocky cliff edge. The massive energy blew the rock formation into smithereens, and the shock wave that followed was powerful enough to throw everyone in the room, except Urahara, off their feet.
"What the hell was that!?" Audra screamed as she used her arm to shield her eyes from the light and debris from the explosion. She looked around to see if everyone was alright. Stella was fine, but beside her, Kestrel lay on her side, covering her eyes with her hands. "Kes, what's wrong!?"
Kes screamed, "The energy, it's too much! My eyes are on fire!"
"It's not over yet!" Stella yelled, pointing to where Kai and Urahara had been fighting. A swirling vortex of dust and energy had formed where Kai was standing, blocking him from everyone's sight. Urahara had to hold onto his hat tight just to keep it from flying off his head.
After a few moments, the energy began to die down. Kai's body appeared as a silhouette in the cloud of dust. In his hand was a large blade, thicker than the one he had before. He was using it to held himself upright as he kneeled on the ground. When the dust finally settled they could see his new sword.
It couldn't really be called a sword. All it was was a large piece of metal shaped into a blade. There was no hilt or hand guard. Only a long strand of bandage wrapped around the end indicated where the handle was. A powerful force seemed to emanate from this strange sword, affecting the air around it.
Kai grunted as he jerked his new sword out of the ground and standing on his own two feet. He looked at his new sword, his face expressionless.
Urahara smiled. "Now, since you have your Zanpakutou out, shall we start Lesson Three for real?"
(Just so you guys know, no one saw Zangetsu when he appeared except Kai. In everyone else's eyes it just looked like Kai was staring off into space. Also, I have a solid idea of how this fight is going to end, so please to start it back up when you guys post.)
Chicken <-- Egg <-- Rocket Powered Fist Take that, science!
*Um... too... mentally... exhausted.... no way those posts could be compacted into a paragraph? Sorry, but I'm just so tired... I'm back, btw, after the hike -part of my exhaustion- and I have exams coming up so it's all quite stressful except I'm actually stressed because I'm not stressed and that's stressing me. Confused?*
Stella-
"What was that?" I asked, standing up and brushing myself down. "This keeps getting weirder and weirder..." I looked around. Kestrel was still rolled in a tight ball, sobbing gently.
"Kes," I said dropping to my knees. "Are you okay?"
She sniffed. "I think so. Just... aftermath."
"Right. Guys, again, can you please give her some warning before this stuff happens? Be prepared and all that."
Kai grunted. Urahara gave an almost imperceptible nod.
"Now, can one of you please explain what just happened? Why did you suddenly start daydreaming, Kai?"
He still didn't reply. "You ready?" he asked Urahara and took on a fighting stance.
I sighed. "Boys and their toys," I said. "Should we move back a bit?"
Audra helped Kestrel up and we shuffled backwards a bit.
"It's a bit frightening," Audra said. "He just went randomly into a daze."
I opened my mouth to answer, but without so much as an "en garde" off they went.
*I hope that's alright.*
"Stella. You were in my dream the other night. And everyone called you Princess." -Lauren2010
"...I'm sorry, Urahara." Kai said calmly. Urahara gave him a confused look. Kai brought his sword to his side, preparing to strike. "Please dodge it well."
"...Okay?"
"I probably can't control my strength!" Kai's muscles suddenly tensed. The bandages nailed to his shoulder by spikes from back in the pit were suddenly torn to shreds by an unseen force.
Urahara's eyes went wide with shock as he quickly brought his own sword up to protect his body. "Cry, Benihime!" Kai lifted his sword over his head, holding it with both hands. He brought it down to the ground with all his might.
A few moments later...
Urahara's hat drifted to the ground. One side of the hat was cut off, leaving a very large gap in the side. Despite having his hat blown off from the attack, Urahara himself was fine. He was standing in front of what seemed to be a red glass barrier that was shattered in several places. His sword was also expelling steam after creating the barrier to block Kai's attack.
"Whew, without the Shield of Blood Haze an arm or two would have been taken away by that." His hat landed right beside him. He bent down to pick it up, brushing the dust off it as he did. "My, my. The hat was torn apart too. It's a shame, too. I really liked this hat." He put the hat on his head. "But, who would've thought that just one swing could cause this much damage?" He turned to face Kai, who had passed out on the ground right after his attack. "Okami, you are a frightening kid. Lesson Three: Cleared!"
Behind Urahara was a cone shaped fissure that started at a few centimeters in width to more than one hundred meters at its widest point. Kai's attack had literally torn the ground asunder, leaving nothing but a giant triangular crater.
Chicken <-- Egg <-- Rocket Powered Fist Take that, science!
**
