Subjugating the Feline [Grimmjow]

Tue Jan 18, 2011 10:11 pm

In her plans to bring Las Noches under her reign, she knew there was one she wanted to have. Having Heroism was good, but she wanted this one even more. With the Espada being what they are now? He would likely be able to take Segunda if not Primera itself.

Grimmjow, the once Sexta Espada under Aizen's reign. There were a few she'd like to have standing with her, but his driving need and love of destruction appealed to the cold eyed Arrancar. He would make the ideal enforcer to make sure the rest of the Espada stayed in line and she bet he'd enjoy doing it, too. A rare smile curled on her lips.

He's the kind that won't turn down a good fight. The kind that won't disappoint. Careta mused to herself and wondered if the fight would end up in her favor. The Espada that Aizen made were far more powerful than any Shattered Arrancar that wasn't at least an eternity old, it seemed. Would she be able to win a fight against him on her own? Or would she have to resort to her pure form?

Careta thought of the possibilities as she allowed her senses to burst wide. Whispering Grimmjow's name to the Desert. If he wasn't seeking to not be found, she'd find him. Once she found him, she'd approach him.

Until he chose to be found, however, she would wait. Patience without any end in sight stretched as she sat at the peek of a Dune. One leg propped up to support her elbow as the other stretched out. Eyes closing as she settled in to wait.

Thu Feb 10, 2011 6:29 am

Subjugating the Feline [Grimmjow] Grimmjowunreleasedposti

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Days had passed since the events in the human world. Far off from the deserts within Los Noches Grimmjow sat idly, perched upon a piece of stone the jutted from beneath the dunes of sand. His gaze was unfocused as he peered out across the lands of Hueco Mundo, into the void that was his birthplace and home. He sat there and reflected; on his past battles and the one he had just had in the human world after four hundred years of absence. He had foolishly believed that he would find none stronger than him; that arrogance was foolish even for him, and he recognized that. He had become stronger in that time, and thus it was not impossible for others to have done the same. This thought made him gleeful; he had found a true challenge after so many years. He would have enjoyed it to his fullest as well if not for the arrogant interruptions of a young pup of an Arrancar. His fist clenched at the thought. His right arm was still slightly damaged from the final exchange with Shadin Yuudeshi in their battle, and his muscles had remained tense to his dismay.

The burns and cuts and healed just fine, and with enough time these inconveniences would as well. He now knew the kinds of enemies he would find in the human world. That was one thing he never thought he would miss from the days of Aizen’s reign. While he had hated the man’s way of doing things, that man always had the information that allowed Grimmjow the kinds of fights he enjoyed; against strong opponents and in single combat. His thoughts turned slowly back to those days; in those day, Arrancar were a race to be feared. Now, it seemed that they had fallen, for a low ranked Shinigami had tried to stand her ground against him. While it spoke volumes for her bravery, it also spoke of how the Arrancar had fallen in reputation since Aizen’s foolish war.

A gust of wind rolled through the desert, disrupting the peace that had surrounded Grimmjow. He was brought out of his thoughts; had he heard a whisper of his name? He stood, and cast his gaze around as he tried to find the source of this whisper. He must have been hearing things…he grumbled something and shoved his hands back in his pockets as he jumped down from the rock, and started through the desert, his feet moved on their own accord. He ran through the battle in the human world those few days before. He had picked apart Shadin’s fighting style; the man relied on the city to supply him with additional electricity and metal, and thus was why his power was so great. As for Marcus, he attempted to rely on speed much like Grimmjow, but resorted to cero and bala instead of physical combat. That second form as well was interesting, but in the end Marcus had only served to distract him from the real fight that day. His mind was really wandering about it seemed as he strode through the white desert

Sat Feb 12, 2011 1:00 pm

Careta had stood mute with eyes closed until Grimmjow's feet touched the sand. That event brought her eyes open and they turned to cast in the direction of the Espada. She let out an unnecessary breath and pulled herself up to stand. Her hands at her sides as she felt for the unique reiatsu of Destruction and sent a soft pulse along the sands to announce her presence to him.

She merely walked in his direction, whether he would use Sonido to close the distance or not was not of her concerns. Walking until he came into her sight, which was fixated on him. She knew she was a strange sight for the Arrancar, as she wore no white uniform which had been adopted as the norm since Aizen's days. Too, she was powerful, but known only by a scant few.

"Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez..." She spoke softly, though her voice would easily carry to him. "Four hundred years since I heard the whisper of your creation...your presence does not disappoint. I remember listening to the sound of your running along the dunes when you were but an Audjuchas." Her smile was almost ghostish and short lived. "The only Espada to stand against the mockery that was Aizen Souske. The only Espada to remain true to what he is."

