Operational Requirements

[Aramis Tezuka]

Being head of the Twelfth Division was not an easy job. If you were to ask Aramis, moreso than any other Captaincy position in the entire Gotei 13, it absolutely required you to love your work, because you were working 24/7, and that was almost as literal as could be. Sleep was not a right afforded to you as Captain of the 12th. As Captain of the 12th Division, Aramis was responsible for every madhouse project his officers concocted. To be sure, the vast majority of projects were largely harmless, and even if they went wrong, were unlikely to go catastrophically out of control. The Holy Weapon project, for example. The worst possible scenario there was that the weapons simply did not function and were relegated to simply being fragile, and otherwise ordinary weapons. Not ideal, a bit of a waste of resources, but functionally harmless, and with lessons learned.

But then there were other projects. The Gargantua project. Projects involving live, dangerous specimens like the Roach containment project, or research involving live Hollows. If those went wrong, it could have consequences such as researchers being killed at the low end of problems, and full on opening a portal for the enemy to invade through at the high end. These were projects that required constant monitoring. Aramis did not want Central 46 on his case, micromanaging his division's every move. Aramis prided himself on creating a division based on freedom. The freedom to choose your own pursuits, however you wished. He would not permit Central 46 to be sticking their noses in all over that.

And for that, great attention was needed. And with great attention, came little sleep. Aramis rarely slept more than a few hours every few days, and the man walked about with perpetual bags under his eyes. It was the cost of the job. He all but lived in his office and in the labs of Squad 12, virtually never even seeing the sun unless specifically summoned elsewhere to do so. Field research was rare unless it was with a specimen so dangerous that only a lieutenant or Captain-class individual could hope to contain it.

Today started like most days did. Aramis sat in his office, taking notes as he viewed hundreds of monitors across the room. Cameras set up throughout the division relayed most visual information to him in this manner, and it allowed him an easy way to keep tabs without having to physically get up and inspect the project. At the same time, he had three open, holographic computer panels around him, that he skimmed through while drinking a cup of coffee. Coffee. The lifeblood of his division. Aramis had had no second thoughts about assigning officer Takeda all the funds he'd needed to finance his research into making more effective coffee. Ten times the effectiveness with no actual increase in the caffeine content or risk to the consumer's health. Of course it only came from one specific coffee machine in the division, with a general failure to mass produce them, and said machine was a bit temperamental, but still. It was effective and let Aramis stay alert during the 60 to 72 hour work days he tended to run on.

Aramis flipped through another file and his bespectacled eyes stared at the contents. A progress report on the battlesuit project. Still very much in the testing stages-- it seemed that spiritual metals were highly resistant to conducting electricity, and materials from the human world lacked the durability to withstand rigorous testing. Some technically functional suits had been created, but had proven to provide only limited advantage even at the level of freshly graduated Academy students, and were not recommended for deployment. Aramis flicked the screen away, and brought up the next. A report from Director Fukawa, regarding work on the Compression Tag project. Apparently a number of their notes on restoring afflicted living life forms had been irreparably damaged during new officer Luna Melrose's tour of the Barracks, and they were having to make up months worth of research. Aramis made a mental note to send someone from the project to check in on Luna. The Captain brought up a scratch-pad and scribbled that note out on it, before sliding it aside.

His eyes flickered back to the cameras. It wasn't as though he expected mistakes of his officers. He found that for all their eccentricities, the ones inclined for screwing up, making mistakes or reckless behavior didn't last long in his division, usually victims of their own projects, which would then be taken over by more mindful researchers. Still, just because accidents were uncommon, didn't mean they didn't happen. Fortunately, it did look like the projects were going about as planned, on the whole.

Most appropriate place to review today... Aramis pondered shortly, as he flipped through his schedules on the leftmost computer screen. Hmm. It had been an awfully long time since he'd reviewed the Curse R&D team. He understood that since Anthony had brought in that member of the Kasumi'Oji-- Shitoke, if Aramis recalled correctly, their research there had been advancing in leaps and bounds. Most of it was still theoretical, but practical always began with theoretical. Perhaps he'd swing by those labs today and take an in-person look. But first, there were a number of other things that required Aramis's attention.

