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| - Hueco Mundo, land of Hollows, land of Arrancars. A realm of truth, where only beasts could lay claim. No Shinigami or any other force could lay claim to the territory of the wicked spirits. Wicked to the usurpers, they were too busy quarreling with one another to really care too much about the goals and on goings of the other planes of existance, like the Soul Society. And here, in the Sea of Black Sand, where the grains of dust and earth were as black as the void, matching it's counterpart, the sky devoid of blue. It was an area where most Hollows went to die, an area where Vasto Lordes would one day seek out their end days. It was a graveyard for the souls, even Arrancars came here to seek solace and solitude in the midst of the high spiritual pressure. Freeing them from the continual relaxation of the weaker regions. It was void, it was the darkness that only the strong could enter. An abomination in the plane of Hueco Mundo. And here... in it's ruins, once a 'castle' of a past Vasto-Lorde, stood a lone wall, admist all the pillars, rubble, debris. Was a Zanpakuto, seated on the remainders of what was once a palace wall. The blade of Ichimu. Through the sky of...night, was it? No...through the sky of darkness, a single bat flew, its wings spread apart as it weaved through the many obstacles in its path. Black wings of an unusual sheen, a black coat tightly wrapped around its small body, known as its skin, the red eyes of the bat shone as it flew further. It sensed something on its sonar, and the small little mouth which was hidden turned into a menacing grin. Descending at rapid rates, the bat steadily transformed into a humanoid form. Upon its descent, a scrawny man of deathly pale skin, ebony-white hair and piercing red eyes could be viewed. Complete with an attire of the royals, the man looked around in a jovial manner. His name was...Kain Daisuke, he was quite the infamous vampire around his parts...well, Reikon Kyuuban to be precise. After all, the vampires in this universe were endless! Moving along the sand, Kain had noticed a particularly strange energy and exclaimed joyously," Oh my! I have a new competition today, no?" It seemed as if Kain knew exactly what was going on...though what went on that man's mind, nobody knew. The wind was non existant, no smells in the air, nothing but the dryness of the earth. All was still, and the ruins lay silent before the figure that approached. The blade lay where it was, empty, dead. A prison. The energy signature within it was vibrating, two forces opposed, seemingly swimming together. Mixing like oil and water, yet perfectly attached. Self-imprisoned. However, to any Hollow, the blade would have been useless. It had sat there for ten thousand years, and because of this factor, it was known as the Lonely Edge, a weapon to forever sit where it was. Not for the lack of others attempting to wield it themselves. The blade could not leave the spot where it lay. Magnetized to it's wall, shackled in spirit to this place. Sealed forever. Whoever had done the sealing, had intended to make the Zanpakuto forever remain mute, blind, and deaf to the world forever more. Step by step, step by step, Kain moved along the sand. It seemed that treading upon sand hadn't caused anything negative to happen to his walking, he didn't walk at a slow pace, but just wanted to enjoy his surroundings. Kain hadn't been to Hueco Mundo before, but...he had come here for a specific purpose, sadly. He was instructed by Lord Scarlet to find an instrument of war, either that, or a plaything really in her viewpoint. Kain's tendencies picked up and he began to examine every critter, every hollow, every damn thing that wasn't sand he could see. However, accidentally; he drew a number of hollows to his person...10 to be precise. Three of them were Adjuchas, three were Gillian and the rest were standard hollows. Kain sighed in exasperation and in comical fear before running around, " Oh my gaod! Oh my gaod! What am I gonna do!?" Running around in circles while screaming, he conspired something under this pretense...but what was it? The three Gillians gazed to it's intended victim, acting purely on instinct. Their nearly soulless gaze, devoid of any form of emotion hungered after the power infront of them. Working as a pack, they would take the small fleshy thing apart, to devour his energy. Beginning to charge their energy, they groaned in a husk manner, life in them, but simple and uncultivated. Cero formed at their gaping mouths, perparing to blast. The other Adjuchas would follow suit, pointing their hands, opening their mouths, all charging individual Cero's to blast the enemy apart. Something so strong would require team work. And in turn, the remainds would either be dividied out admist them all in a feeding frenzy... or they would fight over it; the strongest gaining all the spoils and yet more fallen to devour. "Die, Shinigami..." not bothering to sense the difference in it's signature, they all perpared to release the blast in cooperative sequence. The blasts...fired, crimson energy attempted to destroy the very roots of Kain Daisuke, however he was no weakling. Only an inkling of effort was required, and Kain had transformed from a humanoid form to a number of sleek black bats...the bats engulfed and surrounded his enemies, as the hollow endlessly slammed against one another and bringing shockwave upon shockwave in order to attack Kain. Yet Kain was better, smarter and far more experienced than these children. Appearing again and again, Kain flew round and round, and eventually the destruction reached its peak. Cero flew unidirectional, ignoring friend from foe as destruction wreaked through the sands... It was here that a glistening...lone blade was found. Kain was pleased with the result. He manifested and drew his shikomuzue. Before he engulfed the blade with spiritual energy as the shockwave from the blade destroyed all the hollow that stood before him. Kain then chuckled, with a grin of blood upon his