>>3186759
>Pesche and Dondachakka are both useless in a battle like the one Aizen is set to start. You need to head to his lair to find them.

>>3186759
>>Pesche and Dondachakka are both useless in a battle like the one Aizen is set to start. You need to head to his lair to find them.
Let's wreck Aizen's house.

>>3186759
>Pesche and Dondachakka are both useless in a battle like the one Aizen is set to start. You need to head to his lair to find them.

>>3186759
>into the lair of the beast/bastard

>>3186759
>>Pesche and Dondachakka are both useless in a battle like the one Aizen is set to start. You need to head to his lair to find them.

>>3186759
Hey Queen, could you tell us what the domains of Inari Riku would have been, had we not agreed to/cut of the 9th half tail?
would have even been able to act against aizen, at all?

>>3186850
Not explicitly, but the domains of the two other aspects of Inari are "potential" (in the sense that unbroken land has a certain potential to grow crops) and "artifice" (in the sense of the human endeavor of creation). The latter is the one which takes an ongoing active role, and is the one who Riku has met.

Riku heavily suspects the answer is no, which is why she did it.

What is even happening here, is this running or

>>3189299
i thought that divinity would in some way create its own purpose, but apparently at least for the shinto gods the purpose is chosen by birth and ancestry

>>3189306
yes, but queen has had bad luck on his work, so he will only do one or two updates today, same for claymore tomorrow

i would suggest joining the discord, since we get these kinds of infos rather quickly

>>3189306
This is accurate >>3189314
Thanks to an unholy combination of work, health issues, and travel I haven't been able to hold a regular session in months. So I've been doing an update a day instead, sometimes more than that when I find the time.

If you wanted a Discord link I could hook you up, but you shouldn't feel obligated. I should be better at keeping Twitter updated than I have been recently.

>>3186759
3d10 roll, taking the best of three

Rolled 1, 2, 9 = 12 (3d10)

>>3189430

Rolled 2, 8, 1 = 11 (3d10)

>>3189430

Rolled 10, 8, 6 = 24 (3d10)

>>3189430
come on satan, i did you that favor!

>>3189446
Selling your soul now?

>>3189450
what soul?

no he required a ... helper here on the mortal plane, I better not incriminate my self further ...

>>3189430
You decide that the best way to save your friends is to go to wherever it is that Riku and her wife are going, but to do that you'll need help.

That's why you find yourself at the Third Division headquarters, standing in Ichimaru Gin's office. The Captain, Riku's son by adoption you've learned, glances up from a desk where he's pretending to do paperwork.

“Can I help you?”

“You can,” you reply. “I need a favor.”

“Maybe I can help,” he sighs, no longer even pretending to work. “What is it you need?”

“I need you to cast a kidō on me to make me invisible,” she tells you. “I want to follow your mother and... well, your other mother... into whatever realm it is they're trying to reach.”

“And why?” Ichimaru asks curiously “You do realize the fight is going to be in the living world, right?”

“I do,” you admit. “But my friends will not be there.”

“I see,” Ichimaru muses, giving it some thought. “And you do not want to argue with Riku and Yoruichi about it.”

You nod silently.

Without explaining, Ichimaru stands up and walks around his desk. “Bakudō 26: Kyokkō.”

After a few moments, you shake your head. “I don't feel any differently.”

“Minimize your reiatsu release,” Ichimaru tells you, “and chase them at the last possible second with a sonido and you should be fine.”

“Thank you,” you nod in understanding. “I... never considered you particularly trustworthy, Ichimaru. In fact I tended to think you were dangerous.”

“That is the kindest thing you've ever said to me,” he interrupts your moment of sentimentality, before beginning to wander off. “Now, I should probably say something to my Lieutenant while I still have a moment...”
>1/2

>>3189499
And so that was how you made it through into the Schattenbeireich, a frigid realm to which Aizen has evidently relocated permanently. You had heard of this place of course, but it used to be the case that the Sternritter would remain here while you and the other arrancar in Aizen's employ would remain in Hueco Mundo, under the domed false sky Aizen had constructed to house you.

It's hard to say what strategy makes sense... you could try to find someplace that looks like a prison, or you could head for the high point that you can see from where the Captains came through with their little contingent of black-clad experts.

Or you could just follow the Captains at a distance, for as long as your camouflage will hold out.

>Head to the highest point
>Look for a prison or jail
>Follow the Captains
>Other?

