The Wilderness Journey!

[vegeto18]

It has been hours since the semi-rogue shinigami, the captain of the Eleventh Division, and the captain's subordinates departed from Soul Society and into the forests of the spirit realm that hey dwell in. Things seemed much more peaceful and alive compared to the carnage and damage done in by those unknown people. Their havoc was wsa intense that the need to reconstruct was necessary to make this trip. Vegeto didn't seem to mind. It was a nice change of pace. So far no one has questioned him leaving Soul Society but then again, no one would dare oppose Captain Eerieka especially if they were her "prisoner." He chuckled at the thought if they will play an S&M game out here in the woods if they could find some privacy. He shook his head from lustful thoughts as he had more important things to do namely retrieve lumber and return to his shikai state. He could feel it in his bones that his penance is nearly over.

An hour has passed as the party entered a forest and made its way deep into the woods. The trees were thicker and the wilderness was packed with more animal activity. Even though he wasn't the leader, the banaged man managed to halt the party. "This seems like a good spot to start," says Vegeto. "The trees are thicker therefore should be strong enough for building materials. Don't you agree Captain Eerieka?"

[Eerieka]

"Yes, this place is quite nice," she agreed. "All right, everyone, let's set up camp here!"
While her subordinates were getting their tents put up, Eerieka decided to build a fire and start preparations for dinner. She dug out a large cauldroun from deep within one of the wagons and unloaded some of the stuff that was stored in it. 
"I'll make a delicious soup tonight. Let's see... 50 of us, plus Vegeto. This cauldron should be big enough to make enough soul for us all."
As she gathered the ingredients from the wagon, Eerieka took a moment to enjoy the outdoors. "It's so quite out here. I wonder if people come out to these woods often?"

[Starks]

(soul? you are cooking with souls?)

[Eerieka]

Ooc: XD Well, the 'l' key is pretty close to the 'p' key. I could edit that, but I think I'll leave that in there for the lulz.

[vegeto18]

Vegeto just shrugs at her. "Who knows?" he says. "I've been through various things but I don't think I've done something like this."

[Eerieka]

After a scruptious dinner and relatively uneventful evening full of drunk men making fools of themselves, everyone gets everything unpacked and prepared for the night. The start of the expedition will be tomorrow morning.
Eerieka decides to find Vegeto, who doesn't have a tent. "You can come sleep in my tent. I'm not really in the mood for sex, but just in case you don't want to sleep under the stars..."

[vegeto18]

OOC: and so...we begin...i've been waiting long for this.

Vegeto already started to move away from the camp and towards the woods when Eerieka proposed that offer. He stands still and, while facing the darkness covering the woods, he replies, "Thanks but I have something to take care of first. Need to...refresh myself in private if you know what I mean. I'll crawl into bed when I am back."

The man leaves the woman to here own duties while Vegeto trails into the darkness. He can feel the wildlife. The night life surrounding him. Friend? Foe? Who knows what is about. All the shinigami cared about was the throbbing sensation carried within his scabbard. Vegeto couldn't confirm it exactly but something was up. Merciless was ready to speak to him again.

Many minutes pass till Vegeto came across a clearing in the middle of the woods when suddenly the man heard a voice saying 'STOP!'

The voice was distinct. He would never forget that voice. In the middle of this forest, where a pond lays and a boulder lies close to it, Merciless ordered the shinigami to halt. "It's about time you decided to show up Merciless," chuckles Vegeto with a slight rasp in his tone, "I was wondering when this purgatory would end."

'Hmmm,' muses the spirit from the sword, 'It seems you aren't all that in need of me. Fine then guess you'll prolong this....'

"Now wait a damn," speaks the man as he stares at the pond, "You and I both know I'm half effective without you. It is maddening to not be able to use you. It is bad enough I'm still under....house arrest. You damn know I would like to re-establish our bond."

'Bond....?' starts the zanpakuto, 'BOND?! JUST WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT BONDS?! Thrust me into that boulder or never again get another chance. I'm more than willing to sit and yearn for blood until you learn your lesson. Do it now or forever suffer with me!'

Vegeto didn't need to be told a second time. He didn't want to forever lose his Shikai abilites and he knew that Merciless was essentially him. He knew Merciless had the arrogance and pride screw him over in the last second just to teach a lesson. The man jumped atop the boulder and stabbed the katana blade into the rock. He jumped back and looked at the blade. He silently chuckled at the appearance of it all. A moonlight sky, a still pond, and a blade in the middle of a boulder. It was as if the scenery was made that some "hero" of worthiness would come and claim the blade. Like King Arthur claiming Excalibur.

The katana pulsated and whitened. Suddenly it stopped and a humanoid figured in a crouched position materializes. Everything about it was black as the feet and hands came into being. The body and wings slowly materialized. And finally the head and its two horns on the forehead forms. It's eyes open and in the darkness, both the humanoid creature and forest, two orange eyes illuminate. Merciless finally reveals himself as he stands. Vegeto finally remembers the true form of his zanpakuto: the lizard-like, bat-like humanoid creature that could be considered a denizen of Hell itself.  The Abyss as some others would call it. But this gargoyle like creature is no citizen of that nether world. No. It is just pure coincidence that Vegeto's inner soul is the appearance of that. And how fitting is it since it does have an appetite for blood.

