Lost shinigami (Semi-open, pm)

The day had come without much notice. The extra training sessions had occupied so much of his time, he had nearly forgotten. The day before the trip the dorm was alive with chatter. In the morning a quick breakfast and a final check was made. Arawn was up all night polishing his sword and rereading his notes on the kido he had learned. Nervous energy welled up inside him as he donned his uniform that day as they made to the gate. This was the first time seeing this area, and hoped it would not be the last. Although it was a large door, what was waiting on the other side is what made the students pulse race; the human world. They had to divide into groups, the day before had be the selection process. Arawn was grouped with Yue and another student whom he hadn’t chatted with. Arawn semi anti-social behavior and Yue’s outspokenness made it hard to find a willing third person. The trip was simple each group of three would be escorted through the gate with a shinigami to special patrol areas. As the groups gathered their various shinigami came forth to meet their assigned group.
“Hello there kids!” said a familiar voice, Arawn shuddered. As he turned around he was greeted by the smiling face of Solun. “I’ll be your guide today, nice to meet you.” He gave a bow. “My name is Solun Akamatsu. Solun if you please.” Arawn’s mind reeled. This can’t be a coincidence this man had planned this. What are the odds?
While Arawn thought about it the other two of the group had introduced themselves.
“I’m Yue!” she struck her pose
“I’m Guy Norihiro” said the reluctant third.
“And who might you be?” Solun asked looking at Arawn. Arawn wasn’t sure if he was serious or joking. Thankfully Yue spoke for him. “This is A-chan. He’s so shy.”
Solun patted Arawn on the shoulder “Hello there A-chan.” Arawn wondered if he could change groups.

Introductions finished, Solun recited some rules and regulations of the trip. Don’t touch things, avoid human contact (even though you can’t be seen), pick up anything, etc. It seemed awfully rehearsed and spoke in monotone. Probably because there were others watching he was acting somewhat serious. Once done the great doors opened and groups approached the gate. Arawn thought he could see a haze from within the door, but was too far away to be sure. Just as the groups entered Arawn spotted an ebony butterfly join the groups. It finally came to their group’s turn and a black butterfly fluttered to them as Solun walked into the fog beyond the gate. Guy was next, followed by Yue, and finally Arawn. Arawn closed his eyes, held his breath, and stepped through the portal. It felt like we was being pulled through a straw by his nose. A wash of cold air hit him, and sounds of people talking below. He stood on a concrete rooftop. It was bright when they left, but here it was nighttime and the lights in the windows and streets shone brightly around him. He turned around to look at the portal, but only saw two ornate doors as they closed upon and vanish.
“So where are we headed?” Arawn asked, as he turned again. It was then he realized that there was no one else on the rooftop with him. “Guys?” He looked to the other rooftops perhaps they had taken another vantage point. There was no one there. “Hey guys, this isn’t funny.” He focused and jumped to the next building over it was slightly higher. “Solun! You better come out here; I know this is something you’d do!” There is no response. “Yue!” He shouts as panic starts to grip him. His voice echoes across the night.
Was he lost or had they lost him? Did it matter? He didn’t have a way to find them, or a way back. Only Solun could open the gate, as he recalled the instructions mentioned. What was he going to do? He didn’t know where the other students and shinigami had been deployed. Humans can’t see him not like he can ask for help anyway. The situation looked mighty grim.

He stood on top of the roof for what seemed like hours, it was barely several minutes. He shouted more, but there was no answer. This had gone well beyond joke status. Arawn felt a chill run down his spine, both from the high perch and the reality of the situation. He was lost, or he had been abandoned. Both didn’t sit well with him, he had come through the portal moments after the rest of the group, how could have this happened? Could they have arrived at one spot, and he at another? It was possible, but not very probable. There was no reason for them to abandon him and not have him notice. So lost was his more likely status. An idea came to his head; there are shinigami located through out the world, it could be possible to find the one for this area. Then that shinigami could help him back to Soul Society. Another thought then reared it’s ugly head: how was he going to find the shinigami for this area? He had remember reading that shinigami are able to sense spiritual power from long distances. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a skill he was taught. If he pumped out reiatsu he might be rescued. “Then again, hollows can do the same thing.” He spoke aloud, the wind stealing sound as the words had stolen his hope. Arawn figured someone would come looking for him even if he didn’t find anyone. “I might as well take a look around town.” A small gap separated buildings, the leap easily to the next build and looked down at the street below. The people milled about on the streets, he could only hear bits and pieces of the many conversations. People were planning their night on the town while others prepared for the next day. Nothing he could use to figure where he was. Thanks to his training he found jumping across the roofs very easy, but his landings were shaky. He had gotten used to the soft sand absorbing the shock of impact; it was different on cold stone. The buildings and streets all started to look the same, the tour of the town seemed less exciting than he had expected. Arawn figured he should stay put after all so moved away from the lights to the darker parts of town. While they say the city never sleeps, the people do, the lost shinigami took refuge on building overlooking a construction yard. It was quiet and with very little wind. “It’s too dark to see anything.” He reassured himself, tucking himself into the small corner of roof’s low wall. “They’ll probably come looking for me in the morning.” He closed his eyes and nodded off.

