Post by Deleted on Mar 16, 2019 9:27:36 GMT -5
“How long has it been since I fell asleep? It doesn’t feel like it’s been long enough yet.” With a groan Anthony turned over onto his side while he laid in a bed. To anyone who could see the bed itself was a bit… well dilapidated. The bed frame made entirely of discolored wood that creaked just a bit with every movement. Yet despite it’s rickety look it never once collapsed, instead holding up just as strong as any bed that the young Kuchiki was used to sleeping in. This theme of disarray and age followed past the bed and into the room around him. It too was older and showed signs of wear and tear in both small and large places. It was really a matter of casually glancing around in order to find the signs. Yet amongst this room of seemingly dilapidated furniture, structure, and just general appearance there sat a figure in a rocking chair.
This figure clad in merely a thick wisping cloak was none other than Anthony’s inner zanpakuto spirit, Shinobata. The bones of an unknown amount of skeletons made up his form with his main skeletal body a bit of a mish-mash of various different bones. His hands taking on the appearance of claws more than hands while his feet looked more akin to a beasts paws. In truth the only “humanoid” aspect to him were his actual skull and the various skulls that adorned his chest cavity and upper body. Had anyone other than Anthony been this spirits companion they may well have thought him to be something evil that was after them. Something akin to a demon or a hollow, or something equally as foul. In truth though? Shinobata was merely keeping an eye over Anthony, concerned for his well being mentally and spiritually. He already knew how Anthony was physically though such knowledge hadn’t been shared just yet. He hadn’t been certain Anthony could handle it yet. It was...a lot to take in at once. All in due time would he come to realize what occurred outside his body.
A small ghastly chuckle came from Shinobata before responding to Anthony’s question. Despite the length of time Anthony had come to remain in the inner world he never quite got a sense of time down. In a way though it didn’t really matter as the world changed merely in weather and who was out and about in the grand citadel. “A full 8 hours, 13 minutes, and 23 seconds. Don’t worry I counted it out just to be certain.” If Shinobata could smile he would have given the mock horror on Anthony’s face as he moved his legs off the creaky bed so that he could sit on it rather than lay upon it. Beneath the playful outlook Shinobata could see the concern hidden away. He wasn’t used to such restless dreams nor a lack of good sleep. And given the way he moved about he probably continued to have dreams over what happened just to forget them as he would wake up. Such was the cycle the young shinigami had been dealing with while he resided inside his inner world.
“Hmm… If your certain then I must have. . . but still I feel exhausted. Is this how it’s always going to be while I am apart of my inner world? Seems like every time I’ve been allowed to visit here it’s with me on the verge of exhaustion. Just like the first time I managed to force my way in.” “Perhaps this will be a trend. It’s too soon to tell for certain however as you’ve only truly visited this realm twice. The other occasions have been fleeting at best with you merely staying long enough to catch a glimpse. For now I would recommend not dwelling too deep on the matter there are more important things you should consider prior to that. Such as what brought you in the first place. I take it you still cannot remember that, am I correct?”
Anthony simply nodded in response with his head towards his hands. Try as he might, think as hard as he could, everything was simply blank. He could remember the raw emotions that held no right to be present as none of his memories suggested anything remotely close to them. Especially not something that would make him wake up screaming as he had done the first few “days”. Days in terms of 24 hour periods given Anthony was only ever able to see the moon, assuming the weather was clear. Still that didn’t make things any less worrying. He’d never experience such deep fear as he did now. Though he didn’t know what happened or why he couldn’t help constantly looking around him and over his shoulder over something that didn’t exist. It just always felt like he had a presence looming over him just waiting for an opportunity to pounce. And whatever presence it could be was definitely not Shinobata.
Shinobata, in Anthony’s humble opinion, was surprisingly comforting. As were the other assortment of spirits he saw. Though their appearances were vastly different from one another and some were eerily reminiscent of hollows Anthony never felt anything aggressive or malevolent from them. Instead he merely felt small pangs of sorrow as they’d look up at him, greet him, and scurry off to wherever they intended to go inside his inner world. One day he hoped to get one to talk to him or at least not run away immediately but sadly as it stood that day was still far off. A quick shake of his head though and Anthony brought himself back from the inner thought monologue. Shaking his head again he answered Shinobata quietly, “No...not yet anyway. I can recall specific emotions such as intense fear and this overwhelming feeling of dread. Or even an eerie silence that puts everything else I remember as terrifying to shame. But nothing more. Surely it was important if it brought out such intense emotions right? If so why can’t I remember it?” The frown Anthony held was intense and aimed mostly at himself more so than anyone else. He couldn’t blame them. Afterall it WAS his memories. If it was anyone’s responsibility to recall things it’d be his. The fact he couldn’t only made him feel even lower than he already was.
Shinobata could only shake his head patiently. All of this was expected. Anthony suffered major physical trauma at the hand of an incredibly strong combatant. And that was just the tip of the iceberg as the mental trauma even now continued to assault his mind. He very much wondered if the other, given their current mindset, could really come to terms with everything that happened. Only time would tell and for now that time wasn’t going to be for a bit longer. Especially given the truth behind Anthony’s predicament outside his inner world. He only hoped that what he managed to hear wasn’t true. For now though Shinobata needed to focus on his “owner”. Or more accurately his protege given Anthony was trying to learn more about both himself than ever since he held such intense doubts of being able to return after he would awake in the seireitei.
“Perhaps with more time you will come to remember everything. Clearly it’s important otherwise you wouldn’t have fragments to manage. For now however we should change our approach to the present. Which predominantly has you dealing with your inner world and it’s various inhabitants. Believe it or not they are very anxious to meet you, their hesitance has simply been due to not understanding the circumstances around why you are here for so long. Their last chance to see you was very brief to say the least.” Anthony could only listen as processing everything was still surprisingly sluggish for him. Once Shinobata was finished however he let his mind drift on everything. How his mysterious encounter brought him back here and seemingly made his stay practically permanent. At least with the rate things were currently going at. Glancing over at his inner spirit he couldn’t help but show his disarray at being unable to truly understand why he had no memory of the event prior. It was never going to sit well with him and thus even if Shinobata was correct he still needed to find out the reason why.
