The Meeting of The Espada (1) [R, NDE]

[Zou ۞]

A simple social thread, this one will be presenting the meeting of the Espada. Though it is likely that Yuki and Faust will not be present, all of the others generally should be. This means Asuka, Sokujin, Cierro, Kuroi, Rio, Cain, Adalo, and Shinda. Therefore, it is expected that all will be present out of those listed. Prepare yourselves. Kouhai will join later. This will start as a discussion among the Espada. I'll post my entry shortly. There will be tea, coffee, sake, and scones.

[Zou ۞]

It was when Kuroi arrived that the silent room took its first gasp of air, one not of relief or longing for the precious, and sweet oxygen, but an inhale of fear. This deep breath was held, and it was as if life itself had become a constipated and suffocated mesh of fear and other negative feelings the moment that Kuroi's foot first touched down on that floor, this of course being the moment after the enormous double doors banged open, permitting entry to the powerful Espada. Of course, it was only expected that such would be the case. It was natural. Kuroi was strong, very strong. In his decades as an Espada, he'd proven himself to be a most formidable and adequate foe. No one denied him the title of strongest, no one at all. And why should they? He'd never failed a mission, and he'd defeated many tough enemies. Who could possibly deny him that title? Still, it had been many years since there had been a meeting.

Surely, this was just Kouhai gathering his Espada, as they had several new contenders among them. Old ones had long since died out, and Kuroi was well aware of it. There had been Cero Azalea, a former Primera. Weak as she was, she'd lasted less than a year before vanishing off the map like an insect. Kuroi had last seen her when they'd battled an Ogatago so many decades ago. The same had happened to Drago Umaga, a former Septima. He'd simply been crushed by his Escudo adversary, who had left him in such a broken state that Drago was turned into a Privaron. Not that he'd been strong to begin with. Izuki Kiroki was another Privaron Espada, and he too had been crushed and left as meat by his Escudo rival. This made three unfortunate Privaron Espada. Faust, though it was not completely common knowledge yet, was also a Privaron, for he'd been too weak in general to maintain his role.

There was of course, a large selection of new Espada that Kuroi was aware of. The first was someone that had attained such rank because of Kuroi's aid. Asuka Hitotoki, the Noveno, had gotten strong enough to take that rank only because Kuroi himself had helped her by training her for a month in solitude. There, he'd helped her overcome a weak release by giving her solid statistic power increase, and a very high degree of high level techniques. He'd trained her, and yet still she was too weak in his eyes. Her personality was unfitting of a proper Espada, and certainly she was nothing but a pushover. Asuka is a fool, and will surely die one day at the hands of an enemy that should be unable to defeat an Espada. She is a nudist and a fool, and she assumes too much convenience in that I have not yet killed her. The day will come that I will do this, however.

The next of course was Cierro Muerte, the Octava Espada. Kuroi didn't like him, plus he was weak. He was an Espada that had indeed attained rank because no one better could fill the spot at that moment. He had a weak release as well, and Kuroi had actually dealt with it easily in battle. He'd crushed Cierro very efficiently. This guy should have learned by that point how inferior he was. He was a fool that spent his time on perverted activities. And of course, Kuroi could crush him with nothing but a glance. It was a rather simple task, in all fairness. This guy also assumed convenience in that Kuroi had yet to kill him, but he assumed it further from pursuing Asuka with such a perverted attitude. Surely, the Shinigami that Asuka had taken such a liking to would slaughter Cierro when at last they met, and do so even more brutally than Kuroi would. The Octava is the type that dies young. He probably doesn't even know what happens to dead Arrancar.

The next one was Rio Demoniogalgo. This guy was pretty strong, and Kuroi approved of him. He had been measured and gauged as the new Sexta, for there was no Septima, to be a tough contender. Kuroi had yet to witness the things that Rio could do, but a preliminary evaluation hadn't disappointed Kuroi. Still, further evaluation remained to be seen, and Kuroi made a mental note to check up on that guy later. He wanted to see what the Sexta Espada was capable of, since that guy could be seen so much as a middle Espada. He was strong, definitely. It was only natural of course that the Sexta and further up be strong, though. If an Espada of that rank wasn't strong, Kuroi could certainly kill him. Not just could. He would. It was no competition for that. I should do battle with this one later, and preform a preliminary evaluation of his battle strength.

Another Espada was Adalo De-Mona. While not particularly new, for he was the second longest lasting Espada right now, besides Kuroi, Adalo was strong. Very very strong. Kuroi had battled him twice or three times before in the past, and Adalo had always, as the Quinta, proven himself to be of very high strength. Out of all the Espada here, only Adalo knew of Kuroi's ultimate secret. Only Adalo had witnessed it, Segunda Etapa. Granted, Kuroi had been sure to knock out Adalo's memory, so Adalo did not remember the details. However, if one were to scan inside Adalo's mind with technology, one could surely find knowledge of Kuroi's Segunda Etapa. He hadn't killed Adalo when showing it to him because Adalo was strong, and it was difficult to find eople at Adalo's high level. Adalo is strong. It is only natural that he would last as an Espada as long as he has.

Next off there was Shinda Crusinik. Of course, he was the Cuarta Espada, the new one. The first one that Kuroi had seen to hold the rank since Kuroi had come to power as an Espada. Shinda seemed very much like what the former Cuarta had been, though Kuroi also exhibited similar characteristics to this. Kuroi didn't have much of a problem with Shinda, he was fairly strong and had a fairly good attitude. However, he wasn't as impressive as Adalo, and he also had a nasty habit of interfering with Kuroi's affairs. He was correct to attempt to ascertain dominance and authority over lower ranks, and he was correct to attempt to teach them their place in the world. However, when it was Kuroi doing it, Shinda had no reason to interfere, and should simply watch. Kuroi was sufficient to do these things. This man, he should watch himself. To get in my way is certain death.

