Arc 1 ~ Canon 2: Lock-In in Berghain [R, DE]

[Johnwaluigi]

Shizuka had not only done a bit of digging, but had also reported her observations back to the group - a wise choice. Perhaps they would do better if they at least pooled information. She could not have known, however, that some of her observations were erroneous. At least one of them, anyway. The ‘lights’ were not particularly dangerous, at the moment. Moving near them wouldn’t have any negative consequences - and would reveal to the observer that they were not, in fact, lights. Instead they were some other kind of electrical device - their plastic casing hiding some wiring. But their purpose would remain a mystery for now.

Luke would find quite the assortment of alcohol behind the bar - basically every kind of drink he could think of and more. An alcoholic’s paradise. But there were other useful objects behind the counter too. A ring of keys and a lighter, clearly left by the unlucky bartender on their last day of work. And several metal canisters that contained… liquid nitrogen? Or at least that’s what the label would read. The mixers served at the Berghain truly were eclectic. Flash-frozen cream in a Coke and Rum anyone? Whether Luke had the cocktail expertise to make a drink out of it was irrelevant - such high pressure canisters could both be a liability and an asset.

Kenji, being the closest to the centre of the room, would notice the change in atmosphere first. A low hum echoing throughout the Berghain’s lobby dance-floor. Luke would notice it second, and Shizuka would perhaps have been alerted at this stage by other two. The slow throbbing rose in pitch and intensity, until it stopped with a sudden crack. A flash of bright light from one of the devices on the floor would blind them for an instant, a white flash that was clearly spiritual in nature. And as their visions quickly recovered, they would find that they were not alone in the room.

AUGMENTED VASTO LORDE
Class: ??
Threat Level: 6/10

Its shrill yell echoed throughout the hall - but it seemed to be somewhat disoriented from whatever process brought it here. It stood in the centre of the room, wildly brandishing its weapon and shaking its head - as if trying to get its bearings. Now was the motley crew’s chance to counterattack! What would work against the beast? Could they use any of their newfound knowledge to their advantage?

[Shizuka Sanamizu ✮]

All Shizuka heard was a sound while she was watching Luke mess around behind the bar. She had ignored it for a while since she assumed it was just something outside the building. She giggled at Luke's joke before she was suddenly twitching her ears in reaction to the humming noise. That didn't last long before she heard something else that sounded like a limb breaking. She tried turning around to see what was going on, but she was horribly blinded for a moment by a flashing light. When she finally regained her vision after a few moments, Shizuka focused her eyes on the giant monster in the middle of the room.

"Oh, balls."

With awful timing, the Hollow appeared in front of the three of them. Shizuka backed herself away against the wall behind her and observed for a moment. The Hollow was obviously very confused about something. It was possible the reason for this was because it had been summoned randomly, which would make sense. Shizuka didn't think Hollows could just spontaneously make themselves appear out of nowhere without making a portal or something, but even she had to admit she didn't know much about these creatures. She had killed some from time to time, but she never studied them.

She decided staying quiet for now was probably her best bet. She didn't want to wait too long, especially since this was a good chance to attack this thing. But she didn't know anything about it. From experience, she knew it was a bad idea to run in without knowing how her opponent was going to fight. It made things difficult, because she couldn't necessarily attack first, but it's something she figured would be better to do than risk her life off the bat. Still, killing it right now might be really easy. It was stunned and probably easy to take down. But still, something nagged her in the back of her mind to stay put for the moment. Ugh, she hated being cautious.

[Deleted]

"Hmm?" Luke murmured when he discovered something as he scrounged around behind the bar. The pair of keys jingled as he pulled them from their spot, along with the lighter that was close by. The young man blinked as he inspected both of the items he found, going over each key and flicking the lid on and off the lighter. I think I'll keep these. Might be useful. Luke confessed, wondering if these keys would do anything for the door downstairs. The lighter? Who knew. The reason he was keeping it was because of his memories of playing Resident Evil, and how important the item had been in that game. "You have a retarded train of thought." Jäger decided to comment as his Master pocketed the two items.