A quick sigh Anthony knew there was only one thing he could do at a time like this. Especially considering he had been given ample time to rest yet again. “Would you mind accompanying me for a walk? This city may have been produced by me but I’m almost certain I’ll be lost if I go through it alone. Besides I’d like to continue learning about you, I haven’t exactly had the time or place to really do that. Let alone my previous attempts were pretty much just that. An attempt to claw my way in and stay longer than a few seconds. What do you say?” His spirit’s face didn’t move at all, how could it after all? The dude had a literal human skull for a face. Bones simply did not move in that manner even for the undead. It took about a moment later for Shinobata to decide and his answer was surprisingly simple. A simple head nod before standing up out of the chair and making his way to the door so they could take a walk around the city.
He’s definitely the quiet type. Hopefully I can get another conversation out of him as we walk around. Otherwise this is going to be far more boring than I would have thought previously possible. In truth prior to seriously meeting Shinobata Anthony genuinely assumed his interaction with his inner spirit would have been one that was a lot more animated. That they’d have inside jokes and be willing to play cards with one another. Maybe have deep talks about Anthony or even his inner spirit. He knew the other HAD to have wants/goals/etc for himself. In a way he really thought it’d be much more akin to a close knit friendship. And in a way it was but much more streamlined and with less spontaneous aspects to it. There was no doubt Shinobata was close to Anthony and gave at least part of a shit but in methods in doing such were much more reserved than Anthony’s. This thought alone sparked a small chuckle in him.
Within his first day of being in his inner world Anthony had managed to make Shinobata wish he could actually express himself. He’d been gentle and reserved, to frustrated, to surprised, to angry even, and finally at neutral again. His biggest surprise was from Anthony literally tackling the 16 foot skeletal monster that was his inner spirit. Genuinely the other hadn’t realized just how deeply Anthony enjoyed undead, necromancy, etc until that moment. The most surprising part had been how quick of a transition Anthony had gone to from “Oh fuck I’m in my inner world.” to “Oh fuck my inner spirit is an undead!”. That moment was never going to leave his mind until he ceased to exist… if that was even possible. The soul cycle was a thing after all so who knew what would happen once Anthony moved on from this life as a shinigami.
Memories aside however Anthony proceeded to watch as his inner spirit shifted his size to fit through the door frame. With his normal size being more than double the length and width of the initial entrance to the house this was quite literally the only method by which he could reasonably enter and exit as he pleased. Anthony on the other hand didn’t have this problem, he simply was his usual height and was more than easily able to move around. The remainder of the house was as the room he awoke in would entail. Creaky, old, and abandoned in look alone. In actual vibe the house gave off, it actually seemed more homey and lived in. The only thing it didn’t remind him was that the house had two levels. Three if you included the attic but Anthony didn’t really feel the need to call that yet another level. Walking into the hallway he was able to just barely catch the tail end of Shinobata’s cloak as he made his way down the stairs and into the living room. Anthony quickly followed him straight to the front door where he found Shinobata back to his full size outside the house.
A small whistle of amusement from Anthony and Shinobata did his best to roll his eye sockets. The effect was literally non-existent but somehow Anthony knew it would have been pretty exaggerated and that made it all the better. Now though the world, his world, was Anthony’s oyster. He could go wherever he wanted. In any way he wanted. And do pretty much whatever he wanted. All with the crescent moon keeping an eye on him from above and a gentle breeze from seemingly nowhere guiding him along whatever path he would choose. With that in mind he simply choose a random alleyway that caught his eye. The path itself was winding between buildings and several streets yet seemed to never really end. It merely gave other small options to move around outside it’s main pathway. Sometimes in the form of stairs that would lead both up and down the houses. Other times it’d simply swerve and reveal several little branches that he could choose from. So help me I will have a game of hide and seek here at some point. This place has FAR too many area’s to make it anything less than a necessity.”
For the next few hours both would silently come to lose themselves within the citadel. The various back alley’s, wide streets, various houses and store fronts all eventually merging together. Similar to how slowly time seemed to move within this world. The moon would change positions, even change how it looked, and the sky would cycle through different weather patterns however it never seem to really make the inner world feel like time moved. It always remained at its core a beautiful evening setting with a hauntingly scenic citadel. This might have been made a bit better by the usually easily seen spirits that roamed around inside it but as it stood currently the world was just empty. Prior times showed that at least a few would make themselves known saying hello or some other greeting. But today it was stark silent for one reason or another. Save for the sounds of their feet on the pavement.
As Anthony turned around to speak to Shinobata he felt a disturbance in the area. Something that didn’t feel right and put the hair’s on the back of his neck at attention. A quick look to Shinobata however showed that whatever it was Anthony was feeling wasn’t shared between them. He still seemed as cool and collected as always. However Anthony was not the same in fact he was freaking out a bit more than even he felt was reasonable. He was in his inner world after all. There shouldn’t be anything inside that wasn’t his inner spirit. The thought that there could be was far more terrifying than anything else that he could currently think up. This fear wasn’t helped at all by the steadily growing fear that Anthony was feeling. He felt eyes on him, constantly watching his every move. Just waiting for him to mess up provide an opening. Yet nothing ever came which ultimately made him question his mental state more than anything else.
Still a quick shrug and he did his best to shove it off. No point in letting it get to him when nothing dangerous could be here. It was impossible even to have someone or something that could reside within himself that was dangerous and or aggressive towards him. But what if there is? Would it be tied to the memories I haven’t recovered yet? A frown marred his face as Anthony thought deeper still about it. That memory had to be important. Not just because Shinobata said so. Not because he gave it importance for being unable to remember. It was the raw emotions behind it that gave him even still that made it important. And in more ways than one it felt like a message that screamed a warning. A warning of what thought? Last he could remember he took another walk into a nearby forest as he normally would with Smokey. There was no reason for him to fear as he’d done the exact same thing several times already. So what was it then?
