Chapter 21: 2 Weeks Final Part
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(Davian's P.O.V)
I could feel the light disappear as Respira devoured me.
Time energy swept through my body and begun to take everything away.
It gorged on my flesh and bones, ravenously fed on my life force, stealing vitality and replacing it with an emptiness that reminded me of death.
I could only watch as the last ray of light disappeared, that being the red gem I kept on my chest pocket.
It's dying glow dimmed and I was plunged in unknowable darkness.
All alone.
I couldn't even sense my Zanpakuto.
The plan had failed. I had been...wrong.
(General P.O.V)
A Zanpakuto was eternally linked to it's Wielder. They would exist in the same reality and state. Life in life and death in death.
In the void of nothingness, a space in between worlds where reality met unreality, a pair of glowing Torquoise eyes opened, gazing at the only other thing in this space.
A soul.
(Chase P.O.V)
My master is insane.
Something that I normally wouldn't complain about because I was bat shit crazy myself.
If it wasn't for the recklessness attached to his brand of insanity.
I indulged in his foolishness and now he was dead. Well, as effective as that was on someone like him.
He didn't know his true power and if I had my way, I would make sure he learned some discipline before accessing the terrifying amounts he would eventually call on.
Without discipline, that would only end one way. Terribly.
So why allow him to die? Or as close to it as he could get?
Because, he needed to learn about consequences.
I didn't need a reckless, insane and suicidal master.
I could take insane and suicidal but not reckless.
WE needed to learn.
His physical body wasn't strong enough to tank an attack from an Arrancar of Barragan's level.
Not to mention, the hollow was much much stronger now that he was fused with a divine being.
Davian couldn't sense it but the fact that he even managed to last this long under the effects of Barragan's spirit pressure was a miracle in and of itself.
The very fact that my Master had gone into the fight with full confidence in his victory DESPITE knowing he was outmatched, only made me admire him more.
That said, the fact that he decided to go into the fight DESPITE my telling him not to, made me frustrated at his impulsiveness.
For all his surprisingly keen intelligence and shrewd mind, Davian failed to think things through at times.
"GOOD GRIEF. WAS HE ALWAYS THIS RECKLESS?"
Ah and so the hidden guest decides to reveal his presence.
"You tell me."
I snorted.
"You've been with him the longest."
"BUT YOU KNOW HIM BEST. I'M JUST A GHOST FROM HIS PAST. ALL I CAN DO IS WATCH. BUT FIRST, LETS GET SOME LIGHT IN HERE."
(General P.O.V)
Next to the torquoise eyes, a green glow lit up in the darkness.
The glow came from Chesha Neko's sheath, floating around the soul in a cycle that was shared by the Torquoise eyes.
(Chase P.O.V)
I had secrets.
Secrets that Davian was not ready to know. One of them being that he was far special than he could realize.
There was a reason why he defied death.
There was a reason why she couldn't keep him for herself.
And this was one such secret. What he called his 'Fullbring' was something more than that.
"You know what we need to do."
I told the Spirit contained in the sheath.
"This stunt he pulled wasn't supposed to work, but we both know Davian is special. The only thing he's missing is...us."
I added, hoping...no, knowing that the spirit inside the sheath understood the seriousness of the situation.
He sighed.
"Fine. You know I always have his back. At least as long as I'm here. He's gotten better at using my gift. Soon he won't need me and I'll move on."
He said morosely.
I didn't know what to say to comfort him. My mind was occupied with my Master's well-being.
"What do you need me to do?"
He must have sensed my apparent apathy for his situation as he got right down to business.
"A transcendent spiritual entity requires full harmonious synchronization with his soul. Davian effectively aged himself up to a point where he's grown past that point."
He had skipped all the steps. See, reckless.
"He has not mastered Bankai or Shukai, all he has is unfocused amounts of energy. Amounts of energy that can warp reality as he sees fit. If we don't want him to destabilize his soul energy and blow up...we need to fuse all our energies into him."
"How is that going to help exactly? That kind of power on top of our own, would crush his body in an instant."
The spirit highlighted the main issue.
Luckily, I had a solution for that.
"Not with the Sheath working to buy him some time."
The spirit hummed in realization.
"I see. That could work. However, he will need to finish the fight fast. The longer it goes on, the less damage to his physical body I can heal."
The spirit stated.
(Davian's P.O.V)
How long have I been here?
It feels like years.
No, more like decades.
Alone with my thoughts. Alone with my nightmares. I could feel myself slip away. Slip into the emptiness of...
"Oh please. How dramatic. It's only been 2 minutes in real time."
Wait, who's that?
Chase?
Chase!
Oh god, am I glad to hear your voice!
"LISTEN UP FOR WE DON'T HAVE MUCH TIME."
My Zanpakuto announced.
"DEATH IS NOT TO BE FEARED BY THE LIKES OF US. YOU WANTED A TASTE OF TRUE POWER, RIGHT? THEN EMBRACE IT."
What was he talking about?!
Embrace it?
"DID YOU FORGET? YOU'RE NOT NEW TO THIS. DEATH HAS TRIED TO CLAIM YOUR SOUL BEFORE AND FAILED."
Yeah...
He's right.
I am the Spirit King. I am the Grim Reaper. I am Death.
I reached out and defied the Darkness pulling onto my soul. I reached out without hands and grasped the power I knew I could instinctively call on.
There wasn't a massive surge of energy.
One minute I was non-existent. Dead. And then the next I was back.
I was alive.
Not just alive but time had stood still. Literally.
I could feel the zone around me lag forward slowly to allow me to center myself.
Reikaku spread out, covering everything. By everything, I mean the entire universe.
There was so much pain.
In the future, the earth had literally gone to shit. There was some kind of zombie plague sweeping across the continents that was responsible for the death of a majority of people.
The population was down to a few hundred million people and past the solar system, there was so much more...life.
So many souls, with feelings of laughter, misery, purpose and those without across numerous alien planets...it's too much...
Too much... information. I...
A cooling sensation appeared from within my soul. I looked down at my chest and saw a green glow. It felt...homely and alive.
I reduced Reikaku's zone, relegating it to only scan everything inside the city or around it.
Something that allowed me to see Cheshire, helping a woman out from the ruins of a destroyed building.
Not to mention another woman watching our fight while hiding behind the fallen pillars of the palace.
Most of the city had suffered under Barragan and I.
And I speculated we would destroy even more now that I could actually fight back.