Arawn awakened with a start. His eyes darted around, it was still night, and it was still quiet. Something had woken him, something prickled in the back of his head. It was like a light buzzing sound inside his brain. He rubbed his head, trying to dispel the sound. The buzzing started to increase as he looked at the construction yard. Was he sensing something or was it just curiosity? He jumped down from the building, and approached the yard. The whole area had a metal fencing surrounding it. It was too dark to tell, but it seemed like it was going to be an office building of some sort. Half finished walls and windows, beams bound together were visible as he gazed up at the structure. Arawn easily hopped over the fence and walked towards what looked like the front doorway. The buzzing feeling came again, but this time stronger and more annoying. The front door swung inward, and he pressed forward. The inside was messy; tools, dirt, and parts littered the floors. It was dark, but some light from outside made it’s way through the various holes in the ceiling and gaps in the walls. Wiring hung down from the ceiling like spider webs and Arawn navigated the half finished maze, the buzzing his only guide. Suddenly he heard grunts and heavy breathing, followed by a moan. Almost like two lovers during a tryst. He was standing in a dark hallway he peeked around the corner. It was a large room, perhaps made for meetings or someone’s office. There was a window against the side wall, but the light fell just short of the rear wall. Something moved out of the light into the dark corner. The sound now wasn’t that of a moment of passion, there was only the deep heavy breathing much like an animal. Arawn strained his eyes trying to pierce the darkness, and he could make out shapes; a very large shape. The large shadow hovered over motionless figure on the ground. “Damn a hollow.” He whispered his hand went to his sword as the panic filled him. He needed to strike fast while the attention wasn’t on him. He stepped forward into the room, but the creature turned it’s amber eyes locked on Arawn.

The months of training vanished, the resolve withered, and his fear overtook him. Arawn ran blindly from the room, taking more turns than he remembered on the way to that horrible room. Behind him came a howl, and he hastened his flight. Arawn remembers the long arms and sharp claws of the creature; but most important the lack of a bone mask. Whatever it was it wasn’t human, it wasn’t hollow either, but it could see him. That was more than enough to make him flee. He comes to what looks like a dead end, but ends before a flight of stairs going up. He knows he didn’t come this way from the entrance, but another roar from behind sends him up two steps at a time. He cleared the stairs and dashed down the hallway before him. If he moved fast enough he could jump from the second story window to the first floor and escape. But which way was out? Even as the thought crossed his mind a roar came from below him. It was still on the first floor, he was safe at the moment. Another roar sounded, but this one was much closer and on the same floor. Arawn’s eye widened, “There’s more than one!?” he tried to move away from the second howl, but wasn’t sure of he was successful. There were more howls, he could no longer pinpoint their origin, and he could only run. He hadn’t found any rooms with windows yet as he ran frantically. Arawn recalled seeing some open walls from the ground level, but hadn’t seen one to make leap to freedom. He found a hole in the ceiling and it looked to lead to the next floor, he jumped through ascending higher. The number of howls had increased, below him, above, even on this floor. He was trapped.

Even monsters get lonely. This was the conclusion Sal Norongachi had come to after the countless killings of Hollow, Hybrid and all manner of evil that resides in the shadow. Hybrid's were no different, he rarely found one alone, often the roamed in packs. Maybe some semblance of humanity remained within them after the thirst had taken them, the mutation rampaging through their bodies but unable to extinguish that tiny smidgen of what they once were.

If he thought about it, as he often did in the early days, he would feel the sharp pang of regret and spend his nights pitying them. Then after seeing them slaughter more and more innocent people that feeling had faded, becoming just a hollow place inside him. Now there was only the hunt...

Glasgow was changing. Gone were the run down tenements of his youth. Now stood sparkling new builds, springing up all over the East End. It wouldn't change things, the same people would be living in these new homes and so the same bastards would be around to make the shiny new schemes hell holes once again.

Everywhere there were partially completed buildings, cranes and bull dozer's sleeping around the skeletal structures of cement and steel. They'd become more and more the haunts of the Hybrid. Secluded and rarely occupied they made perfect places for the beasts to rest when they weren't ripping a passer-by to shreds.

He'd been tracking one group in particular. To say they were prolific in their meal time activities was an under statement. Last week they had single handedly slaughtered the entire guest light of a 40th birthday party in the west end, barman and all.

Sal strode casually toward the partial construction, approaching the wire fence that sealed it from the general public and leaping over it with ease. He looked the sinister scaffold adorned building up and down before sticking his hands in his pockets and striding into the building proper.

It was dark and eerie, light from the road side street lights fractured and broken by the frame work of the place so that it fell at odd and irregular angles across the rooms. Yet to be completed electrics hung from the ceiling over head in the form of snaking coils of wire and the occasional yellow hard hat could be seen as he made his way deeper into the gloom.

That nauseating wave that came over him whenever a Hybrid was around, swept across his senses. It said to him, screamed with all its might 'Unnatural' and that was what these things where. Not of this world, or the next. He unsheathed Claidheamh Mor from its mooring on his back and brought it down to his side, the Katana catching the odd glints of light as he crept through the half complete rooms, his black boots making the slightest noise on the rough concrete flooring.

The feeling was growing more intense with every step,they were here all right but such were the oddity of these creatures that they seemed to emit a static that made one unable to accurately locate them. He only knew they were in the building, not precisely where or how many.

He found a set of stairs and began his ascent, his own breathing the only company on this atmospheric voyage. He reached the top and still there was nothing, up higher perhaps....a room with a view maybe. He moved once again and found another set of stairs, only this time when he reached them he heard tat sound which had haunted his nightmares for longer than he cared to remember. It was worse than a Hollows in the way that it could be mistaken for human, a tortured and agonized cry that signalled the hunt rose through the building and above he heard the unmistakable rhythm of thundering footfalls in pursuit.

Norongachi wasted no time, he joined the chase and soared up the stairs like a phantom, his coat billowing out behind him. Two flights of stairs and he was closing in, he could almost taste their filth in the air.

His foot hit the last step his gut screamed at him and like a stone he dropped down to the ground as a clawed arm lashed out where his head should have been. He rolled and sliced the Katana at the putrid green skin of the beast, cleaving it at the knees and then stopping on his back thrust it upwards. The point plunged into its breast bone and purplish fluid coursed down the sword before he kicked out with a boot and sent the legless Hybrid off his sword and tumbling into the darkness.