“Anthony we should take a moment to rest. We’ve walked for several hours now believe it or not.” The combination of Shinobata’s words and the sudden feeling of a hand on Anthony’s shoulder brought him out of his mind’s inner sanctum. A quick glance around showed they’d entered an area they hadn’t seen the past few strolls through the citadel. For the first time they found a garden. Big enough to be a park and with a good 4 blocks worth of space to encompass the entire area. Benches though worn and metal were placed here and there around the park with a small path winding its way through the venue. The best part of it was that when Anthony looked towards his right he could see over the lower wall of the citadel showing off the bridge to somewhere else and the seemingly motionless water that surrounded them. Had the sense of dread not been so highly present still he’d have stood amazed over the entire scene wondering how he could take a piece of it back with him. Instead however that feeling intensified and soon all he could think about was how vulnerable he was now that he was out in the open.
But how could he be? He already knew nothing else was here but him and Shinobata. He wasn’t having any of this mind game that he was enduring currently and simply shook his head. He was safe. He was alright...He was going to be ok. But why then was he stuck in his inner world if everything was alright? Anthony kept thinking on this as he walked over to the bench with Shinobata helping guide him along the way. He knew what the other was thinking. He didn’t need to read his mind or his soul to see that he was trying to figure the entire situation out. Time to slowly think things over also wasn’t going to help either. It kept him on edge. He was used to certain things happening and certain methods of said event taking place. For example just being here. He was more understanding of a brief interaction vs several weeks of having been stuck here. That fact alone was going to start to bring him to the answer if he kept thinking over it.
Shinobata glanced over at Anthony who was still thinking just as hard as ever over their current predicament. If he could have sighed he would have but he didn’t want to let the other in on the fact he knew what was going on. Instead he wanted to have Anthony find out on his own and make his decisions on how to handle things. Still… perhaps he could speed up the process. Anthony wasn’t making any head way and the fact of the matter was he needed to figure things out. Sooner than later given even the doctors on the outside were getting concerned about his lack of presence in the past few weeks. A quick glance over at Anthony again and he nodded just a bit as he steeled himself in his decision. He needed to help but he needed to be more subtle and though it wasn’t quite his style he had an idea that would work rather well. Shinobata had several “luxuries” that he could take as the lord of this realm. One of which was reading deeply into Anthony’s soul and mind at a whim. It’s how he kept tabs on him even. So when the events against the beast-clan occurred he saw every moment from Anthony’s perspective with a front row view to how he handled it.
So how could he have the other address it when he couldn’t remember it? There was an answer...one he didn’t like much. He could summon up the object of his fear or something similar. A sort of figment with enough power to actively make him deal with his problem face to face. However this wasn’t exactly the best answer as knowing Anthony he’d very likely just succumb to the terror he would bring out again. But what if he overcame it? Wouldn’t that be better than allowing him to stay in this perpetual loop? This limbo of sorts. He already had been dealing with this for several weeks without progress. He had to follow through with this. Damn the consequences Anthony needed to move past this. With a silent apology he started reaching out for that fear that remained within Anthony coaxing it out. It was all too eager and within moments the presence had left Anthony. Events set in motion it was only a matter of time now.
Anthony in the meantime had finally started to relax. The growing fear that gnawed on him from the inside out had slowly but surely faded. He gradually began to relax and eventually returned to his prior self. Now fully able to appreciate the setting. Uncertain to why that growing fear left and without a care to follow that thought through he simply continued to gaze at the water. This lasted about a whole 5 seconds though as before he could transition to a new thought a beast landed in front of him. And this beast brought back all that fear and terror he’d been holding within back and with a vengeance at that. Shinobata stood up quickly but all Anthony could see was the beast in front of him. The world and it’s sparing colors faded. The world around him darkened and all he saw was it. It held a grin as wide as could be revealing all the teeth it could show with it’s canines especially pronounced. She stood tall, taller than him anyway with blue outlines and large ears. It was a pretty accurate rendition of Zahra and that rendition shattered his unconcious barriers that held the memories of her from him.
Within moments he relived the entire affair. The “fight” if you could call it that. The moment he felt his spine get cut seemingly in half. That moment he entered a personal hell where the world was only red and all he could hear was his frantic mind trying to keep up. The pain that he felt in his legs and the complete and utter fear he felt in each and every muscle, injured or not. He stood paralyzed as the other continued to walk closer. Muscles brimming with strength, confidence in her strut, and a look in her eyes that screamed “I am your worst nightmare.” Before he could even think he ran. He didn’t know where he was running off to but anywhere that wasn’t that garden was better. He needed to get away from her. He needed to survive. He wasn’t going to let himself get injured all over again. He practically faced death and that was not something he was willing to do again. Not for anyone. A twinge of guilt surged through him with that thought. What about his family? What about Smokey? Or Shinobata. Did none of them matter enough for him to overcome his fear?
And then it hit him. What would happen if she killed him inside his inner world? What would happen to those outside of his inner world? He never considered how she had managed to enter in the first place as the fear pumping through his veins was far too intense to dig nearly that deep. If she was here she was incredibly powerful and she was after him. There was no coming back from this if she achieved her goal. Then he had to keep running. Run as far as his legs could take him. Shinobata was more than strong enough to keep himself safe as well as the inhabitants he just needed to focus on keeping himself safe for now. This train of thought was shattered when Anthony ran head first into something only to fall flat on his ass afterward. He groaned and was about to berate himself for being so dumb as to run into a wall. But when he looked up he saw it was anything but a wall. It was Zahra. She’d caught up to him and without breaking a sweat it seemed. So there she stood pridefully gleaming over her new chew toy. Or worse her new meal. And that meal was Anthony Kuchiki.
Without hesitation she brought out two knives that cut into his legs. They bled almost instantly as pain exploded through his body. He screamed out and grabbed at each quickly realizing he wasn’t able to move them. It was just like before, he had lost the ability to move them. He was trapped again and this time instead of him escaping to his inner world he was trapped by Zahra with no place left to run. She wasn’t done playing with her meal yet though she took a deep breath of air and without hesitation she yet again howled out except directly at him. Point blank. His eardrums ruptured again, same as his memory showed. He couldn’t hear anything again. He couldn’t move his legs. And all that he could feel, aside from intense pain, was utter terror. He was going to die again if he didn’t get help. He was too weak to do anything. This was beyond his abilities and he knew it. There was no coming back from this now and even worse he couldn’t even begin to cry out for help. He was just that paralyzed over the entire event.