I warped space, instinctively pulling on it's soul and appeared behind...
Hila. Her soul spoke to me. That's new.
I touched her, sending her away. Sending her back to the past.
Then space opened up to me once more and I appeared before Cheshire and...Mera, Queen of Atlantis, daughter of Xebelian royalty, from the Dimension Aqua, a pocket dimension whose entrance is the Bermuda triangle.
What a proud soul. But she told me a lot of what was happening here. Which explains the state of the outside world.
Barragan and The Light had found a way to weaponize the Trench. A species of merfolk that were known for their viciousness and staggering numbers.
With a cursory glance at Cheshire's soul next, I sent them back into our real timeline.
On another thing, I couldn't feel my own spirit energy anymore.
The comforting warmth usually present on my chest was replaced by a heat that pervaded my entire body.
I looked down at my form.
Would I always grow to be this big. How old was I?
A query to my Zanpakuto went unanswered. That would normally be worrying but... something told me, it was as it should have been.
Like the green glow on my chest that obviously belonged to Chesha Neko's sheath, Chase was closer to me now than he'd ever been before.
One thing I could tell was that I didn't have a lot of time in this form.
I had to finish this fast. My opponent had caught on to the fact that something was not right.
Especially when I used his own weapon to block his attack.
"Impossible! You can't be him! I just killed you! How did you survive Respira?!"
He barked out.
Now that I had more power than I knew what to do with, I would make sure to make my own revenge fun.
I twirled his Battle Axe before throwing it towards him at high speeds. To his benefit, Barragan dematerialized in a fast Sonido from the path of the Axe.
Only for my palm to plow into his face, pushing us through the city's sky line and towards the dome of energy separating the city from the megatons of water surrounding it.
The dome rippled dangerously behind his back, cracks appearing on the dome's surface.
"What was it you said?"
I asked him, leaning closer.
"Oh yeah, the lesser never learn their place. Will you learn your place, king of Hollows?"
"I will...kill you! Respira!"
Barragan snapped angrily, calling onto the dark miasma to devour me.
The time erosion covered my body but lacked purchase.
"Tsk...you should know, that won't work on me any more."
I shook my head at him.
"But...but how? Everything dies! Everything..."
His jaw hang open in shock.
"What are you?"
He enquired shakily.
My smirk sent shivers across his entire boney body.
"If you're done freaking out... I'm going into kick your ass now."
I was looking forward to this.
My first backhand dislodged his entire head and pulverized the rest of his body.
The battle axe on the ground cracked and simply disintegrated.
I stopped and blinked.
What the fuck just happened? Did he...did he just die?
There was barely any power behind that strike! I had held back 99% of my full strength. The damage I could actually inflict was more than the planet could handle. I think.
Fuck that. He's not getting away do easily after everything that's happened. I focused on time and then rewound it.
The ash drifting in the air combined to form small bone shards that then combined to form a skull wearing a gaudy golden crown before the rest of his body reformed.
"I died..."
Barragan muttered, stunned.
"I died and you brought me...back."
He was staring at me in a strange expression. I didn't know how I could even read his face with the lack of facial expressions.
"That's right."
I informed him.
"You didn't think you'd have it..."
Then he did something even stranger.
Barragan bent a knee in subservience.
"I understand now. I understand my role. It was never to rule. I beg you to forgive me, Lord Death."
I didn't let any of the shock I was feeling appear on my face. Inside I was entirely stunned.
I hadn't accounted for this. How could I? From what I knew, the Old Hollow King was a stubborn and prideful individual. It didn't make sense that he would kneel before me.
Or did it?
I mean, he was the king of Las Noches before Aizen came into the picture. And then Aizen simply dominated him, showed him who was stronger.
Barragan naturally bowed then. It would make sense that before an even superior foe, he would similarly bow his head.
Now the question is...what should I do?
(General P.O.V)
(DIMENSION AFTER TIME)
There was a stir in the timeline.
Inside a cracked dimension, a realm that was basically the dumping ground for what existence found a problem with, a man trudged forward.
Behind him on the ground, he dragged a car door laden with different materials.
There were discarded computer parts, most notably a few of the those big CRT monitors.
his haul also included rusted chains, a few wires and circuitry that he could use to complete his machine. Today had been a good salvage.
The outside world had been dumping more broken junk through these portals that kept appearing in the sky.
He could have used them to escape but unfortunately they were gone before he could do something with them.
Not to mention, the irregularity in which they appeared ensured tracking where the next one would manifest, next to impossible.
Still, he had what he needed now. His balance was steady as he passed by the uneven terrain filled with all manner of things.
The sky was always a mute blue with no sun in sight. And time was weird. They had no need for food, no need for sleep.
'They' because he was not alone. There were others here. Trapped in the dimension with him.
Ripped from their lives and it was all the Flash's fault.
He could remember that day with a clarity that ensured the memory always remained flesh; all so his hate kept burning fiercely.
He had been a simple man caught in a fight between the Flash and the Scarlet Devil, a supervillain who was more than a match for the Flash Family.
An anti-thesis to the Justice League.
As the man had tried to hurry his family away from the scene, there was a flash of light and thunder.
Next he found himself in this forgotten realm. He felt something get ripped out of him as he was snapped out of reality.
The timeline had been reset into a new world by the Flash Family. They, those lost in the middle of the dimension away from time, were left behind.
He was left behind, discarded like the salvage he pulled with his ropes.
He crossed the small hill of debris and found their encampment.
There were four others like him. But they weren't as lucky as he had been. He was an engineer, a scientist.
Discovering how things worked was in his nature.
Which was how he had discovered this dimension's energy and learned to tap into it. The others had only wanted to survive, having given up hope on going back.
He passed 2 of them sleeping inside a damaged car. They barely acknowledged him. No matter. He would survive this and make the Flash Family pay.
He would make the Scarlet Devil pay.
All of them would know the wrath of... Paradox!
(Elsewhere)
Deadman had crossed the entirety of North America to get here.
Gotham.
He crested the hills, choosing not to go through them as he normally would.
Choosing not to get close to those hurting on the ground.
They weren't human anymore.
He couldn't imagine what the modern day equivalent to Sodom and Gomorrah would look like, taking into account the state of places like San Francisco.
But it had to be bad, right?
It had to be b...
Bad?
This was not bad!
Deadman couldn't help it, the words left his mouth at the first scene of the city.
"Why is there a large statue of Davian in the middle of Gotham?! Batman would never allow it!"
