Scent of Weakness: Lionheart [Amaranta]

The Plains of Africa had grown more and more tumultuous. As Amaranta did her usual rounds checking in on humans, looking for faces to punch, and no doubt being a little pest to anyone who looked fun enough. Her pesquisa would pick up something rather unsual. A rather large group of hollows.

A nearby Village was one of the many makeshift shelters that had been erected by Refugees. Places of relative safety thanks to the distance from the Chasm itself being more or less miles away from the danger zone around the Chasm Region. At most, Amaranta likely only ever encountered one or two hollows a day, perhaps Four if something was drawing them in. But as her pesquisa tingled and fed her a bit of information about the disturbance, she'd feel a greater sense of the creatures that were descending on the village and overwhelming the local Vandenreich that were stationed.

No less than Fifteen Hollows, rampaging around the little village. People were screaming, running away in groups or breaking off to try and hoof it alone. And a number of the hollows were circling around trying to catch all of the runners, viciously ripping into them, or just holding them down and peeling their souls right out of their bodies to be consumed separate from their kishin shells.

The perfect brawl for a sporting young feline to get her licks in, yes?

AMARANTA VALERIA | BURNING LIONESS

"What do we have here? Looks like the defense force stationed in this area is finally being overwhelmed. Time to steal the show as always, and enjoy a good hunt while I'm at it..."

Well, wasn't this just grand? The hollows of this continent were growing braver nowadays. Observing proof of that with her bestial gaze, Amaranta licked her lips as she rose from a tall tree she'd been stationed on in the distance. Each hollow had essentially condemned itself to the fate of being hunted by yours truly. Hardly one to run from a well-prepared conflict, Amaranta leaped from the tree, barreling toward the pandemonium in the village, accelerating toward a hollow in the middle of its feast, crashing her foot straight into its crown. Should that sudden blow prove successful, she'd quickly shift into calling out to the other hollow with a beastlike grin tearing across her features, her voice akin to a roar, her body moving ever closer towards her prey.

"Come on! Come on! I'm hungry too! Entertain me!"

END POST

The sudden CRACK of Amaranta's foot slamming through the hollow's head caused a visible gush of hot blood to splatter across the ground as the hollow dropped like a stone, its body convulsing as it began to fade away. Certainly the sudden appearance of an arrancar drew attention. But perhaps not in the manner that she expected.

As she charged towards the next hollow. Something suddenly snagged one of the arrancar's legs mid-motion.

A bloody hand that came up from a pile of dead humans, slim and human-sized, it clutched on with STARTLING strength, such that in that instant, Amaranta would feel a sudden sharp biting pain up the length of her bone, as the thing threatened to fracture the bone. Amaranta's only saving grace was that the little hand itself wasn't as durable as it was strong, and the thing's arm was ripped from the pile, locked in a gripp, but no longer squeezing down as it slowly peeled itself up from the pile. A skeleton dripping with blood.

And another.


And another.

Until the entire pile slowly shifted up from the ground as countless bony faces rose to stare at the Arrancar with glowing yellow eyes.


"Hnhnhnhnhn~ You can stop playing pretend." It's voice was a chorus, as the hulk of forms rose up, larger, beast-like skeletal arms and legs void of flesh holding the mass up off the ground as it stared her down.
"The Reapers are gone. You've no reason left to play nice." Those voices crooned to the woman, as if they knew the secret behind her behavior.

AMARANTA VALERIA | BURNING LIONESS

"Hohoho, now we're talking. I knew I was bound to find something entertaining this week."

Though one of lesser mettle might have easily found their vigor dampened and their mettle drained at the sight of such a grotesque hollow, Amaranta whistled as she leveled a finger upon the creature's grasp, firing off a cero to cut through its arm and release her. Whether or not it maintained its grasp was largely inconsequential, it appeared, as the skeletal hollow didn't initially appear as if it wished to retaliate. No, she felt compelled to hear it out first before she retaliated. What did it mean? Grinning from ear to ear, she'd gaze up at it as she demanded an answer. She rarely enjoyed whenever anyone spoke as if they understood her.

"And whatever do you mean by that, skully?"

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