That however is when Shinobata stepped in. Not physically no but mentally by reaching out he was able to speak directly to Anthony. “Is this how you intend to face every situation that comes your way? With abject terror and fear? You did realize that upon joining the seireitei these were the kind of beings you’d be forced to fight against correct? So why don’t you struggle? Why do you sit there crying as though your fate’s been decided already?” Anthony couldn’t bring himself to speak especially with Zahra having picked him up and thrown him against a wall. This wasn’t her trying to kill him, at least not yet, she was torturing him. Making sure to get every ounce of fear she could out of him and it was working immensely well. Every moment this continued was another moment Anthony’s fear grew in size. It was all Anthony could do to just talk to Shinobata mentally as he was so focused on the events in front of him and how limited his time was before Zahra finished it all.
I-I can’t fight back! S-she’s way too strong for me not to mention I literally cannot move! She’s done something to my legs to keep me from moving them! “So what did she cut off your arms? Did she take away your weapon from you? No. So what if you can’t move? That just means she needs to come closer to you to do anything. And that means she’s within your ability to fight back. You can’t run and she won’t run. This is how fights to the death are Anthony. You have to find it within yourself to fight back no matter the cost. Because if you don’t people like Zahra will win. And they won’t give you the opportunity to try again later. Once you’re dead your gone. You know this. So what will you do? Continue to cower in fear as you’re thrown around? Or will you pick up your sword and fight back? There’s only one correct answer here Anthony. [/color] Anthony didn’t even have a moment to respond before he got punched in the face and into a wall. Zahra merely cracked her knuckles and cackled at him, not that Anthony could hear it. He was deaf now hence why Shinobata could only speak to him mentally, just as he had been doing prior. Anthony just hadn’t realized it.
He looked up at Zahra, bruised and aching. She prowled over to him with her eyes wide and that same beastly grin plastered on her face. She was not going to keep toying around with him. The next blow was probably going to be the last blow if she had anything to say about it. Knife ready in one hand and her claws out and ready in her other, even her fur now had changed color showing her release. She wasn’t playing around and Shinobata was right, this was kill or be killed. If he did nothing she’d end him. He’d cease to exist and he would have never gotten the chance to repay the kuchiki’s let alone recover from his initial loss. He’d never grow into the person who could surpass Kyomei or the Captain Commander. Yet that wasn’t enough for him. He couldn’t steel himself on that alone, his aspirations were just that. Lofty goals he never truly felt he could achieve anyway he just had them as guideposts for what he wanted. What he dreamed about.
Something else however began to stir in his mind, it was small but dense. Akin to a small flame but something far darker, akin to hellfire. Whatever it was merely scoffed in annoyance as it presented itself. “How pathetic. No will of your own. No determination or desire to muster up and no will to live. How you didn’t go about killing yourself before this fight took place is a miracle. But look at you now covered in your own blood, beaten senseless, and crying to yourself. You’re pathetic. You can’t even bring up your arm for Shinobata? What kind of king abandons his own subjects so wantonly!” “W-what do you mean abandons? I didn’t leave anyone for my-” “Do not feed me that steaming pile of shit. You ran with your tail between your legs at the mere sight of this beast. A beast that INVADED your kingdom. And your still running from it. Willing to give it everything because you cannot muster up your will to do anything other than cower in fear. If that’s not abandoning your kingdom I don’t know what is. So good job at throwing your only ally into the flames I’m sure he’s going to be fine with Zahra around isn’t he?”
Anthony couldn’t even speak back. Not just because this random voice caught him off guard but because of how truthful it was. Anthony’s only thought had been on his own life. He didn’t care what could happen to his inner spirit nor his family. He only thought of himself. They were going to die and he was just going to keep running away. How was that alright? Something inside him started to spark at the thought. The thought of losing his family. His companion. He’d be alone again. Without another and then just like before he’d be nothing. A speck. A grain of sand lost to the sands of time. He couldn’t let that be the case. Wouldn’t let that be the case. He had to pick up his sword he had to strike back. “Exactly. And the only way to prevent that is to destroy them. Eviscerate them. Ensure that those who see the aftermath have the fear of god put into them. You cannot change the world or take your fate into your own hands until you have that kind of power. Power overwhelming. And it comes by taking every ounce of it you can get. Zahra is no exception.”
This fire inside Anthony spurned him onward. The tears stopped, his arms stopped shaking and his reiatsu flared. His grip on a blade he didn’t realize he had in his hand grew only that much tighter. When he looked up at Zahra anger unknown to another was all that was present on his face. It was enough to make even the Zahra impersonation stop dead in her tracks. “You took from me almost everything. My hearing. My family. My pride. Even my legs. But you will NOT take away my life or my power. I will kill you and not just you but the real Zahra. I’ll make myself strong enough to crush you both. NOW COME AT ME OR ARE YOU SCARED OF LEGLESS KING!” Zahra merely smiled wider than before and rushed down Anthony however before the final moment could be enacted out he jumped forward in his bed. Exasperated and breathless. He wasn’t in his inner world anymore, the sunlight trickling in told him that much. He was in a hospital although in truth it was too quiet. When the door opened and a nurse entered he couldn’t hear anything let alone understand what she was saying.
It seemed the voice was correct. He couldn’t hear let alone could he move his legs. Worse yet was he couldn’t feel his lower half. It wasn’t just that his legs couldn’t move he couldn’t move or feel anything from the waist down. However unlike moments before where he would have started crying he simply let this resentment fuel his small spark inside. Anger, determination, it didn’t matter what this flame was. All that mattered was that he would overcome this trial and figure out a means of growing stronger still. He promised the fake Zahra he’d get strong enough to crush her. And like the voice said, power allowed others to decide his fate for him. From here on out he wasn't going to let that stand. He had the reserves of reiatsu necessary to fight even without his legs. He just needed to train it more, especially when he wasn’t going to be able to use his body as he used to. More determined than ever Anthony mentally thanked his inner spirit, or spirits, for their helping him out. This was going to be rough but he’d manage it. It was just going to take time. Time he had more than an abundance of now.