Deadman asked in disbelief.
And true enough, there was a statue erected where the city council building used to be.
Additionally a dome of green energy covered the entire city in a protective bubble.
The contrast was great.
The outskirts of the city were nothing but rocks and cracked earth, with abandoned cars filling the highway leading in to it.
Nothing seemed to move.
And yet, the city looked to be full of life even from this far out. He could feel such a large concentration of energy.
"This is what I wanted you to see. To know who exactly you are dealing with, Champion."
His goddess' spoke to him.
"The Spirit King has warded off his territory from the outside world. I suspect he has attached a pocket dimension to the city. Which allows him to provide for his people without the need for venturing out into the wilderness."
"Close. He didn't attach a pocket dimension as much as expand the space within."
A foreign voice told them.
Deadman whirled around instantly, ready to defend himself.
The girl floating in the air was dressed in a white haori over a black tight under-suit.
She had with her two short swords strapped to the small of her back. Tantos, Deadman recognized them.
Short hair framing a beautiful face with rich brown skin and a pair of lovely blue eyes watched him passively. She looked at him up and down.
"You're not Uncle Brand."
She finally told him, snapping a finger.
Shadows dressed in completely black clothes with red masks similar to what Davian wore appeared around them.
"My name is Auerilia Shivon Prince Mabuz, I am the Captain of the Stealth Force, the second division of the Gotei 13. Come with me quietly and no harm shall be done unto you. Resist..."
She let out a burst of energy. The same pressure that Davian would produce.
The difference was that while Davian's pressure was like a hammer, hers was like a sharp blade. Silent yet deadly.
"Even in the worst of times, he still manages to triumph over Fate. Over me. This timeline is meant to be discarded, but it has branched off on it's own. He is sustaining it purely through his power."
Rama Kushna sighed.
Auerilia frowned, ready to give a sign that would incapacitate the spirit energy of this rogue soul and take him in.
But Deadman simply disappeared, leaving an irate girl looking to prove herself to her mother and siblings by bringing in the Soul spying on Haven.
The Head Captain would not be pleased. Luckily he was her big brother.
(Elsewhere)
(The Present)
(January the 13th, 2010)
Deadman appeared in the middle of a street with honking cars.
A taxi cab would have plowed into him and surely caused a lot of damage if he had a physical body.
With his soul form, he merely allowed it to pass through him.
The disembodied soul sank through the street and into the tunnels below.
Apart from slow moving water carrying sludge and other forms of waste, there was no other sound.
He allowed himself to materialize.
Something he could apparently do now. It wasn't his real body, merely using his energy to give weight and mass to his soul.
The spirit sighed, holding his head in his hands.
"How?"
He asked while gritting his teeth.
"How did any of that happen?! What happened to the League in the future? Hell, what about Lex and all those other villains that try to take over the world?!"
He snapped.
"How could they let those...things take over? Why didn't they do anything!?"
Deadman blinked and found his hand buried into the wall behind him.
"The Spirit King kills them all. The villains first. Then those who grow to fear his power...then eventually those who question his motives."
Rama Kushna explained.
"He single handedly begins the 3rd World War."
She added.
Dead man sucked a deep breath at that. His goddess continued.
"By the time the world is recovering from the effects of a war between every superpowered individual and The Spirit King, the Trench attack en masse. The world falls without it's heroes."
"What about him? Davian?"
Deadman was quick to ask. He hadn't known the Scarlet Devil that long but he knew willful people.
Those whose resolve would burn so bright, there was risk of the world burning with them. He guessed in Davian's case that became quite literal.
His Goddess' reply didn't fill him with hope.
"I do not know."
(Davian's P.O.V)
An Arrancar level hollow would be more than enough to go up against any of the Justice League members and hold their own.
Barragan was past that level. I could see the merits of sparing his life and keeping him around.
He would be a massive help. Especially in understanding how Hollows used their Reiryoku.
Was Sonido different from Shunpo? Were the principles of Pesquisa similar to Reikaku?
What about Cero? Was it really a race specific ability or could I use it as well? To me it shared similarities with, of all things...Getsuga Tensho.
Barragan had been able to simply add as much energy into it without destabilizing the attack.
The only skill in my arsenal that could do that was Getsuga Tensho.
I couldn't simply overload Akai Inazuma or Byakurai and use it to wipe Superman off the face of the earth.
Long story short, keeping Barragan around was more advantageous in the long run.
IF IT WASN'T FOR ONE. SIMPLE. THING.
I couldn't trust him.
I also didn't trust Cheshire yet. But she didn't have the capacity to kill me when I wasn't looking or was weakened.
Barragan's last feat in Canon Bleach, had been to try and strike Aizen down when the Old Hollow King realized he was dying.
I gazed down at him, past the bones and deep into his essence. There was resentment there.
There was anger there.
And there was hate there.
That more than anything decided it for me.
Barragan must have seen through my intentions.
"Wait! I can be useful to you, Lord Death. I can..."
He went quiet as my spirit pressure fell upon his body.
Cracks appeared all around his skeleton as the ground he was kneeling on similarly shattered into a spider web pattern.
I frowned.
"A king begging for his life? Where's your self respect, Oh God of Hollows?"
"I...I..."
He tried to speak but the pressure was too much, so instead he held out a hand to the side.
The dome around the city begun to crack.
Flakes of energy broke off, drifting towards the ground. The whole city started to shake.
Laughter bubbled out of me.
"A suicidal attempt to make sure I die with you. What a convenient way to show where your loyalties lie. Your pride would never allow you to be under someone again, would it, your majesty?"
It was almost admirable.
I placed a foot on his head, pushing his face into the ground.
"Well? What are you waiting for? Kill us then."
Barragan let out a furious howl and the entire weight of the ocean came bearing down on our heads.
The swirling dark water swept through everything.
What a petty king.
Barragan blinked and found himself floating in mid air as we watched an impossible sight.
"Impossible..."
He even muttered in disbelief.
Below us, was a lively underwater city filled with Atlanteans swimming about their every day lives.
The Xebelian royal palace stood grand in the middle of the city, none of the damage we had brought down on it, present.
No one could see or detect us while hidden behind the veils of space.
"What...what is this?"
The Hollow turned to face me.
I smiled, crossing my hands infront of my large chest.
"You mean you can't tell? These are all the people you killed. I undid it all, King of Hollows. While you have the ability to control time, you use it so crudely."