As the day went on, Aramis was pulled in a million different directions. He attended meetings with his team leaders, reviewed data from ongoing experiments, and made decisions on which projects needed the most attention. He also had to deal with unexpected setbacks, such as equipment failures and personnel issues. Aramis was no elitist though. His approach to his division was founded on the very opposite of elitism. He held meetings with seated officers, lieutenants and unseated officers alike. No meetings with other divisions today, thankfully. Wastes of time, in Aramis's eyes. Time that could be spent on more research.

During a meeting with the tenth and eleventh seats of his division, and their immediate subordinates, Aramis's pager went off. He was being summoned to the information branch of the division. He looked at the two officers he was speaking with. "Dismissed. Advise Director Fukawa, update on Melrose's research requested." He stated, then turned on his heel and left the room without another word. Once he had exited the room, Aramis flitted through the shadows of the division until he was in the main operations center of the division's information branch. A room entirely dedicated to picking up and deciphering information. Also a branch Aramis used to keep tabs on significant members of Soul Society. Traitors were always a possibility, and for Soul Society's most formidable members, understandings of their strengths, weaknesses and contingency plans to deal with them if they went Rogue, were required. As a rule, every officer in Soul Society, carrying the rank of Third Officer, or above was monitored by Aramis's instruction. Ken'ichi had given him an excellent idea of sending out the fly drones used by Squad 12 in the past, under Aramis's father, Sayuri Bokuga, for data collection, and Aramis had enacted it by the end of that week. As well, the branch kept tabs on other notable individuals in the Seireitei. Shizuyoko Toraumi of the Onmitsukido had put up a formidable showing against several Vice-Captain or Captain level individuals, and was being monitored as a result, as an example.

"Report." Aramis demanded as he entered the room. The reporting officer turned to face their Captain and nodded brusquely. She was a woman of surprisingly great height, at nearly 6'2, with short, lilac colored hair and a serious expression. "Captain. Reports from the Human World. We've picked up some... interesting readings from Karakura Town." Aramis's face was impassive. This was not unusual news. Karakura was a veritable hub of spiritual activity. If he was personally called down here for every single "unusual" thing that happened in that place, he'd have to set up the Operation Center as his new office. Most information was passed on to the 13th or 9th division for redistribution, and it was made the problem of Connor or Shawn. This meant either a collection of information, or something more notable than: "A hollow showed up" or "A bunch of Shinigami fought and got killed."

"A total of three new spiritual-run businesses have opened in the Human World. One of them in particular might catch your interest. It's a... Fish Store. Run by a Fullbringer of reasonably high spiritual power. Spiritually enhanced... Fish." She stated, as if almost unsure of herself. "I-in addition, Captain, we also have reports of a tea shop called Regina. Fullbringer by the name of Ailene Haschiro." Aramis's attention shifted very slightly. "...Which we think is very convenient given the complete lack of activity from the Espada of the same name in recent months." Aramis paused. That was indeed a fair thing to bring to his attention. That was a nugget of information he probably wanted to keep to himself. Perhaps he would take time out of his busy schedule to visit this "Regina." "And lastly, a cafe. I umm... Was it... Cafe Moloche? Something like that. Run by an older gentlemen. We know literally nothing about him. Either way, three businesses all opening within the same year. We believe there may be some correlation, and felt it important to bring to your attention. This could be some play on the part of Uzaki Enterprises or XCution to expand. How Miss Haschiro fits into this we aren't sure--"

"Keep this here." Aramis stated. "If Espada, unwise to provoke. Need more information." He stated. "If deserting Kouhai, even more reason not to provoke." That was doubtless a decision Central 46 would disagree with, but alas. "Keep monitoring. If situations develop, advise." Aramis stated, and then was gone from the room. Perhaps it was time to pay the Curse department a visit now. He had some time, given his meeting with the tenth and eleventh was interrupted. Why not? That was at least an hour of free time, and although his own research beckoned to him, Aramis was going to focus on his duties and job today.

[Aramis Tezuka]

Aramis had finished his meetings for today, and had now addressed the matters concerning the information department, as brief as that meeting had been. Then again, Aramis tended to keep it that way. Everything about him had changed for the purposes of his role leading the division. Even his manner of speaking had changed. In days before he had taken on the mantle of Captain of the Gotei 13, he had been more verbose, more prone to voicing his thoughts, and using proper sentences. Nowadays there simply wasn't enough time in a day, and even the scant few seconds saved by omitting unnecessary words from his dialogue, added up into minutes that could be used more productively. Aramis made his way through the Division's elevator system, to head for the labs currently being used to study the ancient art of Curses. As he did, he was approached by several Shinigami, asking their Captain to sign off on their projects.

