open Soul Chaos

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

((OOC:http://mlpforums.com/topic/92782-soul-chaos-bleach-rp/))

 

Things in Seireitei were starting to get strange, and Ditch knew he wasn't the only one on edge because of it. When shinigami start vanishing, and highly skilled ones at that, it's only natural for everyone to start worrying a bit. And on a night like this, dark and eerily quiet, tense nerves weren't so unusual. But between the two things, the normally calm Ditch was pretty sure that if he heard anyone behind him he'd reflexively slice their face open before he could even process who it was. Suffice it to say, he was- though damned if he'd admit it to anyone- scared. He knew that for all his strength he wasn't much better than those who had already disappeared, and he had a feeling they weren't doing so well right now. But he had been ordered to patrol, and so he would. Sighing and keeping a hand on his sword, he continued walking into the night.

 

Takahiko Masaru was not in a good mood. He'd lost three good men this week, including one of his top officers. And when he wasn't in a good mood, he trained. Of course, he trained all the time anyway, but days like this he had even more intensity than usual. Which is why he hadn't realized how late it was. He decided he'd best head back to the barracks, lest the seventh squad wake up without their captain around to give them orders. As he was on his way back, he thought he heard something in the distance. In times like these, it was best to take anything unusual seriously, so he ran to check it out, but by the time he got to where he thought the sound was coming from, there was nothing there.

[Sekel 685]

Glisten Dew woke up and felt uneasy. She clutched her zanpakutou and got out of bed. She always had this feeling when she's awake but it's even more pronounced when she's asleep. It's weird. Glisten feels like something bad will happen to her when she is sleeping more so than when she's awake.

[00Pony 286]

The life of a Captain was often found to be a double edged sword. On one hand, you were respected for your title and known to be one of the more powerful Shinigami within the Soul Society. But on the other, you were given many more responsibilities, an entire Division to look out for, and plenty of paperwork to fill out. Lieutenants helped with that, and he was very thankful for his own, but it could still get a little overwhelming at times. Merrick Kurai Church, Captain of the 2nd Division of the Gotei 13, set his quill down beside the papers on his desk and leaned back in his chair. He'd been at this for several hours now, and even a Captain could tire of something so tedious. Church was not usually one to complain, but large amounts of paperwork were enough to make drive him mad, given time. 

 

Lieutenants usually helped with this sort of thing, but Church had already sent his home for the evening, which left him to check over and fill out the usual reports. But he allowed himself breaks, every now and again. The quiet of the night gave him time to think, and in light of recent events, that was something that quite often helped. Shinigami had inexplicably been disappearing from the Seireitei, and that was not something to be taken lightly. The 7th Division had lost three men this week, and even his own had suffered losses. He regretted every loss of a member, but to not have closure on how they were lost aggravated Church immensely. The Captain ran a hand through his tousled hair, heaving a sigh. He had no lead on what was causing this, and neither did any of his fellow Captains, so far as he knew. It was a source of much frustration, with good reason. His sigh conveyed this well.

 

Church was presently aware of the presence of hands on his shoulders, and the subsequent squeeze from them. A voice followed the pressure, "What's the matter?" It sounded as if it were whispered by a woman, tinged with concern.

Without taking his gaze off of the dancing flame of his desk candle, Church responded, "This mystery. My fellow Shinigami disappearing from within the Seireitei with no clue to where they went, or who caused it... It's aggravating."

 

The hands left his shoulder and the owner floated over his head to alight on the desk. It was the Spirit of his Zanpakuto, Kage. The blade often chose to appear like a black mist, but would occasionally take the form of a human silhouette. As of now, it was that of a young woman, sitting cross legged on the desk before him, resting her head in her hands. Despite the blade's name primarily being a male's, to give the Spirit a gender it would be female. Church watched the silhouette for a few seconds, his hands folded before his mouth. The silhouette 'stared' back at him, imitating his silence. Finally, the Captain stood, stretching slightly as he reached for the Zanpakuto itself, that had been resting on the side of his chair, "I can't stay cooped up here all night," he said, "Come on, Kage. Let's go for a walk."

