Tournament of Might: Beast and the Beast?

[✠Asmoskon Masurao✠]

Thread Title: Tournament of Might: Beast and the Beast?
Participants: Zeich vs Rio
World: Human World
Death Setting: Non Death Enabled
Rating: R
Location: Each participant has been summoned to a reconstructed version of the ballroom from Beauty and the Beast. The ceiling is one hundred feet up and the room itself is two hundred feet squared. There is nothing else inside of the room besides six large chandeliers and piano set at the north end of the room.

Each participant has been summoned inside of the ballroom. Zeich is at the north end by the window while Rio is by the large door on the south end.


Special Conditions: No gravitational Pressure, No exiting of the main room is allowed as a barrier has been set up along the walls of the ballroom that will push back anything that makes contact with it by a force of 300. Barrier can't be broken!
Circumstances: You've both been summoned fight to claim victory and progress onward in the tournament of Might!

[Zeich Yajuu]

So it begins...

Zeich felt the marbled floor beneath his feet, heard the sound of his shoes clicking lightly on the floor echo off of the walls, the ceiling. A relatively enclosed area, by the way that the sound bounced. Though he could give no estimate on actual measurements, the Vizard was sure that the area wasn’t very large, perhaps big enough to hold a small training ground for one of the Shinigami squads. Ceiling above, walls not too far away; that was all he could get from his sense of hearing. It was enough, for now; he’d get more information in a moment. Haiiro was likely already scanning the room, gathering as much information as he could before conveying it.

The Vizard adjusted his false mask as he let his senses roam out, trying to catch any information that Haiiro’s eyes might not catch. Though he was blind, Zeich’s sense of hearing was fairly strong, allowing him to pick up information in ways that made up for his lack of sight. However, aside from the general echoes giving him an idea of the room’s shape, only one sound stood out to him: breathing. It wasn’t his own, nor was it Haiiro’s; the sound came from in front of him, across the room. It didn’t have to be heavy breathing, not in the quiet that filled the empty room; a single sound to break the silence was all Zeich needed to identify that someone was there.

Haiiro chose to report in at that moment. Master, we appear to be in a large… ballroom, I suppose? Completely open, high ceiling about a hundred feet up, at a guess, walls pretty far apart. Not really a huge room, but enough to maneuver in. Six chandeliers along the ceiling at various points close to the wall, and a piano not far to your right. Otherwise there are few obstacles in the room; it’s pretty open. Oh, and your opponent is on the other side of the room, by what looks to be a door. White skin, dark black hair, pretty blue eyes... Suddenly Zeich got a feeling like a hissed intake of breath, a wave of surprise flowing from the wolf at his side.

He’s an Arrancar, Master. Hollow hole, mask fragment; they’re both there. Pretty big guy, lots of scars; he’s either a survivor or a someone who’s often on the frontlines. Or both, I suppose. Yeah, that's a good bet. He’s got a sword at his side, probably his Zanpaktou. Can’t tell if he’s an Espada or a standard Arrancar, but best to play it safe ‘til we’re sure. Might be worth using your Bankai right away, if it comes to it.

Noted. Zeich filed away all of the information given to him, trying to consider countermeasures. His lack of ability to sense spiritual energy prevented him from pinning down the man’s spiritual strength, though at this close range he could get a general feel for it. Actually, that alone was enough; though he lacked the ability to refine that first impression, the fact that he could feel it from across the room suggested that it was at least somewhat significant. This man was hard to predict, from a single glance; was he a close-ranged fighter, utilizing his weapons as his form of attack, or did he make use of his spiritual strength for Cero and Bala? Of course, he could also potentially combine the two, fighting in close range with spiritual techniques, minimizing the ability to dodge. It seemed first impressions weren’t going to tell him much, in the end.

Very well then. I trust you’ve no issue with me slaying one of your own, Tsukikage? Zeich sent to his Inner Hollow, even as a command was sent to Release his Zanpaktou’s Shikai. Haiiro disappeared from the Vizard’s side, his fragmented form merged with the greater majority of Zeich’s soul to create a larger power. The sword hanging from his right hip simply dissolved into ash as it converted into its Shikai state, one that existed without a solid form. Said ash spilled out of the sheath slowly, pooling on the ground around the former Shinigami’s feet in a large, gray layer that formed a circle a few feet in radius, like a defensive perimeter.

You idiot; like I’d care. Arrancar are abominations anyway, even if we Hollows cared about one another. They’re all food to me, for all I care. Just save me some scraps when you’re done ripping him apart.

Surprisingly, the slightest of smiles crossed Zeich’s face beneath his mask. No promises. Maybe you’ll get a chance to take a bite out of him yourself, though. With that, the Vizard’s attention turned towards the man at the opposite side of the battlefield. No doubt he was making his own preparations during the time that Zeich had Released his Zanpaktou. One thing would immediately be obvious to the man, and it might be something for him to fear; though he had seen his opponent’s sword turn into ash, the Arrancar would not have heard the mentally-spoken Release phrase, nor would he have sensed a surge of spiritual energy that accompanied most Releases. Zeich’s Zanpaktou was one that suppressed everything, including its own spiritual presence, meaning that for all the world, it simply looked like the weapon had corroded into dust before the Arrancar’s eyes. Of course, anyone with half a mind would probably make the connection anyway, but it was a warning that there would be no warning.

First moves, then. A portion of the ash would be drawn into Zeich’s hand, forming a sword much like the one that had dissolved a moment before, though its end was still connected to the rest of the material that could flow along its length. Once he had his weapon, the Vizard thrust it forward, where it immediately extended at the same rate at which the ash could move, a speed of 600. More of the ashen pool beneath his feet flowed into the weapon to enhance its length, and the blade’s edge would simply pierce through his opponent’s heart, just beside his Hollow hole, if it was not stopped. The first goal, with an obviously telegraphed attack, would be to ascertain his opponent’s choices: would he dodge, counter, or block? If the former, Zeich could judge his opponent’s speed within a certain measure. If the latter two, it would reveal more of the Arrancar’s capabilities.

From the moment he arrived to the moment he struck, Zeich had been completely silent, without a word. What his opponent took from that, he could only guess, but hopefully it was enough to put him on edge. The Arrancar would need it if he intended to survive a confrontation with this wolfish Vizard.

Remaining Reiatsu: 6850/7000 (-100 for Shikai, -50 for Kaijin Ken)

Shikai: 1/15

Ash Portions: 1/5 Available (4/5 used for a lengthened Kaijin Ken)

SPOILER: Click to show

{Zeich’s Stats}Stats (Rank 2 Fractured Type):

Strength - [300] (300) Points

Speed - [400] (400) Points

Spiritual Pressure – [400 x 1.75] (700) Points

Reiatsu Strength – [200 x 0.6] (140) Points

Light Aura - [50] Points

Dark Aura - [50] Points

Instinct - [200 x 1.5] (300) Points

Senses - [200] Points

Energy sensory - [100 x 0.70] (70) Points

Healing Expertise - [0] Points


Total SP: [1800] points

SPOILER: Click to show

{Zeich’s Skills}Current Skills: (17 SKP)

• [Weapons - Katana] 3
  
  
• [Strength of Will] 3
  
  
• [Martial Arts - Hakuda] 3
  
  
• [Stealth] 2
  
  
• [Calm Mind] 3
  
  
• [Martial Arts - Wing Chun] 1
  
  
• [Battle Analysis] 2

SPOILER: Click to show

{Kaijin Ken}
Kaijin Ken (Ash Blade) – Kaijin Ken is one of the few offensive techniques in Zeich’s Zanpaktou, and makes up for the fact that he does not have a weapon at Tsukikage’s activation; the Shinigami can use the ash to form a melee weapon of any shape or type. The weapon can be bladed, can have spikes or blunt force, etc; regardless of the means of attack, the ash provides the shape and definition. The density of the weapon is dependent on the size; if it is the size of a normal katana or roughly that amount, then it is regular spiritual steel and can be broken with offensive power equal to twice Zeich’s Spiritual Pressure as normal. If it is larger than a katana by at least a 25% margin, then the weapon is more fragile and able to be broken with more ease, requiring only superior offensive stat to his Spiritual Pressure. On the other end of the spectrum, a weapon that is smaller by at least a margin of 25% has twice the density, and requires four times Zeich’s Spiritual Pressure to break. Finally, Zeich treats all weapons formed with Kaijin Ken as though he had a 1 in that weapon, due to the technique being guided mentally as much as it is physically as a natural extension of his Zanpaktou's ash. This technique costs 50 Reiatsu per weapon formation or reformation, in the event of breaking.

In Bankai, this technique gains an additional trait. By paying 100 Reiatsu, Zeich can add an extra “point of durability” to his weapons, both those formed from Kaijin Ken and other ones. To do so, he thickens the ash around his weapon, reinforcing the steel and making it sturdier against powerful blows. For each additional point of durability, Zeich’s enhanced weapon can take one additional hit from a powerful source (see above for weapons formed with Kaijin Ken, or 2x Zeich’s Spiritual Pressure for any other spiritual steel weapon) without breaking, even if it normally would. This does not mean he can suddenly defend against any attack; though his weapon may not break, it does not reduce impact, increase his ability to block, or anything else. The weapon only becomes sturdier and more durable.

Finally, when Zeich's Hollow mask is active, one more trait is activated. Though the technique is limited to normal weapons, an extension allows the use of long, claw-like blades at the end of each finger, each extending far enough to double the length of each digit. These blades are razor-sharp and are treated like any other weapon from Kaijin Ken, meaning that it takes 4x Zeich's Spiritual Pressure to break, as they are, as a whole, a smaller weapon. These weapons, despite being claws, are treated as though Zeich had a 2 in "Weapons - Claws" due to drawing from Tsukikage's knowledge on use of them. This is increased to a 3 in Bankai. Additionally, a portion of ash can be used to form similar blades on his feet, though these do not grant a proficiency and are generally used only for traction or bracing.

The first drawback to this, though, is that the weapons in themselves are not special. They are easy to form, fairly inexpensive, but they have no special traits to them. They are just standard weaponry, and when formed have a variable amount of durability depending on their size. Each time a weapon is formed or the shape of a weapon is altered, it costs 50 Reiatsu, though this seems like a negligible cost unless an enemy possesses the superiority of offensive power to break weapons repeatedly. Being made of ash, they can reform quickly, but the cost to create them causes them to become a drain on Reiatsu against an opponent who possesses that superiority consistently.

[Rio Demonliogalgo]

So here they were. Ready to fight the first round. Not that Rio cared especially much. He just wanted to hit someone. To crush their skulls in his fist. To rip their still beating heart from their chest and tear it to pieces before their eyes. To fight. He hadn't had a good one in so long, but truthfully, that was completely irrelevant. Rio loved a good fight. But he also just liked killing. To feel flesh and bone break beneath one of his strikes. As long as he got one of the two, he was satisfied. Of course, to Rio-- unless fighting another arrancar, a good fight was more or less categorized as one that he won. Arrancar were the only race allowed to defeat him. Anything else was an insult, and the idea of his defeat, virtually incomprehensible to Rio. But. Even a wretched Shinigami or Quincy could still provide some entertainment.....

So what was this!?

Rio scowled at the unnecessarily gaudy battlefield chosen. This... this was a death match damnit! Not a fucking ball! "Fucking garbage..." The Espada snarled, noticing his opponent at the far end of the room. He had the look of a Shinigami. He certainly wasn't an arrancar or Hollow. Didn't matter. He wasn't an arrancar, so Rio would just have to break him in half. And if he turned out to be a shinigami, so much the better. His opponent seemed to be studying him. Rio's eyes fixed into a steely glare, but his mouth was upturned into a sadistic grin, at the idea of the battle to come. Oh.... he was going to completely trash this place. "And who the fuck are you supposed to be?" He snapped out, taking a heavy step forwards toward Zeich. Rio turned his head, hearing a loud pop from around the base of his neck and his shoulder blades. Then he twisted it the other way and heard a similar pop. Finally he balled his hands into fist, filling the room with the sound of cracking knuckles. "Well, I don't actually really care. Whoever you were before you stepped in here with me, now you're just a future corpse." Yeah, Rio had heard something about resurrection for this tournament. What crap. He'd just have to break this guy to pieces extra hard.