Watching him carefully as she remained where she was. She didn't hide or try to mask her reiatsu from him, if he wished to try to gauge her through reiatsu he would be rewarded with that knowledge. "I am Careta, First to Shatter. To stand as the creator of La Orden de Copas...a group dedicated to returning the White Desert and her children to glory long tarnished and forgotten."

She was on guard, but only just. He was unpredictable and she wouldn't be caught flat footed. "Have you any interest in such a thing? Already one of your old number have joined. Ulquiorra Cifer...brought back to life to see to it that the Arrancar are feared once more. He said I should not bother attempting your recruitment...that you were too wild to work for a goal. I wonder if he was wrong?" Mused before her expression hardened and she decided to cut to the point. "La Orden De Copas will be a group without numbers, Grimmjow. Each will stand on equal ground and stand beside the other. No matter the situation as the Desert has blessed us all with different strengths. I come now to extend invitation to inquire our purpose and inquire of me. But know that if you do not join that you will be left alone by our numbers...unless you stand in our way. In that event...well...you have a mind for battle...you know the price for standing one against many."

Having spoken her mind, for the time being, she falls silent. Instead content to watch him. He was unique amongst those she's seen. Aizen was many things, but his creations were truly to be appreciated. Instead the fool used them and cast them off like pawns when they could have been his winning hand. How dare any Shinigami think so little of them. She would see and end to that. She just needed the numbers to do so.

Tue Feb 15, 2011 4:51 pm

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Grimmjow continued walking for only a short time before something changed. A pulse pass him by, no more than a greeting really. Someone had just sought his attention, specifically, and they had succeeded in gaining it. Grimmjow stopped, casting his azure gaze back in the direction the pulse had come from. Just from that singular pulse, he could tell that the being announcing itself was not a weakling. That was what had given him pause in his stride. Grimmjow gave the appropriate response, releasing a pulse of his own power.

Then he vanished. The crack of Sonido tore the silence of the great desert as Grimmjow closed the distance. He appeared on the crest of a dune, with sight of Careta, and his eyes regarded her as one predator would another. She called out to him first, her voice carried on the winds of Hueco Mundo itself. She complimented him first before moving along to introductions. Her title implied some very important things, and he had not missed those implications. That was one things that kept him there to listen to the woman’s words. He stood unmoving, his thoughts about her offer not making it to his face.

Just by what she said thus far she had displayed a great deal of knowledge not only about him but about the Winter War from all those years ago. Yet, he did not remember seeing her during those times or since. She moved on to what her purpose in seeking him was, he presumed, and he did her the courtesy of hearing her out. His eyebrow raised ast the news of Ulquiorra’s revival, however. Now how had that come to pass? There was a question to be asked, but she continued on. She outlines the structure for this group she sought to create, and sought to bring him into. Then, she left it open to him to ask any questions that he might have, letting the silence of Hueco Mundo surround them once more. He stood there, silent in thought.

Then he vanished with the crack of Sonido, appearing on her right in the air, and lashed out with a kick. She had power; that much he could tell, but just how much? Was it enough to lead a group like the one she was seeking to form, with people like himself and Ulquiorra in its ranks?
”And how, Careta, will you accomplish that goal you spoke of?” he asked, his first words in their meeting thus far. He posed this after his attack had been launched. Unlike Ulquiorra, Grimmjow would not follow someone without a demonstration of their battle prowess and power. Then again, he didn’t have to be revived. He also wished to see, first hand, the strength of this supposed first Arrancar.

Tue Feb 15, 2011 7:20 pm

His Sonido was faster than she had expected, though any surprise on her serene features was hidden well. He was silent as she spoke, which showed he either held respect for power, which was her assumption, or he was curious. Perhaps a bit of both.

His brow raising at hearing of Ulquiorra's return had her give a slight bit of pause. Should she answer? Deciding to explain some of it to him. "Do you think the Desert just sand and quartz? No, Grimmjow, it is an entity all on it's own, though Arrancar have become deaf to her words. When we die, we turn to smoke and ash...our reiatsu is returned to the Desert completely. I simply asked the Desert to pull his reiatsu back together again." Said almost off handedly, as if it should not be rare knowledge.

Then, Grimmjow decided to set to test her, or begin to. Her eyes turning to the right of her where he appeared. Her hand raised and she caught his ankle. Though in doing so her eyes widened just a bit. "You have grown in considerable power since Aizen's reign. You are, perhaps...maybe slightly weaker than I. As we are now." Not attempting to hold his leg, but instead allowing him to stand normal, looking down at her hand at the stinging result of blocking the kick. Considerable power indeed. He nearly matched her, nearly. The difference between them was slight.