This of course brought Kuroi to Yuki Ayumu. Also an old Espada that had been around for a couple of decades, she wasn't very impressive. Impulsive, irrational, and a heavy drinker. This woman wasn't someone that Kuroi considered High Tier Espada material. She was also too prideful, easily damaged by the smallest irrelevant things. Kuroi didn't like her at all. She was also weak to Kuroi's tastes, and he was well aware that there were rumors circulating of a defeat at the hands of Adalo De-Mona. While Adalo was strong, the idea of the Quinta defeating the Tercera was preposterous, and if these rumors were true, which Kuroi held ideas that they were, seeing as he'd seen firsthand Adalo's strength, then Yuki had a long way to go. I don't see her lasting many more years. She is seeming to wither around now.

Of course, the final one was Sokujin Akai. Newer, but he'd been around for a few months now. The Primera Espada to replace Cero Azalea. He was strong. Kuroi had yet to properly meet him and be introduced to him, actually. In fact, he'd even failed to come to battle Sokujin. He made a mental note to challenge Sokujin later. Kuroi always primarily evaluated these people. He knew one thing though, just from looking. Sokujin wasn't a waste of time like Cero had been. He was certainly strong, probably deserving of the rank. His hierro was even stronger than Kouen's, Kuroi could tell. Sokujin also seemed to possess some kind of blade-like quality in it. A few that had come into physical contact with Sokujin had proved it. It was dangerous, like being drilled by blades. This man is dangerous, but ultimately a fitting Primera. His strength is such that none can touch him without facing agony and death.

As such, when Kuroi arrived, he sat down in his designated seat for the Segunda Espada, a simple sitting position sufficient for all. He put his elbows onto the table, leaning over them and cupping his hands together. Kuroi glared across at everything else. "A meeting such as this has not happened for at least 35 years. Can any of you imagine the occasion...?" Kuroi asked those seated at the table, his eyes cold, glancing around. He was confident in his ability to acertain dominance here, among all of these Espada. He could probably crush the vast majority of them with a single glance. Cierro and Shinda definitely. Cain, the Decima, sat awfully quiet and still in his seat, emotionless. Kuroi simply ignored him. He never expected to get any form of response out of Cain, anyway.

[Sokujin Akai]

Stream rose from the coffee cup placed in front of the attractive blonde espada, rising up slowly with tendrils ebbing and flowing about his body. Any onlooker would surely see the tendrils moving about the new Primera in a near intimate fashion, caressing his neck and face slowly as it dissipated over his head. Amongst all the espada, Sojukin would probably seem the next out of place next to Asuka. Not only was he completely uncomfortably in this situation, but he had chosen to space himself away from the other espada only speaking when someone else did, or to give a cordial greeting. He had no further reason for being in the place and the longer he stayed…the more nervous he became. It would only be a matter of time in his eyes before someone tried to get close, then like a Venus fly trap, his hierro would spring and someone else would get hurt. Having no choice but to be here, he let out a small sigh, inhaling and then exhaling the steam around him. It was already bad enough that he was seated around some of the most volatile people in Hueco Mundo, but now he had to have tea with them? He couldn’t express enough disdain for the thought, but this gave him a chance…a single chance to hopefully get all the espada on peaceful terms. Their abilities needed to be focused on something other than climbing the ladder, as important as that was. Each of them had something to bring to the table, something that contributed greatly to all Arrancar. If their race was to succeed, these nine Arrancar and one more had to be in perfect harmony with one another, beyond that…he could only pray.

His eyes had cut over at a motion across the room, many probably thought he was paranoid, which was a good way to put it; however, he was paranoid for everyone else’s safety. Seeing that nothing else was happening, he extended his hand politely across the table, taking a single scone. Though, this scone was no in his hand, rather it was pierced on the tip of his hierro…two inches from his finger tips. As he brought the delicious treat to himself, he plated it with utmost grace, the instruments for dining being replaced with his finger tips; as he could not wield anything else without slashing it to bits. Carefully, every movement had to be measured out, precise and elegant. He did this not for show, but to make sure he didn’t destroy anything in the room. In fact, he wasn’t even really sitting in his chair, more he found the lay out of his hierro, measured out the pinnacle of every piece of it and was now sitting cross legged in the air as to avoid ripping his chair to pieces. Just as his slender fingers moved through the air and cut his scone into equal pieces, small enough for consumption, Kuroi entered the room. Segunda Espada. Sojukin thought to himself as he stared at him for only a moment. He had watched him, knew of his reputation and knew that he was hailed as the strongest of the Arrancar. Yet, he was the Segunda and Sojukin was Primera? It did not make much sense, but he had no desire to argue the fact, in fact, he had never wanted the position. Keeping the seat warm was what he called it, but oh well. He wasn’t going to forfeit his seat until someone truly more capable arrived. If that happened to be Kuroi so be it, but what he had heard, he didn’t care for and what he had seen he had liked less. Kuroi was bloodthirsty, not to the extent of Adalo, but his relish of tormenting and harming others disturbed Sojukin. Granted, he had only been in Hueco Mundo for a few months, which was no reason for him to judge just yet, he needed more time. The other espada, he had avoided entirely with the exception of Yuki Ayumu, but even then he kept his distance.

