Trapped Quincy [Karakura-cho]

[Bishiglomper]

Masaharu caught the action from his peripheral vision, taking notice that the shinigami that had a tumble recovered quickly. Good! It wouldn't do to have two of them out of commission. This was ridiculous enough as it was! No matter how many Masaharu took down, too many hollow replaced them. The Quincy fighting them before they arrived had told them it was a menos. Masa would never have guessed. He'd never heard of such a thing. Masaharu wasn't very experienced with menos in the first place.. but such a unique circumstance. And why were they gathered here?

This was starting to irritate Masaharu. If this kept up, they would be exhausted before they started to make any progress. There needed to be a more concentrated effort instead of picking them off one by one, few by few.

Benisuzume extended to his command, now resembling a bow more than before, reaching a good yard in length. Be began muttering an incantation and doing a backward flip, he landed among the group protecting the two humans. He took aim, focusing on the largest cluster in front of them. Quickly he pulled the kidou string extending from the tips of the bow, releasing a barrage of red kidou arrows that pierced each hollow. Though it took more than a dozen arrows per hollow, they were fast in release thus firing off enough to wipe out a good line of the offending bunch.

Masaharu was grateful that these things weren't individually full menos. Because they were separate, they were easier to pick off. Unfortunately the flow seemed endless!

A few short feet away, Katsue was being pushed out of the circle by the Yonbantai shinigami to continue her fighting effort. She would have protested, but saw that Kagoko had things under control. Cat nodded, leaping into the fray once more with Shiden drawn. Almost in mimicry to Akina, Cat had started her attack by leaping through the hollow from above slashing each way through their masks; her expression wasn't one of having fun though. She was concentrating on everything she had, making sure that with each form she landed on, the one former had dissipated into dust.

Katsue landed back onto the asphalt to catch her breath. Augh! How long were they going to be here...? Cat wasn't much of the optimistic type, but this really did seem futile. As Akina landed beside her, she sighed.

"..Huh? OH. Ah.." Cat thought a second. Should they try out their new attack? True, it would help take a large chunk of the hollows if it worked, but it was untested! Was this really the time to experiment? Well. Though the area was so concentrated with hollow.. they weren't in immediate danger. So many of them were working to eliminate them. Cat nodded, "Mhm. Let's do it!"

Cat took her position, holding out Shiden and charging it. It sparked with purple electricity, ready for the challenge! "Whenever you're ready, Aki-chan!"

[Aly]

Impressive, was the word that came to Renjiro's mind as he felt Hitsugaya release his Zanpakutou. Even under a limiter and in Shikai, the boy's icy reiatsu far outweighed his own. Then again, it was nothing to be surprised about. Renjiro himself was only rokuseki; comparing himself to a taichou, even oneas young as Hitsugaya, was like comparing a pebble to a mountain.

The happenings around him were all noticed but had ben purposely ignored. While they were running into each other or healing, his inner youjimbo had already made it his duty to protect them. As long as he did that, he could remained dignified. He could retain his honour.

Taking in the Quincy's words, though, left a trail of confusion and thoughtfullness within the Shinigami's brain. An unformed Gillian . . . he supposed they should have been glad it wasn't a sea of Gillian about to become Adjuchas. That would have ended very, very badly. Still, the youth's theory made sense, albeit in an unconventional way. The Juunibantai taichou would have a field day with this . . . It explained the numbers and coordination . . . but the way in which the coordination was composed made sense only if a Gillian had been formed, then somehow split apart again. Despite being the result of hundreds of Hollows, the method in which they become a Gillian meant that each Hollow retained its own "personality" until the point of being devoured. These Hollows - Menos - acted like they were of one mind. Almost like . . .

A hive. He'd seen hive behaviour before. Ants, bees, wasps, termites. Hundreds of thousands - perhaps even millions - of beings with a singular mind. Usually the queen of the colony. Mother of each and every individual, and the life line of the colony. Everything functioned and existed for the queen. A furrow appeared between his brows.

"A queen . . ." he mumbled to no one in particular.

Could it be? Was it possible? He'd never heard of such a thing. Then again, they'd never heard of an unformed Gillian being so coordinated until now. And if he thought about it, it did make a bit of sense. A queen was the singular source of colony members. If these Hollows indeed had a "queen", then that would explain why their numbers seemed to be increasing rather than the opposite, despite the numbers they had cut down already.

But would anyone follow his logic? He wasn't sure if the others had ever seen the effects of the unnatural death of a colony's queen. And if his theory was correct, and if they took out the Hollow "queen" . . . it would still be a huge gamble. Especially if he took into account the possible stamina of his teammates at that point.

It was always worth a shot. The question was how much it was worth.

