Bleach Postcards from the Edge

The Sandman

Well-Known Member
#76
zeebee1 said:
Can you ever have enough?
Well, a little bit of DFC now and again probably makes for a refreshing change of pace.

That's why he and Rukia probably "keep in touch". Emphasis on the touching part. :snigger:
 

Xon

Well-Known Member
#77
zeebee1 said:
I have a feeling that Ichigo was actualy right. That what he needs to know is instinctual. Can you really learn instinct?
The human brain has the ability to "hardwire" physical responses into the brain stem which bypass the rest of the thinking parts of the brainhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscle_memory' target='_blank'>muscle memory</a>, encoded in the brain stem, not the muscles themselves!). Instinct can be considered a mixture of muscle memory and procedural memory.


So technically, yes :P
 

mindpron

Well-Known Member
#78
Cyn said:
jbcarpen Posted on Mar 19 2009, 09:02 PM
á QUOTE (theM @ Mar 19 2009, 07:18 PM)
QUOTE (lunaitc)
QUOTE (Nikas_Zekeval @ Mar 19 2009, 12:54 PM)
A bored Kisuke is more dangerous than banging on a nuclear bomb with a sledgehammer.á á


fixed



You realize nuclear bombs don't detonate on impact, right?á?


Not only that, but if you bang on it hard enough, it's possible to knock components out of alignment enough to take it from a nuclear device to a dirty chemical explosive. The alignment needs to be really precise to guarantee a nuclear reaction.

However, the amount of banging it would take to do that is sufficient that you'll get better results with a screwdriver and a basic understanding of bomb construction.á
The scary thing is that is true. The US air force requires a college degree to fly a plane but only a GED to work on the ICBMs and the Nukes. How twisted is that.
My brother is a nuke and, believe me, the entry level may be low but the one's that actually handle said nukes do so after going for two years to a school that is so hard it has 10% suicide rate. That's not the failure rate, that's the SUICIDE rate. The school is so obsessively hard that it drives people to kill themselves. Of course the 18 hour days and 7 day weeks might have something to do with that.

That whole GED thing is myth of misunderstanding.
 

ryushi

Well-Known Member
#79
mindpron said:
Cyn said:
jbcarpen Posted on Mar 19 2009, 09:02 PM
á QUOTE (theM @ Mar 19 2009, 07:18 PM)
QUOTE (lunaitc)
QUOTE (Nikas_Zekeval @ Mar 19 2009, 12:54 PM)
A bored Kisuke is more dangerous than banging on a nuclear bomb with a sledgehammer.á á


fixed



You realize nuclear bombs don't detonate on impact, right?áá


Not only that, but if you bang on it hard enough, it's possible to knock components out of alignment enough to take it from a nuclear device to a dirty chemical explosive. The alignment needs to be really precise to guarantee a nuclear reaction.

However, the amount of banging it would take to do that is sufficient that you'll get better results with a screwdriver and a basic understanding of bomb construction.á
The scary thing is that is true. The US air force requires a college degree to fly a plane but only a GED to work on the ICBMs and the Nukes. How twisted is that.
My brother is a nuke and, believe me, the entry level may be low but the one's that actually handle said nukes do so after going for two years to a school that is so hard it has 10% suicide rate. That's not the failure rate, that's the SUICIDE rate. The school is so obsessively hard that it drives people to kill themselves. Of course the 18 hour days and 7 day weeks might have something to do with that.

That whole GED thing is myth of misunderstanding.
hello again. I saw this comment and just had to reply. I am currently a Navy NUC, Electrical Operator, and this shit is damn hard. Think 6 years of a technical school squashed down into 1 and a half. And that's on top of standing watch, dealing with idiots, and trying not to get kicked out of the program due to stupid shit (underage drinking is a big one). It's...pretty rough.
 

daniel_gudman

KING (In Land of Blind)
Staff member
#80
Jetflash said:
Nikas_Zekeval said:
Skelethin said:
Fosfor said:
DhampyrX2 said:
All I can speculate on is what a mix of Arrancar and former Vizard/Shinigami with full Hollow powers would mean in terms of offspring.á Super Babies of DOOM springs to mind.
Not really. Kisuke really didn't think that far - it is for his and Benihime's amusement.
Which, as all such things are, is going to turn around and bite them BOTH in the ass.

which should be pretty fucking epic.
A bored Kisuke is more dangerous than banging on a bomb with a sledgehammer. :ph43r:
Didn't really seem to be a problem for Bugs and company.

