Beauty and the Beast [Joint Training / DP / R]

[Deleted]

Training for TTP

How long had it been? How long had it been since the sound of water pushed gently by the breeze, of leaves rustling in the wind, had found there ways into his ears? How long had it been since the heat of that sun bombarded him, but the coolness of the lake offset that heat to create a perfect balance of comfort? How long had it been since that damn otter had spirited him off to that hellish desert with no water? Long enough that he came to crave what he had left behind and come to hate what he'd been introduced to. But now that length of time away from what he did love was over. He'd been able to escape and find his way back.

That damn otter had dragged him off to a land that he hated near immediately. It wasn't long until Umaroth had vanished from her crew, and found himself wandering the moon drenched desert in search of something. He wasn't sure what he was trying to find, but after running into a white haired woman...Umaroth came to realize he still had lots of searching to do. Finding a wandering Hollow and, through the use of force, having it bring him back to the Rukongai Wilderness, Umaroth began his wandering. He was searching for the lake he'd lived in for years. For weeks he wandered, following the invisible path set before him by his instincts. He wasn't sure how to describe it or explain it, all he knew was to follow those instincts that had kept him alive for years.

It was similar to how a sea turtle could find its way back to the very same beach they were born on. Not that Umaroth was a turtle by any means, but the concept was still the same. But now...this was where he was. He was back at his lake. The only thing he had in this world. This lake that was his and his alone. Well, there was also the resident Rukongai spirits that lived on the eastern shore, but Umaroth didn't really mind them too much. Granted, when he first moved into the body of water the people were, initially, afraid and paranoid about him. Granted Umaroth did literally nothing to them, but his outward appearance must have been enough to frighten them.

Things gradually changed though. Shortly after, a Rukongai town that rarely ever saw Shinigami and would often be the target of Hollows found itself protected by something that wasn't garbed in black. The Hollows that came crawling through the wilderness towards the town would be distracted by Umaroth's reiatsu, drawn to him and subsequently dealt with. The towns people began viewing Umaroth as something not harmful, but beneficial. Hell, it seems that they even revered him to a point. Upon moving back into his lake and taking his first swim in weeks, he happened on a interesting sight. A wooden totem, built into the shore of the Rukongai town. Carved wood in the reptiles shape, adorned with real feathers from captured birds. Umaroth was curious about it, but instead found himself enjoying swimming much more than investigating the odd behavior of humans.

Normally Umaroth would be sleeping at this time of night, or at least trying to get back to sleep. The reptile, in order to protect himself, slept at the bottom of the lake by submerging himself in the mud to keep from floating. His brain, only half way being asleep, would stir Umaroth and wake him up when it was time for him to refresh the air in his lungs. Well, instead of submerging like he normally did he decided to simply drift. Only the top of his snout, horns and head and feathers were visible as he drifted lazily along the lakes surface, the moon being his only companion. The crickets, frogs, and other nocturnal singing animals filled his ears with sound. He wasn't sure why he wasn't going back to sleep. He just wasn't tired. So he swam. Not fast, not like he was hunting, he simply pushed himself along the surface not really looking at anything. As he rounded the island, his eyes came to rest on the lights and structures of the Rukongai spirits dwellings. They were larger than he remembered. Must have meant there were more spirits now. He wondered what that would mean for him in the long run.

Water fell off of him as he pulled himself out of the lake, standing on the shore leading into one of the drier sides of the marshlands. He felt like taking a walk. He wasn't going to go stomping through the town. He wasn't expecting people to try to attack him, but he sure as hell didn't want them freaking out about him. A walk through the woods with some occasional mud baths didn't seem so bad. If he was lucky he might even chance upon some nocturnal critter he could chew on. Fish was good, but a little variety never hurt his stomach. Cept with Hollows. They gave him the shits.

As he walked he could hear the sounds of animals scattering around him. Sure, he may have WANTED to chew on something but he didn't feel the need or desire to go chasing after them. Maybe he'd chance on something already dead. But his thoughts weren't focused on his stomach, but instead those questions he constantly asked himself. Why was he weak? Why didn't he get stronger? Why did he want to get stronger? Why was that otter and that woman so much stronger than he was? What was his purpose? Who, or what, was he? Umaroth knew he was no simple lizard, but neither was he man, so what was he? Why did all that time in that dry hell not bring him anymore strength?

But before he could keep asking himself, he stepped in something. Umaroth paused. It wasn't mud or poop, those things didn't bother him much, but what he stepped in was...squisher. He lowered his head and blinked. Did he step in a carcass? Was it just the night, or did the fluid seem...black? His nostrils took in the air a few times, and it made him reel back a bit. Whatever he stepped in, this flesh with black fluid, reeked. It reeked like...Hollow? But as he sniffed he noticed another source of the scent, leading off in the...direction he had come from? Not quite the same way, enough of a difference that they wouldn't have crossed...but Umaroth realized that following the trail would lead him back to the Rukongai village.

He blinked. Why did he feel...panicked...realizing that? Umaroth didn't care about those people. Why would he? So why the hell was he following the trail of visceral? Damn all these questions he had. Damn them.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Stats and Skills}


Strength - 215 = 322 Points

Speed - 200 = 300 Points

Spiritual Pressure - 150 = 113 Points

Reiatsu Strength - 50 Points

Light Aura - 60 Points

Dark Aura - 40 Points

Instinct - 150 Points

Senses - 150 Points

Energy sensory - 0 Points

Healing Expertise - 0 Points

Total SP: 915 Points


[Martial Arts: Street-Fighting] {1}

[Battle Analysis] {1}

[Pain Tolerance] {1}

[Stealth] {1}

[Strength of Will] {1}

[Anti-Stealth] {1}

Skill Points: 6 / 15

[Santa Ajora]

Why was she even here? She didn't feel hungry. Well.. okay that was a lie. As a hollow there was always that hunger, but usually she did her best to avoid eating unless she was in an insatiable mood. So she had decided to settle down. But the problem was that she wasn't sure where to sleep. Her ability made it hard to find somewhere to settle. A cave? A hole in the ground? Where could she go? The woman had very little capability when it came to trying to find places, her sense of direction really was horrible.