Creeper…that’s what they call you Sojukin, you just quietly watch everything that goes on in Hueco Mundo. You’ve gotten yourself in too deep and now you’re struggling to keep your head above water as it all crashes around you. Sojukin told himself this as he balanced his cup of coffee on his finger, brought it up to his mouth, then rotated the cup quickly, gripping the edge between two pieces of hierro so that he could drink. After a few sips, he set the cup down…the taste was not to his liking. “Needs creamer.” That was all Sojukin said pushing the cup aside for a moment, eating was awkward enough, but without a specially designed cup drinking was nigh impossible. So he avoided doing so again, at least until no one was looking. That was when he noticed Kuroi’s glance around the room, quickly measuring everyone else up and passing silent judgment. When it came to be his turn, Sojukin locked eyes with the man and passed similar judgment, there was a heat there, a dislike but perhaps something could happen. At the core, he saw fertile soil and great potential, a region where he could plant a seed; however, his body already felt heavy enough in the room with these people. His shoulders had drooped lower than they normally had when he had first entered and he had kept his eyes turned downward through most of it. Courage came then, the courage to speak and at least attempt to say something, but would it sound intelligent or would he simply make a full of himself? When he opened his mouth, he addressed what Kuroi had just said and started off by referring to him by his pet name.

“Asenino…what does it matter what can be imagined? In the mind there are an infinite number of synapses and nerves, collecting and firing data. In each and everyone of these is a thought, the make up of our psyche. Out of all of these, any one can produce a stimulus and derive a thought from that, imagination is unlimited. The weakest of the Arrancar and the smallest hollow can imagine themselves as the king of Las Noches. A human can imagine themselves to be more powerful than you or I or all of us combined. So if you ask me what I imagine…I imagine a bunch of blowhards wasting their time in this dim little room; just as we are today when there is something that could be done to advance our race.” His voice was thick, strong and deep giving the presence of power in every syllable, but this was not what he had wanted to say. Sojukin turned his head away at that point, staring across the room with a blank stare. His eyes had glazed over in the saying, he had not meant to sound that cold, but his lack of a social filter had not stopped him from speaking it. Politeness had always been something Sojukin strived for and generally used often. In fact, following his little outburst, his eyes shot down as he picked up the plate with the scones on it and moved it back and forth across the table.

“Scone anyone?” This was his pitiful attempt to play off what had just happened and probably made him seem like a sarcastic asshole.

[Deleted]

Asuka was there...at that table. She made a point to be early. Kuroi would kill her if she was late. Hell, that man would use any excuse he could to kill her. Not like anything was really stopping him but it just gave him more ammunition and Asuka hated that. Augh...Meeting. Why. Fucking WHY[/b]. Nothing good can come from this. This was probably a welcoming party for the Sexta and Primera in disguise. Probably. She Hated those welcoming parties. They were horrible. Asuka's been to a few and they were horrible. Hmph. Some 'party'. I am no longer explaining the shocking red font and the capital "H". No more! Asuka! Teal haired Noveno! She was in the meeting room and she felt rather uneasy. All the other Espada were supposed to be here. She knew most of them already. She got along with most of them. She just couldn't help but feel something stupid was going to happen..and that she was going to be caught in the middle of it. The Noveno did have the worst of luck after all.

Asuka was seated at the table, legs crossed with her elbow propped up on the arm of her chair. She simply stared at her cup with a look that read that she was a bit pissed off. These meetings were stupid. She could be training or doing missions with her fraccion right now. But nooo she was here and she was anticipating someone loosing a leg or something retarded like that. Not only that, but she already knew other some of the other Espada were going to give her shit for being weak. If it wasn't Kuroi, it was going to be either Shinda or the new Primera or Sexta. Asuka vaguely wondered what the Sexta and Primera were like. Were they blood thirsty? Oh no...What if the new Primera was like Ferdinand. That would be horrible. He wasn't nice and something about his fraccion irked her for some reason. Though, this Primera didn't really give her that impression. He didn't seem like a royal snob like Ferdinand was. As long as he wasn't picking on her for the hell of it, Asuka liked him. The same went for the Sexta. She actually wanted that position...but she knows she has a long long way to go before she gets there. Making Espada was only a small step in her goal. Now, she'd have to climb her way up!

So...Something stupid always happens. Asuka could see it from a mile away. What could possibly go wrong this time? Many things. Like at the beach, Kuroi challenged them and everything went downhill from there. Kuroi challenged them. Cierro teased. She lost it. Shinda got in the way. Long story short, bad things happened and Asuka learned her lesson....again. As if the nightmares from her training session with the Segunda weren't enough. Well, on the plus side, there was tea. Tea was pure awesome. Chai tea! Chaaaaaaaii....Yum. It had a lovely smell. Sweet..but you can also pick up hints of spices in it. It wasn't bland and it was mildly sweet. "A meeting such as this has not happened for at least 35 years. Can any of you imagine the occasion...?" She listened as she carefully picked up her cup. She didn't have much of an answer for that. She was only 114 years old. 35 years ago, Asuka was weak. Insanely weak. She was practically the baby out of everyone here. With that being said, Asuka remained silent as she began to take a sip from her Chai tea. However, it would be then that the Primera decided to speak. “Asenino…what does it matter what can be imagined? In the mind there are an infinite number of synapses and nerves, collecting and firing data. In each and everyone of these is a thought, the make up of our psyche. Out of all of these, any one can produce a stimulus and derive a thought from that, imagination is unlimited. The weakest of the Arrancar and the smallest hollow can imagine themselves as the king of Las Noches. A human can imagine themselves to be more powerful than you or I or all of us combined. So if you ask me what I imagine…I imagine a bunch of blowhards wasting their time in this dim little room; just as we are today when there is something that could be done to advance our race.”