(

That's a screencap from the 1943 cartoon <a href='http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falling_Hare]Falling Hare
. Knowledge that nuclear weapons were even being developed wasn't declassified until Truman told Japan we were going to use them... in August of 1946.
 

Nikas_Zekeval

Well-Known Member
#81
daniel_gudman said:
Jetflash said:
Nikas_Zekeval said:
Skelethin said:
Fosfor said:
DhampyrX2 said:
All I can speculate on is what a mix of Arrancar and former Vizard/Shinigami with full Hollow powers would mean in terms of offspring.? Super Babies of DOOM springs to mind.
Not really. Kisuke really didn't think that far - it is for his and Benihime's amusement.
Which, as all such things are, is going to turn around and bite them BOTH in the ass.

which should be pretty fucking epic.
A bored Kisuke is more dangerous than banging on a bomb with a sledgehammer. :ph43r:
Didn't really seem to be a problem for Bugs and company.

That's a screencap from the 1943 cartoon Falling Hare. Knowledge that nuclear weapons were even being developed wasn't declassified until Truman told Japan we were going to use them... in August of 1946.
I was specifically referring to a conventional bomb with that oneliner (had that scene in mind AAMOF), not a nuke. Someone else edited it and set off this whole OT discussion.
 

da_fox2279

California Crackpot
#82
Nikas_Zekeval said:
daniel_gudman said:
Jetflash said:
Nikas_Zekeval said:
Skelethin said:
Fosfor said:
DhampyrX2 said:
All I can speculate on is what a mix of Arrancar and former Vizard/Shinigami with full Hollow powers would mean in terms of offspring.á Super Babies of DOOM springs to mind.
Not really. Kisuke really didn't think that far - it is for his and Benihime's amusement.
Which, as all such things are, is going to turn around and bite them BOTH in the ass.

which should be pretty fucking epic.
A bored Kisuke is more dangerous than banging on a bomb with a sledgehammer. :ph43r:
Didn't really seem to be a problem for Bugs and company.

That's a screencap from the 1943 cartoon Falling Hare. Knowledge that nuclear weapons were even being developed wasn't declassified until Truman told Japan we were going to use them... in August of 1946.
I was specifically referring to a conventional bomb with that oneliner (had that scene in mind AAMOF), not a nuke. Someone else edited it and set off this whole OT discussion.
TFF Motto: Threadjacking: It's a way of life!
 

Sect

Well-Known Member
#84
explorerbean said:
da_fox2279 said:
TFF Motto: Threadjacking: It's a way of life!
That and the dreaded Fosfor Necro.
I'm not too upset about that: I didn't realize that Fosfor had added anything to this.
 

Fosfor

Well-Known Member
#85
Postcards are back.

Raw.


***

4


"Dragon Slayer"


*


Taking Nel out was turning out to be either the best or the worst possible idea he had.

On one hand, it meant they were free of Ishimura, who alternated between smirking knowingly at Ichigo and outright oggling of Nel - or more specifically her breasts.

Thruthfully, he couldn't blame the guy - the tiny apartament was too small not to bump into each other and Nel liked her clothes form fitting and tight. Ichigo had to admit it was hard not to stare, what with that Urahara Shoten t-shirt of hers. Which, by the way, was another thing to add to 'kill Urahara' list.

He was damn sure that that crop top had to be two sizes too small and there was no way the cheerful Urahara Shoten logo was stretched just enough to be seen perfectly well over the bountiful clevage, despite the shirt showing off Nel's bare midriff, by accident. It stank of science used in a very Urahara manner. Reeked of it, in fact.

Still, it... irritated him to find Ishimura's roving eyes glued to Nel's chest. Sure, she could take care of herself and if the moron tried anything she'd send him flying with a finger flick if it came to that, but, well...

Whatever. It still pissed him off.

So, taking Nel out was good, especially considering they could talk freely. He had enough of a reputation as an antisocial weirdo to add evem more to it, and Ken beeing Ken would spill the gossip like a leaky fire hose, that was just how he was.

On the other hand, it was very warm, Nel's shirt was tight, her pants almost painted on and buying her ice cream was probably the single most idiotic idea he ever had next to watching her eat it.

"Oh, Ichigo...?"

The subsittute looked at his friend blankly.

"Your ice cream's melting," the arancar said helpfully, pointing at his own cone he completely forgot about.