The Glaswegian climbed back onto his feet and began to move again, upwards he rose through the bowels of the building, following the howls and heavy footsteps some way ahead of him. What exactly could have caused them to act in such a manner he wondered. Had some hapless idiot, other than himself, stumbled into their lair?

He'd find out soon enough.

As he rounded a corner he came face to face with another creature, panic still fueled his flight, but fear was slowly creeping in. The fear of death made him draw his sword and he clumsily parried the monster’s attack. The metal sparked against the creature’s claws. The sword kept the claws from Arawn’s flesh, the monster howled and pressed it’s fingers reaching. The student nearly forced to his knees by the creature’s strength. It howled again and more howls joined it, some moving closer. He didn’t have time to struggle or the ones behind him would catch up. He twisted the blade in his hand and pulled. The blade cut into the monster’s wrist slashed out the tendons, a dark warm liquid poured out the gash and the monster howled again. This time it was one of pain, it’s other hand withdrew and Arawn took the opportunity to run back the way he came. More cries came from behind him, the creature’s pain forgotten as it gave chase. The layout of the floors was random for the most part, but there were stairs an opposite ends. There was an elevator located in the middle he found himself before the metallic doors. He knew that the building didn’t have electricity, so ignored them for the most part. Using his weapon’s sheath he pried the doors apart. He grunts with effort and the doors refuse the budge at first. His effort is rewarded and the doors screech open. Arawn wedges his body in the small gap and forces the doors completely open. Unfortunately the cabin sits just below him, cutting off any possible descent. A monster’s scream and he quickly enters the shaft. He grunts again as he pushes the doors shut behind him.

The doors shut with a clang, and he sits in darkness. Not complete darkness, the unfinished elevator shaft has moonlight piercing it as certain intervals. Something scampers by the now closed doors, and he breaths a sigh of relief. It’s short lived as there is a roar from below him. Going down seems out of the question, he turns his attention back skyward. If he can reach the higher floors perhaps he can leap to another building. Arawn begins to climb. The shaft’s construction has plenty of hand and footholds; he climbs for several feet till he reaches an open portal. His breathing is heavy as he pulls himself up. How many floors has he climbed? It was hard to tell. The floor he enters has only ceiling and floor completed, the walls are completely absent. There is only the framework for the walls a series of wooden beams and pillars outlining their future location. There are windows along the far walls moonlight filters in gently. Arawn takes a moment to catch his breath, his eyes dart around the room looking for any motion. Another scream from below makes him jump to his feet. There is a sound, and he spins in place. He draws his blade quietly and steps forward. The feeling that he had gotten from the first floor is here as well. He dare not try to escape via the shaft again; he eyes the area across from him. There should be a staircase to go up. It is then he notices the yellow eyes following his movement. He makes a silent count; twelve pairs of eyes. There is a growl as he walks.

The fervour in the air was palpable as Sal ran full belt in the direction of the commotion. The Hybrids were worked up like he had only seen once before, back in the village when he had first fought them. Could there be another Shinigami here?

No he'd know about it, he knew all the Soul Reapers who operated in the city, he made a point of keeping tabs on them. Maybe one slipped through his net, he thought, bounding up stairs and leaping through partially completed ceilings caring little for stealth now.

He stopped, alone in the dark it seemed, but his senses were going into meltdown, they were here. He took two more steps into the centre of the room and then his voice as cold as ice spoke to the creatures beyond the velvet veil. "Do you finally fear me you ugly bastards?" He chuckled. "Do you quiver in your ugly boots at the thought of Sal Norongachi....No?" He said, his eyes sweeping the dark. "Then show yourselves!" The roar filled the space and then the Katana was held before him in both hands and an out pouring of spiritual pressure.

"SOUND THE FUNERAL BELL!!" The room exploded in luminous light as the Katana became a massive Claymore and the Hell Fire Shroud poured from Sal's mouth and eyes encasing him in an outer layer of fire that danced and moved with a life of its own.

"There you are..." He smiled, his voice having a slight metallic edge to it as he gazed upon the wall to wall gathering of Hybrids.

He makes it barely seven feet from the stairwell and the first beast lunges at him. Even as Arawn dodges another one strikes out at his exposed back, he swings around wildly. The creatures aren’t invincible they fear his blade as much as he fears their claws and fangs. The problem was the number; only one sword versus twenty-four claws and twelve fangs. As he fended off one attack in the front the next would attack him from the rear. All they had to do was let him tire, it was only a matter of time, and they both knew it. That fact didn’t prevent them from having some fun, they continued their hit and run strategy. Arawn couldn’t keep up with the rapid attacks; their long nails grabbed at his uniform and ripped the cloth. Small scratches across his arms bled, they had him encircled completely. They snarled within the shadows the sound was like mocking laughter.

There was suddenly a hammering of footsteps as if a herd of rhinos has been loosed upon the floor. Arawn’s breath caught in his throat; what the hell could this be? Something big was approaching; could it be their leader? The creatures’ attention shifted to the sound behind them. He knew he should take the opportunity to break through their line, but next sound stopped him in his tracks. It was shouting; it couldn’t be a human. Coud it be a shinigami?
“Do you quiver in your ugly boots at the thought of Sal Norongachi....?” the voice said “Then show yourselves!” The beasts fell completely silent. Who was this man? The creatures started to growl, but no longer directed at their captured prey. The air suddenly got denser, Arawn knew this feeling. The person was releasing reiatsu; it had to be a shinigami. His heart fluttered and hope sprang anew, he tightened his grip on his sword.
“SOUND THE FUNERAL BELL!!” The war cry shook the room, and light exploded forth. It wasn’t a shining light that broke the darkness, but raw flame. It was then that Arawn saw his would be savior. The man stood encased in fire, but he didn’t burn. It was like if he was fire incarnate, even from that distance Arawn could feel the heat. In his hand was what looked like a chunk of metal, but the grip showed it to be a massive sword. Arawn’s mouth hung open “Bloody hell.”

