Wanderers in the Night | NDE | OPEN | PG13

[kara]

”Exactly! You wouldn’t! That’s why Kara won’t be dead! Because Kara won’t let you catch her!” Between jumps, Kara’s tentacles flailed wildly, hysterically. She became utterly engrossed, completely lost to her own self-imposed fears of what the Shinigami would do to her if they ever caught her. Kara bounced, hitting close to the hollow’s hole but never actually falling into it. If the Hollow were irritated with Kara’s physical behavior it eluded the Modsoul entirely due to the complete lack of focus she had for the surfaces beneath her own plush feet and who it belonged to.

”No! Shinzue Mizuhine!” Kara momentarily paused her wild physical antics in order to correct the Shinigami’s mistake. Despite her hysterics, Kara remained formally correct in pointing out Shinzue’s full name. ”Twelfth group! R and Dee! Not the huge ojii-sama!” She corrected, proudly buffing out the nonexistent chest that her plush body possessed, or rather didn’t possess. Two plush tentacles rested on another set in mock hip placement while beady eyes glowered.

Iroka’s tears didn’t reach the modsoul. In her current state of mind, Kara’s heart couldn’t be swayed by any Shinigami save for her one and only savior. It surprised Kara though that one Shinigami wouldn’t know another Shinigami by name alone. But Iroka’s question did provoke some consideration from the modsoul. ”Kara accuses because Shinzue told Kara that Soul Society has canceled her. They want to erase Kara. Kara is not safe if Shinigami catch her!” For Kara, it wasn’t a matter of what one Shinigami had or hadn’t done before. She’d seen first-hand what a modsoul caught by a Shinigami would suffer through. Seen it once, and that had been enough to convince Kara that Shinigami held a blood vendetta against every modsoul that still existed. Kara couldn’t trust that she’d remain safe in the presence of a Shinigami she’d only just met and knew absolutely nothing about.

”Uwah!” Suddenly Kara’s balance was thrown off and her plush body tumbled off of the Hollow’s body and onto the ground. Paying attention only to her own self-interest, the modsoul hadn’t been paying attention to the Hollow when he spoke, nor when he’d agreed to take her away from the Shinigami and deposit her somewhere else. The plush sat bewildered for a moment about what’d just happened, by the time she realized the hollow was leaving it’d become too late for her to recover and secure a seat upon the horse-like hollow once more. He took off by the time Kara noticed that her quick getaway was getting away.

”Wait! You forgot Kara!” Dramatically the Modsoul reached out a tentacle towards the retreating Hollow as he flew away into the night sky. She held the overly dramatized position, stretching out far as she could while the rest of her fabric body remained planted on the ground. It wasn’t until the hollow disappeared from sight that Kara spoke again before allowing gravity to take over, planting the modsoul's plushiness face first into the ground. ”Come back… Kara doesn’t want to be erased…”

[Munemasa Iroka]

Iroka had finally gotten to the point where she was convinced that the Kara would never stop being afraid of her. There was nothing else she could do to convince the Kara that she meant no harm, except leave. Or maybe commit ritual suicide in front of the modsoul, to express her ultimate unwillingness to kill the Kara. For even someone as weird as Iroka, that last option was rather extreme. So the only thing she could probably do would be leave... but she could not leave until she was sure that the hollow did not suddenly do what other hollows did and go eating things.

Apparently, this Shinzue was not the huge Ojii-sama, but a Shinigami in the 12th Division. That was interesting, seeing as Iroka herself had rather strong ties to the 12th. Still, Iroka had never met this Shinzue of a person, perhaps because the Research and Development Institute had quite a number of Shinigami working there, and Iroka herself was not in the 12th, so she wouldn't be familiar with many of the Shinigami there. Hearing about the 12th reminded her that just like her parent, she had wanted to be in the 12th, but had been instead allocated to the 4th. Initially she had been told it was because she had some skill at healing, but now Iroka was beginning to think that it was because the 4th Division had the unsavory reputation of being the dumping grounds for reject graduates of the Shin'ou Academy.

While Iroka was aware of the discontinuation of Project Spearhead by Seireitei, which had resulted in modsouls being discarded or destroyed, she was also sure that the destruction of the modsouls was not due to a directive issued by the top brass of the Gotei 13, but more of the 12th Division's belief that destroying them was a, easier, more convenient and less labor intensive way to handle the problem. Iroka thought that whatever this Shinzue had said to the Kara was probably wrong, but then people had different ways they interpreted directives. When the higher-ups had said the R & D should stop Project Spearhead, that would have created the question of what to do with the modsouls, and destroying them was merely, in Iroka's opinion, a lazy way to respond to it.

