|
|
Post by Hitsugaya on Feb 27, 2012 16:50:57 GMT -5
( Soundtrack for this thread) A small distance from the disturbance downtown, above a small shop another Garganta appeared, a heavy presence emanating from it. The pressure coming from the gap in space would alert anyone nearby as to what was going on, even if the ruckus being caused in the Shopping District wasn't enough to make them stir. As the presence in the Hollow-portal realized it was coming close to its destination, the pressure would lessen, hiding itself from its target, who could easily recognize it, if it continued to be so obvious. The sound of screams and explosions rang out in the night, as monsters wreaked havoc in town. |
|
|
|
Post by Clyde on Feb 27, 2012 17:08:41 GMT -5
It didn’t take Clyde long for the ruckus outside to get his attention. The time had finally come, he thought. He knew the arrancar would make their move, but he didn’t think it would be this soon. Hopefully Nonko and Azerik would follow through on their promise, and get the shinigami here…and fast.
The boy didn’t have much time to lose though, quickly he re-applied the bandages to his right arm making sure any injuries he had on it were properly taken care of. He then placed the robes Drystan had given him over himself being that they were much less intrusive in combat than what he normally wore.
With his preparations done, he looked around for Miwa quickly. If she was still in the building he needed to make sure that she followed him to help the people outside. However, as he looked, she seemed to have left abruptly. He had no idea where the other human had gone…he hoped that she would notice what was going on outside as well.
Realizing she was gone, he grabbed hold of the pole from his room that he hadn’t used for battle in some time. Feeling its weight, his right hand tightened around the familiar object and boy took in a deep breath. It was time to end this war, he thought. With that, he turned towards the exit and began to dash forward out of the shop. Little did he know that the battle was closer than he thought, it was on his front doorstep practically.
|
|
|
|
Post by Karzan Zaraki on Feb 27, 2012 17:27:42 GMT -5
"Going somewhere?"
The cold voice would seem to come out of the air, as a blurred shape blasted out of the portal high above Clyde with a sound like a gun being fired. The pressure that had come from the portal flared up again, heavier than before, and closer to Clyde than he would have expected. Karzan would appear suddenly in front of the boy, a wide fanged smile twisting his features as he made to slash at the human with his drawn sword.
His aim was not to hurt the boy yet at this point, only give him a fright, and to unsettle him...and to keep him from interfering with his plans.
"I came here to see you Clyde, where are you running off to so soon?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Clyde on Feb 27, 2012 18:04:35 GMT -5
Clyde eyes widened as a figure burst from the gargantuan above him. His gray eyes darted upward and saw the zanpakuto that lowered down upon him. With quick reflex’s the boy rolled backwards, springing off his free hand to quickly push himself back onto his feet while the blade would hit the ground he use to stand upon, causing it smash into pieces from the strength of the arrancar that emerged. Karzan Zaraki, the Lord of the Deep. At first, Clyde questioned to himself how he knew where the human would be, but he recalled that Karzan had learned of such things back in their first encounter. “Karzan…” he muttered as his gray eyes fell upon the arrancar, narrowing towards the hollow.
The human repositioned himself, standing straight ahead, and brought his heavily bandaged arm up, placing his left hand upon the pole he held as well. His eyes looked upon Karzan, and they were a mix of emotions, but unlike the last time Karzan saw those eyes, his thoughts and emotions were clear to him. It looked as if he had matured since their last meeting. “So then…you’ve finally arrived.” The human spoke calmly to the monster that stood in front of him. He knew that if Karzan was here that he wasn’t going to let Clyde by; the human would need to defeat him before he could help the others. Clyde knew this…but he also knew that if he defeated Karzan, this war was as good as over. The human took another deep breath inward before releasing it slowly.