She had found herself in a village of all places, and now boy was she in a pickle. The villagers were shouting, all of them riled up as they began hunting around for her. She herself was..... displeased. Those makeshift swords and big pitchforks. It made her want to eat them, to murdder them. But she wasn't in the mood. Though if the villagers continued she certainly would be. She watched them, hiding on the roof of one of the hosues, thankfully the flesh had grown all over the village, so they wouldn't be able to find her just yet. But already she was causing a panic.

People's houses flooded by the flesh and blood, the structures creaking under the weight of all that viscera, the blood puddling inside of the flesh garden as they hunted around for her. She herself had chosen the most stable looking building she could find. But it was only a matter of time before she was found out. And of course... she was annoyed when she noticed that the building was inhabited. Three hapless rukongai citzens had failed to wake up when her flesh had begun growing over their blankets. She didn't even notice them until they started struggling to breathe, and before she knew it, they eventually stopped...

Oops...

She paused, not sure if she shold relocate.... but.... she didn't want to get too hungry. It would be a pain if she had to eat the entire village just because they riled her up. So as a compromise, she began crushing the dead bodies inside, skeletal hands growing from the buried bodies and pulling them apart bit by bitm carrying them up to her where she began to eat them. At least this way, she would just keep her hunger, and irritation, at bay.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Santa's Stats and such}
Strength:50 points x1.5 (75 points)
Speed: 50 points
Sppr: 50 points x1.5 (75 points)
Rei strength:50 points x.5 (25 points)

La:70
Da:30

Instinct: 50 points
Senses: 50 points x.5 (25 points)
ES: 0 points
Healing Efficiency: 0 points

Weapon: Firearms 1
Crafting- Firearms and Munitions: 1
Crafting-Traps: 1
Biochemistry: 1
Battle Analysis: 1
Anti-Stealth: 1
Stealth: 1

3 class 8 "humans" consumed

[Deleted]

What in the lake depths was happening? Having followed the trail of gore through the woods, which admittingly was nothing difficult for him on account of those animal senses he had, he wound up right back at the lake shore village like he thought he was going to be. But having left the village with it being rather quiet and peaceful to come back to find it in the middle of chaos was rather surprising. Keeping himself in the darkness of the woods, Umaroth looked with curious eyes at the situation unfolding in the village. The people were riled up, shouting, angry. The male spirits all wielded torches, those oversized forks, and other makeshift weapons. They were hunting something. And Umaroth had a good idea what it was they were looking for. Besides that, women and children were being shuttered around to different buildings or...oddly enough...by the lake shore and totem that the people had erected.

It didn't take along for Umaroth to notice the source of the disturbance. Gorish growths had begun sprouting up along the structures and streets, all leaking a black blood like fluid. It was as if someone had cut open some large animal and strewn its inside all over the place, but this stuff seemed to be appearing from nothing and continued to grow. The streets had begun to even pool with the fluid. It was like the stuff Umaroth had found that lead him here, and yet was about ten times worse. His ears picked up on something, causing him to turn his head towards the lake shore at an elderly woman spirit huttled around some children...one of which he recognized. "Please children, don't cry. Close your eyes. Offer your prayers to the Shinigami and the lake. One of which will protect us." What did she mean by that? "We...we don't need the Shinigami. They...they never come here." One of the children suddenly said.

The child that Umaroth recognized. Mao Kaiya, though he didn't know her name. She looked taller. She aged a bit, had grown her hair out. Her legs were longer, but it was obvious she was still a child. "Naga...Naga will come. Naga's always kept us safe. He'll...he'll keep us safe..." She whimpered, on the verge of tears. One of the other kids, a male with blond hair snapped his attention to her. "Don't be stupid Mao! None of us have seen Naga in ages! The...the Hollows are proof of that. If Naga was around I would still have my brother! But he's not...he's gone he's gone and you know it! Why do we even have this thing!" The kid shouted, before suddenly turning and pushing the totem into the water. His actions, born from anger, caused quite a stir in the gathering of already scared and anxious spirits.

"Takashi no! How could you??" the older lady gasped, grabbing onto the now named small males arm and pulling him into a hug. Mao, though, quickly rushed into the water to grab onto the totem to keep it from washing away. "No...no he's not gone. Naga's just been sleeping...he...he's always been so lazy. This...this is his home...he...hic...he wouldn't leave it...us." She stammered, words being choked back by the sobs. Umaroth, from where he was hiding, stared at the little spectacle. He wasn't...entirely sure how to take what he had witnessed. Had his leaving with Ajraka caused something terrible to befall these people? Without him around to defend his territory, Hollows would have little to no issue with using this town as a feeding ground. With what Takashi expressed, it seemed that this was the case.

But why would Umaroth care? Him defending HIS territory had nothing to do with these people. It was only a beneficial side effect for them. But these people saw it more than that. They saw Umaroth being MORE than just some thing that lived in the lake. Stupid. Humans were so stupid. Sharp teeth pressed against each other as Umaroth became clouded by thoughts, but immediately was ripped away when the sound of one of the homes in the village collapsed. The weight of all that gore finally became too much, splintering the wood and causing it to all come crashing down. He heard screams, and someones name being screamed followed by "he was still in there!"

He wasn't really sure why he suddenly found himself ontop of the closest building's roof. His natural stealth skills helped keep him hidden, and with everyone panicking and running around there was no chance of him being seen with his natural dark colored skin. His head began bouncing from left to right, eyes scanning the entirety of the village for anything weird. Besides growing gore. Whether it was because of his animal eyes, or his Anti-Stealth, it didn't actually take long until he spotted just what was causing the trouble. On the roof of another building, trying to keep out of the villagers sights, was something Umaroth could say vaguely resembled a deer. A deer shrouded in black that dripped more black.

So quickly did he move. Down the roof and back behind the buildings, Umaroth made his way across the village in the shadows and in the direction of a building that wasn't so covered. Up the wall and onto the roof, Umaroth planted himself one roof over from the Hollow...and made no attempt at hiding himself. Those glowing blue eyes of his locked right onto the Hollow, pupils narrowed ferociously. The feathers on his head were raised, and his tail lashed, slapping and cracking the roofs tiles. "Why are you here?" The reptile hissed between his barred fangs.