More than that though was the discovery of a few canisters of...was that liquid nitrogen? "Sheesh...the hell were they giving people to drink?" Luke asked with a smile of disbelief. Even Taka's bar didn't have this crap. As Luke looked over the canisters though, an idea had begun to form in his mind. This stuff is explosive...that means... His smile turned into a mischievous, toothy, grin as the idea began to take shape. "I like this idea." Springflut decided to comment. "I don't." Nobody asked you.

But as Luke began to stand up to tell everyone what he had found, and to explain the idea he had, something happened. Something in the room changed. Luke felt the hairs on his body beginning to stand up as he heard the ever increasing volume of an odd humming sound. Suddenly an electrical crack and a flash of light that Luke shielded his eyes from with a raised arm. "The hell??" Luke asked, lowering his arm when the flash died down. But his wincing eyes suddenly shot open with surprise when he saw what was now in the room with them. It's physical appearance and the spiritual presence it gave off was unmistakable. A Hollow! Where had it came from though? It was hovering over the assortment of lights that everyone's attention had been focused on. Where they some kind of teleporter?

No. None of that mattered right now. A threat had appeared. Just from sensing it Luke could tell this thing was strong. It seemed dazzed and confused, as if whatever technology that had brought it here was something it wasn't accustomed to. Whoever thought to sent it here would watch as their first weapon failed because they didn't take the time to get the fucking thing used to being teleported! While Shizuka had backed herself away to observe the situation, Luke did the exact opposite. He seemingly vanished from behind the bar. He used Movement, the weakest and most basic of Human World step techniques, to travel from behind the bar (900 Speed) to in the air behind the Hollow's massive head.

The Hollow was on his right side, as Luke didn't turn himself to stand on airground or taking a forward facing position. In his right hand, which had bent and curved around him to be pointing outwards to his left, held a sword. The sword was transparent, only obviously a sword by its shape, and looked like it was made from reiatsu and the air itself. He may not have had his Artificial Zanpakuto, but he had the infinite armory that was Advanced Air Arsenal. Back of the neck...before it recovers..before it notices! Was Luke's train of thought as his brown eyes opened wide, and he swung with all his might at the back of the Hollow's neck. He aimed to sever the nape of the neck, to slice his sword through the Hollow and sever everything important in there. Naturally if it worked, even a Hollow would most likely die from the damage done to that area of the body.

AAA Duration 0 / 2

Remaining Reiatsu: 6775 / 7000
-25 for Movement
-200 for Class 4 Advanced Air Arsenal

Panel Durability: 375

[Masaaki Kenji]

Kenji couldn't help but smirk at Luke's joke and he was actually considering having something to drink... this situation was unique and the odds didn't seem very good at this point but he was more worried for his subordinate because he couldn't feel any sign of him at all. He relatively new to his post so Kenji couldn't help but worry for him. While he was concerned for him, he needed to be sure on his own safety because he didn't know these people. He had to worry for himself first.

However soon he felt it, a presence slowly emerging as the atmosphere changed drastically, he knew he had to worry about something. Something was coming... and he knew that it wasn't good. However this was quickly confirmed as he noticed the gadget on the floor light up before a flash went off as Kenji stumbled around blind. However, when the light cleared from his eyes, he realised that he wasn't alone.

He looked up at the giant ass creature that was standing in the hallway and Kenji let out one of the most undignified sentences leave his mouth. "Fucking shit". However he quickly sprinted his ass across the room and over the table as he watched Luke go in for the kill. However since he hadn't ever seen a hollow that could just appear like that, he had to watch and see how it would react.

[Johnwaluigi]

Two of the three held back and hesitated, unsure whether the “opening” was an “opening” at all. However Luke was proactive. Exploiting the opening which had been given to him. Seizing the chance that was before him with both hands. It was an admirable event - and despite the fact that it was going to be unsuccessful it would yield a lot of information about the enemy before them. The Vasto Lorde, still reeling from whatever process had brought him here, was unable to deal with the attack himself. However, the protection that he had been bestowed by his master would be enough to hold him off.

As Luke moved closer to the Hollow, he would feel a twinge of pain. The pain would slowly grow, spreading throughout his core and body until the burning became unbearable. It was like dipping his body into a pool of acid if he managed to get as far as the Hollow’s neck. What would be more worrying, however, would be the state of the weapon he had generated. As he moved closer, the simple technique began to falter. It was requiring more and more effort to maintain the shape of the blade, and as soon as he was within striking distance of the Hollow the blade would simply dissolve. There was nothing he could do about it. Perhaps this series of events would be enough to get the Bount out of this mysterious range of the Hollow - perhaps not.