His opponent.... He was wearing a mask. A hollow-like wolf mask. The mask, Rio didn't really care about, but the fact it was similar to a hollow.... Was this shit mocking him?! And that scrawny build.... Well, Rio didn't judge on appearances alone. Until the last few years he'd had a pretty slight build himself. So that didn't mean much. While Rio was noting his opponent, he saw his opponent's weapon dissolve into dust. Fucking bastard.... He really is mocking me, if he thinks that'll work. This seemed likely to be a trick on his opponent's part to lull Rio into a false sense of security, and then, somehow, attack with his dissolved weapon the instant Rio dropped his guard. Like hell that would happen. Rio's eyes flickered around the ball room. He began to walk to the left, beginning to circle the room, but his eyes stayed on Zeich. Sure enough, his opponent was doing something with the dust. It was forming into a weapon. A sword-like weapon. So... shaping abilities. But that's probably not the only thing.... Rio noted, an instant before Zeich attacked. The Shinigami's weapon stabbed forwards, his weapon extending.

The idea of it extending wasn't alien to Rio. He'd already pegged Zeich's weapon as a shapeshifting ability. So the idea that he could freely control the length of his tool was hardly surprising. However.... That's not the only thing you can do, is it? First things first though. There was an incoming attack with Rio's name on it. Fortunately, as fast as it was shooting in, it was being fired from a considerable distance. Rio's even, dreadnaught-like pace around the room hadn't slowed, as the attack shot towards him. And then, only an instant before it hit, Rio dodged into the air, the attack piercing through the space he'd occupied a moment before, but passing well behind the Espada. Next.... Rio anticipated the follow-up. It was a shapeshifting weapon. In his mind, that meant that Zeich was about to launch some kind of attack from the missing shot, or he was about to swing the extended weapon at Rio. He was well prepared for both. Rio was moving at a casual pace for now, even by his standards, as the distance between himself and Zeich was sufficient for him to avoid the 600 speed attack even at a moderate pace. To Zeich's eyes would he recognize this as a symptom of Rio possessing strictly average speed however? Or would he read it as a simple showing of indifference to his opponent. A psychological power play? Even if Zeich followed up his attack he should be wary of Rio's next move.

Because Rio hadn't idly chosen to dodge into the air for no reason. The Espada had sprung up towards one of the chandeliers. "I am...." The Espada began, and then struck the nearest Chandelier with his fist. The Chandelier exploded, launching a shotgun-like spread of shrapnel flying towards Zeich at incredibly high speeds. It was a fairly wide spread, but Rio's strength (and a well placed shockwave), had created a lot of pieces. With Rio's strength, he was able to turn the debris of the the destroyed chandelier into veritable bullets, that would punch a hole through a normal human easily, and even with Zeich's high strength, would likely be able to pierce the Vizard's skin. "Rio Demoniogalgo! The Quinta Espada!" Rio roared with pride. Even if Zeich had managed to follow up his attack with a secondary, Rio was well prepared to deal with those before firing the chandelier at Zeich. Like Zeich however, Rio was testing his opponent out. Seeing how Zeich would respond. This wasn't an inherently fatal attack, and the spread was wide enough that even if Zeich didn't move, he'd only be in danger from a few pieces of shrapnel. But this was a chance to examine how his opponent would respond.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Stats And Abilities}
Strength - 400 (800) Points
Speed - 300 Points
Spiritual Pressure - 400 (200)Points
Reiatsu Strength - 400 Points
Light Aura - 0 Points
Dark Aura - 100 Points
Instinct - 200 Points
Senses 150 Points
Energy sensory - 50 Points
Healing Expertise - 0 Points
Total: 1900 SP


Abilities

[Martial Arts: Pankration] 4

[Pain Tolerance] 3

[Unique Skill: Shockwaves] 3

Lack of Fear {2}

[Battle Learning] {2}

[Battle Analysis] {1}

[Zeich Yajuu]

Well, he’s certainly a chatty one, isn’t he? Bit of a temper, too.

Haiiro’s remarks weren’t inaccurate; it seemed that the Arrancar had plenty to say about their situation. He seemed displeased, for one thing. Zeich couldn’t immediately be sure why, but he could guess that it was his fault, in a manner of speaking. Arrancar and Shinigami—even former Shinigami—tended not to get along very well. The remark a moment later confirmed it, an arrogant question of identity. Zeich had no intent of answering it; it didn’t do an enemy any good to know his name, especially when said enemy couldn’t be disposed of properly thank to the tournament’s resurrection system. No, the Vizard had every intention of playing this close to the chest, with as little interaction with his opponent as possible.

Zeich made his opening move, a probing attack to test his opponent’s reflexes. Interestingly, he didn’t block or counter it, nor did the Rio dodge it in the traditional manner. Instead, he jumped straight up. Immediately, Zeich had a suspicion based on Haiiro’s original analysis of the room, and it was confirmed when the sound of shattering glass filled his ears; the opponent had simply jumped up to one of the chandeliers and had smashed it with an attack. The whistling of shards hurtling through the air came next, indicating the trajectory of the attack. The Vizard had to consider his options quickly, but his response came almost immediately.

To Rio’s eyes, even with his modestly sharp senses, Zeich appeared to be taking the hit. The glass shards would slam into him… and then go right through. It looked as though he hadn’t moved, yet not a single shard scratched him, not a drop of blood was shed. The floor behind him was filled with fragments of glass exploding against stone, but not one of the many had struck him. And he hadn’t stopped his own attack, either; even as the glass was hurtling towards him, the former Shinigami had already directed his sword with a flick of his wrist, sending its ashen blade to twist upwards, bending flexibly like a metallic whip. The motion was for show, of course; Zeich could control his Zanpaktou mentally, but he didn’t want to reveal that ability just yet; better to let his opponent think that his motions had to be telegraphed.

But how had he dodged the glass that should have impaled him? It was a simple trick, really: using the Shinkirou technique, Zeich had sidestepped out of range of the barrage, moving over to the other side of the ballroom. Doing so at 6000 speed allowed him to move at the last second, leaving an afterimage that had taken the hit to his opponent’s eyes. But Shinkirou was far more devious than that; the technique was more than just a single step, with the second bringing the user right back to their initial point. This had the effect of creating the “mirage” effect that the technique was named after, giving the illusion that the user had simply phased through the attack while in truth, they hadn’t been there. And with Rio’s senses below the necessary threshold to detect the flicker of movement that came with Shinkirou, the illusion would be complete and without flaw.

Rio Demonliogalgo… problematic indeed. The Arrancar had revealed his identity early on, and it was one that Zeich knew. The Quinta Espada, one of the ten strongest Arrancar that served under Sonken Kouhai. Surprisingly there was not a lot of data on the Quinta, however; most information gathered had been on the Segunda Espada, as well as the lower-ranked ones. What little knowledge existed about Rio was his skill as a physical fighter, the basic shape of his Resurrection, and the fact that most who encountered him didn’t live to tell more. There was nothing on his talent with Bala or Cero, and no concrete details of his Release beyond its appearance; despite priding himself on being a fairly informed individual, Zeich had nothing on his opponent that he could use to his advantage.

Such is life, Master. There’s nothing you can do about having little information; you can only act as necessary for now. Focus on the solution, not the problem: you have to defeat him, so worry about how you do, not why you might not. Haiiro had a point, as always; Zeich couldn’t simply back down because he didn’t know enough. This wasn’t how this fight would work. No, he would have to simply adapt to the situation as it came at him, and deal with his opponent as best as he could.

And so he did. Though his initial slash whipped upwards to catch Rio in midair, where he couldn’t recover easily from his jump, Zeich didn’t expect that his attack would land. His blade’s edge reached the wall, gouging into it, and then slammed upwards towards the ceiling. If Rio didn’t dodge it, he’d find himself sliced in half, an ignominious end for a mid-ranked Espada. Of course, being as he was, Zeich didn’t wait to see if the attack came, whipping his arm to the side to direct his blade once more. From the base it rippled outwards like a wave, twisting towards the right first and slicing through the chandeliers on that side. If Rio was still on the same elevation, even after dodging the initial slash, he’d find the weapon tearing through him. Glass and metal rained down to crash onto the floor, and a snap of the Vizard’s wrist was enough to send his weapon the other way, eliminating the remainder. If Rio didn’t interfere with the attack, he would find his makeshift weapons shattered and spread across the floor, no longer available to be used for his tests. That would leave him to come head-on, and that was what Zeich wanted from him.

Do not forget, Master. You have two resources set aside to win this quickly, if he proves any threat at all. Do not hesitate to use your Bankai to constrain him, or your Vizard Mask to overpower him. Conservation is one thing, but survival is key. Both valid points, but it was too soon in the battle for either. If Zeich tipped his hand too soon, he could risk burning out the duration of his Vizard Mask too early as his opponent simply played keep away. His Bankai, on the other hand, was a far more renewable resource, but it would take its toll on his spiritual reserves if he had to keep reusing it. No, it was still too soon for either.

After attacking the chandeliers, leaving a mess of metal and glass spread out on the battlefield around them, Zeich retracted his sword, letting it condense into a single, super-dense blade in one hand. The remainder of his ash, which had not been used yet, continued to be pooled around his feet until it needed to be used. For now, it waited, as did Zeich. The Vizard continued his silent vigil after striking down the chandeliers, keeping his sword ready before him but making no further move to attack. Now that he had made his opening strike and his opponent had retaliated in response, it was time to wait and see what the Espada would do. Now was the time to watch and react, and he would do so silently from behind that lupine Hollow’s mask.

There was nothing to say, after all.

Remaining Reiatsu: 6450/7000 (-400 for Shinkirou)

Shikai: 2/15

Ash Portions: 4/5 in use (All four in the shape of one sword)

SPOILER: Click to show

{Shinkirou}Technique Name: Shinkirou [Mirage]

Class: 3

Technique Type: Hoho

Usable By: Shinigami, Beast Clan

Technique Element: None

Technique Description and Effects:
Many speed or movement techniques exist for the sole purpose of going from point A to point B at an increased level of speed. Shinkirou is an unusual technique in this line, because instead of going from A to B, the user goes from A... to A. Essentially, it is referred to as something akin to a “double step,” in which the user steps in any direction, and then back into the original position. Visually, this barely creates a flicker, hardly noticeable below 200 Senses, and the whole technique lasts for no more than three seconds. What is the purpose of this technique? Similar to Utsusemi, it provides an afterimage coupled with a movement ability that allows the user to evade an attack while providing the illusion that they are hit with it. However, this technique allows the user to return to the spot, creating an effect that makes viewers think that the attack passed through the user. When used properly, one can follow up immediately following an attack that “goes through them” and catch an opponent off-guard. The step speed for this technique is 15x for each step, and it can be used up to twice per post.

How to use technique:
Focus Reiatsu, then launch oneself in any direction. Upon landing, launch back in the same manner, all within three seconds of movement.

Technique Drawbacks:
Cost. This technique also requires that the user has a 3 in Hoho or Hakuda, and has 400 or higher Speed after Type. This is also a tiring technique, draining stamina faster than normal steps through extra movement.

Made By: Z-Wolf

Reserved?: No

[Rio Demonliogalgo]

Rio had not really expected his chandelier attack to work. Hell, that woulda been sad if the shotgun attack of metal and glass had actually managed to take his opponent down, or seriously injure or maim them. As much as Rio liked going for the kill, that damn ash circle made things annoying. So this was a probing attack. Not his usual M.O. but better than losing his arm on a foolhardy charge. With that said, he was quite surprised to see the shards pass through Zeich. Rio's well honed combat instincts analyzed and broke down this fact in an instant. He came to two immediate conclusions. Either the Shinigami had a phasing technique or he was using after-images. Rio wasn't sure which it was off the bat, but seeing how the Shinigami was continuing to attack from the same angle, he was going to bet on phasing for now. Interesting. It had been a VERY long time indeed, since Rio had fought someone with abilities like that.

They were annoying. He couldn't punch them! Well, that just meant he had to be trickier with his timing for his attacks. Speaking of attacks, he saw Zeich's weapon flying up in a diagonal arc towards him. It was a dangerous move no doubt, but there was far too much ground to cover. It wasn't slow, just... not nearly fast enough.