[Santa Ajora]

Ajora seldom was caught off guard, and this was no exception. She had spotted Umaroth. From the moment he had inspected her garden, the garden had inspected him as well. Unblinking eyes taking him in, and seeing him unraveling, witnessing his dilema and inner turnmoil at seeing those children. It was fascinating. So when he finally approached with his big form and imposing height, that meek little deer turned to him and spoke.

"Why does she call you Naga? Such a strange name, a little female in my opinion. But you do not seem female." she mused, slowly rising to her hooves and looking up to him, intrigued and perplexed. "What is your name? I looked around but I could not find anywhere to sleep. I usually find a cave, but I got lost..... I am not sure where I am.....and the humans...,they hunt for me.." she noted, and huddled by the lizard's leg, peeking over the edge of the building with clear concern.

" I don't want to kill them. I try to feed myself. I get carried away when I'm hungry... I don't stop.... I eat so much... but they won't stop looking." she paused, and shivered, viscera continuing to drip from her, before a soft, nervous little giggle escaped. " I wish there were more shinigami. I feel better about eating them.... They taste better. Less innocent. I can always smell the blood on their blades." she then paused and looked back up.

" Do you know where I can sleep? What is your name?"

[Deleted]

It spoke? Seldom did Umaroth ever see a Hollow speak. The ones that whose ends were met at the bottom of his lake had never once spoken. They had only howled. Umaroth had first witnessed Hollows speaking aboard Ajrakas living vessel. Though they had little to say, Umaroth had witnessed them speak on a few occasions. But he never actually conversed with him. The only one he had ever spoken with was Ajraka before he had abandoned the crew and set out into the desert. But this was surprising none the less. Umaroth had assumed something aboard Ajrakas ship was what gave Hollows the ability to speak. Or maybe they were like him. Umaroth didn't speak much and it wasn't because of his limited vocabulary. He found value in words. Especially in names.

So when this Hollow that called herself Santa Ajora asked for his name, she was met with a steady silence. She, he, it, refered to the nickname given to him by the local spirits. It was a name put upon him by individuals that did not know his actual name. Only Ajraka knew his name, and he felt that it was best that it was kept that way for now. This Hollow claimed it had only been searching for a place to rest its head, that it had only accidently trespassed into this village and by extension into the border of Umaroth's territory. A low growl escaped from Umaroth as she spoke, displaying for her that despite the apparent her lack of apparent aggression that he was still fully on guard.

When she got close enough to huddle near his leg, the lizard instinctively took a step back. His eyes were locked on her, as well as the clumps of flesh that continued to pour off of her like a flowing faucet. This creature made him feel ill. But something she said managed to resonate well with him. Her comment on Shinigami, her dislike for them, was something he could relate too. Umaroth did not have a good opinion on the Shinigami, having been chased and hunted by them before. They treated him like a monster, a Hollow, and sought to cut him down simply for stealing food. Not just that, but it seemed that this creature did not intend to bring harm to the villagers. Was this all really just an accident?

Umaroth was put in a funny little situation now. Naturally he should attack. She didn't seem to be all that strong. His combative instincts were practically screaming that he could tear her head off without any trouble. Looking at her did not give him the same hesitation that looking at that damn otter did. But, at the same time, Umaroth was not just some mindless animal. Hollows that he killed were ones that made a conscious attempt on his life. Was he any different than those drooling beasts if he just killed this creature? Blast it. The world used to be so simple until that air head decided to swim in his lake.

"Has anyone found anything yet?" Umaroth heard being shouted, causing him to just slightly turn his gaze away from Santa to see who was shouting. "No, nothing yet. Let's check over here. God this shits EVERYWHERE!" The villagers were getting closer. If they kept getting closer, then would this Hollow attack them like a cornered animal? Umaroth didn't want to get these people involved. But he couldn't just walk away either. So. Many. PROBLEMS. His head snapped back towards Santa, a frown and annoyed expression on his snout. "You want cave? I give you cave. But I and you leave. Your droppings leave. The humans stay, safe." Umaroth said, almost as if he were casting down orders to a lesser. And, without much warning considering the ridiculous physical superiority to her, Umaroth grabbed her and flew.

Well, two things. He didn't actually fly. But perhaps to Santas perspective it was flying, considering how fast she would suddenly be going. She'd find herself being spirited between trees, dragged along by Umaroths ridiculous speeds. Twice as fast as the fastest animal in the human world. What might take five minutes would, in fact, take mere moments. Umaroth knew where he was going, somewhere he'd once hidden in before. Before he found the lake. Second was how he grabbed her. When Umaroths hand came into contact with her skin, it was like he had grabbed onto wet putty. He had no choice but to reach deep into her, to grab onto something solid enough to hold onto.

Coming to a stop, Umaroth didn't exactly let Santa go gently. Unless she could catch herself, she'd probably tumble when he let go of her. Umaroth, on the other hand, back paced away with her down on all fours, keeping a relatively safer distance with her as he proceeded to remove her gunk from his hand. Where did he take her? On inspection, Santa would find the ground to be rather...muddy. But more importantly than that was the rather large tree sticking up from the ground. At the base of its trunk was a hole, and looking inside would reveal that this hole extended into the ground itself. Almost like a slide into some dark chasm. This had been somewhere Umaroth had hidden himself before, years ago, when he was still being hunted by Shinigami.

The reptile, content that his hand and arm had been degunked, cast a blue eyes gaze towards Santa. "One time I do this. No go back there." he said, sitting himself down. "Sleep here. Stay here. No longer my hole. Big enough for you. Too small for me." He explained, looking at the hollow tree for a second before looking back at her. He felt the need to correct something suddenly. "Naga not name. Naga name they give me. Naga what you can name me."

