God Yet Lives

Noct used bringer light to put space between the soul reaper and herself, "I'm honored that you know my name, but who are you?"

--

Sab appeared, and in big damn hero fashion, teleported them out of the way. "Are you two alright?"

Astarte wiped away a few streams of tears and let out a ragged breath before setting her eyes back on Tipheret.
"Yes." She wanted nothing more than to fly back and eat the Soul Reaper, but was far too afraid of the Hell Guard to go back. "Thank you, Sab."

Enkidu lifted his free hand to the hilt of his Zanpakuto and lunged forward while Nel was in mid-jump, bringing down a powerful vertical slash.

*The Hell Guard ate half of Tipheret's corpse, but then left the other half alone before turning back towards them.*

A"Eww."

S"It's almost like it doesn't even realize she's there, isn't it?"

A"Hey. You're an adult again."

S"Boy, nothing gets past you, does it?"
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*Nel had already jumped high, so she just uses Sonido to jump even higher.*
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???<Yesod. I was Captain of Squad 9 during the Quincy Blood War. Which, I might add, would have been a much earlier & less bloody war, had that fool Yamamoto only listened to Keter from the very beginning.>

L"Something's wrong. I feel the energy behind your strikes, but I can't make use of it. How are you doing this?"

Hod<Wouldn't you like to know?>

*Hod slashes Lilith's Zanpakuto away, sending a wave of ice at her.*

Astarte's scorched body heaved as she got her breath back and she took a defensive stance.
"Does anybody know how we are going to get away from these things?" She asked, fixing her eyes on it while listening out for any other Hell Guards at the same time. "I notice that they don't seem to chase our enemy who all wear the same uniform..."

"If you want to play at that game...!" Enkidu laughed. "Draw, Crusader!"
Enkidu released into his first form and towered above Nel and all of the Soul Reapers. He hoped that his allies would be suitable impressed, too.
With a virtually effortless movement he swung his axe at Nel and sent a wave of fire roaring towards her.

Mortal appeared just then, and sliced at one of the larger block pillar things, sending it falling down, blocking the path between the Hell Guard and them. "What the hell happened? I remember attacking things, then everything went to hell."

Sab let out a giggle.

"Now is not the time for off brand humor."

--

"Deal with it, the guy is dead anyway," Noct said, "I mean, is all this really because no one would listen to your friend centuries ago?"

Yesod<Oh, do you want a history lesson? Where should I begin? Maybe with the 1500 soldiers that were killed, essentially whiping out my entire squad. Or what about Aamon? You saw what he did to the Seireitei, all of that would have happened in our time, had Keter not defied orders & killed him. Or what about how all of the Soul Society's war crimes were blamed on us posthumously? I know! How about the fact that we're in HELL! Well...not anymore. Now we're taking back everything we're owed. And we'll created a brand new world: A unified world, free from the scum & fools who would abuse it.>

L"It sounds to me like you're in Hell because you're a murderer with a god complex."

Hod<I was thrown in prison for not slandering my good Captain's name!>

L"Does Keter even believe half of the things she tells you people?"
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S"Long story short, we need to find the robes the Sinners are wearing. I only managed to swipe one from the mooks Tipheret accidentally killed with her stupidity."

*He tosses that cloak towards Aroma, who catches it & puts it on.*
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*The Gillians just roar as the Fura blows the chain off of them. Someone is stepped on. Nel opens her mouth, shooting a Cero into the flames, a bit like blowing out a candle. With a Cero. The Cero continues on towards Enkidu.*

"What in hell made you think I wanted a history lesson?" Noct asked, "I was asking a yes or no question." Noct was getting tired of stalling, waiting for Euryale to show up.

--

"Uh, alright."

"So we kill all Sinners we come across and take their cloaks?" Astarte spoke her thoughts aloud. "Right... Should we move?"

Enkidu battered the Cero away with his axe and then lunged at the Arrancar-captain, swinging a gigantic fist at her.