"Please." Rio snarked as he put his countermeasures into play. The attack was pretty straightforward. Too straightforward in fact. Rio fully expected a follow-up if he evaded, but he'd deal with that as it came. Unfortunately for Zeich, Rio had anticipated the possibility of being attacked in the air, and immediately following his kick, he had landed on air-ground, providing footing to move next. As a result it was not hard for Rio to dart aside, shooting diagonally downwards to avoid the slash, and going underneath Zeich's cut. And if that's a whip then... No doubt Zeich was going to try and flex the blade to cut down at Rio or something like that. And it seemed that Zeich was doing that. But not in the manner Rio had expected. His weapon carved through the elevation Rio had been at prior, cutting down more of the chandeliers.

"Tch. Is that all!?" He snarled, kicking off the air, to shoot back, well beneath Zeich's zanpakuto attack and land near Zeich's position, about fifteen meters to his left. Just outside of close range. But that wasn't all Rio had done. As Rio kicked off, his right fist punched the air, as if to accelerate his backwards momentum. But in fact, the Espada was throwing out a powerful focused shockwave. Condensed to the size of his fist, it rocketed towards Zeich like a bullet, even as the Vizard retracted his sword back to him. Most likely the sword would finish its retraction at around the same moment the shockwave would make contact or miss (depending of course, on Zeich's actions). This wasn't like an ordinary shockwave that most practitioners of the art used. This shockwave was like an extension of Rio's own body, and rather than merely brutalizing the target, this attack was more like a long range punch from Rio. If it hit cleanly, it would be like taking a full power punch from the Espada. Not a thrilling picture for anyone to experience, given Rio's savage strength.

More worrisome was that it was invisible as well. Well. Not entirely. But mostly. A keen eye could discern a slight rippling in the air, as the air pressure from Rio's punch blasted towards its mark, but beyond that Rio's attacks were almost undetectable. A rare example of subtlety in an otherwise savage, brutal and straightforward combatant. Rio was largely unconcerned for the falling glass and metal shards from the chandeliers Zeich was destroying. They weren't likely to come too close to Rio without a force directing them, and even if they did, there was no way they'd penetrate his Hierro. In any case, Rio wasn't done yet.

Rio held a hand up as though he were holding a ball, and an orb of green light expanded in his palm. A Cero. Rio's reiatsu strength was not crushing, but it was still fairly potent. But this wasn't any ordinary Cero. After a moment of charging, Rio released his hand, leaving a glowing green orb the size of Rio's fist, hovering in the air. Cero Durmiente. The Sleeper Cero. "And now that we're done with that..." Rio grasped his sword with one hand. "I might need somethin' ta parry yer shit with afterall!" He growled out, drawing his sword in a long flourishing motion, simultaneously launching a second shockwave at Zeich as he did so, just as invisible as the first and just as deadly. And then Rio immediately kicked off the ground, and began to charge Zeich.

Even if Zeich had managed to defend against Rio's first shockwave, Rio was now using his charge as a different distraction. It was possible that Zeich might make the connection that Rio could have launched another shockwave when he drew his sword. But if Rio charged at him immediately after, it might cause Zeich momentary pause on that line of thought. Besides, Rio was quite far away. No way, a shockwave could reach that far? Right? Well.... In most cases those thoughts would be correct. Unfortunately, Rio was the exception to such a rule, with his high level mastery of shockwaves. This was a basic, crude and rudimentry application of his shockwave mastery, but the ability to hit an opponent at such a distance without his shockwave losing any of its force was one of the perks of Rio's unique skillset. As for Zeich... that ring of ash and a long distance weapon suggested Zeich was a long range fighter, and was likely to be stationary in the face of a charging enemy. He'd probably try to cut Rio to ribbons as he charged in. Good. If that was the case then good. He'd stay stationary long enough for the shockwave to smash right through him! And then Rio would be on top of him to carve up what was left!

Reiatsu Remaining: 1760/2000 (-240 for Cero Durmiente)

[Zeich Yajuu]

Air ground; I should have guessed.

It was less a self-reprimand and more of an observation; Zeich hadn’t been sure if air ground was viable in the area, and he hadn’t yet been given the opportunity to test it out. Now that Rio had proven that it could be done, it was another tactic that could be used in battle. One that was only half useful, admittedly; Zeich had long since learned and mastered the Advanced Air Ground technique, which gave him the ability to create platforms of Reiatsu to stand upon even in areas that didn’t allow for air ground normally. Of course, it went above and beyond that, allowing for several other tricks, but in the event that he needed to save Reiatsu, the Vizard now had an alternative option.

For now, Rio was already moving. Using air ground allowed the Arrancar to dodge beneath the whip of Zeich’s sword, but the Vizard had not anticipated being able to hit his target in the first place; a mid-tier Espada did not reach that rank by being vulnerable to basic attacks and probing strikes. No, by removing the chandeliers, Zeich was simply taking away one of Rio’s weapons, forcing him into more direct combat. While that would still pose its own risk by pushing the Espada into his favored form of combat, it would also lend several advantages to Zeich, particularly if he could force direct contact before Rio could Release. If not, well… there were other options.

An attack was already on its way, however, as Rio jabbed one fist forward. Zeich could hear the sound of his arm moving, the air vibrating around it; more so, the vibration continued, indicating that the force was continuing to move through the air, though Rio himself was not. A shockwave attack, or perhaps a Cero; whatever it was, it was coming quickly and warranted avoidance. Thankfully with a high processing speed and his sharp senses made sharper by lack of sight, Zeich as more than able to dodge the strike with a simple sidestep, the fist of air bypassing him by a small margin of a little over a foot. The force of it, even in passing, forced the Vizard to brace himself so that he didn’t stagger backwards.

However, given the rapid speed of the attack and the force behind it, Zeich knew that he wouldn’t be able to get away so easily every time. With that in mind, he activated a technique of his own; Blind Instinct immediately took all of his senses and immediately doubled them, allowing him much more room to sense and react Rio’s strikes. Thanks to his lack of sight, an adjustment period wasn’t needed; he could immediately take advantage of his sharpened senses of sound, smell, and touch to determine his opponent’s position and movements with exceptional accuracy. And there would be no outward indication of his changes; Rio could do little to anticipate the advantages that Zeich took upon himself.

That was why the Sleeper Cero that the Espada summoned had not gone unnoticed; even if he could not sense it with his minimal Energy Sensory, Zeich could feel the difference in air pressure. While there was no way for him to tell specifically what Rio had used, he was aware of its presence, and could generally gauge its location thanks to his extraordinary senses. Of course, that wasn’t the only ability he used, and for the first time, Rio would hear the Vizard speak in a quiet voice, barely a whisper that might be drowned out by the Arrancar’s own excessive noise. “Bakudo #3: Sazanami.” A quick casting of the sonar-like Kido refined the mental image of Rio’s attack, the spiritual ripple traveling out and bouncing off of a spherical mass of Reiatsu. A Cero of some sort, likely. Sazanami came and went so fast as a thin, diluted mass of Reiatsu that Rio wouldn’t even detect it unless his own ability to sense Reiatsu was extraordinary.

Now Zeich had a clear image of the battlefield to work with, at least for the moment. Rio was standing a little over forty feet away, with a Cero hovering near him. A remotely-launched Cero, perhaps? The Vizard knew he’d have to keep an eye on any further shifts in the air pressure or the sound of wind resistance; Cero could be trouble with their explosive force. And an attack was coming; Zeich could hear the sound of metal rasping on metal as a blade was drawn, further verified by Rio speaking of a tool to parry with. The Arrancar’s Zanpaktou, perhaps? Was he planning to Release it?

Master...

Don’t worry, I’m paying attention; if I feel he’s using his Resurreccion, then I’ll immediately release my Bankai. I don’t want to take chances with an unknown. This did little to sooth the Zanpaktou spirit’s concerns, but Haiiro knew better than to continue arguing; Zeich had enough battle experience to know when it was best to hold his power back and when to release it, and he was ready should the worst come to pass.

Another shockwave came, and Zeich moved around it it with a careful twist of his torso, a bend of his knees. A surprisingly graceful move, but his talents with Hakuda gave him a certain sense of bodily awareness, and he was able to manipulate his motions fluidly to avoid the shockwave as it rippled past. Immediately after, however, a loud burst of sound indicated that Rio had no intention of remaining at long range any longer, and that he was charging forward. It wasn’t a Sonido, or Zeich would have far less time to react to it; as it was, with exceptional senses to track Rio’s movement and a sharp instinct, it was almost too easy to prepare a counterstrike.

Ash pooled around Zeich’s feet as his sword lost cohesion, and then spread; two-fifths of it moved towards Rio’s left, moving about thirty feet away, while another fifth moved towards the right, a full fifty feet away. It was with this second group that Zeich moved, a Shunpo carrying him out of Rio’s charge and putting him into position to counterattack. The attack would come in multiple layers, making it difficult to retaliate even as Rio recovered from his initial charge. Each would come a second or two apart, adjusting should the Arrancar dodge prior attacks in order to ensure maximum accuracy.

The first would come from below; two-fifths of Zeich’s ash had remained at its initial point, merely sliding forward slightly, and a use of Kaijin Ken would turn the substance into two gray blades that would stab out of the ground, easily breaking through Rio’s Hierro and impaling his feet as punishment for approaching too closely. There was no tell, no gathering of Reiatsu, nothing; as though emerging from a pool of water, the twin blades would stab into the Espada’s soles if he did not avoid them, impaling them entirely. The Arrancar’s strength was enough that he could simply break through them after being stabbed simply by continuing his pace forward, but doing so would likely aggravate any wounds and leave the broken ashen blades stuck in his feet. Avoidance would be key if he didn’t want to sustain any injuries.

Of course, if his gaze was focused downwards, Rio would be harder pressed to react to the other attacks that came. Two more blows would drive into him as a pair of daggers slammed into his spine from behind, the gray weapons sinking to the hilt if they were not dodged. But where had they come from? The two portions of ash that had gone towards Rio’s left, of course. The ash had pooled into two blades that had simply been guided mentally before being launched at their maximum speed of 600. With Zeich’s high Spiritual Pressure, he was able to pierce through Rio’s Hierro yet again, stabbing into vulnerable areas and putting vital organs at risk.

And of course, in the event that he whirled to dodge the attack or simply determine where it came from, Rio would find yet another dagger stabbed into him, this one aimed for his neck, regardless of which way the man was facing. This one, however, was the sneakiest one; wrapped in the Mugon technique that made it utterly silent in addition to its normally undetectable energy signature, the dagger would give absolutely no warning of its presence unless it was seen. And that would make it all the more likely to hit its mark, especially if the other two attacks distracted Rio. It was a deadly trio of attacks, towards the feet, towards the spine, and towards the neck. Any one of them would be crippling, and potentially put Rio in a dangerous position for Zeich to finish him off.

Remaining Reiatsu: 5975/7000 (-50 for Blind Instinct, -25 for Sazanami, -50 for Shunpo, -250 for Kaijin Ken x5, -100 for Mugon)

Shikai: 3/15

Ash in use: 5/5 (2 for feet spikes, 3 for daggers)

SPOILER: Click to show

{Updated Stats}Stats (Rank 2 Fractured Type):

Strength - [300] (300) Points

Speed - [400] (400) Points

Spiritual Pressure – [400 x 1.75] (700) Points

Reiatsu Strength – [200 x 0.6] (140) Points

Light Aura - [50] Points

Dark Aura - [50] Points

Instinct - [200 x 1.5] (300) Points

Senses – [200 x 2] (400) Points (x2 from Blind Instinct)

Energy sensory - [100 x 0.70] (70) Points

Healing Expertise - [0] Points


Total SP: [1800] points

SPOILER: Click to show

{Blind Instinct}Technique Name: Kuro Gigei Mikon: Buraindo Jinsei [Dark Wild Arts: Blind Instinct]

Class: 6

Technique Type: Other

Technique Element: None

Technique Description and Effects:

The first of the Dark Wild Arts line of techniques, this is the opening technique that is required for each of the others after it. The Dark Wild Arts uses speed similar to the standard line of original techniques, but it also makes use of the user’s other senses through the loss of sight, strengthening them, and allowing the user to particularly focus on their sense of touch and hearing more than anything else. Upon use, this doubles the user’s current Senses, but requires that they have no way of seeing; simply closing one’s eyes does not work. A visual impairment of sorts is required, whether it is the actual loss of one’s vision, or some means of covering that completely blocks sight.