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This figure clad in merely a thick wisping cloak was none other than Anthony’s inner zanpakuto spirit, Shinobata. The bones of an unknown amount of skeletons made up his form with his main skeletal body a bit of a mish-mash of various different bones. His hands taking on the appearance of claws more than hands while his feet looked more akin to a beasts paws. In truth the only “humanoid” aspect to him were his actual skull and the various skulls that adorned his chest cavity and upper body. Had anyone other than Anthony been this spirits companion they may well have thought him to be something evil that was after them. Something akin to a demon or a hollow, or something equally as foul. In truth though? Shinobata was merely keeping an eye over Anthony, concerned for his well being mentally and spiritually. He already knew how Anthony was physically though such knowledge hadn’t been shared just yet. He hadn’t been certain Anthony could handle it yet. It was...a lot to take in at once. All in due time would he come to realize what occurred outside his body.
A small ghastly chuckle came from Shinobata before responding to Anthony’s question. Despite the length of time Anthony had come to remain in the inner world he never quite got a sense of time down. In a way though it didn’t really matter as the world changed merely in weather and who was out and about in the grand citadel. “A full 8 hours, 13 minutes, and 23 seconds. Don’t worry I counted it out just to be certain.” If Shinobata could smile he would have given the mock horror on Anthony’s face as he moved his legs off the creaky bed so that he could sit on it rather than lay upon it. Beneath the playful outlook Shinobata could see the concern hidden away. He wasn’t used to such restless dreams nor a lack of good sleep. And given the way he moved about he probably continued to have dreams over what happened just to forget them as he would wake up. Such was the cycle the young shinigami had been dealing with while he resided inside his inner world.
“Hmm… If your certain then I must have. . . but still I feel exhausted. Is this how it’s always going to be while I am apart of my inner world? Seems like every time I’ve been allowed to visit here it’s with me on the verge of exhaustion. Just like the first time I managed to force my way in.” “Perhaps this will be a trend. It’s too soon to tell for certain however as you’ve only truly visited this realm twice. The other occasions have been fleeting at best with you merely staying long enough to catch a glimpse. For now I would recommend not dwelling too deep on the matter there are more important things you should consider prior to that. Such as what brought you in the first place. I take it you still cannot remember that, am I correct?”
Anthony simply nodded in response with his head towards his hands. Try as he might, think as hard as he could, everything was simply blank. He could remember the raw emotions that held no right to be present as none of his memories suggested anything remotely close to them. Especially not something that would make him wake up screaming as he had done the first few “days”. Days in terms of 24 hour periods given Anthony was only ever able to see the moon, assuming the weather was clear. Still that didn’t make things any less worrying. He’d never experience such deep fear as he did now. Though he didn’t know what happened or why he couldn’t help constantly looking around him and over his shoulder over something that didn’t exist. It just always felt like he had a presence looming over him just waiting for an opportunity to pounce. And whatever presence it could be was definitely not Shinobata.
Shinobata, in Anthony’s humble opinion, was surprisingly comforting. As were the other assortment of spirits he saw. Though their appearances were vastly different from one another and some were eerily reminiscent of hollows Anthony never felt anything aggressive or malevolent from them. Instead he merely felt small pangs of sorrow as they’d look up at him, greet him, and scurry off to wherever they intended to go inside his inner world. One day he hoped to get one to talk to him or at least not run away immediately but sadly as it stood that day was still far off. A quick shake of his head though and Anthony brought himself back from the inner thought monologue. Shaking his head again he answered Shinobata quietly, “No...not yet anyway. I can recall specific emotions such as intense fear and this overwhelming feeling of dread. Or even an eerie silence that puts everything else I remember as terrifying to shame. But nothing more. Surely it was important if it brought out such intense emotions right? If so why can’t I remember it?” The frown Anthony held was intense and aimed mostly at himself more so than anyone else. He couldn’t blame them. Afterall it WAS his memories. If it was anyone’s responsibility to recall things it’d be his. The fact he couldn’t only made him feel even lower than he already was.
Shinobata could only shake his head patiently. All of this was expected. Anthony suffered major physical trauma at the hand of an incredibly strong combatant. And that was just the tip of the iceberg as the mental trauma even now continued to assault his mind. He very much wondered if the other, given their current mindset, could really come to terms with everything that happened. Only time would tell and for now that time wasn’t going to be for a bit longer. Especially given the truth behind Anthony’s predicament outside his inner world. He only hoped that what he managed to hear wasn’t true. For now though Shinobata needed to focus on his “owner”. Or more accurately his protege given Anthony was trying to learn more about both himself than ever since he held such intense doubts of being able to return after he would awake in the seireitei.
“Perhaps with more time you will come to remember everything. Clearly it’s important otherwise you wouldn’t have fragments to manage. For now however we should change our approach to the present. Which predominantly has you dealing with your inner world and it’s various inhabitants. Believe it or not they are very anxious to meet you, their hesitance has simply been due to not understanding the circumstances around why you are here for so long. Their last chance to see you was very brief to say the least.” Anthony could only listen as processing everything was still surprisingly sluggish for him. Once Shinobata was finished however he let his mind drift on everything. How his mysterious encounter brought him back here and seemingly made his stay practically permanent. At least with the rate things were currently going at. Glancing over at his inner spirit he couldn’t help but show his disarray at being unable to truly understand why he had no memory of the event prior. It was never going to sit well with him and thus even if Shinobata was correct he still needed to find out the reason why.