OOC: If you need an image, use this (it's not the human from GG but his "shadow"): http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f371/SlaktarPizza/GGX_Zato-1.jpg

'Ku ku ku ku, it rasps, 'It has been a long time since I've revealed my true form. Longer still that I've actually graced this world beyond your mind.'

Vegeto stands there a bit unamused and replies, "Yeah. Long time indeed. Nearly forgot that when you decided to use that other form prior to our hollowification."

Rage welled within the spirit but he dismissed it just as fast as it came when the word 'hollowfication' was brought. Merciless chose that the timing for that rage was not now to show. Instead he laughs out loud. 'Oh this?' he croaks as pieces of his "darkness" literally sheds and slides off him onto the rock. 'You were always about appearances with me. I found that amusing.'

The "darkness" that was shedded onto the rock reformed into a small blob and rushed to cover his face. Merciless looked more groomed, more....sophisticated. His voice, when he began to speak, was much smoother and deeper than before. Merciless just smiles and laughs at his new formed image. He resumes the conversation, "Yes...You always fancied something fancy looking for me to shape shift as. That too was amusing. I caught wind of this image somewhere and I've finally found a reason to make use of it. Now then, on to business.

OOC: Use this for reference for Merciless' new look: http://hg101.classicgaming.gamespy.com/phoenixwright/godot.png

"Yes..." trails off Vegeto, "Business...."


OOC: Like I said, been waiting a long time to do this. If you want to enter this Eerieka, by all means go ahead. If not, sit back and watch or do your own thing with the woods. This event will take place in the night.

[Eerieka]

OoC: Does Merciless like coffee? >_>
IC:
After Vegeto said he had something to take care of, Eerieka decided to follow him secretly, keeping her distance and staying hidden. She suppressed her spirtual pressure to a bare minimum. She was curious about what he was up to.
She listened to the exchanges between the two, but decided not to interfere. This was something that Vegeto would have to face on his own. 

[vegeto18]

OOC: I figured it was about damn time I start finishing this. I apologize to everyone that was interested in reading this and to Eerieka who I left hanging high and dry on this. I really have burned out on RPing on this place despite reaching a point that I was looking towards. That and finding time to put in lengthy posts. That being said, I came up with an alternative. It may not be much and it may allow more interacting for Eerieka in this but I figured that if I post something at a time, then I should accomplish with what I want. A little bit of something is better than nothing. The funny thing is? This is exactly 2 months of this being on hiatus on my end.


The figure Merciless sits on the rock and crosses his leg. " So then," the creature muses, "You've walked this world without being able to use me. You've not seen a battle in ages. You are practically a worthless shinigami."

"I wouldn't say that," countered Vegeto, "I still have my swordplay, hand to hand abilities, and kido."

"HA!" replies Merciless, "Don't make me laugh! Kido is just worthless. You are only sub par at  best even with your so called ideas. Your sword play is so rusty that newbie from that Academy could beat you. Your speed is disgraceful. You could never get faster than the rest. All that you had going for you was your incredible hand to hand abilities and by this point, it is no longer anything of worth. Face it. You are nothing more than a washed up has-been. A mere shell of what you...of what we once were."

The shinigami coudl only scowl as he couldn't bring up the words to counter. He knew deep down that Merciless was right. In his path for higher power, he sacrificed hard work and effort. Ignored his own talents for something forced and fake. He relied too much on it and it backfired. Now that he has sealed off his Hollow abilities to avoid execution, Vegeto truly was back to square 1. The frustrated shinigami only grunted as he sits down and leans against a tree. "Hmph!" he rasps, "Well then what do you propose?"

The creature smiled eerily. As if he was waiting for this moment. He jumped off the rock and lands right in front of Vegeto. Merciless puts his hands in his pockets and leans towards Vegeto inches away from his face. "BASICS!" the personified blade exlcaims. "We must start all over and train with the basics. Sure you may remember some of the shikai abilties but I'll hold back enough where it is laughable."

Vegeto just blinks with his mouth open. Start over?! Everything that he has accomplished and he has to act as if he was a complete and total graduate from the Shinigami Academy?! "Ku ku ku!" laughs the creature, "Mind you that I will hold back your reitsu concerning your shikai abilities. You are still....better than the rookies out there with what you currently have and have experience but you won't be an effective fighter till I deem fit. The abilities that you posses through me is that of reitsu manipulation. MANIPULATION. Learning everything again will be frustrating but you will gain far more power when I decide to cooperate with you 100%."