Aramis appraised each in turn, giving his thoughts. A method of imbuing a Hollow-type reiatsu into projectiles for use against Quincy? Interesting, and it seemed feasible with limited funding. Approved. A study on the spiritron, Magus Circuit theoretical formula? Harmless enough. Approved. Research on several captured Hellion specimens from the recent attack on the Seireitei. Aramis paused in contemplation for a moment there. "Do not discard specimens. Judgement postponed. Will speak with Central 46 on matter." He answered, sending the Shinigami on their way.

How hypocritical he was to say such things, when Aramis carried out exactly the same sort of research he had just denied in his own lab. There was no helping it though. Aramis had to remain officially beyond reproach. The Central 46 might understand mistakes and oversights. Could understand that sometimes Shinigami did their own thing outside of their Captain's knowledge. Aramis could not be seen actively supporting such work however. And if the nature of his own research came to light... Well. His hypocrisy would be the least of his worries on that day. For his research to be discovered would be to understand what Aramis was. One was a far greater sin in the eyes of the Central 46 than the other, and his research itself was barely a slap on the wrist in comparison to that.

Now Aramis entered the Department of Curses. Strange things, Curses. Something perhaps Aramis might have taken notice of, were his own condition of much greater and pressing concern to himself. Similar in nature to Kido, yet fundamentally different. Aramis would have to admit that he hadn't actually perused the subject beyond the generalities and the specifics were regrettably lost on him. Still he did his best to focus on the theorems and details that his researchers provided him, and while he could not entirely follow their formulas to notice problems, he could focus on those generalities, and determine if the path they were going forwards was worthy of consideration or not. And at present, the division was focusing on surprisingly wholesome purposes, focused more on breaking and dissolving the curses than on casting or spreading them.

Of course, there would still be a need of cursed research subjects to PRACTICE the methods of breaking them, but eggs. Omelets. Come of think of it, when was the last time Aramis had eaten? He'd had his coffee this morning, he remembered, but actual food? Was it... yesterday? The day before? Hmm. Note to self. Eat when leaving the labs. Aramis thought as he made his way into the Curse labs to review their notes in the two months since he'd last paid them a visit. Aramis liked to make his visits unexpected and unscheduled when possible. A scheduled visit meant the researchers could plan ahead and arrange the lab just as they wanted him to perceive it. Aramis believed that arriving unscheduled would better give him insight into how things were. That wasn't to say he was inclined to walk in on an experiment at a delicate time, he had no issues waiting outside the labs for a few minutes, or even hours while an experiment was conducted if he was requested to do so. With his advanced abilities at sensing reiatsu, Aramis could detect minute fluctuations of one's emotional state, so he could usually pick up on panic in those inside.

Fortunately, the research today was routine. The head researcher was out with a team doing fieldwork, so today Aramis was mostly working with their assistance. They provided him a number of notes, and were surprisingly forthcoming with answers to any queries he had. Aramis took his time reviewing each page of their research, which was considerable. Though he was unable to follow the formulas, the written observations and conclusions were easy enough to follow. Nothing untoward that he could see, and Aramis procured his scratchpad to make a note of that. He returned the notes to the research assistants, and with no further dialogue between them, the Captain was off again, vanishing once more into the shadows to his next appointment. The break room. He needed to grab food, and the break room was a useful place to be approached by his division, or to overhear conversations.

By now, the sight of the green haired Captain of the division stepping out of a shadow was not an unknown feat to the Division (though many still contemplated by what means their Captain did so). Aramis made his way directly and swiftly to the lunch table, finding himself an enhanced protein bar, and pouring himself another cup of coffee from the coffee machine that was proving very reliable today for once. The protein bar was tasteless, dense and chewy, but it would fill Aramis up. Allegedly the creator of it had gotten inspiration from the film series "Lord of the Rings", and had consequently named it the Lembas Bar. It would keep you full, and provided the nutritional value of an entire meal. Excellent for eating on the job, and Aramis actually pocketed several more to refill his desk stores so he didn't have to interrupt his schedules in future days.