Ichigo blinked, before cursing and hurriedly pulling the cone away to avoid staining his clothes, only to sigh as he noticed the cream on his shirt.

"...dammit," he muttered, shaking his head "And it was brand new, too..." he looked at the woman only to freeze, notcing a few creamy drops on arancar's face.

Nel frowned, wiping one of the drops and licking her fingers.

"Mmm... strawberry!" she said licking the rest of the cream off with a smile, before blinking. "Are you all right, Ichigo?"

The subsitute shinigami just stood there, staring, before nodding dumbly.

"Oh, okay." the arancar went back to licking her own cone, causing Ichigo to groan.

Hell. He was in hell.

'...damn nice hell, though,' he admitted trying to focus on his own half-melted ice cream.

"So... what am I doing wrong?" he asked after a moment, trying not to look at Nel's tongue lapping at the treat.

"Nothing," Nel said matter of factly.

"What do you mean nothing?" the blond frowned "There must be something wrong!"

"I'm saying 'nothing' because that's exactly what it is," Nel bit off a bit of the wafer gently, swallowing it with a pleased expression, before rising her cone for Ichigo to see.

"Let's say that your power was an ice cream cone. It wasn't the wafer, or the vanilla, or the chocolate, but all of it. Let's say your shinigami powers are the vanilla," she pointed at the white layer "It is on top, you just need to lick it to taste it. Your hollow powers are the chocolate under it - getting to it is considerably more difficult. Unless, of course, you cheat." she broke off a bit of the dry wafer, exposing both vanilla and choclate layers.

"Shinigami," the arancar pointed at the white layer "Hollow," she indicated the chocolate, before calmly stabbing the wafer piece into vanilla hard enough to reach the choclate and then used the wafer as an impromptu spoon, presenting the slowly melting chunks of both flavors on it "Vaizard mask."

"Mask that I don't have anymore," the substitute scowled

"It wouldn't really matter even if you did," Nel shrugged

Ichigo blinked.

"If we go by ice cream analogy... well, your power currently looks like your ice cream," the arancar pointed at the mostly melted cone in Ichigo's hand

The blond frowned, staring at the mess, before winicing as he felt the wafer slowly becoming soggier.

"...okay, that's not funny," he frowned at Nel, who looked at him seriously, putting away her snack

"You probably didn't notice yet," she murmured "Kisuke-san said you probably wouldn't. Have you used your bankai lately?"

"Yeah, about a month ago," Ichigo nodded "Why?"

"Didn't it feel a bit... different?" the viridian hair spilled ot the side as Neliel cocked her head

"Not really..." Ichigo rubbed his neck, frowning "Though... I guess it was a bit... lighter? Easier? But I thought because I got rid of my inner hollow..."

Nel looked at Ichigo's cone

"Are you going to eat that?"

The boy looked at her in confusion at the sudden change in topcis.

"Uh, not really?"

"Great!" the arancar said enthusiastically, before grabbing the snack and pouring the halfway melted ice creeam down her throat in one go, before swallowing and looking down the leftover wafer, licking her lips, before showing it to Ichigo "See?"

The blond raised an eyebrow.

"See what?"

"Here," she pointed at the still-frozen bits and pieces of pistacchio flavor at the very bottom of the cone.

"Okay, I see it. What of it?" he asked, scratching his head.

"If we use the ice cream analogy further, that's your current power," Nel shrugged "Or, to be more accurate, the extent of your power you can effectively use right now."

"Uh, no, no it isn't?" Ichigo looked at Nel sceptically "I just told you I went bankai last month, didn't I?"

"And you also said it felt 'lighter', didn't it?" Nel pointed out

"Yeah, but still - Bankai!"

"Which is the full release of your power - whatever it might be at the current level," Nel looked at Ichigo calmly "Ichigo, your own power blinds your senses. Always did. This is probably what prevented you from noticing just how unstable your power was all the time I've known you."

Ichigo looked at her curiously.

"Unstable?"

"Hybrids, be they vaizards or arancar, are by their very nature unstable to a degree. But you went further - there were moments your reiryoku and reiatsu were so mismatched I wondered how you were able to fight at all, to be honest. It was like watching a three way tug of war." she giggled "It was almost funny, though a bit scary to tell the truth."