Norongachi was the epitome of calm to the outward observer. His brown eyes, filled it seemed with a luminous fire that shone from behind his very eyeballs, slithering across the twelve monstrosities before him with a look as in human as any demon could give. The dancing flame have no feeling of ease to anyone unfortunate enough to incur his wrath either and the proverbial cherry on top was the 5ft claymore he held like a toy in one hand.

He was, however, struggling to control his bowels. Inside his heart thundered like a war drum, his mind fitting the grip of fear and it was only training and experience that stopped him succumbing to it. These were his nightmares, they always would be for as long as he lived.

"Bloody Hell" Came the very human voice from behind the horde and Sal spied the Shinigami behind the Hybrids as the monsters shifted and began the cautious task of encircling him while staying out of reach of his blade.

"I hope you know how to use that blade," Sal said, his eyes darting between the Hybrids moving to his left and right, his voice distorted like there was another sound layered upon it, swords clashing, bells ringing. "Welcome to the war that isn't happening!" Sal yelled and taking Claidheamh Mor in both hands spun it over his head 360 degrees before slicing it to the left in a massive, yet lighting quick, sweep that caught three Hybrids across the chest.

The rest took this as a subtle hint that the battle had begun and rushed the Rogue Shinigami. Claws and teeth slashed and snapped at him, powerful arms fired bone shattering punches, but rarely did they find their mark and when they did it seemed that Sal transferred the pain into pure unadulterated violence.

The claymore flashed through the air all around him like a silver serpent, the muscular arms twirling the blade in deadly arcs and his feet constantly on the move to compensate for the extensions, the parries and the counter attacks that he dealt and received.

Severed body parts and howls of pain mingled with the soft splashes of purple tinged blood that doused the vicinity of the whirling dervish, and the whirling dervish himself.

Sal spun on his heel, dipped low, and then thrust the point of the blade diagonally at a lunging Hybrids chest. The beast was impailed but its momentum carried it forward embedding the Claymore hilt deep in its sickening flesh and knocking Norongachi off balance. The first rip into his flesh came from behind, shreding the flesh of his right shoulder and knocking him forward again. The second from the right, a stabbing thrust of silver claws than punched into his ribs.

Sal grabbed the offending arm before it could be retracted and roaring like a mad man, his face a mask of human and inhuman blood, bent forward suddenly and shot a leg out behind him, his boot catching a Hybrid in the chest and sending it crashing through the outer wall of the unfinished building.

With the other he was more inventive, using one hand alone he spun on the spot and utilizing the brute strength gifted to him in death the Hybrid was spun around and around him while Claidheamh Mor was held out as well. Faster and faster and with each rotation the helpless Hybrid clobbered its fellows or Claidheamh Mor cleaved a bloody trail. He spun perhaps thirteen times and then with another battle cry let the Hybrid go where it to slammed into and then through the wall of the building.

Sal stumbled back, there were still at least two Hybrids mostly unscathed by the initial clash and another four who had lost a limb or were wounded but still figured they had a chance. He found himself next to the Shinigami, warm blood pouring from his open wounds.

"That went well..." He said taking up a defensive stance.

The man spoke of war, and then moved like a typhoon. A circle of blood and violence, metal and fury; he was war. The creatures threw themselves at the newcomer in mass. Their initial fear had changed to fury matched by the man’s brutality. He punched and kicked as they clawed and slashed. Those he didn’t cleave, he mutilated, and the ones unlucky enough to hit him were killed by the man’s counterattacks. Arawn stood forgotten, rapt by the man’s display of power. But then he noticed that he was not ignored by the creatures, and their backs now exposed. He took the opening and struck out at the nearest foe. His blade hissed through the air and cut downward diagonally across the green creature’s back, it howled in pain. The scream hurt his ears, and it turned around to attack. It turned instead to catch the blade’s second slash from the other direction. The second cut was much deeper and the creature fell to the ground withering dark blood coming from both wounds. “If it can bleed, it can die.” Arawn mutters, and raises his blade to impale the downed creature. It’s wails attract the attention of the others. Their confidence shattered by his initial assault, they turn back to the weaker prey and a hurt ally. Two advance on him, but one is knocked away as the large man spins one of it’s brethren as a makeshift weapon. His first target still rolls on the ground in pain, he decides to attack first. The moment of hesitation and nearly cost him his life as the monster reaches for him. He blocks the strike with the flat of his blade, and swings at the beast’s head. The creature blocks it’s face with sharp talons, but it doesn’t realize attack is a feint until it’s too late. The blade stops before reaching the head and swings low at it’s body. The sharp edge cuts through it’s skin and lodges itself in it’s side. Amber eyes go wide in surprise and pain. Arawn tries to pull the blade free as it claws at him. The monster’s furious attack doesn’t falter; the student shinigami releases one hand from the sword’s handle to keep the sharp nails from striking his face. Desperate he mirrors the large man’s actions; he kicks the beast while pulling the sword. The push and pull motion digs the blade deeper into the monster’s side and then pulls it free with a torrent of dark blood. The beast crumples to the ground and doesn’t move.

The large man comes to stand beside him now; the creatures are wounded and lacking in number. Several howls are heard from below, there are more creatures approaching. Waiting for the enemy to bolster their numbers wasn’t a good idea. Going downstairs into an unknown mass of enemies while being followed from behind was equally unwise.
“We can’t stay here.” He gasps his cuts sting in the open air. The man was more blooded the he was, Arawn wasn’t about to complain about his minor injuries. “There are stairs behind up if we can get to some kind of narrow spot, we can bottle neck them. The numbers are only going to overwhelm us.” The circle of enemies was as broken as their spirits at that moment. If the new ranks arrived escape might not be possible.

