Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, Tite Kubo does. However, note that anything not of the Manga/Anime (unless I point out otherwise) is of my own design, including my OCs Kai, Rertyan and the Sanctuary Team.
Warnings: Contains slight romantic reference, swearing and violence throughout.
Brief: Just over a year has passed since the initial incident which brought Kai to Karakura, and it seems his past just will not leave him alone. An old adversary's return forces the group into a new world, but something has changed. Can they work together to stop the ultimate evil from destroying their homes, or will darkness fall over the dimensions?
Pairings: KaiHime, Ichiruki
Bleach; the Doomsday Tomes
Chapter 10: Vicious Fight Part 2; The Champions Clash
Ed gritted his teeth as he gazed upon the duo of beings, one standing before them with a long claymore on its shoulder while the other was floating in the background. The red scales and orange underbelly denoting the fire type Zempacki, but it differed from the others; besides the more impressive blade, the figure was much taller and stronger looking, along with having a blue-white flame on the tip of its tail and about its head, the plume burning brighter than the normal red-orange fire. The Zempacki smiled a little as the two adolescents walked into the chamber and stopped.
The creature behind the Zempacki was completely different; it was two feet tall at best, wreathed in docile flames. It was orange in colour with darker orange-red hair and white eyes with no pupils or irises, and wearing a yellow tunic. In its hand lay an orange blade which curved around the hand and forming a lop-sided crescent. It gave another child-like laugh as it gazed upon them.
"Are they here to play?" the creature asked.
"I feel they might be in the mood for something more than playing, Magmox," the Zempacki said. His smile widened as he spotted Ed. "Long time no see, boy. Last time we met, you were not so tall."
"Infernus," Ed replied. "Last time we met, you were decidely more of an ass."
The Zempacki chuckled.
"Still with the fire," he said, amused. "I like that." He looked to Chad. "Who's yer friend?"
"Yasutora Sado," Ed introduced. "This is the leader of the Fire type Zempacki, Infernus, along with his partner Magmox."
"A head Zempacki?" Chad asked. "So, this guy is the equivalent of a Captain?"
"Equivalent?" Infernus snorted. "I have heard of the people you call Captains, and I tell you, boy, we are much stronger." Infernus rolled his shoulders and grinned. "Now, shall we make this interesting and cut to the chase, kid?"
"Bankai vs Elemental Imbued Form, eh?" Ed said with a laugh. "Alright." He turned to Chad. "You might want to go all out here too," he warned. "This will be intense. Bankai!"
As Ed took on his Bankai, Infernus began to raise his energy into the level where he could begin the fusion. Magmox took its place before his chest, glowing bright orange.
"Elemental Imbument!" Infernus shouted. "Calamity Golem of Fire!"
Magmox burst into a whirl of sparkling orange dust, spinning violently around Infernus, who began to groan and moan as his body took in the dust and began to change. His wings stretched painfully as the flesh between each phlange tore away and shrunk away to be replaced by deep blue flames. Infernus' arms and legs stretched out and grew more defined as flames enclosed his wrists and ankles. Black spines pierced the flesh in his back and neck as his torso and neck warped to account for the new limb size and the growing head. His snout stretched out with a sickening crunching as his jaws broke and reshaped into a sharper design. The transformation finished as the elbows and knees sprouted short sharp spikes and the collar bones and back became wreathed in the blue flames. Infernus grunted and growled as he regained his composure. Chad watched as the transformation occurred before him, almost sickened by the grotesque change. He had seen Arrancar go through their release, which could sometimes be horrific, but this was something entirely different.
"So," Infernus growled at last, his voice both more deep and shrill, like a Vizard's voice while wearing their mask. "Am I to assume you are both my opponent?"
"You are," Ed nodded, two long flame spears sprouting from his forearm jets.
"Good," Infernus replied, a purple-blue tongue licking his lips. "This might be interesting then!"
