Garret the Wandering Swordsman (Rogue / WIP)

[Deleted]

This is a Training Tier Character

-Opening-

Type: Struggler

Affiliation: Unaffiliated

Rank: Rank 1

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-Basic Information-

Name: Garret

Age of Death:24

Real Age/Age of Appearance: 728 / 26

Birthday (Month/Day): 1st of July

Blood Type: AB

RP Sample (Optional): See any Roleplaying done by Zackary Jensen

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-Appearance-

Height/Weight: 6'3 / 248lb

SPOILER: Click to show

{Faceclaim: Nier}

Physical Description: There are many different people in the world. Ranging from tall to short. Thin to large. White and black. Blue eyed to green eyed. The difference in someones appearance is part of what makes each person unique. Each living thing, from Human to Hollow, is unique in their own appearance. Their appearance is what sets them apart from everyone else. Everyone who can see looks at the face. They remember the way the face looks, and remember that person by their appearance. The easiest way to recognize someone is by their appearance. Everyone is unique in the way they look. Some beautiful, and some not so much.

The first thing to talk about when it comes to Garret is that, well, he isn't exactly a attractive man. He's actually below average, rather unattractive by many peoples standards. He isn't ugly, no someone wouldn't say that. But he definitely stands out in a crowd. His face is one of a man who has spent a long time under the effects of stress. He has the face of someone you would no doubt see running along with mercenaries. He has a warriors face. His forehead forever has a line of wrinkles from his constant scowling all the time. His face looks rather unfriendly actually, easily scaring young children who don't know him. Covering his face are various small scars, ranging from bladed to clawed origins.

Garrets hair is definitely a feature that stands out. Messy and barely kept, the mane atop his head has been allowed to grow out and become rather wild. During his life and early Rukongai life, it was rather short and spiky, with the bangs lining his forehead curving upwards slightly. A deep black color, like most warriors these days. But those days are now long sense over. A combination of stress and the Curse have caused his hair to now become white as snow. Similar, in fact, to a Failures hair. Now allowed to grow out due to his lack of care in taking care of it.

On other feature atop his head, there are his eyes. Actually, to be more accurate, his one eye. Garrets single eye is a rather bland color, being simply a dull gray in color. His other one, however, no longer exists. Torn out and crushed by a Hollow on the night his life turned into nothing but a crusade of revenge. The eye socket has now been burnt shut, to seal the Bakkoto parasite within. Covering it is his intricate eyepatch that covers both his eye, the sides of his head, save for his ears, and the top of his nose. Looking into his eye, one will see nothing but hellfire looking back. They would see pain, hatred, and determination. During his nightly battles, when Garret is consumed in rage, it's been seen that his eye seems to become pure white. His humanity gone and turned into nothing but a beast, his eye seems to show when that happens.

Now onto his body. Garrets body is the result of years of battle. It's massive to say the least. He isn't like most Shinigami, who somehow retain small, slender forms despite their strength. Garrets body is massive due to the amount of muscle he has. Already a tall individual, standing next to a man whom is practically a mountain of meat is intimidating. His body is rough and hard to the touch, much like a rock. Painted across his body are the results of his life. Scars liter his body from the top of his head to the soles of his feet. The life of a mercenary is hard, nobody walks away without some kind of wound. But Garrets battles in both life and death have turned him out worse than a cutting board.

Scars of note, for example, would be one that rests dead center between his shoulders. The one scar that ended his life. A stray arrow during his final battles made its home there, separating Garret from his life and leaving him nothing but a ghost. Above his right eye is a scar that points upward, a result from the Hollow dragging its claw upwards after tearing Garrets eye out. Might scratches cover his body, results of his nightly battles with the beasts that ruined his after life. The palms of his hands, thick with calluses, bear their own scars. Skin rubbed raw and torn open from the use of such heavy weaponry.

Now, onto his attire. Garret, during his time in the Rukongai, wore simple clothing. Simple tan clothing. Due to being so far out in the Rukongai though he actually lacked shoes. But now he wears some very interesting clothes. He wears a outfit designed for battle. To someone looking at him, his clothing is best described as a cross between a warrior and a bdsm enthusiast with pants far too cool to ever take off.


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-Personality-

Dislikes:

1. Large Crowds -Garret is increibly antisocial, thus he tries to avoid people if he can help it. This is because his Osen has the possibility of endangering people, and this warrior does not wish to drag others into his battle

2. People - As Garret is forced to avoid everyone he meets, he has developed a strong dislike for just being around people. He's used to being alone.

3. Hollows - The white masked demons that ruined his after life. They took his light from him, cast his nights into the definition of hell. To him, Hollows are not a Dislike but a Hatred. He will destroy them. He will destroy each and every one of them.

4. Fat people - They're walking pigs. They do nothing but devour everything and are an eyesore. Plus, in Garrets time obesity often signaled nobility who once looked down on him. He dislikes obesity.

5. Arrancar - Nothing more than monsters pretending to be human. They'll receive his blade in due time.

6. The night - Garret has not received a good nights sleep in a long time. Each night his own reiatsu works against him, drawing in Hollows that he must fend off till dawn. Night signals yet another fight. No, not a fight. It signals the incoming hordes that want nothing more than to devour him. Night signals yet another battle of the war he himself is engaged in...alone.

7. The Modern World - Garret grew up in an age long since past. He was alive in an age that didn't have cars, didn't have phones, didn't have any sort of electricity. He dislikes this new world. He dislikes the over population of humanity, seeing as how they steadily grow closer and closer to destroying what is left of Earths wilderness. No, Garret is not a treehuger. The wilderness is just the closest thing he has to his own time.

Likes:

1. Large Swords - Even during his time alive Garret has always held a fascination for large weaponry. Perhaps his amazement for them was born from the stories of great warriors, wielding great blades to slay mighty beasts. In current times though, Garret uses a gargantuan weapon because it's the perfect tool for what he needs to kill.

2. Solitude - Garret has always been a rather anti-social fellow. He never felt like he could belong with others due to his upbringing. Now though he purposely avoids and pushes people away for their own safety. Garret is not safe to be around, particularly at night, and has no desire to catch other people up in his blood soaked path.

3. Sleeping - As much as he can and whenever he can. Due to Garrets overall lack of rest he often tries to get as much sleep as he can whenever he can. He is only able to sleep during the day though, and is often found asleep from dawn to early afternoon.

4. Traveling - It's more of a forced thing at this point, but due to Garrets inability to be around large groups of people he is traveling across the worlds wilderness. He finds the isolation and nature soothing on his mind. Garrets seen more of the Earths beauty than most individual humans. On top of that, he is forced to continue moving. His Osen creates a residual effect that gets stronger the longer he remains in one area. While he is never truly safe, he has better chances at survival by continuing to move.

5. Woman - No, not in that sense. Garret has not felt any form of sexual urge ever since his wives passing. Rather it's the husband and lover inside him that makes him think of his wife whenever he sees a woman near her physical age. Garret is far softer on women than he is too men.

Flaws:

1. Violent - Garret is an incredibly violent individual. While most people do not see this at first glance if someone where to witness what he does to Hollows they would soon realize that Garret can be far worse than the beasts. He has no problem with torturing, butchering, doing unspeakable things to these creatures in the name of revenge. Some he will kill quickly, but he has no problem with slowly torturing others and even gets some sort of sick satisfaction out of it.

2. Revenge - Garret is incapable of letting go of the past. He easily holds grudges and very rarely forgives anyone. This is clearly seen in his unguided quest to simply destroy hollows for the sake of his late wife and daughter.

3. Uncaring - Rarely does Garret care for anyone but himself. He's not the sort of man who stops to help on the side of the road. Garret dislikes weakness, viewing them as mere worms that he shouldn't bother with.

4. Self Destructive - In his quest for revenge, Garret really has no care what happens to him or his body. It's why he goes to such extremes during fighting and training. Survival and vengeance are the only two things Garret cares for. Garret is a broken man. He does not care what happens to him along his path of destruction.

5. Born a Warrior thus will die a Warrior - Fighting. Killing. Being covered head to toe in blood. It's all he knows. All Garret knows is the art of war. All he knows how to do is swing his sword. It's all he cares to do. He has become so emotionally attached to his sword that he cannot sleep without it in his arms. All he cares is to kill. To tear his enemies apart. Garret lives by the sword and he will die by the sword.

Habits:

1. Swinging his sword - Garrets routine workout is swinging his sword. The weapon itself is incredibly heavy, but to increase its weight and thus increase the effects of his work out, Garret will tie logs or rocks around his weapon. He's not comfortable anymore without his sword in hand.

2. Rubbing his right eye - Lacking his right eye, sometimes Garret will rub over the spot to remind himself he doesn't have an eye. It's a habit similar to amputees moving their phantom limbs.

3. Sleeping - As mentioned earlier, he sleeps as much and as often as he can afford. His biggest priority during the day is relocating himself to an area his Osens taint no longer reaches. On top of eating and taking care of his bodies needs, he sleeps as much as he can before the night comes.

Fears:

1. Forgetting - "I must never forget who it is I fight for. The two whom I endure these nights for."

2. Failing - "This is an uphill battle. I will not fall to these abominations. Each and every single one of them will bathe the ground with their blood.

3. Nightmares - They never stop. The nightmares never end. Even when I do manage to shut my eye, half the time I'm going to be waking right back up again.

Goals:

The extermination of all Hollows - "Fear me. Fear this blade. For a better future. For all they have done. They will all die."

Alignment: Chaotic Good

Overall Personality: What becomes of a man whom has lost everything? What happens when ones life has been shattered to pieces? When the thing that meant most to you was ripped from your hands, never to be returned again? What happens to a life that is filled with the hellfire of hate? A man no longer exists when the hellfire burns in his soul. What is left is a beast. A creature destined to forever walk the lonely road of vengeance. A dog of war, a hound forged from the flames of hatred themselves.

Garret the Wanderer, as he has become known as, is a man who has lost everything. He is a man whom has been consumed by his hatred, turning him into a freight train of destruction. His hatred is not geared towards people though. No, the anger he has stored within him is directed at the monsters called Hollows. The demonic souls that wander the world searching for prey are the target of this mans hatred. Garret is a man who had lost his light in life, the only thing holding him together. To describe Garret as a man would be inaccurate. He is a beast, a monster. Garret is a hound forever stuck in an endless cycle. While Garret is an angry man, he's not the sort that simply goes on belligerent rampages or attacks the innocent. Rather, he's the sort of angry that is able to control it until certain triggers happen. This "trigger" would be Hollows. His relationship with these creatures is a bloody one. The monsters with masks stole his daughter from him and plague him every night. Garret enters a sort of berserk rage when he comes across Hollows, thus earning the right to be called little more than a beast.

Now, besides the blood rage directed towards Hollows, Garret does have other defining parts of his personality. He's a grumpy man, oh there is no doubt about that. He's easily irritable, especially around strangers. His upbringing as a mercenary and constant fighting hardened his personality. He easily snaps on people for bothering him. He's also a rather straightforward man, not caring to sugarcoat things for people. He will share bad news with a straight face, not willing to make things easier for the other person. He tells things how they are, stating his opinion without care and easily letting people know what he thinks. At the same time, he expects that sort of thing from everybody and gets bothered if they choose to hide something from him or avoid telling him the whole truth.

Raised as a warrior, Garret is never seen without his signature blade. Many people that see from a distance mistake him as some sort of deformed creature, before realizing that thing jutting out behind him is actually a massive weapon. Garret prefers greatswords, weapons of such size and power that they strike fear into the hearts of opponents. His wielding of the greatsword is rather simple, "I need a weapon to match what I'm killin' ". While he was using larger than average blades during his youth and life, the blade he now wields dwarfs even them. In order to use the blade to a degree such as his, he must train his body often. While the nightly battles most definitely assist, he often ties heavy objects to his greatsword and practices swinging it downwards and up with the added weight an average of 1000 times, for each arm twice a day.

While easily irritated by people he is actually a sociable man. Even the most isolated of people need some form of social experiences. However, while Garret does appreciate some time spent with other people it is due to his current situation that he purposefully remains away. Garrets affliction pushes him away from people, as even a man like himself doesn't want innocents to be wrapped up in his battles. It's why he had left the Seireitei, as his presence in the vicinity of the Rukongai was drawing in Hollows every night, thus endangering the population. He pushes people away from him, not wanting people to get close. He doesn't want to fail anyone ever again, so he pushes them away so they don't get close. Garret is a lone wolf, a lone beast walking down his path of self destruction.