"Its a plan, you first, I'll slow them down a bit." The walking inferno said and not even waiting a second lifted the mighty Claymore to the side of his head in both hands and swung it down, the wreath of flame around it leaving a brilliant trail of orange, red and yellows, it cleaved into the cement a few feet ahead of them and using all his strength and reach carved a massive gouge in the floor.

The building shook for a second and then cracks snaked across the cement underfoot, the tell tale signs of a cave in were imminent and Sal gave the Shinigami a push as he fled backwards glancing back only once to watch the room they had been in vanish to the one below with shrieks of surprise and pain from the Hybrids caught in the downpour of rubble and those caught under it.

He reached the stairs and moved up them and once again turned his blade into a miniaturized wrecking ball, slashing at the staircase as the Soul Reaper was safely through collapsing it and barring entry to any who might attempt to give chase that way.

"I don't know about you, but I think we should get the hell out of here." Sal said and grimaced at the pain coursing through his back and side.

Arawn coughed on the dirt cast airborne from all the destruction caused by the large man. He looked at the ruined staircase; crude, but effective. This would buy them some time to formulate an escape plan. They had cut off the enemy from coming up, but they had confined themselves to the upper levels. The caged beasts below sat between them and freedom. Arawn ran over to an unfinished window; they were well over ten floors up. He silently cursed himself, if only he had kept his wits about him he could have escaped before things got this far along. He suddenly looked at his companion as if for the first time, so deep in thought he had forgotten about him.
“Wait you’re a shinigami right? Can’t you just warp out of here? Or at least call for back up?” He held his own safety as the main priority. But if they simply left the creatures would run away spread out into the city. If their own reinforcements came they could probably make short work of the beasts. The humans would prove less of a match for the creatures. “Now that I think about it, what the hell are those things anyway?” This man didn’t seem that fearful of them. It could only mean he had encountered them before.

The question started a nervous laughter that rocked Sal's shoulders and further aggravated his wounds. He coughed up a lungful of blood and spat it to the floor.

"Don't make me laugh," He said with a smile. "I was a Shinigami at one point but that was a long time ago." He limped his way over to an old crate, its wooden boards covered in dried cement, and sat himself down gently, the flames that surrounded him dissipated but his Zanpakuto remained unsealed.

Sal rested his head back against the wall, listening to the howls and shrieks from below, the creatures formulating a way in, scratching at the rubble of the ruined stairway.

"They don't exist, according to Seireitei." He said in a weary tone, when was the last time he'd slept...no he couldn't sleep, if he did he'd dream and those were far worse than reality. "But between you and me i call them Hybrids, something like nothing before it. They are alive and they are dead, they live amongst humans, they have jobs and families...and they kill any fucking thing that moves when they get hungry. I don't know the specifics of just how they came to be but I know that before two years ago these things never existed."

“If they don’t exist does that mean they won’t do anything about them?” Things were looking bleak. Escape would have to set on the back burner. Despite how crazy it sounded, they needed kill the horde of monsters below. Letting them go now would probably make them set up a new feeding ground. If Seireitei didn’t acknowledge their existence they probably wouldn’t bother to look for them after they scattered. Two against a small army, was nothing less than suicide. He looked at large man; although he made short work of the enemies he was covered in cuts and blood. Most of the blood he wore was his own. Arawn looked at his own ragged and blood stained attire. The low roof, walls, and corridors worked to their advantage and disadvantage. Something started to trouble Arawn, a stray thought, he was forgetting something. He dismissed the thought, he needed more information. There was too much he didn’t know, and so much he could do.

“About these Hybrids.” He asked the man looked like he was dozing off. Arawn was amazed he could sleep in this kind of situation. “Do they have any particular weakness? I mean something we can use.” They seemed quite strong from the confrontations he had so far. They also seemed to be very fast as well. His blade had cut into their flesh easy enough, but their nails were equally as lethal. He hadn’t thought to use kido, but the casting time made it almost impossible alone. With the large man as support perhaps they could exploit an elemental weakness? The barricade wouldn’t last forever, and the creatures might get bored and leave. Again that would be an unfavorable situation in Arawn’s eyes. These Hybrids were as great a threat as hollows. Hollows were to attack people of high spiritual power. The Hybrids seemed to attack anything they could find. If left unchecked they would decimate the humans faster than hollows would. Could human weapons handle them?

Below he could hear the claws of his newly discovered foe. They had wounded many of their number. Perhaps they wouldn’t “get bored” of them so easily. At best they had until dawn, at that time people might appear on the streets and attract their attention away. They were now the central focus of their furious screams. If they did not kill all of them this night, they would die a very painful death. Arawn could imagine the many clawed hands rendering his flesh and fangs piercing his veins. Would Seireitei still overlook them if a student died by their hands? He would hope not, but he didn’t want it to come to that. He didn’t want to think about dying.

Sal didn't open his eyes but a smile crept across his face. "Do you see any other Shinigami around? Have you heard anything about this in Soul Society? That should be answer enough. Luckily i've contained them to Scotland."

He let his mind wander as Arawn continued speaking. How could they possibly keep it under wraps, he'd been doing a hell of a job day and night fighting these bastards but some must have slipped through the net. There must be a report filled somewhere within the 13 squads, someone MUST have come across them. Then again, would they really release that information? That was Seireitei all over.