“What is it you hope to gain from all this?” The boy asked calmly, with his weapon at the ready…though he had still yet to activate his power upon. “All of the things you have done, and are doing...what’s the point of it all, Karzan?” His questioned did not seem angry, or desperate for justification. No, it sounded like someone who was trying to understand his opponent. But why? After everything Karzan had done to the boy, it would have made sense for him to just attack. But he didn’t. He stood there, and spoke. Was he trying to figure Karzan out?
|
|
|
|
Post by Karzan Zaraki on Feb 27, 2012 18:27:37 GMT -5
Karzan relaxed his pose and Clyde tensed his, straightening up from where he had struck the ground. The boy's reflexes were phenomenal, his skills tempered by the flame that Karzan had ignited in the boy when he killed the girl, and honed by the battles he had fought since that day...and as he was the one to give him the power, he would be the one to strip it away, for the good of the Arrancar.
As the boy spoke, Karzan's face settled into a more calm expression, as he pondered the boys attitude and words. Skills aside, Clyde had changed since they last met...had he too discovered the truth of what Karzan had found in the boys mind.
"I'll answer your question, but in return answer me this," Karzan said with a slight smile, "have you made peace with that Shinigami in your head? Do you understand what you are, as I do?"
When he had said what he wanted, Karzan looked at Clyde with his head cocked to the side. "What I want is no mystery though my boy," Karzan said cracking his neck back into position, "I want what any good leader wants for his people...I want us, the Arrrancar-not the Hollow-to be prosperous, for my kind to have their time in the lime light. Even if its not permanent, I want to lead my kind into a golden age, where we are the ones doing the hunting, where we are the ones in charge, where the Shinigami are the ones that your kind fear...I want the Arrancar to realize that they are not merely evolved Hollows..."
Karzan paused for a minute, taking a breath before continuing. "There is much that I want Clyde..." he said slowly, "but what I want is for the Arrancar to have power, not merely the power to kill and to maim...I want them to have a taste of the power that I can get the barest hint of when I sniff the air of Hueco Mundo...the power to decide who is good and who is evil...the power of the one who wins the war, the power of the victorious."
|
|
|
|
Post by Clyde on Feb 27, 2012 18:55:26 GMT -5
Clyde did not waver from Karzan’s words. The arrancar had seen further into his mind than Clyde ever had…it was not surprising that he too had discovered the humans origins. “I have,” the human answered simply, his position not changing. “In a way, Ishiro was a lot like you, Karzan. He too wanted to stand at the top; to be in charge…to do something great. Ultimately though, what he wanted more than anything was the ability to change things.” As Clyde spoke, the “memories” from the shinigami would bleed out into both his and Karzan’s minds. His rise to power was shown to them, and then the fall of his brethren that devastated him so.
“But like him,” He interjected as the memories faded from his mind, “You have become obsessed with victory over your own people. You want to see the arrancar become strong, to achieve victory, but you have abandoned even them to stand before me now just to get the chance to finally kill me..to see your own goals realized. The victory you want is not as selfless as you believe,” the boy argued, still remaining in his calm demeanor as he examined the excited arrancar. “You stand before me for your own volition…not theirs.”
“I too, wished to be strong, when you had killed Tsukiko.” He lowered his eyes as he recalled the encounter. “I became obsessed with defeating your kind…and I too abandoned my friends and allies to complete that goal. But as I fought and fought, I came to a realization. I had stopped fighting for them…I was only fighting for myself. Power and victory means nothing if you fight alone." Clyde said wisely. "I was no better than my own enemies if I abandoned who I was. I needed my friends as much as they needed me."
With those words, he returned his attention to Karzan, "It seems you have tricked yourself into believing you fight with them…to give your power meaning. The truth is though is that everything you have done up until this point was for you…and you alone. You sent your arrancar here to bring out your opponents so you could fight them; sent them to me so I would grow stronger so that you could have the opponent you so desperately wanted. Everything…all of it; It was always for you. You were never fighting with your people.”