[Santa Ajora]

There was a lot to react to. A lot she cuold have done, said, and probably had some kinda funky interaction. But none of that mattered. Not when that big-fuckface croc decided to REACH INSIDE OF HER FUCKING BODY! She was a disgusting creature, and the few that had been forced to touch her had all had varying degrees of a reaction, but not a single one had ever decided to take the plunge and SHOVE their fuckin hand into the flesh and grip onto the bone. and THAT was her actual, real body. even as Umaroth suddenly moved her to a new place, when they arrived she was already screeching.

Immediately mouths began pouring off of her body, all of them screeching. As they arrived, immediately their surroundings began to grow, flesh emerging from every surface, even that new hole he had brought her too began filling up with screeching mouths that all writhed just as Ajora did, it wouldn't be until he put her the fuck down that it would stop, immediately the deer would shake herself, bits and bobs of gore flinging from her body in every direction as that slime sloughed off, removing the bits that had been touched by the lizard as she shook herself like a dog.

She immediately began feeding in anger. Ironically, several BC were down in that cave, and were close enough to the surface that when Ajora arrived, her flesh was already growing in from every side. That flesh drenching the inside of the cave, those sleeping beasts getting up and immediately flailing about. Of course, neither Ajora nor Umaroth would be able to hear the struggle as suddenly those beasts tore into the viscera, thrashing around, attacking the hollow that seemed to be growing everywhere. And honestly there wasn't a lot that Ajora could do to them. they were strong, and tough. But one thing she was able to do, was fill up their little burrow. As they attacked, they didnt' even realize the level of mush that was clogging up the exit, and when they finally realized, they could not find the way out. they growled and snarled, , even as numerous limbs, teeth, and other bits emerged around them.

It wasn't until they had actually run out of breath, after the sudden frantic flailing of suffocation, and the eventual going limp that Ajora was finally able to begin pulling them apart, waiting for the muscle to relax and atrophy so that she could begin her slow consumption of theri bodies, ripping them up and then running them back up the hole. Umaroth would see two little balls of flesh plop out of that fleshy burrow in front of Ajora, and she immediately would chomp them down, munching loudly before finally she calmed down, a sigh escaping her as the feeding allowed her to stop screeching.

"Do not do that again please."

2 class 8 BC consumed

[Deleted]

Immediate irritation became apparent on the reptiles features when the flesh melting Hollow began screeching. The hell was it screaming about anyways? Umaroth didn't hurt it...did he? If he had then it certainly wasn't on purpose. His eyes shut themselves tightly, tips of his lips twitching, and that tail of his began to flick against the ground, all in signs of his growing annoyance. The ground around them began to become covered in the same filth that had been covering the spirits village, confirming for him that she indeed was the culprit behind that chaos. Granted he already knew, but now he was getting that absolute confirmation. Mouths had formed within the gunk, all screaming along with the damn deer until Umaroth finally put her the fuck down.

She shook herself like a animal, as if Umaroth touching her had made her dirty. This disgusting creature was far more filthy than Umaroth could ever hope to be. He would have to roll around in piss and shit, mud, gore and all sorts of other filth for a week straight before even coming close to how disgusting this Hollow was. Why did he help it anyways? He was already regretting that choice. It would be so much easier just to rip her damn head off. God knows she was weak enough that it wouldn't be a problem.

With an annoyed growl he both kicked and swung his tail, throwing some of the encroaching flesh that had covered the ground around him through the air. A side ways swipe of that long tail of his easily cleared a wide portion around him, sending both it and the mud into different piles. Turning his attention back towards the barrow, he blinked in surprise when he saw something being dragged out from the hole. Fur and meat? Was something living in their? Umaroth blinked, unsure of what it could be. It might have been a pair of raccoons or opossums. He snorted, casting a glare at Santa before turning around and...walking away?

Walking on the ground he had cleared, and with one easy jump clearing what was left of Santas fleshy growths that were in his way, Umaroth reached a portion of the land that was not touched at all by her filth. It seemed as if he were leaving now that relocated the Hollow. Why would he stay? But, surprisingly, his tail came swinging through the air and smashed itself right through the trunk of a tree, displaying the strength underneath those scales. Grabbing onto the bark with his claws, the reptile let out a grunt as he pulled the tree all the way down so it lay on the ground. The branches getting caught on another tree certainly didn't help alleviate his attitude. But when he finally got it all the way down, he turned right around and sat on it facing Santa.

He was a good fifteen feet away from her now. Those bright blue eyes of his, shining like polished gems, remained locked right onto her. He wasn't leaving. He had no idea if this Hollow would try slipping past him to return to the village as soon as he turned his back. He was thinking of keeping his eyes on her for a little while before heading back. He lowered his head just a tad, those eyes never leaving her form, before he opened his mouth again. "It is loud." It was hard to tell if that was an insult or a statement coming from him. Those feathers atop his head had not yet lowered, and that tail of his was swinging itself through the air behind him. It was obvious that Umaroth had his guard up, like any sensible creature would around a Hollow. After a few moments of silence, Umaroth said something rather surprising considering his body language. "Naga gives name, but it does not same. Does it have name? Or does Naga name it?"

[Santa Ajora]

Once given some time to calm herself, Santa did come to relax, settling herself down and even seating herself as she eyed the Lizard. Her inner stomach ached, and she did feel the compulson to ignore him. To go out and hunt... But that was something she pushed away completely. She remained fairly obvious to the fact that underground, in the warm dark, there was actually more of the burrow that she had not explored, and that the struggles of her previous meal had not gone unheard.

Deep down in the bitter dark, a number of forms had wakened, slowly roused by the commotion, and now with Santa's flesh blocking off one of the several vents for air, a number of them were rousing themselves, rising up, identifying the direction of the problem, and then turning away. Not heading for it straight, but going out, using another exit, with the knowledge of just how to circle around and find whomever had disturbed the sanctity and quiet of their den.

Of course Santa was busy staring at Umaroth, idly aknowledging that...primitive speech. Though admittedly she was surprised he could speak so well. Perhaps it was his exposure to the villagers that had prompted this leap in vocabulary. Most of the animals she devoured were unable to speak, so this was an odd treat. And of all things this beast asked her name. How odd to say the lease. But even so, that hardly meant that he did not deserve an answer. "Santaja Ajora." Came that dry, rasping voice, a somewhat cautious look across her features as she eyed him.