Hatred defines this man. In the presence of Hollows, and upon their discovery the Arrancar, Garret flies into an uncontrollable rage. To say that Garret has a form of PTSD wouldn't be far from accurate. Hollows are his trigger, seeing one causes him to loose it. In the presence of Garret, the once great hunters are turned into prey. His love, his obsession of revenge, his desire for nothing but to slaughter these creatures has warped him. He is no longer that smiling, scary yet nice man that he once was. People whom once knew him describe him as "terrifying". Garret becomes far worse than the things he sets out to kill, he quite literally becomes a monster himself.

[Deleted]

-Powers-

Fighting Style: Raised by the blade from a young age, it's very obvious where Garrets field of combat expertise lie. From the time he was a child he had always used blades far larger than his own. At the age of six, Garret was using a blade meant only for adults during his training with his uncle and by nine, during his first battle, had gone in wielding a longsword. As the man got older and far more skilled, the size of the blades he used increased. In his late teens Garret was going into battle wielding a sword three times larger and heavier that a standard greatsword. Even after death, after spending many decades of not once touching a blade, old habits die hard. Once Garret began his quest for revenge he once again picked up a mighty blade, far larger than any he had wielded before.

While most Shinigami are proficient in the use of katana-styled weapons, Garrets skills lie in the Great Sword. Weapons of massive size and power, requiring the most skilled and strength adapted of people to wield. Garret has chosen to use a weapon that is ideal for the creatures he has set out to kill. While the weapon is best used against creatures such as Hollows, it can very effectively be used against humanoids as well. Historically, and even during his life, greatswords were used as weapons of war. Very useful in combating spears and infantry, a greatsword of mortal Garrets caliber would have been used to crush through enemies, tearing them in half with single swings.

In his afterlife Garret still follows the practice of his old swordsmanship, though having to adopt new measures due to circumstances. While fighting, Garret is a man who will and must adapt to any and all situations before him. Due to the extreme weight of his weapon, he isn't exactly a very fast individual. But thanks to the weight of his weapon, his Strength has become like that of a titan. Garret can swing his weapon with as much speed as he has strength, giving him an advantage over enemies who prefer to be lightweight and fast. He swings his weapon with his mighty strength, easily being able to cleave through most anything that stands in his way.

While on the attack Garret does not give his opponent a break if he can help it. He attacks like a beast, aiming to outright overwhelm the opponent with his attacks. Garrets size and strength, coupled with the intimidation factor of his weapon, can easily rattle an opponent who is being pushed into a corner. The strength and speed of his swings let him easily parry and block many physical attacks. Garret has learned how to use his blade defensively as well. When held in front of him, it's broad enough to act as a shield, blocking blades and fists and anything else that strikes it.

Due to the size of the weapon, and the style required to use it, foot placement and using his body properly is a major factor in Garrets style. Garret uses not only his arms for swinging, but his entire body. When he uses his sword he does not hold back, as he believes that a sword should only be used on something you aim to kill. Because of the amount of power he puts into his swings his blade is not just a hazard to an opponent, but to the environment as well. Garrets swings possess so much strength behind them that they literally drag the air, creating a pulling current equal to the strength of his swing. These currents are able to pull physically weaker enemies off of their feet, causing projectiles to be knocked off course by simple swings of his sword. In fact, if a physically weaker opponents weapon swing is caught in one of these currents the trajectory of their technique would be completely thrown off if the weapon wasn't ripped from their hands.

Along with the air dragging, Garret is even able to use the air as his own weapon. Air blasts, shock waves, wind slices, whatever you wish to call them, Garret possess the strength to use these powerful strikes. As Garret swings his weapon with his full strength, he creates blasts of incredibly powerful air that flies along with the path of his swing. These air blasts are not any sort of technique, just Garrets strength affected the environment. If an enemy is hit by these air blasts it would almost be like being hit by a cannonball. These blasts are pure physical strength. Using the exertion of his muscles he can even create shockwaves from his body by just flexing.

Now then, using a sword is not the only method of combat that Garret has. If he is unable to use his sword for any reason, Garret has picked up on a few ways to use his hands and feet. While not mastering, or even learning, any of the complex martial arts he has instead focused on using martial arts in its simplest nature. With his amount of strength, simple kicks and punches from him are devastating to someone of lower strength. His primary fighting preferences, of course, is his great sword, so he uses his hand to hand styles in case the opponent gets too close or he has become disarmed.

Now then, Garret doesn't just focus on the physical aspects of fighting. He also, in fact, uses some psychological forms of attack. His size, his personality, as well as his style of weapon is designed to incite fear with his enemy. As Garret fights he becomes more like that of a beast, letting out roars of conquest as he swings his blade. The intimidation he creates is designed to cause the opponent to become scared to fight him.

On the mental side of things Garret has no problem analyzing an opponent's strengths and weaknesses, even being able to predict the course of someone's weapon. As a man whom has fought for all of his life he has become an expert of combat. Combat is all he has lived for and now even after death all he cares to do is fight. Thusly he has become a man who can adapt to situations and respond accordingly. Lacking a right eye has also forced him to adapt his fighting style to accommodate that disability.


Bakkoto Sealed Appearance: In its sealed form the Bakkoto Garret possesses takes on the shape of a mighty blade. The blade itself seems to not be made of spiritual steel, having qualities and a texture closer in similarities with iron. Gray in color with an even darker shade of gray in the center. The weapon itself is rather large, being 15" wide and 6'6" long making it a few inches taller than Garret himself. Even though the weapon is tied to Garrets spiritual energies, the weight on it is barely lost. The sealed weapon itself is incredibly heavy, able to shatter and crush just about everything it's swung into. The blade itself is also rather dull, tearing away at what it cuts through combination of strength and speed. Resting near the base of the sword is a chain link that attaches to a hook on the back of Garrets attire, letting him rest the blade upon his back without having to carry it in his arms all the time.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Reference Image}

Bakkoto Release Appearance: While the Bakkoto in it's sealed appearance is that of a mighty weapon, the released form itself is rather different. The sword that Garret wields does not go anywhere, thankfully, but the Bakkoto causes the sword to grant Garret a form of defense. The Bakkoto creates a dark liquid from the swords hilt, encasing Garrets arm before solidifying its a black armor like substance. Unlike the blade, which has similarities to spiritual iron, the Bakkoto created armor is closer to spiritual steel. The armor covers his hand to his shoulder, before descending downward across his chest to form a sort of sash before ending at his waist and forming a belt. Resting atop his palm, and also on his right shoulder, is a yellow eyeball. As the Bakkoto later evolves so to does its outward appearance. For starters, the parasite hiding behind his right eye begins to warp and change the headband Garret wears by causing three spikes to grow from it along the right side of his head. The sash that grows across his body widens, becoming a piece of armor that covers Garrets chest. As evolution continues more of the armor will begin to appear on his body, such as creating armor on his thighs. In these forms the Bakkoto gives Garret a defense over what it covers, based off of his Strength plus his Spiritual Pressure.


Bakkoto Overall Ability: Pain. Garret is a being whose life was full of pain. Physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, it didn't matter what sort of pain existed, Garret had felt it. Injuries to the flesh, the mind, the soul, that would normally be the end of a man had only served to make him stronger. The Bakkoto that Garret possess acknowledged Garrets suffering, evolving and morphing into an entity whose powers reflected on Garret. Torture is the theme of Garrets Bakkoto, a being he has come to name Reaver. The parasite's abilities focus on creating an aura of effect, with Garret at the center. This invisible aura causes whoever resides in it, besides Garret, to endure crippling pain. In the earlier levels, ehile they may bear no injuries they will feel a new form of physical pain, one that is currently unexplained in its nature. It is unlike cutting, pounding, burning; it is a pain unlike any has felt before. This form of pain is like a new color, incapable of being explained, but unable to be ignored. As the Bakkoto evolves so does the method of its punishment such as, beginning to deal emotional damage, physical torment for specific actions, to finally torturing its opponent with injuries. It is a Bakkoto to be, no doubt, feared. It bears no distinction, no difference between friend and foe. All who are exposed are punished to Reaver. Though a body may be trained or skilled at fending off the ravages of agony, Reaver's pain is abnormal and unknown. Its strength lies within its mystery. None can truly be prepared for it, but there are ways to try. With every level in Pain Tolerance the enemy is able to withstand the Bakkoto only minimally. While they are unable to escape the pain, or be truly unaffected by it, they may still be able to stand against it. This is the best defense possible, given that Reavers' effects come from a source truly unknown, and will creep past all typical resistance with time. Strength of Will is capable of resisting Reavers powers, but not by the same level as Pain Tolerance. It takes a 3 in Strength of Will to be able to fight against Garrets Bakkoto, even at Level 7.

Bakkoto Levels:

Level 7:The first level of the Bakkoto, though the weakest, should never be taken lightly. Once activated, Garret produces an invisible aura around him that requires at least 200 in ES to detect. This auras effect is only noticeable once the enemy has been caught within it. Enemies inside of the auras range of effect are subject to a completely alien pain unlike any that they have ever felt. While this causes them no real injuries, they will feel as if injured. At level 7, the aura produced around Garret does not reach very far, in fact it only exists four inches off of his body. Being touched, or within this aura, by Garret causes an unimaginable amount of pain for the one touched. It's not the area that's touched that's hurt, but the entirety of the person's body. This is a useful ability, as it serves as a sort of barrier around Garrets body to drive off physical attackers and even makes grappling a far more effective strategy. Many individuals may have experienced loss or hurt, as Garret has. In this way, they might seem prepared for his attacks. However. Garret has discovered something beyond the known notions of pain. The pain which is caused by the Reaver, is aberrational in nature. It is a foreign experience that exists beyond the typical ideas of sensation or suffering. At level 7, though the pain is great, it's not actually capable of incapacitating someone, though throwing them off and distracting them is possible. At this level, a Pain Tolerance of 2 is needed to completely shrug off the pain his aura inflicts.

Level 6:Reaching this level, Garrets Aura has gained some improvements. No longer is it just four inches off of his skin, but it has now grown at a ratio of 0.05 * his Spiritual Pressure in inches. The aura no longer simply extends to his body though, now any weapon he wields is counted as an extension of his aura, having the same range of effect as the aura around his body. Now that Garrets weapon bears the pain causing aura, this adds an additional reach to his weapon. But that's not all this level does. If Garret was to collide weapons with anyone or anything, the aura surrounded his weapon is conducting through the object and onto the wielder. So even if someone is out of the auras range, if they clashes blades with Garret they would still experience the auras effects as it travels through their own weapon. Another new feature of the aura is that Garret can condense his aura around his weapon, stretching his blade in a way with his aura. By condensing the aura around the weapon, he is able to achieve 2x the normal distance with it he normally could, but only in length. Width wise it is the same as his weapon. Same as Level 7, a Pain Tolerance of 2 is needed to completely withstand the pain of his aura as well as his weapons. The level of pain generated at this level doesn't differ from the first, however.

Level 5:Now after unlocking this level of the Bakkoto, Garrets Aura of Pain has quite the evolution. If an enemy were to inflict an injury on Garret, such as a cut from a sword or a bruise from a fist, then the pain of that injury is now shared with his opponent. While the injury it's self will not appear, they will feel the same effects as Garret now feels from the effects of that injury. For example, if Garret has suffered tremendous blood loss from the wound then any person caught within his aura suffers not only the pain of that injury but the dizzying effects of the blood loss. Pain from injuries such as burns, mental anguish, emotional trauma, poison, any form of pain is now shared between Garret and whoever resides within his aura. At this level the aura surrounding him and his weapon of choice extends to a range of 0.15 * his Spiritual Pressure in inches, though now someone needs a Pain Tolerance 2 to be be able to withstand the effects of his pain. The aura alone, at this level, is enough to cause someone to fall to their knees or make serious blunders while fighting, being an ever present distraction affecting them.

Level 4:At level 4, Garrets Bakkoto evolves an extension on its level 5 ability. At level 5, the pain of an injury was shared between the two. At level 4, now injuries can be shared but in a fairly interesting way. Say, for example, Garret has a wound on his shoulder. He is then able to use his Bakkotos ability to inflict that same injury on an opponent, but only after he himself has laid a hit on his opponent. What this means is that Garret is essentially able to inflict two injuries at once, one of his own creation and the other a copy of the injury his opponent has dealt him. The depth, pain, danger, or any effects from the injury are copied to the opponent. Other than that, this level also provides some advancement on Garrets natural aura. The range of which is now increased to a ratio of 0.10 * Spiritual Pressure in feet, becoming much larger than it was before. The amount of pain it increases has drastically increased, capable of completely incapacitating someone and making them incapable of even moving if they lack Pain Tolerance. A Pain Tolerance is 2 is needed to remain standing and active, while a Pain Tolerance of 3 is needed to manage through the aura, though the pain is a constant distracting factor.