I swept out a hand.
"This is how you use ultimate power. There's a time for Destruction but there is little as rewarding as rebuilding and creating."
Barragan's entire self seemed weighed down. A self deprecating laugh escaped his mouth.
"I...lost. Again. Even after all my preparations...I still lost."
"Oh don't feel bad."
I told him, spearing a hand through his chest while pulling closer to him.
He gasped in pain.
Being aged up like this gave me more than just power.
I didn't have a lot of time left in this form though. I could feel my Spirit Energy getting expelled through my Saketsu.
The sheath's Fullbring support abilities were working overtime to fix my body every split second it broke down.
But... I'd learned something.
I could sort of force a Bankai activation. By force, I mean I could use one of the Bankai's main skills. In fact I had already used it before.
When the possessed Flash and I had battled, my strings had sucked in some of his speed force energy which had led to a change in Shunpo.
I did not know of my Bankai's name. All I had was a lot of power and an idea.
The hand that was stabbed through Barragan broke apart into billions of cell thick strings, wrapping around his essence before pulling on his energy.
I sucked it all.
If Barragan had eyes they would have widened in shock when I begun steaking everything from him.
I devoured his Reiryoku, his skills and lastly, his Ressureccion.
Not his memories though. That was the limit of the forced activation.
The king of Hollows form broke apart into a dark cloud of energy that was absorbed into my being.
Instantly, my soul begun pulsing with a lot more spirit energy. Some of it foreign.
Energy I could not contain for long.
One last thing then. I had already brought back Xebel and it's people while also sending all of us into our original timeline.
All that was left was to see if I could bring her back.
Raven.
(Davian's P.O.V)
With Xebel reinstated into the right timeline, I shot through the dome undetected.
Cheshire was with the Queen. It mattered little that I'd sent them back in time before I did the same to Xebel.
Time was relative. In the end they couldn't tell a difference.
To all of them nothing was wrong. The Xebelians merely blinked their eyes (Barragan then proceeded to devour their souls) and then opened them to their regular boring lives the very next second.
As regular and boring as it was to someone who lived in the fucking ocean.
Cheshire wouldn't thank me later for ensuring she didn't get crushed by the pressure of the water by the way.
I think we established that we didn't like each other.
Despite the obvious dislike, I had fine tuned her mask to create a protective membrane around her.
It was on a timer though so I needed to use all this goody feeling infinite power to bring back goddess thighs, sorry, I mean Raven.
She was a phenomenal partner to hop around with. Cool as fuck and she never stress me bout nothing.
We just had that chill vibe. And whether I was ready to admit it or not, I really liked her. Fuck.
Haven't really thought of anyone like that in a while. Especially with how fucked up my life had recently become.
To be honest, I think it was more of the light that she still had. I had lost mine when I'd decided to never let anyone hurt me again.
I still didn't regret what I did. "I'd kill for my people', I remember telling Nick.
That statement had a whole different weight after actually doing it. Point is, I was more stained. Willing to do what I couldn't let Nick or those close to me do.
I never allowed them to get to that position. If the price of making sure my bro never dirtied his soul was dirtying mine then I was ready to pay.
Raven...she was a lot like Nick. In a way. She wasn't supposed to be in the darkness.
Yet she was and like my late best friend, had thrived with a soul...a compass of morality.
An inherent goodness that I lacked.
(I am broken. And it's only because of a few people I know that I haven't burnt this fucking piece of shit down.)
Maybe that's why in this world of magic, aliens and mystery, my true self had been revealed.
Maybe that's why my Zanpakuto was in the form of Cheshire Cat, a cat known for tricks and illusions. A cat known for always having a way out.
Because I could never subject myself to the shackles of inherent goodness like Nick.
Not fully.
That's why my first action after Nick's death, wasn't to call the cops on those responsible.
I knew about trade routes, bank accounts and gang affiliations. I could have put away Papa Fred and the rest for life.
But my first choice had been giving into the anger...the hate... And killing them all.
In a sense it was selfish. The truth is, I was in love with the anarchy of it all. I wanted to do what I wanted!
I was a selfish megalomaniac individual who only wanted a peaceful life but at every turn the world fucks with me so I gotta fuck it back. (no homo)
And fuck every rule on the board, I wanted Raven back and I would do it!
My body broke the surface of the water to a new day.
Of course the shitty weather of the Bermuda barely made it distinguishable from night.
So I simply flew higher, leaving the lower atmosphere like a jet fueled with Popeye's Spinach (Hey, that's not a bad idea. If you take the spinach and just blend it...)
Stop it brain.
The upper atmosphere looked... peaceful.
There wasn't a fear that I would suffocate this high above. I was effectively immortal. And Omnipotent. (kinda)
Atleast for the next 0.00095754 second. But that 0.00095754 was more than enough if you are able to stretch time out infinitely.
I reached into my soul and pulled out Raven's Gem Stone.
As it was something very personal to her, I could use it to scan and pull on her soul, bringing her back
My mouth was dry. This was it. I would see her again.
I closed my eyes, focusing on intent and will.
Reaching out towards the veils of death.
Then I called out.
No one answered.
I could bring back Adam. (Yes, that Adam.)
I could bring back Mother Teresa. (the one and only.)
Heck I could bring back Tupac man!(couldn't, he said the world was fucked up.)
But Raven's soul was nowhere to be found.
Fuck.
I knew Raven, there was no way she could be in hell. (If she was missing in heaven then it couldn't be hell. It just couldn't.)
but I wanted to be thorough. So to cross it off my list, I dived into Lucifer's realm.
My only other favorite character in DC next to Raven.
The Lord of Hell deemed me to either be not worth his time or had occupied a wait and see approach. I could feel him watching but doing nothing.
I couldn't say I was mad with that arrangement. People should mind their own business. (I'm looking at you Rama Kushna.)
Lucifer was powerful.
Even with the levels of energy passing through my soul, something told me I would simply disappear if I tried to think of going against him.
I perused Hell, hidden from demons and dark eldritch monsters that were hiding there to escape Heaven's judgement. (most of these things were ancient abominations seeking refuge in the devil's realm.)
None could sense me. It was... unbelievable. How was I doing this?!
Barragan's Respira had hit me with enough time erosion to age me up by 100,000 years.
I hadn't ever heard of a Soul Reaper living that long. The Head Captain from Bleach, Yamamoto was 2000+ but not quite 100,000 years old.