[Deleted]

"Santa Ajora?" What a weird name. What a peculiar name. "Santa Ajora..." Umaroth rolled the word around in his head until he had it memorized, those cold blues never leaving her melting form. It was a strange name, but Umaroth wasn't surprised by the way it sounded. Everyone and everything had a weird name. Umaroth had two weird names. He leaned forward a bit on his seat, resting his arms against his knees. That tail of his never ceased its flicking, bouncing from right to left in built up anticipation. The Naga remained sitting though. While he certainly didn't trust, or really even like, this Hollow he didn't have a reason to outright kill her. If her words were true then she was simply at the wrong place at the wrong time. The Naga chose to silence himself. He saw no more reason for words at this time, resigning himself to guard duty.

[Santa Ajora]

Santa paused, her head tilting idly as she noted the Lizard's.... strange habits. That tail slashing, swishing away. And for just a moment she watched it, until something slowly unfurled behind her. Something that had been coiled up between her legs, a long, dripping, whip of black, the hollow's own tail which slithered into view as it unfurled. Not only that, but Santa began to straighten up. Most of the time, Santa Ajora remained low to the ground, hunched up so that she seemed smaller, but as it were, the lizard had aroused her full curiosity. And as she came to reach her full height, it was soon rather apparent that she was larger than Umaroth despite the difference in their physical capabilities. The hollow herself rising to a full seven feet eleven inches in height, and as that whip-like tail of pure bone slithered out behind her, it was fully three times as long as she was tall.

With a tilt of her head, she gently began lashing her own tail about in direct mimicery of him, her head tilting this way and that as she emulated his mannerisms. She was intrigued, and so she attempted to copy him, hoping that it would be some small step to understanding the strange lizard. In an odd sort of way, she sortof enjoys his company. She understood that...eventually, she would either fight him off and get beaten, or she would eat him. She could try to avoid it. But he was strong. And she was a hollow. And as weak as she was, she was just a normal hollow, and eventually, assuming she was not fed regularly, she was going to have to try and devour him. And whe wasn't quite sure if she coult beat hi-

SSHHHNK!

Needles the size of her legs suddenly sped out from their surroundings, In the blink of an eye, several long quills stabbed through that fleshy thorax of Ajora's, and she barely twitched, those quills sliding almost completely through her body, those points stopping just a foot or so from Umaroth's face due to how close Santa and he were. And just like that there was a ruckus everywhere. The sound of a pack of Weasels were sounding off, those long, slim, streamline rodents suddenly emerging from the pair's surroundings, one of them having used some sort of special ferality attack to fire the long needle-like quills that it possessed.

Santa glanced down, her head tilting as she looked at the enormous spears that had pierced her body. She was incredibly lucky that none of her bones had been hit, and they had punctured clean through her ribs and the gap in her clavicle. She could feel the stress on that gap, and she did wince as that bone did feel a tinge of force, and she felt the barest beginnings of strain that were close to a break, but thankfully that did not happen. No less than Seven of those weasels were now beginning to circle both her and Umaroth, hissing and baring fangs at the both of them menacingly.

And Santa lifted her head, those antlers reaching up into the sky as she came to her full height, and suddenly the area around her changed. Instead of flesh, blood, instead pure, sheer bones began growing out of her body in long needles, thinner, pointier than the two that had impaled her normal body. She made it so that though there was still small ammounts of flesh and blood and sinew, most of the mass generated around her was pure thorny bones. And immediately, three of the beasts that had gotten closer than the rest, namely those within ten meters, immediately yowled, their paws pierced by those sharp bones. Of the three, one of them was close enough to the edge that they leapt free, ripping themselves away and hissing loudly as the blood from their limbs continued to pool.

The other two were not so lucky, and fell straight onto those growing spines, the beasts flailing about as more and more of those spikes sank into their bodies, just as little nooses of ligaments suddenly whipped out, lashing about their throats and beginning the process of strangling them to death as their bodies wre shredded and perforated. Eventually, the bodies stopped moving, and were moved along by spiky bony hands in Santa's direction, and the pack of weasels, suddenly incredibly wary, backed off, seeming ot assess the situation and begin circling Santaja and Umaroth as she leaned down and munched down the fallen beast clan.

They were weak. Considerably. But then again, so was she. The sheer difference was that unlike any other race, Hollows were incredibly powerful right out of the gate. Most races were very late, having to grow in strength before they could gain access to abilities. But not hollows. The moment they were born, they showed off their own abilities, their own powers. and Santa's was a considerable one. The area around her and Umaroth specifically was without the spikes, keeping the Lizard safe as those blades of thorny grass surrounded them. And as Santa lifted her head and eyed those beastclan, she suddenly felt an enormous power surge within her. And instatly around her, in the air... on the ground, black openings like maws opened up, and the howls of hollows suddenly filled the air.

"Stand... Back." She rasped, and that grass of thorny bones suddenly wilted, hollows of all shapes and kinds emerging out of nothing. All of them attracted by the sudden surge of power in Santa. Immediately the beast clan were beginning to group up in a tight little defensive circle, but the holows ignored them, and instead, suddenly began swarming in towards Santaja. In a sudden THUMP, she was buried as numerous bodies all crowded in around her and they became excited. As they moved in, several of them were skewered onto those bony spikes, though they hardly were killed. But it did start something. They attacked eachother. And began biting.
Ripping. Clawing.

All at once, the hollows were like a swarm of pirhannas, and the scent of blood set eevry single one of them off. before Umaroth's very eyes he would see Santa get swarmed, lost within that pile of cannibalism, and among it all. Santa lashed out, and was caught up in it. With a sudden.....Vigor... she attacked. She bit, tore and howled as suddenly she felt that ACHE. Not once in her existence as a hollow had she ever felt so.... Hungry. Even as they all crowded around. Even as t hey all began mashing together, sueezing, compressing, fusing together, as the body of the next hollow and her own became less and less clear, she felt herself begin roaring, and underneath that mask, behind that hollow, raspy screech, there was a woman screaming. The real her. And she could hear the other screams too. But of all those voices... she screamed the loudest.