How to use technique:

The first step is to remove vision completely. There can be no trace of light, meaning that if one is not currently blind, one must use a visual impairment of sorts, whether it’s a blindfold or some way of cutting off vision. Once that is done, Reiatsu is released through the body in small amounts, augmenting the user’s ears and nerves, thus enhancing hearing and touch sensations.

Drawback:
There are multiple drawbacks to this technique. The first, obviously, is that it requires blindness in some way. Whether it is artificial or actual blindness, the user must not be able to see at all, or their brain is distracted by its main stimuli through sight rather than focusing on alternate ones. The second is that this style of combat takes adjusting to, a total of one post after the technique is used, during which time the user’s Senses are decreased by half. This is the adjustment to relying on senses other than visual; Lost Sense types who have given up sight, or any other character who is naturally blind can skip this adjustment post. And finally, when this technique is canceled by re-introducing sight, the user has to re-adjust to vision, and thus must have a post after this technique is deactivated in which Senses are reduced by half again. This technique also costs 50 Reiatsu per post to keep active.

Requirements: None

Made by: Zeich Yajuu

SPOILER: Click to show

{Sazanami}Technique Name: [Bakudo #3: Sazanami (Ripple)]

Class: 7

Technique Type: Kido

Technique Element: Air/Earth (Varies, see Effects)

Technique Description and Effects: Sazanami is a particularly simplistic and straightforward Bakudo that at first seems to have no actual ability about it. When activated, this Bakudo sends a pulse of Reiatsu out in a spherical ripple from the user’s palm. This Reiatsu has no actual effect on anything, traveling until it reaches another object with some form of spiritual energy. Once it has done so, it bounces in the direction of its origin, giving an idea of the direction of any nearby active spiritual objects. This excludes environmental objects such as buildings within Soul Society, which do not possess an active spiritual energy. Such objects simply cause the rippling Reiatsu to stop without rebounding. When mastered, this technique can also be sent through objects, such as the ground or a building, rather than stopping upon impacting them. Additionally, mastery allows a constant ripple effect for the duration of a single post, regardless of incantation, that originates from its casting point. The range of this technique varies by the Reiatsu Strength of the user; for every 50 Reiatsu Strength the user has, this technique has a range of one hundred feet in radius. The ripples themselves travel at an astounding 4000 Speed. Due to its incredible speed and the thinned-out nature of the Reiatsu, the technique is undetectable to any but the user unless one actively knows that it is there.

How to use technique (How is it activated?): The technique’s user simply raises their hand and releases a pulse of Reiatsu. The incantation can be spoken before or after to release it.

Technique Drawbacks (Limitations, repercussions for use, etc) Despite its speed, this technique’s effects are minimal. The pulse of Reiatsu is useful for tracking a target’s position or revealing cloaked targets, but unless the incantation is used, the cost of repeated use adds up.

Incantation and Effect (If Kido only): When the incantation is used, the Bakudo creates a continuous ripple effect for three posts using its initial casting point as an origin. The user can intercept reverberations from the technique even if they have moved, giving a continuous feed of the directions of active spiritual energy. (“Throw the pebble in the pond; ripple across the still waters, trace the boundaries, return.”)

Made By: Zeich Yajuu

Reserved?: No

SPOILER: Click to show

{Mugon}
Technique Name: Mugon (Silence)

Class: 5

Technique Type: Other

Usable By: Any Race

Technique Element: None

Technique Description and Effects:
A relatively simple technique, Mugon creates an aura of Reiatsu around a sword's length that allows it to completely negate wind resistance and absorb sound. As long as the technique is active, a sword covered with this technique makes no sound, whether it's being swung, or collides with another object, or even when it's being drawn; coated with this aura, the sword is completely silent at all times, muffling any sound it may make on contact. If mastered, this technique may be applied to other weapons.

How to use technique:
Wrap one's weapon in Reiatsu to completely muffle any sounds it may make.

Technique Drawbacks:
Per-post Reiatsu cost. No other drawbacks.

Made By: Z-Wolf

Reserved?: No

[Rio Demonliogalgo]

Zeich's ploy might have worked, if Rio had been as thuggish as he acted. And had the Espada not possessed superhuman sensory abilties. And a wealth of combative experience. These three tactics would cause Zeich's technique to run into some problems. The first problem was that Rio had been suspicious of his ash since the moment the battle began, due to his experience. Even if Zeich had scattered the ash with his previous moves, it wouldn't conceal it. Rio had literally eagle-like vision, and he could note the ash that Zeich intended him to run over as he approached it. With Rio's sharp eyes he could detect the motions of the ash. He was going to try to flank Rio! Rio knew he couldn't track all of them at once, and his opponent was definitely going for a multi-pronged attack. So in answer, Rio used the Arrancar technique Pesquis, focusing sharply, and releasing an invisible radar that allowed him to detect all life and fluctuations of reiatsu within a one mile radius, completely encompassing the battlefield. Pesquis was primarily used to detect life forms, making sneak attacks untenable, but Rio had picked up a few tricks from Kuroi, during their time in the Espada together. Rio was using Pesquis to note the flow of Zeich's reiatsu through his own Zanpakuto. It couldn't tell Rio what Zeich was doing with his Zanpakuto.

But it did tell Rio a few things-- like that he couldn't detect the ash. That was.... bizarre, to be truthful. But it told Rio that the ash was meant to be a stealth-type ability. Interesting. It also would forewarn Rio of any direct shenanigans on Zeich's part, even if he couldn't anticipate the ash itself. It wasn't precise, and was pretty crude. But it was enough that Rio wasn't about to be caught offguard by a sneak attack. He could track Zeich's incoming attacks. Including the slight shift he was launching to impale the Quinta's feet. Rio's answer was simple and quick. As soon as Rio noted the ash shift across the ground towards him, his next step planted firmly on the air and he raced above them. Rio was using air ground like a flight of stairs (or perhaps an inclined plane), stepping only about three feet off the ground, but high enough that he had room to evade when he sensed a massive fluctuation in the ash reiatsu below him. Plenty of space, plenty of time. But Zeich hadn't just thrown one attack at Rio. He'd launched three, from all different angles. But Rio possessed a handful of strengths himself, and Zeich was about to get an idea of just how advanced Rio's mastery of shockwaves was. Zeich vanished in Shunpo, and for an instant, Rio lost him in his Pesquis. The hell!? That's never happened before.... Of course Rio had no idea that Vizard were able to slip through and avoid a Pesquis during their step techniques. Not that it mattered, Rio had to deal with Zeich's attacks in the meantime. Being able to attack him while he was dodging would have been great, but not getting killed was pretty important.

Having used air ground to get a bit above the ash on the ground, Rio was able to fling himself to the right of the attack, the spikes stabbing up through the space his feet had been moments before. That had been the easy one to predict, due to the movement of the ash-- Rio could have reasonably expected an attack from that angle. It wasn't unreasonable to assume Zeich would abandon the attack just because Rio was a little higher up, afterall, but the spikes would miss. Next were the knives hurtling at Rio's back. Rio didn't know they were knives, but his ears picked up the whistling sound as they flew through the air. Besides. Back attacks while flanking your opponent were second nature. Rio could have anticipated the back attack inherently, but his hearing helped him get the timing down. "Oh no you DON'T!" Rio snarled, spinning with a heavy swing outwards, creating a powerful shockwave to blast the knives away. It was true that the knives were flying much faster than Rio-- twice as fast in fact. But those knives had to travel thirty feet to reach Rio, while Rio only had to spin around. That shorter distance allowed Rio to blast them away with a shockwave. Even if Zeich could telekinetically manipulate the knives, Rio's timing was pretty good, and there would be practically no time at all to get them out of the way. Whether or not a forceful shockwave like Rio was launching would be enough to scatter the knives back into ashes, or only enough to knock the knives away, he didn't know. But with Rio's strength transmitted through the shockwave, it was almost certain that they'd at least be deflected. Even if Zeich telekinetically brought them back to attack again, it would take time. Time that would allow Rio to react again.

That left Zeich's final attack. Mugon was an excellent trick and would have probably worked on Rio if the arrancar hadn't used Pesquis. Unfortunately, Zeich's multi-pronged attack worked against him. By forcing Rio into a situation that the Espada couldn't keep track of every attack at once with his eyes and ears alone (as the Espada did not trust even his excellent hearing to track the sound of ash in the air), he had pressured Rio into using Pesquis. And unfortunately for Zeich, the very aura of reiatsu that made his final dagger completely inaudible, was like tying a giant signal beacon to it when it came to Pesquis. Of course, Zeich was also intent on keeping it going for Rio's neck. No doubt even with Rio turning around, the dagger would follow suit. Rio wasn't liable to shake it off with the speed gap either. But Zeich didn't know one thing about Rio. That was to say-- how hard it was to land a physical hit on the Quinta. If the dagger had actually been comprised of Reiatsu Rio probably couldn't have stopped it. Unfortunately, it was comprised of physical matter. So as the dagger drove for Rio's neck to pierce and paralyze the Espada, Rio flexed his upper back, and utilized his sheer mastery of shockwaves, to release a short-ranged pulse.

Indeed, one of Rio's defining traits among the Espada was his ability to produce shockwaves with as little effort as simply flexing his muscles. The shockwaves produced by these actions were, naturally, nowhere near as powerful or long ranged as his normal directed ones. They possessed a lot less range, petering out at only about five feet tops. And their power was lessened as well, certainly incapable of blasting Zeich's final dagger away like he had with the first two. But what it could do was halt and slow the dagger. A momentary stoppage. Long enough for Rio's Pesquis and his physical senses to lock onto Zeich as he broke out of his Shunpo on the other side of the room, and promptly pursue with Sonido, leaving the dagger and all of Zeich's ash behind.

"This was your mistake Shinigami!" Rio snarled as he broke out of his Sonido, practically on top of Zeich. Zeich was a manipulator and was nearly untouchable while he was inside his ash cloud. But Zeich had used almost, if not all of his ash to attack Rio just now. It was misplaced, and even though they weren't far from the ash, for a brief moment, Zeich would be defenseless. Or at least that was the idea. Rio's earlier shockwave would have briefly cleared a path for his Sonido, which traveled much faster than Zeich's daggers and the Quinta was staying airborne, though lower. Rio was standing about two feet off the ground as he hammered a devastating diagonal blow down towards Zeich's right shoulder, with his sword. A devastating downward blow that is, that was launching a shockwave at the same time, in case Zeich got any ideas about trying to simply dodge backwards. Rio followed this up by rolling back up and chopping diagonally again, this time at the left side of Zeich's head, again carrying a shockwave. Rio was deliberately positioned between Zeich and his ash, which meant that if Zeich wanted to get back to his ash as fast as possible he'd have to go through Rio. Even as Rio chopped though, the slashes and shockwaves were just an opening distraction, because in the middle of his second strike, Rio's mouth suddenly opened and a basketball sized bullet of reiatsu blasted out, at Zeich's chest. A Bala at point blank range! Although not a particularly complex or advanced set of moves, Rio was pouring pressure onto Zeich and Zeich himself was short on defensive options with his ash sent away. What was the Vizard going to do?

Reiatsu Remaining: 1510 (-100 for Pesquis, -100 for Sonido, -50 for Bala)
Pesquis: 1/5

[Zeich Yajuu]

Another failed attack, something that might be frustrating for others. For Zeich, though, it was another observation of his opponent’s abilities. Shockwaves were a common tool, by the sound of the air constantly rippling and cracking like a thunderstorm rolling through it, but the ways in which they were used was what intrigued the Vizard. At one point, his Mugon-sheathed dagger was countered by an unusual trick, a shockwave where Zeich couldn’t sense the movement of limbs through a punch or kick, nor did he hear the tell-tale sign of a blade whipping through the air. Was this an application of Reiatsu? Or was it the man’s sheer physical strength? Zeich leaned towards the temporary belief that it was sheer strength, but kept his mind open just in case.

The fact that Rio was using Pesquis was now revealed to Zeich as well. The Vizard knew of the Arrancar ability for sensing Reiatsu, having seen it used before, and it was made more evident when Rio had detected a silenced blade coming from behind him and had simply used his shockwave to stop it in midair. The only way he could have done that was because Mugon was a sheath of Reiatsu, canceling out the normal masking effect that came with Zeich’s Zanpaktou simply because it was laid over it. While Rio could simply possess exceptional Energy Sensory, he had not displayed it prior; indeed, Zeich had been sure that his Shikirou technique had fooled his opponent, when anyone with an exceptional ability to sense spiritual energy would have traced him in a moment. No, Pesquis was most likely, meaning that Zeich would have a harder time making stealthy strikes.