As Aramis waited for the tea to steep, he began to review his notes, but overheard someone approach him. "Captain." It was Takeda of the front desk. Aramis regarded the man quietly, waiting for him to continue. Aramis was rarely someone who got so lost in work that he lost sight of the world around him. Takeda continued immediately. "I would like to request additional security measures be taken for the Division's front. The scanners are functioning fine, but I'm personally nervous. I understand my role, in addition to my research is to vet people entering the division. However, against certain Divisions, I'm not certain I am capable enough. Onmitsukido in particular possess very stealthy members, and while Lieutenant Youji of the 7th is usually very upfront about any investigations, were he ever to be replaced or for another to take the Captaincy of the 7th, they may be more prone to brute forcing or sidestepping such protocols."

Aramis took a sip of the tea. Hmm. Not steeped enough yet. "Suggestions." He replied. Takeda nodded. "It was actually our new officer, Miss Melrose that gave me the idea. I'd like to see if I could requisition a pair of optic lenses to be installed into my glasses." He asked, adjusting the frames on his face. "Additional types of visibility might be able to help me in my role in seeing through deceptions. Specifically the type that can analyze a reiatsu signature." Aramis pondered for a moment. "Permission granted to speak with 16th Seat of Division on matter. Will not contest his judgement." He replied. Takeda nodded. "Understood Captain." And he at once turned about on his heel to return to his break.

Aramis observed the half-dozen or so Shinigami chatting, eating and resting in the break room. He did not mandate break times in his division. He trusted his officers to take breaks when they needed them, and largely left scheduling to their team leads. When you got right down to it, Aramis really expected one thing from his Division. For its officers to be useful to the Division as a whole. For all Aramis cared, if you could produce viable results in one hour of work, you were welcome to take the next twenty three off, if it allowed you to stay motivated and get the job done. Well. Perhaps that was a slight exaggeration, but Aramis did find that with all the eccentrics of the 12th, trying to regiment all of them on a 9-5 schedule was pointless. Besides, many of the experiments run by the division required 24/7 surveillance, and he could not remain in his office endlessly.

Aramis considered his remaining daily schedule as he sipped his tea. He'd been out of his office.... Four? Five hours now? Field reports had probably come in. That was time enough to go back to review them, check the surveillance footage, and then still have time to go back to the reception area and be appraised of all visitors to the division. Then he might be able to spare a precious two or three hours for his own personal projects!

Aramis drained his cup and placed it in the division dishwasher, before stepping again into the shadows to be off to his next appointment. Field reports beckoned, and Aramis's day was far from over. He felt fatigue at the edges of his vision before, but hey. That coffee would probably ward that off for at least another five to six hours. Plenty of time, now that he had some nutrition in his system. Time enough for his projects, a quick bout of practice in the training room, and then.... sigh. Then Aramis concluded, he'd probably have to sleep for a few hours, before the next day. He hated sleep. Hated the nightmares. Hated how the darkest parts of his soul whispered to him in those times. But it too was a necessity. An unpleasant one, but necessary all the same. Well. That wasn't a problem for another few hours. For now, there was still work to be done.

[Aramis Tezuka]

Honestly, Aramis didn't hate the paperwork. There were the dense formulas, theorems and the like that he had trouble following without consulting a textbook (and sometimes even that didn't help), but he still enjoyed seeing what his officers were up to. Little perks and pleasures of the position. He sipped his newest cup of coffee, as he examined a report from the Human World, studying spiritual hotspots beyond Karakura Town. There were several that had cropped up in the United States, Western Asia and Northeastern Europe of late, and he had several officers investigating the cause. Ah!

The title of the next report caught Aramis's eye and he set his current one aside to review it. Field testing of the Squad 12 Holy Weapons. Despite their relative fragility, they remained very effective against Hollows and Arrancar. And they'd gotten a LOT of testing during the Hellion invasion that proved their worth against them. Aramis did take a moment to consider if he could secure more funding for the project, given their effectiveness during the battle. He'd have to look into that. He himself had put a personal recommendation for the automated turrets he'd used during the battle which had kept alleviate the pressure the Hellions had poured onto him.