The Hollow, who was most certainly not felled by Luke’s attack regardless, had regained it s composure. And slowly moved down the dance floor - advancing towards the weakest of the three, Masaaki Kenji. On its right arm, a scythe of some dense blue material glowed brilliantly in the dim confines of the nightclub. With a grand motion, the Hollow raised the blade, and brought it crashing down vertically - right on the spot that the Shinigami was occupying. Dodging would be absolutely necessary. Or perhaps blocking, if Kenji was feeling brave. However, given how Luke’s technique had interacted with the Hollow, would Kenji be able to use his techniques as well as usual? The pain in his body was building as well - a pain that would be familiar to him - so perhaps evasion was the only option.

Shizuka, on the other hand, was completely free. The Hollow had ignored her in favour of the weaker prey. But would she be able to muster up the resolve to save someone she hated? Or would she let the Shinigami meet their grisly end? The three had options. But one thing was certain - this was not your average Hollow from Hueco Mundo. The huge number of what looked like implants on its body gave that away immediately. How would they deal with what seemed like an insurmountable threat?

[Shizuka Sanamizu ✮]

Shizuka's eyes darted from the Hollow to the Shinigami. In a short amount of time, she was able to realize its plans to advance on the reaper. While she considered for a moment the possibility of letting him die and how convenient that would be, she was sure he was also here for a reason. She hated the fact that it was like she was actually willing to give this Shinigami the benefit of the doubt, but she has met a couple of half-decent ones once or twice. They weren't part of the Gotei, though. Well, one wasn't. The other was her grandmother, and Shizuka found it pretty difficult to hate family enough to want to kill them.

The Hollow had only begun to advance when the Fullbringer stepped in Kenji's direction with Bringer Light. She didn't want to risk being too terribly slow, and she knew this would be fast enough, regardless. She practically ran into him, knocking him out of the way, careful to wrap her arm around him in the process as to not injure him too badly. With any luck, she'd be able to get him far away enough from the Hollow to where they could think of something to do. She still had no idea what this thing was capable of, and it didn't really show any signs of abilities aside from its weapon-like arm.

Shizuka stopped in the opposite corner of the room from where she was. This way, it was more possible to gather her bearings. This was good. She wouldn't necessarily be able to sit back and observe anymore, but she got one useless idiot out of the way. Hopefully Luke would be able to figure something out since his attack didn't seem to have much of an effect, and that was also strange. She wasn't sure why it simply didn't work, but she was sure to keep her distance from the beast, regardless. She made sure she didn't come any closer than she had been before, even during the technique.

"Don't bother thanking me for this, okay? It's not like I wanted to save you. But I don't know what this thing's abilities are yet, and you may help us figure it out. You're in the Gotei, aren't you? Use what you know."

But would he even listen to her?

[Deleted]

The results of Luke's attack were not something the Bount had expected. As he approached the sizable Hollow from its exposed backside he had ended up encroaching into some unseen field. As he neared the Hollow he began to feel the sensation of pain growing throughout his body. Just what was it? Brown eyes began to widen as the closer he came to the Hollow the greater the pain became. Greater and greater it became until Luke began to imagine that this must be what being dipped in acid felt like. It caught him by surprise, of that there was no doubt, but the most shocking detail was what he watched happen to his air panel sword.

It was like the sword was dipped in acid itself. It was dissolving before his very eyes. The closer the sword came to the Hollow the quicker the erosion became. Just what the hell was...the pain was becoming so great Luke couldn't think. His foot pressed into airground before he kicked himself backwards, escaping the Hollows unknown ability. The departure of the pain let Luke breath again. He took in deep gulps of air before raising his head to witness the thing approaching Kenji. What the hell was that...? Luke wondered, suddenly seeing the Hollow form a weapon similar to a scythe. Before he could send reiatsu to his legs Shizuka had jumped into action. Surprisingly, she saved Kenji.