>>3189507
>>Look for a prison or jail

>>3189507
>Look for a prison or jail

>>3189507
>>Look for a prison or jail

>>3189507
>Look for a prison or jail

>>3189507
>>Look for a prison or jail

>>3189507
>>Look for a prison or jail
Might find someone interesting if we don't find our boys.

>3d10 best of 3

Rolled 7, 10, 4 = 21 (3d10)

>>3189824

Rolled 1, 8, 4 = 13 (3d10)

>>3189824
And here we go.

Rolled 9, 1, 1 = 11 (3d10)

>>3189824

File: 1542569652745.jpg (80 KB, 640x539)

80 KB JPG

>>3189841

>>3189824
You quickly decide to break away from the group you followed here, to reduce the chances that you'd be found out. Instead you start looking for anything that resembles a prison in some form among the sprawling complex of buildings. Like the Seireitei a lot of the buildings seem either to be unoccupied or else dedicated to specific purposes, but unlike with the Seireitei the former category seems far more prevalent. In fact there are entire swathes of 'city' that simply stand empty, the buildings mere shells.

How many people ever lived here, you wonder?

Eventually you find a likely-looking structure, one with no windows and only one entrance that you cannot feel the interior of: it's less like there's nothing inside, and more like something is blocking your ability to sense reiatsu.

“It makes sense that this would be a prison,” you muse aloud, noticing now for the first time that the kidō that Ichimaru cast has expired.

>Scout around the building, look for any other possible entry points even if that means coming from underground.
>Examine the entrance, see if it may be possible to get in without beating or blasting your way in.
>Bust down the door. Full power from the start means you may catch anyone inside the building off guard.
>Other?

>>3189933
>>Examine the entrance, see if it may be possible to get in without beating or blasting your way in.

>>3189933
>scout around

>>3189933

>Scout around the building, look for any other possible entry points even if that means coming from underground.

>>3189933
>>Examine the entrance, see if it may be possible to get in without beating or blasting your way in.

>>3189933
>Scout around the building, look for any other possible entry points even if that means coming from underground.

>>3189933
>>Scout around the building, look for any other possible entry points even if that means coming from underground.

>>3189933
>3d10 for scouting, best of three
DC 18, crit 23

Rolled 2, 6, 5 = 13 (3d10)

>>3193284

Rolled 5, 9, 8 = 22 (3d10)

>>3193284

Rolled 9, 5, 10 = 24 (3d10)

>>3193284
HERE WE GO

File: I am your genetic destiny.jpg (60 KB, 500x500)

60 KB JPG

>>3193314

>>3193284
After searching around the adjacent buildings, you finally identify a way in that isn't through the front door: there seems to be a tunnel that runs under the building you suspect to be a prison, an empty space that your pesquisa can make out just faintly. And that tunnel runs beneath one of the nearby buildings as well.

That building is empty, which is a small blessing you realize, and when you let yourself in through a window you quickly find your way into the basement down a stairway which has no railings. In fact, the whole thing seems to be carved from stone, you can even see some of what seem to be tool marks along some of the treads and risers.

Below a heavy, rusted iron plate you find access to the tunnel you were looking for. It's full of wires and pipes, built into framewoks that keep them in position. There are lights as well, which come on when you flip a wall switch just inside.

The space is extremely tight, barely enough to allow you passage, but on the upside you can sense when you're just below the building you've gone to all this trouble to find a way into.

There's another iron plate covering what you think is an access hatch.

>Blast your way in.
>Sneak your way in.
>Moderation in all things.
>Other?

>>3193392
>>Sneak your way in.

>>3193392
>3193392
>Sneak your way in.

>>3193392
>Sneak your way in.

>>3193392
>sneaky breaky

>>3193392
>Moderation in all things.

>>3193392
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 9, 7, 2 = 18 (3d10)

>>3196051

Rolled 2, 9, 7 = 18 (3d10)

>>3196051

Rolled 8, 8, 8 = 24 (3d10)

>>3196051

File: giphy (14).gif (5.59 MB, 400x225)

5.59 MB GIF

>>3196062

>>3193392
You decide to keep moving forward, though you elect a slower approach. The sword at your side has a crossguard with protrusions on it, sharp enough to wedge between the hatch and its mounting. With just enough effort, you strain to drive the crossguard in as deep as you can.