In any case, she empathized with the Kara, not because she herself was a modsoul, but because she knew what it felt like to be considered problematic, whether due to being unethical, useless, broken or obsolete. But presently, she was sure she could not convince the Kara that she understood, to a little extent, how the Kara felt. So Iroka stayed silent and just watched the plushie's antics, right until the Kara tumbled off the hollow and onto the wet roof. But then the hollow said his farewell, pointing out that he'd expected her to attack, and was somewhat grateful that she didn't. And he said she was weird.

"I know," the Shinigami said with a sad, soft smile. "That's what everyone always tells me." And then the hollow took off, leaving the Kara behind. Iroka watched the plushie silently, as the latter performed a rather dramatic gesture, reaching out after the departing figure of the airborne hollow. Then she sighed. "You're not going to be erased, Tako-tako-chan... unless you decide to do it yourself," the Shinigami said, feeling quite relieved that the hollow had finally left. "But since you seem so uncomfortable having me around, I guess I shall be on my way as well, since the primary threat is gone. You don't need help getting off this roof, ne?"

[Nemesio Oro Leon]

"Hey, are you listening!?" Nemesio asked after a moment of quiet passed without an answer from his passenger. Mid flight the antlered Hollow turned his head and gave as best of a look back on himself as he could through the wind whipping his yellow mane around. He saw nor felt any sign of the wet plushie as he soared through the sky and quickly came to the conclusion that she had fallen off of his back.

"... Good," he said quietly to himself, turning back forward and flapping his wings to get further away. He was fully intending on putting a bit more distance between himself and those strange individuals before opening an Ulcera and being on his way to Hueco Mundo. He'd had enough of this night. He wanted to lie down and fall asleep in some dark, quiet cave for a while...

Which is what he would have done were it not for the emergence of another Hollow.

They came suddenly and showed up out of an Ulcera of their own. A hulking behemoth of a Hollow, red in color with a flat circular mask - appearing right above the roof top that Kara and Iroka were upon! It's emergence was ushered in by the sudden feeling of it's spiritual pressure which Nemesio could feel from his position some several dozen meters away. He immediately recognized it as the Hollow that had been hunting him and drove him to the world of the living in the first place! It reared its head back into the sky from within the Ulcera, having not yet descended to the world below, and let out a bellowing roar!

'All the more reason to get back to Hueco Mundo!' he thought to himself, only to pause mid thought.

How were those two going to deal with that Hollow?

[kara]

The monstrous presence hit the air in much the same way a sack of potatoes might do when swung full force into another person’s face. This happened to be the nature of Hollow appearances. They’d happen suddenly and without warning, leaving those in the vicinity all the more unprepared to deal with the vicious carnage to follow. The murderous intent from the beast in the sky washed over the area, blanketing the immediate vicinity in a thick blanket of threatening pressure.

The moment the large red skinned beast appeared a switch flipped within the despairing and sobbing plush. Despite her previously conditioned fear towards approaching or even being seen by Shinigami, Kara couldn’t ignore the real threat that’d boisterously made its presence known. This and the fact the one calling herself Iroka explicitly stated she possessed no desire to harm Kara drove the pink plush automaton towards making an informed decision.

”It’s a panther beast type with six legs. Probably very fast but possessing slow turning capabilities with its regular movements. Fighting head-on would be dangerous so Kara suggests staying to the Hollow’s side or behind it whenever possible. Unlike the horse one who just left, it should be vulnerable to attacks from above because all its legs are designed for speed and pursuit.” When the movement had happened would be difficult to determine, but the pink octopus plush now directed her chosen temporary ally from atop Iroka’s left shoulder. Plush tentacles pointed out the beast’s six panter-like legs, tipped with fingered paws and large slender claws which glistened with an opal black sheen in the city’s light. Despite having a quadrupedal body structure, the beastly Hollow was possessed of almost no hair or fur whatsoever, save for a golden stripped tuft near the back of its head that ran down the length of its neck which stopped just before the broadest portion if the monster’s back. Muscles rippled over the ghostly creature’s red-tone flesh. Its limbs could easily deliver a powerful and dangerous blow to any prey it happened to catch. Interestingly the new Hollow was possessed of a short stunted looking tail. It likely wouldn’t be able to utilize it in any way for use in combat.