Someone...Shake this mans hand. She didn't like being called a blowhard but he had a pretty good fucking point. What the hell were they all doing here when they could be doing something else? She heard his response in the midst of her sip and she damn near choked on it. You know, kind of when you drink something and it goes down the wrong pipe resulting in you coughing. Yeah it almost happened to her. Almost. Asuka immediately set her cup down and bit her lip to stop herself from smiling. That 'cover up' of his didn't make it any better. Pfft..scone..NO! It wasn't going to happen to her again. She wasn't getting her arm blasted off. Not worth it this time. Asuka brushed a few teal strands from her line of vision before looking at the Primera and then the Segunda. God only knows what's going to happen now. Kuroi was all "I"m not passive" and crap. Augh. Annoying. It was going to be a looooonng meeting. Sigh. Espada life. So complicated.[/size]

[Rio Demonliogalgo]

What a bore this had been so far. Rio had been sitting in the meeting room for what felt like hours, even though it had only been a short period of time. Nobody had really said anything, so Rio had been left to merely look over the Espada present. He really knew quite little about any of them. Although he had known his goals for some time, he hadn't gotten the opportunity to meet any of the other Espada in person, besides the one that had once served as his master-- the former Sexta. So at first Rio had been very interested in the prospect of a meeting. He would get to meet the 10 strongest arrancar in existence, and see what his competition looked like.

So far, he'd found himself dissapointed in their company. He was certain they were all powerful, but somebody seriously needed to say something! Rio took a sip from his cup of sake, just as Kuroi entered the room. The Segunda Espada. Rio watched him as he entered. He couldn't deny the man had a very commanding presence. It went without saying that this man could back up his rank. That was the gait he upheld, and it pleased Rio to see that such a man was within the Espada. Rio watched his progress as he made his way to his seat, and began to speak.

The amount of time since the Espada had last met meant nothing to Rio. He hadn't been the Sexta 35 years ago. He acknowledged he was a very recent Espada-- recent enough that to his knowledge the collateral damage to Los Noches that had ensued from his battle with his former master was still being repaired. At that point, however, Rio's attention was drawn to another arrancar-- the Primera Espada. Sokujin, wasn't it? Rio was only vaguely aware of the names the arrancar in this room held.

Sokujin made a lengthy speech about imagination, which, to be honest, bored Rio quite a bit. Well. Until his last line. At the insult, Rio's face split into a savage grin, as he resisted the urge to laugh hysterically at it. He felt he rather liked that one. A statement like that proved that this man was truly the Primera. Either that or extremely stupid, as Rio expected no other would have dared to say such a thing to the people in this room. But it amused Rio to no end.

It was at this point that the effeminate looking arrancar's attention was drawn to the only female Espada in the room-- Asuka. She appeared to be at least as entertained as Rio had been, by the Primera's "eloquent" speech. Now.... Asuka.... who was she? Her seating in the room implied she was the Noveno Espada. Weaker than Rio was. But not so low as to be trash. She was ranked 9th out of all arrancar. The most powerful race. That was enough to salvage her image in Rio's mind. Nonetheless, she was inconsequential, and he did detect, when Kuroi had entered the room, the slightest look of disdain in her direction. Very interesting....

Today might prove to be informative afterall.

[Cierro Muerte]

Meetings are just so... boring...”[/color] thought Cierro as he walked down the hall of Las Noches. He was late for the meeting because he had been fooling around in the human world. This time in particular the Octavo had entered a women’s locker room at a public pool and had been watching the swimmers change. He had lost track of time, plain and simple... So now he’d have to barge into the middle of the meeting less then fashionably late. But it was okay. Cierro had taken a few extra minutes to acquire his favorite drink while he was in the human world. Dr. Pepper! So with a 20 oz bottle of the sweet soda, Cierro turned the corner and entered the meeting room only moments after Sokujin finished his speech about imagination. Cierro noticed that Kouhai was not yet present. Lucky for him!

“BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURP”

The result of drinking too much carbonated drink over a short period of time came out in the form of a deafening belch that filled the entire room. No one would be able to ignore the offensive sound that escaped from the bowels of Cierro’s stomach. The Octavo stood in shock for a second or two and then burst out into a childish fit of laughter. “HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! DID YOU GUYS HEAR THAT?!?” the 8th grabbed his sides as he stumbled to his seat. Pushing his tea to the side to make way for his Dr. Pepper bottle the 8th took his place between Asuka and Sokujin.

The eighth looked around at each espada with a fox-faced smile. Kuroi, the Segundo, was there of course. It was in character for him to be on time to these boring-ass meetings. Kuroi was such a hardass that Cierro wondered if he might be compensating for something. “Yeah... Probably...” concluded the Octavo as his eyes moved to the next arrancar.

Asuka, the Noveno, caught Cierro’s eye for awhile. Asuka was a fox. It was no secret that the 8th thought she was sexy, even to her. The 9th would have an especially hard time getting rid of this unwanted attention for one simple reason; Cierro had seen Asuka in all her beautiful nudity. Every time he saw her his mind would flash back to that one day in the Victoria’s Secret when he tricked her out of all of her clothes. Damn she was hot.

After Asuka came Rio, the new Sexta. Cierro wasn’t sure what kind of a person he was, but he hoped he was more fun then the asshole Kuroi. Maybe they could be peeping buddies or hit up strip joints together sometime. You know... fun stuff...

Finally Cierro looked over the new Primero. He didn’t look as much of a dick as Kuroi, maybe this new guy would give the Segundo the ass whipping he so direly needed. Cierro prayed that the Primero was a fun guy as well, cause he’d most certainly talk to him as if Sokujin was his bro. Besides, Cierro didn’t want more espada with a stick shoved up their ass like Kuroi. People like him wouldn’t be able to take a joke if it was put in pill form and hidden in a jelly doughnut.

