Wind ripped into the drop bay as the large doors slowly opened. Bullets streaked past the open doorway to show that the battle had already begun.
"Kurosaki! Matsumoto! Head out!" Toshiro ordered over the roaring of the wind.
They vanished with Flash Step, followed closely by Retsu.
"Soul Reapers out! Move! Move!"
There was a collective hum as the boards activated and shot forward.
"See ya later boys!" Yuffie waved to them and set off with the rest, surprisingly unaffected by her motion sickness. Then again, Unohana had been seen talking to her. Perhaps the healer had done something.
The ship shook as a rocket hit, making those still inside and not strapped to hover boards stumble slightly.
"Next group, go!"
"We're up." Vincent turned to the Captain next to him as the second group of WRO soldiers shot out into the fray of battle.
"I leave when you leave." Toshiro replied while trying to get his balance back; the ship still shook from the force of the hit.
Down below, Ichigo found Cloud, noticeable by the spiky blonde hair and a sword as big as Zangetsu, and began running alongside him.
"Yo, name's Ichigo!" He shouted over the wind racing past them.
"You with the kid?" Cloud questioned, eyes hidden by thick goggles.
"Yeah. I'm going to be with you. There's another Soul Reaper further back, Rangiku, and a healer, Retsu."
"Thanks for the info. Let's see what you can do."
Smirking, Ichigo rushed forward with Flash Step towards the line of mechanical spider-like bots shooting rockets at the oncoming line of armored vans.
"Moon Fang…" Ichigo slowed and lifted Zangetsu high into the air, the cloth around it unwrapping on its own to reveal the black cleaver blade, "…Heaven Piercer!"
A stream of blue energy burst forth in an arc as Ichigo swung his zanpaktou down. The first three bots in the line of them fell to Ichigo's immense attack, and he wasn't in Bankai yet.
'This will be easy.' Ichigo avoided a blow of bullets with Flash Step and Cloud rushed by on his motorbike under the destruction and into the line of soldiers.
'You're telling me!' Hichigo, his Inner Hollow, cackled wickedly.
Ichigo cut down another set of the spider bots and a large amount of foot soldiers with another attack before finding his way back to Cloud. The swordsman was attacked by a figure in red and forced off his bike and into the air.
'Must be that Rosso lady Toshiro mentioned.' Ichigo mused, rushing up towards them.
As he aided Cloud, Rangiku used the Shikai of her zanpaktou, Haineko, to protect the van with the other Jenova War Heroes, Tifa and Barrett. The ash swirling around them fended off most attacks, and any that got by Rangiku were cut down. Kido shots were very helpful, especially when timed right to the rockets fired from the vans around them.
"Thanks for the help, Soul Reaper!" Tifa shouted out the window at her.
"It's Rangiku! Rangiku Matsumoto!"
The Gaian held out a thumbs up and returned to passenger driving with Barrett. They were following Cloud, which meant that they would be under Ichigo's care for now. Rangiku lifted a hand up to her communicator.
"Captain, I'm shifting positions to protect the air troops. Ichigo is with Cloud now fighting the red Tsviet and Captain Unohana is assisting with the wounded as planned."
"Good, keep in touch." Toshiro replied.
"Right." Rangiku put her head down, letting Haineko cover. "I'll be leaving you with Ichigo, he's the orange head with the big zanpaktou."
"Alright." Tifa nodded, smiling to show they would be fine.
Back on The Shera Vincent was ready to drop with the last of the soldiers, Toshiro listening in on radio chats for any sign of change. He knew where Rosso was now, but Nero had yet to be mentioned. As for Weiss, he would no doubt be below Reactor Zero.
A rocket hit the airship next to The Shera, causing it to shift sideways and ram into them. The bay crumbled under the weight.
"Go!" Toshiro called out to them, leaping forward and outside.
Not wanting to stay behind as fire raced into the bay, everyone followed suit and launched, Vincent leading the way.
"Captain!" Rangiku's worried voice called out.
"We're fine." Toshiro quickly called in, looking over to Vincent as he flew by. He followed on platforms of Spirit Energy. "Keep moving, this battle is far from over."
"Are you hurt?" Retsu questioned.
"Not in the slightest, we made it out without a scratch."
Shelke, using her SND to stay in touch with their communicators and the radios of the soldiers, listed off the damages and quickly cut off the fire's access to the rest of the ship. Cid was safe at least.
Knowing Cid was safe, Toshiro kept up with Vincent, releasing his sword into Shikai.
"Okay, let's get rid of the limiters." Toshiro spoke to his fellow Soul Reapers. At the same time he backed a little ways away from Vincent.
"Right!" Came Rangiku's reply.
"Was wondering when you would say that." Retsu chuckled lightly.
"Right." He paused in the air, placing his hand over where his tattoo was hidden. "Limiter Release!"