*Nel used Sonido to get on top of the fist, run down his arm, & punch at his face.*
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S"Not so fast, there, Tiger. You're injured, Noah is missing, & everyone else seems to be down below. In blatant defiance of what I said earlier, I think we should split up further, into two groups. Mortal and Sab can go clothes shopping, while I stay here & keep watch as Aroma performs first aid on you."
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*Euryale finally showed up through the ground behind Yesod, panting. Just as she did, she was hit in the chest with some kind of black arrow. Yesod smirks.*

Yesod<One down.>

*Lilith starts towards Euryale, but she's still half-frozen. To prevent Hod from killing her, she releases her Bankai, the trees sprouting below him hurling him away. And now everyone is surrounded by jungle.*

Astarte relaxed her stance and turned to Senthose, seeming slightly relieved not to be going straight back into action.

Enkidu's mouth shot open and fire burst out at Nel as she went for his face.

Noct uses this new terrain, and subsequent shit ton of shadows to bum rush Yesod with as much sharp and point shadows as possible from every angle she could think of. At the same time she dragged Euryale over to her with shadow arms to try and see how badly she was injured.

--

"Alrighty then, we'll be back," Mortal said, putting a hand on Sab's shoulder, both teleporting away to try and find more of those cloaks.

*Sab and Mortal find a bunch of blocks shaped like an open air cathedral. At the center is golden statue of Keter pointing her Zanpakuto in the air & smiling warmly downwards. The statue is sitting on a marble base, with the inscription "Keter The Redeemer." The assembled 10 cloaked followers are all praying at it.*
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A"Please lie down."

S"Now, how do I keep that thing occupied? Even if I declothed the corpse, it can probably tell the difference between the living & the dead."

*Senthose fires a Cero at it.*

A"That won't work! ...Why are we moving?"

S"If I keep a constant stream of energy focused on it, then as it moves, we'll be pushed exactly as far away from it. At least until it figures out what I'm doing, or more of them show up."
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*Nel sidesteps, dropping off of his arm & firing a Cero at his stomach. Nearby, the Gillians had spread out. One of them fires a Cero at Sokyoku Hill.*
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*Not much. Euryale pulls out the arrow & tosses it aside, where it quickly disappears into the darkness. There is only a minor wound, as a mysterious metal ring had caught the brunt of the blow.*

E"Huh. I guess the underwire really IS good for your chest."

*They hear rustling in the bushes.*

L"Relax, it's just me."

Mortal used her sonido to behead the fuckers from behind.

"Your sonido is soooooo bad."

"Be quiet and help me pick up these cloaks."

Astarte lay down, although she detested the thought of putting herself in such a vulnerable position in Hell, of all places.

Enkidu tanked the Cero with a grunt and stepped backwards- easily far enough in one backward stride to swing is flaming axe into the Captain in a powerful arc.

Noct nodded, "I know, I can see you from about 30 different angles. Thank you for the shade," She then turned to Euryale, "And thank you for being safe..."

*Nel grunts and blocks, being thrown to the ground by the force of the blow. The Menos weren't doing very much, but they did keep blowing up random buildings with Ceros.*
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*Aroma spread silk gauze over Astarte's burns, which stuck to her flesh without pulling on it. She then set to work stitching up her wings.*

A"What do you think happened to Noah?"

S"My guess is that he's in a soundproof chamber of Seki Seki Stone. Eventually, he'll be able to break free. For now, we'll just continue without him."
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*Euryale smiles.*

E"No problem."

L"Just wanted to make sure you weren't about to attack me. We should be safe in--"

*Euryale had stopped talking because the way she had just came, several trees were freezing & shattering. Worse yet, in the clearing they were in, long, waving tendrils with hands on the end were emerging from the shadows all around them. The shadows that had hands coming out of them, Noctis had a hard time seeing through. Like looking through a thick fog.*

"This mother fucker thinks he can take my... No." Noctis stood up, and sunk into her shadow, then began looking for Yesod's location.