"Well, I'm happy I gave you something to laugh about," Ichigo said sourly

"Because of all of that, coupled with your relative inexperience-"

"Oi," he scowled "I fought two captains after, what, few weeks after learning Zangetsu's name? I think that's plenty of expereince since, you know, I won both times?"

"And how old is Hitsugaya-taicho compared to you again? Hitsugaya-taicho who is the youngest captain in Gotei 13?" Neliel said sweetly

"Point taken," Ichigo rolled his eyes

"Anyway, because of all that you never quite scratched beyond the surface and, in case of your hollow abilities, simply relied on your mask and your inner hollow."

"Wasn't it the whole point?" Ichigo shrugged "I mean, that's what they were there _for_ to begin with, right?"

"Your mask, yes. Your inner Hollow... not so much, I'd say," Nel raised ane eybrow "Tell me, does Zangetsu cut by itself? Wields itself?"

Ichigo opened his mouth, before pausing and closing it slowly, a strange expression on his face.

"...that. smug. fucking. bastard." he gritted out finally, pinching the bridge of his nose "The 'King' and the 'horse', my ass! Son of a-! Gran Rey Cero was too good for that piece of shit! I should have choked him with his own shihakusho! Slowly! No wonder he was so fucking happy all the time! He'd been playing me all the fucking way since day one, the bastard!"

The arancar blinked a few times.

"...are you all right?" she asked, poking Ichigo's side

"Aside from learning my own inner bastard had been playing me like a Rickenbacker? Peachy," he said sarcastically, before sahking his head "At least he's gone, and good riddance, even if it leaves me a vaizard withot a mask,"
"Not Vaizard,"

Ichigo frowned

"What?"

"Not a vaizard. You killed your hollow, destroyed your mask. You aren't a vaizard - you aren't a shinigami/hollow hybrid anymore. You're a shinigami with abilities of a hollow," Nel pointed out "That's different."

"Abilities I can't apparently use worth a damn," Ichigo scowled

"And that's exactly why I'm here~!" Ichigo blinked as the air broke in the characteristic noise of sonido, the black void of Garganta swallowing both of them a scant moment later.


*

It started with a bang.

Well, it started more with Hueco Mundo's fine sand whispering under his legs as he slid down, trying to either roll or balance on it from the rather long fall.

Clear, unnaturally blue sky welcomed him as he looked up, the familiar pillars and walls extending like hands in a mocking greeting.

Las Noches.

He didn't want to be here. He really didn't, and not for any reasons connetected to Aizen or the Winter War. Well, not directly, anyway. He still didn't want to be here, but he said nothing.

Nel opened Garganta for a reason, brought him here for a purpose.

"You know, it would be easier if you let me grab the badge,"

Still, that didn't mean he wasn't going to complain.

"Kisuke-san told me you didn't master your body," the arancar shrugged "I thought it'd be better to get that out of the way first."

Ichigo frowned, shaking the sand off his clothes, using the opportunity to stretch.

She did have a point. He never really used his body to fight and the slight increase in his natural abilities was about all he could really do anchored to it. There was never any need for more than that, and besides his spiritual body was the one with Zangetsu so he never saw the point.

Ichigo blinked.

No Zangetsu.

"Ah," he nodded, causing Nel to smile

"Now..." a faint, reddish spark danced on arancar's fingers "Let's fix this!"

Ichigo's eyes widened.

"...wait. You can't be-"

And that's where the bang came in.

"...are. you. crazy?" he said incredulously eying a small crater smoking where he stood mere moments before.

Nel just smiled cheerfully, another reddish spark dancing on her index finger.

It was a very nice smile. It was also disturbingly gleeful in a manner he knew very well.

'Urahara... I'm gonna kill you!' thought the substitute as he desperately dodged another, admittedly low-powered but still considerable cero. 'I'm gonna kill you _dead_, you whackjob!

To and fro, back and to the side, let's dance to the red tune, such as it was.

Or crawl, rather.

He was fast. It wasn't him bragging, it was a fact. Even without his bankai he took to shunpo like fish to water. Unfortuantely, spiritual body was one thing - his own, squishy mortal one...

He slid back, the tiny bala blowing past his torso enough to shred his shirt.

"Crazy woman!" he yelped, letting his shunpo carry him back, before bouncing off on a rock.

'It... kind of hurts...' he thought dazzedly as the flash-step was interruped and he skidded to a halt on the sand.