His Spiritual Pressure increased immensely as the tattoo vanished, the air turning freezing. He sensed Rangiku's energy rise as well and the ash became sharper, turning her opponents into mince-meat. Retsu's energy also rose as her Shikai form of Minazuki hovered towards any injured and protected them.
With the initial release over with, Toshiro quickly caught back up to Vincent. The gunman noticed the sharp increase in the cold and cast a knowing glance in Toshiro's direction.
'This is probably the only open air battle you'll get, master. It would do you some good to let a little energy off with Bankai.' Hyorinmaru commented.
'Might as well.' Toshiro replied, noticing one of the Deepground planes heading in their direction. "Keep going, Valentine."
Vincent ducked under the plane and headed off, coming into conflict with more of the spider bots instead.
"Bankai!" Ice shot off around Toshiro as his zanpaktou changed to its third form. "Daiguren Hyorinmaru!"
Wings of ice sprouted on his back, his hands and feet became talons, though the one holding his zanpaktou looked more like a dragon head, and a long icy tail trailed behind him.
With one swipe the plane was cut in two, ice spreading much quicker than before and encasing the metal beast before it was even falling. It burst into pieces once it hit the ground.
A massive amount of Spiritual Pressure was given off, meaning Ichigo had also gone into Bankai. Probably because he'd seen Toshiro do it and wanted in on the action. The Substitute's uniform had changed, the top tight fitting with long sleeves, with a long tail behind him. The X's remained on his chest and wrists, though the latter were now white. His zanpaktou had gone from a giant blade to a long, thin black one. When he used the Getsuga Tensho again, the stream was black with a red glow and did twice as much damage as before.
"When did you get wings?!" Cid shouted through the radio.
"I'll explain later." The icy Captain replied, taking down another plane. "Icicle Flock!"
The sharp spikes of ice that shot out this time were far larger and more numerous than the ones that had been used in the fight in WRO headquarters. They killed off a squadron of soldiers and disabled two of the spider bots.
Teal eyes snapped over to Vincent's location, noticing the gunman was far off the path and heading downward rapidly. Toshiro shifted his direction and raced that way, slicing apart two other planes as he made his way there.
"Kurosaki, work your way to the reactors." He ordered through the radio, dodging several bullet paths trying to cut him down. "Matsumoto, take up position with Strife and the others."
"On it Captain." Rangiku replied quickly, while Ichigo just grunted in reply, busy fighting off a brute.
"And Kurosaki, avoid using Hichigo's mask, the Lifestream won't agree with his power."
"Already been warned." Toshiro heard the sharp ring of metal on metal.
"Mask? Warned?" Cid butted in. Toshiro had forgotten that anyone with a radio could hear their conversations.
"Later, Cid." Ichigo was quick to take a save. "After we get through this alive."
The ice Captain let them be and focused on getting to Vincent far below into what had been called the slums of Midgar. Around him were the explosive forces of rockets, the cries of soldiers, and the scent of death. This battle would not be easily won. Retsu was being hard pressed to protect those she could.
One of his wings shattered from a blast but he was quick to replace it from the surrounding water in the air. He did lose altitude, though, and put him in the range of fire.
"Damn." He growled, twisting through the air to avoid getting shot.
Vincent was down and waiting for him, but Toshiro was having difficulty getting through.
"Ice Dragon Swirling Tail!" The wave of ice created a temporary shield from the bullets, letting him rush downwards towards his target while also taking out the enemy squad that had been shooting at him.
Just before he reached the ground, one of the mechanical spiders let off a round, one hitting him roughly in his left shoulder. A cry escaped him as he called for Aerith and his landing looked more like a crash, his ice wings breaking off as Hyorinmaru returned to Shikai.
"Hitsugaya!" Vincent rushed over to where the ice Captain had hit the ground to check on him, ruby eyes looking over the injury for anything fatal.
"I'll be fine, the others and I have been granted protection by the Lifestream." Toshiro stood shakily, his left arm burning with pain.
To prove his point, Aerith appeared and cast a tendril of the green energy towards his arm. Vincent watched in wonder as it healed the wound in an instant.
"How…?"
"Our part in this battle is crucial, and being spirits, the Lifestream can heal us."
"How did you get it to heal you?" The confusion and suspicion was growing again.
"The same way I was healed in Edge after I took the shot from the sniper."
Toshiro wasn't about to give away Aerith just yet and, after rolling his shoulder once to see if there was any stiffness, started moving. They were way off track. The female spirit vanished to watch over the others.
As Vincent began to follow, Toshiro felt he'd avoided revealing his guide, until Shelke stepped in.
"Toshiro Hitsugaya, why did you call out for Aerith Gainsborough?"
Whoops, slip up. Looks like Aerith is no longer unknown. Now what will Shiro do?
Enjoy!