A quick sigh Anthony knew there was only one thing he could do at a time like this. Especially considering he had been given ample time to rest yet again. “Would you mind accompanying me for a walk? This city may have been produced by me but I’m almost certain I’ll be lost if I go through it alone. Besides I’d like to continue learning about you, I haven’t exactly had the time or place to really do that. Let alone my previous attempts were pretty much just that. An attempt to claw my way in and stay longer than a few seconds. What do you say?” His spirit’s face didn’t move at all, how could it after all? The dude had a literal human skull for a face. Bones simply did not move in that manner even for the undead. It took about a moment later for Shinobata to decide and his answer was surprisingly simple. A simple head nod before standing up out of the chair and making his way to the door so they could take a walk around the city.
He’s definitely the quiet type. Hopefully I can get another conversation out of him as we walk around. Otherwise this is going to be far more boring than I would have thought previously possible. In truth prior to seriously meeting Shinobata Anthony genuinely assumed his interaction with his inner spirit would have been one that was a lot more animated. That they’d have inside jokes and be willing to play cards with one another. Maybe have deep talks about Anthony or even his inner spirit. He knew the other HAD to have wants/goals/etc for himself. In a way he really thought it’d be much more akin to a close knit friendship. And in a way it was but much more streamlined and with less spontaneous aspects to it. There was no doubt Shinobata was close to Anthony and gave at least part of a shit but in methods in doing such were much more reserved than Anthony’s. This thought alone sparked a small chuckle in him.
Within his first day of being in his inner world Anthony had managed to make Shinobata wish he could actually express himself. He’d been gentle and reserved, to frustrated, to surprised, to angry even, and finally at neutral again. His biggest surprise was from Anthony literally tackling the 16 foot skeletal monster that was his inner spirit. Genuinely the other hadn’t realized just how deeply Anthony enjoyed undead, necromancy, etc until that moment. The most surprising part had been how quick of a transition Anthony had gone to from “Oh fuck I’m in my inner world.” to “Oh fuck my inner spirit is an undead!”. That moment was never going to leave his mind until he ceased to exist… if that was even possible. The soul cycle was a thing after all so who knew what would happen once Anthony moved on from this life as a shinigami.
Memories aside however Anthony proceeded to watch as his inner spirit shifted his size to fit through the door frame. With his normal size being more than double the length and width of the initial entrance to the house this was quite literally the only method by which he could reasonably enter and exit as he pleased. Anthony on the other hand didn’t have this problem, he simply was his usual height and was more than easily able to move around. The remainder of the house was as the room he awoke in would entail. Creaky, old, and abandoned in look alone. In actual vibe the house gave off, it actually seemed more homey and lived in. The only thing it didn’t remind him was that the house had two levels. Three if you included the attic but Anthony didn’t really feel the need to call that yet another level. Walking into the hallway he was able to just barely catch the tail end of Shinobata’s cloak as he made his way down the stairs and into the living room. Anthony quickly followed him straight to the front door where he found Shinobata back to his full size outside the house.
A small whistle of amusement from Anthony and Shinobata did his best to roll his eye sockets. The effect was literally non-existent but somehow Anthony knew it would have been pretty exaggerated and that made it all the better. Now though the world, his world, was Anthony’s oyster. He could go wherever he wanted. In any way he wanted. And do pretty much whatever he wanted. All with the crescent moon keeping an eye on him from above and a gentle breeze from seemingly nowhere guiding him along whatever path he would choose. With that in mind he simply choose a random alleyway that caught his eye. The path itself was winding between buildings and several streets yet seemed to never really end. It merely gave other small options to move around outside it’s main pathway. Sometimes in the form of stairs that would lead both up and down the houses. Other times it’d simply swerve and reveal several little branches that he could choose from. So help me I will have a game of hide and seek here at some point. This place has FAR too many area’s to make it anything less than a necessity.”
For the next few hours both would silently come to lose themselves within the citadel. The various back alley’s, wide streets, various houses and store fronts all eventually merging together. Similar to how slowly time seemed to move within this world. The moon would change positions, even change how it looked, and the sky would cycle through different weather patterns however it never seem to really make the inner world feel like time moved. It always remained at its core a beautiful evening setting with a hauntingly scenic citadel. This might have been made a bit better by the usually easily seen spirits that roamed around inside it but as it stood currently the world was just empty. Prior times showed that at least a few would make themselves known saying hello or some other greeting. But today it was stark silent for one reason or another. Save for the sounds of their feet on the pavement.
As Anthony turned around to speak to Shinobata he felt a disturbance in the area. Something that didn’t feel right and put the hair’s on the back of his neck at attention. A quick look to Shinobata however showed that whatever it was Anthony was feeling wasn’t shared between them. He still seemed as cool and collected as always. However Anthony was not the same in fact he was freaking out a bit more than even he felt was reasonable. He was in his inner world after all. There shouldn’t be anything inside that wasn’t his inner spirit. The thought that there could be was far more terrifying than anything else that he could currently think up. This fear wasn’t helped at all by the steadily growing fear that Anthony was feeling. He felt eyes on him, constantly watching his every move. Just waiting for him to mess up provide an opening. Yet nothing ever came which ultimately made him question his mental state more than anything else.
Still a quick shrug and he did his best to shove it off. No point in letting it get to him when nothing dangerous could be here. It was impossible even to have someone or something that could reside within himself that was dangerous and or aggressive towards him. But what if there is? Would it be tied to the memories I haven’t recovered yet? A frown marred his face as Anthony thought deeper still about it. That memory had to be important. Not just because Shinobata said so. Not because he gave it importance for being unable to remember. It was the raw emotions behind it that gave him even still that made it important. And in more ways than one it felt like a message that screamed a warning. A warning of what thought? Last he could remember he took another walk into a nearby forest as he normally would with Smokey. There was no reason for him to fear as he’d done the exact same thing several times already. So what was it then?
“Anthony we should take a moment to rest. We’ve walked for several hours now believe it or not.” The combination of Shinobata’s words and the sudden feeling of a hand on Anthony’s shoulder brought him out of his mind’s inner sanctum. A quick glance around showed they’d entered an area they hadn’t seen the past few strolls through the citadel. For the first time they found a garden. Big enough to be a park and with a good 4 blocks worth of space to encompass the entire area. Benches though worn and metal were placed here and there around the park with a small path winding its way through the venue. The best part of it was that when Anthony looked towards his right he could see over the lower wall of the citadel showing off the bridge to somewhere else and the seemingly motionless water that surrounded them. Had the sense of dread not been so highly present still he’d have stood amazed over the entire scene wondering how he could take a piece of it back with him. Instead however that feeling intensified and soon all he could think about was how vulnerable he was now that he was out in the open.