Worse, the Vizard’s three-part attack had been nullified swiftly, and unfortunately, it had also revealed several of Zeich’s own capabilities. The fact that he could create and mentally control his blades without movement was no longer a secret, meaning that Rio would be more likely to anticipate an attack from any direction. Though the three blades had not been shattered by the shockwaves that had hit them thanks to their density, they would do no good in their current form, not when it could be expected that more would come. In fact, all five blades would return to their ashen form and return towards Zeich, closing the distance towards him.

But they would not arrive in time. With the use of a Sonido, the Arrancar step technique, Rio had closed the gap and had arrived directly in front of Zeich, aiming for a frontal assault while the Vizard was left without his Zanpaktou’s essence. It was a clever tactic; with his Zanpaktou’s ability to keep opponent’s at range and his own evasive nature, it gave the impression that the former Shinigami was a long-ranged fighter. Indeed, such a tactic was common for Zeich in battle, as it was an efficient way to defeat an enemy while remaining unharmed. By charging in, Rio was trying to prevent Zeich from calling upon his Zanpaktou and, even if he had it, overwhelming him by sheer strength that the Vizard had no chance of countering.

Zeich found himself being forced to reevaluate his opponent; Rio was not the brute that he seemed to be. Whether it was experience or a sharper mind that guided his hand, the Arrancar had not climbed up the ranks of Hueco Mundo by sheer muscle alone. But the Espada had made a mistake in his initial evaluation of Zeich as a long-ranged manipulator: in truth, the Vizard was a mixed-range fighter, capable of combat both near and far. Even without his Zanpaktou, he had ways to protect himself. The moment that Rio moved into close range, Zeich’s sharp senses and instinct gave him just enough time to begin countering, and that was only because of the slower speed of the Arrancar’s swing compared to his Sonido.

Tsukikage, it’s time. Make this quick.

Finally! It’s time to draw some blood!

Rio’s first attack was easy enough to dodge, telegraphed as it was, and as Zeich stepped to the side with another fluid step that came with his practice of Hakuda, he began his own counterattack. As the air shook with the force of the shockwave, the sound reverberating in the Vizard’s ears, he quickly deactivated Blind Instinct in preparation of his next move. That technique’s effect only worked on a person without eyesight, either forced or natural, and so Zeich’s blindness worked to his advantage. But without that blindness, the Vizard would be unable to utilize Blind Instinct, so he removed it even as he shed his inability to see, darkness filling his eyes even as it left his vision.

The world refocused quickly, almost too much so at first; Zeich was unaccustomed to sight after his long blindness, and as a result, it was overwhelming. The drawback from Blind Instinct also kicked in, reducing his senses as his vision adjusted to its ability to work again. Fortunately, the penalty was canceled out immediately thanks to Zeich’s decision to shed his blindness; in that same moment, his eyes sharpened again, and he was in a comfortable neutral state instead of disadvantaged. Colors became clear, and shapes clarified. In the space of that second that he avoided Rio’s first slash with a twist to the opposite side, the Vizard had adjusted to his change in vision, and was already racing to continue his counterattack.

The second swing came, but even as it did, Zeich was already moving. Shinkirou came once more, with the Vizard stepping just as the blow came at him. Unlike the first swing, where he had given a slightly higher margin of error to account for reacting via hearing rather than sight, this time Zeich moved at the very last second. This unwittingly gave him the ability to dodge the Bala as it was fired too, his now-sharpened Energy Sensory only just adequate enough to tell it was coming before it did. Even his greatly increased reaction ability had barely alerted him before he had moved; Bala was just that fast. But once again, all Rio would see was that his second slash and Bala had been “phased through” again, the latter exploding against the wall behind Zeich.

Of course, that would be the last thing on Rio’s mind, given the counterattack that happened in the same moment. Shinkirou at a whopping 12,000 speed was so blindingly fast that Zeich had already returned to his initial place as the strikes moved past, literally occupying the space the moment both blade and Bala passed it. Of course, mastery of Shinkirou allowed him to alter his motion, and instead of completely overlapping his initial position, Zeich was actually slightly to the left of that spot. This was simply to adjust to where Rio’s arm was; at his speed, the Vizard ran the risk of running headlong into it and knocking himself out, a rather embarrassing finish to this encounter. But it also left him in the perfect position for his strike.

Shunpo Karin put exceptional strain on Zeich’s arm as it lunged forward at 8,000 speed, connecting with Rio’s in the same moment that his mind would be processing the miss. Yet it wasn’t a blow intended to crush or cripple the arm, at least not with the fist; Zeich simply aimed to grab the man’s wrist for the split second it took to use another technique. To do this, he made use of the form from Hakuda Defense: Do, striking at the underarm but withholding the force to stop the blow. With his mastery of the technique and the Hakuda fighting style, his strike was even more efficient than an average practitioner’s, enabling him to make contact for the half second he needed.

If the attack connected, blood would start to spurt out of Rio’s arm, and the skin would peel back as deadly lacerations tore muscle and flesh alike. Bursts of spiritual energy would erupt from the limb, tearing it apart from the inside in seconds. Worse, it would occur in both arms as spiritual energy rocketed through both of them, smashing into Rio’s lesser spirit and overwhelming it entirely. If Zeich’s strike landed, then Rio would find his arms completely nullified, rendered useless as they were torn apart by an effect that was normally an alien concept to Arrancar: cutback. Cutback was a phenomenon that occurred when two spiritual pressures collided and warred with one another, with the weaker one unable to survive the onslaught without channeling it through another medium like a Released weapon. Normally Arrancar were immune to it; whether it was a protection granted by their Hierro or something different with their spirits, cutback normally did not occur when they struck at foes.

But Zeich had developed his spiritual pressure into a weapon through a technique called Anima Surge; this forced his spiritual energy into another person, forcing that clash even if it normally would not occur. All it took was contact to initiate, and then the rest would happen on its own. Rio would not be able to stop the attack once it started, if Zeich managed to grab at the Arrancar’s arm; all he could do was suffer as the spiritual pressure broke through his limbs, ripping them apart and leaving them hanging useless at his sides. Even his impressive strength wouldn’t allow them to function; high strength might allow for broken bones to be fused together or survival of normally fatal wounds, but it couldn’t make completely eviscerated muscles function. He’d be in extreme pain as well, putting him at a disadvantage.

But how had he managed these feats? In the space of bare seconds, Zeich had reacted more quickly than he should have, moved at impossible speeds from what he had demonstrated, and had possibly even torn Rio apart from the inside using his spiritual pressure, something that would require an extraordinary amount that he had not demonstrated before now. It was as though he had been holding back… or more likely, that he had suddenly increased all of his combat parameters enormously. Retreating backwards with a Shunpo regardless of his success, Zeich brought himself to a spot a full hundred feet away from Rio, where he’d have more than enough time to react to any further combat. It also gave his ash the chance to gather about him again, ready to be used once more should it be needed.

Just then, the sound of ceramic shattering on the ground filled the room. A glance down would show the Hollow-Wolf mask that Zeich had been wearing lying in pieces on the floor. The cheap material that was used only to cover the Vizard’s face broke upon impact, unable to withstand the fall. Yet a glance towards Zeich would show that the former Shinigami was still wearing his mask? It was only then, with a direct view of the man’s eyes, that all would be made clear. Behind the mask, ebony sclera framed golden irises, the eyes of a Hollow visible within a carved face that would be right at home with such a creature. This wasn’t the fake mask that had been left shattered on the ground; it was the real deal, a Vizard’s mask that enabled them to draw upon their Hollow powers. No wonder Zeich had become so powerful suddenly, now that he wasn’t holding back!

And there was more, though Rio would not see the fiendish grin that came from the wolf hiding behind his own features. But he’d hear the voice, malevolence flowing through it that seemed almost contrary to the calm that Zeich had displayed prior. No, this was not the Vizard’s voice… it was something else. “Quinta Espada, huh? I’m not buying it, weakling. You sure you’re not one of his Fraccion? I might buy that you’re a Privaron… a low one. Maybe number…” The Vizard chuckled, “...Nine. Nine. Nine.” An insult to be sure, to call Rio the lowest of the low Privaron, those who had three digits to indicate just how low on the totem pole they were.

“But go ahead, ‘Quinta Espada.’ Why don’t you show me what you’ve really got? Take me seriously. If you don’t… I’m afraid I’m just going to have to rip you apart and devour you!”

Remaining Reiatsu: 6125/7000

Suspended Reiatsu: 850 (-400 for Shinkirou, -400 for Anima Surge, -50 for Shunpo)

Shikai: 4/15

Vizard Mask: 1/3

Ash in use: 0/5

SPOILER: Click to show

{Updated Stats}Stats (Rank 2 Fractured Type):

All stats (excluding HE) doubled via Vizard mask. Senses halved from first-post drawback of Blind Instinct.

Strength – [300 x 2] (600) Points

Speed – [400 x 2] (800) Points

Spiritual Pressure – [(400 x 1.75) x 2] (1400) Points

Reiatsu Strength – [(200 x 0.6) x 2] (280) Points

Light Aura - [50] Points

Dark Aura - [50] Points

Instinct - [(200 x 1.5) x 2] (600) Points

Senses – [200 x 0.5 x 2] (200) Points

Energy sensory - [(100 x 0.70) x 2] (140) Points

Healing Expertise - [0] Points


Total SP: [1800] points

SPOILER: Click to show

{Anima Surge}
Technique Name: Anima no Saji (Anima Surge)

Class: 2

Technique Type: Spiritual Technique

Usable By: Any

Technique Element: Spirit

Technique Description and Effects:
Cutback is a deadly consequence of attacking those with an exceptionally dense and powerful spirit, and though it is normally limited to a few races, the weaponized version of it is not. This technique takes the concept of a dense spirit clashing and creating an opposing reaction, and turns it into an attack. By sending their spiritual energy flooding into a target in a wave, the user makes that clash of spirits happen repeatedly, their Reiatsu crashing against that of their opponent’s in a series of opposing reactions that are devastating to the victim. Once the technique is triggered within the opponent, the area of the body that is struck will be hit with the effects of cutback, with the normal amount of damage determined by the difference between the user’s Spiritual Pressure and the opponent’s. Instead of only affecting limbs, however, this damage is done to the area of the body located, making it a deadly attack from those with exceptionally strong spirits.

How to use technique:
The user strikes at a foe, and then channels their Reiatsu through the area hit.

Technique Drawbacks
Aside from a hefty cost of 400 Reiatsu per use, this technique also requires direct physical contact with a foe. A weapon will not suffice, though clothing or armor such as gloves and gauntlets will not prevent this technique from activating. This contact must be initiated by the user as an attack; this technique cannot be used upon being struck by an opponent, only when the user is the one initiating the strike. Hierro and Blut can block this as long as the defender’s Reiatsu Strength is superior to the attacker’s Spiritual Pressure. Additionally, if the opponent has superior Spiritual Pressure, then the effects of cutback are not only reversed onto the user at the point of impact, but are inflicted as though the gap between the user's Spiritual Pressure and that of their opponent's is doubled. Finally, for the post after this technique is used, the user cannot inflict cutback normally on opponents.

Made By: Zeich Yajuu

Reserved: Yes

[Rio Demonliogalgo]

To answer Zeich's unstated question, between cunning and experience-- in Rio's case it was almost certainly experience, as well as basic tactics. Despite living several millenia, and having lived so long that his human life should have been little more than scraps of memory, Rio's life as a Spartan had shaped the basics of his identity, including his emphasis on martial prowess and strength. The finest warriors of ancient Greece, Rio had been grilled and trained hard in his lifetime-- training and lessons that were so universal in scope he was relying on them, over a thousand years later. But experience played an equally major role. Afterall, his human life training had hardly prepared him for the type of battle that Shinigami, Arrancar and Quincy waged. No, for that, Rio drew upon years of experience, fighting all manner of opponents. So he was not surprised that Zeich was a mixed range fighter. Many such combatants existed within the Espada. The hope of exploiting a long range focus was just that-- hope, and nothing more. Much as a boxer might hope for every punch they throw in a fight to land cleanly, they know full well that they should not expect it. And that would have been an accurate comparison for Rio's mentality in fighting Zeich. Always ready to defend against a new focus. That wasn't necessarily to say Rio's approach would change all that much. No, while Rio certainly kept an open mind (combatively anyways) defensively, his offense almost always came down to breaking his opponent down with a frontal assault, and overwhelming them with raw power. But for such an inflexible modus operandi, Rio intended to demonstrate just how versatile such a straightforward approach could be.