"Don't get close to it! It has some kind of pain inducing field surrounding it that also destroyed my sword!" Luke shouted at them, mostly at Shizuka, as he returned his focus on the Hollow to try and think up a plan. The option to use ranged attacks looked really good right now, but there was a small problem with that. Luke's ranged arsenal was incredibly limited. He practically had no ranged options. He found his left hand reaching around his waist into his back pocket, as if looking for something, before he pulled his arm back. No. He wouldn't release unless there was no other options. "Honestly seems like options are kinda limited." Jäger decided to comment.

That wasn't true though. There was still Shizuka and Kenji. The Bount bounced his head towards Shizuka and Kenji, his Energy Sensory getting another reading on both of them. "Fourth seat! Use Kido on it! Now!" Luke shouted. He wanted see what sort of effects the Kido that Kenji was bragging about earlier had on this thing. Though Luke certainly had no real idea what Kido was it was certainly better than standing around and doing nothing.

[Masaaki Kenji]

Kenji watched Luke go in for the kill and he knew something was wrong immediately as he saw Luke hesitate when he went in for the kill. Then he saw the wince of pain that Luke showed on his face and he knew something was wrong for sure. He knew that there was something that he couldn't see and he needed to figure out what was going on. However that wouldn't be for long before he would figure it out however as he watched the hollow form a scythe and start heading towards him. However before Kenji could do anything, he watched the Hollow raise his blade and he was about to raise his blade to block however, he was grabbed and carefully carried away. He looked at Shizuka with shock as he looked at her but he gave a simple nod to her in thanks and got ready to spring into action. 

As soon as he heard Shizuka and Luke's encouragement to use his kido abilities, he knew he had to do something. He just got up and ran to get vision on the beast, while sheathing his sword, making sure he knew everything that was going on as he knew that he had to make sure that he was aware of everything going around him. Once he had enough space, he knew what he was going to do. "Bakudo #9 Horin!" Kenji shouted as the tendrils of light shot out of his fingertips and wrapped themselves round the hollows mass. While the opponent was bound, he knew that he had one chance to output as much damage as possible. “Sprinkled on the bones of the beast! Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring. Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. The sound of warring spears fills the empty castle! Hado #63 Raikōhō” as soon as Kenji shouted his technique, he watched the mass amount of electrical energy speed towards his target and explode in a flurry of electricity and light. While he was initially happy with the result, he then felt the pain radiating over his whole body which caused him to wince loudly. 

Kenji leapt back, making sure that he was as far away from the thing as possible as he waited for the smoke to disperse to see what kind of damage he had created.

4000 - 25 - 150 = 3825 reiatsu remaining

[Johnwaluigi]

Luke had correctly identified that there was some ‘field’ around the beast, some unseen power that had both caused him pain and destroyed his technique. But what sort of strange ability had been able to, so quickly, dissolve a technique that he had practically mastered? It was clear that conventional attacks - those which the three were the most practiced in - were not perfectly functional. This was not to mention the strange field which seemed to cause pain to all those around it. Even Shizuka and Kenji, who were neither that close nor had spent that long near it, would feel the pain as they approached and fled from it. It was quite the enigma.

The heavy blade, which it had swung with a considerable amount of force at Kenji, bounced dully off the the nightclub floor - barely making a faint scratch in the woodwork. The minor damage was remarkable, given the strength behind the blow. But they did not have to worry about that attack, for Shizuka and Kenji had successfully evaded it. Smartly, the team had decided not let up in their attacks on the beast. Kenji had acted swiftly on Luke’s command - firing Kido of considerable strength at the beast. Unfortunately for him, however, his magic spells would end up causing him more damage than the monster he faced.

Perhaps Kenji would be in too much pain to notice, but the other two would surely have seen the effect of the Kido on the beast - that was, to say, no effect. The bindings of light, which would have usually bound themselves tight around the target, were instead locked around what seemed to be a translucent blue shell - before they dissolved into nothingness. The electricity had a similar effect - each spark merely illuminated a portion of this unusual defence before dissipating into nothing. The effects, it seemed, were quite similar to the field on the door that was down the stairs - an outright rejection of spiritual material, the sign of Sekki Sekki. How could they penetrate such a shield?