“Karzan…” He raised his eyes back to the arrancar, his voice deadly serious. He looked upon not with eyes of anger, or rage, but sympathy. “…I pity you.”
|
|
|
|
Post by Karzan Zaraki on Feb 27, 2012 19:10:31 GMT -5
"I don't claim to fight with the Arrancar," Karzan said simply, "the Arrancar are arrogant, and slaves to their baser instincts...as you say I am no exception, but I alone realize that the path we head down will destroy us...so I'll change our path...I will cleave it in two with my own power, even if my brothers and sisters do not understand what I do for them...and you are the instrument I will use...I sent my men to you for power as you say...so that the Shinigami and your Humans can watch you fall...the heir to the ideals of Hasaki Ryo, and the hope of all the Humans crushed...it will crush any seeds of rebellion that have been planted, and make room for my kind to realize they can still evolve, and become more than they are."
But then came Clyde's last words, words that Karzan refused to countenance. "I have no need for anyone's pity, let alone yours!" Karzan shouted as he launched himself at Clyde, blade poised to strike. "My kinsman cannot accept they have become more than Hollow because the will of Soul Society forces us to take on that role! I will change that, even if all the Arrancar in Hueco Mundo should bar my way! I will make them take the power for themselves if I must, but I will make them great!"
|
|
|
|
Post by Clyde on Feb 27, 2012 19:23:38 GMT -5
In the blink of an eye Clyde’s reiatsu consumed the pole he held and transformed it into the spear he had become accustomed to using, the weapon he was most proficient with, and met it with the blade Karzan swung at him.
The collision sent teal and gray reiatsu throughout the entrance to the manga shop, instantly shattering the windows and sending books flying from side to side across the room. The amount of energy being used by the two easily toppled many of the books in the room as their weapons clashed. The two were pushed further into the room as a result of the collision but despite this still remained with their weapons in grapple.
Clyde’s eyes still looked upon the espada with pity, as he broke down some what from the human’s words. However, they also had the fire of determination within them. This was it; all of their battles had been leading to his moment. It was hear that their blades and philosophies would meet…where only one of them would be correct. Everyone was counting on him to win this battle, just as he was counting on them to win theirs. Clyde would finally prove himself and show Karzan just how wrong he was.
|
|
|
|
Post by Karzan Zaraki on Feb 27, 2012 19:42:12 GMT -5
Karzan roared as he saw the pity in the boys eyes. It was unacceptable, there was no reason for such disdainful eyes. Karzan had no regrets, and his vision was absolute, nothing would stop him from going after his goal...so why was this boy feeling SORRY for him?
"I'm going to kill you this time boy," Karzan said with another face twisting smile as he charged a Cero in his left hand, "I'm not going to let you go free like last time!"
Shouting the last sentence, Karzan fired the Cero as his voice reached its loudest point, firing straight below Clyde's feet, knowing what was below from the memories they shared. He wanted ample room to fling this boy around, before he crushed the hope, and extinguished the fire he had set ablaze.
|
|
|
|
Post by Clyde on Feb 27, 2012 19:56:47 GMT -5
The cero easily burst the floor at their feet, and the very foundation of the manga shop began to fall apart as the two were emptied out into the large underground training area below. Debris followed the two down below until they landed on the ground, a few feet away from one another.
With the “ceiling” of the area collapsed, it looked as if they were fighting somewhere in the dead of night. The artificial sun was now gone, and only the darkness from the gargantua’s above would be seen; A fitting appearance for the battle being fought.
“I’m going to put a stop to this once and for all," The boy promised as he swung his weapon down upon the ground, causing the debris and dust to be knocked away from the two just from the force of his swing, “Let’s end this war, Karzan.” With that he would push his legs against the dirt at his feet and with his leg strength literally fly towards the arrancar stabbing his spear forward at his opponent, and releasing a blast of reiatsu as well at the lord of the deep.