Zeich evaded Rio's opening strike without too much trouble. A brutal hacking blow with limited technique would do that. But dodging wouldn't win him the fight, and if Zeich stopped for even a moment to even attempt a counterattack, Rio was like to strike him. But his answer to Rio's second blow and Bala combination was where Zeich made his first mistake. Trying to counterattack Rio with a move the Espada had already seen. While Rio didn't know the exact drawbacks of Shinkirou, he had not quite yet determined whether Zeich's technique was a phasing technique or a high speed step technique. And this was an ideal moment to test the theory. In the case of Shinkirou, a slight delay was ultimately necessary. If the user stepped out and back in the same instant as an attack, there would be no time for the blow to phase through the afterimage, afterall. And this was Rio's chance to find out the nature of Zeich's technique. As Rio saw his blow cleave through Zeich with no resistance-- no cracking of bones under the force of his swing, no spray of blood or cleaving of flesh, he immediately realized what Zeich had done. Had this been the first time Rio saw the technique it might have even worked. Unfortunately, Rio knew to expect it now, so he was trying out an experiment.

Rio had been utilizing his shockwaves with every swing of his sword, each blow unleashing a shockwave as he struck. That was true of the swing Zeich had attempted to avoid with Shinkirou as well, and as soon as Rio saw his blade starting to pass through Zeich without feeling the Shinigami break beneath his blade, he knew something was up. Let's see how you like THIS Shinigami! Rio snarled in his own mind, as he abruptly twisted his blade in mid-swing and torqued the weapon sideways so that it would tear horizontally out of Zeich's afterimage from the side, shoulder height, rather than cleaving all the way through. This hadn't been simply for show, however. Rio had forcibly redirected his shockwave, scattering it outwards from Zeich as he completed his swing. While this would have certainly greatly diffused the power of the shockwave itself, weakening it into one of Rio's less potent shockwaves-- only around 400 in strength, this distinction would be somewhat academic in practice, as Zeich's own Shinkirou was about to drag the Vizard right back into the air blast, at an absurd velocity. Slamming into the shockwave, would be like running a collision course with a reinforced steel wall, focused entirely around chest height. While Zeich's mask might have improved his physical strength enough that this might not have inherently defeated Zeich it would very likely cause tremendous physical damage, and possible even broken or fractured ribs. Had Rio not been forced to diffuse it, to reveal the secret of Zeich's technique, the shockwave might very well have completely shattered the majority of bones and organs in his torso, even with the boost from his mask. It would likely at least wind Zeich. In fact, it was very lucky indeed that Zeich intended to end up slightly to the left of his starting point with Shinkirou, as trying to go back to the starting point would have likely resulted in even greater damage.

Regardless, Zeich would have taken a serious hit from this, and while that would probably inhibit his ability to throw out his planned attack, especially in lack of any serious ability to withstand pain. Still, perhaps it would be possible for him to steel himself enough to follow through on his attack regardless. And while Rio was not entirely familiar with Shunpo Karin, he wasn't about to make this easy for Zeich. The moment Zeich flickered and overlapped his afterimage, Rio began his follow-up attack. Not his defense. His follow-up. Rio, although a thug, was not an idiot. He could clearly discern Zeich's increased speed. Losing the initiative was fatal here. If Rio lost the initiative-- the attack, then regaining it would be extremely difficult. As Zeich struck at Rio's arm with speed impossible for Rio to match, Rio employed an old classic of his. Sonido. But not Sonido to dodge-- no. It wasn't fast enough. Rio was Sonidoing through Zeich's position at roughly the same time the Vizard was striking.

The good news for Zeich was that this meant that his Anima no Saji was going to connect. Even in Sonido, Rio wasn't fast enough to actually avoid the attack. The bad news is, in almost the exact same instant, he was about to take an 800 strength, 3900 speed body slam from Rio. Rio had initiated this attack the moment he had seen Zeich reappear. Fast as Zeich had become, he wouldn't be quite fast enough to react at this range, while he was already in mid-attack, and considering the hit he'd taken less than a millisecond ago from Rio's shockwave. At the speeds they were moving at, despite the vast gap in speed, the difference in timing between Zeich's strike hitting Rio's arm, and Rio colliding with Zeich would be infinitesimal, when considering the reaction speeds of either combatant. At melee range, the difference in speed between a bullet moving at Mach 1 and Mach 6 was largely academic afterall. Rio intended to slam the two of them right into the back wall of the battle arena, smashing Zeich a second time, this time between his body and the theoretically unbreakable wall of the room.

Of course, the cutback effects took their toll as he did this. As mentioned, Zeich's blow had landed. Rio felt agonizing pain as his arms and torso were lacerated and reiatsu blazed out from them, courtesy of Zeich's cutback. It was unbelievably painful-- yes. But not unbearable. If there was anything to Rio, besides his strength and aptitude with shockwaves, it was his ability to withstand pain. Even as agony surged through Rio's body, he kept his course, using that pain to fuel his anger. Fueling it further. Zeich's mask had amplified his strength, to be sure. Enough so that it was not impossible the Vizard would survive this body slam attempt. But coupled with Shinkirou carrying Zeich into Rio's shockwave, it would not be a brutal and possibly bone breaking experience. Rio's arms were disabled, but Zeich was going to be taking the tax on those.

"Shinigami.... trash..." Rio snarled. "How dare you do this to me." Despite likely landing two serious hits on Zeich, Rio was not happy about the damage he had taken in return. Even before Zeich had revealed his Vizard mask, Rio knew what he had to do. There was no way he could continue to fight properly like this, and if Zeich had survived the shockwave and body slam, even with fractured, or even broken sternum and/or ribs, he'd be at an advantage. Rio intended to fix that little problem. While his arms were brutalized by Zeich's attack, between Rio's own pain tolerance, and his immense physical strength, the Espada had managed to keep a weak grip on his sword. It wasn't really doing anything, nor could he attack with it at this point. It was just kind of there, barely held by the Quinta's trembling fingers, as he strained what limited muscles were left in his arms, just to maintain a grip of the weapon. "....Attack Cerberus." Rio snarled.

SPOILER: Click to show

Zeich had gotten his wish. Rio was taking him seriously. And if he didn't get out of the wall fast it was about to get a lot worse. Rio's reiatsu roared around him, like the river Styx rising up to surround Rio, rendering the Quinta little more than a dim shadow in his own blazing reiatsu oppressing Zeich. And very quickly, that reiatsu, and that shadow began to grow. If Zeich didn't get out of the wall immediately, Rio's growth was going to crush him into the wall, with far greater strength than Rio had demonstrated previously. Good thing the Espada's arms had been busted so he couldn't physically hold Zeich when he did this. Not that that was going to be a problem anyways because within the rising reiatsu, Rio's shadow became quadrupedal and then, finally, the reiatsu dissipated, leaving a snarling, red furred, three headed dog in its wake. A serpents body coiled and twisted in place of a tail, complete with a fourth head, with leering amber eyes. The dog heads all possessed glowing green eyes, and as they snapped and snarled a pale green mist emanated from their jaws. Rio had been a large and daunting man. But now he was nearly forty feet tall, and his body was at least twice as long, not counting the Espada's tail. The devastating wounds Zeich had inflicted on Rio's forelimbs had become covered by fur, and difficult to see how significantly they were affecting Rio. It was likely that the wounds had not scaled up with Rio's own size, and so what had been crippling wounds to his sealed form's arms, were merely scrapes and moderate cuts at worse to his gigantic released form. However, Rio appeared to be able to use them to support his weight, if nothing else. Rio's release had turned the Espada into the very guardian of the Greek Underworld, Cerberus itself.

The beast's eyes leered down at Zeich and Rio emitted a furious howl of pure, and utter rage and hatred, with such force that the room itself shook from the beast's roar.

Reiatsu Remaining: 1010 (-100 for Sonido, -400 for Ressureccion)
Resurrection: 1/16

[Zeich Yajuu]

In an instant, everything changed.

At the high speeds the two combatants were using, time seemed to stop as they moved back and forth in their frenzied dance. The swing of Rio’s sword hung in the air for an eternity as Zeich stepped aside using his Shinkirou technique, the Vizard’s amplified speed almost too fast; he could feel the strain on his legs as he held back the return step for a fragment of a second too long, watching the blade move with a painful slowness, inching through his former location. Halfway through, he could hold back no more, and started on his return. By the time he got there, the blade would be gone, albeit barely; Zeich would remember the downside of too much speed when using his Vizard mask the next time that he used this technique.

Yet a surprise came as Rio’s weapon suddenly stopped, twisting in place. A counter to Zeich’s phasing effect? Too late, Zeich realized that he could see the air rippling, feel and hear the shockwave starting to crackle through the space between them. Even dispersed as it was, it wasn’t the power behind the wave that would be deadly; it was the sheer impact and halt as inertia would slam Zeich straight into it. There was no time to change the trajectory of his step to dodge, and Tsukikage’s ash was still too far away to help soften the blow. In the time he had, even the Vizard’s immensely sharpened mental processes could only come up with one idea, one that would barely take the edge off of the impact.

Advanced Air Ground was a technique that could be used to create solid surfaces for the user to walk on, regardless of the object’s orientation or angle. In this case, however, Zeich was using it to create a wall, a very temporary object between him and Rio. The shockwave would hit it first, and shatter the barrier, but that was intended; as a very basic technique, its durability was nearly non-existent, especially with Zeich’s normally minimal Reiatsu Strength. Yet here it would serve, absorbing a good portion of the shockwave’s impact and reducing the overall blow as the Vizard stepped into it; hopefully it would serve.

Stepping into the shockwave at his level of speed was like slamming into a wall of metal. Everything stopped, his body screaming with ache as he felt bruises form all along his right side, including his arm, shoulder, and side. His ribs took the worst of the impact, creaking under the strain, and at least one was broken immediately. Zeich was no doctor to be able to tell with accuracy, but he wouldn’t have been surprised if there were more. Pain blossomed along his side, a blur of blinding agony that traced through every bit of his body. He had to grit his teeth to bear with the pain, but bear with it he did; though he was not able to mitigate the physical agony that came with pain, Zeich had a willpower that few could rival, one that allowed him to move forward despite his body’s condition.

This is… this is nothing compared to what has been done… Images flashed through Zeich’s mind. He remembered the torments that Tsukikage had inflicted on him when he had made his bargain to learn Soulbind: the slow flaying of the flesh, the ashen agony like fire running through his veins, the weight of his lungs as they filled to all but bursting, leaving him with just enough room to barely breathe. He recalled the suffering that came with claiming the Hollow’s power at all: the bladed ash shredding his flesh to ribbons, the feeling of his arms being absolutely ruined and ripped apart. Pain was something he had experienced in full measure, and he was no stranger to it. No, the haze of ache that washed over him was nothing. Nothing.. He would endure, move on, one step at a time…

Gritting his teeth through the pain, Zeich was able to finish his own strike, his palm colliding with Rio’s arm. Reiatsu exploded through the Arrancar’s arms, ripping through flesh and muscle as it burst outwards. Blood splashed across the both of them from the wounds. Yet at the same time Rio was still attacking, unwilling to let up on his offense despite the powerful hit he was taking. Zeich felt the force of the step pushing him backwards, directly towards the wall. A Sonido, pushing him backwards to slam him into the wall at insane speeds? It would be as bad the first hit, if not worst, if he did not mitigate it. Fortunately, with a mental reaction speed that was almost unmatched, the Vizard had plenty of time to do so.

His own feet dug into the ground, his legs bracing briefly as he brought up his arms before him defensively. A brief flex had him performing a Shunpo right back at Rio, using his own impressive speed to reduce the force. In this, it was a whopping 8,000 speed versus the Arracnar’s 3,900. More than twice the force pushed back, and combined with Zeich’s strength being about three-quarters of Rio’s, he was able to minimize the push’s impact. The Espada’s charge still slammed him into the wall, the ongoing force of the push and Rio’s superior strength preventing Zeich from utilizing the full momentum of his Shunpo, but the effects were relatively minimal, some bruising along his back and shoulders. There wasn’t even a proper hole in the wall, merely areas cracked here and there.

