Welcome to Wonderland (Criella/Open)

At this point in her life Mizu was no longer surprised by the treachery and depravity displayed by Hollows and Arrancar. Witnessing Criella sacrifice her underling made things more difficult, temporarily at least, but she didn't find herself off-kilter because of it. In fact it could even prove a boon to the Shinigami and Quincy duo, despite the latter's attack being avoided by the Arrancar woman. At least now they had the numbers advantage.

Mizu remained steadfast in her defense of the survivors, not wanting to leave her position and give Criella an opportunity to put them in harm's way again. Instead she opted to observe the fight and step in when she could. When the woman began charging her Cero, Mizu knew this was one of those moments. The blond raised her left hand and immediately cast one of the few spells she could use at this range without worrying about Solomon potentially getting caught in it "Bakudō #79 Kuyō Shibari!" Around Criella's body eight black holes emitting a substantial spiritual force would form, before a ninth forms in front of her chest. If this spell cast successfully, it would immobilize the Arrancar within its clutches.

Solomon's blade once again found purchase against someone, but it wasn't the enemy he wished to attack with his initial strike nor his second. For a Queen, Criella was living up to her role with impeccable accuracy. Everyone else here had proved to be a useful shield - civilian or minion - while she remained untouched. Cleaving through the structure had only resulted in him felling the hollow primate, his form nothing more than a hinderance as a ray of energy roared into his pathway.

"!?"

Baskin's interference made it difficult to evade this sudden influx of energy. To avoid suffering a direct hit, Solomon was forced to quickly use the remaining reishi from his attack, absorbing those leftover reishi into Keraunos. Forming an electrical pillar to avoid a direct hit, Solomon was still pushed back, as a matter of course, but his temporary defense prevented him from suffering full scale damage from her attack. His body was rattled, yet he would ignore it in favor of challenging her again. She created a distance between them with that blast, he would have to close it before she employ another attack.

Turning his head to Mizu, his ears caught wind of the Kido spell she'd decided to employ. Solomon sprinted forward, his body propelled by Hirenkyaku, rushing to attack her once more, thrusting his blade at her abdomen, his blade shrouded in a whirlwind of electrified reishi. With the way she erected that structure, perhaps she was an enemy who thrived in misdirecting her enemies. If so, perhaps a direct attack might merit more success, especially if Mizu's spell held her in place. Allowing her to work to her strengths wouldn't be beneficial to either one of them. That much was clear.

"Conquer, Hielo."

The world froze, the next second meaning everything. Solomon's blade reached for her, balls of energy crackling around her to incase of body in imaginary restraints. She cared not for any of it though, for she understood that no disadvantage existed for a woman like herself. Insects, just because there are many, are still just insects, and the ice age has come to claim their warm bodies in eternal slumber. Her words were a lullaby, but her actions were a blizzard.

Solomon's blade became petrified, caught in solid ice, Criella's form hidden by the heavy structures of rigid liquid seconds before they cracked and exploded, sprinkles of snow falling as Mizu's attack was shattered. All that remained is but Criella, a woman of blue skin, adorned in the armament of her Ress. Her height had grown, and her hidden face gave off nothing but a noble superiority to the lowly souls that oppose her.

"Let the end come," She then muttered as the ground beneath her froze, ice spreading quickly around the area, threatening to freeze Solomon to the ground. This sudden chilling attack even berated, Mizu's shields, covering it in a dome of white.

"Come, Quincy and Shinigami. Show your Queen your capabilities."

"Crystallize, Shousenmaru!" Once this ice witch announced her Resureccion's release, Mizu knew in that instant the only way she could avoid being completely overwhelmed was by using her own release. Upon unleashing her Shikai Mizu's Zanpakuto shattered into hundreds of violet crystal shards which scattered around her. Due to the creeping ice spreading across the battlefield she immediately flourished with the bladeless handle in her grasp, causing all the crystals around her to be whipped up like a vortex. These razor-sharp fragments were set to work against the ice around her and on her Kidō barrier, preventing it from encroaching any further.