The first thing Karzan would notice was great amount the humans speed had increased since their last battle. Even from his battle with Kyoshin, it seemed Clyde had only managed to get even more refined in strength and technique.
|
|
|
|
Post by Karzan Zaraki on Feb 27, 2012 22:41:39 GMT -5
Karzan's vision narrowed as Clyde moved toward him, before he opened his eyes wide in surprise at the boys speed. His training had progressed further than he anticipated. Nevertheless, Karzan prepared himself and block the attack as best he could, slashing the blast away with some difficulty, before slashing back to knock the trajectory of Clyde's spear off course.
Using Sonido, Karzan backpedaled away from Clyde, and began to charge a teal colored Cero in his left hand. "You're not the only one who's learned new tricks," Karzan said with a laugh, "have a taste of my Rascar Cero!"
As the words left his mouth, the blast would be fired from the Arrancar's outstretched hand. Halfway towards the human, the blast would split into 5 crescent shaped blasts of energy, all of them heading towards Clyde. Karzan followed up by launching a spray of 10 Bala, spreading them out in the directions Clyde could dodge.
|
|
|
|
Post by Clyde on Feb 28, 2012 21:19:14 GMT -5
Clyde’s spear made contact with the arrancar’s zanpakuto, but Karzan was quick in distancing himself from the human by using his sonido. The boy was quick though and retracted his arm backward above his head where he would spin his weapon between his hands, gathering reiatsu in the air around his weapon.
When Karzan fired his cero Clyde would slam his weapon into the dirt at his feet, plunging it into the ground. At the moment he did this, he would spread the energy gathered into the earth and manipulated into a barrier of his reiatsu directly in front of him.
He maintained his position as he struggled against the incoming cero’s that collided with his barrier. Cracks formed from the collision, as bits of the cero bled threw, cutting into the boy’s shoulders. Before the attack could get any further though; Clyde, with incredible strength, forced his spear upward cutting through both his barrier and the remains of the cero that threatened him. Both shattered like glass before dissipating into the air.
With his weapon still lifted into the air, he channeled his spiritual pressure into it, and swung it down upon the ground, sending a wave at Karzan while the human focused an dodging the remaining bala that flew in his direction.
|
|
|
|
Post by Karzan Zaraki on Feb 28, 2012 21:38:53 GMT -5
Karzan grunted as his remaining Cero fragments were shattered before his eyes. Using Sonido he dashed forward as Clyde fired his wave of energy, swinging his own sword as he moved. By time he met the wave, he was moving with enough momentum to push aside most of the attack with his blade, but the outermost edge of the blast would singe the sleeve of his left arm, leaving a burn on his forearm, and knocking him slightly off balance.
Karzan recovered from the attack while Clyde was distracted by the Bala, and charged again at the boy with Sonido, swinging his sword once he came in to range. "You might actually give me a hard time," Karzan said as his sword moved through the air, "but you know this isn't my real strength."
|
|
|
|
Post by Clyde on Feb 28, 2012 21:58:11 GMT -5
His sword would come in contact now with a spear, however, but with what resembled a shield wrapped around the boy’s right arm. The two flew across the shattered “sky” of the underground area, as Clyde spoke, “I remember.” He said, commenting on the released form the arrancar had; the form that had beat him last time…the form that had killed tsukiko. A dangerous power that made even the captains of the shinigami fear the espada. His eyes however had not changed from since the last time Karzan was close enough to see them.
A flash of light would emanate from Clyde’s backside of as reiatsu escaped from his arm and traveled up the bandages to his back. With the light cleared a pair of wings made from his reiatsu adorned his backside. A single flap of them sent out a pulse of energy that stopped the two from moving any further within the area.
Raising his left hand he slammed against the back of his shield; “But It’s that strength that I will overcome this day.” He promised as the hand came in contact with the shield. As soon as the hand touched the back of it, the front changed shape, causing several spikes of energy to extend from the front of it, aiming right for the arrancar’s chest. "I'm right here. When you're ready to use it I'll be ready to take it on!"
|
|
|
|
Post by Karzan Zaraki on Feb 29, 2012 14:30:28 GMT -5
Karzan growled as two spikes ahead of the rest made small punctuyre wounds in his chest, but when he relaized what was happening he quickly backed off with Sonido. From his new position he could clearly see Clyde's wings of energy, and he smiled as he realized exactly how far the boy had come since they last met.
