PLAYER
This is what it's like being the biggest and the strongest. I don't even exercise.
Koshou
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Post by Koshou on Nov 8, 2022 18:05:21 GMT -5
CAT AND MOUSEType: Retrieve (PvE) (Repeatable) Level: 1 Description: A dangerous prisoner has escaped from the Maggot’s Nest prison and fled to the Living World. - Find and return them unharmed.
- Do not let them hurt anyone else.
_________________________________________________________________________ Once more, Fate finds a certain Soul Reaper out and about in the Living World, this time with writ and permission. As one of the souls within the Seireitei that’s somewhat familiar with the lay and land of North America, it’s no surprise and no coincidence that it would be him they’ve sent out tonight to try and hunt down a rare and recent escapee. Tall skyscrapers, and the bright lights of a city that never sleeps are a familiar battleground for the shadowed figure that stands atop one of those buildings now, staring down at the city around him …
One foot up on the corner of the rooftop that he’s standing atop of, Koshou takes another look down at the landscape before him and he lets the end of the cigarette tucked into the corner of his mouth glow brightly for a moment as he purses his lips together and takes a slow drag from the thing. A slow breath out through his nose sees twin streams of blueish smoke come breezing out like the lazy breath of some dragon before he bothers to move at all. Typical of Hattori Koshou, the man moves with a sense of lethargy or apathy that only seems to hold as a facade until he’s ready to get down to business.
Stepping off of the roof, Koshou lets his body drop and steadily increases its speed as it falls, the ground rushing up to meet him faster and faster still. Then he’s touching the base of his sandal against the wall he’s close to and he adjusts his speed, pushing with a matching force that sends him flying forward now instead of down. Narrow eyes watch the blinking lights below him still, of street lights and walk signs … cars passing with flashing headlights or the soft red glow of their brakes. The Soul Reaper lets himself focus on the sense of the Reishi that he’s been sent to track here, while he travels within the relative safety of being hidden within the rest of the chaos of the city.
‘It’s one of the reasons I love this city ..’
The thought comes to him even as the sight of the city itself blurs past him. One of those places in the world where energy and spirits gather and congregate, New York attracted the kind of people that made it such an exciting place. While high-spec human souls were bound to pop now and again, it was mostly the abundance of people with just enough to catch the senses that make it such a confusing place to try and track through. None of them potential threats, but each enough to create a vast web of spiritual pressure that one can get easily lost in. Now it was this fact that Koshou had taken to his own advantage, hiding his own Reishi as he allowed himself to be swallowed up by all the other small bits and trails that surround him, all the while following the one he’s hunting as it zig-zags its way across the city from one borough to the next.
‘Gotta pick up the pace, figure out if I’m making any ground. If he causes too much trouble over here, it’s gonna be MY ass …’ A small shake of the head comes from the shadowed figure of the Soul Reaper now, as he tries to forget the rather sudden attention his newfound reputation had found him as of late but the memories come anyway..
*** A few hours earlier … ***
“You there! Yeah, you! Get your lazy ass over here!”
The words come shouting across the courtyard of the Division Eleven Barracks, interrupting the rather solid bit of day-dreaming that Koshou had been involved in under the shade of the awning of the main training building. With a grunt and a semi-startled jump up as he realizes it’s him that’s being yelled at, the man is quick to identify the owner of the voice and set for that direction with a bit of haste behind his footing!
‘Ahh! A seated officer? What’s he want with me?’ Koshou came skidding to a stop in front of the man, also dressed in Shihakusho and bearing the cut of a seated officer - one of the twenty best Soul Reapers in Division Eleven! The newest member of the Squad doesn’t quite salute to the man, but it’s more of a two-fingered gesture that’s an attempt at being respectful but without quite managing the energy to get there all the way.
“Hattori Koshou, sir! What’s the hustle?”
*****
‘That’s what comes with starting to make a name for myself though, I guess. Isn’t that what I wanted? But the WORK … ugh!’ There’s no accounting the absolute disdain for having to do the real work that comes with being a Soul Reaper, but no lack of effort to put in once he’s to the point of having to put in the effort, after all. Continuing to race through the city, the smell of the harbor and the river comes to him and causes the quick wrinkling of his nose.
“Ugh .. I don’t miss that smell” Koshou mutters aloud as he pauses on another rooftop to survey the area and the sight of the bridge before him. “Shit …” The bridge leads from the rest of Queens, onto the island of Manhattan. While one of the smaller sections of the city as a whole geographically, there were a lot of people on that island. Taking a short pause, Koshou tries to take a precious moment to try and get a better bearing on the direction of the trail he’s hunting now .. but only for a moment.