Then you realize that if you can't sense in, anyone inside can't sense out either. So you allow yourself to draw on a little of your reiatsu to force the hatch a little harder. Because of that you're able to pry the hatch loose all around its edges and lift it out of position.

After taking a few moments to determine that you're not being followed, you hoist yourself into an empty room that look like a utility closet. Thankfully nobody seems to be on their way here, but unfortunately it seems that your senses are also being smothered.

The door isn't locked, and you step out into an empty hallway that's lit from the ceiling with long, cold bulbs. You can look in through windows along this hallway, which seem to be lab spaces of some kind. All of them are clean and devoid of people.

“This is a little spooky,” you mutter to yourself. You had expected a prison in here, not an empty scientific lab. “I hate it.”

But deep inside, you realize that Aizen is exactly the sort of bastard to experiment on prisoners... he would argue that it's efficient. You would argue it's cruel.

And now that you've gone your separate ways you're free to express that disagreement.

>Move upstairs carefully, see if your hunch is correct and there IS a prison here.
>Break into one of the labs, see if you can find any evidence of your friends.
>Just crush anything that gets in your way, you're all out of patience.
>Other?

>>3196121
>>Move upstairs carefully, see if your hunch is correct and there IS a prison here.

>>3196121
>Move upstairs carefully, see if your hunch is correct and there IS a prison here.

>>3196121
>Move upstairs carefully, see if your hunch is correct and there IS a prison here.

>>3196121
>>Break into one of the labs, see if you can find any evidence of your friends.

>>3196121
>>Move upstairs carefully, see if your hunch is correct and there IS a prison here.
Almost forgot to vote.

>>3196121
>3d10 best of three for sneaking

Rolled 9, 3, 3 = 15 (3d10)

>>3197968

Rolled 10, 4, 6 = 20 (3d10)

>>3197968

Rolled 8, 3, 1 = 12 (3d10)

>>3197968

>>3197968
“There must be more to this facility,” you reason at a whisper, considering carefully where you must be in the building. “Upstairs.”

That makes a certain amount of sense: the floor or floors dedicated to scientific labs could be downstairs, closer to what must be the power and utilities, where the prisoners are kept above. So you need to move upstairs... however you need to be aware of the likelihood of guards appearing in your way.

The hallways on this floor seem empty, and despite the lack of signs to use for directions you slowly find your way to a stairwell. The next floor up is also apparently dedicated to lab spaces, so you continue your way up to the next floor beyond that and find what looks to be the area around the entryway. It's partly based on the fact that you have to creep around what almost feels like a structure inside the structure, which makes sense for an enclosed hallway.

Once you're past that area, you start to see that the hallways are lined with obvious jail cells. It's an almost surreal quality, with doors consisting of heavily reinforced metal bars.

Turning a corner to access a new hallway, you run into a single human in a white uniform.

He blinks, as if not fully comprehending he's looking at.

“Crap!” you hiss, quickly kicking the quincy in his crotch and slamming the back of his head into the nearest wall while he's stunned.

So that's the exchange then... there are guards around here, and they can't sense you either. So you can't consciously avoid them, but they don't know you're here either. Every time you run into one of them it will be a surprise.

>Drag this guy downstairs and leave him somewhere out of the way.
>Try and lock him in one of the cells.
>Snap his neck.
>Other?

>>3197992
>>Drag this guy downstairs and leave him somewhere out of the way.

>>3197992
>>Drag this guy downstairs and leave him somewhere out of the way.

>>3197992
>>Drag this guy downstairs and leave him somewhere out of the way.

>>3197992
>>Try and lock him in one of the cells.
lets hope anyone who finds him thinks he got put there by someone in charge of something

>>3197992
You backtrack down two flights of stairs and stuff the quincy you've knocked out into a locker in one of the deserted hallways. There he shall stay, until... you're not really sure how long, but then again you guess it doesn't matter. Before shutting the door on him you take a keyring off his belt, rather old fashioned but convenient for you.

There's only one way you can think of off the top of your head to proceed, and that's a floor by floor check.

But giving it more thought, there are a few options. You could do this the slow way, carefully checking each cell on each hallway while evading any further discovery. Or you could try to sneak into the air vents, which you know has to work. Every documentary from the living world tells you as much.

You can also simply kidnap someone and drag them someplace to interrogate them.

Or, lastly, you could run around as quickly as possible. You wouldn't be able to avoid notice, but it may not strictly speaking be necessary.

>Sprint around.
>Kidnapping and interrogation.
>Thorough sneaking.
>Air ducts ALWAYS work.