Ichigo had to admit that he was spoiled. Really damn spoiled. He never really thought about his shunpo ever since he learned it - it was just _there_ to carry him, to outmanvouer, to attack and to defend. No thought was neccesary - take a step and make it happen. Jump and walk the on the firmament. Become a blur and vanish into the supernatural speed, let her craddle you like a seductive lover who regrets letting you go for a mere second.

It hummed. Shunpo sang. It was always there when he let go of his human body, murmuring at the edge of his perception, warmly inviting him to come and play.

Today, however, only silence greeted him. Shunpo was mute and all he could to was to crawl in a pathetic imitation and try to survive without its seductive murmur in his ears.

'Kill Urahara. KILL,' he thought viciously, before dodging yet another lazy cero.

Seriously, he was never going to let go of his badge again. Ever.

But back to reality, back to the desperate dodging and let's not even mention Neliel was the Tercera Espada at one time and could fire cero all day long. Let's not even think about bala, because that's just plain bad juju.

Kill Urahara, beause it had his finger prints all over it - he didn't even need Nel mentioning the fruitcake's name. Throw the student at the adversity and have fun doing it - Urahara's patented school of hard knocks and fruity science. Ten to one the bastard was recording this somehow. Hell if he knew how, but after what Mayuri pulled with Ishida... well, he'd never put it beyond the mad scientist.

Still, the results were there.

The silence on the edge of his perception was still there, and shunpo beavhed like a goddamn jilted girlfriend, but he was starting to get the hang of it.

Don't force it, let it flow.

He always forced it, always. Take all that power and barge through, until you got the hang of it - that was his way. He could afford it. But his body... not so much.

So feel it. Feel the slight shift, compensate for the sluggishness and, for god's sake, don't stop or the red truck is gonna run you over, kiddo.

Ride the lightning. Ride it. Let it jump through your soul and guide the tired, battered limbs. Let it be jour juice, your drug, your soma, your mana, your prana, your breath of life and ride it, even without the spiritual surf board. Feel the pulse of your reiryoku, let it out with your reiatsu, match them together and hell _yes_, run through the sky!

Or at least crawl and try not to stop. Retreat and you will fall. Hestitate and you will die.

To move is to live, to stop is to die.

Let it be your mantra as you claw your way through the damned spiritual plataeu induced by your body which just plain can't keep up with that nuclear reactor in your soul.

He was never going to call Chad slow again.

He longed for the sky, but for now the sand had to do. The fine, white sand of Hueco Mundo, the walls of Los Noches extending invitingly but still too far away. The sand had to do, unstable and hard to run on or not.

So here we go, kick up the dust cloud again, ducking under the red torrent of power. Kick it up a notch and pay no attention to the crater smoking behind you. Remember your mantra and tear at the petty limits to shreds, laugh at the ceeling and break it with your stubborn head if need be. And above all, ride the lightning and keep on moving.

And by the time another cero rolls in, by the time another bala shaves off a piece of rock next to you, the sand isn't so irritating, the grip easier to find and while the sky is still so far above the ground isn't so bad as you get used to the drag and the dust as it settles down around you like some crazy veil.

She walked out of that veil, like a bride blushing with bright crimson sparks that gouged the sand with a soft, dull hiss.

Despite the danger, the glassed sand and flying debris, he couldn't help himself from staring - no dust or sand marred her, only her flailing hair any indictation she wasn't taking a leisurely stroll.

It was odd in a way, that calm, matter-of-fact gait. Most people reaching that lofty level of power, be it Espada or Captains of Gotei 13 or whoever, always walked either like they owned the place, perfectly willing to go through you to prove it, or with the calm reassurance that whatever they meet on their way can be dealt with, one way or another.

Nel didn�t.

Nel simply walked, mindful of her sorroundings but not on edge, reassured but not wearing it like an unspoken threat. She reminded him of Ukitake a bit. Neliel Tu Odershvank didn�t bother with making a spectacle of herself, consciously or not - she just was.

"So you have grasped it," she stopped, leaning forward a bit and giving him a measuring look.

"Took me a while," he spat to the side and wiped the fine dust off his lips, though he didn�t know why he bothered - his mouth was full of that stuff anyway "Shunpo gets kinda weird when I�m doing it like that, it�s like swimming through melases or something."

"I hoped it wouldn�t come to that," Neliel shook her head and Ichigo couldn�t stop but notice not even grain of sand settled in that viridian mane - how the hell did she do it?