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Post by Hageshi Rekka on Nov 9, 2022 0:46:24 GMT -5
"This is an official notice that Hageshi Rekka of 9th Division is hereby unbanned from New York City effective immediately."
For those without context, said Shinigami was banned from the city after he nuked a building and set a park on fire during a battle against Demons. Today, however, he had since proved himself capable of greater control over his abilities, and was thus freed from the restriction.
"That's good and all, but why are you narrating, Osaka?" asked Rekka.
"No reason." Osaka hid a notebook behind her back, which contained various fanfiction notes about her squad and possibly even Captain Muimina. "There totally aren't plans for a visual novel about you with a Hyakuji-senpai route either!"
"Highly unrealistic, but hooray for creativity. Bye, I'm going to New York."
With that, Rekka emerged into the city at a seemingly random point. Or not. There was another Shinigami right next to him, quite a bit taller and bulkier than the Third Seat. Somewhat surprised, Rekka looked at him and waved. "Oh, hey there."
"Ya aren't from 9th," he said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Is my division that understaffed? Oh right, Ran told me earlier. There was a prison break and the escapee made their way here. Sure, I'll tag along."
"The name's Rekka by the way. Let's try not to get banned this time."
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PLAYER
This is what it's like being the biggest and the strongest. I don't even exercise.
Koshou
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Post by Koshou on Nov 9, 2022 17:13:39 GMT -5
There's a moment of surprise when the new arrival shows up, head turning off to the side as the presence of a garganta makes itself known and begins to split the air in twain with that black maw that leads into the Precipice world. When the Division Nine Third Seat comes out of the black space to greet him, Koshou gives a quiet grunt around the cigarette tucked into the corner of his mouth. There's a moment of silence that stretches out as the greeting ends, dropping into the relative silence of the City - which is to say it's nearly lost to the hustle and bustle of the large stretch of civilization that lies below them. The burly Soul Reaper lifts a finger to his lips, a silent shushing gesture, though not one that bears any semblance of insult.
"A couple of blocks up .. an abandoned building I think. I can feel the desperation that surrounds the place." The information is quiet, quickly given, and right to the point. Reaching up to take hold of the cigarette, Koshou takes a slow drag from the thing before exhaling a soft plume of blue tinged smoke up into the night sky of New York. Finally turning his head to give the other Shinigami a more complete study as he takes them in. "Let's keep this clean and quiet, huh? I don't need any slip-ups right now after letting that guy get away in the Rukon the other day so let's keep the city in one piece."
Apparently ... reputations CAN precede you, if you do something big enough like effectively nuke a large portion of one of the biggest cities in the living world! The lazy grin that crosses Koshou's features doesn't carry any bad will or concern, though. If the other Soul Reaper takes a few, they might be able to rack up recent murmurs about the new 'Beast of Squad Eleven', brash young Soul Reaper making his rise through the unseated officers of the Division.
Hageshi Rekka
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Post by Hageshi Rekka on Nov 9, 2022 19:03:34 GMT -5
The taller Shinigami shushed Rekka, reminding him that stealth was of utmost importance to this recapture mission.
"Ah, right," Rekka said in a much softer voice. The other man pointed to an abandoned building in the distance, which did seem like a good, if cliché, place for an escaped prisoner to hide. "Wait. What guy in Rukongai. Don't tell me it's the Arrancar I met a while back trying to meet up with the Shinigami he's in love with--"
The Third Seat tried to identify the ally in front of him. He hadn't seen him around before, so he must have been part of the most recent graduating class from the Academy. Rekka had made it a point to keep tabs on the fresh Shinigami for recruitment purposes, but there were several hundred each year and it was unreasonable to expect a person who wasn't Captain Hinawa to remember all of them. Fortunately, Ran didn't only graduate last year, but she was on patrol here as well, so Rekka decided to snap a picture of his companion unawares and send it to her.
"Oh, that's Hattori Koshou from 11th. Wait, why are you here? Did you get unbanned?" was the reply.
"So you're Hattori from 11th. Why didn't they send someone from 2nd though. You must be good," Rekka noted, still speaking softly. "How do you plan to proceed? It's your mission after all, and I'm not gonna killsteal you."
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PLAYER
This is what it's like being the biggest and the strongest. I don't even exercise.