And I still felt...young. Like it wasn't my prime. How could anything be that old and not immortal?
I was more surprised at the fact I was older than Superman! He came out in the 30's.
Did that mean I would live forever?
My thoughts turned grim when even Hell turned up zero results on Raven's soul. Curiously enough, Constantine's soul was missing as well.
The last time I saw him, we had an... arrangement.
Someone was messing around.
None of this seemed coincidental anymore.
So I turned to the other Universes.
Nothing. Even after looking in the nearest parallel universes, my Raven's soul was nowhere to be found.
I only found her parallel selves. Some of whom felt my gaze and tried to stare back but I usually cut off the connection before that happened.
A case could be made that each Raven was still Raven. Fuck that. I wanted MY Raven. And I had looked everywhere for her and come up empty.
I became angry.
The only other possibility that existed was that Raven's soul was in a dimension beyond what I could perceive.
A higher dimension.
Which brought me to my earlier point. Someone was fucking around with me.
Fine then.
"You wanna fuck with me? Let's see if I can't return the favor."
I was going to use the rest of the power I had within me, to forcefully extract her soul from wherever she was being kept.
I focused on my will and intent again. Up there in the upper atmosphere there were no distractions. No noise. It was peaceful.
Then a shroud of purple energy covered my body. My Reiatsu burst through, instantly turning those sensitive to Spirit energy all around the globe to look my way.
It was like a second sun. One that was colored purple, shining in the sky. The Reiatsu had pushed away all the nearest clouds.
Gods, monsters, Magician's...I could feel some of the strongest beings in the planet curiously try to use that chance to usurp my authority. Take over my power.
I snorted.
"Should I take this as a declaration of war?"
Most of them immediately disappeared. A few stayed but adopted a wait and see approach.
Push...
And
...pull.
WhERe Is ShE?!"
I questioned the soul of reality itself. What you might consider as Akasha but was instead the Source. An Interdimensional wall that surrounded the Multiverse.
"Nice try." A soft voice entered my ears, sounding amused.
"You will need more than borrowed power to do what you want to do though."
(General P.O.V)
(Elsewhere)
"He's getting more and more reckless, dear sister. Able to break through the veil and even commune with the Source."
A man with a pale face and black hair informed the other occupant in the entire library.
The woman giggled, closing the book titled, 'Davian Mabuz' and placing it back on the shelf.
"Well, what did you expect? Each generation needs to have their own trials and tribulations. What matters is if they learn from those journeys."
She asked with a raise of her eyebrows.
(Davian's P.O.V)
After the soft voice spoke to me, I found myself at a disadvantage.
Whoever they'd been, they were powerful. Too powerful for me.
I tried to push through their influence but hit a wall. Literally. I was repelled from the sky, falling towards the sea like a missile.
My power was forcefully blocked then instantly drained away.
How?
Who could have done that?!
And why!
I only wanted to bring her back. Was that too much to ask? Apparently.
"Davian!"
I heard Chase call out. I knew what he wanted to say before he could even speak.
"I know Chase. I fucked up. I tried to bring her back and failed and now I realize you've been right."
I told him, reorienting my body so that instead of an uncontrolled fall, I directed myself towards the whirlpool in the middle of the Bermuda.
"I have been reckless."
This entire ordeal had given me clarity.
"Going at this the wrong way. There are consequences to everything. And taking the easy route to power has way more drawbacks than advantages. I promise you, I will listen to you more. I will learn to be disciplined. And when the time is right, I will bring her back."
My Zanpakuto was silent.
"I thought you would be furious at the failure. Livid even."
He said.
"Oh I am...but I understand my anger. And therefore I can use it. Weaponize it."
I responded, moving through the dome around Xebel and into the Royal Palace undetected.
This brief...delay in our trip had proved to be quite a learning experience.
I now knew what limits I should have been working towards. It wasn't power that could rival Superman or the Justice League.
It was power that could rival whoever had blocked me from finding Raven.
The next few days, I took a break and used that chance to relax and store up on whatever magic tomes or books I could find in Xebel.
There was also dealing with the fall out from Barragan's actions. Turns out, he had used Hila, Queen Mera's twin sister to take over by preying on her hate towards her own sister.
She had spared and locked up Mera so that Mera could witness as she conquered the world and brought Poseidonis to heel.
Too bad she didn't account for me.
Hila was locked up where she'd kept Mera.
Mera was initially very suspicious of us. Cheshire was an assassin she recognized and I had occasionally fought the Justice League.
In the end though, she was helpful in getting me the books I mentioned.
Going as far as to give me one on Hard Water creation and Manipulation. That came from her personal collection.
Deadman rejoined us two days later, arriving along with the King of Atlantis.
That made for an awkward dinner as everyone could tell Aquaman was nervous around me.
We hadn't directly clashed but he must have heard about me from his colleagues.
Whatever animosity might have been there was quelled by a private meeting with King Orin.
"I wanted to thank you, Scarlet Devil, for what you did. You saved Xebel, but more than that, you saved the queen of Atlantis. You deserve a reward for your efforts. Please, tell me what you want."
He had said amiably.
There wasn't much that interested me. Except of course for magic. So I asked for more books on the subject.
"That...might take some time to arrange. My wife is the head of the conservatory of magic back in Poseidonis. She has informed me of your interest in this subject. I'm afraid barring a few unique... editions from other city states, you already have all we know about magic."
My response was immediate.
"Then get me these 'unique' editions. If it's something about magic that I can learn, then I won't say no."
King Orin shared a look with his Chief Soldier, the only other occupant in the throne room.
Then he nodded to himself.
"Very well. It will take some time to organize everything but all of it will be ready in a month or so."
I thanked him and spent the rest of the day trying out different sea cuisines with Cheshire in tow.
The timer on her mask was about to run out and I didn't possess infinite power in my hands like before, so we left a day later.
With the jet plane we had flown in basically drifting in the sea in small metal chunks, I had to use my Fullbring bubble shield to fly us all the way towards land.
We found ourselves in the Sahara desert next. Hey don't blame me, none of us had a compass.
Luckily we weren't there for long. After procuring a compass and a detailed map, we set off for Europe next. Which led to us getting attacked by the Spain Air forces.
Cheshire was of the mind we should retaliate.
Deadman was a hero and so was vehemently against that idea.
Which left me with the decision on what to do. So I took option 3.
I couldn't out speed them with the bubble shield, but I could go above them.