Perhaps their newfound knowledge of the shield would allow them to realise that the absolute defence was not without its cost. Where the generators of the blue light were strapped to the beast, they would notice that its flesh was corroding - being eaten away by the very power that was keeping it safe. It clumsy movements and primal behaviour - very atypical of a Vasto Lorde - were not a product of its own stupidity, but rather the pain it was in… But its pain was a fuel for its anger and displeasure. With an anguished roar, it raised its blade once again, before spinning on its axis. Round and round the blade went, like a a deadly spinning top. Using the force of the rotation, it tilted itself towards Luke - the width of the attack keeping Luke from easily reaching the others. As it moved closer, he would feel that slow pain begin to build again. If this attack had been performed by any other being, it would have been easy to take advantage of its clumsy nature - but while he was at such an overwhelming disadvantage? Things would be tricky for the young Bount.

[Deleted]

Since the Hollow is directly attacking Luke I'll go ahead and post. Also, rule of cool is on my side here ᕦ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)ᕤ

Just what was happening? Brown eyes widened as he witnessed the effect that Kenji's energy attacks, or Kido as he called them, had on the Hollow. Just like before with his Air Arsenal construct Kenji's attacks simply disintegrated and had no obvious affect on the Hollow. But watching carefully revealed something to Luke. The appearance of that blue shell made his eyes widen a bit more, before blinking and returning to their normal position. It had more than just the field of pain, it seemed. It had a barrier that Luke had begun to assume was destroying anything spiritual based. It only made sense. Luke's sword had been made from air and reiatsu and Kenji's attacks were just straight up pure reiatsu. It stood to reason then that this Hollow was protected from reiatsu.

"Well that just tickles the tits." Jäger commented when Luke came to that realization. But there was no time for jokes. Because that Hollow was beginning to turn its attention towards the young Bount, deciding to launch an attack against the one who tried to attack it first. "Dumbass! It's coming!" Springflut shouted when both Dolls realized that Luke wasn't moving. He just stood there, staring at the Hollow, while the gears in his head were obviously turning. There was nothing natural about this Hollow, Luke realized, as he looked at the various implants covering its body. Whoever was in charge of all of this had actually managed to turn a Hollow into a true and blue living weapon.

"Tch." Luke clicked his tongue as he barred his teeth. Thinking about the Hollow as a living weapon had pissed him off. "Earth to dumbass do you not see the Hollow!?" Jäger yelled as the Hollow neared Luke's position. "I bet we're putting on quite the show for you bastards, huh?" Luke suddenly asked with a chuckle as a smirk painting itself across his features. Who was he talking to? Luke was referring to the bastards who were, undoubtedly, watching this fight unfold and the ones that sent the Hollow to them in the first place. "I, Luke Clyburn, am a man striving to become a hero of justice. And I've seen it enough to spot true evil when I see it." Luke shouted, clutching his hand into a fist.

"Oh for fucks sake.."

"Evil is when you use the powers of the spirit world for your own gain with no regard for other people's lives. And that's exactly what you've bastards done, isn't it?" Luke asked, throwing a sharp glare at the Hollow that was currently doing its best impression of a beyblade and hurling itself at time. "Can you please do this later and deal with the Hollow??" Jäger begged, neither Dolls being able to handle what Luke was doing. "And because you're using Hollows you get to hide from the victims, the law, and the consequences." Luke shouted, just as that bladed arm prepared to come into contact with Luke, the pain the Hollow's power caused taking effect in his body.

"And so that's why...I will judge you myself!"

But when that blade would collide with the Bount, something unexpected happened. The instant the blade touched him, Luke's body suddenly exploded into a thick cloud of mist with the activation of Nebel. He was smart to keep the mist far enough away from the Hollow's body so it wouldn't even run the risk of touching that field of Sekki Sekki, but still kept close enough to completely blanket the Hollows vision. From outside that Silent Hill like cloud of mist, Shizuka and Kenji would see streams of the mist coming together above the major cloud. That concentration of the mist would suddenly turn into Luke, who let gravity pull him downwards towards the unsuspecting and confused Hollow. His right arm was pulled back and clenched into a knuckle whitening fist.