>>3199854
>Air ducts ALWAYS work.

>>3199854
>>Air ducts ALWAYS work.

i can see neliel taking action movies literally, so this would make sense to her

>>3199854
>>Air ducts ALWAYS work.
action movie infiltration

>>3199854
>>Air ducts ALWAYS work.
Too much Metal Gear

>>3199854
>Kidnapping and interrogation.

I want to see this.

>>3199854
>3d10 for AIR DUCTS
>best of three

Rolled 4, 9, 8 = 21 (3d10)

>>3201966

Rolled 10, 5, 2 = 17 (3d10)

>>3201966

Rolled 6, 8, 8 = 22 (3d10)

>>3201966
I wonder if there are any rats to show the way?

Rolled 7, 8, 2 = 17 (3d10)

>>3201966
>Neliel, remember the basics of sneaking.

>>3201980
>>3201985
well she didn't need the lesson apparently

anyone else finds the idea of Neliel squeezing herself into air ducts with her bust and stoic demeanor really funny?

>>3201966
It takes you a while to find what you need for this to work, but eventually you do manage to find an entrance to what looks like the ductwork that circulates air throughout the building. Knowing what you do about how things are done in the world of the living this is a sure-fire way to sneak around the building unnoticed by the guards patrolling its halls.

You manage to pry the grate off and slip inside, with very little room to spare. You have to go on your hands and knees, inching your way forward, but it actually goes quite a bit quicker than the documentaries tend to suggest. Maybe it's just your superior arrancar physical abilities working in your favor.

After ascending one floor, you find the sound of a door closing and make you way through the vents to investigate.

On the opposite side of another grate, you hear voices from the room below.

“Hey, Karl?”

“Yeah, Frederick?”

“You don't really think we're... sorry, nevermind.”

“Come on Fred, you can't just bring something up and drop it like that. What's on your mind?”

“You don't really think we're like the Nazis, do you?”

“Fred!” Karl's voice protests in shock. “Whatever would make you say such a dreadful thing?”

“Well, we do all speak German.”

“So did Albert Schweitzer.”

“And our uniforms are all ripped off of Hugo Boss.”

“... I fail to see a problem there.”

“And there's the whole thing about exterminating an entire class of beings which we treat as subhuman, and that time we started a war with the shinigami over living space, and I'm pretty sure Quilge Opie is literally Heinrich Himmler. I mean you've seen the photos...”

“I have seen the photos and we are not to mention them,” Karl snaps, before reigning himself in. “I think you're imagining things.”

“Our elite unit is literally called the Schutzstaffel.”

“... maybe that one is a little blatant.”
>1/2

>>3202052
Kek, you rock queen

>>3202052
“All I'm saying,” Frederick insists in a lower tone, “is that the longer we're at this, the more I get the sense that maybe we're the bad guys here.”

“No!” Karl tries to reassure his peer. “Bubi, no. We're not bad people. We just need to defend ourselves from the real bad people. The hollows, the shinigami, international Jewry...”

“Karl, I'm serious!” This time it's Frederick's turn to snap. “This is no time to be making such tasteless jokes!”

“Okay, I'm sorry,” Karl apologizes. “Maybe a bit too far with the Jewish joke. But my point is we're not the bad guys here, and thinking that way is just going to make you crazy. Get us both in trouble.”

>Drop in unannounced, grill them for information.
>Drop down after they move on and trail them.
>Try to follow them through the air ducts.
>Other?

>>3202061
>>Try to follow them through the air ducts.

>>3202061
>Drop in unannounced, grill them for information.

>>3202061
>try to follow them

>>3202061
>>Drop in unannounced, grill them for information.

>>3202061
>Try to follow them through the air ducts.

100% Undetected run

>>3202061
Going to be kinda honest here, Nel's ass is FAT so I'm surprised she's so good at sneaking through a vent.

>>3202061
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 9, 4, 9 = 22 (3d10)

>>3203942

Rolled 1, 5, 3 = 9 (3d10)

>>3203942

Rolled 6, 8, 2 = 16 (3d10)

>>3203942

>>3203942
This strategy has gone well for you so far, and so your best call is probably to continue with that strategy. At least that's your current logic.

So you continue to crawl through the ductwork following these two quincy as best you can. At some points you're obliged to break off for a few minutes at a time, since the ducts don't follow the hallways perfectly. However you always seem to be able to track them down again with little effort, mainly due to the fact that the never seem to be capable of shutting their mouths.