"I will explain something of my Release to you, why if I were Released...few would stand a chance against me. I become apart of the Desert itself. It moves to defend me as a mother would a child. Not of my will, but it's own. There are...exceedingly rare cases of Arrancar's Release involving anything but their own raw power. Your Release is as such. But think for a moment what would have happened in your fight with Kurosaki Ichigo if there were two of you.

"Ichigo would be long dead, cold bones left strewn across the Desert. One defends to allow the other to give everything to attack. One distracts while the other capitalizes on the opening. One grabs the opponent's blade so that it cannot be raised to defend... Now think, Grimmjow...what would have become of Kurosaki Ichigo if three stood side by side. Or ten. If the Espada had but relented to work together for a single moment...nothing would have stopped you. Not even Aizen."

Her words were smooth as she watched him. "I will accomplish my goal by gathering ten strong. No foolish numbers to cater the bickering of rank. You understand the nuance and instinct of battle like none other. This is a great strength. You also dive into a fight heedless of threat to you, which is a weakness. If you and I were to walk into a fight together, I would nullify that weakness as I would even the field and lessen the threat to you. Whereas you cover my weakness which is experience in equaled combat. Add Ulquiorra to you and I, and your and my weaknesses are lessened even more. Yet, all three of us would benefit from the strengths of the other."

Reaching up and stroking a hand through her hair as she considered for a quiet moment. "The Will of the White Desert is that the weak be consumed...yet when the weak band together they become strong. If the strong band together, they become a force the likes the Shinigami or humans have ever seen and would be impossible to contend with. Even against a stronger foe..."

Careta smiled then, turning to face him fully. "I also know you respect power, you can feel the force of my Spiritual Pressure, so you're aware of it. However, continue to press and I will Release and show you why I am still alive after all these years. The choice is yours, I would gladly offer you a fight, but know that I do not wish to dominate or rule over you as Aizen attempted to. I'm offering to stand beside, not loom above."

Mon Feb 21, 2011 8:44 am

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She must have caught his curiosity about Ulquiorra’s resurrection as she volunteered the information without prompting. If that was the kind of thing she was capable of doing, she held a tremendous power in deed; much in the same way as that annoying girl that Kurosaki Ichigo had come after, Inoue Orihime, had. She had given him back his arm, his number, and his opponent; that was a type of power all its own that could not be denied. There was a time when he would have though. He had other things to worry about for now; Careta blocked his kick with a hand, and spoke of how he had grown in power. She did not attempt to grab him, hold him, or otherwise keep him from landing and possibly launching another attack.

She spoke of how he was only slightly weaker than she, and his eyes narrowed slightly at this. Mostly, it was out of curiosity at her confidence in the statement. She, however, helped fill in the details of her confidence by explaining her release to him; more and more, he was running into opponent whose strength lay in their locations. However, for what her goal was her power fit perfectly. A being who was the guarded by the White Desert itself and sought to protect it was a guardian the likes of which few would be able to stand before. She moved on, speaking of his release for a moment; just how closely had this woman been following the events of the Winter War and his own movements since?

She moved onto the subject of Kurosaki Ichigo, and his eyes narrow slightly once more as she spoke of how if the Espada had worked together Ichigo would have been annihilated within moments. He spoke then.
”Kurosaki Ichigo was and is my prey. I hunted him alone because it was my choice, and his blood was mine to spill. He lives still, after all these years, but his days are now numbered.”
The point that she was attempting to make, however, was not lost on him. Against any other foe, Grimmjow could see using numbers to his advantage. However, against his chosen prey, his own twisted moral code came into play. Using numbers showed weakness, in some ways, in his mind; if one was not able to fight on their own then they were useless, weak cannon fodder. However, her words rung true; if the Espada had stood together, even Aizen may well have fallen to their combined strength. Perhaps the arrancar would not have fallen so low then.

She moved along to the question he had posed before; she used his combat style as an example once more and explained the strengths and weaknesses therein. If nothing else, she certainly had a good understanding of tactics. She spoke of how Ulquiorra, brought with her and him, was a truly strong combination, as their weaknesses were covered to an even greater degree. She spoke of how the will of the desert, and thus the Hollow instincts that ruled it demanded the weak be consumed, but that the weak standing as one were strong. The logic there was simple enough to see; the strong banded together were even stronger was not a hard jump to see either.

She turned to face him suddenly; she offered him a chance to see what she was made of. He had indeed sensed her power by now, gotten a feel for it. It was not much greater than his own; not a wide enough margin to make victory impossible. Then again, to the Sexta, no single opponent was too powerful that victory was impossible in his mind. She spoke of how she did not seek to loom above but stand beside. Grimmjow removed his hands from his pockets as he watched her. He was silent for a few moments, letting her words hang in the ghostly silence of Hueco Mundo.