"But it seems Kisuke-san was wrong after all. No matter how much power you have, you are not a hollow. Sorrounding you with Hueco Mundo�s power and hollow reiatsu doesn�t change that," she looked at him with an oddly focused, yet detached look. Ichigo felt his hackles rising.

He didn�t like that look. It was too much like the one she had when she released Gamuza that day, the day when he saw that number on her back for the first time

"You simply don�t understand. You have forgotten how."

"What do you-" he froze as Neliel drew Gamuza. It was slow and measured, almost relaxed in a way. It carried no thread of immideate violence one would associate with an arancar drawing their sword, but in the sudden silence following their brief game of tag it resounded with unearthly clarity "...oi. Nel..."

"Fear and courage are two sides of the coin of growth," the former Tercera said slowly, looking at her sword, before turning her gaze back at him

"Fear is what motivates growth, gives the impetus to desire change. Courage is what is needed to grasp the strength that comes from that change. This is true for every creature - but never so much as for shinigami and hollows." she let her sword fall into a relaxed grip unreathening but still unsheathed

"We both are the two sides of the same coin, even if vaziards of arancar blur the lines. However, you know only one side of the coin, Ichigo. Your mentors, your battles..."

The static sound of sonido was unexpected, and no matter how much he tried his body just didn�t move quickly enough to stop the blade from resting its flat on his cheek

"They have taught you too well, Ichigo," the blade was cold, but the touch was gentle "Even now, you do not act out of fear. You are not afraid of being cut... you are resolved not to be cut," she smiled thinly "Kisuke-san was right in this regard. When you dodge..."

"'I won�t let them cut me'" Ichigo�s eyes widened

"And that is the problem Ichigo," for a moment, she appeared almost tender. Then her eyes hardened, and she slid to the side as Gamuza drew blood.

"What the hell?!" he grabbed his cheek. The cut wasn�t deep and it stung, but his shinigami body was just so much tougher, so much more used to pain it was a shock to feel how much did this one, small cut hurt. �Are you crazy, Nel?!�

"Hollows aren�t creatures of courage, Ichigo," the reiatsu didn�t explode - it bloomed, rose like a slow tidal wave, pushing away the dust and the sand, slowly pressing on his senses with growing strength

"The origin of a hollow isn�t related to courage, but to fear. Fear is what gives birth to a hollow," she cocked her head and ichigo�s eeys widened as the static sound didn�t even fade before she was right behind him

"'I must run away or I will die'," she raised her arm and Ichigo barely managed to jump back as the knife hand took out the column, the hardened hierro of an Espada allowing the palm to cut as sharply as any sword "'If I let their fangs reach me, I will perish'" Neliel extended her finger leaning towards him even as crimson sparks danced. Cero hissed out, varporising the remains of the column completely "'I must erase my enemies or they will kill me'"

The dust circled, settling slowly.

"Hollows are creatures of fear."

The boy froze as she leaned towards him, only to vanish and reappear on top of a nearby dune.

He blinked.

"So tell me, Ichigo..." her hand flashed and the familiar sound of reiatsu building up was unmistakble - but this time it wasn�t red, but bright gold. Ichigo�s eyes widened. Only one type of cero had its own, unique shine.

Neliel smiled, her face almost grotesque in its cheer.

Her palm opened and the Gran Rey Cero sprarked as she pointed at her head.

"What are you afraid of?"


*

He moved.

There was no time for thought, no time for reason here. The royal cero boiled and Neliel�s hand didn�t waver.

Faster, faster, faster...

...and not fast enough.

He grabbed her hand but it didn�t waver. Flesh, not spirit, there was no way around it, no Dangai Precipice and Bankai dummies to give him a shortcut.

There was no stopping what was going to happen and Zangetsu remained silent.

He didn�t even notice the sound of static as he pushed his free arm right at that power.

The molten gold spilled forward, only to halt with a droning whine. Darkness erupted from the center of his palm, small but dancing fiercely before spinning and growing, almost swallowing the light around it as it grew, biting at Neliel�s cero. The energies battled for dominance for a moent, but then the opaque crimson bloomed around the edges and in the center.

'Darkness beyond twilight, crimson beyond blood that flows...'

Ichigo couldn�t stop himself from laughing hysterically at the stray memory as his Gran Rey Cero roared. Gold and black with crimson sheen clashed, but there was only outcome to be had. This was as much determination as raw fear, anger and terror backed by enough of willpower to move mountains.