Rangiku, for her part, had followed Toushirou when he'd gone to join Renjiro and Uryuu. Even as the others gravitated towards them, the Juubantai fukutaichou had kept up her attack, the grey mist that was Haineko tearing Hollows to dust. The only time she'd stopped was when she'd seen Cat get knocked back into Kagoko. Though, from the sound of it, neither were hurt so seriously that they couldn't keep fighting. Which was a relief, both as a fukutaichou and as their friend.

The strawberry blond had barely made out Uryuu's words, but what she did catch made her anxious. To see this kind of composure in an unformed Gillian . . . But, from the way the others were reacting, it seemed that they had reached a conclusion to completely annihilate every last Hollow. An enormous task, even for a group their size, but at least there was a goal. Setting her full lips in a determined line, she renewed the vigour of her attacks.

Something wasn't exactly right though . . . Glancing to each side of her, where ice from both her taichou and from Hachibantai's rokuseki were creating beautiful yet deadly panoramas of efficient destruction, Rangiku couldn't help but feel a litle uneasy. Until now, she had been used to seeing only Toushirou's ice. Though she could certainly tell the difference, it still made her wonder what kind of people had reiatsu as icy as that of the two males nearby.

Speaking of nearby males . . . Renjiro seemed distracted somehow. Though he had been a relentless force even since their arrival to the transient world, there was something in his expression that was different from the others. For one of the few rare times in her life, Rangiku was glad she had Toushirou for a taichou for reasons other than that he was strong and had saved her skin several times. Hanging around a taichou who looked and acted perpetually annoyed, she had gradually picked up on the subtle changes in his behaviour that signified various things. It seemed that it rung true for observing stoic characters like Renjiro was well.

His mumble, almost inaudible in the chaos, piqued the fukutaichou's curiosity. What's he thinking about? she wondered. "Queen"? Could it be he was trying to figure out the reason behind the abnormal Hollow behaviour beyond what Uryuu had told them? Resourceful guy, though whether he was willing to share remained to be seen. Well, until he'd come to a decision . . . Swinging the empty hilt of her Zanpakutou, Rangiku tore through another two Hollows.

[Bishiglomper]

The ongoing fight had taken Masaharu gradually further and further from the cluster of shinigami protecting the humans, or those unable to fight. He was in the vicinity of Riku but he didn't have time to pay him any mind, he was entirely focused on the hollow surrounding him.

It was getting difficult to keep an eye on all of them, the further he tore into the horde, the tougher they seemed to get. He pressed on though, wondering if there was a reason for this.

From out the corner of his eye he caught Riku holding his own against the enemy; Masa's distraction cost him. A hollow, supposedly in his line of fire had dodged his arrows and leapt for him. His only chance was to dodge and managed to do so at the last moment. But now the brute caught sight of a new target! Masaharu cursed himself.

"Riku! Watch it!"

The hollow sped toward his new prey. This particular hollow was one of the few that the archer shinigami was having trouble defeating. He got tired of playing though, and as soon as he saw the smaller shinigami, well. It was time to play a new game. It roared; leaping into the air toward his new plaything.

[Suigintou]

Though he was far enough from Renjiro that he couldn't hear his soft words, Uryuu's mind worked quickly while he was out of the battle, and it came to a very similar conclusion. Though the hollows were individually mindless, they had a singular drive, they shared a mind. He knew that much already, it had been what had brought about the realization that they faced a menos. But if they shared a mind, it must have had a source. Even if it was a disjointed menos, its consciousness couldn't possibly spread across so many bodies without some kind of root, something that connected in some way to the separate forms.

But then, if he had been asked earlier that night if a Gillian could form without its hollow bodies merging, he would have said that was impossible as well. It seemed nothing could be certain, but the idea made as much sense as anything else did at the moment. It felt right. He had to trust his instincts. But if one of the hollow forms was that root, how to tell which it was? Their numbers were beyond count, and from what he had observed and could still see, their behavior was identical. There was still the option of fighting through as many as possible and hoping one destroyed the link, but it was too much of a gamble. They couldn't afford to exhaust themselves on a small chance.

Frustration crept into his emotions, and he attempted with some difficulty to suppress it, knowing that distraction was dangerous in a situation like this. Even if he couldn't yet return to the fight, he had to remain focused. There had to be something that he was overlooking. He had to figure out what it was.

Though they hadn't been fighting long yet, the strain of the battle was already beginning to show to some degree on Riku, whose skin was covered with a layer of sweat, making the heavy fabric of his shihakusho cling uncomfortably. He hadn't stopped attacking for a moment, but thoughts of slowing down were far from his mind, his attention was so wholly set on the fight. Knives and kidou flew from his hands in turn, filling the air with a strange and deadly light show that reflected on blades and caught on ice.