face." Amusing...at best." The corpses of the Hollows laid astrew across the blackened sand, dead, blood pooled at their sides, heads missing, bodies blasted into tiny fragments of spiritual energy. They had stood little to no chance to the vicious 'Shinigami'. And there, the prize lay against the wall. Static, unmoving. A rip in the fabric of the plane, sealed so tightly that it was hardly generating a single particle of spiritual energy. The imprisoned Zanpakuto was bound to Hueco Mundo, stuck, comatose: detached from reality eternal. Fire emblazoned on the blade itself, pitch black in the night, it was a beautiful weapon. Excalibur admist the rubble. " Well, well, here's where you were hiding all along...took me a little while, don't you think?" Normal people would have thought Kain was crazy! Though...he was slightly, but Kain himself knew that talking to this blade was probably the most sane thing he had ever done in his life! This blade...had encased a spirit, and a spirit it did encase. Kain walked closer to it, slowly he approached it as he attempted to clutch it with his bare hands, yet he was repelled, rejected as the pure rejected the demonic forces. Kain grinned," So that's it..." Was all he muttered, as he began to weave a magical circle of his own design, what was his ploy? The blade seemed to hiss and scream out, spitting out torrents of chaotic spiritual pressure, breaking apart the ruins around; all but the wall it was sealed upon. Biting winds formed, words forming, spoken to the wind. Unknown, they provided little more then a disturbance to break concentration. The ground buckled underneath the ruins, cracks forming. A warning to any that would attempt to unseal the blade. Whomever had taken the time to imprison the Zanpakuto Spirit intended to bring that entire area into the depths of the endless sand ocean of Hueco Mundo if they attempted too many and met failure. Kain did indeed marvel at such a spectacle, but quickly regained his concentration." Did you think that such a thing would be capable of holding me back? You do understand who I am correct?" Quickly, he began to recast his magical spell. Of what origin it was, was unknown, but Kain was confident that this spell was capable of breaking the seal that had kept this sword and its wielded bonded together. As he completed the magical circles, he chanted." Break away bonds of despair and regret, with one drop of blood thy plea is asked, the fires burn towards the new sunset, the moon has risen and thy paradise fallen!" In only moments, several wisps of spiritual energy surrounded the sword, beginning to break the seal that made it dormant. And as the shackles that bound the sword began to break, the pressure slowly began to rise. Breaking apart the buildings around it, vibrating the very air with it's spiritual energy that was continuously growing. Humming with energy, it pulsed with color, blasting apart the area with distortion. The sword began to quake angerily, two voices rang out together. "You dare try to wield the Zanpakuto, Gokusha?!" roaring with a fierceness that shattered the sound barrier, producing gusts of wind, whipping up all the sand in a violent cyclone around it and the person trying to unseal it. Kain was astonished! Quickly he utilized high-speed movement and saved himself from the incoming disaster. A single slash of his Shikomizue allowed him to sever the cyclone by imbuing the blade with spiritual energy. He told the sword, in a rather ferocious voice." No, I do not wish to wield you Gokusha. I wish to see your wielder alive once more. I have some...business with him." Kain kept his blade and sheath in a cross position surrounding himself, bracing himself for the incoming spiritual energy. Gokusha at last began to unseal itself, it's spiritual tethers were already snapped, and it was undoing the rest itself. Purifying the area, forming a shield around the entirety of the black desert, it planned to seal it's next victim in with it. "You shall burn for your presumptions, little whelp!" the bonds atlast shattered, and a form was materializing infront of the blade, on it's knees, pure light drew to the figure, slowly detailing itself: the pressure sucked inward, a vortex, drawing back into it's host. Then suddenly, silence. Only the newly revived figure, the shield, and Kain. Ichimu was now free. Cracking his neck, he eyed the area. Then to Kain. "What the hell?! You told me this place was completely impossible to track down!" gritting his teeth at the blade he now gripped in his hand, yelling at it as if there was actually a person there. And to no one else in earnest, he seemingly replied to it. "What do you mean, did I actually believe you at the time? Hell yes I did, you're my fucking Zanpakuto, I expect these things out of you!" he paused, waiting for a reply, eyes wide, no words coming out of the blade. Seemingly a crazy man. "I am not naive! I'm asking for a little honesty around here!" rubbing his temples, he sighed, "Okay, okay, don't get all weepy... I shouldn't have yelled, I'm sorry... I understand we weren't as close before. I'm just a little riled because..." Ichimu's eyes at last noticed Kain was here. Slowly catching wind of who he was, and why he was there. "Because a Spirit unsealed me..." grasping Gokusha tighter in his hands. Kain looked at the man in question. He was quite the figure, but quite ruffled up from his years encapsulated in that sword of his. He chuckled, amused at the scenario before him and told him." Oh? Are you angry at me for unsealing you? Well...it wasn't really my fault. I mean, a barbaric man such as yourself wouldn't be really my taste. But, My Lord is looking for someone to satiate her thirst for battle, and well...I had observed you for quite sometime before you had sealed yourself." Kain paused there, thinking he might have been overwhelmed with this knowledge, before continuing while clearing his throat." Ahem! So, as I was saying. Would you like to come along with me without any hassle, or will you resort to conflict. Please state exactly what you