Then his face broke into small grin; not the maniacal grin he had once been known for but an expression far more contained, tempered by years of experience since those days.
”You bet your ass I’m going to see why you’ve managed to stay alive all these years. You seek to bring myself and Ulquiorra into a group to restore the pride of Arrancar and show others why they should fear us, you better have the strength to command the respect of those you seek to remind of their place.”

And with that, as far as Grimmjow was concerned, the time for words alone was over. His reiatsu suddenly exploded as the crack of Sonido tore the air, and he surged forward to throw a punch with his full physical force behind it straight at Careta’s face. Such a simple tactic would most likely not connect; however, the vicious kick that followed his momentum just may. Grimmjow’s tactics may have been straightforward, but they were successful because he possessed the physical prowess and timing to pull those kinds of maneuvers off. To underestimate his attacks was a dangerous gambit. He doubted that someone like her, who seemed have been on watch from the shadows for so many years, would underestimate him like that. However, did she have the reflexes to not be caught off guard when he began the battle for real; that was the true question.

Mon Feb 21, 2011 5:34 pm

Her body bent backwards, her hair drifting with the speed of the punch. Her arm came up to block the kick, but the sheer force of it had her sliding in the sand and the impact wasn't ignored on her arm. It was numb for the force and Careta turned her head to watch him. "Then I will show you power the likes of which haven't been seen since my mask was revealed." The sword was drawn up from it's sheath at her side.

Rather than take a stance with it, she held it point down and let it fall into the sand...which seemed to swallow it whole. Her words came with a suddenly dark tone. As if the entirety of the Desert was fixated upon her and only her. Her lips barely moving but her voice echoed. "Revelar el Final, La Madra de Hueco Mundo" (Reveal the End, Mother of Hueco Mundo)

The sand dune they stood on shifted beneath their feet as Careta rolled her neck to the side, before the blank white mask forms over her features, spikes form along her elbows and knees and her fingers elongate into long claws. Sand explodes upwards around her and suddenly seals, taking shape in the form of an upright coffin or tomb of some sort. Until wind and gravity began to crumble it away to nothing.

She was impossible to sense, because she was the Desert itself. Her voice came from behind him. "Have you ever fought on the sand? Ever feel how it absorbs your attacks and how it gives underfoot. Ever try to fight sand?" As he turns, he'd see her standing there, like a living sculpture of sand. "Now do you understand when I said I become the Desert itself?" Her 'mask' crumbles away as sand and slides down her body before joining the rest of the sand at her feet, her face reforming from nothing and she smiles.

Both hands slam down into the sand itself, from the impact of her fists suddenly surge up slender and deadly spikes of quartz. Tracking him and seeking to cut off escape routes. It does stop and one of the spikes shifts and her face forms across the quarts, grinding as her lips move. Where she was, was nothing...as if she'd disappeared. "My power is the Desert itself, Grimmjow. Can you fight all of it? I never tire because the Desert never tires. Here...on the white sands of Hueco Mundo...I am the mother that would protect her child and I will destroy everything that threatens it."

Thu Feb 24, 2011 6:39 am

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The kick connected, sending her sliding across the desert’s surface. He bolted forward to follow the attack up as she spoke. She drew her blade as he closed, and just as quickly she had released, he appearance changing. He reached her as the coffin formed, and he flew right through where it had been, eyes wide a moment. He couldn’t sense her presence, even when she had appeared behind him and spoke. He turned to look at her, a living statue of sand; of Hueco Mundo. She smiled; his eyes took in her form at a glance as he completed the turn to fully face her.

Her hands slammed into the ground, and he shot backwards as the quartz spikes surged forth. He changed direction as the spikes followed. She reformed in the quartz, speaking to him once more. This certainly presented a problem alright; in that kind of form, he wouldn’t be able to harm her with physical strikes, or at least not as easily. That meant he would have to rely on other means of combat. The quartz surged forward again, and he held out his hand as a bala formed and fired into the oncoming wave.

Grimmjow surged upward, away from the sands of the desert before they had a chance to ensnare him. He held out his hand, as a deep crimson light was suddenly thrown over the white desert. He released the cero straight down into the sands of Hueco Mundo and into the surging quartz. He had no idea if this would harm her or not; just as he had no idea that she had stepped straight past her Resurrecion and into Segunda Etapa. He had heard of such things, and how the current Cero Espada had found a way to unlock such an ability in arrancar. He had little care for it for the time being.

He solidified a platform of Reishi below him as he scanned the desert surface.
”Damn scary is what that is. Certainly makes you a force to be reckoned with here in Hueco Mundo,” he called out, waiting and watching. He began to draw in power once more as his eyes scanned the desert below; she was quick with her comings and goings. He would have to strike fast to catch her with a cero. There was a question of whether or not a normal cero would even be enough. He had thought of releasing already, but it would do him little good for now.

"But just how strong are you beyond this place I wonder?"