--

Mortab returns with FASHION!

Astarte lay still as she was treated, preparing herself for any kind of pain that may come with the process.

Nel was followed to the ground by a stream of fire as thick as Enkidu's own massive arm. As he watched her fall he issued a low, rumbling laugh.
"Menos! Advance deep into the Sereitei, kill all you cross!" He roared, hoping they could understand him. "Iris, advance with them and make sure any Captains you face are annihilated!"

*There was a slight sting from the needle, but overall, the silk had a numbing effect.*

S"It's almost a shame you came back. I was having fun inventing the Monster-Drawn Hellcart."
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*Nel released, causing a wave of wind that protected her against the fire. She raised her spear over her shoulder.*

<Lansor Verde.>
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L"Oh. So that's how you're doing it."

E"What's he doing? I don't get it. What's going on?"

L"The ice draws energy from the surroundings. To make matters worse, it also kills plants. My Zanpakuto is useless on him."
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*Yesod was standing in another clearing not far away, now swordless. He was also looking at Noctis, not in the direction of the clearing, but right into her eyes through one of the shadows in front of him.*

If the sting was the worst pain Astarte was to suffer for the time being, she was happy. She sighed softly.

Enkidu's grin drooped slightly and he tensed for a blow to come, his axe held horizontally across his chest.

"I wasn't even going to ask about that, but I've got good news--"

"You're going to make a crack about Astarte's dress, aren't you?" Sab said.

"I was considering it..."

--

Noct furrowed her brow and hopped out of a tree into the clearing, "Shadows are mine, just so you know. Oh, and you tried to kill the love of my life, so expect this to hurt, a lot." With that she created two shadow clones of herself, each with two lanzas. Noctis herself had two as well. The three of them launched their first lanza, then rushed Yesod down.

Astarte shot a venomous glance at Mortal before turning her eyes back to the sky.

S"I hadn't even realized we were replacing that dress...this is the happiest moment in my entire life."
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*Yesod shifts his feet & fires a Kido light above him. This causes his shadow to flare out on either side of him, which the clones begin sinking into. Faced with the lanzas, he moves his other hand. The penumbra of each shadow then emerges & smacks them into the sky.*

Yesod<Do you see it now? This is my Bankai, Magna Tenebris. It allows me to manipulate my shadow, as well as any shadow it touches. But, most importantly, it allows me to manipulate each component of the shadow independently. Unfortunately, it is difficult to manipulate shadows that have highly concentrated Reitsu. Don't you agree?>
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*Nel decides not to waste her energy on a strike that will be obviously be blocked, so she fires a Cero at his face.*
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L"Fortunately, I don't need my Bankai."

*Hod's grin fades as Lilith dons her mask. She then sends a Haien at his weapon. When he moves it, she ensnares it with a chain & jerks her hand, sending the Haien into his back. Once he's stunned, the chain wraps around him, as well as a Six Rod Light Prison. She then begins charging a Double Sokatsui.*

Hod<Yesod, help!>

*When she fires her Kido, a big head emerges in front of him, swallowing it. It then fires out of a shadow behind her, hitting her in the back, burning off her wings.*

E"Lilith! Are you okay!?"

Showing some personal growth, Astarte ignored Senthose and continued to watch the sky and listen out for attack.

Enkidu made no attempt to block and the Cero hit him full in the helmet, burning a scorch mark across it and causing a long crack.
At the same time he lurched forward and swung his axe in an arc, unleashing a wide blast of fire at the Captain.

"Manipulation of different parts of the shadow... Fancy, but a tad superfluous, don't you think?" Noct replied as she created lanzas and dropped them into her shadow. With that Noct launched another Lanza at Yesod, then used bringer light to dash after Yesod as well, managing to keep up with the lanza. When in front of Yesod she grabbed the lanza she threw, and stabbed at Yesod's right shoulder.

--

Mortab don their cloaks.