Level 3:At this level, Garrets aura takes on a far more defensive roll. While the aura still causes unimaginable pain to anyone inside of it, any attacks made towards Garret will also be dealt to whomever else is in the aura. Simply put, if Garret was to dodge an attack from a bladed weapon directed at his chest, then the damages from that attack will appear on that same targeted location on the opponents body. Any effects carried by these attacks, like burning or poison or some sort of magical effect, is also shared with the opponent. At this level, Garrets aura now extends to 0.30 SpPr in feet. The trauma that his aura creates is now so create anyone lacking in Pain Tolerance will just expire, incapable of withstanding the pain they are enduring. Pain Tolerances of 1 is incapable of even moving at this level, the pain being far to great. Pain Tolerance of 2 is still able to move, but cannot function properly. A Pain Tolerance of 3 is needed to still be able to fight correctly.

Level 2:Once the second level has been activated, Garrets main Aura has a drastic evolution. No longer does it simply causes pain, but now inflicts injury upon whoever exists within it. For example, if Garret has been cut at all during the battle, he can now use that injury as a weapon. The injury as the source, the enemy within his aura will now become wounded. This doesn't mean the two mirror their injuries, no not at all. If Garret has a slash on his chest, and uses that slash as the source, then slashes will begin to appear across his adversaries' body. The size, shape, depth, effects, and pain of that singular injury is shared, but the wounds will soon cover the entire opponents' body. Another example; say Garret was fighting a Hollow and received a serious burn on his arm from a Cero, using that burn as the source of this power would cause burns of equal lethality to begin to appear all over the Hollows body. The after effects of any injury causing attack are carried over as well, such as a poison or a restraint. If an attack caused one of Garrets bone to break, he can use that injury to also shatter his opponent's bones. This power isn't instant however. The first post would simply share the injury that Garret has received with his opponent. After that, and each following posts, the wounds will spread across their body originating from the source tripling in number each post. At level 2, Garrets Aura extends to a reach of Sppr * 0.75 in feet.

Level 1:Finally, the pinnacle of Garrets Bakkoto. This level of the Bakkoto revolves around punishment. Tormenting his opponent with the pain they have caused and have received. Once this level has been released, Garrets singular eye has a slight transformation. While normally dark in color, it now becomes red and seemingly filled with the same flames that rest in his soul. Besides the monumental increase in the size and power of Garrets Aura, he gains a new ability. There are no new auras nor does his already existing one gain any new powers. Rather, his left eye is the one that has acquired power. Garrets eye now unlocks the pains of the past to be released onto his enemy. By locking eyes with his adversary, the Bakkoto forces the enemy to relive every injury, every emotional trauma, every stress, every mental torment they have ever experienced. All injuries they have ever received in threads past are reopened, freshly as if just caused like on those days. The pain though is unlike what they felt before. Three times as powerful as when they first felt it. However though, a simple reawakening of old wounds is not all this level does. The weaponization of past pain, as well as the weaponization of pain they have caused. Any injuries that they have ever directly inflicted upon any persons within their existence are now inflicted back upon them. A drunken bar brawl ending with the opponent punching the other in the face? That punch will be three times stronger when it's returned to them. Slashing into someone's back with a flaming sword? Three times stronger as the slash and burn appear in their back. All injuries, phyiscal or otherwise, that have been directly caused by them are forced back onto them. There is no escaping this power, it is absolute. All sins must be punished.


Bakkoto Zero Stage:The finale. The ultimate use of the Bakkoto. With power on this magnitude there must be great sacrifice. At the exchange of his life Garret is able to invoke the ultimate torture on everyone within 2x his Spiritual Pressure in feet. Using the Zero Stage means that all who reside in his aura are enemies. Using this level means Garret has forsaken his own life and devoted himself to revenge. The release of Zero Stage is fairly similar to the effects of Level 1, but on a far grander scale. Garrets enemies will experience all of their past injuries, all the injuries they have dealt to one another, as well as the emotional trauma of anyone they directly affected. But now, they must also experience the pain and misery of everyone they affected and whom that person has affected. If his target had killed someone in the past they will experience the pain and emotional misery of everyone the killed one has directly affected. It's an unending cycle, eventually causing the victims to experience the torture of thousands of experiences. Ones mind is unable to withstand this torture which inevitably leaves the victim as nothing more than a mumbling vegetable, if they survive.

Other Techniques:

SPOILER: Click to show

Technique Name: Osen

Class: Class 8-1

Technique Type: Other
Usable By: Rogue

Technique Element: Curse / Cinematic

Technique Description and Effects: Osen is not a technique is the technical sense. The ability called Osen is, for all intents and purposes, a curse. Garret did not train to acquire Osen, he did not intentionally create it either. Osen is the result of Hollow blood and reiatsu mixing in with his own, creating a permanent taint that permeates from Garrets own reiatsu. Osen is best describes as a power that gives ones reiatsu the characteristics similar to Hollow Bait. What this means is that when Osen activates, Garrets own reiatsu becomes something like Hollow Bait, drawing in every single Hollow in his immediate area and, if strong enough, from Hueco Mundo itself. This is not a power that Garret can activate of his own accord, needing environmental stimuli for it to activate. As Garret increases in power (Class up or Ranking up) so to does the power of this curse. At higher classes Garret will be bringing in more and more Hollows, stronger variations, and at his peak it is possible to attract the Vastro Lordes. Arrancar are far more rare though, as what they call humanity allows them to resist the Osen if they so choose. There is another aspect to this Osen, however. If Garret remains in the same area for more than one night then his Osen creates a sort of around that area. The Curse will get stronger, attracting more and more Hollows each night to that location. It is for this reason Garret travels, as he cannot remain in one spot for too long.

Due to the nature of Garrets Osen Curse, a new thread mechanic is established when the Osen activates. Once the thread has reached Night due to simply becoming night, being in Hueco Mundo, under the effects of the Bount Night technique, or anything that causes it to be night, Garrets Osen activates. The mechanic put in place is referred to as Thread Invasion. Once Garrets Osen activates, RPC Hollows and Arrancar of equal or lower Class than Garret are allowed to invade the thread without any invitation from any of the threads participants. NPC Hollows and Arrancar, or RPCs of higher Class than Garret, need the permission of all original thread participants to invade. Mod DM's are allowed to deny Thread Invasions. RPC Hollows and Arrancars do not gain Victory TP or Consumption TP, only able to acquire Paragraph TP. Hollows must be actively trying to kill Garret or any other thread participant if they are within close proximity of Garret. Arrancar can do whatever they want.

The following is a chart listing the minimum of how many NPC Hollow Invaders can exist in a thread at one time
Class 8 - 4
Class 7 - 6
Class 6 - 9
Class 5 - 12
Class 4 - 15
Class 3 - 20
Class 2 - 25
Class 1 - 30
RPC controlled Hollows take up 3 NPC spots, while RPC Arrancar take up 5.


How to use technique (How is it activated?): Osen only activates at night, turning Garret into living Hollow Bait and bringing the creatures straight to him. It's not currently known why it is Osen only activates at night, but ceases immediately once day breaks. Some at Squad 12 have a theory that it's solar energy that keeps Garrents taint from exposing him to Hollows, and that the lack of sunlight is what activates it. Though they cannot explain why, even when Garret is in a building, the ability still does not activate during the day.

Technique Drawbacks (Limitations, repercussions for use, etc) This technique is uncontrollable. Garret cannot turn it off. Each night he must fight Hollows from dusk till dawn. As Garrets increases in Class, so to does the effects of Osen. This means that the higher class he is, the numbers and strength levels of the Hollows will begin to increase as well.

Made By: Garret

Reserved? (Yes/No): Yes

[Deleted]

History

Birthplace: Europe

Current Residence: Nowhere

Memorable Figures:

Uncle Daurth - He taught me everything. He taught me everything I needed to know. He taught me how to survive.

Cassandra - You were my light. She was my everything. She was everything to me. I'm sorry...I'm so sorry Cassandra

History:

Childhood: ""It isn't an easy thing to recall. Not many children go through watching their parents life be robbed from them by a plague. Even fewer get the honor of watching them be burned. It wasn't all bad though after my uncle Daurth took me in. He was the one who first taught me the basics of swordplay, though it was the battlefield that was my real master."

SPOILER: Click to show

{Chapter 1} His earliest memories were not one of laughter, or joy, or happiness. He remembered the coughs. He remembered the fear that spread through his village once the coughs began. Garret was born to a mother and a father residing in a fishing village situated beside a large flowing river. The village thrived off the river as well as the small farms growing on the outskirts. Trade was a necessity as well, and luckily for the village many of its inhabitants were both skilled fishermen and cooks. They were able to prepare the fish they caught and could sell the prepared food for a reasonable price. Such was the way Garrets parents lived. Father fished while mother cooked. But all that had changed when the coughs began. Some believed it to be the work of the gods, others was that it came from the fish, but no matter where it had come from...the plague had arrived.

Garret remembered it well, the sight of his father and mother pushing him from their house and into the arms of the crowd outside in the dead of night. "You know us Jonathan! He isn't sick, you can see this!" His father pleaded, holding his crying wife. Both were frail, pale, and had blood rushing down from their eyes and nose. Garret stood there, arms reached out and trying to get back to his parents. The villagers held him back, the ones who didn't hold the torches anyway. The one called Jonathan stood there, tears streaming down his face. "I'm so sorry. I'm...I'm so sorry" he cried, covering his mouth as he trembled. "Don't be...we've been friends for a long time you and I. Please, take care of Garret until Daurth comes. Please...please.." He begged, tears beginning to flow down his face as well.

"Garret...Garret we love you so much..we love you so much Garret.." his mother cried, trying her best to smile before being affected by a series of bloody coughs. Garret remembered his eyes burning with a heated face. He was old enough to understand. His parents were sick with the plague. He was pulled away, deeper into the crowd. He noticed above him the torches flying through the air and landing upon the straw roof of his home. He caught only glimpses of the flames spreading and consuming his childhood home and his parents inside it. "Papa...Mama..." he whispered slightly as he was pulled away. He suddenly jerked free, rushing towards the flames. Those bright orange flames. "Papa! Mama!" Garret screamed as he rushed for the fire, only to be pulled back again.

The next morning the village held a funeral service. It was not just Garrets parents that had been infected with the plague, about seven other villagers were put to rest as well. They lost nine villagers in two nights, leaving only seventeen people left living in this town. Garret stood by the darkened outline that was once his home, fallen onto his knees outside the pile of ash. His eyes and nose red from the night of crying he longer had the tears left to cry. Garret had sat there ever since the flames died out, only being let out once they died in fear he would have thrown himself in. For a boy so young to lose his family, the other villagers worried. But whispers floated around about what would happen with the boy. Who would take care of him? Was he sick as well? Regardless, Garret was alone for now.

Later that day there was a turn of events that would shape Garrets life. The sound of men and horses came from down the road as near twenty men atop horses headed towards the town. Nobody panicked though, as everyone instantly recognized those returning. The horsemen were most of the men who had all gone together to join the recent war as mercenaries now returning home with the conclusion of the recent battle. As the men rode into town, being greeted with open arms by their loved ones, one man in particular with auburn hair looked at the many faces in confusion. "Daurth! We...we need to talk." came the voice of Jonathan, catching his attention. Daurth was the brother of Lily, Garrets mother and husband of Marco. Jonathan explained to him what had happened only a night ago. Daurths reaction was one would have expected; confusion, disbelief, anger, and then anguish. "Are they all gone?" Daurth asked.

Garret did not know of everyones return. He still sat outside what was once his house. The sudden sound of footsteps caught his attention, prompting him to turn around. When he saw Daurth, his uncle, he sprang to his feet and embraced him. Even though no tears came he sobbed, he sobbed into his uncles body. Arms wrapped around him tightly as Daurth returned the embrace, letting free a stream of tears and wails as he held the last family he had. The two were all that was left of that family.