"Okay." Came her response, melting from her shape to just a pool of black mist before dissipating, going back to rest within the sword itself. While she did this, Church had tied the sheath to his robe's sash while walking to the doorway that lead to his balcony. Once outside, he glanced at the sky, took a deep breath, and stepped off. Since his days in the Academy, Merrick Church had always been quick footed, skilled in Hoho and Shunpo, which he utilized here to go about his 'walk'. He did not have any specific location in mind, and was merely wandering. It wasn't uncommon for him to do so at this hour, when most others were asleep but those who needed to be awake. He was often more at ease under the cover of night.

 

He did not know how long he had wandered the Seireitei in silence, stopping here and there to look about before moving on. It was difficult to fully relax in the first place, being a Captain, but with recent events, it was even more difficult. At one such stop, he hesitated before moving on. He had heard a faint noise. Normally, he may let a patrol seek it out, but he did not trust strange sounds these days. Resting one hand on Kage Taigun's hilt, he stepped in it's direction. In short order, he came to where he figured it may have been, to be greeted with nothingness. Church gave a slightly annoyed sigh, and rather than flash away, settled to actually walk, keeping one hand clenched around his Zanpakuto's hilt. This time he actually spotted something. Takahiko Masaru, Captain of the 7th Division. Church stepped towards him, speaking as he did, "Evening." Was all he said.

 

Once he was nearer, Church gave a slight bow. They were the same rank, but that had never stopped him from giving him or any other Captain that show of respect. He did not say anymore, merely looking into the darkness and awaiting whatever Takahiko may do.

 

@@Alex Kennedy,

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@@00Pony,

 

Takahiko bowed in return, though his thoughts were still clearly elsewhere, on whatever had been there before he had arrived. His hand never left his sword, either. For all he knew, even a captain could be involved in whatever was going on, and while he trusted Church, he was always one to ere on the side of caution.  "Out for a walk? I suppose you heard the same thing I did. You didn't see anything, did you? It was gone when I got here." 

 

---

As he hurried along on his patrol, Ditch could have sworn he saw...something, out of the corner of his eye. Before he could turn back to look however, he was distracted by a faint scraping sound, like metal on stone. Ditch had always taken pride in his strong instincts, and right now, they were telling him to run. Whatever made that noise, it wasn't something he could beat. So run he did, until he reached the eleventh squad's barracks, more or less his home in Sereitei, and stopped, unsure what to do but fairly confident that whatever had been there wasn't still following him. 

[Sekel 685]

Feeling slightly more on edge than usual, Glisten sneaked outside the squad's barracks and looked around. She tried to listen out for any disturbances but  it appeared that there weren't any. Glisten had gotten used to separating the feeling of her usual paranoia from fear-induced paranoia. This felt like fear-induced paranoia.

[00Pony 286]

@@Alex Kennedy,

 

 Church nodded in response, taking a second to look away from the distance and face Takahiko, "I am. They certainly do not tell you the extent of your responsibilities as a Captain during your Academy days. It's nice to get away from the 'desk' portion of it all."

 

He sighed, kneeling and using his free hand to feel the ground before him, as if it would reveal something. Of course, there was nothing to be found. Glancing up, Church noticed with a mixture of satisfaction and unease that his fellow Captain also had his hand upon his Zanpakuto's hilt. That meant he was prepared, and that was good. Though some of the implications it gave were that he wasn't entirely trusted. This was both good and bad. It was good, that just because they were at least acquaintances, he was not out of the running for an accomplice to whatever crime was being committed. Though that was also a bad thing. It was complicated.

 

Church stood, shaking his head at Takahiko's second question - whether he had spotted anything, "I have not. You are the first I've seen this night, save a few of the patrols."

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

((I'm probably not going to post again until one of the others does. If my attempts to contact them don't go entirely unnoticed, that should be within a day. If not, I'll have to figure something out.))