“So Fred, when do you think we're gonna see some action?”

“No idea.”

“It's getting pretty boring around here, don' you think?”

Frederick seems to agree with that assessment. “Definitely, but I kind of like it being quiet around here.”

“The test subjects really did tend to be loud, didn't they?”

“And if it wasn't them it was the... I want to call them scientists?”

“I guess that's fair.”

“Feels weird to have just cleared them all out like that.”

“Yeah. But it's not like any of them were important anyway.”

“Except those two, you know. The special cases?”

You have to take a circuitous route through a nearby wall, then backtrack to get to the right hallway.

“... the skull-faced freaks.”

“So yeah, they're probably dead.”

“Definitely dead. That was kinda the point though, so I guess it's okay.”

>Drop in, demand to know the part of the conversation that you missed.
>Sneak back out. Your friends are with those Executioners Aizen kept around.
>Blast your way out. No time for subtlety.
>Other?

>>3204061
>Drop in, demand to know the part of the conversation that you missed.

>>3204061
>drop in!

>>3204061
>>Drop in, demand to know the part of the conversation that you missed.

>>3204061
>>Sneak back out. Your friends are with those Executioners Aizen kept around.

>>3204061
>>Drop in, demand to know the part of the conversation that you missed.
Ceiling Nel disapproves of your actions.

>>3204061
3d10, best of three

Rolled 8, 6, 10 = 24 (3d10)

>>3206518

Rolled 8, 10, 3 = 21 (3d10)

>>3206518

Rolled 7, 8, 10 = 25 (3d10)

>>3206518

Rolled 2, 2, 8 = 12 (3d10)

>>3206518

>>3206518
Having finally heard something of interest to you, you decide that it's time to make your move. With a single powerful punch, you collapse the 'floor' of the duct you're in and drop down into the hallway. What you didn't expect however is that the entire section of ductwork to release from the ceiling and fall with you in a cloud of dust and debris.

Coughing, you find your way to your feet and draw your zanpakuto. “These two... special cases...”

The two quincy are coughing as well, but one manages a response. “Yeah?”

“Where are they?” you demand.

“Went after... intruders...” the man continues to wheeze. Then he realizes what she's looking at.

“Hey, ain't you one of those ex-Espada?”

“Neliel to Odelschwank,” you confirm.

“Well, hell,” the man frowns. “Way, way above our paygrade.”

“We don't get paid, Fred,” his partner reminds him.

“Ah,” Fred nods, seemingly considering it. “No wonder my wife left me.”

“That was five hundred years ago Fred,” the other man sighs. “Are you still on about it?”

“Focus, you two,” you snap. “Where are they now? Exactly?”

“Like hell if we'd know,” Karl shrugs. “We can't sense anything that goes on outside these walls.”

“We're basically prisoners here ourselves,” Fred adds.

“So what are you going to do with us?”

>Same thing I did with that other guy.
>I don't care.
>You... really are the bad guys. You don't deserve mercy.
>Other?

>>3206654
>I don't care.

>>3206654
>>I don't care.

>>3206654
Put them in a closet and barricade the door, should give them the chance to get out and give you time

>>3206654
>I don't care.

>>3206654
“... I should kill you,” you realize aloud, considering who these people are. “It would be justified.”

“But I don't care what happens to you. It's not my concern.”

Then, you simply walk away from the whole situation. You wash your hands of them entirely.

Well, that leaves you a decision to make. You need to figure out where your friends are right now, based on the information those two quincies mentioned to you. They've likely been taken off somewhere that their presence will be most likely to end in their untimely deaths, which means hot spots on the battlefield.

>Seek out the strongest reiatsu and go there, that's where they're more likely to be.
>Try to sense for arrancars... at range you may not be able to sense your friends specifically, but finding an arrancar would be a start.
>Try to find someone who 'doesn't belong' here and head for them first.
>Other?

>>3210207
>Try to sense for arrancars... at range you may not be able to sense your friends specifically, but finding an arrancar would be a start.

>>3210207
>try to sense arrancar

>>3210207
>>Try to find someone who 'doesn't belong' here and head for them first.

>>3210207
>>Try to sense for arrancars... at range you may not be able to sense your friends specifically, but finding an arrancar would be a start.

>>3210207
>>Try to find someone who 'doesn't belong' here and head for them first.