[Zou ۞]

OOC: Current posting order is Kuroi, Sokujin, Asuka, Rio, Cierro.

[Kashmir De-Mona]

Adalo busted into the room with a loud scream just as the 8 guy burped. His scream drowned out the stupid burp that was supposed to be funny but just wasn't. Adalo didn't like things that weren't funny but were intended as funny. Bad jokes sucked. He didn't know he'd interrupted one, but if he'd known that he'd have been proud. The burp was replaced by his mighty scream since he spent most of his time screaming. "LET'S FUCK GEESE! WAHAHAHAHA!" he cried out in delight when he got into the room. He looked around the room, expecting everyone to light up enthusiastically at his bright idea. No one did that, and so he shook his head. "Fucking cuntbags. Don't even have loose enough screws in your loose pussies to know fucking geese is the shit."

Adalo blew into the seat in between Asuka and Cierro. He knew Asuka since she was his friend so he wanted to sit next to her, but he didn't want to sit anywhere near Kuroi since he lost to Kuroi before, and he didn't want to sit near Sokujin because he heard you couldn't touch that guy. So he got near the pervert. Fuck perverts, all they did was look at tits and pussy. What good were tits and pussy?! Could tits fight? No! They couldn't. Attack of the giant boob was a one time shitty Japanese movie, and Adalo hated it. There was nothing cool or fun about boobs. They couldn't do ANYTHING hostile or violent. They weren't fun. They couldn't kill stuff. Adalo wasn't interested in stuff that couldn't kill stuff. So fuck boobs. Tits were gay.

Adalo started bellowing at the table again. "YAHAHAHAHA! MY FUCKING YAMS ARE MELTING! WHO'S GOING TO FUCKING FIGHT ME OVER THEM?!" He didn't even know what he was splurting at this rate. He just thought he should fight someone or something. It seemed like the appropriate idea for the situation. "YOU COCKSUCKERS!" he yelled. "I WANNA FIGHT SOMETHING!" He wasn't totally mindless like a few of the soul society captains were. He was just bloodthirsty and battle lusting. He still had his mind and intelligence! Some of it. Adalo turned to Asuka and started drumming on her head. He didn't do it very hard, but he figured that if no one was going to fight him, he'd amuse himself. He was just patting her head with light palm taps, making a drum beat that was actually really catchy.

Then he turned to Cierro and started drumming on his head instead. "IT SOUNDS HOLLOW!" he yelled with excitement. (OOC: XD I couldn't resist. Teammates in King's Gauntlet forever!) He was having fun already, doing this drum thing. Wait, there were newcomer guys here! Oh well. Fuck newcomer guys. Drumming on this guy's hollow head was the shit! Adalo wondered what would happen if he farted while cackling. No one would hear it then. He decided against it, though. Farting was to be reserved for after winning a fight. Fuck farting! Farting before a fight was gay! Adalo could hold it until he fought something. Oh, it disappeared. See? That's better.

[Zou ۞]

OOC: Obviously some changes have occurred. Treat it as if Sokujin never existed, and now assume Adalo has been the Primera for a few days now.

IC:

Everything of each of these Espada was just so typical. Kuroi could feel every single thought running through the heads of these Espada. He knew most of them rather well already, with the exception of Rio. But, he could tell just from a primary glance what was happening in that Espada's head. He was slowly, carefully observing every single person present at this table, gauging each one individually. It was a typical thing for all Espada to do. They walked in, new and feeling righteous, and immediately went ahead with gauging all the others. It was the same on the other side. No doubt, everyone else also gauged the new guy. Kuroi himself was just about done, and he was thinking that Rio looked like the type of self righteous arrogance that wanted a super high position, and demanded only strength in not just the Espada, but his opponents, and he fought only strong people. He looked like fighting was his norm.

He was a lot like Kuroi, but less dignified and refined certainly, and his release was probably nothing the same. Kuroi was also much calmer even in aggression and darkness, separating Rio and Kuroi. Rio was probably closer to Adalo, a lover of battle absolute. At any rate, Kuroi also maintained his eye across the table, observing everyone. Asuka was the first that he observed. It was typical. He could tell plainly from her face. She was feeling general fear over his presence, mostly because of the way he could so easily (and so did) crush her, not to mention her longterm fear of him generated by his training her for a month. It was too bad he'd held back. She hadn't seen anything. She was probably also complaining in her mind. "Ohh, the training is so horrible." or something like that. Her head was also probably filled with pointless rambles about werecows and tea. Kuroi knew her well enough to figure so.

As for Cierro, Kuroi knew even with a glance. There were two things Cierro's face implied. First, he was thinking about sex. Hell, even without looking, anyone could tell. He was always thinking about sex. He was that kind of person. Kuroi didn't expect to see him as an Espada for a tremendously long time. On top of that, the sexual thing he was probably referencing in his mind was Asuka, to whom he made no secret of being attracted to. Worse than Kuroi's wrath, Cierro was going to face Hell when he met Asuka's lover, that Shinigami. Kuroi was certain he could fight on par with Shinsei Tan'O, but he was well aware that Shinsei was probably stronger than he was. If not for Kuroi's ultimate advantage, he was guaranteed to lose against Shinsei every time. Cierro was also probably hoping Rio didn't turn out to be like Kuroi. Kuroi, after all, was currently the one that inflicted punishments to keep Cierro in line. Last time, he'd crushed him with just a glance.