The black cero drank it all in greedily, almost purring with the long supressed power it could now revel in. It hissed greedily and expanded, pouring through the cracks in the golden light, eating away at the weaker points, arcing through empty spaces and swallowing them voraciously in the battle for dominance.

The gold faltered.

The crimson cut into it without mercy, its royal mandate of superior power undeniable.

Darkness swallowed their hands, before falling on both of them briefely.

It was like Mugetsu all over again, but this time it was all raw emotion, like screaming yourself heoarse in rage.

Darkness broke.

There was no debris or dust around them, the corona of the balst took care of it, leaivng nothing but uniformly glassed deseert as far as eye could see. Ichig didn�t care - in fact he didnt� even notice.

He grabbed her hands barely noticing bloody trail his hands left on her wrists as his skin broke on her hierro.

"Don�t. Ever. Do this again," he growled into her face "EVER!"

She looked at him, not flinching despite the fury on his face, before smiling and nodding.

"...crazy, stupid, insane...!" Ichigo�s voice cracked with exhaustion and he stumbled slightoly "Whose fucking idea was this?!"

"Well, bringing you here was Kisuke-san�s idea," Neliel said cheerfully, gently grabbing Ichigo�s arm and allowing him to lean on her. While the boy had incredible reserves of power his body wasn�t used to it - it was a wonder he didn�t have more burns, really. "But after it failed, I had to... improvise a little,"

Ichigo glared at her darkly.

"You," he panted "Have been haging around that madman... _way_ too long," he stumbled again, reflexively grabbing Neliel�s bare shoudler to steady hismelf "When we g-"

Wait.

What?

He blinked, before looking at the arancar next to him.

Yep. Shoulder was bare.

So was the rest of her, in fact.

His eyes widened.

"Nel," he said flatly "You�re naked."

"Ah, yes," she blinked, looking down at herself "We will have to work on your cero a bit. Losing clothes every time you use it would be a bit inconvinient wouldn�t it?" she nodded to herself, and Ichigo gritted his teeth as her breasts jumped, before blanching. "Oh, sorry Ichioo, are you in pain?" she turned to him, drawing him closer to inspect his wounds.

The boy stiffened, trying to jump away, but in his state only managed ot drag them both down.

Ichigo blinked, looking at the false sky of Los Noches.

On one hand, that glass was kinda cold when you fell on it with bare back - on the other hand Nel was quite warm. Better than a blanket, really.

He blinked.

'...wait a minute...'

Neliel squirmed.

Ichigo blanched, stiffening.

Neliel giggled as she sat up, leaning on the partially melted wall, completely unmindful of her state of undress.

'Of course,' Ichigo thought sarcastically, trying not to look 'How else. So, a masochist and an exhibitionist...'

He didn�t know if it was awesome or disturbing. He decided to sort it out once he was in any state to think and not bleeding from numerous cuts. He was too tired for this shit.

"...hey Nel..." he said after a moment, blinking "I don�t suppose you have any extra clothes stashed around?"

The arancar frowned, tapping her cheek.

"Ah, I didn�t think about that," she admitted

Ichigo sighed.

He had no idea if to be happy or annoyed.

One thing was for sure - appearing in the middle of the campus naked with an equally naked woman was going to be a bitch to explain.

Neliel stretched, squirming a bit to find a more comfortable position.

...okay, he�d settle for happy. The scenery demanded nothing less.

***
 

Barret

Well-Known Member
#86
Okay, that was frikin' awesome. I hope for more at your convience.
 

Shaderic

Well-Known Member
#87
Holy Shit.

Fosfor has returned.

Ahem. There's this one spot in there where your spelled ceiling 'ceeling'.


On a completely unrelated note, how've you been? It's been a LONG time since I saw you come out with a snippet.
 

randombugger

Well-Known Member
#88
Awesome.

Now to go reread the rest of the story cause I've forgotten what all has happened.
 

Coelacanth

Well-Known Member
#89
I can't believe I never read this earlier. It was fun read Fosfor.
 

Lord Raine

Well-Known Member
#90
Holy fucking fuck. I thought this was another thread that got necroed by that troll we've got. I thought you were dead, Fosfor. Welcome back.
 

zeebee1

Well-Known Member
#91
What are you lot talking about? He updated something else in the very subsection last week.
 

Mordart

Well-Known Member
#92
Apparently nobody noticed Zeebee. Including me. I'm off to find it!
 