That could have been worse…

You don’t say… Zeich responded wryly, trying to mask his relief before addressing his Inner Hollow. Good response, Tsukikage. Let me take it back from here, though; it’s best if I finish this off right here and now. Thankfully the dark lupine was happy to acquiesce after having his bit of fun, and Zeich’s focus came back just in time to see Rio releasing his true power. The former Shinigami was forced to use another Shunpo to the side to avoid being crushed into the wall as the Quinta Espada grew to fill a large majority of the ballroom, taking on a completely new form that towered over Zeich.

A Cerberus, hm? A dog out of Hell. Seems fitting for this beast. But despite his statement, Zeich knew that he could no longer afford to hold anything back; Espada were known for their power, and if Rio was ready to go all-out, then it would not do to spare any effort. Already Tsukikage’s ash had returned to the Vizard, and he had formed it into its Shikai sword shape for the sake of preparation. Even as Rio’s roar shook the room, those bestial eyes settling upon him, Zeich responded in turn.

“Let your cry eclipse the sky; Bankai, Kage-no-Tsukinoaruji!”

Color vanished from the world as the Vizard’s sword burst into ash again. This time, however, it flooded outwards in all directions, drowning them both beneath its suffocating embrace as it passedthe over them. Soon the walls, the floor, the pillars, everything was painted in a shade of dismal gray that came from being coated in a layer of suppressive ash. The only things that maintained any color were the two combatants, and of the two, Zeich hardly provided any, his black clothing and white mask slipping into the monochrome shades. This was truly the world to which he belonged.

And then the Vizard began to vanish, dissolving into ash himself. His head and face vanished first, with the dissolution continuing down the rest of his body until nothing was left but gray ash, floating to match that filling the air. Rio was left all alone in this empty world, left to a silent gray vision that wouldn’t even grant him the satisfaction of being destroyed; any attacks on the environment would be halted by the sheer nature of the arena’s barrier, preventing escape. For the time being, Rio was simply locked in a colorless box, and unable to act.

Zeich was not.

Rio had not come out of the release of Zeich’s Bankai unscathed. While his torso, heads, and tail were unaffected, the beast’s legs were not. Both of the front legs, analogs for a human’s arms, were already stained completely gray to match the world about them. The right back leg was in a similar condition, though there was still a sliver of color before the joint, unlike with the other two limbs. A near conversion, but not a complete one, perhaps. Either way, these changes were important, as they were the condition by which Rio had proven his inability to combat Zeich’s power.

It all had to do with Reiatsu. Kage-no-Tsukinoaruji’s power was to suppress the world and all within it, bringing reality into a realm of gray ash, converting all within into its substance. Individuals were generally immune, however, using their personal Reiatsu to sustain themselves and maintain their form. As that power waned, they’d start to see the effects of the gray world closing in on them, devouring it them slowly as it progressed. A quarter of one’s Reiatsu missing; that’s where the real effects began. Rio’s left “arm” had been claimed by Kage-no-Tsukinoaruji because of that missing value. And again, at forty percent of the Arrancar’s depleted Reiatsu, the other “arm” was claimed in payment. Now, so close to half of the Espada’s Reiatsu having been used, the left leg was the next to be taken, only moments away from it happening. The more Reiatsu that Rio used, the more that he would be devoured by the gray world.

And it would get worse. Already, Rio had spent nearly half of his Reiatsu, yet he’d feel that spiritual flame within him start to flicker and fade more by the moment. Kage-no-Tsukinoaruji’s power invaded the spirit, consuming even that passive power that protected the flesh, and the more of an opponent’s body that was possessed, the more of the victim’s spirit Zeich’s Bankai could consume. At this point, with two limbs enshrouded in gray and the third almost complete, Rio would lose a full quarter of his remaining Reiatsu in short order, with the rest to follow in similar chunks afterward. There was nothing he could do to resist it, either; if both of his “arms” hadn’t yet been converted, the Arrancar could have simply resisted it by his sheer strength, but now that the corruption had spread so far, there was little to be done.

But Zeich had no intention of waiting to finish this battle, as Rio would be able to tell shortly. The air in the room seemed to grow more dense, almost oppressive, but this wasn’t Gravitational Pressure; it was something else. Though he was hidden away within his ash, his body scattered throughout the Bankai’s form, the Vizard could still increase his strength. His Reiatsu Strength continued to deplete lower and lower, his spiritual strength all but vanishing to Rio’s senses, but the density and oppressive force of the air continued to climb steadily as Zeich converted one power to another.

It’s over. Now die, dog.

Suddenly Rio’s legs would collapse from under him, both of the fully-converted limbs dissolving into piles of ash. With nothing to support the stumps where his front two legs had been, the massive cerberus would likely collapse beneath his own weight, falling forward and towards the ground. Even if his back legs alone were enough to support him, they would do little to help save Rio from what was going to happen next. Those limbs, the ones that had been fully converted, had become a part of Kage-no-Tsukinoaruji’s world, and thus were ash, able to be broken down and manipulated freely as though they were part of Zeich’s Bankai.

And the removal of those two limbs was not just to cripple, either. The openings left by the stumps of the Arrancar’s former legs led into the body, with nothing stopping Zeich from invading it. Ash flowed not just from the dissolved legs, but from the walls, the floor; the gray substance would invade those broken, gaping wounds and pour into the veins, muscles, and exposed flesh, writing beneath the fur as Rio found his body being flooded with ash.

From there, it was simply a matter of decision; Zeich could simply clog the veins, letting the pressure build up and cause the Arrancar to die in short order of the clot. Ash could flood the heart or brain to similar, albeit more directly lethal, effect. The lungs were a similar target for the sake of suffocation, and with the Vizard’s improved spiritual strength, he could keep it there despite Rio’s own massive power. And of course, reformation of one of Zeich’s limbs would allow him to immediately weaponize his ash, turning it into dozens of blades to skewer and destroy all of those vital areas at once. Once he had come this far, there was little to stop the former Shinigami’s power.

And so he struck. It didn’t matter where he did so, but Zeich reformed his arm from the ash that flowed into Rio’s lungs, the air sacs easily large enough to allow it to form. At that point, all it took was a twitch of his fingers; there was nothing more needed. Blades of ash would erupt through Rio’s brain, through his eyes, through his lungs and his heart. It was a devastating, fatal strike. At most, the Espada would last for a few seconds before shutting down. It was to his favor that this tournament prevented permanent death, providing revival upon defeat, else Soul Society would have one less threat to oppose them in the future. For now, at least, Zeich took comfort in knowing that he possessed the means to do this once again, should they meet in a more serious setting.

It was done.

Remaining Reiatsu: 6125/7000

Suspended Reiatsu: 1700 (-100 for Shunpo x2, -200 for Bankai, -300 Reiatsu for RS to SpPr Conversion, -250 for Kaijin Ken x5)

Bankai: 1/12

Vizard Mask: 2/3

SPOILER: Click to show

{Updated Stats}Stats (Rank 2 Fractured Type):

All stats (excluding HE) doubled via Vizard mask. 150 Reiatsu Strength converted to Spiritual Pressure. Blind Instinct drawback ended, restoring Senses from halved. Note that the Senses change takes place at the END of the post, not during the post. Just doing it here rather than next post for ease of display.)

Strength – [300 x 2] (600) Points

Speed – [400 x 2] (800) Points

Spiritual Pressure – [(550 x 1.75) x 2] (1925) Points

Reiatsu Strength – [(50 x 0.6) x 2] (60) Points

Light Aura - [50] Points

Dark Aura - [50] Points

Instinct - [(200 x 1.5) x 2] (600) Points

Senses – [200 x 2] (400) Points

Energy sensory - [(100 x 0.70) x 2] (140) Points

Healing Expertise - [0] Points


Total SP: [1800] points

[Rio Demonliogalgo]

Zeich had prepared a set of fairly ingenious and effective counters to Rio's attacks. But he wasn't entirely out of the woods yet. While the battle was definitively shifting into Zeich's favor, Rio had a few tricks yet up his sleeve. Zeich unleashed his Bankai, and Rio answered. His serpentine head hissed, and a glob of venom was propelled directly at Zeich at absurd speeds. The spitting power of a beast with 1600 strength was something to be feared, and that simple glob of venom was little more than a blur of motion in the air. A shot of venom nearly the size of a grown man's torso, which would dissolve whatever limited quantities of ash it came into contact with. It was doubtful it would make much of an impact inherently, but there it was. Zeich, of course, dissolved himself into ash, puzzling, and angering Rio as his venom spit splashed through the space Zeich had been previously. If Zeich's body still required the ash, to reconstitute itself, that could potentially have been an issue, as the venom would likely dissolve the ash particles it passed through, but otherwise the attack would pass by harmlessly, hitting the ground, and sizzling, as it slowly burned a hole in the floor.

His enemy had vanished without a trace. Rio snarled angrily. No doubt, he planned to use his ash to attack while staying safely out of reach. Rio had suffered serious injuries in this battle, and taxed his stamina. A long battle favored Zeich. Fuckin' hell, you've gotta be shitting me. Am I really gonna have to use that so soon!? If Zeich didn't reappear... if he'd truly dissolved into ash, then Rio had few options. Rio's senses were massively amplified in this form. But that size also worked against him, in many respects. Noticing extremely fine, minute details was difficult. Oh sure. He could read faces, and all sorts of basic stuff. But being able to pick out individual flakes of ash in the air? Hah. No way. His senses weren't nearly advanced enough for that. If Zeich could maintain this ability indefinitely, then there really was only one solution....

"Fuckin' Shinigami rat, I can't--" And then Rio noticed his legs. They were gray, like the world around him. "Sunnova..." And then they dissolved into ash.

Were Zeich fighting most opponents, this would have been the end. Human or quadrupedal canine, his ability was formidable, especially its tendency to target the forelimbs first. Afterall, people would typically need their arms to defend any attempts at Zeich simply driving his ash into and through their wounds. Rio.... Rio was not most people. The Quinta had one trick yet, that could spare him his fate at least a few more moments. Rio flexed his body and unleashed a full body shockwave, like he had when he deflected Zeich's ash knife earlier in the battle. The shockwave emanated from the Espada's entire body. It possessed far greater strength than the previous one, but not enough to actually stop the ash. Well. Not on its own. An 800 strength shockwave, while frightfully powerful, was not as strong as Zeich's ash at all. But it would slow it. Prevent it from entering Rio's body just long enough for the Espada to initiate Sonido.

Now, agility and speed are not the sort of thing, you'd expect from a two legged canine. And indeed.... Graceful this technique was not. In fact, unlike most Sonido, this one would be quite easy to trace, by the gigantic trench Rio dug through the ground, as his upper body crashed into it mid-step, propelled solely by his back legs. The Quinta skidded near uncontrollably across the room, slamming into the opposite wall with a resounding, and thunderous boom. The Quinta lay against the wall, bloody stumps of his forelegs preventing him from standing, but he had somehow managed to twist himself to face the direction he had come from, at least, all four heads angled to face it. Rio was infuriated. Incensed. There was only one recourse now, only one tactic he had left in his arsenal, that might allow him to pull back from the very rapidly closing jaws of defeat.

Apocalypse. Golden light filled Rio's three canine mouths, as his serpent head watched dutifully. Even as Rio charged his finisher, he tried to ward Zeich's attack off a few precious seconds. First was his Cero Durmiente. As Rio tried to track the ash that had been his legs (hey those were massive legs, so it was probably quite a bit of ash), he'd fire off his previously set Cero Durmiente to cut across the most direct path Zeich's ash could take to attack him, intercepting it. Rio wasn't sure how strong or durable the ash itself was, but it was a stalling measure. Nothing more. Rio gathered what power he could into this final hurrah. His serpent head, meanwhile was charging a Cero in its jaws, while slitted eyes watched closely. Although the serpent head was not a vital organ, and it would neither do anything for or against killing Rio outright, it was still a sensory organ, and possessing of vision, smell and all the expected senses of a serpent's head. It would do its best to track Zeich's ash cloud.