Luke had come to realize something. The field that surrounded the Hollow was destroying reiatsu that came into contact with it. That was fine. But Luke had thought of a way to get around that. The pain the Hollow produced was mind numbing, but credit where credit was due it wasn't bothering Luke one bit. His Pain Tolerance was helping, yes, but his Strength of Will was what was really helping here. His outcry had really fired him up, making him immune to the effects of the pain so long as his will remained iron clad. "I'll teach you justice-" Luke shouted as his right arm suddenly become enlarged from strengthened muscles. The very veins in his arm illuminated with an intense streaking red light as steam rose off of his arm.

"With my own two hands!!" Luke shouted once more before throwing his fist, which became surrounded by a cone of crimson energy, forward into the top of the Hollow's head. Shizuka, being one of the strongest Human World Dwellers, should have recognized that technique instantly. Luke had used part of the Output technique, Impact. A power that would shoot his impact strength up by 4x his normal Strength for a short period, making it a devastatingly powerful attack. The Hollow had already showed that it wasn't exactly the brightest light bulb and wasn't really fast on the uptake of things. It was no doubt in ridiculous pain from the implants, and its own abilities might have given it over confidence in its defense thus causing it to lose its sense of self preservation.

When Luke's empowered fist came colliding with the Hollow, the result was messy to say the least. A gale of wind from the impact would blast out from the impact, blowing down anything that wasn't really nailed down. Luke, having superhuman strength, could make good use of Impact. Why would this work when none of the other attacks worked though? The answer was actually stupidly simple. Advanced Air Arsenal and Kenji's Kidos worked by bringing reiatsu out into the real world and giving it shape and purpose. The defense of Sekki Sekki around the Hollow would destroy the exposed reiatsu. But Impact, while it used reiatsu, kept it inside Luke's body and was used to empower the Bount's own abilities. The implants defensive field couldn't fuck with reiatsu inside the body. This was why Impact would work.

His right arm noticeably trembled and twitched, the side effect anyone who could use Output would know about when Impact was used. It was a very physically draining move and was not the sort of technique you wanted to use in quick successions because it could shorten your life. "I'm not so weak that making my body ache a little is going to stop me." Luke commented softly, closing his right hands trembling fingers into a fist. His right sleeve was torn and ruined, so Luke just decided to take his sweater off leaving him in a white t-shirt and jeans. "That was reckless." Springflut decided to comment. "Huh, what, you killed it? Sorry I'm stuck on that fucking speech you gave. Total cringe." Luke ignored them.

"You two okay?" Luke asked as he turned to his two companions.

Remaining Reiatsu: 6475 / 7000
-100 for Nebel
-200 for Output: Impact

[Shizuka Sanamizu ✮]

Shizuka was just shocked. She was completely taken aback by Luke's speech and even more shocked that he put so much effort into his attack. However, despite her awe in her friend, she needed to get her head in the game. She turned to Luke and nodded before running through the brief pain she felt due to the Hollow's barrier. Her goal was to get a hold of some of the canisters of liquid nitrogen. By nature, nitrogen is not flammable at all and actually can extinguish flames. On the other hand, these are canisters. Typically, canisters are air-tight. That means there's a lot of built-up pressure.

"You guys need to get back. There won't be much of an explosion, but since neither of you can use Soul Command, you'll have to protect yourself."

She spoke loud enough for Kenji and Luke to hear, but she was on a mission. After grabbing about nine canisters of liquid nitrogen, sure to leave a few behind, she positioned herself behind the Hollow. It wasn't the smartest monster in the world, so for so long as it was stunned, she'd be safe for a moment. Shizuka quickly placed them all next to each other and found a knife among the other bar tools. This was going to help. The Fullbringer stood behind the bar and made note of the canisters' distances from the Hollow. They were close enough, so hopefully this would work. If it wasn't going to allow them to use Reiatsu, maybe actual materials would be best.

Shizuka used Soul Command to telekinetically suspend the knife before she stabbed it in each of the canisters, forcing the pressured air inside to escape, leaving only the nitrogen. Within a few seconds of each stabbing, Shizuka repeatedly snapped her fingers, causing small sparks to hit the quickly expelling air. A swift movement of her left hand, the one she wasn't snapping with, made it so she separating the oxygen from the other air particles enough to make small explosions. That would act as a propulsion system. The sparks created by her snaps ignited the oxygen, causing damage to the canisters as they shot themselves towards the Hollow. If the nine of them managed to hit the beast, the force would bring them to blow themselves the rest of the way up. There would be no excessive amount of flame or combustion since the nitrogen wasn't flammable, but all of that material would hit the Hollow, regardless.