Aramis thumbed through the report, taking in all details of the field report, before setting it aside. How long had he been at this...? He glanced at the clock in the room. Hm... Hour and a half. Longer than he'd anticipated. He needed to do another set of rounds. But first.... His eyes settled on the metallic desk near the front of his room, and he rose from his office chair to approach. He pulled up one of the metal folding chairs and took a seat at the desk, procuring a scalpel. He flipped the blade in his hand, and with practiced ease and no hesitation, plunged it into his left arm. He didn't flinch at the pain anymore. This was routine at this point. A quick twist of his wrist and an incision was made. The scalpel clattered to the desk as Aramis's fingers darted in to seize the bit of living shadow that was his flesh, beneath the illusion generated by the shackle on his wrist. He clenched it tightly, preventing it rejoining the whole of his arm, and slowly drew it away, his hand shaking, almost as if some primal part of Aramis wished for him to release it and return it to its rightful place.

But he didn't, and Aramis spent the next two hours in his lab, studying the fragment of himself he had taken out. Examining it, attempting several attempts to restore it to Shinigami flesh, rather than the virulent, and twisted shadows that his left arm was comprised of. No success, as usual. Aramis wasn't disheartened by it. He was attempting the impossible. If this could be solved in a few years, he'd have accomplished the task long ago. Today he found new methods that were ineffective, and he would continue to search for others. Research often found itself with strange interactions, after-all. Who knew what research his division might uncover that unknowingly paralleled or intersected his own. Who knew when a subordinate might inadvertently stumble upon the answer to Aramis's greatest fear.

But his research would have to wait again, and Aramis swiftly used a knife of holy silver to destroy the fragment of himself. No evidence. He vowed, and then returned to the shadows. He traversed the division through darkness, listening to conversations, reports and the like, finally emerging from Erika's shadow in the reception area. He looked outside and it was growing dark. Some few Shinigami could be seen milling about outside, making the most of the last fading beams of sunlight.

"Visitors. Arrivals." Aramis ordered of Erika. Even behind her surgical mask, Aramis could see her beaming.

"Good spooky-time's eve Captain!" She chirped happily. A lab rat climbed up her shoulder and chewed on a strand of her hair. Not that she seemed to notice. "Not a lot of new friends today. Nobody from Squad 7! Couple of medics from Squad 4. Explosion in one of the labs, they needed to peel officer Satoshi off the wall. They think he'll get better! And a couple new graduates! Oh! Oh! And Lieutenant Ken'ichi brought a new friend!" Aramis simply looked at her. Others would have raised an eyebrow in curiosity, but for Aramis, silence was usually enough to prompt a further response.

"I think he's talking about a new recruit! So I'm going to have a new friend in the Squad! I hear his name's Akira and he's cute!" She squealed. "You didn't know?" Aramis looked back at Erika, contemplating in silence a moment. "No." He eventually replied. "Did not." He finally decided. "Will speak with Ken'ichi later." Another item on the agenda... Aramis did wonder one day, if he might be willing to step down from this position once he cured his condition. Find his own research to indulge in. Perhaps. Perhaps one day. But not until he had purged this abominable aspect of himself.

Instead the Nakabakki simply nodded at Erika, waiting for anything further. "Sorry Captain, that's all! Quiet day, especially with Takeda gone." Aramis didn't answer Erika. He turned on his heel and stepped outside, inhaling deeply. Fresh air, also good to partake in. Refreshes the mind. Aramis stood outside, making further calculations in his head. Can probably stay awake nine further hours before performance suffers. Should do new rounds. He decided, and ventured out into the Squad Courtyard to investigate the research being carried out here, and catch some of the cool night air while he was at it.

Aramis had long felt more alert at night than in the day. Perhaps it was part of his nature as a Nakabakki of darkness, but it was what it was. Aramis just... simply felt more comfortable in the dark than the light. He saw in it only slightly better than the average person, but it didn't matter. Something... calming. Quiet and beautiful about the night, and the Nakabakki even found himself gazing in the direction of the setting sun as he set out to make his outside rounds. It looked like it would be a clear night tonight. Who knows? Maybe he'd even take a walk, for it's own sake for once.