Which is what I did. The fighter jets couldn't reach the upper atmosphere but with my bubble shield it was nothing for me.
We cut a straight line from Europe, past the United Arab Emirates and into Hong Kong, the first stop of the true purpose of our trip.
Now all that was left was for Cheshire to find Bronze Tiger's whereabouts, while Deadman and I flew to see his goddess in Nanda Parbat.
(General P.O.V)
"Mmph! I can't believe the Old guy lost!"
Batmite threw popcorn at the huge flat screen before him.
On it was a scene of Davian defeating Barragan.
It could be noted that the screen occupied the entire left side of his living room and seemed to be identical to the Batcave's Bat-computer.
"I'll have to do something about it. If you ain't cheating, you ain't winning."
He grabbed his Batmite outfit and wore it over a greasy wife-beater.
He secured the empty utility belt on his hips with a snap of his fingers, before teleporting infront of a mirror and checking himself over.
"Now that is what I call...Bat-licious. kukuku..."
He stuck out his chest, the cape behind him fluttering in a non-existent wind, before disappearing from the Fifth Dimension.
(Third dimension)
(Gotham)
There was an old tv playing opposite the bar counter.
On it, was a prim and proper woman dressed in a blue office suit.
"Our main story today, Commissioner Gordon calls off the search for the metahuman killer known as the Scarlet Devil. He's wanted by the authorities for his involvement in 3 murders..."
All eyes were on the mug shots that had appeared on the screen. 3 people that all of them knew intimately.
Penguin, Carmine (The Roman) Falcone and Victor Zsasz.
After all, they were in a way...colleagues.
tightened his hand around the beer Stein before him, freezing it unintentionally. He and Falcone had had a deal.
The Mafia boss would procure hard-to-get-resources for him, while Freeze would offer his services in exchange.
But now that Falcone was dead, Freeze was running out of time to save his wife.
And it was all...the Scarlet Devil's fault.
"... in other news, the Joker has been stopped again. The Dark or rather, Emerald Knight, failed to apprehend the Crown Prince of Crime but managed to save a cruise ship filled with a few foreign dignitaries and the City's own pride and Joy, Mr. Bruce Wayne."
The anchor's statement had everybody back to watching the screen.
"The Joker was then carted back to Arkham Asylum..."
"...Gotham has seen a reduction in crime rate from the Judicious efforts of the Emerald Knight."
"A term citizens have coined in relation to Batman's new abilities. Abilities that sources claim are granted by a green lantern ring, a powerful weapon that is able..."
Her voice fell to the background as the conversation picked up between the patrons in the bar.
"I wonder how long that will last."
Roxy Rocket, a dark skinned woman wearing a costume similar to a pilot with big yellow glasses, said.
The bartender Mitch, threw a glance her way before going back to wiping the glasses.
"What do you mean?"
Her companion asked.
The latter turned out to be an alluring woman with pale skin and terrible beauty. Red hair fell to her shoulders. Whisper O'Daire was in the building.
You see,
It was poker night at Mitch's.
One of a few spots in Gotham that allowed Supervillains and Rogues to get together and basically complain about Batman and Robin.
And now recently, the Scarlet Devil.
"Easy. Batman's entire ethos is of a man trying to carry out his own brand of justice."
Roxy Rocket explained,
"At our expense of course."
She added playfully, causing a few laughs to sound out from around them.
"Whatever these new abilities are...they ain't here to stay. They make it too easy for him. Sooner or later, he'll find it much better to simply go back to punching criminals on the face and breaking bones."
The mood in the bar got a bit subdued upon her words. They all knew whose faces would be punched and bones broken...theirs.
"I agree."
Whisper responded.
Mitch's at Fridays was the only downtime she got to hang out with a few friends and not think about work.
Especially with Intergang's expanded operations and new affiliations with the New Gods from Apokalips.
She hadn't joined Intergang to sell out her own planet. Which felt like what she was doing now.
Maybe a night of gossip and cheap beer was what she needed.
"The only reason I can see him using the Lantern ring is because of the new guy."
She added, idly playing with the straw in her drink.
Naturally they all knew who she was talking about.
Whisper couldn't say she wasn't interested in the stranger wearing a red mask.
Roxy Rocket chuckled knowingly.
"The sex on two legs going around Killing? I wouldn't mind getting under him..."
She licked her lips while staring at the Scarlet Devil's image on the tv.
"I beat he looks delicious under that mask."
Women had always been attracted to men with power. And the Scarlet Devil had a lot of it.
He brought back Gotham after it had been destroyed.
As the discussion between the two Supervillainess' devolved into girl talk and the lack of actual good men, a Poker table close to Roxy Rocket and Whisper was suspiciously quiet.
Kite Man turned his gaze to his companions.
"I'm telling you man..."
He leaned across the table.
"These new guys? They're really cramping my style. They stopped me from hitting up a liquor store for some quick buck. Crime Alley used to be safe. The Bats avoided it but now..."
Kite Man trailed off with a shake of his head.
"Pfft, we all know you're a coward Kite Man. You always run away whenever the Bat or Boy Wonder appears..."
Condiment King sneered.
"Who doesn't?"
Rat-catcher cut in, gently caressing a rat in his hands.
Condiment King threw him a stink eye before continuing.
"The bats is one thing but getting spooked by a bunch of wannabe vigilantes? Plain Dumb."
Kite Man ground his teeth but before he could reply, Mad Hatter spoke.
"Batman will always be a long term problem. This...PRT seem to be affiliated with the Scarlet Devil. He's the immediate problem."
The Mad-Hatter said, pushing his poker chips forward.
There was a brief silence in the whole club as other villains and criminals turned to them.
The name drop had not gone unnoticed.
Kite Man and the rest found the attention uncomfortable.
"Haha... don't mind us guys. Just... having a calm Friday night."
Kite Man said, laughing it off.
Sneakily, he kicked Mad Hatter's shin below the table.
"We talked about this...no bringing attention to ourselves. They already see us as a joke. I would appreciate it if you didn't mention the name of the Serial Killer going around Killing Supervillains."
Kite Man told him in a harsh whisper.
"My little ones can intercept conversations." Rat-catcher said, cooing at the squeaking rat in his hands.
"They say 'he' can hear it when someone says his name. That's why Falcone died, because he threatened to kill 'him' for meddling with his operations."
Everyone looked at Rat-catcher as if he was crazy.
Condiment King snorted, leaning back while crossing his hands over his large belly.