"Well, if that works, it should be too cold to move. Or worse. I just hope that helps."

[Masaaki Kenji]

Kenji watched with anticipation as his attacks headed towards the the hollow and then they just stopped, his horin just wrapping itself round the bubble pathetically like it was nothing. Raikaho did nothing either and all Kenji could do was feel anger and rage boiling through his core like liquid lava. All he could feel was the rage burning inside him and he sure as hell was going to make that monster pay, even if it was going to cost him his life. He was about to raise his blade and charge however he soon heard Luke's speech he stopped and faltered. What Kenji heard next was the biggest case of verbal diarrhoea he had ever heard though he did enjoy watching the fight that followed. 

He watched in awe as Luke went in using his fists as they glowed and Kenji watched what he deemed to be the best boxing match that he had ever seen. However the pain that Luke was in played to his advantage, as it seemed like he was relying on adrenaline to keep him going throughout his speech and his beatdown of the enemy, which he didn't mind that much. However what he was more interested in was the fullbringer dragging him over the bar. However when she fired the liquid nitrogen over the bar towards the hollow, he was rather thankful that he was dragged over. However, he looked over at Shizuka with interest as she offered her two cents on the situation

"Shall I deal with it, or do you want to?" he asked plainly, almost with no emotion, just purely focused on the situation at hand.

    

[Johnwaluigi]

The pain Luke would feel was unbelievable. Beyond any pain he had ever felt previously, physical or emotional. Every inch he moved closer to the Hollow would increase the burning pain within him tenfold - his body and soul holding together only because he possessed a physical body. Any Shinigami or Arrancar, for example, would have been immediately disintegrated by the strength of the Sekki Sekki field. But his body would hold together - and he would force his way through. Why? Because a hero must always win. That singular idea would carry him through the pain, unbelievable pain, and would allow him to successfully land his attack. Was he charged Output, the pain would only increase - the fluctuation in his Reiatsu only agitating the field.

But in spite of this immense pain, his attack would land. He had been correct in assuming that the Hollow was not in the best shape. Like him, it had to put up with this constant pain. Its mental faculties were not half of what they once were. Maybe not even quarter. It was doing all it could to cling to life, but that blow had knocked the spirit out of it. It dropped its massive blade after the impact. Trying to regain its composure, it groaned… Only to be assaulted by the combination of attacks Shizuka had formed with objects from the club. Each successive impact floored the Hollow, unimpeded by its shield. The attacks were effective in finishing what Luke had started. The Hollow collapsed, and one-by-one the lights on its implants flickered out.

As soon as it drew its last breath, the team would see what duress its body was under. It was promptly devoured by the shield that had protected it. The corpse of their assailant was slowly eaten by the blue material, bit by bit until nothing but a few drops of blood and a fragment of Sekki Sekki. The beast had been defeated, partly by the team but their success was also owed to whoever had installed these torturous implants into the Hollow. While it had granted an almost invulnerable shield, the price it had paid to continue was too great.

The fight, while short, would be informative. They now knew someone or something was keeping tabs on them. They also knew the nature of the field around the door to the next floor, and perhaps could engineer some way to get around it. This was quite the achievement for the team. Now that the first hurdle had been overcome, they would have to continue deeper to discover the mysteries of the illustrious German nightclub. What had killed all those people, and then returned the club to a pristine state? Why was it being guarded by this Hollow? Why had a small panel beside the door to the next floor popped open to reveal a small card reader? These were all questions that were yet to be answered.

[Deleted]

The ragtag combination of Luke's Output empowered punch and Shizuka's explosive use of the liquid nitrogen canisters had gotten the results that all three of them had wanted. Luke's punch did tremendous damage and the explosive canisters had finished it off. Or perhaps all they had done was beat the life out of something without much of it left. It was something he noticed when the Hollow had gone down. The defensive system it had implanted into its body had eaten away at it. The field of Sekki Sekki surrounded the beast tore away at its body, reducing it to nothing more a few droplets of blood and a small left over of the material that made up its barrier.