After paying respects to the grave that represented his family, Garret joined with Daurth in the tavern that night. While most of the men were either drunk or enjoying their long awaited lovers, some stayed with the two and comforted them. For Daurth to come home to find most of his family dead was an ingredient to make a broken man. But, he had hope. He had Garret, his nephew, so there was hope. The men knew that they would not be able to remain at the village for long, and Daurth was needed to come back with them. "I will not just leave him here. He has nobody!" Daurth argued with his men. "He's just a child Daurth, what do you expect him to do?" One of the men asked. The two went back and forth like this before Garret spoke up. "Take me...take me with you. Teach me how to fight. I..I can't stay here. Take me with you!"

Had three years passed already? Three years since his home had been burnt to the ground, since he had abandoned his life in that fishing village and went away with his uncle. Life with Daurth was undoubtedly hard, as was the life of a war sworn mercenary. What Garret called home was a collection of many men, horses, and tents. Being left alone at the camp while the others rode off to battle, as he was too young to fight yet, was an average day for the young Garret. There were the days though that as the mercenary band, known as the Red Dragons, traveled between battle fields that Daurth practiced with Garret.

This was one of those days. "Oi Garret, maybe you should use a smaller sword!" Thomas called out between his chewing. "We even got any childrens sized blades 'round here?" Gaston called back. Garrets breathing was rough, having been practicing with Daurth for a good few hours. The muscles in his arms burned from the constant use. Blocking and swinging, both combined to form a large amount of stress in his arms. Right foot planted firmly to the ground the young boy let out a howl as he swung the sword over his head. Prompting laughter from his sparing partner, who merely laughed and horizontally blocked and pushed Garrets sword back. "Garret, I think you should consider using a smaller sword.." Daurth said as he rested his own against his shoulder. "I'm fine!" Garret retorted, prompting a amused look from his uncle. "Is that so, eh? Well let's see you be fine after this!" Daurth announced, approaching Garret with a flurry of swings.

The young child did all he could to parry and counter the oncoming flurry of attacks, but the end result was simply him getting a nice couple of smacks. Later that night "Ow ow ow" Garret complained, rubbing the bruises as he sat around one of the campfires with various other men. "Well, ya did well. You're gettin betta with that there sword.!" One of the men said, drunk on his ale and grinning at the young boy. Garret gave no reply, busy with tending to his injuries to continue conversation. After finishing his dinner the young boy walked the camp, sword resting upon his shoulder. The sword in question was a long sword, something suited for adults and not children. But Garret had grown fond of it appreciating the weight in his hands. He felt strong wielding such a blade.

Daurth had spent the last year teaching Garret swordplay, as soon the young boy was going to have to earn his keep. In this war filled land the only way for a orphan like him to acquire any coin was in combat. Too young to fight in a battle he spent his days practicing the sword or helping out with chores around the camp. Each evening he and Daurth would spar, the young boy swiftly rising in skill. It wouldn't be till two years later that Garret would engage in his first battle.

Those early battles: "How many of you have actually been part of a war? How many of you have crossed your sword with dozens others, on a field littered with bodies and blood? Those old days, the old me who wanted nothing more than my Uncles affection...sometimes I wish I could just go back to those simpler times"

SPOILER: Click to show

{Chapter 2}
"All men charge! Whoever brings me the general's head will have the reward and much more!" The commander shouted from atop his horse. Men roared as they rushed towards the castle, weapons in hand and eyes upon the prize. A flaming sphere hurtled itself through the air, slamming into the castles wall and exploding. The battle for the castle had begun some time ago, now reaching the end as the enemies army had been pushed back inside the stronghold. The only problem was that they were doing a very good job with holding it. The Red Dragon mercenary group was engaged with the remaining forces of the enemy who had not managed to flee into the castle yet. Daurth rode atop his steed, swinging his sword downwards onto the heads of adversaries he passed. The youngest member of the Red Dragons was currently engaged in his own battle.

Garret, now fifteen years old, pulled his sword from the neck of a fallen enemy. Beneath the leather helmet he wore he scoffed, noting how easy it had been to fell the man. His attention was quickly bought by the approach of a new opponent. Garret raised his sword, no longer the long sword he used as a child. Rather the new sword he held was much larger than before. His opponent lunged with a downward swing which Garret blocked the side of his blade. Digging his heel into the ground and clenching his teeth, Garret used all his acquired muscles to push the mans sword to the side. His opponent had put too much strength into the swing, tripping forward as Garret stepped forward. "HURAAAAGH!" with a roar Garret swung, his sword cutting through the mans armor. Blood sprayed like a red fountain across the dirt, his opponent letting out one last gurgle before falling to the ground. That made four. Four men that Garret had killed today. There was the possibility that the number would not stop there.

The sudden roar of the army drew his attention, as there was a mass of soldiers surrounding the front gate. The battering ram smashed through the hard wood, allowing the army Garret was part of to begin their invasion of the castle. The young soldier began to make his way towards it but the sudden sound of a horse prompted him to turn and begin to swing his sword. "Whoa whoa! Easy there damn it! It's just me!" Daurth shouted as Garret stopped his swing when he noticed it was only his uncle. "Uncle Daurth" "Come on, get on! We don't wanna miss our shot at the prize do we?" his uncle enticed, giving his nephew his hand. With a bright smile, a stark difference between that cold gaze he gave his opponents, Garret took his uncles hand and jumped atop the horse.

Ahead of them inside the castle courtyard the army the Red Dragons fought for now encountered a new problem. The freshly fallen bodies of the invading army littered the courtyard. The invaders, now halted in their tracks, faced the single man who had become their biggest threat. [smear:99FF66]"No way. Is that who I think it is? It can't be[/smear:0066CC][smear:FF0022]him. Oh gods it is, the Great Knight Ulfric!"[/smear:FF0088]
The man in question was to be best described as a mountain of meat. He was massive to say the very least, adorned in the fur of some large animal and wielding a large battle axe. [smear:33FF11]"They say he's killed over thirty men in one battle.[/smear:66AA77][smear:33BB88]No, even more than that he's known as Ulfric the Bear Slayer"[/smear:FF0011] the men whispered to each other. With a deep breath Ulfrics chest puffed out like that of a rooster. His fist collided with his chest before filling the courtyard with his voice.

"So long as I stand here none shall pass! Now who ELSE wants a taste of my axe?" Ulfric cried out. The men backed away, nervous and shaking in their armor. Daurth and Garrets horse galloped its way into the courtyard, halted by the crowd of men. The young warrior blinked, noticing how all of the army was halted for fear of this single man. "What are you cowards doing? Quit your dawdling and earn your bounty!" The commander cried out from atop his horse. [smear:FFEE88]"He's talking nonsense. I'm not going in there. He isn't paying us that much. Why don't you do it yourself?"[/smear:337722] Some of the men whispered amongst themselves. Ulfrics laughter filled the courtyard as Daurth let out a nervous chuckle. Even he had reason to be cautious, as Ulfrics tales were rather infamous. "Well, maybe we should just let someone else take care of this. I'm sure we're needed elsewhere, eh Garret? ...Garret?" Turning around he noticed that his nephew was gone.

"Why did I have to hire such a worthless bunch of mercenaries..." the commander grumbled before noticing the moving shape in the crowd. Men stepped aside as the much younger soldier made his way through them. Garret stepped into the center of the ring of men, ten paces away from Ulfric. One hand tightly on the swords hilt that rested on his shoulder, the young man stared directly into Ulfrics eyes. "Garret! What are you doing??" Daurth shouted, dismounting his horse and trying to push through the crowd. Many of the soldiers simply stared at Garret, unable to believe that a runt like him was standing before Ulfric. [smear:33AABB]"Who is that? He's just a kid. Look at the size of that sword![/smear:33BB77][smear:66AA00]It's just for looks, he's going to get slaughtered! He doesn't have any experience!"[/smear:FF7766] Garret expected them. He expected reactions like this. It wasn't the first time it had happened either. Many people questioned him in battle, being nothing more than a fifteen year old. Regardless, Garret stood there like a statue glaring down the monster before him.

Every nerve in his body was fired up, ready to go. If Garret was hit even once by that axe there was no doubt it would be the end of him. But this excitement he felt was unexplainable. He wanted to risk his life. He wanted to validate his own existence along the border of life and death. To Garret, this battle was what he lived for and a chance to make Daurth proud. Ulfric began to laugh. His laugh was hard and loud. "Uahahaha! Hey kid! Do you really want to fight with me? I see you've got some balls, but you're going to regret it! Once I chop your head off with my axe!" Ulfric shouted. Garret remained unmoving, testing his grip on his sword. While Ulfric talked Garret was preparing. He was an instinctual fighter, like an animal, waiting for the perfect time to strike. "Either way it's pathetic that a kid like you is permitted to be in this battlefield! There seems to be a shortage of soldiers in your army! Are all the men cowards!?" Ulfric shouted, turning his head to the left to shout directly at the enemy. With that movement Garret lunged. His sword coming down over his head, Ulfric caught on too late to counter correctly. All he could do was raise his axe to block with the pole. Garrets sword, a weapon as long as he was, collided with Ulfrics weapon. But Garret was not done there. He continued to assault Ulfrics defenses, actually forcing the larger man back through his speed and strength. This young soldier who swung this large sword everyday, had more strength than any normal fifteen year old.

Garret continued to dominate Ulfric for a few moments more, before the man dug his feet into the ground and pushed back. He raised his axe high into the air and roared as he swung downwards. Garret swung as well in a way that would collide the two weapons. As both metals collided there was a sound. The sound of metal breaking. Garrets sword lodged its way into Ulfrics axe, something the boy noticed before they both disengaged their struggle. Garret gripped his weapon and swung with all his might along a horizontal plane, while Ulfric swung his weapon as well. Garret, being of a shorter stature, had swung his blade beneath Ulfrics axe. Ulfrics axe collided with Garrets helmet, shattering to pieces. The damage done to the axe from their earlier confrontation would be his downfall. Garrets helmet was knocked off, but not before his blade would cut do deeply into Ulfric the only thing that halted the swing was the man's spinal column. Ulfric screamed in pain, falling to his knees as Garret wretched his blade free of Ulfrics body. "Mercy...mercy please" he begged. Garret would not be granting this man his wish. He raised his sword over his head and came down hard onto Ulfrics. Blood sprayed across the courtyard as the mountain of meat fell.

Silence fell over the courtyard as the soldiers tried to process what they had just witnessed. Ulfric, the Bear Slayer, who had been able to stall the invading army had been slain. Not by any renowned swordsman or mercenary, but some random no name kid. Garret winced as he felt the side of his head burning, reaching up and touching the sensation with his hand. Pulling it away he noticed the red stain on his armor. It seems Ulfrics axe had managed to scratch him. Looks like Garret was wrong, he could manage one hit. His uncle Daurth had even stopped trying to push his way through the crowd to get to his nephew, simply standing amongst the others with his jaw dropped. He was incapable of processing it. The commander and the enemies remaining forces were also stunned, but the commander was able to bring himself back to rationality before everyone else. "T-the way is cleared! Take the castle! Charge!" he shouted, pointing his blade forward. With a roar the army and the Red Dragons charged, effortlessly slaughtering what left of the enemies that didn't surrender. Those who fight had lost their morale after watching their strongest fall. It took mere minutes for the castle to be taken and it's commander killed. All the while though Garret remained unmoved, watching the battle around him. Behind him stood his uncle, who's eyes were situated on his nephew. What he had just witnessed...what was he feeling? Was he afraid of Garret?

As the sun descended across the horizon and the castle finally taken, the Red Dragons assembled outside of the walls around a table. Each was receiving their pay for the four months of work they had done assisting the army. Garret approached the table, bandaged wrapped around his head to help his wound heal and not get infected. "Here you are young man. Congratulations on defeating Ulfric, you've definitely earned this." the clerk said, handing Garret a fairly large bag of coins. The teenager smiled, bright and happy, and quickly began to run back through the crowd. "Uncle!" he called out, spying Daurth talking to a few of the men.

The end of an era: "He said I was a mad dog. Born to do nothing more than end the life of men. I can't say I blame him, it's all I ever did. I was born to kill, I was born to die with my sword in hand. I just wish we had died in a better place than that."