"You're all being paranoid. There is no way..."
Just then, the door swung open, letting in a cold draft of air from the outside. The villains in the bar tensed as a shiver creeped up their spines.
"Huhuhu, Am I interrupting something?"
That voice...
They all knew who it belonged to.
The Joker walked in, dressed in a Gotham P.D uniform. Oh and the bloody face of the Cop who the uniform had belonged to.
"I thought they said he was captured."
Condiment King whispered.
"Well, he clearly escaped enroute."
Kite Man responded with a gulp.
The Joker's shoes left patches of blood on the floor as he walked in.
Mitch, reached under the counter and removed a Shotgun.
"We don't serve your kind Clown. Get..."
"Oh, I'm sorry! You probably all have bad histories with this uniform."
He used the gun in his hands to smack the Gotham P.D logo on the uniform.
He reached to his head and tore off the face of the cop he wore.
"Ta-da, it's me. The Joker!"
Announcing himself only caused the mood in the bar to plummet further down.
"I think, he told you to leave, Joker."
Freeze stated, getting off his chair.
The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife.
The Joker smiled nastily.
"You sure? Even after I bring you good tidings? Ohohoh this is why I need friends."
He shook his head, fearlessly walking forward and tracking more blood in from the bottom of his shoes.
He stopped in the middle of the bar and ripped open the shirt he wore.
A wave of shock permeated the entire bar.
There was a bomb strapped around his chest.
"Now, I feel like I have your attention."
The Joker's smile widened, revealing bloodied teeth.
"Are you fucking crazy?!"
The Ugliest Man In The World, a Crime boss who had once led the Ugly Horde, a gang that Batman had dealt with asked, pointing his tommy gunny at the Joker.
More guns, swords, laser pistols, a mustard shooter, in Condiment King's case, were pointed at the Crown Prince of Crime.
Kite Man was slowly inching towards the backdoor. Fuck this, he was outta here. Anywhere with the Joker was bad news.
"The good news is that today I'm feeling particularly...festive." the Joker said, fixing his tie.
"Had to bring out the fireworks and all that, you know how it is."
The other villains shared confused looks.
"Don't worry."
The joker waved them off, motioning to the bomb strapped to his chest.
"This is mostly an insurance. If my heart stops from one of you overzealously jealous individuals, boom goes the place."
There was a collective intake of breath.
"I'm calling your bluff."
A woman wearing the top half of a cat-like skull said, unsheathing her Katana.
"Whatever fucked up scheme you have, I'd sooner separate your screwed up head from your neck than have you pull me into it. If the bomb goes off...fuck it, Gotham will atleast be spared from your insanity."
Joker blinked.
"I don't even know who you are."
He shrugged with a giggle.
"Oh you will..."
Lynx promised, stepping forward menacingly only to be stopped by Whisper, who shook her head at her.
Just because Lynx was willing to throw her life away didn't mean the rest were.
"Look around Clown. You're not among friends. Now leave...before the Bats tracks you here. There are not a lot of quiet places like Mitch's."
Whisper informed him, the rest of the villains sharing her stance.
"Tsk tsk...I see. Well, no matter." The Joker turned around.
"I will just leave. It's clear I'm not wanted. It's clear you would rather not heed my warnings. If only dear Old Penguin had listened to me...if only..."
"Wait."
Mr. Freeze called out.
The Joker's face, unseen by anyone, split into an even wider smile.
"Yes?"
He asked, turning around.
"Explain yourself. What do you mean?"
prodded.
"Simple...War is coming."
The Joker turned around in a flourish.
His hands spread out.
"Anarchy! chaos! Hahahaha. Oh it's going to be glorious. There's a new sensation in Gotham...and a little birdie told me what his real mission is...Killing every single villain in Gotham."
(Davian's P.O.V)
Hong Kong was a smaller, cleaner version of Gotham.
A financial hub with crowded, busy streets.
Tall skyscrapers jutted through the skyline and there was a lot of 'buzz' in the way of various interesting things you could see.
On top of that, it was more culturally monotonous.
Gotham was a place with a lot of diversity. Not just racially either.
Gotham was home to a lot of beings from the...supernatural side of things.
In Gotham, I had sensed a couple of interesting humans, or rather things disguised as human.
They registered through my Reikaku with soul wavelengths that were different from normal humans.
Seeing as they weren't bothering anyone, I left them alone.
Hong Kong was mostly filled with mundane humans.
No mages, aliens, metahumans, ancient beasts, demons or the like.
Man, Gotham was weird.
Cheshire led us through the dense crowds with a familiarity that showed she was a regular.
Oh the enviable life of a globe trotting assassin. I want in.
"You sure about that?"
Chase had snorted.
I had shrugged. (mentally of course)
"Can't be worse than staying in Gotham. Or the US with all it's insanity."
Both of us were in civies. I was in a long trench coat with a gray t-shirt and jeans.
The trench coat was mostly to conceal my Zanpakuto. It wouldn't do to attract attention by being seen with a weapon.
Cheshire was dressed much simpler. A brown leather jacket, white tee and booty shorts. She caught me staring and added more sway to her hips while smirking.
"Take a picture, I won't mind."
She had playfully thrown over her shoulder.
Deadman had chuckled from above me.
Cheshire's long black hair that was usually shaggy in a way reminiscent to a bird's nest, was pulled back in a long pony tail, exposing her asian features.
As loathe as I was to admit it, she was gorgeous. Now if only there was something we could do about the personality...
Despite not being in costume, I still managed to gather a lot of attention.
The sight of a 6'2 black man with silver hair walking on a sidewalk where most people were shorter than me, ensured I stood out even without trying.
"You need a skill that will allow you to blend in."
Chase had pointed out and as we walked around, we discussed ideas.
Maybe a special Kido?
Or even creating strings around my form to hide my features or something would work.
Unfortunately the second idea was not feasible. While I could make my strings as thin as monofilament threads, I couldn't really change their color.
It seemed as if I was stuck with Purple. Can't say I mind. Purple reminded me of goddess thighs (Raven)
I needed to think more on this. Having a way to go unnoticed when I needed to would be valuable. Especially with the mission I had.
Speaking of our costumes, we had them stashed away at a hotel that catered for 'special clientele', called the Golden Winged Dragon.
Or well, she did.
With the Red Gemstone, I had everything I needed with me. Including the supplies I had managed to procure before leaving Gotham.
The Golden Winged Dragon was unique as it was lavish.