Sal sat up again and looked the Shinigami dead in the eye, this next part was extremely important. "They can only be harmed by weapons of a Spiritual nature. That's not to say they can't be hurt by a falling building but only a Zanpakuto for instance can deal the killing blow. They regenerate at an unbelievable speed. I've seen Hybrids regrow entire limbs in ten minutes but that varies between mutations. The ones out there are what i like to call First Gen Hybrids. Most are newborn, young and pretty stupid. They don't have a full grasp of their abilities yet," He stood up and walked over to the ruined stairway. It had gotten eerily quiet.

"Their powers seem to become enhanced with age or perhaps its based on the host. Like I said I don't have all the facts, only what I've gathered on the field. I've encountered others, they were more human and infinitely more powerful. I can't tell you if this is simply mutation or an entirely separate breed but if you ever come across something that isn't like those ugly fuckers out there. Run fucking fast." He finished.

He walked over to the outer wall and put his ear to the rough hewn concrete, there was a noise and not a good one. Nails on stone, lots of nails. "Get the hell away from the w-" He didn't get a chance to finish that warning as the entire wall was pulverized into needle sharp shards of masonry that sprayed all across the room and sent him tumbling across the floor. The room began to fill with bodies, misshapen and grotesque creatures climbing over one another to get at their prey.

As the monster broke the stone barricade Arawn's hand went to his sword. His fear had diminished enough that he wasn't overtaken by the sudden rush. The first monster to reach him is cut across the face, it doesn't have time to scream as Arawn sidesteps and brings the blade down on it's neck. He's getting better at fighting them, they don't have much of a plan other than charge straight at him. A small sidestep was all it took, a feint destroyed their defenses. It still took alot of strenght to cut them, he had to put all his strength into each swing. Still their number was troubling; they would tire and be overrun. "We gotta move!" Is all he manages to shout and slowly moves back towards the next stair well. Their weapons won't be enough, even though the large man said it was futile, dropping the building on the creatures is the only thing that could level the playing field. They could then sweep up the injured beasts as they regenerated or freed themselves from the wreckage. The real question was, how were they going to survive the building's collapse?

In a heart beat the fiery aura had burst back into life around Sal and this time it came back with a vengeance. He pumped out more of spiritual pressure, it utterly smothered the air, gave it a greasy feel to it, made it feel heavy against ones body as it over powered the senses and strangled the spiritual power of those weaker than he was, which was a fair few.

The flames belches out all around him and like the proverbial phoenix he stood encased in eternal fire, holding back the bulk of the attackers who slammed harmlessly against the Hell Fire Shroud. He turned his attention to Arawn and motioned to the stairs and then lashed out with Claidheamh Mor cutting a swathe through the ranks and edging back with each swing. He made it to the stairs and followed the Shinigami upwards.

"Okay, decision time. We collapse this place and take most of them down in one move or we fight it out. If you want me to do it then say so, if i go all out this place will tumble like a house of cards. I cant promise you will get out unscathed however." Norongachi finished driving the massive claymore down the stairway behind him and skewering three Hybrids.

The plan forming in his head had too many holes, but it was the best course of action. "Okay, you need to bring this building down, but you can't do it from here. You'll need to take out the supports on the bottom." He looked at the battle hardened warrior. "The fastest way for you to get down there, is to lead them up further." Arawn felt a chill down his spine as he spoke. "I'll be a decoy, get them to follow me to the higher floors while you take the opposite stairwell to the bottom floor." He recalled his earlier observation of there being two stairwells going down and up on each floor. "The monsters haven't been smart enough utilize both, so we'll use that to our advantage." Provided he could keep all the monsters focused on his ascent, the trip down would be easy for him. Two or three minutes if he's fast enough. "Once you get to the bottom levels wait one minute before you destroy the support beams. I think I can survive the collapse, but I'll need to reach the upper floors anyway." Gamble and risks were all that he could hope for. Winning big meant going for the long shot.

Sal kept pace with the Shinigami as the plans were laid before him, occasionally taking a swipe at an over eager attacker. Norongachi shook his engulfed head as their boots clattered on the stone.

"No good, the foundations are between 9 and 12ft underground. How many floors up are we now? About 12." He said as they rounded the stairway and onto a higher floor still. "13..." They raced higher still, the roof was some three or four floors above them. One more should do it..." He growled to himself with a demented grin.

"Flyy me tooo the mooon!!" He yelled as they hit the 14th floor stairwell and increasing his speed to maximum velocity ran head first into the wall, unsurprisingly it gave way.

He fell out into the air like a wayward firework, arms flailing for a heartbeat and then he flipped onto his back and gritted his teeth. This was gonna hurt but he needed the momentum. He inverted his position, his head pointing toward the ground, feet in the air, and in the same instant flung his upper body toward his feet and his feet toward his head.

The boots hit him across the forehead with all their force and thanks to physics shot him far quicker toward the rapidly approaching ground just to the side of the buildings base. He hit the ground in a head over heels spin, like a streaking comet, slamming into and then punching through it with all the agonized pain that accompanies such an impact.

He lay dazed for a few seconds, his head pounding, his body screaming obscenities at him, and trying to to choke on the dirt that had begun to collect in the deep crater he let all his Reitsu flow at once, something he had only done twice before in his life. The dirt and debris seemed repulsed by it and shot away in either direction as the air became a haze and he focused the entirety of it into the blade still firmly grasped in one hand.

He drew the sword back behind his head, the trail of fire it left melting stone and soil with a touch, and then with a yell swung it forward in the general direction of the building. The arc of flame exploded outwards from the metal, extending the blades reach by several fold. It easily slid through the earth around him as he completed a 180% arc and then, he waited. Hopefully the Spirit Power boost had been sufficient enough to catch all of the Foundations.

He would soon find o-the next thing Sal saw was a falling, screaming Hybrid and a gravity challenged cement mixer before a building landed on top of him.