SPOILER: Click to show

{Chapter 3}
”Purple Rhinos Charge!!” the commander, Darkendur shouted as he aimed his lance towards the oncoming army. The Purple Rhino Mercenary group was one that had been making quite a name for itself and in these war torn times any renowned mercenary was sure to be bought. The battle today was for the Chudur River, which would allow the army that the Purple Rhinos joined to be able to invade into their enemies land if they controlled it. If. The opposing army had their own mercneary bands amongst them, one being known as the Red Dragons. As the Purple Rhinos calvary charged in they noticed a single horse standing directly between them and the river. Upon it’s back sat a single man adorned in armor. He raised his arm and reached behind him, pulling an unnaturally long sword from behind him with one arm. The man adorned in armor had arms like trees, thick from swinging such a massive sword everyday. ”They send one knight against us? Ahahahaha! Trample him!!” The commander of the Purple Rhinos shouted as his men rushed the swordsman.

The mans own horse was kicked into action, rushing towards the approaching army. He grasped his great sword with both hands and brought it behind him. Two men on horseback were swiftly approaching him from both sides, aiming to cut him with both their swords when they passed. However, they were not going to be getting any sort of opportunity. Once they were in reach he swung. The strength behind his swing could have cut clean through a oak tree without pause. His sword cut cleanly through their armor, ripping both of them in half and sending their top parts to the trampled earth below. The commander gasped, watching this swordsman continue to advance. More men were sent against this man, but it made no difference in the end. One approached from two o’clock with a sword held his above his head. The swordsman raised his sword up and thrusted, sending the blade through his neck. Another was coming towards the left, so Garret gripped his blade with his second hand and ripped it from the opponents neck. He continued the swing over his horses head and into his opponents waist.

It mattered not who came at him, it all turned out the same. Their bodies would litter the battlefield. The commander let out a roar, preparing his mace as he alone rushed towards the oncoming swordsman. The man held his greatsword tightly to his side, the blade facing the back end of his horse. At the most crucial time he swung. His weapon sank through the commanders armor like it was water, ripping its way into his body. As the swordsman continued the swing it sent the corpse flying through the air and into the remains of the Purple Rhinos horde. But that wasn’t enough for him. No, it was no where near enough. Adrenaline, excitement, he wanted more of it. He continued riding through the enemies ranks. Every time his sword swung someone’s head was destroyed.

”He’s just one soldier! Surround him and destroy him!” A general shouted. The swordsman grinned beneath his helmet, gripping his sword and preparing. Suddenly arrows rained down across the Purple Rhino ranks. He heard the roar behind him as the Red Dragons emerged from their position and begun to charge down the field towards the Rhinos. Dysfunctional, confused, and now lacking a commander the general did the one thing that would be intelligent. ”Retreat! All forces retreat!”

Today the battle had been won. The Red Dragons had been hired to defend this bridge two months ago, and everyday it seemed the Purple Rhinos attacked once again. This time though, thanks to Garrets work, the Rhinos were pushed back with much more ease than before. Removing his helmet he took a deep breath. Garret was in his twenties now, grown up into a man. He was developed, thick with muscles. As the Red Dragons approached the young man was surrounded by various horses mounted by mercenaries with smiling faces. [smear:66FF99]"Great job commander! Yeah, you showed them Rhinos alright! Made them look like the cowards they are!"[/smear:77AA66] They complimented, happy and excited over their recent victory. Garret smiled, giving them a nod. "I was doing what I can. Forgive me if I got a little carried away." The swordsman replied.

It was odd. For the few couple years as a member of the Red Dragons Garret was detached from everyone in the group, save for his Uncle. But after all these battles, he could easily say that each and every one of the Red Dragon Mercenaries was his friend and family. His celebration was ended when he noticed the lone horse standing on the hill behind them. A aged man rode upon it, gray hair and beginning to bald. His eyes were on Garret and a scowl adorned his face. Garrets own face turned into a scowl, pardoning himself from the celebration and riding his horse up atop the hill. Once there Garret stopped beside the other rider. "What is it, Uncle?" Garret asked. Daurth looked into his nephews eyes, giving the younger man a glimpse of his anger. "Mind explaining what the hell that was? We had a plan Garret, and you rode off on your own like some sort of lone hero. You could have jeopardized everything!" Daurth responded with clear anger in his voice.

"I felt the best way to-" Garret began but was suddenly interrupted with "No, all you wanted to do was swing your sword. This isn't the first time you've done this." Garret grew quiet, gazing away from his uncle. "I apologize. It wont happen again." He said. "You always say that. It's always the same. All you care about is killing. All you want is to swing your sword. You're just a mad dog." Daurth hissed, kicking his horse to get it going. Garret remained where he was, eyes downcast and silent. He and Daurth had not been getting along very well ever since the elders promotion to leader of the Red Dragons. Ever since Daurth became in charge they had seen more battles and more fortune. But the money Garret cared very little for. What he wanted was the thrill of battle.

That evening the gang could tell that Daurth and Garret had been fighting again. The two sat on the opposite sides of the camp during dinner, chatting with their respective parties. The planning that was made earlier in the evening pretty much guaranteed this was going to be the last battle between the Rhinos and Dragons. The plan was simple, the following night they were to travel up through the stream behind the Rhinos base. Once there they would lay siege to the camp, utterly destroying the Purple Rhinos once and for all. The plan was solid, devised by Daurth himself and was sure to work. The Rhinos had no reason to believe the Dragons would attack them from behind, from the river itself.

And so, the following night, the plan was set into motion. A score of three hundred men would distract the Rhinos from the front, while the remainder of the army would attack from the river. Garret walked beside his horse, waist deep in the flowing river. While he tried his best to remain focused on the mission he could feel the tinge of excitement growing in him. The sensation of clanging swords, the adrenaline, he wanted it. Garret was getting excited. He gripped the reins of his horse tightly, a small forming beneath his helmet. The sounds of the river ontop of the rustling tree branches from the wind would mask the Red Dragons approach. With this last fight the Battle of Tolken Bridge would finally be over.

One of the forward line men raised his hand, signaling for them to stop. Garret watched as he raised the crossbow he held somewhere to the left and fire. The swordsman heard someone fall into the water. A sentry or was it someone just getting water? Either way the threat had been eliminated. The leading party waved their hands and now the party was headed towards the camp.

Within few moments the camp was in sight. The Red Dragons could hear the sound of men yelling and swords clanging. It seems the plan was working, the Purple Rhinos were completely distracted. Once all of the men had reached the shore and mounted their horses the attack began. Garret grasped his greatsword and held it ready as his horse rushed through the under growth. Excitement bubbling inside him. He cleared the tree line and made a straight charge for the camp with his men. Running right though the unprotected gate Garret saw the enemy who had their back to him, focusing on the battle up front. The man let out a roar, pulling his sword from its spot on his back, charging toward an unaware enemy. He heard the roar and as he turned Garret slammed his weapon into him. The armor broken around Garrets blade, carving into the mans flesh. Garret continued his swing, sending the man hurtling into the air as if he was shot by some kind of cannon.

An overhead down onto a mans head, a second swing sending two other peoples heads into the air. This rush. This excitement. Garret roared. A enemy swung a pole arm at him, which Garret responded by using the length of his blade to block it with the tip of his blade and force it backwards. He then swung, cutting the man in two. None of these soldiers could match his strength. The strength acquired from swinging such large weapons around all his life.

The night rolled on, the Red Dragons having pinned the Purple Rhinos between the two forces like a sandwich. Slowly but surely the Purple Rhinos were getting destroyed, outnumbered and out maneuvered. At some point Garret had dismounted his horse and was busy dealing with his own enemies. The man was covered head to toe in blood, a grin adorned his face beneath the helmet. He was loving this.

Something caught his eye though. A legion of men trying to escape the camp through a side exit. Garret noticed one of these men was wearing a helmet very different from the others. He must have been the leader of the Rhinos! If Garret killed him then the Rhinos would be confused and leaderless and this attack would end much more swiftly. Garret grabbed the reins of his horse and quickly took off after them, not noticing the number of the men the leader had with him. But Garret wasn't alone. "What the hell are you doing Garret??" came a familiar voice from behind him.

Daurth had caught up to Garret upon his own horse. The man was covered in dirt and grime from his own fighting. "The commander! If we take out the commander then this whole thing will end!" Garret shouted back. "This isnt the plan! Get back to your men!" Daurth shouted. Garret grit his teeth, anger beginning to bubble up in him. Ultimately he chose to ignore his uncle, willing to face the repercussions for his actions at a later time. "Garret!" Daurth shouted. The commander was leading his men across a bridge built over a river located far down below.

Daurth followed behind Garret, continuing to shout futile orders at his hard headed nephew. The two began to catch up onto the commanders men, and as Garret was about to over take them something happened. One of the men turned, with crossbow in hand, and let fly the bolt. Garret leaned to the side, the bolt flying by him by nothing more than a hairs breadth. But he heard it hit something, hit something that let out a groan of pain. Garret turned, panic filling his body as he saw Daurth begin to fall from his horse. With a cry Garret leapt from his horse towards his uncle who began to plummet down the cliff and to the waters below. Garret went after him, his body entering free fall as he rushed to the incoming water below. He hit the water below him before he could grab a hold of his uncle.

The Hundred Man Slayer: "That was when I realized there was something inside me. Something burning inside me. I've had it ever since I watched them burn but only now did it ever come out. Wrath. I'm sorry, my Uncle, you wouldn't have had to die if I had only..."

SPOILER: Click to show

{Chapter 4}
The current was rough, like some great serpent slithering through the lands. An arm caused an explosion of water as it grabbed ahold of the root of a nearby tree. Garret pulled himself free of the water and gasped, taking in air. Looking down he quickly pulled, freeing a second body from the water who also began to cough. Garret and Daurth had survived the fall and that was going to be the last time Garret swam with armor on. Wasn’t a very enjoyable experience. Garret spent a few moments trying to catch his breath and once he was certain he could speak he turned to look at his uncle. ”Are you alr-“ His question was cut off when his uncle collided with fist with Garrets cheek. The swordsman fell backwards and Daurth fell over to. ”Idiot! This is all your damn fault!” Daurth replied, beginning to remove his chest plate to inspect the damage done by the crossbow bolt. Garret rubbed his cheek, standing up and looking at the cliff.

”It’s a miracle we survived.” It was a serious fall, one that should have killed them. ”No, it’s luck YOU survived. It’s a miracle I survived with a god damned bolt wedged in me AND that fall. Speaking of which where did the damn thing go..” Daurth commented. Garret couldn’t help but smile. If his uncle had the energy to talk like an ass then he still had some life in him. ”How do you think the men are doing?” Garret asked, prompting a sigh from his uncle. ”Gaston was my second in command. He should be handling things fairly well right now. I hope.” Daurth replied. ”Can you walk?”

”Can I walk? Boy, have you forgotten who I am? Just because I’ve got a hole in me doesn’t mean I’m useless! Can YOU walk?” Daurth snapped back. Garret just smiled, shaking his head as he walked over to his uncle and gave him his shoulder. Daurth wrapped an arm around his nephews shoulders and they got moving. Heading into the woods to try and find some way around the cliff and back up to the top. As they walked the night dragged on, and Garret noticed that Daurth seemed to be getting worse. His breathing was getting ragged and he was becoming rather pale. Was he bleeding that badly?

”Do you need to rest?” Garret asked. ”No, keep going.” Daurth replied. So they continued, following the sound of the river to hopefully make their way out. As they walked Garret heard something, the sound of a stick snapping to their side. Garret quickly jumped backwards, dragging his uncle backwards with him. Two bolts landed in the ground where they had just been. ”Well well well. Look who I found.” came a voice, followed by multitudes of men spawning from the darkness around them. ”Whoa, where did these guys come from..” Daurth asked, drawing his sword.

"We finally found you, leader of the Red Dragon Mercenarries. As well you, the one they call the Beast of the Dragons. I recognized it was you two chasing after us from atop the cliff and just had to make sure you were dead. But here you are, standing mostly intact.” The commander commented, looking at Daurths bleeding wound. ”Once I collect your heads the Purple Rhinos will grow in both power and infamy! Now, men, kill them!” The commander shouted, prompting his men to move in.

Garret reached behind him and drew his weapon as two men let out a yell and rushed him. The swordsman swung, colliding his blade with the one on the right. His sword carved right through him and into his partners head. Pulling his blade free Garret put his back to Daurth, who had just fell his own enemy. ”So you can fight huh?” Garret asked. ”Something like this wont slow me down, just you watch.” Daurth responded. Garret smiled before it was replaced with a scowl as a man charged. He swung downwards, which Garret blocked before cutting the man down. Two more came, from two different sides. The one in front of Garret was to be dealt with first. Garret approcahed him and quickly brought his leg up and stomped onto the mans knee. There was a satisfying crack as it shattered beneath his foot, making the man let out a cry. With a quick turn Garret swung his blade behind him, cutting through his opponents armor and flesh before turning around and impaling the first person. Turning he slammed the pommel of his sword into another opponent, doing a quick spin and carving his blade through the mans neck.