Now, Adalo. What was going on inside his mind was evident. Absolutely nothing. He just wanted to fight something, plain and simple. Kuroi already knew that Adalo wanted a battle. In fact, Adalo had even challenged him at some point. He was supposed to accept that challenge shortly, but he'd do it in secret. Adalo had grown strong recently, and Kuroi wasn't 100% sure that he could defeat that guy anymore, even if he'd already done it twice. He had to be careful. Even he'd witnessed the death of the prior Primera, Sokujin Akai. Adalo had not been kind, and had, in a single slash, wiped out a man that others found impossible to even touch. In that instant, even Kuroi had been able to feel it at its finest. The emotion that was classified as fear. He'd known fear for the first time in decades, centuries maybe, when he saw that blood on Adalo's face, and that grin.

However, it didn't phase Kuroi too much now. He maintained a calm and composed look, and said and did nothing while sitting there at the table. There was nothing else worth doing. Normally Cierro would be crushed to the floor because of fucking around, but this was the meeting room. Kuroi couldn't do that here. And, sure enough, the next Espada arrived to the fray rather quickly. Cain, the emotionless Decima Espada, walked in through the busted doors rather calmly, and took his seat rather calmly. He sat perfectly straight and with nothing special to his sitting, an emotionless and blank automaton. His eyes and face displayed no emotion, and he did not speak. Of course, it was only Kuroi right now who was aware of Cain's true rank. The most trustworthy and therefore most trusted of the Espada, Kuroi had become privy to the secret. Cain was the Decima. And he was the strongest. He was not "10." He was "0." The Cero Espada. The strongest disguised as the weakest.

Kuroi did not get any further into his thought trail, however, before another figure entered. Instantly, the whole room's temperature plummeted as it became engulfed in a cold, chilling aura of a sinister and evil reiatsu unlike any other. Sweeping into the room with the long white robe of a King, and slicked back black hair, eyes focused, Sonken Kouhai entered. He didn't hesitate at all, declaring his presence just with his arrival and his aura, and his cold, evil charisma adding to his seductive charm as he spoke, even going so far as to ignore the doors. "Good evening, my precious Espada!" Kouhai exclaimed. "I trust you have gotten started on the drinks and scones without me. Do you each have your filling?" He took a seat at the head of the table, smiling coolly at everyone there. "Good good. Shall we begin now? Before we begin, do any of you have any questions?"

[Shinda Crusinik]

Shinda entered the room in his usual boring manner. He wore the trademark uniform of the Espada. A while jacket, cut slightly short in the front while the back was extended further than normal. His deep green eyes focused directly on the the current Primero. As the seating had always been decided based upon rank, Shinda took his place near the front of the table, next to Adalo. Amusingly he was only recently given the title of Primero, none the less he had beaten the former Primero without using his Etapta. This actually pleased Shinda. At least some of his allies weren't trash.

Shinda scanned the entire table. He had met many of them, Cierro, Kuroi, Asuka, and Adalo. However several of them were still unknown. He had of course studied them all but some her had simply never met. As for the ones he knew, he already had a some what decent grasp on them. Kuroi was a respectable, well rounded leader. Probably deserving of the Primero position. His leadership was a little rough but when dealing with Espada of any rank, you must make them understand their role.

Cierro was a fool. An insignificant spot on the title that he used. Espada? Even the Octavo should be able to hold his own in a battle and respect those that are deserving. He has no sense of discipline and needs a serious personality adjustment. Asuka was weak as well. Then again, she was only Novena. Still, Shinda didn't doubt that she could take Octava from Cierro. Shinda had a serious hatred for that perverted freak. As far as Asuka was concerned Shinda didn't mind her so much. She was probably a nice person but from what Shinda had seen she was a fool. Adalo was a respectable leader. Granted he was probably bi-polar. But still, Shinda had great respect for him and was glad to call him Primero.

Shinda remained seated for a while, looking over each Espada. His hands were folded over each other, his face completely emotionless. It was several minutes before he felt the chill run up his body. Though he didn't react in any way, it was still a surprising essence. Kouhai was a decent King, although Shinda had always liked the idea of Azeru being King. Shinda never had liked the Shinigami. "Good good. Shall we begin now? Before we begin, do any of you have any questions?" Shinda had none. He remained quiet up until now, and was still silent.

[Deleted]

“BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURP”

"LET'S FUCK GEESE! WAHAHAHAHA!"

Okay world, if you can find a scarier entrance combo than THAT....Then Asuka will give you props...cause seriously. Wh-What the hell is this?! Asuka jumped a bit and nearly choked on her tea at hearing them both. She heard a bit of that burp...If Kuroi wasn't there, she'd crack up. She was such a kid when it came that sort of thing. She'd look in the direction of said obnoxiously loud burp and lo and behold..it was Cierro. The teal haired espada was a bit frightened. Perverts generally creeped her out and this one was the pervert...but he was funny which was awesome cause it meant that he wasn't boring unlike most of the Espada. Though, every time he did something, Asuka wanted to laugh and then Kuroi would blast her arm off and that just wasn't cool yo. Oh hell...he just plopped right into the seat next to her and she just felt...sullied and unusual. Regardless, the Noveno would wave a friendly and silent hello at her comrade. Though...She could literally feel his eyes on her. If only that little incident in the mall never happened. He probably engraved the image of her nude form into his brain. Augh....And now...he's going to sit next to her...and hit on her..and all that weird stuff.