>>3210207
>>Try to sense for arrancars... at range you may not be able to sense your friends specifically, but finding an arrancar would be a start.

>>3210207
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 10, 5, 2 = 17 (3d10)

>>3213068

Rolled 6, 4, 8 = 18 (3d10)

>>3213068

Rolled 9, 3, 5 = 17 (3d10)

>>3213068

>>3213068
You extend your pesquisa outwards from where you stand atop a roof, a chill breeze tugging at your hair.

By your reckoning there are plenty of arrancar out there, but far too much reiatsu in the atmosphere to make any clear determination of where any one of them is at this particular moment. You know that Salao and his fraccion are two of those arrancar, and while they aren't strictly speaking the same type of being you can sense that Captains Shihōin and Kusajishi are out there as well. Their reiatsu feels similar enough to that of an Espada that you can't help but notice them.

“The trouble is,” you mutter to yourself, “that those powerful reiatsus are obscuring anything much weaker than they are.”

Like two candles flickering under a blazing sun, Pesche and Dondachakka just aren't strong enough to be obvious at a distance with such powerful fighters putting out so much reiatsu of their own.

But you do get a general sense of where those powerful reiatsu signatures are most concentrated.

You also sense that there is another arrancar out there, lying in wait perhaps.

And at a distance, almost as if on the other side of a wall, you sense Ulquiorra.

“What is he doing?” you frown, not quite understanding why his reiatsu feels so different.

>Ulquiorra
>Salao
>Kusajishi
>Mystery Arrancar

>>3213129
>>Mystery Arrancar

>>3213129
>>Mystery Arrancar

>>3213129
>>Mystery Arrancar

>>3213129
> Mystery Arrancar ahoy!

>>3213129
>>Mystery Arrancar
Sure why not

>3d10, best of three

Rolled 1, 8, 9 = 18 (3d10)

>>3215401

Rolled 1, 9, 10 = 20 (3d10)

>>3215401

Rolled 4, 1, 1 = 6 (3d10)

>>3215401

>>3215401
You decide to track down the arrancar whose reiatsu you don't immediately recognize. As you search it seems that the reiatsu of Ulquiorra Schiffer fades, either from distance or because he has died. Other battles seem to be wrapping up as well, including Kusajishi's and Shihōin's battles against their respective espada opponents. But it also feels like there are even more warriors closing in on the two Captains, drawn there by their powerful release of reiatsu and the obvious loss of the sternritters and espada who had fought them initially.

The closer you get, the better sense you get of where the arrancar is. It's at the bottom of the massive structure that seems to be at the center of this place, at the top of which there stands a fortress of pale, cold stone.

And three powers are running straight towards it. A shinigami, a quincy, and a confusing mass of uncertain character which can only be Kurosaki Ichigo.

“That's not them,” you grumble. But then again, this is where the action is going to be very soon. And if you can get Ichigo and his friends to help you look, that much better a chance you'll have of succeeding. Maybe some of them have even seen your friends.

Then there's the group which were left behind, two humans and a shinigami who were fighting another Espada before: that pink-haired one with the glasses, you think. He earned his rank after your initial loss of standing, so you don't really know his name.

And you have no cause to anymore, since he's dead.

>Trail Ichigo's group.
>See to the stationary group of three, one of which feels like... Kuchiki?
>Search some of the locations where you felt previous fights.
>Other?

>>3215496
>>Search some of the locations where you felt previous fights.

>>3215496
>>See to the stationary group of three, one of which feels like... Kuchiki?

she knows rukia better than the others, best to ask someone that seems to be stationary

>>3215496
>>Trail Ichigo's group.

>>3215496

>See to the stationary group of three, one of which feels like... Kuchiki?

>>3215496
>>Search some of the locations where you felt previous fights.

>>3215496
>>See to the stationary group of three, one of which feels like... Kuchiki?

>>3215496
3d10, best of three

Rolled 8, 4, 6 = 18 (3d10)

>>3217405

Rolled 7, 10, 3 = 20 (3d10)

>>3217405

Rolled 6, 2, 2 = 10 (3d10)

>>3217405

>>3217405
You head for the group which has been holding still, the one where you feel that Rukia is.

They're in what remains of a palace of some sort. Not only is Rukia here, but Abarai and two humans. One you recognize as Arisawa, a student of sorts that Captain Kusajishi trained for a while. The other you do not recognize... if you had ever seen a mass of humanity that size you'd remember having met him.