I need to deal with all this ice, quickly! thought Mizu as she prepared to strike back at the Arrancar. With the crystal shards still flying around her, Mizu raised her left hand and spoke aloud another spell name "Hadō #58: Tenran - Apply Fire!" As she said this command another vortex swiftly formed in front of her palm, this time a horizontal one made of wind which quickly expanded across the battlefield and towards Criella. However, it wasn't just any regular old tornado: due to using Genso Kakusan to apply an element, this vortex was a mixture of both wind and flames. Mizu managed to exert enough control over this fire whirlwind to avoid entirely enveloping Solomon if he could not find a way out of Criella's ice.

The momentum of battle had shifted in the blink of an eye. In a single instant, as ephemeral as it was incomprehensible, his spirit weapon had been frozen solid. The whirlwind of lightning was no longer present, now little more than an structure of ice that held his blade in thrall. As she stepped forth, several frostlike frgments shattered around the woman's regal frame, her gaze emanating an air of divine superiority, as though she were the very embodiment of the cold - An avatar of ice to herald their demise should they prove inferior before her might.

Even Mizu's binding spell had been rendered ineffective as a wave of ice blanketed the battlefield. The entire atmosphere was now her element to control. From an observer's point of view, the likelihood of their victory was now mired in doubt. An absolute certainty morphed into a distant possibility. A theoretical gamble if the two of them continued to face her now. Of course, Solomon held no intention of retreating now, and he believed Mizu shared a similar view.

After all, he had faced an enemy of unparalleled force before, and to back down now would be an act of cowardice. As the bolt of lightning who desired to blaze a path for his compatriots, he couldn't back down. There were people to defend! He had to overcome, to give this battle his all. To avoid being frozen on the ground, he quickly shifted his focus onto forming platforms of reishi below his feet, leaving his blade behind in the robust layer of ice.

It was all he could do at the moment to avoid being frozen in place amid the relentless stream of ice racing along the ground. Solomon had wholeheartedly acknowledged that facing her in close combat was a fool's errand, an absolute exercise in futility with no favorable outcome. Striking her directly had already proved a tall order at the outset, but her transformation has made such an undertaking increasingly more difficult to pursue; Step into her point of contact, and become a frozen statue. That would be his fate if he approached her now.

Employing Hirenkyaku, he deftly avoided the maelstrom of fire and wind that stormed across the battlefield - an attempt on Mizu's behalf, no doubt, to melt away the ice. If it proved successful, Solomon would create something akin to a magnetic charge between the center of his palm and the hilt of the blade, an aim executed in pursuit of calling his spirit weapon back to his hand.

From there, he would simply remain skyborne. He hated to be in this position, but he needed to devise a plan. Quickly. Was it wise to activate Letz Stil now that she has transcended into her own state of immense power? Attack from above to serve as a distraction? None of these were particularly disagreeable, but each moment that passed, Solomon could feel himself growing frustrated. Regaining his spirit weapon was the topmost priority now. His feeble attempts at archery would do him no good here.

The ice is melting. The truth threat of her existence has revealed themselves. The Shinigami had already proven an annoyance, but their attempts at combat lacked severity and only played by defensive tactics. Now, however, Criella understands their annoying capability. Still, it changes nothing. The power they exude will be buried by her ice age.

With but a gentle whisk of her arm, ice grew behind her, the ground exploding with frozen water as it rose up forming an impressive mountain that took the fiery vortex head on. However, it was but a temporary creation and existed long enough for her to simply disappear from the battlefield.

Solomon found his weapon returning to him due to Criella's lack of focus on him, but he would feel her presence before seeing her appear from the ground, melded together by the ice she had laid in his direction. Again, she held up a hand, an orb of blue growing within it. Deja vu may strike their minds as the orb exploded, launching bala in all directions. However, those that did not land soon began to settle in the air, multitude of orbs lingering in the skies, above the ground, and around her opponents.

"Let us begin," She sung, as she closed her open palm, the melting ice and breaking formation shattering before sudden winds swept through the air, snuffing Mizu's storms and blanketing them all in a blinding blizzard that hid her stagnant bala from their senses with a storm of her energy.