Garret rushed two more opponents, quickly slicing one of their arms off which held the weapon while running the other one through. Garret noticed the archers before him and pulled his sword up, using the impaled body as a human shield to catch the arrows. Tossing the body asside he rushed them, quickly decaptitating them with just a few swings. He turned in time to see three spearmen rushing him. Backing up as they brought the points together, Garret did the one thing he could. He jumped. As the spear heads struck the air where he just was Garret landed on the pole the middle spear and leapt forward, shoving his sword into the wielders mouth and using him like a gory pole vault. Landing behind the other two he ripped his blade from the mans skull and cut through the other two with one swing. With a short breath he glanced around for his Uncle. Garret couldn’t see him, but didn’t have time to look as more men ran for him. The man let out a roar as he charged back, bisecting multiple men in single swings. Blood began to decorate the this forest, as men after men came at Garret only to be cut down like their comrades.

But it stopped when Garret suddenly heard that shout. He turned to catch a glimpse of his uncle, Daurth, falling to the ground. Blood was coming out of his back, a man stood behind him with a bloodied sword and a malicious grin across his face. Garret roared, rushing towards the man and leaping over Daurth to impale the man through the throat. Tossing the corpse aside Garret engaged two more men who came at him. The tip of his blade dragged through one mans head while Garret caught the others sword before it could reach the dangerous speed of the swing. He then pulled his own sword free and impaled the second through the body. ”Uncle…Uncle can you stand? Garret asked, looking at the still large group of enemies before him. There wasn’t a reply. ”Uncle..?” Garret asked, turning to look down. Daurth was breathing heavily, his face visibly in pain. Ignoring the enemy Garret bent down, putting his hand on Daurths shoulder and shaking him. ”Uncle! Uncle get up now!” No response.

”Uncle!! Garret shouted, beginning to grip Daurths shoulder with a ever tightening grip. But the pressure halted when Daurth placed his hand atop Garrets. ”You’re…you’re too loud.” He responded. Relief flooded Garrets emotions ”You’re alright! Get up, we need to ge-“ ”Garret…this is it for me.” Daurth responded. ”Don’t be ridiculous! It’s not even that bad a wound. You just have to get up!” Garret shouted, getting a weak chuckle from Daurth. ”Just…just shut up and listen for a minute. I aint got long…aint got long my nephew. Hear your uncles last words with some fuckin’ silence will you?” Daurth asked. Garret remained quiet, unable to believe what was happening. Daurth…Daurth couldn’t be dying. No, no he couldn’t be. ”Ever since I took you from your home…all you’ve ever known was fightin’ and killin’. That’s my fault…it’s my fault you are the way you are Garret…I’m sorry. Had..had I stayed with you back then…..m-maybe things woulda been differen’. Don’t be ashamed of who y-you are Garret…you were beaten yourself up back there.” Daurth coughed, visibly in pain.

Garrets eyes were wide, his teeth clenched together. Grief and anger. ”You’ve always…always had that sword in your hand. Don’t let it go…don’t let it go Garret. That sword is a’part of you Garret…don’t be ashamed of yourself. You were….you were my nephew…but I loved you like my son. Always been proud of you…proud of you…Garret..” Daurth managed to say. He managed to say that before his eyes became…empty. Garrets vision was blurring, he was trembling, emotions he hadn’t felt in so long were remerging after being dormant for so long. ”Uncle..”

”Well, I do hope you appreciate that little moment I gave you. I’ve always been a rather considerate man and last words are always such a touching thing. But don’t you worry young man, you’re soon going to be joining him in hell!” the Commander of the Purple Rhinos announced, followed by that insulting laughter of him and his men.

Something awoke. Something Garret had inside him all his life. Something that had been born from those flames that consumed his parents. It had always been an ember, smoldering deep inside him. An ember that formed when he was a child. That ember grew. That ember was growing. That ember was growing into an inferno. Garret trembled, his breathing becoming erratic. His eyes told the whole story. His eyes showed the rage. Garrets teeth cracked under the pressure and finally he released. Garret released a roar not unlike that of a beast. Some mad animal had replaced the human that stood there over the corpse of his last living family. The Purple Rhinos gasped in shock as the roar Garret made was inhuman. The swordsman grabbed his sword and turned it towards his enemies.

His eyes were wild. Bloodlust radiated off of him like an odor. His charge was accompanied by that roar. One man was foolish enough to stand his ground, believing he could cut Garret down during his rampage. A single swing of the sword sent the man flying into his comrades. Garret was making a bee line for the commander. Anyone who stood in his way was cut down, unable to even halt Garret. A cloud of red followed Garret, clinging to his body and giving him a red sheen in the moonlight. The Purple Rhinos screamed, calling him a monster. That's what he was. Garret was a monster. His roar was unending, his rage uncontrolled. The hellfire had been let out and it would not stop till everything was consumed. All things that caused this wrath would be returned to dust.

Each time he swung a new cloud was formed. His mighty weapon was weightless in his hands. There was no stopping this monster. The Purple Rhinos had unleashed the demon hidden within Garret, the incarnation of anger and hatred. This flame would not die out. It mattered not how many stood before him. Garret didn't keep count. One by one the enemy fell. One by one the wall that kept him from his target vanished. Life by life. Garret was bathing in their blood, the warm essence of life that flowed through their veins. Their life covered him. One soldier managed a hit, a lucky stab with his spear. It sank into Garret thigh, stabbing into his bone.

For any normal man that should have brought him down. For any normal man. Garret, momentarily, turned his attention onto the fool who harmed him. That fool was once a rather handsome individual before his face was torn off, along with most of his head. Garret felt no pain. He continued to be cut, to be stabbed, to be injured. A crossbow bolt wedged its way into his shoulder. Some sword stabbed into his back. Garret didn't care. His body felt nothing but the rage. His roar continued, the bodies continued to pile up. How many men came after him and Daurth? Sixty? There were fewer than twenty now. Sixteen. Twelve. Nine. Nine soldiers remained. No, six. Three fled despite their commanders warning. They were smart. They would live. One would become a father, the other a shop owner. The third tripped on his own sword.

The commander realized what was coming too late. He realized he couldn't stop the beast. Perhaps he questioned his actions. Perhaps he asked himself why he chased these two. Who knows what he saw during his last moments. Garret used the last soldier like a spring board, stepping onto his face and leaping high into the air. Garrets howl filled the darkened woods once more as he swung down. He swung down with such force as to split the heavens themselves. The commander let out a scream. A scream drowning in the blood that filled his lungs. Garrets sword carved him in two, spraying the blood inside his body all over Garret like a fountain. The swordsman stood there, gasping for air and eyes still wild. He still saw red. He still hurt. He still hated. His breaths were sharp. His hands had been torn open from the force of which he held his blade. He was wounded. Garret took in one last air, his final breath, and yelled with all his might. A challenge for any. The Monster had been awakened. The Monster composed of the flames of hatred and anger has been unleashed. Garret was no longer the man he once was, a soldier. He was now a Monster.

His roar ended when his knees hit the ground. Multiple blades had penetrated his body, giving him the appearance of a pin cushion. Various bolts added to the injuries as well. Garrets eyes remained upwards to the heavens. The moon filled his eyes which slowly began to close. This was the end, he knew it. How many did he kill just now? How much blood did he spill? Did it even matter? Just another battlefield. It was just another battlefield. Uncle... was his last thought. And so he fell forwards, his body striking the ground. That was the end. The end of his mortal road. Garret would be known as the Hundred Man Slayer throughout the stories of the Red Dragons and their descendants. His sword would be a keepsake to be passed down through the families. His story would live on in the hearts of soldiers.

But was it truly the end for Garret?

A new beginning: "That first day wasn't the best. How was I supposed to know what was going on? Regardless, she took me in and offered me food and shelter. After she told me what had happened I decided to stay with them, I needed a home. She accepted me for what I was, told me who I had once been didn't matter anymore."

SPOILER: Click to show

{Chapter 5}
Was this heaven? Garret felt...calm. The fire that raged within him had grown quiet. He felt as if he were asleep, lost in some great dream that he would never awaken from. Was this peaceful sensation death? Garret never concerned himself with the concept of religion or the afterlife. He had no reason to believe in a God when all he had ever achieved was from his own hands. But now he wondered if this peaceful sleep was his afterlife. How long did he lie asleep? Why was what he lay upon so uncomfortable? Wait, why was he laying on something? The afterlife was supposed to be nonexistence or something, so why did it feel like Garret was laying on the earth? Ever so slowly he remembered how to open his eyes. Peeling open like some sort of ancient mummy, blue light shone in and momentarily blinded him. He instinctively shut them, hissing with discontent. He opened them once more and gazed upwards to the bright blue sky.

Was he in Heaven? Why would he of all people be in heaven? Garret blinked a few times, letting his eyes get adjusted to the light. He was remembering how to use his body, ever so slowly. Garret took in a sharp breath, tasting the fresh air that surrounded him. Why was it so...fresh? He then noticed things in his peripheral vision. Wooden tips that bore the resemblance to roofs existed on the outer cone of his vision. Turning his head he got a better look at the structure. A wooden building with a design he had not ever seen before, made of wood and not stone. Garret then saw the feet. He saw multiple pairs of feet walking alongside him, not stopping. Once his hearing came back he heard them. He heard the multitude of voices around him.

He suddenly sat up, knocking a small piece of paper off of his body as he did so. He stood up, nearly falling over due to the numbness of his legs. Panic filled his being as he failed to recognize where he was. There were a multitude of people walking up and down the dirt road, each dressed in some sort of robe with sandals and going about their day. Garrets breathing became panicked. Where was he? Wasn't he dead? Did the Purple Rhinos capture him? Garret began to instinctively back up, reaching behind him for that familiar weapon. There was nothing. Garret looked around; believing he perhaps had carelessly dropped his sword. No matter how hard he looked though he failed to find it. He then noticed his own clothes. He was wearing some sort of brown robe with similar shape and design to the others he saw, and a pair of sandals. "Where...where am I..." He managed to say after remembering he had a voice.

Garret spun abruptly, seeing a strange man behind him chatting with a woman behind a counter. Without any pause for thought Garret lunged at him. The man let out a shriek as he was taken to the ground and struck in the face by Garrets fist. "What is this place? Where am I?!" He shouted at the man, who responded with a pained cry. Garret brought his fist back once more, but was suddenly struck in the back of the head with something. He hit the ground and began to see black. But before he lost consciousness he saw her, a woman with dark raven hair and blue eyes. Blue eyes.

He had no idea how long it had been before he awakened. Garret regained consciousness with a growling stomach and a pounding head. When he became aware of his surroundings he was never the less surprised to find himself in a completely different location. He was in a house. A table was before him with various cushions around it. When Garret tried to move he found out he was bound by rope and tied to a support beam of the house. "Oh look, he's awake!" A sudden voice said, drawing Garrets attention to an elderly man in the doorway. Garret snarled, pulling against his restraints. Normally, with his strength, he should have been able to easily pull out of these binds and rip this man in two. But he had no strength. Why, why did he have no strength? Garret also noticed a young female standing beside the elderly man,a girl who had to be no older than eight. "Well, look who is finally awake." came a new voice, female. This new woman pushed right past the old man, walking towards Garret with a large pot in her hands. Garret instantly noticed her eyes. Blue. Blue eyes with black hair.

The woman stopped in front of Garret, staring down at him with a cold gaze. All of a sudden though she smiled, a warm smile. Just then she dumped the contents of the pot, ice cold freezing water, all over Garret. The man yelled out, taken by surprise and trying to jump away from the cold. "What the hell was that for!?" Garret shouted. "To both wake you up and cool you off. Now stop screaming or I will do it again." She demanded. Garret grumbled at her, turning his head to look away. "Okay, good. Glad to see we have an understanding. Now then, what's your name?" Garret remained quiet. The woman sat down across from him, waiting for him. It was several minutes before she just sighed. "We can do this all night or we can get this over with now. Tell me your name and you get to eat. I'll start, my name is Cassandra."