Oh! But we're forgetting something!...Or rather, someone! Sir Adalo! Yeah...and that scream totally overlapped the rest of Cierro's burp. Fuck geese? Why fuck geese? Why'd it have to be geese? Why couldn't it be like...a mongoose or something? Mongooses....Mongeese..Mongeeses...Mongoosies... What's the fucking plural for that and why is it goose related? Whatever! They can fight cobras!! That's badass. Wait...this is wrong. Er...then again fucking animals is wrong to begin with...Beastiaaallllity...In any case! Adalo took the seat next to her. Yay! No more pervert! "Hey Adalo! Congrats on making Primera." she smiled. Of course, congratulations were in order for her friend! Seriously, maaaajor props on that one....is he drumming on her head?..Why? Whoa, sick beat. Okay. It's fine! Back to Chai tea now! It smelled good. It tasted good. Chai tea was awesome.

Asuka briefly glanced at the Sexta. He seemed a little scary. Like...if she slipped up once, he'd never leave her alone...Oh hell, what if he was going to torture her! Verbal assault!? Ugh! She gets enough of that already from a certain ravenette and her comrades! Those three just wouldn't leave her alone. To have another one torture her would seriously suck. Oh hey...the Cuarta's here. Duude...He is dead meat if he interferes again like last time. Kuroi would guarantee it. Asuka knew Kuroi well enough to know that. How long has it been...A little over 40 years? If there was anything she familiar with, it was the cold, vicious, aggressive side of our 'wonderful' Segunda over there. Ugh. He was probably just waiting for her to slip up. Anything to give him an excuse to rip her to shreds. Especially since Kouhai-sama would be coming shortly. If she can make it out of this meeting in one piece, then the Noveno would officially be the happiest person in all of Las Noches.

Shortly after, Asuka felt a shiver run up her spine. Her skin began to crawl and she could feel goosebumps forming. A tell-tale sign that Kouhai had arrived. Asuka sat up and positioned herself in her seat properly.Good evening, my precious Espada! I trust you have gotten started on the drinks and scones without me. Do you each have your filling? She had Chai tea. Chai tea had her. She was good. "Good good. Shall we begin now? Before we begin, do any of you have any questions?" Asuka remained silent and merely blinked. She didn't have any questions. Her policy with Kouhai-sama was: "Don't speak unless spoken to". He was a terrifying man. He really was. It was a fucking miracle she was alive in her opinion. He put her through a horrible illusion once. She didn't want to go through that again. God no....ANYTHING but that.

[Rio Demonliogalgo]

So the cavalry had arrived huh? The Octava Espada and the newly crowned Primera Espada. Cierro and Adalo, huh? Rio could already tell he didn't care for them. No doubt they were trying to liven shit up, but Rio found it irritating. Nonetheless, he'd been pleased to hear that Adalo had left his former spot as Quinta. Rio could now move up in the ranks, without finding the snake under that particular rock. Rio may have held a high opinion of himself, but he knew he wouldn't have been able to beat Sokujin. So odds were he couldn't have beaten Adalo either. With Adalo out of the way for now, Rio wouldn't have to worry about fighting him until he reached the Segunda position. And with Kuroi currently in that position, he knew that wouldn't be for some time.

So, next on his list would have to be-- ah. Think of the devil, and he shall come. Shinda Crusinik. The Cuarta Espada. Rio's eyes fell onto him as he crossed the room. He was Rio's next target. The Espada would have to do a little research on the Cuarta. What kind of powers could he expect of him? Who knew. But Rio grinned a little. Compared to some of the others in the room.... well, quite frankly, compared to Kuroi and Adalo, Shinda didn't look all that strong. Once Rio secured the Quinta position, Shinda would be next. This time he couldn't stop a twisted grin from crossing his face.

It vanished, FAST, when the next figure entered the room. Sonken Kouhai. Rio's face turned to stone as the man entered the room. It was the only way he'd be able to maintain ANY sort of face with that guy in the room. Smiling or smirking was right out of the question with the amount of hatred flowing through Rio's body. The stonefaced look he suddenly wore was about the only way to avoid hinting of just how much he LOATHED this man who had come before them. He raised his cup of sake for a final sip just moments before Kouhai took his seat. Questions? Oh no. Rio didn't have questions. The Sexta had fucking STATEMENTS he'd like to make.

In his head, he briefly played an image of himself rising up and raging at the man, letting Sonken know exactly what he thought of him, and telling him, that though it may take Rio a thousand years, he'd have Kouhai's head, the worthless filth! Of course, only in Rio's mind could such things play out without Rio suffering horrific consequences on the spot. He knew this, and thus stayed quiet. Though it did help to abate the rage he was only barely holding in check. He addressed Kouhai with the stony look to suggest that no, he had no questions.

The other Espada meant nothing to Rio. Not Shinda, whom he had to destroy to reach the next rung of the ladder. Not Asuka, whom he'd heard rumors coveted the position he now held. Not Cierro, who would be the next logical challenger for his position. Not even Kuroi or Adalo whom held the most difficult positions to attain. His attention was solely on Sonken Kouhai. He'd never seen him in person before. Now he would have a measure of the man, whom was unfit to rule the Espada, however powerful he may have been. What kind of man was he?

[Cierro Muerte]

Cierro was less then impressed by Adalo’s entrance. He was taking all of the attention. What a whore! Cierro didn’t care if he was the Primero now, no one talked over him! That was just rude, man! “Oh well...” thought Cierro, “At least I can sit next to miss Asuka pretty tits...” As he walked over to sit next to the foxy espada, Adalo snuck in to the spot in front of him. “Oh that just SUCKS man... Why does Adalo have to be such a cockblock?!” thought Cierro, still maintaining a creepy grin as if it didn’t bother him at all. The Octavo instead calmly took the spot on the corner, at the opposite end of the table from where Kouhai sat. Whatever... If I can’t have a good view of Asuka, at least I can have a good view of THIS!!!” thought the 8th as he retrieved an issue of Playboy from inside his robes. With a sly grin the Octavo began to flip through it’s pages as he waited for the meeting to begin.