There was a sudden WHUMP as a concussive surge of spiritual pressure suddenly burst out from that crowd, and the entire thing seemed to move as one, a blackness slwoly wrapping around them, whisping and creaking as it slithered in and out in ribbons of black. The pile rose up, growing taller and taller and taller. Towering a full height of just a bare inch beneath 15 feet, it suddenly rose up, and Umaroth,..... perhaps...would recognize a few stunning features. The enormous cloak, the cloak of a Menos. Only there was no generic nosey mask. Instead, from all of those hollows in that pile. All of those masks shredded, dissolving, breaking up and migrating up to the upmost portion. And in that moment, one, single, enormous mask formed. A set of fantastical antlers emerged, slithering into existence as they branched out and into the air around her. With a sudden surge, those eyes lit up. And from that cloaked form, a skeletal rear- end, dripping with flesh peeked out from the behind, an enormous deer with a cloak around it's neck. At least...until two, long, skeletal, dripping arms rose up, covered up t the wrists in that cloak, even as the flesh dripped to the ground underneath.

A cervitaur of Gillian proportions standing in the midst of those hollows. And suddenly the air was wallowed by four, incredibly massive slits in the sky, as four gillian stepped out from the fabric of the plane and peeked out to their newborn Sister. Towering above her old height, Santa lifted her head and let out a loud screech in the direction of the weasels, and from her cloak, a dozen similar mouths all screeched with her as they fell to the ground from her massive body. Those faces were all furious, and together they screeched:

"The Lizard. Is Mine."

And in that instant, two hulking figures dragged themselves out of the ground, each of them seven feet in height, almost like children of hers. Each of them was just like her. A cervitaur, only without that cloak. And those screeching newborns suddenly howled out as they stood on either side of Santa and hissed at the weasels as they moved in aggressively. Making it clear that the little pack should fuck off.

2 class 8 BC consumed
(Not gonna count all them hollows. Will say that she ate 1 class 8 Hollow before it stopped being consumption and just became gillianization)
1 Class 8 Hollow consumed

[Deleted]

He found his head tilting in curiosity when Santa decided to unveil her true form. She was taller than she made herself to be, being a few inches higher off the ground than Umaroth was. The lizards cold blues remained locked on the grotesque creature, before glancing at the sudden appearance of what appeared to be her tail. Once that long bony appendage appeared she began flicking it about in a similar manner to him, though he was doing it unconsciously. He tilted his head a little, letting out a grumble between his lips as he watched her curiously. Was she mimicking him? Umaroth was slightly confused by her actions, but at the same time was feeling a little intrigued by her actions.

But then everything went to hell. Umaroth would have been the first to realize that something was wrong. The slightest crunch of a branch, the displacement of foliage, the hissing of something coming through the air, all of these picked up on by Umaroths senses and instincts. Santa would see that head snap to its left, those feathers shooting right up as a response. He heard the quills well before she did, though being unsure of their direction he wasn't able to react properly. Thankfully the quills missed him and instead landed themselves all throughout Santa. Umaroth sprung to his feet atop the tree, his tail slashing through the air as a deep rumbling growl escaped from within him.

Creatures quite unlike any Umaroth had seen before began emerging from the shadows of the tree line. Long and narrow, with small round ears. They looked like stretched rats, but walked like man. These were beast-men? What were they doing here? No, that question was irrelevant. They were aggressive. They'd openly displayed their aggression, and even launched an attack. Who it was aimed for was irrelevant. Umaroth had been in the cross fire. His clawed nails crunched into the tree, producing the sound of cracking bark as Umaroth's ferocity began to surface.

Seven of them. Seven of these rats surrounding Umaroth and Santa Ajora. Umaroth wasn't cocky enough to know that this wouldn't be a cake walk. Not without any water to take advantage of. But, regardless, Umaroth was prideful. When presented with a challenge of strength he was unable to back down. Fight or flight began kicking in. And Umaroth chose fight. A heavy roar escaped between his jaws, signaling to the weasels that he was more than willing to fight. But fate would have it that he was not the only one ready to fight. His attention was drawn to Santa, who had caused the flesh dropping around her to erupt with bony protrusions. Three of the weasles had approached, two had fallen and one had escaped. Santa was taking the time to feed on her catches.

Umaroth frowned. Why was she eating in the middle of a fight? Save the eating for after you've won. He whipped his head back around, looking at the other hissing weasels. Santas abilities did a good job with making a barrier for them. These rodents would have trouble approaching with all those spikes in the way. But Umaroth was not one to hide. His legs began to bend in preparation to jump over the spikes and fight the weasels on the other side, but he stopped when everything just went wrong. The screeches of creatures that Umaroth dealt with occasionally reached his ears. His head whipped around, eyes widening at the sight of Hollows of various shapes and sizes emerging from tears in the air itself. What was happening? Why were Hollows, in such numbers, suddenly appearing? Santas words reached him, causing him to lower his gaze to her and blink. She was lowering her defenses?

He didn't know what was going on, but the reptile shot through the air after kicking off of the log and landing a good distance away from her and the weasels. They had converged into a tight circle to protect themselves, but the Hollows and Umaroth were ignoring them. The reptile had those eyes locked onto the ball of flesh that the Hollows had become. They had begun pilling on top of one another, squirming and biting and screaming. It was madness. Umaroth could barely see Santa when things became their worse. The Hollows were all biting one another, the smell of blood drifting into Umaroths nose.

Then it happened. He felt the suddenly surge of Spiritual Pressure from the collective mass. He watched as it all began moving as one, taking on a form coated in black. Umaroth felt one of his legs moving backwards, instinctively preparing him for whatever was about to happen. He recognized this thing. He recognized this towering mass. He'd seen it before. That otter's ship was similar, but that wasn't it. Back in that white hell he'd seen two of them. He'd seen two of these creatures fighting in the distance, their size making them visible from quite the distance away. The reptile blinked, not truly understanding what he was watching.