Jetflash

Well-Known Member
#93
See Warborn.

Awesome job. Nel/Ichigo interaction is awesome, as always.
 

trevelyan1983

Well-Known Member
#94
Fosfor said:
"'I must run away or I will die'," she raised her arm and Ichigo barely managed to jump back as the knife hand took out the column, the hardened hierro of an Espada allowing the palm to cut as sharply as any sword "'If I let their fangs reach me, I will perish'" Neliel extended her finger leaning towards him even as crimson sparks danced. Cero hissed out, varporising the remains of the column completely "'I must erase my enemies or they will kill me'"
You just inverted Urahara's training speech. Completely, utterly, turned it inside out and knotted it up.

And you know what? It makes a scary kind of sense. Hollows don't get stronger because they want to protect someone, or because they have resolve, or anything like that. They get stronger because they're afraid of getting nommed by something bigger and nastier than they are.
 

Fosfor

Well-Known Member
#95
trevelyan1983 said:
Fosfor said:
"'I must run away or I will die'," she raised her arm and Ichigo barely managed to jump back as the knife hand took out the column, the hardened hierro of an Espada allowing the palm to cut as sharply as any sword "'If I let their fangs reach me, I will perish'" Neliel extended her finger leaning towards him even as crimson sparks danced. Cero hissed out, varporising the remains of the column completely "'I must erase my enemies or they will kill me'"
You just inverted Urahara's training speech. Completely, utterly, turned it inside out and knotted it up.

And you know what? It makes a scary kind of sense. Hollows don't get stronger because they want to protect someone, or because they have resolve, or anything like that. They get stronger because they're afraid of getting nommed by something bigger and nastier than they are.
Exactly.

Shinigami are all willpower and resolve, along with 'know thyself' cooperation factor with their sword.

Hollows are monsters born out of fear and that's the key to grasping their power for Ichigo.

Now simply beating him to the inch of his life to instill the fear won't work so Nel gambled on Ichigo's one true fear - losing those close to him. She obviously won, big time. Ichigo's Gran Rey Cero makes sadclown's Cero Oscuras look like a flashlight. This is the royal cero of the highest order and it will have... consequences, to say the least.
 

DhampyrX2

Well-Known Member
#96
And now he's faced with another fear... romantic situations. After all laying there with a naked Nel is almost anathema to how Ichigo has approached life to this point. He avoids getting close to anyone like that. The more you let yourself care, the more it will hurt if they are taken away from you.
 

Fosfor

Well-Known Member
#97
DhampyrX2 said:
And now he's faced with another fear... romantic situations.? After all laying there with a naked Nel is almost anathema to how Ichigo has approached life to this point.? He avoids getting close to anyone like that.? The more you let yourself care, the more it will hurt if they are taken away from you.
You think the whole thing Neliel is bad? This is going to get worse. Well, actually it already did, sort of, but so far Ichigo ain't talking. Just remember that soon the black cat will cross his way and things will become even more complicated and cracky.

As I said before - Ichigo will remember his days of blissful boredom and safety fondly.
 

da_fox2279

California Crackpot
#98
Cool snippet.

Loved the Ichigo/Nel byplay, especially at the end.

Also: nice touch, having the words to the Dragon Slave spell pop into Ichigo's head at that moment. Apropos.

Good job, boss.
 

Jansviper

Well-Known Member
#99
Fosfor said:
Exactly.

Shinigami are all willpower and resolve, along with 'know thyself' cooperation factor with their sword.

Hollows are monsters born out of fear and that's the key to grasping their power for Ichigo.

Now simply beating him to the inch of his life to instill the fear won't work so Nel gambled on Ichigo's one true fear - losing those close to him. She obviously won, big time. Ichigo's Gran Rey Cero makes sadclown's Cero Oscuras look like a flashlight. This is the royal cero of the highest order and it will have... consequences, to say the least.
Huh, every Hollow felt that didn't they?

Every single one.

>_<

*Gets out the lawn chair and settles in to wait.*

Par excellence.
 

Garahs

Well-Known Member
The only problem I see is Ichigo's thoughts of being vulnerable in his human body. An earlier snippet stated he had the iron skin plus once they got to Hueco Mundo, it shouldn't matter since Nel (presumably) left her gigai and became a purely spiritual entity. Ichigo still has his spiritual pressure, even if he doesn't have access to Zangetsu at that moment.
 
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