Koshou
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Post by Koshou on Nov 9, 2022 19:16:02 GMT -5
While the newcomer takes a moment to dig up some information about himself, Koshou continues to observe the building off into the distance. There's another quiet grunt from the man, a typical kind of communication for him it seems like at least while he's thinking or otherwise focused. With a brief nod, he finally gestures toward the building a few blocks down, right near the base of the bridge leading out toward Manhattan.
"Well, it doesn't feel like he's crossed the bridge yet, and that's what we need to make sure doesn't happen. This guy is some kind of Kido sorcerer is all they told me, so we need to be prepared for any kind of trickery. My guess is, he's been doing what I been doing using the city like a mask for his own Reiatsu to make it harder to find him. Likewise, I think he's been sucking the squatters in that building dry of whatever energy they do possess. He's been in the Nest a good while, so he'll be starving for any spiritual energy he can find to siphon."
That might be the longest string of words Koshou has ever put together, and the majority of them are somewhat muffled here or there by the smoke that dangles precariously at the edge of his lips while he speaks. From time to time he'll purse his lips in punctuation of his words, drawing from the cigarette to offer a lazy exhale from the other corner of his mouth, or his nostrils. Pausing again, he reaches up to take the smoke, and after one last drag he gives the thing a quiet flick; watching the dull orange glow of the cherry tumble end over end into the night to disappear.
"Well, since you're here, that changes things. We can hit the building from the top and the bottom, and just sweep floors until we meet in the middle. If one of us finds him before then, that should be pretty obvious pretty quick. They're not gonna care about a few bumps and scrapes, so the plan is to overwhelm him as quickly as possible and put him down - so we can drag him back nice and quiet."
Hageshi Rekka
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Post by Hageshi Rekka on Nov 9, 2022 21:51:31 GMT -5
According to Hattori, their target was a Kido sorcerer who was siphoning Reishi from the city's inhabitants and using the abandoned building as a base. The goal was to prevent him from crossing the bridge. Rekka had dealt with such abilities before, and was currently considering a number of countermeasures against their enemy.
"There was this anime I watched," he started. "The protagonist was also hunting a mage, and he'd set up base in a hotel suite on the top floor and put a ton of traps inside. What the protag did was evacuate the people inside and blew up the entire building. Though I assume we can't do that."
Hattori then gave his own plan, which Rekka had to agree with. Manual sweeping it was, since blowing up the building with Sanzen Daisen Enmado was clearly not an option. Rekka had no intention of getting banned again, so he decided to assist Hattori with the plan.
"Casters have a tendency to hole up on upper floors, if not the top one. However, we have to consider the following:
One, which direction contains the most traps? Where does he expect invaders to come from?
Two, where does he plan to escape to if his base is compromised? If there's an exit facing the bridge, one of us has to seal it off.
And three, which of us takes the top and bottom, given the preceding questions and our relative strengths? I have a portal, but we can't rely on that all the time."
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PLAYER
This is what it's like being the biggest and the strongest. I don't even exercise.
Koshou
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Post by Koshou on Nov 9, 2022 22:08:43 GMT -5
There's a brief nod from the other Soul Reaper, as he lets his left hand drop to rest absently on the hilt of his Zanpakuto.
"I figure ... his main priority is staying free, right? Nobody who spends that much time in any prison wants to go back so .. I'm thinking he'll be closer to the top floor than the bottom and the bridge is definitely his way out. So."
There's a quick snap of the fingers, as Koshou suddenly grins. He points over toward the bridge, "We can't kill the guy since they want him back, but I'm thinking what if we don't try to catch him inside the building? You've got ... some reputation that precedes you. How's about you make a ruckus at the bottom levels, make sure he'll see you coming a mile away. He'll think the building is as good as gone, and make his run for it. I'll be waiting by the bridge to intercept - and you can zone in from behind so he can't double back. Yeah ... that'll be less noisy then trying to chase him through the building too."
Turning to make sure this Rekka is fully comprehending the new plan, he raises an eyebrow to the man with a quick lift of his chin, tensing as he prepares to take off.
Hageshi Rekka
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Post by Hageshi Rekka on Nov 9, 2022 22:56:32 GMT -5
Rekka nodded at his ally's assessment of the situation. It was a good analysis as far as tactics went. And as for the plan...
"Oho!" His face now bore the same stupid grin as Hattori. "So we're gonna do THAT, huh! I don't wanna get banned again, but it sounds too fun to resist!"
The Third Seat opened up another portal, gesturing for the 11th Division member to pass through. "This will lead you to the bridge. As for the distraction, you'll know it when you see it."