Having stymied the encroaching ice with her spell, Mizu took a deep breath of relief. Solomon had escaped to the side, the humans remained safe within her barriers, and not even the Arrancar's released Zanpakuto had proven overwhelming. Things seemed to be going the way of the good guys, which Mizu was greatly appreciative of.

That is, until Criella seemed to vanish entirely. For a fleeting second Mizu thought, hoped, the woman had retreated in the face of the dedicated duo. This was proven false as her form reappeared from the ground as if the ice was a lake, and fired a volley of energy blasts in every direction. With a flourish of her sword arm Mizu commanded a wave of her Shikai's crystal shards to levitate and form a thick wall between herself and the humans, and the blasts aimed at them. Though the wall shook and cracked, it managed to outlive the Arrancar's attack. Or, at least, the initial one; after Mizu shattered the wall back into fragments, Criella's true plan was revealed to her as her violet eyes observed floating and frozen spheres of energy suspended in the air.

The situation continued to devolve for Mizu as the Arrancar woman whipped up a storm of ice and Reiryoku, dulling all of her senses, physical and spiritual, simultaneously. If Mizu knew one thing in this moment of chaos, it was to not stand around and wait for her death. "O', Lord of Heaven, Adorn me in your Grace and Defend your Arbiter! Bakudō 55: Sei-kotsu Sōkō!" As she finished speaking a bright light enveloped Mizu's body before quickly dissipating and revealing herself now clad in a suit of Kidō barrier armor. She knew with her spiritual sensing dulled by the blizzard contacting Solomon would require Tenteikūra, but given how quickly the situation worsened Mizu wanted to limit her energy consumption until she could go on the offensive against their enemy. Stay safe for now!

Keraunous successfully found purchase within its wielder's hand once more, though this particular success was quickly rendered little more than a light victory in the face of the fierce avatar of frost; her presence felt almost instantaneously as she reappeared from the ground, with her hand raised upward, as though she were a conductor orchestrating a fatal melody of death. Like ceaseless gunfire, countless bala were fired in a multidirectional assault. A blinding blizzard of overwhelming might followed, impeding Solomon's senses as he struggled to make sense of his overall direction in this relentless storm.

Remaining motionless in this blizzard was not allowed. Recognizing that undeniable law amid her current hegemony of ice, Solomon focused electrified reishi around his frame, blazing forward like a bolt of lightning, amplifying his stride with Hirenkyaku to avoid the trajectory of each Bala shooting toward him, projecting an electrical barrier that sought to act as a repelling force to oppose any orb of freezing light that sought to seek purchase against his frame. His body was freezing right now by sheer merit of occupying a spot in this cold atmosphere, but he couldn't remain inert. He had to keep pressing forward. There were civilians to be mindful of as well, but he had to believe in Mizu's capability to keep them protected. Even so, Frustration was beginning to set in.

He detested his inability right now to be of better use, detested the idea he could not make a pivotal impact at the current moment. Solomon was uncertain as to whether or not Mizu shared his current view, but remaining on the defensive would only work against them. They had to cull the source immediately or drive her back and force her to retreat. No matter how many scenarios he played out in his mind without the use of his own final state, they all resulted in their inevitable deaths. Staying safe was no longer an option for him. The bright light made Mizu discernable enough for Solomon to pursue her immediately as he hovered beside her on azure platforms of reishi.

"I fear if we continue to avoid her attacks any further, this battle will end in our defeat. In the face of such sheer power, it is imperative that we face this woman with all of our might. Therefore, I'm going to remove my Sanrei Glove. From hereon out, let's give it everything we've got Mizu!"

Indeed, to face her with anything less than their own indomitable will would be a fool's errand, one resulting in their death. Reversely, perhaps, one might argue that activating a state with an enormous burst of power in exchange for a limited timeframe was an equally foolish gamble, but Solomon didn't have time to worry about particulars right now. It was time to act. In the next moment, his Sanrei glove radiated violently, bursting apart in a blaze of electrified energy, consuming every inch of his body in an all-consuming light. Emerging from that whirlpool of energy, his activation was complete. There was no turning back now. He would drive her back at all costs. His blade held upright, he prepares to attack. His time in this reishi-dominant state was not eternal. The next sequence would be crucial.