Luke lowered his arm when it was all done. Following Shizuka's advice the Bount had moved himself away from the Hollow as she launched her missile canister attack. Seeing the Hollow reduced to nothing after what the duo had done to it made him smirk. A victory couldn't help but bring a smile to his face, but that was quickly ended when Luke was finally hit by the pain of that barrier. Earlier, as Luke stood off against the Hollow, the mans Strength of Will and Pain Tolerance allowed him to just completely shrug off what was thrown at him. The man had used adrenaline, inspiration, dedication, and willpower to push himself through the barrier to deal with the Hollow. But now that the moment was over...

"Gggghk!" Luke winced, immediately grabbing onto his weakened arm that had used Impact. The pain shooting through his body was comparable to the sensation he experienced when one of his Doll's died. No, honestly, Luke wasn't sure what was worse. The Bount visibly winced as he grabbed at his drained arm, as it was the worst of all his body, and did what he could to just remain on his feet. "And this is what you get for making that anime speech! Weeabos get beat up!" Jäger decided to comment. Despite what the idiot said, Luke knew that releasing his Dolls might have just gained the same results as when Kenji cast those spells.

Brown eyes drifted over to the blonde Fullbringer before he lifted his arm up and gave her a smile and thumbs up. "Can you even walk?" Springflut asked. Luke decided to make him eat his words. He lifted his leg, despite the pins and needles of pain, and took a step. "It-" damn, even talking hurt "might not be too much of a stretch to think that they've got more Hollows tricked out like that." Luke commented, slowly leaning down and picking up the remnant of Sekki Sekki left behind. Looking it over, Luke decided to slip it into his pocket.

Turning his attention to Kenji, Luke felt like thanking him for using those Kido spells when he ordered him too. But there was something more pressing on hand. "It looks like...whatever it was surrounded in completely decimates exposed reiatsu." He was stating the obvious, but saying it outloud had its benefits. Rubbing his arm, Luke returned his attention to Shizuka. "But physical hits and objects hit it just fine. So we shouldn't have any problems if we handle them like this!" Luke said with a smirk, clenching his fist together. "Is that a fact?" Springflut asked, Luke realizing that the Doll saw right through him.

Despite Luke's confident and tough act, the state he was in was less than good. The pain causing effects had certainly done a number on him. If he wasn't the stubborn bastard that he was he might not even be standing. Despite what I'm saying...I'm hoping I won't have to do that again. I don't think my body can take it. Luke commented to himself. "An apple a day keeps the Hollow away." What? "Shizuka, are there anymore of those canisters left? I was thinking we could use them to blow that door you mentioned open." Luke told her, muddy browns keeping their gaze on her.

[Shizuka Sanamizu ✮]

At least what they did worked. The Hollow won't be a problem, and Shizuka allowed herself to ignore Kenji for now. He wasn't really much help, which was expected of a Shinigami. They're all useless. If it wasn't for the Fullbringer and Luke, Kenji would be dead right now. She expected insanely large amounts of gratitude, but was met with what seemed like emotionless sarcasm. Well, if he gets in trouble again, he's dead. Shizuka decided pretty quickly that she wasn't going to save him. She gave these disgusting creatures entirely too many chances and was always met with disappointment.

Luke was going through some kind of strange inner turmoil or something, which was odd, but even Shizuka talked to herself from time to time. But, for now, to answer his question, she simply happily nodded in his direction while making sure he saw her gesture. She motioned for him to come over and check, but there were only about five or so canisters left. They might be able to find more if they looked around, but the pressurized gases within the canisters would make excellent explosives. That much was already obvious in her previous demonstration. That was good news, at least.

"So what do you think? Are we going to try to blow the door?"

She paused for a moment.

"I'm sorry, I meant blow the door up. Not blow it like... Well, like, we're not going to... Ugh, never mind. I'm retarded."

Shizuka picked up two canisters, one in each arm, and started walking towards the door she'd found beforehand. She motioned with her head for Luke to pick some up, too, and maybe Kenji would offer to help. Probably not, though. He barely helped anyway. But if the door was coated in the same stuff the Hollow was, blowing it up was an option. They needed to try something since it was obvious they needed to get through this specific path. It was blocked for a reason and they all needed to figure out why. The only downside was that they were going to have to probably face something even worse than that Hollow. That wouldn't be fun.

"Luke, you coming with?"