As soon as Hattori would enter the portal, Rekka would sneak up to a short distance away from the abandoned building. When he got within range. he released a significant Reiatsu flare, keeping his spiritual pressure at a level where a combatant might feel threatened. Because of this, the temperature of the surroundings rose to that of a hot summer day, and for some reason the surrounding puddles boiled away. Rekka maintained this pressure as he approached the entrance, at which he pulled out a megaphone and banged the door several times.
"Attention, Maggot's Nest escapee!" his voice blared. "This is Hageshi Rekka speaking, Third Seat of the Gotei 13 9th Division. You have been charged with unlawful escape from detention, trespassing on 9th Division jurisdiction, and endangering mortals. You are now surrounded! Surrender now or you will be forcibly subdued. Exit the building with your hands up. I will give you the count of five!"
Rekka punched the building with a Reishi-empowered fist, causing it to shake.
"Four!" Rekka punched the wall again, causing more tremors. The door opened and several shabbily-dressed humans ran outside in a panic. The young Reaper waited for a while longer as more people came out. Rekka checked again to see if there was anyone left, and seeing none, resumed the countdown.
"Three!" Another punch.
"Two!" Another.
"One! I'm coming in!" Rekka smashed a hole in the wall and took a step in.
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PLAYER
This is what it's like being the biggest and the strongest. I don't even exercise.
Koshou
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Post by Koshou on Nov 9, 2022 23:31:39 GMT -5
A short trip through the Gateway, has our Soul Reaper wondering exactly what kind of clout this Third Seat can pull, all while stationing himself on one of the cross beams that arc over the span of the bridge from above to lay in wait for the prey that even now should be looking to get flushed out. Whether or not it's fortuitous that this new Shinigami had come along remains to be seen perhaps, but Koshou isn't about to let the opportunity go to waste to make the job easier ..
'Ahh there it is ...' comes a quick train of thought through Koshou's mind as he feels the sudden release of spiritual pressure lights up like a bonfire that's unmistakeable. With a sharper eye, the Soul Reaper turns his attention off toward the segment of city that looks a little small from this far up to check the sight lines from the building in question and toward the bridge. It wasn't so much his eyes he's relying on but his senses as he looks on. Then comes the pounding ... the countdown of sorts really takes notes as he can feel it pulsing with energy every time the Third Seat pounds his fist against the building even from this distance! There's a frown, and then a catch in the man's breath as he notes the sense of the energy he's been tracking. 'There you are ...'
Watching and waiting aren't really in Koshou's wheelhouse and it's a struggle for him to wait for the prey to come to him for a change but he knows he has to get this right, and get this done before they cause too much trouble. As soon as he can see where he thinks the fugitive may be going, he puts himself on an intercept course. It's across those top beams of the bridge that find the shihakusho-clad Shinigami suddenly shifting into view, barring the escape of the prisoner they've come to collect. "Not today, Maggot! Time to go home!"
Hageshi Rekka
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Post by Hageshi Rekka on Nov 12, 2022 2:06:25 GMT -5
Rekka's first steps into the escapee's base were extremely unsatisfactory. He didn't know what else to expect from an abandoned building besides a terrible view and most importantly the smell. While there didn't appear to be any more people inside, he could sense the escapee frantically trying to escape. A few minutes later, the signature had moved out of the building and towards the direction of the bridge. Not wanting to spend another second inside this trash heap of a "base", Rekka walked out again and jumped on the roof, where he could make out a figure making a hasty retreat. But that path led directly to where Hattori was.
Sure enough, the fleeing figure stopped in their tracks, being intercepted by the 11th Division member. Just to be sure, Rekka performed a massive flash step towards that part of the bridge, stopping a few meters away from Hattori and the escapee. He would allow his ally to start binding the prisoner while remaining on guard in case they tried something funny. In fact, part of Rekka's bangs had fallen over one eye during the flash step, leaving the exposed orb to glow ominously scarlet. The air itself was hot and arid, a haze shimmering in the atmosphere as the katakana effect for "menacing" rolled off the sweetly but not so sweetly grinning young man.
"Time to go home," he said, cracking his knuckles. "You do know what will happen if you stay out too late?"
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PLAYER
This is what it's like being the biggest and the strongest. I don't even exercise.
Koshou
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Post by Koshou on Nov 14, 2022 14:24:38 GMT -5
"You get grounded for staying up past your bedtime!"