"A beacon of light in the frozen storm~ My, how our little hero glows."

Her voice traveled through the frozen winds, carried by the battering blizzard that berated their defenses little by little, almost like a corrosive spill or a swarm of gnats waiting to suckle on their warm bodies. Though, in her mind, they're nothing more than sacks of flesh and energy, waiting to be drained of all warmth and left but a memory in her frozen embrace. All will be just that; memories of how she came to rule this pitiful world.

"Dance, little heroes," Criella muttered to herself, finding an exhilaration in her cold heart as her released state unlocked the inner sadist in her mind as Solomon found himself surrounded by the multitude of Bala created before. Surrounded, his only hope is to use his little boost to dodge as the Bala fell onto him, coming from all directions to leave his person broken. Taking even one Bala will leave his person feeling cold, Criella's energy attempting to seep into his very being, but he's grown so magnificently strong. Something like this shouldn't be enough to defeat him, but Criella will enjoy slowly decomposing his bravado until only a husk remained. However, she should focus some of her attention to the troublesome Shinigami, her hand rising.

"Let's see if you can protect the world with Hell freezing over all around you. Cero Oscuras~"

Black energy cackled from her palm as if laughing in her place, the blue outline surrounding it and the spike of energy from her location all that's allowed for the heroes to know her location before the massive beam fired in Mizu's direction, not only threatening to devour her but also turn the citizens behind her into nothing but afterthoughts. Of course, much like Solomon's situation, instead of disintegration, Mizu will feel herself being frozen by the energy washing over her, her kido fighting off its effects from taking hold but seeming unable to simply protect what she hasn't covered from the frigid winds.

Even as bone-chilling cold bit at her extremities, threatening to sap her will to fight on, Mizu stood like a guardian shepherd protecting her flock. She felt more confident about their chances upon Solomon's removal of his Sanrei Glove, which she understood to mean he would use power beyond his normal limits through his Letzt Stil transformation. Side by side, she could be humanity's shield while Solomon strikes at Criella as its sword.

What is a sword and shield against a tsunami? Mizu could do nothing as she watched the many frozen energy spheres their enemy had littered across the battlefield converge on Solomon, as the Arrancar woman was already making a move against her as well. Mizu's eyes widened as the words Cero Oscuras floated through the blizzard like a warning of death upon the wind. Only one choice!

As the pitch black energy surged towards her, Mizu dropped to a knee and pressed her hands to the ground before saying "Bakudō #81: Dankū!" These words passed her lips and immediately summoned a large translucent wall in front of her said to be able to guard against Hadō even up to number 89. Yet as Cirella's Cero Oscuras crashed into it like a mighty tidal wave against the rocks, Mizu could sense her creation shaking and struggling against it. Fearing it would shatter as cracks grew from small to larger across it, she quickly commanded all the shards of her Shikai to bolster the Dankū and create a stronger bulwark against Criella's assault. Even with this enhancement eventually the first wall eroded enough for the whole thing to shatter in a final explosion of ebony energy and purple crystal.

Though it cost more energy and power than she wanted to dedicate to a simple defense, the final dispersal of Criella's attack signified her success. Neither she nor her the humans behind her had succumbed to their enemy. Not yet, at least! No, not ever! Knowing they could waste no time recovering, Mizu immediately went on the offensive. She stood up and extended her right arm with her open-palmed hand aimed directly at the source of the Cero Oscuras. Her left hand shot up and gripped her right forearm to provide support for the coming attack before she shouted into the storm:


As its name would suggest, from Mizu's palm burst forth a huge cannon of energy, but instead of its typical blue hued electrical power it was now a surging blast of flames. It rocketed towards Criella at a great speed, incinerating a path through the blizzard like a lighthouse in a storm signalling safe haven; though instead of safety, this spell signified coming doom for the ice witch.