The creatures features began transforming, becoming similar in appearance to Santa Ajora. But even though it was similar, it was still different. Her torso had changed, for one. Secondly, she was much bigger and had that black cape. Umaroth's blue eyes had widened as he looked at her, then watched as four more of these towering monstrosities appeared from the sky. Just what the hell was happening?? His head bounced between each of those giant creatures, his tail thrashing as he began to grow rather anxious. But suddenly Santa screamed, stealing Umaroths attention back to her before she spoke. He blinked at her words. Two creatures resembling Santa Ajora sprouted from her gore and began to hiss at the weasels. The reptile, confused and anxious, remained where he stood looking between everything that was happening.

He looked up at Santa, blinking and tilting his head a little. "Santa Ajora?" He asked, not entirely sure if that was really her.

[Santa Ajora]

ajora paused, her attention shifting as she turned to glance at Umaroth, who seemed... so very small now. She gave a slow, gradual nod to the lizard before her attention shifted back in the direction of the weasels. Or at least where they had been a moment ago. In a crackle of an instant, the weasels were gone. And the sudden CRACK of those two summons of Ajora's being kicked upside the head echoed like a gunshot throughout the area, each of those entities decapitated by the sheer force of the strikes. The remaining weasels aside from those two had backed off, it was just the pair that was fighting now.

The Alphas.

Ajora had been about to react, about to unleash her more potent attacks, before suddenly one of those weasels was on her, a hand slamming into the center of her chest and grabbing onto a thick chunk of meat, before with one heavy TEAR,m that organ was ripped clean out, what appeared to be a heart dripping form it's hand as it then slammed it's other leg into Ajora, sending her crumpling to the ground in a heap as the weasel let out a shrill hiss into the air, it's body suddenly sleekening, sharp spikes erupting from it's fur as it dropped down onto all fours, a sudden BURST of wind erupting around it, the air whipping aroung it's body like scythes, the design of those spikes were like windmill arms. Twisted and flat so that every time the beast clan moved, the ai twisted and sickled around it's body, a sif surrounded by air scythes.

There was a loud BOOM as it began racing straight for Umaroth, with a speed that even the lizard would have to realize was close to his own, the air filled with the sound of the flesh and blood from Ajora's abilities being shredded by those sharp winds. With a twist, that animal aimed to plant it's left foot square into the center of Umaroth's chest, attempting to not only send the lizard flying, but to send him flying with a massive gale of shredding winds pushing him further and further.

Ajora twitched on the ground, slowly rising up and looking around. She vaguely recognized the shredded remains of her 'heart' on the ground. But she was not concerned. that was just a decoy. She had no heart. No Organs. No flesh or blood. It was a trick, naturally. Shinigami always assumed they had her, had her by stabbing her through a lung or something. Ripping out something they thought was important. Only to find she was not bothered at all. IT was rare for any shinigami to realize that it was her bones that were her real body. and hers were cracked. The agony was unlike anything she had felt in a logn long time. She winced, trying her best to keep herself focused. The ribs were cracked, and one of her tauric hooves was probably broken. She had tried to back up, putting all of her weight on that back hoof, so when she'd been hit, all of her weight, plus the force of that cic had gone straight to the leg.

She laid there on the ground, staying low, watching the fight as she began to plan. It would have to be subtle. she couldn't let the weasel notice her move. But she also had to be careful. She had to be precise. make a trap that was remotely set off, rather than reactive. It meant that there was no chance umaroth would accidentally get caught in it. But it also meant she would have to wait for a moment that the weasel was not only holding still, but near the trap when it went off. she began going through her mind, thinking of all the kinds of traps she knew how to make. But what to use...

[Deleted]

Well, things certainly went from bad to worse. Blue eyes narrowed as he watched the apparent leader of these rat like creatures step forward and fight against Santa, ripping from her chest what he believed to be a heart. Down the towering doe fell, leaving Umaroth to face against the enraged Alpha. Sure enough when it thought itself done with Santa, it turned its attention to the reptile. It came rushing towards him, the very wind itself bending and twisting around its sleek form and elongated spikes, with a speed comparable to his own. The reptiles eyes widened in response as he recognized what the weasel had done. It had unleashed that inner power that he too possessed. He noted how different it was, and for a moment couldn't help but feel an ounce of pride.

Because his was unique. Because his was different. For some reason he thought that, perhaps, all of those inner powers were the same in one way or another. But seeing the abilities of this weasel put those foolish doubts to rest. As the weasel rushed towards him, aiming to tackle into him and sending him flying with a combination of its strength and the blades of wind. But Umaroth wasn't going to let that happen. Down he went as his legs buckled and tail pressed into the ground. Power building up in his legs and tail that pushed him from the ground with a leap, sending him well over the weasel and its scythes of wind.

Landing he spun, turning to face the weasels backside before letting out a roar. His tail swung itself downwards, carving through the ground at his feet as he began letting it out. He tapped into that savagery within him, that animalist core that contained all of that awesome power. Santa Ajora would see it. Steam. It looked like steam rising off of the lizard. It began with the sound of crunching bone. She'd see the reptile thickening, filling out, becoming larger. A second set of, smaller, horns grew out from the top of his head while his original pair lengthened, as did the set growing along his jawline. His feathers began growing and lengthening, stretching down further and reaching around his shoulders like a cowl. The scales on his body began thickening, enlarging and becoming a lighter shade than those on the rest of his body. It was almost like Umaroth had grown armor across his back, chest, face and neck.

Returning to his full height and lifting his head, a green, mist like, energy began escaping from his eyes which had become the same cooler. As soon as he exhaled he became surrounded in a particle-like cloud of what seemed to be...dust? Regardless, Umaroth had transformed very much in a way similar to the first Alpha. Snarling, Umaroth let out a roar before stomping his foot into the ground and raising his arms up in front of him, almost like he was...taking on a imitation of some kind of fighting pose? It was crude, imperfect, flawed, and would get him smacked by any teacher...but it was apparent Umaroth had learned it from somewhere. He didn't have any reason to rush towards the weasel. He'd let it come to him.