"We have both grown so much since before Clyde," Karzan said wiping some of the blood from his chest on his left hand, which began to glow with his Reiatsu, "unlike before I'm not going to use my Resurrecion unprovoked...you'll have to earn the right to fight me at my best this time."
By the time he had finished talking, the bit of Reiatsu in Karzan's hand had grown into a charge Cero, that flickered, as if the energy it contained would tear through space to reach its target. Widening his smile into a grotesque fanged grin, Karzan let out a laugh as he fired the Gran Rey Cero at Clyde. As soon as the blast left his hand, Karzan launched himself at the boy as well, traveling alongside the blast, so that just as the blast would reach him he would slash, blood from previously unseen wounds on his shoulder soaking blood into the cloth of his coat as he moved. Karzan cursed himself as he remembered the effects of his Rascar Cero, hoping the boy would not notice and merely think his last attack had been the cause.
|
|
|
|
Post by Clyde on Mar 1, 2012 2:37:52 GMT -5
Clyde continued backward as Karzan distant himself with sonido before the human could trap him in his attack. Once he backed away, Clyde observed as he wiped a portion of blood on his hand and began to recall when he faced off against Kyoshin. That arrancar in particular did something very similar to release a much more potent cero than the hollow’s ordinary versions of the attack. A Grand Ray Cero, he believed the being called it. Regardless of how strong the human was, he knew meeting an attack like that head on would do him more harm than good.
What surprised him though, was that Karzan followed close by the attack after he fired it. The blast of energy, if he stayed too close would easily harm him as well. With a flap of the wings on his back, the human would maneuver to the side of the blast Karzan faced and with a quick timed transformation of his weapon fired another crescent slash at his opponent in an attempt to sandwich him between both the blast and Karzan’s own gran rey cero.
With little time remaining, Clyde would attempt to back away from the imminent explosion of energy as best he could, creating a barrier around him with his power for protection. Even so, the blast would certainly send him crashing to the ground clumsily (regardless of what happened to Karzan). He would skid to the ground, his left arm receiving a large gash from the force of the fall.
|
|
|
|
Post by Karzan Zaraki on Mar 3, 2012 11:51:57 GMT -5
Karzan saw the blast and stopped his movements as fast as he could, but he could not escape what happened next. Instead of being sandwiched between the two blasts like Clyde had wanted, the blasts simply collided in front of Karzan, both exploding with tremendous power. The blast would sen the Arrancar to the ground parallel to Clyde, recieving damage to both his arms as he rolled to a stop. Karzan stood slowly, ripping the remains of his coat and shirt from his torso, as the backs had been burned away by the explosion. Tossing the scraps of cloth to the side, Karzan tightened his grip on his sword, staring at where Clyde lay on the ground. "I guess its finally time to stop playing around," Karzan admitted to himself as he spoke, "its not like I expected this to be easy."Pointing his sword at the boy from where he stood, Karzan's reiatsu began to flare, as he prepared himself for the real battle to come...where his true strength would be tested against this boy...no this shell of a Shinigami. "Destello Colmillo," Karzan shouted as his Reiatsu flared up even more, surrounding him in a cloud of dust, as black amored Hollow skin formed around his arms and legs, connecting at his sides, and barely exposing his bare torso. Karzan laughed as he felt the power of his release heal all his wounds.As the bone white collar of armored skin formed around his neck, Karzan was finally revealed, as his true self. He was an animal, the collar a symbol of his obedience...he was nothing more than a guard dog, charged with protecting the true potential of the Arrancar. "Get up Clyde," said in a calm voice now, "you showed me your determination and your faith in your ideals once before, but the cost of your loss was the death of your friend...now I will show you mine, and lay the future of my people on the line."Reiatsu: 230 + 65 + 10 = 305
Attack: 255 + 65 + 15 = 335
Speed: 230 + 65 + 15 = 310
Weapon Skill: 160 + 65 + 10 = 235 |
|
|
|
Post by Clyde on Mar 3, 2012 16:44:06 GMT -5
The wings of reiatsu on Clyde’s back dispersed back into his bandaged right arm as he slowly rose to his feet. The wind from outside seemed to vacuum around Karzan before being released outward in all directions; for a moment it was like being caught within a hurricane…and in many ways, it was. Clyde stopped his ascent to prevent himself from being pushed back by the release of pure power in front of him. When everything had finally settled The Lord of the Deep stood before him in his true form, one the young man remember far too vividly. Even now, its appearance had not lost its impact on his gray eyes, which narrowed at the espada when he called for Clyde to “get up.”