 

@@00Pony, 

 

Takahiko sighed. "This can't continue. Not only for our own sakes, but because of the people outside our walls. If they learn of this, they'll panic. We can't have that. I had intended to go back to the barracks, but I think I'll stay out and look around for a while longer. If you intend to continue your walk, be careful, and tell me if you see anything." He turned and began to walk off.

 

---

 

Ditch had done his best to forget about what he'd heard earlier, and his patrol. He was wandering near the sixth squad barracks when he thought he heard something nearby. Something told him it wasn't the same thing as before, but that did little to ease his nerves. He drew his sword and called out into the darkness.

 

@,

 

"Who's there? Reveal yourself!"

[Sekel 685]

@@Alex Kennedy

Glisten Dew kept herself calm but couldn't help her paranoia. When the voice shouted, she slowly turned around and saw a Captain. Definitely fear-induced paranoia. She gulped and hesitantly called back. "What if I don't want to?" Glisten called back. She drew her sword out and waited for a response.

 

(Okay. We'll wait until someone else posts then.)

[The Dark Lord 332]

(Sorry I'm Late)

 

Akuma was sitting in his quarters meditating. He was as still as stone, one would question whether or not he was alive if not for his steady, if not slow, breathing. He was attempting to talk to his Zanpakuto, but, as per usual, it was unresponsive. He had only talked with it once before,before the incident, as the others liked to call it. He visibly frowned as he thought of that day. Deciding that he was going to get nowhere today, he decided to take a walk around the squad 13 barracks.

Edited April 7, 2014 by Black Mask

[RunsWithSquirlz 274]

It had been a dark and shocking day for Shion. In truth, it had been her first day at the barracks. She had freshly been drafted into the 11th squad, though she differed amongst her teammates. Her still form sat quietly on top the roof of the 11th squad barracks, the misty cool night air clinging to her. Her grey eyes stared placidly into the night; taking note of the feeling of uneasiness. Something was out there.

 

Shion blinked slowly and drew her hands further into her white robes. Shortly before she had heard someone walking around, most probably on patrol. Now in the heavy silence of the night, she could hear voices speaking somewhere. Somewhere close she guessed.

Edited April 8, 2014 by RunsWithSquirlz

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@@RunsWithSquirlz,@,@,@@00Pony,

 

 

((Just to clarify, everyone is close enough to hear/see this, albeit from a distance where they can't make out any details))

 

Somewhere in the darkness there was a sound like clashing steel, followed by a flash of bright light. Elsewhere, not more than a minute later, there was further clashing and a series of strange, splattering noises. For a brief moment, massive levels of spirit power could be felt, before suddenly they vanished.

 

Takahiko broke into a run the moment he heard the first noises, and had reached the site where the bright light had been in minutes. He faced what he saw there with a mixture of dread and confusion.

 

Ditch shouted out again to the voice in the dark. "Damn, I have to go deal with this. Consider yourself lucky." He then quickly took off to investigate.

[Sekel 685]

@@Alex Kennedy

Glisten Dew jumped when she heard the noises. Seeing the flash, she ignored what the voice said and went over to investigate. By the time she got there, the light had already vanished but something else had appeared in it's place. "What is that?" She asked confusedly.She had no idea what she was looking at and clutched her sword tighter still.

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@,

 

Ditch shook his head, still staring transfixed at the strange sight before him, some sort of strange distortion of space. "I... I don't know. I've never seen anything like it."

---

Takahiko turned to them. "This is... wrong. I can't sense anything through here. It's like a gap in existence."

[RunsWithSquirlz 274]

@@Alex Kennedy,

 

In a quiet rustle of robes, Shion landed on the other side of Glisten. She stared into the same void they did and had no answers for them or herself. She remained alert and weary of the other onlookers. Shion kept her arms folded neatly within her large white sleeves as Takahiko spoke to them; confirming what they all felt.

[00Pony 286]

@@Alex Kennedy,@,@,@@RunsWithSquirlz,

 

Church had given a slight hum and nod in response to Takahiko's warning, watching his fellow Captain for a second as he walked off before turning and going on his own way. He had only just lost sight of the 7th Division's Captain a few seconds prior when his ears caught the sound of yet another being approaching. Not forgetting his or Takahiko's apprehensions or warnings about what was happening in the Soul Society, Church dashed to the nearest rooftop, outside of the range of light upon the street, and readied Kage Taigun to be drawn.