But how could he be? He already knew nothing else was here but him and Shinobata. He wasn’t having any of this mind game that he was enduring currently and simply shook his head. He was safe. He was alright...He was going to be ok. But why then was he stuck in his inner world if everything was alright? Anthony kept thinking on this as he walked over to the bench with Shinobata helping guide him along the way. He knew what the other was thinking. He didn’t need to read his mind or his soul to see that he was trying to figure the entire situation out. Time to slowly think things over also wasn’t going to help either. It kept him on edge. He was used to certain things happening and certain methods of said event taking place. For example just being here. He was more understanding of a brief interaction vs several weeks of having been stuck here. That fact alone was going to start to bring him to the answer if he kept thinking over it.
Shinobata glanced over at Anthony who was still thinking just as hard as ever over their current predicament. If he could have sighed he would have but he didn’t want to let the other in on the fact he knew what was going on. Instead he wanted to have Anthony find out on his own and make his decisions on how to handle things. Still… perhaps he could speed up the process. Anthony wasn’t making any head way and the fact of the matter was he needed to figure things out. Sooner than later given even the doctors on the outside were getting concerned about his lack of presence in the past few weeks. A quick glance over at Anthony again and he nodded just a bit as he steeled himself in his decision. He needed to help but he needed to be more subtle and though it wasn’t quite his style he had an idea that would work rather well. Shinobata had several “luxuries” that he could take as the lord of this realm. One of which was reading deeply into Anthony’s soul and mind at a whim. It’s how he kept tabs on him even. So when the events against the beast-clan occurred he saw every moment from Anthony’s perspective with a front row view to how he handled it.
So how could he have the other address it when he couldn’t remember it? There was an answer...one he didn’t like much. He could summon up the object of his fear or something similar. A sort of figment with enough power to actively make him deal with his problem face to face. However this wasn’t exactly the best answer as knowing Anthony he’d very likely just succumb to the terror he would bring out again. But what if he overcame it? Wouldn’t that be better than allowing him to stay in this perpetual loop? This limbo of sorts. He already had been dealing with this for several weeks without progress. He had to follow through with this. Damn the consequences Anthony needed to move past this. With a silent apology he started reaching out for that fear that remained within Anthony coaxing it out. It was all too eager and within moments the presence had left Anthony. Events set in motion it was only a matter of time now.
Anthony in the meantime had finally started to relax. The growing fear that gnawed on him from the inside out had slowly but surely faded. He gradually began to relax and eventually returned to his prior self. Now fully able to appreciate the setting. Uncertain to why that growing fear left and without a care to follow that thought through he simply continued to gaze at the water. This lasted about a whole 5 seconds though as before he could transition to a new thought a beast landed in front of him. And this beast brought back all that fear and terror he’d been holding within back and with a vengeance at that. Shinobata stood up quickly but all Anthony could see was the beast in front of him. The world and it’s sparing colors faded. The world around him darkened and all he saw was it. It held a grin as wide as could be revealing all the teeth it could show with it’s canines especially pronounced. She stood tall, taller than him anyway with blue outlines and large ears. It was a pretty accurate rendition of Zahra and that rendition shattered his unconcious barriers that held the memories of her from him.
Within moments he relived the entire affair. The “fight” if you could call it that. The moment he felt his spine get cut seemingly in half. That moment he entered a personal hell where the world was only red and all he could hear was his frantic mind trying to keep up. The pain that he felt in his legs and the complete and utter fear he felt in each and every muscle, injured or not. He stood paralyzed as the other continued to walk closer. Muscles brimming with strength, confidence in her strut, and a look in her eyes that screamed “I am your worst nightmare.” Before he could even think he ran. He didn’t know where he was running off to but anywhere that wasn’t that garden was better. He needed to get away from her. He needed to survive. He wasn’t going to let himself get injured all over again. He practically faced death and that was not something he was willing to do again. Not for anyone. A twinge of guilt surged through him with that thought. What about his family? What about Smokey? Or Shinobata. Did none of them matter enough for him to overcome his fear?
And then it hit him. What would happen if she killed him inside his inner world? What would happen to those outside of his inner world? He never considered how she had managed to enter in the first place as the fear pumping through his veins was far too intense to dig nearly that deep. If she was here she was incredibly powerful and she was after him. There was no coming back from this if she achieved her goal. Then he had to keep running. Run as far as his legs could take him. Shinobata was more than strong enough to keep himself safe as well as the inhabitants he just needed to focus on keeping himself safe for now. This train of thought was shattered when Anthony ran head first into something only to fall flat on his ass afterward. He groaned and was about to berate himself for being so dumb as to run into a wall. But when he looked up he saw it was anything but a wall. It was Zahra. She’d caught up to him and without breaking a sweat it seemed. So there she stood pridefully gleaming over her new chew toy. Or worse her new meal. And that meal was Anthony Kuchiki.
Without hesitation she brought out two knives that cut into his legs. They bled almost instantly as pain exploded through his body. He screamed out and grabbed at each quickly realizing he wasn’t able to move them. It was just like before, he had lost the ability to move them. He was trapped again and this time instead of him escaping to his inner world he was trapped by Zahra with no place left to run. She wasn’t done playing with her meal yet though she took a deep breath of air and without hesitation she yet again howled out except directly at him. Point blank. His eardrums ruptured again, same as his memory showed. He couldn’t hear anything again. He couldn’t move his legs. And all that he could feel, aside from intense pain, was utter terror. He was going to die again if he didn’t get help. He was too weak to do anything. This was beyond his abilities and he knew it. There was no coming back from this now and even worse he couldn’t even begin to cry out for help. He was just that paralyzed over the entire event.