However the Octavo’s reading was interrupted shortly by a drumming on his head. “Eh?” said the Octavo leaning back in his chair and looking up at the Primero who was drumming on his head. “IT SOUNDS HOLLOW!” he yelled loud enough for everyone to hear. The 8th stared blankly at the Primero for a few seconds before a wide grin spread across his face and he burst out in laughter. “HA!!! I GET IT!!! CAUSE I’M AN ARRANCAR!!!” Cierro chuckled at the Primero’s pun. Perhaps Adalo was cool after all. The 8th was always glad to have other people willing to take a joke in the ranks of espada. Maybe he’d show Adalo the joy of hitting up strip joints in the human world sometime as long as he promised not to kill the strippers...

Cierro went back to flipping through the pages of his playboy magazine and completely missed Cain’s entrance because he was staring at the centerfold of Miss January. “Oh you’re a bad girl, aren’t you?” mumbled the Octavo at the nude model in his magazine. But Cierro’s antics were interrupted by the entrance of the one known as God of Heuco Mundo. Sonken Kouhai, the one they had been waiting for, took his seat at the head of the table. “Good evening, my precious Espada!” spoke the shinigami with a suave, confident tone. “Good evening, Kouhai-sama!” replied Cierro loudly, sounding like a kindergartener repeating what he’d been told. “I trust you have gotten started on the drinks and scones without me. Do you each have your filling?” continued the soul reaper who led them. “Mhmm! They’re very good! Thanks!” said the Octavo reaching over and grabbing a scone. It seemed like the Cierro was the only one who felt like he could speak to Sonken Kouhai without fear. Sure he respected the guy, sure he knew he was powerful, but they were on the same team. Why should he fear the one who saved his life the day he became an arrancar? For surely Cierro would have died if he was left as an adjuchas for much longer. Now he was the Octavo in Sonken Kouhai’s army. This soul reaper had given him so much, and Cierro totally owed him.

“Good good. Shall we begin now? Before we begin, do any of you have any questions?” Cierro, whose face was now stuffed with a scone heard this and chugged the rest of his Dr. Pepper to wash down the crumbly treat. *GULP* The Octavo swallowed quickly because he wanted to get his two cents in before the question taking section of this meeting was closed. “Oh! Oh! Oh!” exclaimed Cierro as he raised his hand frantically, “Are we going to attack Soul Society again?!” said Cierro as soon as he got the man’s attention. Cierro was actually eager to help out Sonken with his goals, and he was sure that Kouhai understood that. But the purpose of the meeting would have no doubt been made clear if Cierro was more patient.

[Zou ۞]

OOC: Order is Me, Shinda, Asuka, Rio, Cierro, Adalo, repeat.

[Kashmir De-Mona]

"HAHAHA! YA GEDDIT, YA GEDDIT? GOOD! AHAHAHAHA! YOU WANNA FUCK A WANTON? HOW ABOUT FIGHT A NUTCRACKER?" Adalo was just lively, but he instantly shut up when Kouhai-Sama got there, just like everyone else did. He sat down normally and crossed his legs. His eyes moved to slits and he focused dearly and intently. He remembered the first time he encountered Sonken Kouhai. It had been horrible. Adalo's mind could still recall it. Even after living for thousands of years, Adalo's powers had paled in comparison to Kouhai-Sama's. He'd proven to be no match at all for the King of Las Noches. He respected the man and feared the man. Adalo felt fear from Kuroi too, because Kuroi was strong. Kuroi was the only Espada that could actually take Adalo down, though Adalo was confident that he was now vastly stronger than Kuroi.

Kouhai-Sama though, for him he had a mountain of fear. Kouhai-Sama would kill any of them just to prove a point. The sad thing was that despite strength, Espada were actually just chess pieces. They were probably like the bishops and rooks. In a strategy, Espada were expendable. Kouhai-Sama would also be able to replace most of them. Maybe not someone like Kuroi who had that silver dome attack, since someone like him only turned up once in a while. Anyone else though, even Adalo, who used darkness, could be replaced. In strength, Adalo knew most Espada would never match him. Most Arrancar never would. But he knew that Kouhai-Sama didn't really need him for war purposes, so Adalo kept his mouth completely shut when Kouhai-Sama got there. He also kept a vigilant watch of the other Espada, out of boredom for the most of his part.

He saw something interesting. That stone face from Rio's wasn't the same as Adalo or Cain. Cain felt nothing, and Adalo just shut up because he knew what was good for him. Rio's looked painful stony. Was he holding back? Did he hate Kouhai-Sama? Interesting. Asuka's was fear, just like it always was. She was Adalo's friend, but she was scared too often for her own good. Cierro's was interest though. He'd stopped reading the dirty magazine that Adalo had earlier noticed, and taken to paying attention and asking Kouhai-Sama a question. Adalo kind of had a question too. He piped up. "WHO'S STRONG IN SOUL SOCIETY?" he asked. He could find out for himself but it was faster and more convenient to get the question straight from Kouhai-Sama. He had no doubt that Kouhai-Sama would be patient and answer both questions.

One thing he'd learned was that Kouhai-Sama was a patient man. He practiced arts that Adalo knew not, patience and civility. He was civil and calm, though when displeased he really stepped it up a notch. Adalo never did like Kouhai-Sama's punishments. The way they looked was agonizing. He'd seen the shikai Kouhai-Sama used more than once. His zanpakuto was super scary. It created those gold orbs for illusions that could hold people in very long illusions, even a week sometimes. It could be a week of torture, or a week of success and dreams coming true, torn down in a matter of seconds after that.