The grin can be heard in the Shinigami's voice as he senses the Reishi of his fellow member of the Gotei coming closer, taunting the escaped prisoner as he's soon finding himself boxed in on both sides by the two Soul Reapers. Koshou keeps a sharp eye on the man they've come to collect as he pulls himself short, looking this way and that with an air of desperation that's evident in every motion of his body. Koshou watches the man closely, waiting and watching for him to make his last chance move. 'They'll always try to make the last run ... just like a cornered rat ..'
Sure enough, the man seems to be growing more and more fidgety by the moment, looking over his shoulder to check at the heat that's coming up behind him like a wave of impending doom creeping up from the rear. At that moment, Koshou can see it almost in slow motion. The man turns trying anything he can to shake himself loose from the pair of Shinigami that have him trapped, to look for any opening. 'Just a second longer ...' The burst of energy that comes from the man's sudden Kido attack forms but Koshou is already moving! His Shunpo comes half a heartbeat before the man's attack, predicting the man's attempt and even as the bolt of kido energy goes ripping out of the man, Koshou is appearing at his side, Zanpakuto raised. Slowly his hand turns, shifting the butt of the pommel to be followed by the sudden and quick CRACK as it lands against the prisoner's skull. His arm catches the man's limp form, slowly cradling it as it falls.
"Quiet as church mice ... " Koshou mutters, before turning his sight toward the Division Nine Soul Reaper. "You said you could open a gate for the Senkaimon? Let's call this a night, huh? While our luck is still in."
Hageshi Rekka
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Post by Hageshi Rekka on Nov 15, 2022 9:32:57 GMT -5
"Eyyyy!"
Gone was Rekka's threatening atmosphere from just a few seconds ago, replaced by a mischievous grin, sparkling eyes, and finger guns at his ally from the 11th Division.
"Good work, Hattori-san," he said, appraising the knocked-out prisoner that the other man was holding. "Looks like this guy wasn't even a match for just you, let alone me. Makes me wonder how he could've escaped, since the last prisoners I had to recapture could hold their own against a Vice-Captain, though one who was holding back."
"Quiet as church mice... You said you could open a gate for the Senkaimon? Let's call this a night, huh? While our luck is still in."
Rekka didn't know that figure of speech. Most of the churches he had seen so far on his tour of duty were generally well-kept and free of mice, at least on the outside. Humans really did have an interesting view of what they called supernatural, things that were everyday life for Soul Reapers like the two men standing on the bridge, invisible to most. What humans thought of as the afterlife was simply home for not only the Gotei 13, but even the poor unconscious sod who got locked up for being a threat to said realm. And even if there were indeed beings considered godlike such as the Soul King, Hollow Queen, and Quincy Emperor, they were physically present entities who could be spoken to, interacted with, fought, or perhaps even killed. Heck, the Captain-Commander once defeated Remus even without using his Bankai. Rekka wondered how it would be like for a society that actually had a concept of the unknown and unseen.
"How interesting, to live in a world full of wonder. Have we stagnated for that very reason, that we no longer seek discovery?" Rekka gazed upon the skyline of New York, filled with structures that far superseded the magnitude of his home realm. "We can all open a return Senkaimon with our swords. I just have a personal portal for special occasions. You can open the gate like so."
The Third Seat held his Zanpakuto out and turned it like a key, causing a return Senkaimon to open.
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PLAYER
This is what it's like being the biggest and the strongest. I don't even exercise.
Koshou
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Post by Koshou on Nov 15, 2022 18:27:01 GMT -5
"Ha-hahahah-hah haha! Of course I can! I was uh ... just testing, no way I forgot!"
The laugh and expression that comes from Hattori Koshou clearly shows a bit of humble pie as he has to be reminded of something they teach to all of the Soul Reapers during their tenure at Shino Academy. A hand comes up to scratch at the back of his head with a little bit of embarrassment, while his other arm shifts to better adjust his hold on the weight of the now unconscious prisoner along his shoulder like a sack of grain.
"That's an interesting thought, you know? I think there's something to that .. We all have our view of the world, but those views color all the things that we do and how we approach our problems and stuff, right?" There's a flash of an easy-going smile across the Shinigami's expression as he waits for the Senkaimon to open itself up and reveal the path back to Soul Society. The shoji doors part and open, and Koshou takes a moment to pause, turning back to throw up his hand with a sudden yet somewhat intense thumbs up!
"This wasn't about him, but about me! I have some vague memories of this city from when I was a man. It looks different ... but not too different, you know? And I think they wanted to see if I could get in and out without creating quite as much ruckus as I normally might! So I guess, it's a good step for both of us! "
And with that, the man is running through the gate, ready to return his prize and put this work to bed.
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