[Santa Ajora]

That ravenous weasel was surprised that Umaroth was so easily able to avoid his attack, not to mention the concussive blast associated with it. But as those eyes narrowed, it was just a simple matter of peeling back those lips and letting out a low growling hiss. And watching as Umaroth took up that aggressive stance after his transformation, the weasel simply raised a hand, bracing it's middle finger behind it's thumb, and then flicking.

Unlike the booming whoosh of the aimed attack before, this was an incredibly fast, and narrow attack, like a spear fired from that fingertip, the drill of air shot toward Umaroth's chest like a bullet, the air itself twisting aroud it, obscuring the Weasel as it shot for Umaroth. And of course, it would be reasonable for Umaroth to dodge, maybe smack it away, or any number of other attacks, or maybe he would even get hit. Either way, the instant that bullet of air reached Umaroth, that weasel instantly appeared above the lizard, twisting before lashing out with a lion's barrage-style drop-kick the air above umaroth suddenly obliterated in an outward shockwave of razor-sharp air currents as the kick and subsequent wind-wave would crater the ground below them, shredding Santa's growth and the ground beneath it.

Of course, the other weasel was not going to just stand by, and it soon reared it's head back, screeching as it was about to leap in to support it's ally. Until suddenly it gagged, and it's eyes went wide as flesh began growing all over it's fur, it's open mough even gettng bone needles and oozing ligaments and organs to spull into it's tastebuds, along with that black blood. Santa rising up from her crumpled state, seeming perfectly fine, that hole in her chest gone, though still sunken in. The bones, the REAL part of her, had not regenerated, and she shook with fury. Her actual body had suffered some damage, and now, watching that second weasel flailing about, she narrowed her eyes and raised one of her long arms. Several long arms grew out of the ground, palms sprouting what looked like flowers, taking aim at the weasel befre there was a lout swarm of hissing before several long bone spikes thudded into the beast's body, blood gushing from it's chest.


But of course it was not down just yet. The best was strong, and BULKY. Well... size wise. It was quite tall, almost as tall as Santa, and it yanked those spikes out of it's chest, growling as it suddenly rushed it's way toward Santa. In an instant it's fur changed, lips peeled back, showing off razor-like teeth as a loud screeching aggressive noise escaped it's mouth. Two extra arms exploded from it's back, and long sickle-like blades erupted from it's elbows as the monster suddenly unleashed an attack like a drill, spinning as it aimed to slam into her, those long elbow-blades like a tornado.

Santa Panicked, immediately she activated one of her techniques, and immediately a burst of growth occurred, lurching up from the ground was a monolith of bone, armored and ready to take that powerful attack. Though a moment later and the sound of shredding bone sounded, like the sound of a dentist drilling, before the back of the barrier exploded, the beast sliding through the wreckage of her barrier before slamming it's clawed hand into her navel, thankfully where there was little bone, but plenty of flesh.

She twitched, her eyes widening as she reached down, long blades of bone emerging from her own palms before suddenly there was burst of heat inside of her. She lurched back and tore that hand out of the flesh, and tore at her own belly, ripping those faux guts out and watching as something dripped from those blades on the other weasel's body, watching the steam rising from her hand as well as the boiling flesh that oozed from her navel, turning black and dissolving. It was some sot of corrosive. Thankfully, new flesh was continuing to slough off of her body, taking that shit with it, but she was lucky. If any had gotten on her bone, it might have done some damage before shedding. And if it got on her mask.... that would have been worse.

She backed up, those needle flowers turning and firing, several new thunks as the beast staggered back, those sharp little spines digging into it's body before hissing as they too began to melt. Well shit. Now Santa was trying to figure out some new ideas. She considered possibly just drowning them in stomach acid. Maybe? Or cover them in lymph so that their attacks just slid across her body. she wasn't quite so sure now, and definitely she was nervous. But she was not afraid. She knew she could do this. She just needed to make sure the cost of doing so was not too high.

[Deleted]

Letting out yet another roar, Umaroth ducked and dived to his right to safely avoid the lance of shredding air. Such a simple and straightforward attack was not something that could catch the reptile off guard. Umaroth even began to question just how much battle experience this thing actually had. Pride comes before the fall. But Umaroth did learn something new. That this creatures attacks could be projectiles. That brief moment was all the weasel needed. Just that split second of the reptile not paying attention to the animal was all the weasel needed to get above him. Umaroth lost track of the weasel for just a moment, before his head snapped upwards as the rodent was coming down with that drop kick, releasing an obliterating blast of air downwards.

Umaroth crossed his arms above his head as he took the blast of air. God it hurt. But damn if it didn't send a strong message. He felt the scales along his arms being cut and shredded, being pushed down to his knees as the overwhelming pressure of the wind weighed down on him. But Umaroth was not one to submit. With a sudden burst of strength and primal fury he swung his arms away in opposite direction, blasting the wind away with his own strength and triumphant roar. Though bleeding his arms still had life in them. Using his own Shunpo, Umaroth exploded off of the ground directly upwards. His plan was simple, animal simple, but dear god would it be effective.

He slammed his head right into the weasel, jabbing those horns right into the rodents gut. Hot blood spilled down around his horns and atop his head, falling atop the rows of feathers. But more than that, the ever present cloud surrounded Umaroth had swallowed by the weasel as well, and the dangerous organism within began taking root and growing. All across the weasels body a disgusting growth colored in black and white began appearing. Covering every surface swallowed by the cloud, Umaroth yanked his horns free of the weasel and curved, aiming to deliver a kick to the weasels new injuries to separate the two of them. If anyone was watching, they would even see the injuries on his arms had stopped bleeding. The same growth covering the weasel now covering Umaroths injuries like scabs.

With a thud he landed, before expending some reiatsu and letting out a loud roar. The growth covering the weasel suddenly hissed, glowing red before violently exploding all over at once. If everything was successful, the weasels body would be torn apart, open, turned into a blood splattering mess that would wet any Hollows appetite. Umaroth was not one to suffer his opponent to live. He preferred to end fights quickly. His head snapped towards where Santa fell, to see how she was doing with her own problems.