[Aramis Tezuka]

It seemed the walk wasn't to be. Aramis's earpiece went off with static. -------chou-----Tez-----chou----" Aramis focused for a moment. That voice. He had to place it. Only his seated officers had access to his direct line. Narrowed it down to twenty. Male voice. Narrowed it down to twelve. Static implied he was in an area of disrupted communications. The sub-basement levels. The containment areas. Narrowed down to four. If the transmission was getting through at all, it meant that the sender was in the outermost areas of the containment zones. Narrowed down to two. Easy enough to check on both.

Revenant was in Aramis's hand and he cut at his own shadow, stepping back and falling through solid ground. This was obviously an emergency, but judging by the lack of alarms, it was one they wanted to keep under wraps. It was an emergency, because Aramis made it clear that nobody was to reach him on his direct line in anything but an emergency. The Nakabakki first emerged in the area that the Twelfth had stored the captured Hellion specimens. This was, in Aramis's mind, the priority for containment. Technically the Central 46 had not yet cleared these creatures for testing, and so he absolutely could not permit a specimen to escape at this time. And fortunately for Aramis, it seemed his first guess had been the right one.

The sounds of kido incantations echoed through the halls. Anyone who was sent to the containment unit required aptitude in Kido or Hakuda. An exception could be made for individuals with restraint-type Zanpakutos or abilities that could otherwise be used to corral or restrain. The reasoning was obvious. It was preferable not to kill individual creatures in this area, only restrain, subdue and return them to their holdings. As such, swordmasters were of lesser use than those who could defeat the creatures with minimal injury. And with the chanting of the Bakudo spells from so many voices, the pitch, intensity and frequency-- no, not the frequency.... the intervals. Not all chanting at once, as they might have under a controlled experiment but a fevered intensity of everyone casting Bakudo spells as quickly as they were able to. That suggested a battle of some kind. A man with medium length dark hair and an open, white shirt ran to Aramis's side. "Tezuka-Taichou. You got my message I see. Specimen 47C is breaking free. He's one of the tough ones from the battle. If I recall right, you gave him a "C" grade. No, it was C+!" He stated. Despite the dangerous nature of the situation it was clear the Shinigami had a certain excitement about him. This was interesting to him. Aramis couldn't fault him. As long as the situation was under control.

"Situation, 9th officer Valdam." The man looked back to the sounds of combat. "Two injured. No casualties yet. Restraints are holding. The clever little thing. It could have escaped whenever it wanted to. It's spent the last two weeks observing us, since we brought it here. We thought we had it under control, but it was the one controlling the situation. It's staging its breakout when we were running on a skeleton crew!" There was a yell from the next room, a crack of energy and a Shinigami's body was hurled into the room, tumbling across the ground. Aramis deftly sidestepped letting the woman-- evidently a Hakuda specialist, complete her rolls to diffuse the impact. She thudded against the wall, looking visibly injured. From the haggard breathing and the bloodstain on her torso, Aramis estimated she'd broken some ribs. "Situation assessed. Monitor Officer Valdam." Aramis stated, and swept forward into the hallway beyond.

There were four containment chambers in this room. None of them had been visibly breached, yet only three contained test subject. The fourth test subject stood approximately twelve meters from the door Aramis had just entered through, its way barred only by three Shinigami now. Two more Shinigami were left in crumpled heaps at the back, one bleeding from several wounds, the other clutching his head and whimpering in abject terror. The creature was bestial in nature, and its black body was reminiscent of a Hollow's. It loped along, sometimes on two legs and sometimes on all fours, its hunched back allowing it to transition seamlessly between the two means of motion. As it sprang aside to avoid a Horin-style rope, it planted both of its forelimbs against the wall and scampered along it, now using its hind limbs as manipulators instead. A curious trait, but one the Division should have been aware of. A spectacled Shinigami woman threw herself in its path. "Hado #1! Sho!" She cried and at the same moment, her partner, a long, brown haired man, unleashed Sai.

The creature was stymied for both for but a moment, and Aramis used the battle to assess its abilities. He focused his mind upon it, but to his astonishment he felt.... nothing. An empty void within the creature. His mind couldn't make sense of it, but it was clear the creature had somehow noticed the attempt to make sense of it and its head snapped towards Aramis. A hissing laugh emitted from its jaws. "And now the main player arrives...." It crooned.