That however is when Shinobata stepped in. Not physically no but mentally by reaching out he was able to speak directly to Anthony. “Is this how you intend to face every situation that comes your way? With abject terror and fear? You did realize that upon joining the seireitei these were the kind of beings you’d be forced to fight against correct? So why don’t you struggle? Why do you sit there crying as though your fate’s been decided already?” Anthony couldn’t bring himself to speak especially with Zahra having picked him up and thrown him against a wall. This wasn’t her trying to kill him, at least not yet, she was torturing him. Making sure to get every ounce of fear she could out of him and it was working immensely well. Every moment this continued was another moment Anthony’s fear grew in size. It was all Anthony could do to just talk to Shinobata mentally as he was so focused on the events in front of him and how limited his time was before Zahra finished it all.
I-I can’t fight back! S-she’s way too strong for me not to mention I literally cannot move! She’s done something to my legs to keep me from moving them! “So what did she cut off your arms? Did she take away your weapon from you? No. So what if you can’t move? That just means she needs to come closer to you to do anything. And that means she’s within your ability to fight back. You can’t run and she won’t run. This is how fights to the death are Anthony. You have to find it within yourself to fight back no matter the cost. Because if you don’t people like Zahra will win. And they won’t give you the opportunity to try again later. Once you’re dead your gone. You know this. So what will you do? Continue to cower in fear as you’re thrown around? Or will you pick up your sword and fight back? There’s only one correct answer here Anthony. [/color] Anthony didn’t even have a moment to respond before he got punched in the face and into a wall. Zahra merely cracked her knuckles and cackled at him, not that Anthony could hear it. He was deaf now hence why Shinobata could only speak to him mentally, just as he had been doing prior. Anthony just hadn’t realized it.
He looked up at Zahra, bruised and aching. She prowled over to him with her eyes wide and that same beastly grin plastered on her face. She was not going to keep toying around with him. The next blow was probably going to be the last blow if she had anything to say about it. Knife ready in one hand and her claws out and ready in her other, even her fur now had changed color showing her release. She wasn’t playing around and Shinobata was right, this was kill or be killed. If he did nothing she’d end him. He’d cease to exist and he would have never gotten the chance to repay the kuchiki’s let alone recover from his initial loss. He’d never grow into the person who could surpass Kyomei or the Captain Commander. Yet that wasn’t enough for him. He couldn’t steel himself on that alone, his aspirations were just that. Lofty goals he never truly felt he could achieve anyway he just had them as guideposts for what he wanted. What he dreamed about.
Something else however began to stir in his mind, it was small but dense. Akin to a small flame but something far darker, akin to hellfire. Whatever it was merely scoffed in annoyance as it presented itself. “How pathetic. No will of your own. No determination or desire to muster up and no will to live. How you didn’t go about killing yourself before this fight took place is a miracle. But look at you now covered in your own blood, beaten senseless, and crying to yourself. You’re pathetic. You can’t even bring up your arm for Shinobata? What kind of king abandons his own subjects so wantonly!” “W-what do you mean abandons? I didn’t leave anyone for my-” “Do not feed me that steaming pile of shit. You ran with your tail between your legs at the mere sight of this beast. A beast that INVADED your kingdom. And your still running from it. Willing to give it everything because you cannot muster up your will to do anything other than cower in fear. If that’s not abandoning your kingdom I don’t know what is. So good job at throwing your only ally into the flames I’m sure he’s going to be fine with Zahra around isn’t he?”
Anthony couldn’t even speak back. Not just because this random voice caught him off guard but because of how truthful it was. Anthony’s only thought had been on his own life. He didn’t care what could happen to his inner spirit nor his family. He only thought of himself. They were going to die and he was just going to keep running away. How was that alright? Something inside him started to spark at the thought. The thought of losing his family. His companion. He’d be alone again. Without another and then just like before he’d be nothing. A speck. A grain of sand lost to the sands of time. He couldn’t let that be the case. Wouldn’t let that be the case. He had to pick up his sword he had to strike back. “Exactly. And the only way to prevent that is to destroy them. Eviscerate them. Ensure that those who see the aftermath have the fear of god put into them. You cannot change the world or take your fate into your own hands until you have that kind of power. Power overwhelming. And it comes by taking every ounce of it you can get. Zahra is no exception.”
This fire inside Anthony spurned him onward. The tears stopped, his arms stopped shaking and his reiatsu flared. His grip on a blade he didn’t realize he had in his hand grew only that much tighter. When he looked up at Zahra anger unknown to another was all that was present on his face. It was enough to make even the Zahra impersonation stop dead in her tracks. “You took from me almost everything. My hearing. My family. My pride. Even my legs. But you will NOT take away my life or my power. I will kill you and not just you but the real Zahra. I’ll make myself strong enough to crush you both. NOW COME AT ME OR ARE YOU SCARED OF LEGLESS KING!” Zahra merely smiled wider than before and rushed down Anthony however before the final moment could be enacted out he jumped forward in his bed. Exasperated and breathless. He wasn’t in his inner world anymore, the sunlight trickling in told him that much. He was in a hospital although in truth it was too quiet. When the door opened and a nurse entered he couldn’t hear anything let alone understand what she was saying.
It seemed the voice was correct. He couldn’t hear let alone could he move his legs. Worse yet was he couldn’t feel his lower half. It wasn’t just that his legs couldn’t move he couldn’t move or feel anything from the waist down. However unlike moments before where he would have started crying he simply let this resentment fuel his small spark inside. Anger, determination, it didn’t matter what this flame was. All that mattered was that he would overcome this trial and figure out a means of growing stronger still. He promised the fake Zahra he’d get strong enough to crush her. And like the voice said, power allowed others to decide his fate for him. From here on out he wasn't going to let that stand. He had the reserves of reiatsu necessary to fight even without his legs. He just needed to train it more, especially when he wasn’t going to be able to use his body as he used to. More determined than ever Anthony mentally thanked his inner spirit, or spirits, for their helping him out. This was going to be rough but he’d manage it. It was just going to take time. Time he had more than an abundance of now.
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