Garret looked at her from the corner of his eyes, before he himself sighed. He couldn't say no to food. "Garret. My name is Garret." She smiled, nodding. "See, was that so hard? Horoshi, bring out the rice!" Cassandra called into the other room, standing up and looking at Garret again. "Now, I am going to untie you. Have the courtesy to stay for dinner. Eat first and I will answer the questions that I just know you are dying to ask." This woman named Cassandra then stepped behind Garret and began to untie him. Once freed he moved his arms to make sure he was still able to move them. The elderly man from before came in with dishes and a pot of something steaming. Garret joined them at the small table, sitting on one of the cushions and looking at the small bowl in front of him.

The elderly man named Horoshi scoped out small white seed shaped things from the pot and placed them in the cup. "What is this?" Garret asked, prompting surprised looks from Cassandra and Horoshi. "It's rice." "What's rice?" "Its food. Try it."

After dinner and the dishes had been put away, Garret and Cassandra sat in the dining room facing each other. Garret noted the amused look on her face as she watched him. Those blue eyes of hers seemed to just penetrate inside of him. "Where are we? What country is this?" Garret asked. Cassandra chuckled "This is District 37 of the East Rukongai. As for a country...we aren't in any country." She replied. "No country? Rukongai? What are you-" "Before you woke up on the road, Garret, what was the last thing you remember? Try hard, because there will be a fog over your mind. It's what happens when you come to the Rukongai, but since you're a fresh arrival you should be able to remember."

Garret thought back, trying to remember where he had been before he woke up in this place. He remembered....a forest....bodies...so many bodies...so many in fact he couldn't count them. There was blood, so much blood. So much is created small pools. Garret remembered pain. Flames. Garret remembered wrath. Flames. He remembered. He remembered! "I was dead." "Yes. You were dead. I don't know how nor do I really want to know, but one way or another you were dead. Garret, this place, the Rukongai, is the after life." Cassandra told him, her voice calm and sweet. She was trying to keep him calm, to not shock him.

"So...so this is the after life? I'm really dead?" Garret asked, sitting back and taking it in. "Afterlife yes. Dead? Not...not in the literal sense. When we die our souls come here to live out new lives. Think of it as a second beginning, a new life." Cassandra explained. A few moments more of silence before she added "You're taking this rather well." Garret looked up at her and responded "I already accepted my death when it happened."

Cassandra wasn't going to ask. She had learned that some people simply wanted to keep that key moment in their life private. Who was she to intrude on Garrets private matters? "Cassandra, how did I get here? Did I just...come here when I died?" Cassandra blinked. She had assumed she had met them by now. "No, not at all. Spirits cannot remain on Earth for too long. Even in death there is danger. No, we are lead here by the protectors of the Rukongai, the Shiniami."

The Shinigami? "Who and what are Shinigami?" Cassandra sighed. Garret was going to be a tough nut to get this information into. "They're spirits like us that have control over something called reiatsu, spiritual power, I think. They guide spirits to the Rukongai and protect us from the dangers of the Human World and the Rukongai." Now that caught Garrets attention. Not the bit about Shinigami, but about danger. "Wait, dangers of the Human World and the Rukongai? What sort of danger could the afterlife hold?" There was a silence. Neither Cassandra, Horoshi, nor the young girl said anything. For a few moments Garret wondered if he had asked something inappropriate. "The danger...are monsters called Hollows, Garret."

The past few centures: "I...I was happy..

SPOILER: Click to show

{Chapter 7}
It had been some time since Garret had awoken on that dirt covered road. Some time since he had been knocked unconscious with a shovel by the woman he now knew as Cassandra. It had been quite a long time since Garret had died. In the past couple centuries since he had arrived Garret had taken to adjusting to Rukongai life. It wasn't easy, no doubt about that. For him, who knew nothing about trades and only fighting, adjusting to laborious work was something different. There were many different jobs in the Rukongai that needed doing. Garret had taken to doing as much as he could that didn't require any sort of advanced training.

Today he was working with various other carpenters trying to repair some damage to section of their district. The various buildings had been damaged during a Shinigami battle with a swarm of the beasts called Hollows. Garret hadn't been there to see the fighting, only hearing the explosions and the roars. These were almost daily occurrences, just not always in Garrets particular area. Hollows were a constant threat to the citizens of the Rukongai, not just the spirits that remained in the Human World, and luckily the Shinigami were normally fast enough to respond to a Hollow attack. The response speed was often based off several factors, Garret learned, such as the strength level of the particular Hollow, the number of them, and which District that was being attacked. As Garret was in a rather high priority number the Shinigami defense was rather swift, but he wondered how the further out Districts handled themselves.

As the day came to a close, and construction of the district reached a decent amount of progress, Garret walked down the darkened road heading home. Garret had spent many years in the Rukongai, so much so that this mountain of a man was easily recognized by now by everybody. The only time he had ever felt like a member of anything was in his mortal life, as a member of the Red Dragons. Though it wasn't easy at first. Garret was hard to approach in the beginning, considering his attitude and general dislike of other people. He had softened up over the years though, just due to the overall amount of peace as well as the work he had been doing.

Simply doing community work was not all that Garret had been doing these past few decades. He had also been searching the Rukongai for his Uncle, hoping to be reunited with him in the afterlife. Garret never considered searching for his parents, having long forgotten what they had looked like in life. He knew that it would be impossible to locate them. He walked along the dirt road, eyes downcast from the days exhaustion. He just wanted to get home and get some dinner.

Stopping infront of one house he stepped through the ribbons covering the doorway into a warmly light entranceway. Removing his sandals and leaving them by the doorway he stepped up on the landing and onto wooden floor. The house sounded liveely, with various other voices all talking. Nearing the source of the sounds he stepped through the doorway and into the dinning room. Various people surrounded a rather large table, seven in fact, all having conversations with each other. They all stopped when they saw Garret enter the room. "Evening" the larger man said, nodding his head. The dinning room exploded with various greetings and questions about Garrets day. The man answered as many as he could, sitting at his personal spot around the table. It seemed he had not in fact missed dinner. "Cassandra refused to feed us until you got home. So now that you're here...Cassandra! Garrets here! Come on we're starving!" one of the elderly men announced. "Hold your horses! You know how much food I gotta cook to feed nine people?" came a female voice from the kitchen.

Garret took a relaxing breath, shutting his eyes for a moment to rest them. The sound of footsteps prompted him to open them right back up though, as Cassandra emerged from the kitchen with various dishes in hand. Mostly noodles and rice, but food was food. Everyone accepted their dishes happily immediately beginning to eat after thanks. Garret accepted his dishes, nodding and beginning to eat. He stopped when Cassandra put something new in front of him, cooked salmon. Everyone stopped, looking at it. "Cassandra, you had fish?" Elizabeth asked. "Just the one. And don't get any ideas, it's Garrets." This caught the man off guard. He looked up at Cassandra, confusion in his eyes. "What? Why?" "Because he's the one who works all day to make the ryo needed to feed all of us. He deserves a little treat every now and then."

Later that evening, after dinner and cleaning the dishes, Garret had found himself outside leaning against the houses wall. He looked upwards to the moon, mind full of thoughts. "Mind if I join you?" Cassandra asked, stepping out from the house and looking at him with a relaxed expression. With a shrug Garret responded "Do what you want." "Alright, I will!" Standing beside him she looked upwards to the moon with him. The two silently enjoyed each others company, neither wanting to break the silence. "Hard to believe it's been three hundred years since you arrived here, isn't it?" Cassandra suddenly asked. Garret looked at her and responded "Has it really been three hundred years? It's hard to tell anymore. The Rukongai doesn't change at all, like a stream of water stopped by a wall of stone. It's hard to remember time even passes here."

"Three hundred years isn't a long time here, Garret. I'm sure the world on the other side has changed quite a lot since you were alive." Cassandra replied, running her hand through her hair. "I hope it has. Three hundred years of pure blood shed would mean there shouldn't be a lot of people left alive." Cassandra just looked at Garret silently. For a few moments there was silence before she asked "You came from a time with lots of fighting, didn't you?" Garret was quiet, looking at the moon before sighing. "Like you wouldn't believe. There always seemed to be two kings going at each other for one reason or another."

"Where you a knight then, Garret?" He chuckled. The idea of him serving a kingdom was silly. "No, I was just a mercenary. A man with a group of others who sold ourselves into one army or another. It wasn't an easy life.....but it was all I knew since my earliest memories." Garret responded, bending his legs so he could sit down. Cassandra sat down beside him, sensing it might be story time. "It wasn't easy, that was for sure. I don't know how many men could do it for so long. I don't even remember anymore...the number of people I may have sent here. I didn't even know their names, or their faces. When I think back on it, I can see why my uncle was scared of me. Looking back on it, I was just a mad dog that wanted to fight." Garret turned his head to look at Cassandra. "But things changed. After I got here....after all the people I killed in that forest before I died...I just didn't have the desire anymore. Maybe I burnt it all out, that fire that burnt inside me. I hated the world, wanted nothing more than to fight and kill. All I knew was how to fight and kill. I was angry. So very angry. I don't even remember what it was I was angry at."

Garret felt a hand touch his arm. Looking over at Cassandra he stared into her deep blue eyes. Those eyes like pools of water that just seemed to want to pull him in. "There's no need to feel guilty, Garret." The man shook his head. "I don't. Those men had signed up to die just as I had. Sure, many of them didn't want to die...perhaps joining the army believing that they would never see battle. But joining an army is the same as joining a mercenary band, you've signed up to die. The only thing I feel guilty about...is that my actions lead to my Uncles death. I was rash, uncontrolled, and we both paid the price for it."

Cassandra suddenly tugged on his arm. "Stop. I said for you to not feel guilty. You've atoned for yourself with all you have done for me...I mean us. For all you have done for the community I would say you've atoned for your sins. Had you been evil you wouldn't even be inn the Rukongai, you would have gone to hell." Cassandra announced, resting her forehead against Garrets arm. These two had spent many years in the same home, gotten to know each other very well. She had even told him how she had died, murdered by the one she once called a husband. For her to be this close to Garret, for her to be this close to a man again, she must have seen something in him.

"You don't need to hurt anymore, Garret." "But I do-" "You don't need to feel guilty, hurt, or sad all on your own anymore Garret. I'm here with you...remember that...please." Cassandra said, looking up at Garret with a soft, inviting look. The two stared at each other for a few silent moments before pressing their lips together. Garret wasn't alone, not anymore.

The Awakening of the Osen: This path I walk, there is no redemption. For a better future, for what they have taken from me. They will fear me. They will fear my blade. I will make them pay. They will all perish. I will kill them all.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Chapter 8}
How many years had it been? How many years had it been since the whispers of love had been shared between Garret and Cassandra? How many years had it been since the two shared each others warmth beneath the sheets for the first time. How long had it been since Garret found love? Much had happened since that moonlight night so many years ago. Garret was no longer the man he had once been. He was no longer a man who cared little for his own existence. The man who jumped from battlefield to battlefield, seeking validation of his own existence through the experience of battle. Garret was happy. He of all people, the man who slaughtered one hundred men in that dark forest centuries ago, had found love. He had found a woman who had accepted him for what he was and he had done. A woman who shouldered that ember of anger that still existed in Garret. A woman to share his life and struggles with. Garret was at peace.

Like all things though, happiness was not to last.

It was a chilled night. The air nipped at the skin, driving people to remain in their warm homes. It wasn't cold enough to see ones breath, not yet anyways. It was a odd thing, the Rukongai experiencing seasonal weather. Perhaps the Rukongai was still attached somehow to the mortal world, so much so the weather leaked in from time to time. There was rain and snow at times as well.Two figures walked down one of the roads, nearly emptied due to the time of night. "I can't believe how long that lasted." Garret huffed, scratching the back of his head as he frowned. Cassandra giggled "You know Hotaru likes to talk. Besides, didn't you like is wives udon?" Garret just chuckled. He couldn't deny it, Suzumaki made some damn good udon noodle soup. It was better than Cassandras, but Garret wasn't brave enough to tell her that.

"Hey Garret, don't you think the moons beautiful tonight?" Garret turned his gaze upwards, catching sight of the astral body above them. He just smiled, giving her a simple "Yeah" as his reply. Cassandra let out a content sigh, looking downwards to the ground beneath their feet. "It was a night a lot like this that we....you know." She began to blush. "Had sex?" Garret was a very blunt man after all. Cassandra gasped, looking away quickly with a bright red face. "Don't say it so bluntly outloud!" "What? Why? It's what we did. We went upstairs and under the covers and we-" "Oh my god stop it you moron!" Cassandra laughed, tackling Garret and trying to cover his mouth. The two laughed, dancing around the street under the moonlight.