"Shakkahou!" A blast of red light blew the creature back off its feet, and it staggered, but something was strange. There was no explosion, and Aramis estimated that the damage it had suffered was only half of what it should have. The remaining of the three Shinigami called out. "Here it comes again! It's going to do that thing! Enkosen!" The beast's jaws opened and the Shakkahou it was just struck by exploded out with far greater force. The explosion blew its two assailants off their feet, though it was clear they'd avoided the worst of the blast. Only the remaining Shinigami who had called up a shield, was in a position to withstand the attack. With his free hand he tried to lash out with Horin, the rope kido wrapping about the creature's wrist.

Rather than absorb it though, the Hellion tugged, and pulled its victim towards it! He tried to angle Enkosen in such a way as to block its strike, but in close range the monster was too powerful. A savage punch, shattered the shield and sent its bearer crashing into the empty containment unit's wall where he lay stunned.

Aramis had seen enough. Above average speed and strength. Can absorb spiritual attacks that hit it. Release them with superior power. Likely similar concept to Redirection technique. Cannot gauge its abilities further. Aramis spoke to the creature now, his Zanpakuto in hand, its guard gleaming golden. "Blocking read. How." The creature cackled. "A little trick my ilk can do. When you gaze into the Abyss, it stares back at you." It replied. "I have spent long in the pit, enough to know when I am outmatched. But I will be no prisoner here." It warned Aramis, before lunging forwards. It bounded from surface to surface. The walls, the floor, even the ceiling was as easy for the beast to run across as an open field. Aramis would only get one shot at this. The creature dropped from the ceiling, both limbs slamming down to crush Aramis, but the Nakabakki twisted aside, countering with a slice of Revenant towards the beast's head. But its arm intercepted at the last moment and though it snarled in pain, it then looked in astonishment as its arm disappeared. But-- it wasn't all bad. At least its arm didn't hurt anymore.

And Aramis had inadvertently done as it wished. His sidestep to evade its blow, meant that he was no longer barring its path to the door. The Hellion bolted on all three remaining limbs for the door. Aramis sighed. "D. Predictable response. Made continencies." The Hellion's arm reappeared as Aramis sealed his Zanpakuto. The creature's momentum was partially staggered as it glanced down and tripped over the limb that had suddenly reappeared, dragging itself along the ground.

Because of this, it also did not notice the door that had just reappeared either. The door it slammed headlong into. The creature groaned, evidently stunned by the impact. "Officer Valdam."

"Hai, hai, Tezuka-taichou. It's under control." The door swung open and 9th Officer Valdam lazily traced a finger in the air. "Rikujokoro." Bars of light slammed into the stunned Hellion and it yelped. "It can absorb most kido, but light-aligned Kido, it can't do anything about. An interesting phenomenon. It is as if light-aspect Kido are an anathema to its being. A being of darkness cannot coexist with light!" His frenzied eyes gleamed. "Marvelous! Your assistance is much appreciated Tezuka-Taichou. I have summoned the rest of the team! We will take it from here!" Aramis gave a curt nod. "Arrange medical for wounded." It didn't look like any of the Shinigami were dead. And despite how brief Aramis's encounter with the creature was, it had given him pause for thought.

That had been a useful technique it had displayed. The ability to block out Aramis's ability to sense it. To determine its nature and abilities. Aramis knew well that there were many out there with advanced sensory abilities. His own new colleague, Keira was one such individual. Aramis knew that those of immense sensory abilities could sometimes glean access to one's thoughts and even pasts. It was rare, but the ability did exist. Aramis had never encountered one yet, but... The thought occurred to him. As Captain in the Gotei 13, I live in a world of exceptions.... He postulated. Odds of encountering such an individual... Much greater than the average Shinigami. If he did ever encounter such an enemy, then they might discern his secret. And that would be ruinous. Perhaps I can learn from this one. Haven't considered it before. Might now. Perhaps Aramis might learn a thing or two from the creature that he'd just helped subdue after-all....

Aramis walked out of the containment area. Well, he could take a look at the experiments on his way out. This had been an interesting diversion, but there was more to his patrol than this! Hmm... He also hadn't done his usual training routine.... Aramis mentally painted a route through his mind. Containment zone.... Up through sub-basement levels..... Hollow pens next level up. Standard basement level from there. Can check on research in immediate vicinity of elevator on those floors. From there... main floor.... Believe Wilderness exploration research team posted between elevator and training room.... Can speak with them as well. He decided as he advanced ever onwards, now towards the stairs that would take him up out of this area and to the central elevator through the 12th Division.