He lunged with frightening speed for such a large being, impacting the column in the corridor behind Ed and Chad as they dodged and crushing it flat. Chad felt sweat bead on his brow as the creature shot by, and he realised that its reiatsu was exerting an intense temperature as well. Despite his encounters with the Arrancar in Hueco Mundo had taught him of the horrific transformations and shocking power which a being could possess, but this was something new, like the very element of fire was at this creature's disposal.
"It is," Ed said, as if reading Chad's mind. "Before you ask; he is exerting a heat boost in the area. That is his passive capability in this form; once a Zempacki utilises the Elemental Imbument, it gains full manipulation of the element in question. This is why I told you to be ready at your strongest; this will be quite a difficult fight."
Before anything more could be said, Infernus rushed them again, claws burning with heat now. Chad brought his shielded arm in to block, unable to move aside in time, when a burning pain shot through his right arm. Looking at the shield front, Chad saw four long scratches in the armour, a thin line of blood in the middle two. He looked shocked for a time, then turned his gaze to the blazing Zempacki, who was licking the red, charred blood from his claws with a twisted grin.
"If that is all you have," the large creature purred. "I suggest you leave before you die."
Chad grimaced, trying to hold his fear back; he knew he could not just leave now.
Further underground, the sounds of clashing swords and severing flesh echoed throughout the corridors as two human figures charged through the chambers and passageways, a hoard of Zempacki everywhere they went.
"I told you this was the wrong way!" Renji shouted as he retracted his whip-like blade mid-run.
"What are you talking about?!" Ichigo shouted back. "This is the way you said to go!" He turned and parried a swing from a Zempacki on his left before punching it in the snout, not stopping as he did.
"Well, why didn't we go your way, Strawberry?!" Renji shot back.
"Because you're too stubborn to listen to me, Pineapple Head!" Ichigo yelled. The two of them had been butting-heads since they ended up where they were, and even the huge number of opponents around them was not enough to stop that. "Anyway, this might be the right direction."
"Huh?" Renji asked, surprised by this.
"Think about it," Ichigo replied, grunting a little mid sentence as he swung his sword once and through the jaw of a Zemacki. "All these troops down here must be guarding something important. Maybe this is where this JX guy is hiding."
"You know," Renji said with a sigh. "Now I think about it, you're right. It does makes sense." He looked over his shoulder. "First things first, let's get rid of these guys."
"Alright," Ichigo nodded, spotting a large archway ahead with no one through it. "Here we go!" He grasped his sword in both hands and swung it back, the blade glowing deep blue as he prepared his attack. "Getsuga..." He paused, waiting until they were passing just before the arch, then shouted out, "Tenshou!"
The blue arc of energy crashed into the keystone for the arch and smashed it into dust. The ceiling and walls shook as they buckled and the archway collapsed into the corridor, blocking it with a pile of rubble and debris. Ichigo and Renji paused a moment to catch their breath, safe on the other side of the rock pile.
"Good call," Renji complimented.
"Thanks," Ichigo nodded. "Now, let's move before they get through that."
The red-headed Lieutenant nodded and hurried after the orange-haired Captain, heading further into the dark depths of the fortress, unaware of the horrors beneath their feet as they ran.
Deep underground, on the lowest level of the compound, the laboratory was a buzz with excitement.
"It's ready!" one of the underlings cried with joy, "It's finally ready!"
"But what about the pilot?" another asked anxiously. "Do we know who it is?"
"Not yet," the first replied. "But soon."
In amidst the conversations, the leader of the science division looked to the two in the room other than himself.
"Are you sure about this, sir?" the female Zempacki asked worriedly. "This is incredibly risky."
"I understand your concern, Joule," Thundrax replied. "But it takes much knowledge of the machine in order to control it successfully. It is necessary for me to make this sacrifice."
"And you are prepared for that too, Telsra?" Joule asked.
"I am willing to commit myself to the cause," the elemental replied with a nod, its teal toga-like clothing buzzing with electricity. "And to master Thundrax."
"There can be no turning back now," Thundrax nodded. "Now, I ask you this before I leave this place to you, Joule; help me prepare for this."
"Alright," Joule said with sadness in her voice. She raised her hand, a small tubular device with a green tip in her claws. "Hold still, this will hurt a bit."