Though he was vaguely aware of Masaharu's presence near him, the seventh seat's voice caught him by surprise. He was slow to react, and he paid for it as the hollow's claws tore his sleeve and cut into his arm. Wincing, he took advantage of his proximity to it, grabbing one of his knives from the air and throwing it upward toward the hollow's underside.

A glance to his arm found that the cuts, though painful, weren't especially deep, so putting the injury out of his mind, he took up yet another knife and flung it toward the new enemy. He wasn't planning to get hit again.

[Bishiglomper]

The hollow roared in anger at the knife that now stuck between it's ribs. It ripped it out with it's sharpened claws, knocking away the second knife that flew toward him. It chucked the offending weapon away with the other avoided one and continued it's path to the dark haired shinigami. It could smell the blood that soaked the shinigami's sleeve, hungry for a taste of it.

Just before reaching it's target, the hollow disappeared in a blur. Using sonido it circled Riku, trying to take a weak spot so it wouldn't get struck again. It appeared at least ten copies surrounded the shinigami in an attempt to throw him off, waiting for it's chance to strike.

[Suigintou]

Stubborn, wasn't it? Most hollow would've been thrown off enough by such a wound that his follow-up attack would've brought them down, but this one seemed to have a little more sense, and enough ability to keep going. Despite that, though, and the throbbing in his arm that served as a reminder of his fresh injury, Riku didn't think any more of it than those that had already fallen, and with his customary caution spread his attention between it and the others that surrounded him.

As a result, he nearly missed its disappearance.

Eyes wide, he turned, unsure where the hollow had gone. Sonido? Gillian or no, that wasn't a skill typical to hollow below arrancar level. How could it...? It had no more than vanished, though, than it reappeared, giving him no time to think on it further. And then it reappeared again. And again. And again. Not only was it proficient with sonido, but it was fast enough for speed illusions? The ninth seat clenched his teeth, tightened his hand into a fist. It was impossible for him to keep up at his level!

The hollow, whether by some ability to sense his unease or simply by blind luck, took advantage of his distraction, and before he could retaliate, Riku was knocked forward by a considerable blow to the back. He shook his head to clear it, irritated by his own failure; he should've been more observant, he should've been able to stop that! Thinking quickly, determined not to be hit by the creature again, he brought back his knives. It didn't matter how quick the hollow was if he used his zanpakutou properly.

The blades surrounded him, then spun quickly, forming what looked like a dancing circle of steel in the air. The hollow's pattern was precise as a requirement for its illusions, and it didn't expect his counter, making it unable to react quickly enough to stop it. Victory went to Riku as his knives tore through the monster, filling the air with a black dust that dissipated almost immediately.

But there had been something wrong with that one. None of the others had displayed the ability to use sonido, or any of the other abilities typically above the level of their kind, even in cases where it could've saved them. None of the others reacted upon its death, though - for all its skill, it had been just another of their number to them? Were there others, then, with the same capabilities? Or had he been horribly mistaken, and was it something common to all of them?

Even as the boy searched his mind for something he had overlooked in his memory of the hollow's movements and attacks, he was confronted by another. Frustrated, almost desperate, he turned toward it and violently threw kidou from his palm, the blue light flashing brilliantly in the darkness before ripping through its mask. Reishi filled the air yet again. It seemed to have begun hanging over the area like a black fog, despite how it faded so quickly, a sight that proved beyond any doubt how quickly the group was tearing through the hollows, how hopeless the battle seemed with the way the number of their enemies didn't seem to be decreasing despite it.

Through the fading black dust, Riku's eyes caught movement. Like a switch, it flipped his thoughts instantaneously from his mental search to a rapt focus on the place where he'd seen it. A quick glance around found all of his shinigami companions and the pair of humans accounted for. Was it another hollow, then?

He was about to approach to find out, but then the distant figure turned, and he didn't have to. His concentration on his knives fell, so that for a moment they almost dropped from the air; he felt a chill that had nothing to do with the pair of ice zanpakutou nearby, sure for a moment that his blood was turning to ice. For a single wild instant he was sure he must've been imagining it, but that childish notion - fear, he realized, with a wave of bitterness for himself - was insane. It was the only explanation for all of this.

"Arrancar...!" All reason abandoned, he fled from the battle, using all of his skill with shunpo in an attempt to reach the figure. He didn't know or care if anyone else heard him or saw what he did. He would stop this one and at least try to make up for his failure in Rukongai.