The human did so, standing tall and undeterred even against Karzan’s Resurreccion. Raising his right arm Clyde created his spear once more; though this time the process seemed a bit slower as the boy put far more concentration in its creation. With a swing of his right hand, his reiatsu spiked upward towards its peak which nearly matched Karzan even while released.
The spear was still made from his reiatsu, but it was very contained, controlled. The amount of energy built up into it was the equivalent of one of his crescent slashes…though instead of releasing the blast he forced it to stay within his weapon; the weapon surged brightly with the humans reiatsu, at any moment it was ready to be released into a powerful attack.
For a moment the two would stand there in silence; as if gauging the power each other had. Here the human made no boasts, no claims, no promises. There were plenty of things he could say in response to Karzan's words...but the silence said much more of how Clyde understood this battle.
Before the two engaged, the loud roar of an adjucha, which Karzan would recognize as Nero, was heard in the background; the noise from the battle outside was growing with intensity to the point where now Karzan and Clyde were aware of it. Even so, the human’s eyes remained fixed on the arrancar. At this moment, the human’s priorities were set; he knew which battle to keep his attention on. A quick dash would send him towards his opponent where he would raise his weapon to strike at him and meet his power head on.
|
|
|
|
Post by Karzan Zaraki on Mar 3, 2012 22:59:38 GMT -5
Karzan brought his arms up to form a protective "X" shape in front of his face and chest, catching Clyde's weapon between them, feeling the super condensed energy between them. With a grunt, he shoved the human's weapon upward and back, then slashed diagonally down with both clawed hands. extending them to their full length as they moved through the air so he could try to inflict maximum damage.
After the attack, Karzan would jump backward in preparation, firing two fang bala at Clyde as a stalling maneuver, while Karzan looked about him for the slightest thing he could take advantage of. He immediately spotted the Garganta he had neglected to close, and began to think of the implications of fighting on his home turf...but that would make the point of defeating Clyde moot, he needed another advantage.
|
|
|
|
Post by Clyde on Mar 4, 2012 17:49:49 GMT -5
Clyde’s weapon was pushed upward from after a brief struggle between him and the human’s strength. With his weapon in the air he was completely exposed, at least he would have been if he did not quickly change the shape of his weapon. In a flash the spear went from pointing vertically upward, to pointing horizontally causing the diagonal swings of Karzan’s claws to be caught against the pole section which Clyde grabbed hold of with both hands. This quick deflection lessened the impact of Karzan’s slashes, but the claws were still extended long enough to slice into the humans shoulders.
The boy pushed back just as Karzan retreated backward himself, spacing the two apart by a few feet. His eyes keeping close track of the espada’s movements, he nimbly dodged the first bala and stabbed his spear into the second one dead on, cutting through it as the boy expanded it with his power. The spear would keep expanding towards the espada, who made the mistake of taking his eyes off Clyde…if only for a second. When his eyes would return to the boy, he would see the spear heading right for his chest. If he wasn’t quick enough, the spear would stab right into him.
|
|