The sound of energy discharging and a loud cry of pain echoed throughout the lab as Thundrax began his final move.
Not far from the lab, a dark-haired human wrenched his large sword out from another Zempacki, having cleaved it in two along with part of the wall behind it. He could feel his darker self's presence nearby, and this was urging him on further.
"Need to be faster," he said in a growl. "Bankai!"
The winged form of his Bankai took shape just moments before he took off, using his wings to fly to the core of the fortress and reach it faster. In his haste, he did not notice the dark-scaled, rather large Zempacki dwelling in the shadows.
Damcras grinned as he watched Kai dart passed him.
"Excellent," he murmured. "Soon, we shall be rid of that pretentious human, and then I shall be the leader of the Zempacki, after I kill the murderer of our leader. I just need to wait for him to perform the deed, and then I will make my move."
The dark Zempacki dispersed into the darkness once more, intent on watching the battle from a distance.
Inside the core chamber, JX's groans and growls echoed, louder than before; the strain on his body was growing both with time and with every piece of the corrupt armour which had taken hold of him. He had just experienced another piece, bringing him to his fourth of five; only the final part remained, but estimates were sketchy; it could be minutes, or hours before it was awake and ready for him to unite with.
"Damn... this is becoming painful..." the dark warrior ground out. "It is good that-"
"Wait! Stop him!" a shout came from the huge bulkhead doors to the laboratory. "Don't let him through!"
"It's no good!"
"Look out! Watch that- Gah!"
There was a loud crash and the door shuddered in its frame, the heavy locks letting out a single groan. Silence fell, as even the shouts and cries from the scientists had died down. JX looked to the door and watched it for a moment, before it shook again, trembling as a torrent of dust poured from the ceiling and the walls around the frame. A single bolt had snapped out of place in the huge metallic barricade.
"Here he comes," JX managed to say as he composed himself. Another loud crash and the door indented in the middle. "At last..." With one final crash, the a black and red energy wave blasted through the door and crashed into the wall opposite. The wall cracked and opened wide into a crevice as the wave dissipated at last. Through the smouldering hole in the thick, large door stepped a winged human, a dark look on his face which was beginning to give way to a mixture of amazement and disgust. "Welcome, Kai."
"What... What have you done to yourself?" Kai asked. "You're-"
"Perfect? Astonishing? Perhaps beyond compare?" JX offered vainly.
"I was going for insane," Kai corrcted. JX snorted.
"Cretin," he replied. "You have no recognition for beauty or power."
Kai looked JX over again; the man had become infused with the limbs of the powerful armour, the purple-pink tendrils bound around his arms and legs, red armour formed around the shoulders, forearms and shins. Four eyes rolled in the sockets, one on the left shin, right knee, left shoulder and right forearm each. The tendrils wove up the back and front of JX's torso, meeting in the centre where they joined together. In all their glory, the four limbs were horrific.
"The Wanderer's Anchor, the Oracle's Eye, the Leviathan's Carapace and the Heretic's Sword," Kai said aloud. "Each of those make the Left Arm of Destruction, the Left Leg of Greed, the Right Leg of Torment and the Right Arm of Chaos. But I see a weakness; you're still missing a piece." JX snorted.
"You refer to the Halfbreed's Soul, the Centre Piece of Incarnation itself," the man replied. "But it matters not for now. As I stand before you, I am undergoing the evolution I need to put an end to this petty conflict once and for all." JX drew his Zanpakuto. "Let me show you the resolve I hold." The blade shuddered and slid open, but the usual energy torrent did not energy. Instead, the blade cracked and broke away into dust. Kai gaped. "Yes, you can see it, can't you; the Chaos Vortex within my Zanpakuto has been harnessed by this armour to fuel it. With this might, I have access to the massive reserve of power this armour holds. Allow me to show you."
JX held his hand to the right and focused, a dark aura enveloping him. A red circle traced in the air around Hellraiser's hilt, energising it.