[Aly]

Renjiro's ears picked up the sound of commotion outside of the roar of Hollows. Allowing himself a brief respite, he found its source: Riku and Masaharu, both a little farther away from the main group. Out of respect for their dignity, he remained where he was, but kept an eye and ear out for them as he continued his almost mechanical destruction of the foul beasts. The smell of Shinigami blood was faint, but due to its suddenness it was sharper than what it truly was. Hazel eyes flickered back to where the two friends were; was Riku having trouble with a Hollow? In the few seconds that he caught, he noticed that the Hollow was moving fast - very, very fast. Was it a different type of Hollow, come to take advantage of the confusion? Or was there more meaning to its presence--

Impassive eyes widened slightly at the faint disturbance of reiatsu. It was indeed faint; like someone had arrived but was masking their presence. More reinforcements? But then why would they hide their reiatsu? Once more he glanced away from the Hollows before him, and did a double take. Riku had quelled his Hollow, but was now stock still, and tense. Instantly wary, Renjiro followed his gaze to find . . . Arrancar!

The youth had already sped away to face it. The debate in Renjiro's heart lasted only a moment; then he too was gone, leaving a black mist of scattered reiatsu and a jagged line of ice spires behind. He caught up to Riku, not saying a word to the boy. The man knew why it was that the younger had gone for this being; his reason was the same as the icy Shinigami's own. Atonement for failure, redemption of pride. Hazel eyes hardened to shards of golden ice as he set his resolve. This time, he would win.

[Aki Sora]

Hollow after hollow perished in ice shards as the young taichou continued to knock them back. It went without saying that the teal-eyed youth was frustrated at how endless this battle was. It was unnecessary. Hitsugaya, focusing more on the steady flow of the hollow, felt another reiastu appear as well as a reiatsu shift. There was another among them and two of the present shinigami had gone off in that direction. Who was it that had gone off? His train of thought was interrupted by two more of the creatures that came bearing their raw desire to kill, only to be denied blood by the boy.

After those two had been "iced", the young captain jumped atop a nearby building, heading off behind the other two shinigami. Picking up his speed, he was able to catch the two, whose identities were confirmed and he caught a glimpse of the figure they were after.

Could it have been an arrancar? Was it the one that was controlling the other hollow that the rest of the group was still battling it out with? This question had to be answered and he, along with Kouyama and Minamoto, were going to wring the information out of it.

Back on the ground, Kagoko stood behind. Emerald eyes only watched and waited. Those who were present seemed to be in good shape for fighting and were doing better than one would expect when faced with so many foes. For a moment, she felt useless. The girl shook her head and put that thought out of her mind. Unohana-taichou would have scolded her for thinking that. The redhead continued to be on watch in case she was needed quickly.

Akina's energy seemed to be wearing thin after countless slices through the hollows that seemed to be endless. Having gotten more than her fair share of bruises, she was a hop, skip, and a jump away from being completely pissed about this. Losing her grip for an instant, she was knocked back by another hollow that seemed to be a little bigger than the others she'd fought.

What the hell is up with this? she thought as she charged forward with an over-sized flower stem that resembled a lance. They just keep coming and there's no end... How...?

Slicing through the offending hollow, Akina jumped back as the dust dissipated into the night. So intent on her own battle, she didn't realize until that moment that the white-haired captain and two other shinigami had gone off in another direction.

Whatever they're doing... I hope something gets found out...

[Bishiglomper]

Orihime took her place next to the small red-haired shinigami, keeping her company while the fighters took care of the hollows. She said nothing, merely keeping a watchful eye on her companions, her expression revealing her concern and worry. Primarily, she kept herself and Yoshikuni-san safe, erecting a barrier when necessary.


Katsue had strayed a bit too far from the group, realizing some of the target hollows were diving past her.

"Hey," she cried, indignant, "get back here!"

She touched ground behind a group of hollow. Shiden started crackling, bits of electrical reiatsu dripping from it like sparks. She took aim; then sweeping downward, unleashed a wave or three of electricity at the backs of the offending hollow. One by one they dissipated. Katsue rushed back toward the group, getting back within range just as half of them turned and fled collectively toward a different direction.

She paused. Was there something new? She didn't have time to think long. She found herself back into the focus of the hollows.


Masaharu, keeping an eye on his best friend, nearly abandoned his post to follow him when he spotted something in the shadows. He didn't catch what Riku saw himself, but had noticed a disturbance in the air just prior to his actions. He stayed put however, taking notice that others had gone to his aid.

He was getting antsy though, eager to join the others. Masaharu jumped a fair distance away, giving himself a moment to ready his next move. He reached into his shihakusho, pulling out a small vial. The vial itself was nothing special, a basic item that could be pulled from Yonbantai's stores. The vials he kept on his person, however, contained condensed reishi. Something he adapted from what he picked up as a Quincy, after becoming a shinigami.

The quincygami took to the air, leaping over the heads of many hollow. He flung the vial right into the middle of the lot.

An explosion ruptured from the center, dissipating another handful with ease.

He was worried about that strange feeling, this reiatsu. Realizing how Riku had run off toward it, his behavior.. was it an arrancar?

Now he was really worried. He made his way after the group, dropping a vial or two along the way, hoping his friend wouldn't do anything reckless.