Just because Hong Kong wasn't as crazy and chaotic as Gotham, didn't mean the Hong Kongians, ( forgive my ignorance of the right terminology), weren't aware of what lay beneath the veneer of society.
The hotel was considered neutral ground.
Or so Cheshire told us. This meant conflict was forbidden, with consequences if the rule was broken.
Several of the guests in the hotel had souls stronger than the average human.
A few registered as something...more to my senses as well.
I really wanted to see an Eastern Dragon.
"Why? They're just a bunch of reclusive lizards with a stick up their..."
Chase' words were cut off when I unexpectedly bumped into someone.
The man infront of me had rich earthy brown skin, possessed the common Asian features...and could blend in entirely with his surroundings.
His eyes reminded me a little of Batman. Cautious yet with a sharp attention to detail. Within a split second he had studied me and assessed my threat.
He bowed.
"Forgive me, great one."
"It's no problem."
I responded and watched him disappear through the crowds.
Not just that...
"Chase...can you detect him?"
I asked my Zanpakuto.
"No."
A note of interest mixed with surprise appeared in his voice.
Well, that was indeed surprising. Chase' detection skills were even better than mine.
"Interesting."
I finally commented, catching up to Cheshire who was a few paces ahead of me.
We weaved past more people, ducked across alleys and crossed a few streets. The environment begun to change as we found ourselves in the seedier part of Hong Kong.
Cheshire stopped at the corner of a building, leaning on the wall while staring at a small flower shop.
A very weird Flower shop. One that made me frown as my Reikaku, for the first time ever, failed to detect anything inside the normal looking shop.
Cheshire turned to face me, having to crane her neck to make eye contact with me.
"I have to go and get the info we need. Alone."
She added while staring at a space above my head.
Deadman raised his hands.
"Tell the crazy assassin chick I won't follow her."
I smirked at Cheshire.
"He got the message. How long will you be in there?"
Cheshire bit her lip coyly.
"Why? Worried you'll miss me?"
I snorted, looming over her while crossing my hands on my chest.
"More worried you'll waste my time. It's been two weeks, Assassin. You're yet to deliver on what you promised."
Cheshire rolled her eyes.
"Can't you be a little more patient? Geez. It's not like we spent the last few days stuck underwater or something."
"She has a point."
Chase commented.
"And now you're agreeing with her?"
I raised a brow at my Zanpakuto spirit. (mentally)
"Fine. Make it quick."
Cheshire didn't take well to my tone or blunt dismissal but complied, smoothing her features out, and holding up the camera hanging off her neck, giving her the look of a clueless tourist.
Even her walking style changed as she crossed the street.
"Is it just me or is everyone more stealthy than I am?"
"Yes. You're like a bumbling drunk dressed in a Hawaiian shirt and singing a pirate shanty in the middle of winter."
My Zanpakuto was quick to answer.
"It was a rhetorical question."
I growled out.
"What is?"
Deadman asked, floating down to hover closer to me.
Before he could answer, the sound of screeching tires filled the air as the flower shop was surrounded by black SUV's and...
"Is that a fucking truck with people wielding axes?!"
Deadman shouted as men in suits and sharp looking one handed grip axes poured out of the vehicles.
The pedestrians on the sidewalk scattered while screaming in Chinese out of fear.
"Fuck. This has to be the League of Shadow's doing."
I stepped forward, ready to Shunpo in when a familiar voice entered my ears.
"I can't let you interfere, great one. I shall be the one to face you."
I turned around and came face to face with the guy from earlier.
Now that I got a good look at him, I could immediately tell he was a fighter.
His clothes consisted of a yellow taoist monk robe, beads around his neck and a clean shaven face.
"Brand...I leave Cheshire's well being in your hands."
Deadman said nothing in response, merely flying towards the flower shop as fast as he could.
I heard the sound of crashing glass. Reikaku informed me that someone had been thrown out through it.
Seems like Cheshire had gotten busy. I cracked my neck.
"It's bad form to not introduce yourself before you die."
I told the man who thought he was powerful enough to stand up to me.
"I am called the Jade Master, and I have no intention of dying today, Scarlet Devil."
He answered, removing his hands from his wide sleeves to reveal a long ass staff.
"Where the fuck were you keeping that?"
I wondered out loud, using Reikaku to scan my surroundings for any hidden surprises.
Chase had been right to say I was impulsive.
It was a weakness. One that a competent opponent could exploit.
"We all have our secrets."
The Jade Master replied, then he came at me.
I was surprised by the burst of speed. From my scan his soul was only a little stronger than a human's but his physique...
The staff landed on my forearm with a resounding crack. The Jade Master blinked, spinning with the momentum while twirling the weapon, swinging at my neck.
I intercepted the blow before it could land, grasping the staff in my hand and pushing him away easily.
I hadn't tested my strength but I was well above peak human.
The Jade Master flipped and landed several feet away.
"You're strong."
He commented, his eyes slightly shining with battle lust.
I like this guy. He reminds me of me.
"You're not too bad yourself. Keep this up, and you might make me use my weapon."
I responded.
He leaned forward and then kicked off the ground. His movements were terrifyingly efficient.
No wasted actions. He jumped right to left in a way that would have confused anyone without Reikaku.
A few paces away from me, he swung out the staff. What was he doing? He was still a few inches off from guaranteeing the staff would connect.
Then he did a split, ducking under something heavy that was sailing towards me.
A dumpster.
The staff in his hands was special. There were wires coming out of one end that he had tied around the dumpster before throwing it towards me.
The metal container smacked onto my cross guard, deforming around my body.
I flexed my energy and tore it apart, Reikaku informing me of the sharp blade thrust towards my face.
How vicious.
I leaned back all the way and watched as the jade Master sailed above.
He landed on the other side and immediately swung his staff out, a silver blade now attached to the other end of the staff.
There was a loud clang as the blade connected with my neck, but instead of cutting through flesh and decapitating my head, it shattered.
The Jade Master jumped away warily, a very serious look on his face.
I could have ended the fight the second he tried to fight me. I didn't because I'd wanted to see his martial arts skills.
And I hadn't been disappointed.
I stepped forward, releasing my Reiatsu. Instantly the air in the alley way became heavy.
The Jade Master slammed his staff onto the ground, trying but failing to remain standing.
"That was a good showing. But we both know you can't beat me."
I informed him, stopping a few feet away.
"Now then, before I let you go, how about you tell me who sent you?"