“What have I wandered into?” you muse, noticing Rukia's state.

“Oh, hey there nice goat hollow lady...” Rukia mutters, her body apparently halfway through the process of thawing.

“And you would be...” the large boy asks skeptically.

“Neliel, an arrancar?” you offer, hoping that explains all that needs explaining. “I followed Captain Kusajishi here?”

“She's okay, Chad,” Arisawa insists before turning to explain things to you. “Rukia here just beat an Espada using her Bankai, but it's gonna take some time to recover. Since all of us are pretty much wasted we're staying here to watch her for a while, make sure she's okay.”

“Didn't expect it to exhaust her so much mentally,” Abarai sighs. “This may take longer than we thought.”

“So, what're you doing here?” Arisawa asks.

“I could ask you the same.”

“Helping Ichigo and Ishida out,” Arisawa explains.

“I'm here looking for some friends of mine that Aizen had held hostage,” you explain. “You haven't seen them, have you? One has horns, kinda like a beetle, the other one's... well, he's kinda fat? Neither one's the best fighter you've ever seen? Sorta goofy?”

“You mean Dondachakka and Pesche?” Arisawa muses thoughtfully.

“You've seen them!?” your response bursts forward, your excitement at having a real lead completely overwhelming you.

Abarai glances at the young human. “You remembered their names?”
>1/2

>>3217565
“One of them fell through a hole in the ground that led to Hueco Mundo,” Arisawa recounts, noticing the look on your face. “Yeah, I don't get how that works either. The other just kinda... wandered off, I guess? Where did he go?”

“Wandered off,” Rukia mutters, shivering slightly as the sheet of white ice that seems to encase her body retreats a bit further towards the ground. “Near the hole.”

“Yeah, that sounds about right,” Arisawa nods.

“Really?” a girlish voice complains. “That idiot pinkie didn't even manage to produce one corpse?”

Your head and Abara's snap towards the source of the sound, to find a fairly small-looking young woman in a Sternritter's uniform watching you from a distance. Her hair is dark, with two bangs like antennae hanging down in front of her face.

“And here I was getting my hopes up that I'd get a Bankai user out of this. Oh well, I guess if you want something done right you should do it yourself.”

>Hang on, what do you mean 'get a Bankai user' out of this?
>It's rude not to introduce yourself. Who are you.
>Try to figure out who you're talking to? (will require a roll later)
>Other?

>>3217580
>>Hang on, what do you mean 'get a Bankai user' out of this?
>>It's rude not to introduce yourself. Who are you.

>>3217580
>Hang on, what do you mean 'get a Bankai user' out of this?
>Try to figure out who you're talking to? (will require a roll later)

>>3217580
>>It's rude not to introduce yourself. Who are you.

>>3217580
>>It's rude not to introduce yourself. Who are you.
>>Other? Get in front of the others, you seem to be the only fresh fighter here, and you don't want her to 'get' anyone, whatever that means.

>>3217580
We’re talking to the zombie maker

>Hang on, what do you mean 'get a Bankai user' out of this?

>>3217580
>3d10, DC 18, crit 23
>best of three

Rolled 8, 1, 8 = 17 (3d10)

>>3220523

Rolled 7, 6, 2 = 15 (3d10)

>>3220523

Rolled 5, 5, 8 = 18 (3d10)

>>3220523

>>3220523
You can't help but find this situation more than a little disturbing, especially the way this girl describes her intentions. Something about how she treats 'Bankai users', like a box to be ticked off or a trophy to collect. Not only does it betray ill intentions, it also suggests to you a callous disregard towards the lives of others.

So you find yourself stepping in the way, between this newcomer and the odd mix of shinigami and humans that are now behind you. “Who are you, and what did you mean by 'getting a Bankai user'? You speak as a collector, not as a warrior.”

“It means exactly what it sounds like,” the girl smirks. “I wanted to find a Bankai user, then use my powers to make them mine.”

“Well, I can't say I like the sound of that,” you grumble, reaching slowly for your zanpakuto.

“Let us handle this,” Abarai insists sternly.

You shake your head. “None of you are fresh enough for this fight. Not since I know now who this is.”

“Oh?” the girl muses. “So she finally remembered!”

“This is the girl called 'the Zombie',” you explain, sliding your feet into the proper position for iaido. “Her power is to control the bodies of those she 'infects' with her powers.”

“It's like she said,” the Zombie replies cheerfully. “My name is Giselle.”