 

It seemed that this would be unnecessary however, as the one who was approaching was someone that he was confident would not be involved with the conspiracy. Young Akira Shiraki, 7th Division Lieutenant. Of course, just because he knew someone couldn't take them out of the running for conspirators. It would be shocking for Akira to be involved, to say the least. Leaving Taigun slightly out of her sheath, Church leaped down from his perch, landing just a few feet before the younger Shinigami. Akira, startled by the Captain's sudden appearance, before her, hopped back with a slight squeak, half drawing her Zanpakuto before realizing who it was. She visibly relaxed, sliding her sword back into place as she straightened out of her combat stance, "Oh... It's just you, Captain Church," the customary bow, then she continued, "Sorry about that, you startled me," she narrows her eyes, "Of course, that could have been your plan all along. Odd, I wouldn't have taken you for the type to do that sort of thing..." At Church's admittedly stern look, she fell silent, uttering one more, "Sorry."

 

For a few seconds, Church watched her, letting the silence continue, before finally relaxing his stern expression and saying, "I assume you're looking for Captain Masaru?" 

 

Akira, no longer under his scrutinizing gaze, perked up, "Oh, yeah! He's been out for a while now. I was just coming to make sure he was okay because... well, you know. What with whatever is going on. Have you seen him?"

 

Merrick Church nodded, gesturing back the way he had come, "Just back there. Come, I'll take you to him." As he began to turn back, the pair - like all the rest - heard the same, strange noises, coupled with the spike of spiritual power. 

 

Akira shared a glance with her superior, her expression rife with confusion and worry and his a simple, grim mask. In near unison, they drew blades and stepped swiftly to the scene. In his usual style, Church held back, staying in the dark, upon arrival, while Akira went right up to those gathered. Church took note of who was there - Takahiko, alongside those he recognized as Ditch, Glisten Dew and Shion respectively. Seeing nothing else of note from his position, Church stepped out of the dark and joined the gathering around the void. He stared down at it for a few seconds, his expression remaining the same as it had before. The 7th Division Lieutenant slowly sheathed her Zanpakuto, glancing at her fellow Shinigami, evidently wanting to say something but not finding the appropriate words to do so. 

(some measure of a post)

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@@00Pony,@@RunsWithSquirlz,@,@,

 

Takahiko turned to the new arrivals. "I guess you felt it too. We need to get somebody rom 12th squad who might be able figure out what we're looking at. Akira, you go to their barracks and notify them. And... someone else should go with her in case something happens. Any volunteers? I'm staying here and watching this thing. Who knows what could happen if we leave it unchecked?"

Edited April 8, 2014 by Alex Kennedy

[Sekel 685]

@@Alex Kennedy,@@00Pony

Glisten Dew gulped. "I'll go." She said. She raised her hand and looked at Akira. "It's the 12th barracks? Okay then." Glisten repeated what Takahiko said. She tried to not let her paranoia get the best of her and calm down. She breathed in and out and smiled. "Let's go get someone from the 12th Squad then." She said.

[00Pony 286]

@@Alex Kennedy,@, @@RunsWithSquirlz,

 

 Akira tore her attention away from the void and placed it upon her Captain, shooting to a sort of 'attention' stance when he spoke to her. She mentally repeated his orders; get to the 12th Division barracks, get at least one of them to come out here and investigate this thing, and try not to vanish... Okay, that last bit was her own addition, but she figured he probably implied that. She wouldn't be alone on this little 'assignment', Glisten having volunteered to accompany her. She seemed uneasy, which was understandable. Akira gave her a bright smile before saluting her Captain, "Understood, sir! Try to still be here when we get back, okay?"

 

Hardly waiting for a response, she turns once more to face Glisten, "Follow me, then!" she said, gesturing to the other Shinigami and taking off in the direction of the 12th Barracks. She would refrain from using Shunpo unless Glisten did so first.