[Aramis Tezuka]

Before anything could be addressed regarding Aramis's other rounds, he pulled out his personal notepad from inside his Shihakusho, confirming, that he had no other appointments today. To his chagrin, it looked like he did. A discussion with the financial department of his division. While Squad 8 handled the majority of financial matters in the Gotei 13, Aramis still had to determine how best to allocate the funding with regards to specific projects. The Nakabakki almost sighed, if he hadn't long since trained out the need for such visible displays of disappointment. This-- this was the part of the job he disliked the most. The part where he had to sit down and tell his division that some research was more valuable than other research.

The Nakabakki slipped through the shadows back to the meeting room, where already a representative from the 8th, and a pair of his own officers were seated. Both unseated officers, Aramis gave them a curt nod of acknowledgement, and then one to the 8th Division representative, who looked rather alarmed at Aramis's sudden entry through the shadows, but took a moment to compose themselves. "Thank you for joining us Captain Aramis. I understand that you have a busy schedule, so shall we get down to business?" Aramis fixed her with a quiet stare, that seemed to unnerve her. If you respect my time, would have gotten down to business immediately, instead of wasting time with sentence. Aramis thought. He understood, of course, that not everyone was as efficiency-minded as him. Still. A teensy pet peeve. Oi.... This meeting was off to a brilliant start, wasn't it?

It went more or less as expected. The 8th Division representative passed paperwork back and forth to Aramis, while Aramis and his two subordinates discussed the various legal projects at work in Squad 12. Unfortunately, the nature of the experiments that Aramis very definitely didn't know about, was that securing funding was something that had to happen outside the books. A Noble Family patron, personal wealth, petitioning Aramis himself to divulge a stipend of his own paycheck, or even straight up funding it with your own paycheck. While Aramis would turn a blind eye to such projects, the fact of the matter is that he could not acknowledge or support them in any official capacity. His "ignorance" was the sole aid he could offer them.

And Aramis had a suspicion he already knew how this meeting would go, and as things progressed he was proven correct. Military projects received the highest funding. Or, well.... were promised the highest funding. Specifically with an emphasis on defense. Understandable given the Hell invasion. Reinforcing the Seireitei Walls, improving detection technology to anticipate these attacks sooner, or possibly stopping them altogether. All very reasonable requests. Reconstruction efforts were also given brilliant green lights, but past that most other research fell by the wayside, for Aramis to find ways to distribute what must have been perhaps 20% of the remaining budget. Disappointing to be sure. Aramis understood these were difficult times, but.....

The Captain shuffled the papers on his desk, and picked them up. He then left the room abruptly, leaving it to his subordinates to handle the pleasantries of sending them off. Hmm. Maybe Aramis should appoint a member of the division to socialize for him. ...Something to consider. He was sure he could find someone. Erika maybe? She... oddly enough seemed to "get" him. Read exactly what he was inflecting or implying, and just bounced off of him easily enough. But she was also incredibly good as a desk attendant. Hrm... Well. He could ask her and see what she thought, he supposed. Maybe give her a test run? Either way....

Aramis saw something in the corner of his eye and looked to the side, but the shadow he thought he saw had already disappeared. He paused for a moment in mid-stride. His shoulders dipped, just a hair. It was time to sleep. No choice. His mind was wearying, whether he wanted it to or not, and the voices were getting stronger. He would go, he would train, then he would rest in his office. He was very, very disappointed, but alas. Training though, was mandatory. There was no excuse. Some exercise had to be done to make sure his skills stayed in shape. Aramis headed off to the training chamber. Lighter exercise than usual was acceptable, one that would perhaps leave him with fewer broken bones, but he still needed to be tested and tried.

And so it was that half an hour later, Aramis returned from the training room to his office. A final review of the day's work. Security. Progress reports. A crisis averted. Too many meetings to count. This month's finance review. Advisement on developing situations in the Human World. Review of guests that day... And all of three hours of time to himself in the entire day. And now... what time he had left he had to spend sleeping. A shame. But that was how it was. This was what it meant to be Captain of Soul Society's most ambitious division.

[Kitai Yoru]

54 paragraphs, 16,200 Ryo awarded