(OOC: Dood that was epic. I must try to do the same )

Arawn stands motionless captivated as the man barrels through the wall and out the building. The shock wears off quickly as he hears the sounds of nails scratching the floor, and snarls of fury. He races onward to the roof. He turns in time to see that they have indeed accessed the other stairwell.
“Glad he didn’t go with my idea after all.” He mutters dashes upward. The next level is completely bare the ceiling is non-existent he can see straight up where the roof should be. Truth is there is no ‘roof’ just unfinished building; consisting of cross beams and pillars. The creature’s screams grow closer, but he knows if he looks back he won’t make it.

There is no stairs on this floor, he jumps upward through the unfinished ceiling and lands on one of the iron beams. His body wavers and he nearly falls back to the floor below, now filled with hybrids. They look upward at him, and jump as well. This time their numbers aren’t in their favor. All those creatures trying to jump at once hinder each other. A few of the smarter ones start to climb, while they fight among themselves. Arawn turns away and jumps higher. The next jump is nearly a miss, he falls short, but grabs with his hands. He dangles over the side for a moment as he struggles to pull himself up. One floor left before he’s on the ‘roof’.

Suddenly the building trembles, it almost knocks him off the beam. The warrior must have knocked the supports. The building groans and buckles. Very little time is left, he looks around and spies his true target; a large overhanging crane. He knew he couldn’t jump to another building from this roof, but the crane’s line dangled a little above the incomplete building. He figured if it was low enough, he could us it to survive the collapse.
“DAMN.” He notices too late, that it’s still too high, and well out of his reach. A second tremor rattles the building. Arawn knows he can jump perhaps a good ten to twelve feet high, the crane’s hook sits perhaps thirty feet. The tops of the building’s support beams jut into the air six feet or more along the rooftop. Even with the added height he won’t make it. There a hiss from behind him, a hybrid has joined him. Rather than fear he only feels agitation. He doesn’t bother with his sword, he releases his reiatsu. Arawn points his hand at the creature. “Push and pull, forward and advance. Hado #1 Sho!” The hybrid is shocked as he’s pushed back and over the edge. A satisfied grin comes to his face, and then a smile as the solution he was looking for is found. He jumps quickly to the top of the nearest beam then summoning all the strength he can muster he leaps once more.

The building topples no longer to support the stone and metal that makes it. There are screams from the hybrids as the walls come down around them. Arawn last jump clears him of the destruction, but now there is nothing below him, and the crane hangs several feet above. It almost looks like he’s flying; his legs pump the air frantically hoping to get a bit more distance. Near his jump’s apex he pours out more spiritual energy, everything he can. He doesn’t have a second chance. He reaches out with his right hand and then he shouts, "Disintegrate, you black dog of Rondanini!! Look upon yourself with horror and tear out your own throat! Bakudo #10 Hōrin!” From his out stretched right hand a tendril of orange shoots forth like an arrow. It grabs the crane’s hook and wraps itself around it. Arawn starts falling, but the energy rope goes tense, and he dangles from the other end. He begins to laugh, and looks at the wreckage below. A cloud of dust is all he can see. The building is probably nothing more than a pile of rubble. For a second he gets dizzy, the height is a bit scary for him. Arawn knows he needs to get down there. Finish up the hybrids before they regenerate. He climbs the energy rope, and then up the crane’s line. The metal hurts his hands slightly, but he makes it to the higher rooftop. The crane’s building is much higher than the ones around it. He takes him several jumps, but he makes it to the ground and runs to the destroyed building.

A dozen or so tons of stone and steel can put a serious crimp on your day. Sal was sandwiched by three steel girders three inches from the snapping jaws of a Hybrid. Fortunately the ugly bastard was also pinned under the mountain of rubble and all they could do was scream and shout at one another while they attempted to get free.

"Kid!! If you're still alive come get me out! Oi! Anybody!" He yelled his voice exceptionally loud in this small space but how many layers of debris lay between him and Arawn, was the Shinigami even alive?

"Oh fuck this..." He grumbled and stopped struggling, his eyes still on the snarling and screeching Hybrid right in front of his nose. "Will you just shut the hell up? Seriously what good is screaming doing? Sweet fuck all you dozy tart!" He snapped and this seemed to take the Hybrid back a bit, it stopped mid-roar and considered it for a moment. The face like a well slapped arse took on a thoughtful look and then with a small grunt came to a decision.

"RAWWWRRRRRRRRRRRRRR"

"God in Govan...." The Glaswegian sighed.

There is only a mountain of rock and metal when he reaches the base where the building once stood. The dust till fills the air, but he can hear the hybrid screams of pain. The rubble shifts slightly and Arawn draws his blade. Battered and bruised a hybrid pulls itself free, it staggers as it's body tries to heal the crushed bones of a limp arm. It puts almost no resistance as he cuts it down. Arawn begins to move through the rubble killing others before they can get out. All the while he keeps looking for a sign of the warrior man who caused it all. "Warrior!!" He shouts aloud, he knows it's rude to address him as such, but he didn't get a name to which to call him. "Can you hear me!?" He sifts through the wreckage; the dust is finally clearing the air. But then he hears sirens in the distance. He hadn't thought about that. Dropping a whole building was bound to get some attention.

