New Beginnings; ((Kaoseu Shikai 1)) *NEW*

His battle with Kuroi had been great. Not to mention the whisperings of his Zanpakutou had begun coming at full blast, to where it seemed he was always in a crowded area. His head felt like someone was driving nails into it as it was lit on fire and salted lemon juice was poured on it. He couldn’t take any more of the pain and excitement, and decided that after his duties that day, he’d leave and go to try and quell these whispers.

He was dog tired from his duties. The heat had massacred him and he’d been a runner for his squad for 6 hours. He was wiped out, completely. He sighed as he returned to his barracks, the whispers screaming, though nothing was understandable. He gathered his belongings in his tired arms and left the barracks. Without hesitation and with an uplifting feeling in his gut, Kaoseu began the long trek to his training spot.
After 30 minutes of hurried Flash Stepping, he finally made it. He pressed through the thin entrance to the cave, and noted that something was wrong. He looked up at the giant crystal in the ceiling and saw that its light had dimmed severely. The eerie glow it cast now sent shadows about the room, and they danced and played against the rock-walled space. Kaoseu shivered and lay down, no longer being able to stand due to fatigue.

”Maybe a little nap wouldn’t hurt…” he said to no one in particular as his eyes closed.

A rustling noise came from right and Kaoseu was moving before he knew it. Instinctively his eyes snapped open as he stood up from the backwards roll he’d conducted. He saw White standing in front of him, and Black standing a little to the left. He was watching Whit Warily, seeing as he was currently on his side of the divide that separated his inner world. White snickered and Kaoseu’s eyes narrowed.

”Smart, considerin’ this time yer quarrel’s with me.” White said, then a black blade appeared in his hands and he disappeared. Kaoseu leaned back as White’s blade passed above him from the front and on his right. As White flew by, Kaoseu drew both blades and slashed with a quick over handed arc at White, aiming an attack and turning himself to face his opponent at the same time. The spray of black ichor on the ground showed Kaoseu had been successful in his attempt. He grinned wickedly as White disappeared again, still heading in the same direction he had from the start.

Without warning, Kaoseu was thrown forward and he felt a slash at his legs and heard the thump of his left leg hitting the ground, even before he did. He screamed in horrific pain as he clutched at the stump of what was left of his leg. Everything below the knee was 15 feet away from where Kaoseu was now scrambling into a standing position. He had little time to finish this, and knew it. He gritted his teeth and shouted in violent rage and pain, a war cry reminiscent of rival tribes. Thick, black Reiatsu filled the air around him. It wasn’t as impressive as a captain’s, but it was enough to give him confidence as he Flash Stepped at White, who he could see in the distance.

The world went black as Kaoseu was enveloped by what seemed to be a tidal wave of darkness. He was beaten down to the ground by the relentless pressure of the inky darkness. He Flash Stepped up, or at least where he thought was up. He plowed into the ground and slid along the rocky surface as the waves carried him. He found his footing and Flash Stepped in the right direction, until he rose out of the lightless sea that had come from nowhere. He coughed and sputtered, choking on whatever that horrible makeshift water had been. Without warning, a giant black hand rose from the sea and grasped his body firmly. He watched in pain as the air was forced from his lungs the approaching figure of White. Kaoseu struggled, his body and mind going numb. Light flickered in front of his fading vision like lightning, and then a thought struck him. He struggled more until his hand was up and pointed a finger at White who now loomed over him.
”Say your last words, Kaoseu Enjel.” said White. Kaoseu grinned a bloody grin as the figure raised his blade, holding it at the left side of Kaoseu’s neck.

”My last words, eh…?” he said. He spit at White’s feet and the spirit snarled viciously, bringing the blade back to make a quick slash. ”Hado number 4, White Lightning!” Kaoseu shouted. The electricity shot through the hand and directly between the widened, horrified eyes of White. Kaoseu watched as the figure fell, and plummeted into the black sea below them. There was a flash of light as Kaoseu slipped from consciousness, a smile on his lips.
He re-awoke on the divide between the worlds. Immediately, he was assaulted by a wave of nausea as he sat up. His ears rang and he could hear Black and White laughing and see their distorted forms on their respective sides of the divide in front of him. He instinctively reached for his blades, only to be stopped by Black raising a hand. Shakily, he stood, and his Zanpakutou spirits did the same. He took a deep breath and steadied himself, then focused his clearing vision on the beings before him.

”Ya did well, fer an untalented piece’a trash. I think it’s about time, don’t you?” said White as he looked towards Black. Black nodded and White chuckled and turned to Kaoseu. ”Shirokuro.” said the ethereal figure. Kaoseu was confused. He scratched at his head and opened his mouth to ask a question when a rock collided with the side of his head.

”It’s our name, Shit-fer-brains!” said Black in an enraged tone. Kaoseu rubbed the sore spot on his scalp as he sat up.

”Well what am I supposed to do with it?!” retorted the Shinigami. He dodged another rock narrowly and stood back up.