 

--

 

"Stay alert! Whatever did this may still be lurking." Church called after them before turning his attention back to the gap, "Now while we wait... Any speculations on what this is, or what caused it?" He asked, glancing up and looking to Ditch, Takahiko and Shion in turn.

[Sekel 685]

@@00Pony

Glisten silently followed Akira and kept pace with her. Glisen Dew held onto her sword. She hasn't unsheathed it yet but she's close to doing so. For whatever reason she didn't know but it felt like a good reason. She quickly snapper her head to the left but she didn't see anything. Shaking her head, Glisten continued to follow Akira.

[RunsWithSquirlz 274]

@@00Pony,@@Alex Kennedy,  

 

Shion shook her head slowly, skin prickling in the cold night air. "I can't say that I know. All I heard was the sound...I'm sure we all felt the spike in the spiritual energy."

 

They would need the researches from 12 to help give them a small idea at least. But Shion knew whatever it was couldn't be virtuous. 

Edited April 8, 2014 by RunsWithSquirlz

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@@00Pony,@@RunsWithSquirlz,

 

Takahiko shook his head. "I have no idea. I've never felt anything like it. The closest thing I can think of is Garganta, the rift that leads to Hueco Mundo. It feels a little bit like that somehow. But different. I can sense everything in the area, on either side of it, but this one spot is just... not there. I have half a mind to see what happens if I hit it with kidou, but it's the 12th's job to test it, not mine."

 

Ditch shrugged, a blank look on his face. "Maybe someone or something came through here. But I don't know. I'm not the speculating type."

 

---

@@00Pony,@,

 

The way to the 12th squad barracks was as eerily quiet as everywhere else. When the two arrived, a lone guard posted outside called out to them. "What are you coming here for at this hour?"

[Sekel 685]

@@Alex Kennedy, @@Alex Kennedy

Glisten Dew froze when she heard and saw the guard. "We are here for a researcher. There was a massive spike in spiritual energy. The Captain of the Seventh Squad asked us to try and find a researcher from the 12th Squad sir." Glisten finally unfroze and had walked up to the guard.

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

@, @,

 

The guard shrugged. "If it's captain's orders, very well. Stay here, I'll go get somebody." He disappeared into the barracks for a while, coming back out with a man who they might have recognized as Lieutenant Kenta Oshiro, who had already had the situation explained to him. He nodded to them, clearly still half-asleep. "Alright. Take me there."

Edited April 8, 2014 by Alex Kennedy

[Sekel 685]

@@00Pony, @@Alex Kennedy

Glisten Dew bowed to the Lieutenant. "Lieutenant Oshiro. I suppose everything has been explained to you?" Glisten Dew saw him being half-tired. "Yeah, I suppose it has. Anyway, the site is this way Lieutenant." Glisten beckoned for Akira and Lieutenant Oshiro to follow. She seems slightly more confident in front of the Lieutenant than she has been before.

[00Pony 286]

@@Alex Kennedy, @@RunsWithSquirlz,

 

Church ran one hand through his hair, straightening up once again with a slight sigh. As expected, all speculation was inconclusive. Ditch had raised a worrying prospect, however. What if something, or someone, had come through? That might create some new leads... and new problems. The 2nd Division Captain tightened his grip on his Zanpakuto's hilt, "I suppose we'll just have to wait and see." He said, absently.

 

--

 

@@Alex Kennedy,@, 

 

Upon arriving at the 12th Barracks, Akira gave the guard on duty her usual smile, the exact opposite of her companion's reaction. She allowed Glisten to explain why they had come, as she had spoken first. Sure, she may be a Lieutenant, but she didn't mind if someone else took it upon themselves. She maintained her silence until the guard returned, a researcher in tow. Again, Akira smiled and gave a slight bow in greeting, "Good evening, Kenta. Sorry for disturbing you this late but... Well, I guess you know." She glanced from him to Glisten as the other Shinigami greeted him as well and took it upon herself to start leading the way back. She seemed a bit more confident now. Akira didn't hesitate to start moving back once again.