The spiritual being slowly becomes incorporeal and dusty. Pieces of him blows away and returns to the sword as if he was made of sand. He echoes, "Remember long and hard. We are both of the same mold. We may think differently but we can't deny who we are. Now take up this blade and say my name. Recover what you've once forgotten and lost. Ku ku ku. "

The being dissipates altogether leaving the shinigami alone in the forest. He slowly gets up, climbs the rock, and wraps his hands around the blade. He hesitates a bit and breathes as if he is trying to remember the moment. It will be a long and hard road to reach a lieutenant status with his zanpakuto suppressing the effectiveness of his shikai but he knows that if he can reach that level with the suppression, then he knows he surpassed his Vizard side if not his peers at that level. The trick would to have to let that part of him happen naturally than forcefully.

Vegeto pulls the blade out and it glows an eerie white color and hums faintly. It was the moment of truth. It was time to be reunited. The shinigami holds the blade infront of him and points the tip away from him. "Take from them everything," he rasps, "MERCILESS!"

Piece by piece the blade, handle, and pommel shatters into dust. The spiritual dust hovers in the air and swirls about him. Vegeto holds his hands out and the dust swirls around his arms. The dust crystallizes and hardens. The white and red decorated gauntlets become tangible. His shikai has finally formed for the man. "Now," echoes Merciless, "Do the first two moves. I'm sure you remember them. It was quite the handy trick to setup the rest of your abilities that you will relearn. You may know them but I won't let you use them but these two simple moves. And you will use them over and over until I think it has been mastered."

The shinigami nods and puts up his guard. He looks at the rock, clenches his fists and thrusts his right fist into the rock. "SHATTERING CONVERSION!"

The rock cracks with white light and instantly incinerates into white spiritual dust. The dust hovers in the air. Vegeto opens his hands and concentrates as he performs the othermove: Reistu Absorbtion. The dust swirls around his hands and go into his palms. His gauntlets shimmer with a faint light. Vegeto breathes a sigh of relief as he hasn't forgotten these two. Shattering Conversion to create reitsu from virtually anything as it is the building blocks of everything in Soul Society and Hueco Meundo and Reistu Absorbtion to absorb those particles to give him a temporary boost in arm strength and arm speed for his brawling style. It will be a while till merciless will unlock his other abilities but with these two, it is a start on his long trek to do what he needs to get done.



OOC: Wow...I really got into my self monolgoue. >_> I was thinking it'd be a short post.

[Eerieka]

Eerieka watched Vegeto use his skills in shattering and absorbing the reitsu particules of the rock. 
"So that's on eof his skills," she said in a low-whisper. "I guess he's more of a brawler. Hmm, I bet his skills could work well with mine in combat."
Eerieka considered going back to the camp to let Vegeto have a moment alone. Tomorrow would be a long day, so she needed all the rest she could get. As she turned to go back to her tent, she thought of ways in which her skills could work with Vegeto's in case the two of them ever had to fight together. 

[vegeto18]

The shinigami clenches his fist, smiles, and strikes the air in a victorious pose. He is glad to reuse his shikai abilities. Had he been a bit more alert, he would have heard the soft whisper of the 11th Division Captain. He dismissed the shikai and sheathed his blade. Vegeto briefly walked towards the direction of the camp; walked towards where the captain was.

Vegeto may not have been actively sensing reitsu but given his nature of a reitsu type wielder, his passive sense picked up something faint. He couldn't detect that it belong to the captain but he looked around to see if something was close. It all depended on the captain now if she could bluff something, try to repress her signature even further if she could, or confront the man directly on what she witnessed.

[Eerieka]

Eerieka was confident that her reitsu was suppressed enough to not be noticed, but as she walked back to the camp, she also felt a small slimmer of reitsu.
Not Vegeto's... did one of my men wake up and have to use the bushes or something? Or maybe decide to go for a walk or scout around? Yeah, that has to be it... hmm... surely there's no one around this forest. She hurried back to the camp, hoping to get there before Vegeto noticed her. At her tent, though, she stopped. 
Since Vegeto's coming back, I'll ask him if he sensed anyone else out there. 

[vegeto18]

After a couple minutes Vegeto reached the camp. He signaled to a guard that was awake and confirmed who he was. He didn't see anyone else. Figuring he didn't want to wake up the lady, the shinigami climbed up a tree and sat in a sturdy branch. Resting his blade on his lap, Vegeto leaned back against the tree and just looked up at the starry sky.


OOC: You do realize I was alluding to you. >_>

[Eerieka]

Ooc: Yes, I did. But it gave me a chance to go into my story.
Eerieka noticed from the reitsu presence that Vegeto must have found a place to sleep.
"Oh well. I guess it's nothing to worry about, and I shouldn't bother Vegeto about something small like that right now anyway. He has to think about all the stuff his Zanpakuto said to him. Guess I'll go back to sleep."
Eerieka heads back into the tent, hoping that the 'other' reitsu presence she felt really was nothing to be concerned with.

[vegeto18]

OOC: Should I pick up this trace or see something given my vantage point?

As peaceful the night was, a certain something of Vegeto would much rather play with Eerieka. All the shinigami could do was roll his eyes. He seriously liked the woman and she seemed genuine so he rationalized that it is only natural that he'd want to sleep with her again. Clearly he wasn't sure if he should just stay where he is at or go wake up the Captain for some midnight fun.