”Just say what you’ve always known you knew, just never knew it should be said.” said White. Black’s head tilted back, and if he’d have had eyes, they would’ve rolled at White’s obvious failed attempt at wise words. Kaoseu laughed and then nodded after he’d sobered up. He drew his blades and took a deep breath as he uttered the words that he somehow knew were right.

”Shine in the shadows and hide in the light… Shirokuro…” he whispered. Black and white light exploded in a column around him. Kaoseu reigned in the powerful Reiatsu, and felt a power like he never had before. When the Reiatsu subsided, Kaoseu could tell that he had successfully attained Shikai. He grinned as he checked out his blades. They were identical in shape, but opposite in color, one black as a moonless night and the other as pure white as snow. Around the hilt of each was cotton bandage, the bandage on the sword being of opposite color to the sword itself, meaning the white sword had black bandage and the black sword had white. He grinned and looked up at Black and White, only to find that the beings had disappeared. Light began to fade and eventually, all was total darkness.

Kaoseu woke up back in the cave. He shook his head and popped his sore neck. The angle he had fallen asleep at had given his body Hell. He ached all over. Then realization hit him; he had obtained his Shikai! He stood up quickly and unsheathed his blades as he whispered,

”Shine in the shadows and hide in the light… Shirokuro…” Just after his words, the column of black and white Reiatsu exploded around him, cutting him off from the outside world. He felt warmth flowing through his very core and reigned in the rampant Reiatsu. In his hands, he held the blades he had seen previously in his inner world. His elation was evident as he practiced with the blades, swinging them about his person. He couldn’t fight it and let loose a pulse of Reiatsu through the blades and the bandages instantly wrapped themselves around his hands, fingers, wrists, and forearm in such a fashion that as he swung them about now, the tiniest flick of a finger could drastically alter the course of a blade’s path. Laughter emanated from Kaoseu as he practiced feverishly with the blades.

Eventually, he began to tire, and was ready to call it quits when he heard whispering from his waist as he was about to sheath his blades.

”You haven’t even gotten to the best part yet! You think a new appearance is the only thing you get from us? C’mon, we’re not that stingy! Remember those waves that attacked you? They weren’t waves. It was pure shadow. Focus your Reiatsu and watch what happens.”

Without as much as another glimmer of help to the befuddled Kaoseu, his blade stopped speaking. Utter confusion enveloped him, but he did as instructed. He let his Reiatsu leak into the air and he focused it, concentrating on making an even, steady flow. When nothing happened, he was about to stop and his eyes flitted to a shadow that blinked along the wall from the twitching light of the jewel in the ceiling. As if on instinct, he cast his Reiatsu to his limits, just inside 25 feet, to the shadow. He grinned when he felt his Reiatsu meld with something else, and he knew it to be the shadow. He grinned as he moved his Reiatsu about and the shadow followed with it. He made different shapes with the shadow, hardened it to almost a solid, almost like a thin piece metal, although when tested, it was breakable if hit with a Reiatsu based or Reiatsu backed attack. When he was finally done testing his limits, he found he could manipulate any shadow within a 25 foot radius of himself, and could only control a total mass of about 5 feet in height, 3 feet wide, and 2 feet in depth. If he sent any shadow in the form of a projectile outside of its limits, it returned to its original state and place within a little under 2 seconds, so it wasn’t much use for ranged combat, although Kaoseu figured that’d come with higher levels of power, as well as increased duration and distance.

With a grin and shallow, shaky breaths, Kaoseu capped his Reiatsu and sealed his Shikai.

”Nice work. Now hurry up and get stronger. There’s still more ya gotta learn.” commented his blade as he ate and then packed his small travel backpack and set out from the cave. Wind rushed past him as he Flash Stepped from the cavern, a hop in his step and a fire in his heart; this was the start of a new beginning.

Call out phrase: "Shine in the shadows and hide in the light... Shirokuro!"

Description of released form:

Spoiler:

Black cloth bandage is wrapped around the hilt of the white blade and white cloth bandage around the hilt of the black blade. Both blades look precisely as depicted, and when Kaoseu pulses his Reiatsu through the bandages, they wrap themselves around his wrists, fingers, and forearms, in such a way that the blade's paths can be altered drastically midcourse by the simple flick of a few fingers.

Abilities:

Ability 1:
Kaoseu has control over any shadow within a 25 foot radius of him. His maximum amount of shadow able to currently be used is a mass 5 feet tall, 3 feet wide, and 2 feet deep. The solidity he can make the shadow is similar in strength to a thin piece of metal, and can be broken easily by Reiatsu based or Reaitsu backed attacks. With each rank after rank 3, the distance Kaoseu can control the shadow increases by 25 feet, and the amount of shadow mass he can control increases by 1.5 feet for each dimension. For every rank increased, the solidity of the shadow is upped. (At Bankai level, it's maxed out, equal to a 5 inch piece of cast iron)

Required Word Count: 200
Application Word Count: 1,840