They stopped their play when their foreheads touched, simply standing there with smiles on their faces. They looked in each others eyes then shared a short moment where their lips connected. "I love you, Garret. You know that right?" "Of course I do. I love you, as well, Cassandra." She smiled, embracing Garret tightly and burying her face in his chest. "Come on, lets hurry home." He remarked, resting his arm behind her back. Cassandra released him, walking ahead of him slightly as they once again began their trek home.

It was to be a ten minute walk, not even a mile. It was just a few blocks. It was quiet. So very quiet. Garret was at peace, walking behind his wife with eyes ahead on the road. It had been so long since he had fought. So long since those instincts that had been beaten into him on the battlefield awoke. So long since Garret detected danger. So long that he didn't realize the feeling at first. He heard it first. He first heard the whining moan, turning his head in its direction. Time seemed to slow down as those instincts began to wake back up. But not fast enough. Cassandra seemed to hear it as well, her own instincts kicking in faster than Garrets. She was turning to look at him. He saw something in her eyes. The look of panic.

Then pain. Something slammed into the right side of Garrets body, knocking him off of his feet and into the air. He flew before colliding with the wooden wall of a home, the weight of his body plus the force of the blow causing the wood to cave in around him. Garret tried to breath, but found that all the air had been knocked out of him. He heard someone shouting. He heard a woman shouting. He heard Cassandra shouting. "Garret!!" Awareness popped back in, Garrets blurry vision ending as he saw what was coming towards him.

He had seen them before. He had seen them in the distance, or their remains. This was his first line being so close to one. That white mask, those yellow eyes, that void within its mouth. Its shape was animalistic, yet unlike any animal he could recognize. Long arms supported its upper body while it seemed to drag itself along with a snake like lower half. Its head was oval shaped, the mask bending across its head like some sort of fabric. So many teeth. It had so many teeth. Directly in the center of its chest was a hole, that void within its chest where they had gotten their name. Hollow.

It let out that moan, charging towards Garret with that tooth filled mouth. It was aiming to get him in one go. Garret grit his teeth, jumped from the damaged wall and to the ground on the right. The Hollow collided into wall, damaging and busting into the house. Garret heard someone, a male, shout in what seemed to be confusion. The Hollow then pulled itself further into the house, and Garret heard that scream. That same voice let out such a scream. The Hollow pulled itself out of the building, throwing debris through the air as it did. Garrets eyes widened, Cassandra gasped, as they bore witness to the scene before their eyes. That white mask was painted red with the blood of the man who was trapped in its jaws. He let out a gurgle as blood escaped from his mouth. It fell to the ground in two thin pillars, forming small puddles. "Release him!!" Garret hollered, grabbing a sizable piece of wood off the ground. The yellow eyes of the Hollow looked at Garret, shaking its head to reposition the man in its mouth. It opened its mouth, just momentarily, before crunching down with such force it sent what left of that man flying.

Garret gulped, gripping the wood with such force it could splinter his hand. "Cassandra....run" No response. "Cassandra!" Gaarret shouted. He turned to look at hr. She seemed to be frozen in place, consumed by fear and shock. "Cassandra!" Garret shouted again. She jumped, looking at Garret. "Run! Run now!" Garret shouted, waving his arm. Cassandra registered his words, the color returning to her face just a little. "N-no...no I w-wont leave you. I wont leave you Garret!" She responded. The Hollow was busy at the moment. Garret could hear it chewing what remained of that Rukongai citizen inside its mouth. "No!! You will run! Do you hear me! Run now! I will be right behind you! GO!!" Garret shouted, his voice like thunder. Cassandra took a step back, gritting her teeth before taking off. "I'll bring back help! You better fucking follow right behind me, Garret!!" She shouted, tears erupting from her eyes.

Garret scoffed, turning his attention back to the threat that stood before him. The Hollow swallowed, turning its attention back on Garret. The man was at least six feet tall, this creature was at least eight while crouched over. It hissed, a white mist escaping from its mask. How long had it been? The Hollow lunged like a striking viper. Garret lunged to the side, narrowing dodging its attack. How long has it been? He turned, raising the wood over his head and bringing it down with a roar. The plank struck the beasts neck, shattering to pieces and cutting into Garrets hands. How long had it been? With a backswing of its arm he was struck, sent flying into a roadside cooking stand.

How long had it been since he had been in a battle? Garret coughed, his arms pulsing in pain. He could hear the Hollow approaching, the sound of its body dragging across the ground was incredibly telltale. Grabbing another piece of wood Garret stood up, holding it in front of him like a lance. When was the last time Garret fought? The Hollow once again lunged, mouth wide open and blood mixed slobber following behind it. Garret roared, lunging forward. The plank was jagged at the end where it had broke off. Garret was shorter than this creature. His make shift weapon collided with the inside of its mouth, sinking into whatever flesh was hidden within that mask. Purple blood escaped its mouth as it reared back, screeching in pain. It lashed about wildly, trying to remove the plank from its mouth. Garret panted, looking around his feet for anything.

No, it's distracted. I need to find Cassandra! He mentally commanded himself, taking off into a full sprint in the direction Cassandra had taken off in. His lungs began to burn as he ran. He hoped to find her within their home, guarding herself and the housemates with whatever weaponry they could get their hands on. The hope turned into panic, though, when Garret heard that scream. Everything became muted. All he could hear was his breathing and his heartbeat. Time seemed to turn into just a crawl as he rounded the corner. Right down the street was their house. It wasn't that far.

No...

No....no....

Please....no...NO!

Finding the right words to explain what Garret was experiencing was impossible. To describe the pain he felt, to describe the despair he felt, to describe these things would be impossible. There was at least three of them. Three of them surrounding her. The sounds of them tearing her apart. She was still alive. Crying. Screaming. One arm extended out to him, reaching for him to pull her. Save her from this hell. Garret screamed. No, Garret roared. He charged blindingly towards the monsters, desperate to save her. Something slammed into him from behind sending him to the ground. He didn't care what it was, trying to get up and continue his charge. Two hands grabbed him, one on his shoulder and the other on his head. It pushed him to the ground, holding him down and not letting him up. It was the Hollow from before. Purple blood leaked down from its mouth onto Garret. It let out a hiss, raising its tail above its head. The tip opened like a floor, a sharpened bone like spear began to grow from its core.

Garrets eyes were on Cassandra. Tears streamed from his eyes as he tried to get up. One of the serpent Hollows claws began to dig into his right eye. Pain and despair filled his being. The claw pushed into his eye, pain erupting through his body. He began to see red. Memories. He saw him and Cassandra on that moonlight night. Those days spent together. "Cassandra!!" he screamed as the Hollow sunk its claw into his eye. And just like that, like she was nothing more than a toy, she was torn apart. Despite the pain, despite the despair, Garret was stunned. He was lost. Each of the Hollows had a piece of her, chewing on her like some sort of snack. The serpent brought its tail down, aiming for Garrets head.

Despite the pain. Despite the despair. Despite the pain. Despite the despair. There was only the flame. That ember that had so long been put out in him erupted. The ember, the spark, exploded into a hellfire. Garret roared, an unknown strength filling him as he pulled himself to the side. The Hollows claw tearing across his face and behind his head. Its tail slammed into the ground beside him. It had lost its balance from his sudden movement. Garret pushed himself up, grabbing the Hollows spikes tail and slamming his free hand into it. The skin around his knuckles was torn off from the collision, but it got the job done. The spiked-bone like appendage broke off. Garret grabbed it and turned, slamming it into the bottom of the serpents head. Blood gushed from the wound as he tore it free, turning his attention to the other three.

They didn't seem to care about him, deciding to simply enjoy his wife. His wife. Cassandra. Garret roared, a roar of pain and anger. The fire was burning, seeking to consume everything. Garret charged. Only too late did the Hollows notice him. The one shaped like some great app was the first target. Garret leaped into the air, slamming the seprent Hollows tail spike into the ape like Hollows mask. The beast screeched, falling backwards in shock and pain. Garret growled and began to twist the makeshift lance, trying to dig it deeper into his prey. The Hollow screeched and reached upwards grabbing Garret and throwing him off, and the lance for Garret refused to let go of it, off of it. Garret rolled to his feet. The force of its grip and throw seemed to break something in him, maybe a rib. Another of the Hollows noticed him, shaped like some feline it zig zagged towards him. Garret hollered, lunging at it as it did him. Its claws sunk into his shoulder, tearing out flesh and cutting into bone. His own weapon cut into its neck and chest, so there was an exchange of injuries in this encounter. Blood from the Hollow got into his wound, irritating it and casting even greater pain on Garret. But he didn't feel it. He felt nothing but anger and agony. The hellfire had been awakened and it sought to devour everything.

The feline Hollow moaned, lunging at Garret from behind. The man turned and stabbed with his full force. The spear entered into its mask while its claws entered into his waist Blood erupted from both of them, but unlike the Hollow Garret still stood. Perhaps his weapon had penetrated too deeply. Garret couldn't pull his spear free. It didn't matter. He had his hands. With a growl he turned towards the other two. The ape was approaching him, while the third was still busy eating. Garret was covered head to toe in both his own and the monsters blood. Their blood, their essence, was mixing with his own inside his body. Garret roared, rushing towards the ape like Hollow. He jumped out of the way of one of its swings, lunging into it and grasping a hold of its neck. Like a madman he bit. He bit down into its flesh, his teeth sinking through its skin and inside of it. The Hollow screamed in pain, scratching and slamming its fists into Garrets back. Blood from the Hollow made its way down his throat as he pulled, tearing the Hollows neck out with his god damn teeth. Garret reached into its body, trying to speed up the process by pulling and tearing on what he was already ripping out. Purple, burning blood covered his face, threatening to drown him before the Hollow went down finally.

Garret stood over it, dizzy from the blood loss and his own uncontrolled anger. He roared. The man let out such a roar. He let out a roar far more bestial than these Hollows. He began to approach the final Hollow before his legs began to give out beneath him, causing him to collapse onto his back. Was this it? His vision was blurring, growing darker. Was death to once again overtake him? The final Hollow began to converge on him, standing over him with bloodied slobber dripping onto him. His wives own blood dripping onto him. The Hollows mouth opened as it prepared to devour him, only for it to suddenly explode into blood as it was seemingly bisected into two pieces. The last thing Garret saw, the last thing his left eye saw, was black robes surrounding him. Then all went dark.

Cassandra...........i'm sorry

[Deleted]

Strength - 300 Points = 450

Speed - 100 - Points

Spiritual Pressure - 200 - Points = 260

Reiatsu Strength - 50 - Points = 35

Light Aura - 20 - Points

Dark Aura - 80 - Points

Instinct - 70 - Points

Senses - 80 - Points = 60

Energy sensory - 0 - Points

Healing Expertise - 0 - Points

Total SP: 800 Points



[b][u]Strength[/u] - 300 Points  = 450

[u]Speed[/u] - 100 - Points

[u]Spiritual Pressure[/u] - 200 - Points = 260

[u]Reiatsu Strength[/u] - 50 - Points = 35  

[u]Light Aura[/u] - 20 - Points

[u]Dark Aura[/u] - 80 - Points

[u]Instinct[/u] - 70 - Points

[u]Senses[/u] - 80 - Points = 60

[u]Energy sensory[/u] - 0 - Points

[u]Healing Expertise[/u] - 0 - Points

[font color="Red"]Total SP: 800 Points[/font][/b]

[Deleted]

Skills

• [Weapons: Greatswords] {2}
  
  
• [Strength of Will] {2}
  
  
• [Pain Tolerance] {2}
  
  
• [Battle Analysis] {2}
  
  
• [Lack of Fear] {2}
  
  
• [Damage Recovery] {2}
  
  
• [Bleeding Tolerance] {2}
  
  
  [center][u][b]Skills[/b][/u][/center]

[ul][li][u][b][Weapons: Greatswords][/b][/u] {2}

[/li][li][u][b][Strength of Will][/b][/u] {2}

[/li][li][u][b][Pain Tolerance][/b][/u] {2}

[/li][li][u][b][Battle Analysis][/b][/u] {2}

[/li][li][u][b][Lack of Fear][/b][/u] {2}

[/li][li][u][b][Damage Recovery][/b][/u] {2}

[/li][li][u][b][Bleeding Tolerance][/b][/u] {2}