wish, my clock is running, and I have places to be and girls to supervise." Ichimu glanced to him, brow raised, "My hair's not that messy." obviously not taking the figure too seriously. "Listen small fry, thanks and all for the unsealing." vanishing and appearing face to face with the smaller man, gazing down to him. "But I don't really have to go with you. I don't know who your lord is, I don't know who you are. And you sound like some type of salesmen." glaring down to the vampire in question. "That, and you just smell bad." the ripe odor of coagulated blood and corrupt spiritual energy. "So ciao..." moving past the Reikon, he intended to walk out and see what had changed. Stopping in mid flow, "One last question: How long have I been in there, exactly?" Kain had smirked devilishly as the man walked past him. Transforming himself into a number of bats and reappearing in front of him, he told him," Well, you've been in that seal for...10,000 years I think it was? And secondly; you cannot refuse me, otherwise dire consequences shall converge upon you. Would you wish for that?" Kain had been prepared for a confrontation this entire time, he just wanted to prolong some conversation...like he normally did. Ichimu bared his smirk, canines glinting as he looked to the figure. "I was going for 100,000, you should have waited just a few more years, and I might have decided to help you." rolling his shoulder, he raised his blade up and ontop of it, wielding his blade casually. The amount of power he held was held back with tight constraints, breathing with agitation, the vampire in question was starting to annoy. "I have no dire consequences to face. I was in prison for 10,000 years. No home. No race to call friend. And no friends in general." Glinting his all too natural uneasing smirk, "In fact, you really don't have much to threaten me with unless you mean you want to fight..." pushing past the Reikon once more. "But I doubt you could even go toe to toe with me, so your threat is useless." he had trained for 10,000 years... he hadn't just sat there waiting. "Do you honestly believe I have no chance against you? I myself am probably as old...if not slightly older than you are. Perhaps we are not brethren, perhaps we are not acquainted. But I am surely not weaker than you. Would you like a contest?" Kain asked him, revealing his true intentions as his blade was kept in his "X" formation. The ex-Kenpachi lowered his blade into the sand, sifting through the sand as it impacted with minute force. "Challenge accepted." he waited, back turned to the vampire. "If you win, I'll help your lord, or whatever. Don't really care." rolling his shoulder, smirking slightly, "But if I win, I get to yank out all your teeth and wear them as a necklace..." grinning insanely, "And I play for keeps, so I'll make sure you keep your old man smile for a long time..." laughing inheritly, waiting for his opponent to rise to the challenge and make the first strike. The wind blew, and the shield would keep the battle within the black sand of this unique arena. Only they could engage in this struggle, a private matter. "Well...I don't like betting my teeth, but it seems I have no other choice in the matter, no?" Kain stood, firm into the ground, he wasn't planning on losing. He accumulated spiritual energy, releasing it as a small aura around himself, he was ready for a battle." As they say nowadays, Come at me, bro." Kain sneered at Ichimu, beguiling him and hoping he would fall for a small trick. "Let's start off with my favorite game, shall we?" Ichimu began to laugh, holding out his hand, channeling his own pressure into a small sphere that grew larger, enhancing it's mass, glowing like a minature sun. Ichimu gripped it tightly, smirking as he did so. "Catch." "Sokusen Mari." throwing the ball, a shockwave emitted as he did so, chucking it well past the speeds capable for keeping track of it, fading in and out of reality; it's speed matching that a Shunpo master, perparing to violate his foe, massive amounts of energy and heat pulsed within it. A molten bullet. Crude, but effective... At the very moment before impact, Kain had dispersed into a number of black bat creatures. Flying around at hastening speeds, he began to fly around Ichimu in a circular fashion before accumulating some distance. Each bat formed a small sphere of red energy around its chest, then using its wings' momentum to throw them at Ichimu, threatening to detonate upon impact. Quickly reforming into a humanoid shape, he landed on top of a dune and told him." Well, we can both play this game, after all, it is one of my favorites." "I see." Ichimu began to chuckle, making his next move known. Raising hand above above him him, a small dark mouth opened, jumping through it to narrowly escape the impending blast that tore apart the area he once stood at. The mouth reopened above Kain, bringing down the heel of his foot to crash down on the roof of his foe's skull. The technique in question he had just used, was a Garganta, a result of the many years he sat dormant within his blade, soaking in the Hollow energy over 10,000 years had forged him into an entirely new creation. The power behind his kick would be enough to shatter bone, and he was ready to end his enemy much more quickly. All he had to do was figure a way past the annoying bat dispersion... Having already seen through this maneuver, Kain had this time utilized high-speed movement to evade the attack. Moving left, he allowed the kick to make impact with the sand, causing an overflow of sand from the area. Using this to his advantage, Kain had already begun to mutter." Three-Legged crow, send out the message of doom, as Odin comes to behead and bring about a new moon!" The incantation for Retsujō had already been spoken. Spiritual energy surrounding Ichimu had been steadily condensed into three spheres surrounding Ichimu in a triangle formation. They created an enormous amount of gravitational pull that threatened to rip his very existence apart!
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