There is a sudden shout not far from his position among the broken stones. A large beam lays half buried in the earth. He moves towards it. He can hear a voice, or is it a growl. The metal is conducting the sound waves, but whatever it is, it's too garbled to know. If it's a hybrid he needs to kill it, if it's the man he needs to save him. The area is littered with large rocks and metal. Arawn knows he lacks the power to clear such a mess. Power? As he had done before he relies on kido to supplement his lack of physical prowess. He summons his spiritual energies.
“Thunder shake the heavens, roar and shatter the silence, blaze and split the darkness. Hado #4 Byakurai!” He aims diagonally into the ground, hoping to not hit whoever might be below. There is a small explosion as the blast of energy breaks the beam and scatters the rocks some what. He fires another blast to break the rocks and metal further. It's tiring, but it works. The larger stones are somewhat smaller.
"And now for the harder part." He focuses again and tries to remember the words for the next spell. "Engulfed by the need of want come forward. Hado #2 Reel!" He targets a somewhat large rock and it pulls free and moves toward him. He stops the spell before the boulder can crash into him. “Push and pull, forward and advance. Hado #1 Sho!” A metal beam is knocked away. And so he works alternating between the two spells digging down into the pile. Occasionally he finds a hybrid and puts it out of it's misery. He’s sweating now, the effort of maintaining his reiatsu and rapid fire spells taking their toll on him. He keeps digging.

The weight was lessening, he could almost take a full breath without his chest crying out in protest. There was a charge in the air as well, a slickness to it that he had come to associate with Kidou use. The peculiar use of Spirit Energy shaped in many respects like magic from fantasy lore. It seemed to give the air colour to his senses, flashes of reds and melancholy blues dancing in his minds eye as Arawn unleashed the spells under his command to shift the rubble from atop him.

"Feel so good, i feel so fineee, lovin a little lady thats always on my mind..." Sal began to sing quietly to himself, the Hybrid still snarling inches from his nose, covering his face with the horrid stink of its breath. "She give me lovin every night and day. Never gonna leave her, never goin awayyyheyheyheyy..." The pressure eased some more as the debris was moved from above, he gripped his sword tightly. It would only take a second. "Someone to love meee, you know she really feels all riiighhhtttt. Yeah, alright."

This was it, the optimum weight he could shift was achieved and Sal burst up like a titan from the earth, his sword rising up like the blade of a vengeful god and fell like that of a crazed butcher who had been highly offended by whatever piece of meat he was currently working on. "Someone to need me" Chop, down on the Hybrids neck. "Love me every single dayyyyyyyy!!!" The song seemed to increase in volume with every haphazard slice chunks of green flesh arcing all around him, the splashes of blood giving the dull broken stone a dash of flair and style.

Norongachi stopped his practical demonstration of gratuitous violence and gave a contented sigh. "Its good to know she's all mine." He concluded in his best Imitation of singing and then turned to Arawn with a bright smile, as if he hadn't just shown how easily he could, if the mood struck, become a serial killer.

"Nice one," He said and then with a brisk twist of the wrist stabbed his blade into the appearing head of a Hybrid next to his left leg. "You okay for the clean up?" He added noting the exhaustion rolling off the Shinigami.

The man seems fine enough, Arawn notes. He almost feels like his efforts to rescue him were wasted. But was relieved, if not surprised to see him okay after a build fell on him. He manages to chuckle at his comment. "Hardly much left to clean up." nearly breathless he points to the area around them. As he dug he had cut up the hybrid twisted by the wreckage. He wipes the sweat from his brow on his sleeve. "If there are any left, they must be further down, honestly they can stay there." He drops to a sitting position on the ground. The sirens can still be heard in the distance, "Should we do something about the bodies? I mean how will the humans react to seeing these things?" The destroyed building was one thing, but grotesque bodies would definitely cause some major uproar. Arawn didn't know any fire based spells, prehaps the warrior's ability could do something. "Uh Mr Warrior, what can we do?" He tries to stand up, but barely makes it to his knees and topples forward. The full drain of using kido and the endless fighting finally taking their toll.

Sal looked around at the devastation and then in one ungraceful movement fell to his knees and Claidheamh Mor resealed into its Katana form. The colour drained entirely from Sal's face and he became even more pasty white than he usually was.

"Christ, i'm fucked..." He sighed and then looked up at Arawn. "Take a look at the bodies," He said motioning to the all to human limbs sticking out of the rubble. "They revert back after death...the cops will think it was some freak accident or a gang land murder."

"Mr Warrior? Its Sal and there's not a thing we can do, the building was obviously unstable and these unfortunate folk got caught in the collapse, i wouldn't worry about it but we should get the hell out of here." He said and after three attempts managed to get to his feet again, his knees groaning in protest. He started the walk across the broken and uneven ground, it had been a close one but somehow he'd pulled through again.

"I suggest you find yourself a Shinigami in the city who can get you back to Seireitei." He called back to the Soul Reaper as he exited ground zero and took to the streets.

A Sal stumbled away a figure appeared over Arawn's body. The man stood there admiring the destruction and the collapsed form. He chuckled "Always something interesting." Solun remarked. He had watched the events unfold, Arawn was correct in his assessment; he had purposely separated him from the others. While it was fun to watch him panic at first when the confrontation unfold he had enjoyed the spectacle. He rubbed his chin and considered the man walking away. A rogue perhaps or an exile. Killing him wouldn't be too much trouble in his current state. Solun's hand rested on his blade's handle, but he then pulled it back. "But that would hardly be fun after such a show you've put on." He gives a bow to the man's back and lifts Arawn with one arm slinging him over his shoulder. He then vanishes.

*********

Arawn awakes in bed not his own. It's a familiar setting, the medical squad's barracks/hospital. His body aches, but he feels almost fine. He looks down to see that he's been bandaged around the many cuts that covered his arms and body. He sighs, wondering how or when he got back. He's been given his own room, but this one has no window. It seemed like a dream, but his wounds are proof to the contrary. Did the warrior survive as well? Wait, not warrior. He recalled faintly the words before he blacked out "Sal?" he whispered. Since he was back meant the hybrids were finished off. He wondered why Soul Society ignored such creatures, but was too afraid to ask. For now he would need to get stronger, when he visits Earth again he would need to lookout for those foul beings. And perhaps find Sal again and thank him. That would all have to wait until he got some rest.