"Fall from the shadows, and be born anew," JX growled, the skull on the hilt rotating round until it was upsidedown. It also grew smaller, a faint cross of red energy developing behind it. "Let the power of the Chaos Vortex flow freely, and birth a new form of darkness." The cross became spiked, forming a spider-web like metal panel with four quarter circles cut from the centre around the skull of Hellraiser. The pommel also warped, becoming a large dagger-like blade on the back of the weapon. The red circle was glowing brightly, faint crackles of electric energy surging in the centre. "Harness the darkness and let chaos run rampent once more!" JX raised the hilt into the air and roared a single word into the sky. "DARKSPIRE!"
The circle of energy lit up brightly as it became a single portal. A red shape warped in the portal as the sword was pulled from the portal, searing with heat from being forged. As it cooled, taking its real colours, Kai admired the magnificent but horrifying blade; it was a huge blade, extending almost two metres from the cross-guard and matching the width of the spider web design in places. The blade was whole, but had three large curved blades on each cutting edge at regular intervals. Beyond these spikes, two bladed extensions cut around the cross by a few inches before stopping in a sharp tip each. The colours finally took shape as the portal snapped shut; the white cutting edge surrounding the black flat, the purple-blue binding and the rusted bronze cross giving the weapon a wonderful, yet brutal look, like it was made of corruption itself.
"This, my foolish counterpart," JX said, showing the weapon to Kai. "Is my Zanpakuto, reforged in shadow and born of chaos. That is one of the great powers of the Impendium Crucible; pure power. It is hopeless for you to fight me."
"So you have a new sword," Kai replied, holding his resolve. "It doesn't change the fact that you are not the only one augmented." He focused his reiatsu, an intense, black and red energy overflowing his blade. The air atop the dragons head. "Chaos Wave," he said, reeling back as he charged at JX, mask on. He vanished in a whirl of reiatsu, then reappeared in a blast of dark energy above JX. A jet of flame erupted from the dragon head. "Full throttle!"
The arc of energy let fly, an edge of fire wreathing it as it flew at JX. Before it had even impacted, Kai had performed another Screech Step, firing another Full Throttle Chaos Wave and repeating the process. Each wave struck in quick succession, each adding to the explosion of reiatsu and fire which erupted around JX's form. After several minutes of this, Kai charged in, holding the Chaos Wave into the sword and swinging into the dark alter ego.
"I told you it's useless!" JX roared from the black smoke, and a fist struck Kai in the chest, knocking him backwards and into a wall with a loud crunch and cracking of debris. The Chaos Wave launched uncontrolled at the wall behind JX, bringing down a large section of it. Kai panted as he pulled himself from the rubble. "You confuse me, Kai."
"How do you figure that?" Kai asked groggily.
"The form you took on in the human world is much stronger than your Bankai," JX explained. "And yet you persist to attack with Bankai. Why is that?"
"Shut up!" Kai roared, firing another Chaos Wave, but JX simply clawed it with his left hand and threw the arc aside, blowing out another part of the wall without taking a scratch. He smirked.
"Ah, I see," he mused. "I did more than just defeat you back then; I made you see."
"See what?" Kai asked angrily. "See what a monster looks like?"
"No, see what you truly are," JX replied. "Think about it; if you wanted to kill me, why would you not take your strongest form? If you wanted me dead, why would you extend the duration of this conflict and not end it quickly?" Kai was at a loss of what to say. "The answer is that you know what you are; you are alone, like I am.
"You're so-called friends, why are they not here if this is what you all came for?" JX went on. "Why would they leave you to deal with the true enemy alone? They have been using you, Kai. They want you power for their needs, and that is all. They don't care about you. They loath you. They fear you. They hate you." Kai's eyes darkened as he thought on this. "But I would welcome you, Kai. We are one in the same. As one, we shall take this place for ourselves."
Kai looked down, but a twisted grin took shape along his face.
"What would you have me do?" he asked darkly, bringing a smile to JX's face.
Sorry this took so long, but I've had other things to do and other things playing on my mind.
So, sorry about that.
And sorry that that won't be over any time soon, but it has to be for the time being.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, and that the next chapter will be out soon.
Until then, bye for now!