And then Rio would release it. Expending nearly all of his remaining, and rapidly waning strength to do so, the Quinta unleashed three golden beams into the air, which quickly coalesced above the battlefield, near the ceiling of the room, right at the center. These three beams merged together into an orb, which simply say up there. Hovering, like the sword of Damocles, ready to fall at a moment's notice. It pulsed, emanating a feeling of raw, immense power that, even in his weakened condition, far surpassed any demonstration of power that Rio had thus far utilized.

Apocalypse. Rio's final attack. After this attack fired, the game was up one way or another. It was an attack that was fueled more by how much reiatsu Rio poured into it, instead of scaling on Rio's standard abilities. This attack that currently was hovering in the sky, waiting to fall, had been given most of Rio's remaining reiatsu strength, and when it finally fell, would strike with the equivalent force of a 1100 Offensive Stat Gran Rey Cero, and would fill as many meters, destroying everything in a 1,100 meter radius, which was the entirety of the room, and then some. In general, Zeich's abilities far surpassed Rio's, especially at taking advantage of their environment. But for this one attack, an enclosed space like this one was a death trap.

But it was not without cost, or weaknesses. Apocalypse possessed immense power, this was true, but it was an all-or-nothing attack. The moment the attack concluded, the fight would be over. One way or another. If Zeich was able to survive the attack, not only would Rio be limbless due to Zeich's own Bankai, but his Resurreccion would end immediately, Rio's reiatsu would be sealed, and even under normal circumstances, he would endure so much fatigue that even standing would be difficult, let alone the wounds and stamina he had already used up in the fight. And the second, and most critical weakness, was that even after Rio launched it, the technique would take time to build up and fire. During that time, Rio had to survive. Normally he'd never have used it this early, when his opponent was still fresh and with their abilities unknown. In an open area, the time it took for it to fire, would allow an opponent ample time to escape the blast radius with a Shunpo or equivalent, and even in a closed area, Rio did not know if Zeich possessed some defensive technique or evasive move that might allow him to counter or survive the blast. Heck, Zeich had, for some time, already caused Rio to mistake a step technique for a phasing one. It was a bad situation, and the best he could make of it.

That merely left surviving until Apocalypse could fall. Not something that would be seemingly easy. In fact, Rio only had one stall tactic left in his kit. Without his legs, and given the speed of Zeich's attacks, Zeich would be able to easily cut Rio down before Apocalypse could be used. And although Rio felt moderately confident that he could stave off a mortal wound for a moment or two, enough to fire the attack as a last resort spite, if he was killed too quickly before he could use it, the attack would, naturally, fail. It would not fire if its master was dead. Rio's only chance to survive was the element of surprise. In his current condition, Sonido was impossible. His inelegant method of creating space had knocked the quadrupedal Quinta off his feet, and he had no time to find them again. So Rio tried his own aspect of surprise. A green Cero began to form at Rio's chest. Zeich might have read this as a stalling measure. Trying to ward off his ash just a moment longer.

Well he was partly right. But Rio wasn't doing this to defensively blast Zeich's ash away. This attack was one Rio had developed himself. One of the Quinta's own, unique Cero. Cero Transportar. The moment Rio fired this Cero, the attack would envelop Rio as well, blasting the Espada forward in a verdant sheath of reiatsu, concealed from view by the attack. The technique had originally been developed as a method of rapidly closing in with an opponent. Firing a Cero, and then emerging from the Cero at close quarter combat range. This time, Rio was using it to buy just slightly longer, as the Cero aimed to carry him to the corner of the room where the piano had once been, before Zeich's gray world. If it was still there, the piano would be demolished by the Cero, no doubt (and the several ton canine it carried), before exploding on the far wall, leaving Rio vulnerable. All the more so, since after using Apocalypse, no doubt all of Rio's limbs would be gray and converted to ash. In fact that was why Rio had even bothered with the Cero Transportar. Rio had seen already what it meant for his limbs to gray like that, could feel the oppressive weight of Zeich's bankai as it tried to drain his reiatsu away. Expending all that power with Apocalypse, the Espada knew he'd be vulnerable to the ash trick, and this time, Zeich would account for the shockwave. Cero Transportar was his only chance of surviving having his remaining limbs turned to ash and used against him as Zeich had originally intended, but even that was suspect.

This was Rio's final push. If Zeich could counter this last hurrah from the Espada, the battle was his. If he could not, then Apocalypse would fall, and he would be forced to find a way to defend against it. If Zeich could survive that.... Well. The battle was over anyways. Rio was gambling everything on this final attempt, and only the next few seconds, bathed in the sole golden light of this gray world, would determine the outcome of that attempt.

Reiatsu Remaining: 210/2000 (-250 for Endless Gray. -550 for Apocalypse). (-200 for Cero Transportar when Release ends)

[Zeich Yajuu]

The acid that splashed into Zeich’s body would have been decimating in any other situation, and as it was, he was fortunate that his dissolution was rapid. It struck the ash that had once made up his torso, causing it to sizzle and hiss as it was melted away, but it was of little importance; specific ash did not make up the Vizard’s body during Kaijin Kasumi. All of the gray around the two combatants did, every inch of ash existing as a possible base component for remaking the former Shinigami from nothingness. The ash that had once been his form was not him: he was the ash, all of it, every speck from ceiling to floor. He could “see” through the vibrations rocking the ash in the air and on the ground, through the displacement of his Zanpaktou’s ash, allowing him to know what was going on even without sensory organs.

Thus, when the ash lunged across the room at Rio, he could feel the motion as the cerberus threw himself to the opposing side despite his lack of forelimbs. The crash of his hide against the tile, the feeling of ash being displaced in midair; these told Zeich exactly where his opponent was and how he was moving. The shockwave before that charge had been the only surprise, as he had not expected a full-body attack simply by flexing all of the muscles at once; most people had to make a focused strike to create enough force for a wave that potent, yet Rio’s strength was enough that he could do it in all directions. Truly a fearsome beast, to possess that much strength; were he anyone else, Zeich probably would have found himself flattened against a wall by now. As it was, his ash was dispersed temporarily, too disparate to resist the shockwave, and it scattered like dust in the wind.

Of course, that the ash directly in front of Rio was pushed away meant very little. Zeich was not in the ash that was formed from the Arrancar’s limbs, nor was he the ambient ash in the air. He was everywhere in his Bankai, all at once, and though one angle of attack was temporarily pushed away, it was not the only one. Even as the Espada skidded through the ground, the tile he tore up was the same ash that he was trying to evade. It clung to his flesh and fur, daggers of pain shooting through him on contact as its suppressive nature leeched away at his spiritual energy, as it invaded the wounds made by his missing forelimbs.

It wasn’t just the forelimbs, either. The hind limbs were equally at threat, as well; already, Rio’s diminishing Reiatsu was no longer able to protect both of his remaining legs, and they too had converted to gray. Now that his body was covered in ash from slamming across the tiles and scenery, his legs were already converted and breaking down from the inside, there was little he could do to survive Zeich’s continuous onslaught. It was a matter of time before the last of his spiritual energy was simply consumed, leaving him a gray husk to be shattered and absorbed into the world of Zeich’s Bankai, lost among the ashes. Zeich merely had to wait, and it would be done.

Yet as he waited, something happened to change matters. A large blast of some kind was launched towards the ceiling, though it did not strike, merely stopping partway. Another of Kage-no-Tsukinoaruji’s drawbacks was the fact that it mercilessly crushed all forms of Energy Sensory, including Zeich’s own. Though his own spiritual senses were modest at best, here they were nothing, unable to sense what had been fired. All he knew was that a blast of some kind had made its way through his ash, fired upwards towards the ceiling, but had not made it there. Was it another shockwave, one that fizzled out early? Was it a Cero of some kind? Whatever it was, it was an unknown variable in what should have been certain victory.

An eye would form behind Rio, out of his sight; with all four heads focused towards the center of the room, the cerberus wouldn’t see it form. It was all that Zeich needed to see what was happening, however; already, he could see a massive golden light in the center of the room, no doubt another of the Espada’s many unknown abilities. And if he had released it now, Rio must have been certain that it could alter the outcome of what seemed like a hopeless cause. It was powerful at least, by Zeich’s best guess, but just how powerful? Was it truly enough to end this fight decisively, before Rio was slain by the former Shinigami’s Bankai?

Then… crush it. Crush it and in turn, crush him in despair.

While his wording is a bit more of the ‘aggressive and sadistic’ attitude that we’ve come to know and expect, I do agree, master. If you can stop this here, he’ll likely have nothing left. Best to deal with an unknown threat now than focus on a diminished and defenseless enemy.

Very well, then.

A ripple would spread throughout the room, and it would be the only warning given that Zeich had done something to his Bankai as a whole. He had refreshed its power, though it was not yet necessary; he still had a good amount of time before its standard duration ended and more spiritual energy would be needed to maintain it. The Vizard had done so out of necessity, however, so that he could pour even more Reiatsu into its creation. Layering power on power would advance his Bankai to a class far above that of almost any other Shinigami’s Zanpaktou, and would put him at his absolute peak. With his upgraded Bankai and his Vizard mask, Zeich had achieved a pinnacle that few would be able to match with any sort of ease.

Rio Demonliogalgo, Quinta Espada. Zeich’s voice would echo from the walls of the room, impossible to miss despite his quiet, calm tone. Though you will not die here today because of the tournament’s protection, know your fate should you challenge me again.

Suddenly, the center of the room would seem to fold upwards, even as the walls and ceiling curved inward towards the glowing orb in the center. The ash would fuse together, forming a solid mass as the various tendrils came together, and with their cohesion, nothing of Rio’s would be able to pierce the condensed Bankai. Soon the ashen mass wrapped itself around that glowing sphere, forming a gray cocoon around it. The golden light would vanish from sight, leaving its owner to sink back into the monotone world that had shrouded him. Soon, a sphere just about as big as Rio’s attack was left to hover in midair, encompassing the attack within.

And then it compressed. The ashen layer slowly closed in, digging into the mass of spiritual energy within it. The power of Rio’s attack was impressive, to say the least; few could deal with such power short of avoiding its range. But Zeich was one of those few who could, having given so much of his spiritual power to his Zanpaktou, and combining his Vizard mask atop that. With those two keys in place, even the devastating destruction that Rio might have wrought was nothing. And so it was that the gray sphere began to compress itself further, crushing that golden light, smothering the flickering rays of hope that might have given Rio a chance in their battle.

Kage-no-Tsukinoaruji was a Zanpaktou of suppression. It supped on Reiatsu, consumed it, absorbed it. It crushed the sense of energy that Reiatsu gave off, suppressed its very nature. And so it did so here, shattering the sphere of energy that Rio had released. His trump card, his most devastating power, was simply destroyed, consumed by the ash that had flowed from every inch of the room and swallowed it whole. When the gray dissipated, there would be nothing left. No light, no hope. Rio’s last chance was snuffed out before all four sets of eyes.

But he would not have to suffer for long. Amidst the cloud of ash, among the concentrated wall of gray that could repel weaker attacks by its sheer mass, a hand formed. A twitch of the fingers triggered Kaijin Ken again, but this time, on a far larger scale. A full fifty blades formed from the ash, fifty long swords that were each at the same Class as Zeich’s Bankai, that each possessed the power of Zeich’s expansive spirit. A Cero wouldn’t even dent one, and would be pierced thoroughly. Hierro could do nothing to even begin to block these deadly blades. No, there was no hope here, no escape, no survival.

A dozen of the swords would immediately flicker forward at their full speed. Rio’s legs were now ash, shattered and useless. If he had anything to dodge this first dozen blades, he’d extend his life for a few more moments, and then the other two score would skewer him a moment later, coming in sets of ten to twelve until evasion was no longer an option. Any blades that missed would be able to lift themselves from the ground and resume their attack, and eventually, the monster would be cornered. In seconds, all fifty blades would find themselves buried deep in Rio’s body, no matter how he tried to evade. And even if somehow he managed to survive the assault, it was over. In seconds, the last of his Reiatsu would be consumed, and his life along with it.

This is the end.

Remaining Reiatsu: 6125/7000

Suspended Reiatsu: 4300 (-100 for Kaijin Kasumi, -350 for Bankai (Class 1), -2500 for Kaijin Ken x50)

Bankai: 1/11 (-1 post for Class 1)

Vizard Mask: 3/3

[Himitsu Kasumi'Oji]

770 TP + 100 victory TP to Zeich

370 TP to Rio