”When it lands, don’t run. Tuck and roll. Try to get under it. Don’t back down. Predator types expect you to be afraid and run but the best way to face them is with confidence. Don’t give it the satisfaction of having something to chase.” Kara’s confidence in the situation would be in stark contrast to her earlier behavior. Despite being no taller than six inches she now stood strong upon Iroka’s shoulder in a state of complete and total battle focus against the Hollow before them.

[Munemasa Iroka]

The departure of Feathery-Bee-Goat-san was quite something that Iroka personally felt quite relieved about. As for Tako-tako, she wanted to see if the plushie was alight with getting off the roof on its own. If not, she would help it to get off the roof. If yes, she would go on her merry way. Well, not so merry. It wasn't fun to be seen as the baddie for reasons which seemed to be no fault of yours. Still, nobody died, there had been no violence, and....

The feel of an unholy pressure from above washed over the orange haired Shinigami, causing her to gasp audibly. It felt like a hollow. It could not be Feathery-Bee-Goat-san, because he had gone in a different direction. Or could it? Arguments could be raised to defend that point. But to be able to make arguments, one had to be somehow alive. Whether this was Feathery-Bee-Goat-san or not, that sensation of death being near was quite palpable. Maybe she would have to run away. But could she, knowing that the hollow was directly above a building, in which there were likely humans?

The sound of a voice almost speaking in her left ear made Iroka's eyes widen. She turned her head slightly to see Tako-tako on her shoulder, and the plushie described what it had taken note of, what the noted things possibly suggested, and how this information could be used if they needed to fight the hollow. Oh yes, it looked quite different from Feathery-Bee-Goat-san, didn't it? "Wow, you're probably smarter than me, Tako-tako-chan!" Iroka exclaimed. "I feel happier having you on my side." Iroka wasn't lying, although whether she was supposed to feel happy that a plushie was an ally was something anyone could have a field day arguing about.

And then the Kara said she should not run. Iroka wasn't intending to... okay, she was, but she wasn't planning on running far. Maybe getting off the roof until it had settled down, before coming back to attack it or at the very least try to force or frighten (very unlikely!) it to leave. "Hiiiii?!!" the Shinigami said in fright, turning to give the doll on her shoulder a distressed look. "Have you seen its claws?" she asked. "And it has six legs! Not two, not four but six! Getting under it will be a bad idea!"

Still, the Kara was right. If she made it chase her, seeing as she was not quick, Iroka would surely find herself in a rather precarious position. She wasn't interested in the hollow being allowed to attack her from behind, especially with those black claws of its. "I won't be surprised if those claws are poisoned or have something nasty on them," the young Shinigami mused to herself, as she observed the joints on its legs. The Kara was right. Attacking from above would probably be a solid game plan. And that was when the hollow decided to drop on the roof.

The hollow was huge, but it was not as big as the entire roof. It was thus easy for Iroka to determine where this monster was going to land, and she moved such that the beast would not drop directly on her, waiting until the hollow was close to the roof, before grabbing Kara, so that the plushie would not be dislodged from her shoulder by her sudden movement. Moments before the hollow hit the roof, Iroka utilized Shunpo, flash-stepping straight up and appearing over the hollow. "Arise god of thunder! Awake mother of storms! Unleash the lightning on the sinners! Hadou Number Four: Byakurai!"

From her finger pulsed a concentrated blast of white lightning, aimed at the hollow. It was a weak-ranked offensive spell, and only the one she knew, anyways, so it would have to do. In any case, despite her desire to not have to fight, Iroka was no fool. She did not attempt to attack a critical point on the hollow; she didn't have faith that her Byakurai would kill the red monster in one shot. So instead, she aimed for its body, somewhere on its trunk, a little towards the side, so that she could hit a hip joint or something that would hobble the hollow's mobility.

As she engaged the hollow, a part of her mind wondered why she had not been this swift to do battle with Feathery-Bee-Goat-san, when she had first met the latter some minutes ago on the street. The reason was not that hard to decipher. Feathery-Bee-Goat-san had never tried to be aggressive; firstly, he didn't perform any power plays with his reiatsu like the six-legged hollow had done. Secondly, the insect (because it had six legs) feline (because it had pantherine morphology) hollow thing had definitely tried to drop on her. Unless someone was good at hiding their reiatsu, it wasn't too difficult to sense someone else, if one's senses were fine. So the Cat-roach had been the first to attack. Iroka was simply defending herself at this point.

[Shizuka Sanamizu ✮]

Kara: 49 paragraphs = 490 TP

Iroka: 66 paragraphs = 660 TP

Nemesio: 47 paragraphs = 470 TP