“Wait, that psycho bitch the other Sternritter were talking about?” Arisawa wonders aloud.

“You know Bambi and the rest?” Giselle asks, seemingly excited. “Where are they now?”

“I'm... not gonna tell you that,” Arisawa replies.

“Aww,” Giselle pouts. “Why not?”

“Because Bambietta explained what would happen if you ever found her... the words 'worse than death' may have been used.”

“Bambi likes to be dramatic sometimes,” Giselle insists.

“Blood,” Rukia mutters, still apparently exhausted. “Bambietta... said something about... her blood? I think?”
>1/2

>>3220641
So that's how it's done?

>You can work with that. Just make sure no blood gets on you, easy enough.
>Keep her at a distance then. Cero is good for that.
>Maybe try blunt force trauma. Mess up her bones and soft organs.
>Other?

>>3220642
>>You can work with that. Just make sure no blood gets on you, easy enough.

>>3220641
>You can work with that. Just make sure no blood gets on you, easy enough.

>>3220642
>>You can work with that. Just make sure no blood gets on you, easy enough.

>>3220642
>>Keep her at a distance then. Cero is good for that.

>>3220641
>>Keep her at a distance then. Cero is good for that.

>>3220642
>>Keep her at a distance then. Cero is good for that.

>>3220642
>>Keep her at a distance then. Cero is good for that.

>>3220642
>>Keep her at a distance then. Cero is good for that.

>>3220642
>3d10, DC 19, crit 23
>best of three

Rolled 6, 9, 2 = 17 (3d10)

>>3223100

Rolled 6, 5, 2 = 13 (3d10)

>>3223100

Rolled 5, 6, 8 = 19 (3d10)

>>3223100

>>3220642
If her blood really is the way she spreads her control, then it's best that you keep your distance. Thankfully cero gives you an easy way to do that.

You throw a punch with your left arm, launching a bala that explodes midair as a hail of arrows comes streaking back towards you... you almost forgot, quincy tend to be talented archers regardless of what other abilities they might have. From that blast Giselle emerges herself, charging you recklessly. It'd be so easy to cut her down with a single clean stroke.

But you can't do that.

“Cero.”

A point blank blast from your right hand, which had remained at your left hip until the last possible second, catches Giselle under her sternum and launches her through the air. Thankfully the cero also sears her skin, ensuring together with her own passive defenses that none of her toxic blood is spilled.

“Aw, afraid to draw your sword?” she taunts you.

“Not at all,” you counter. “I prefer to think of myself as brave enough to leave it sheathed.”

“Well, when you're mine,” Giselle narrows her eyes dangerously, “I'll have you draw that sword first thing and slash your wrists with it. Doesn't that sound like fun?”

Another hail of arrows flies towards Rukia, who has yet to move, and your blade swiftly leaves is sheath to slice through the incoming projectiles.

Again Giselle charges you at breakneck pace, practically begging you to slice her apart. In fact she basically places her own neck right in the arc of your zanpakuto, which you have to stop by abruptly bending your arm and turning to kick her in the ribs with your heel.

“Just my luck!” she moans. “I've run into the one arrancar alive with a sense of restraint!”

“Just the only one you've met,” you mutter. “Also, that's racist.”

“Well if you're not gonna play along,” she sighs, shooting an arrow through her own throat.

“Thegn Ib'g nahaffa doohet mhsulf.”

Then she coughs up what looks like about the right amount of blood that she could fill a milk jug with it.

“Did no one ever teach you not to speak with your mouth full?” you frown.

Giselle wipes the blood from her face. “Sorry, sorry! Too many holes all of a sudden, not even in the right places..."

Then the lifeless corpse of Szayelapporo Granz starts to haul itself off the ground.
>1/2

>>3223142
>Kill it with extreme prejudice, use a Gran Rey Cero.
>Okay, everyone. It's time for you to leave now.
>Release your zanpakuto. That's what this will take.
>Other?

>>3223142

>>3223143
>>Kill it with extreme prejudice, use a Gran Rey Cero.

>>3223142
>Kill it with extreme prejudice, use a Gran Rey Cero.

>>3223142
>>Kill it with extreme prejudice, use a Gran Rey Cero.
>>Okay, everyone. It's time for you to leave now.

>>3223143
>Kill it with extreme prejudice, use a Gran Rey Cero.
>Okay, everyone. It's time for you to leave now.