Whispers in the Dark

[Shinigami Kyra]

A trickle of blood ran down the side of her temple, mixed in with beads of sweat. The sudden movement back caused the mixture to float off her form, severed in half by unseen influence. Her palm pressed against the rough ground as her agile yet aged figure maneuvered into a back-flip to recover from the quick dodge. Straw sandals sailed across the ground, kicking up chunks of rock debris and pebbles alike. That free hand reached to the earth below and ground in deeply to control her landing. With a swing of her blade, the woman altered her balance and the elder Vizard stood full. Her fingers curled tightly around the hilt of her sword just as the last of her blades retracted from its whip-form. With the final 'shink,' the dark figure before her moved like quicksilver, implanting its fist into her abdomen. Her upper and lower body arched forward like an arrow, jerking her head and forcing her lips to spew a combination of blood and stomach vile. Those forest emerald hues widened, pupils contracted, as a mute cry of excruciating pain expelled from her parted lips. Pine green strands oscillated wildly for the brief moment her unnaturally twisted body was airborne. Less than a second later, it collided with decaying walls of the ancestral shrine with enough force to blast her body through, her limbs scattered and shaking like a rag-doll.

With the initial strike having knocked not only the wind out of her, but her entire body into near shock from the sheer power alone, it took the woman a moment, as well as several hundred yards, to recover with another quick flip and skid across the groundless air. Panting heavily with her long green strands sticking to her forehead, her eyes were lit with a mixture of determination and fear as they set upon the large dark figure that smashed through the far smaller hole that she herself had been thrown through. Her lungs pleaded for air, though with every attempted breath, she could feel a sharp pinch; a cracked or broken rib more likely than not. Her brows lowered and the grip upon her hilt tightened, as did nearly every muscle in her body. Through the smoke and plaster debris appeared the shadow of the slightly over three and a half meter tall dragon. That smoke was instantly blown away by the sudden shine of a sphere of red energy.

"Bakudō 39. Enkosen!" Rydia cried out the name as her Zanpakuto was placed defensively before her. The red beam several hundred meters away exploded in a blinding light just as a burst of gold erupted before her. The shield formed just as the large Cero ignited, shooting toward her at a high velocity. The blast hit the shield hard, knocking her back. Her body tensed as she pushed against her shield. The gold oval began to shake and crack under the pressure before finally shattering, overtaking the Vizard's body completely. While the shield did take a good portion of the blast, when the red light diminish, smoke smoldered off her blistered skin with parts of her robes burnt or torn from the battle's previous scuffles.

"Mabushii Genkaku!!"

An explosion of mist erupted from the Vizard's Zanpakuto, clouding vision and giving the sensation of moving through thick water. The elder green haired woman took this brief yet greatly desired moment to catch her breath and gather her bearings. This moment, however, was cut short as another powerful red blast tore through the mist straight for her. While she may have had hopes that this illusion would at least give her a minute to breathe, the veteran knew all too well that she couldn't simply sit and wait to be killed.

"Hadō 71; Sōren Shakkahō!"

A fiery red blast of spiritual energy exploded from her extended hand, smashing straight into the oncoming attack. All the mist that had gathered erupted in a fiery burst, further clouding the woman from view. When the smoke finally started to clear, an exhausted woman panted heavily, arm still stretched out from the sudden blast of Kido with smoke smoldering off her form. It seemed she wasn't quite quick enough as more blood trickled down the side of her head, covering nearly a quarter of her face and dripping over her left eye. Still, those emerald hues were filled with focus and concentration; a determination like no other. She would not lose... she hadn't lost in the past and she wasn't about to now.

"Hmph... Pathetic...."

The call came from the very being that had caused so much damage, both physically and psychologically upon the elder woman. The large dragonoid figure took a few steps forward on the groundless air, allowing his distaste for the woman's fight thus far to show.

"I... don't know why..." the woman started to speak in between catching her own breath. "Now... of all times... you chose to rebel. But... know this... as I did in the past... I will put you away... put you in your place... and force you to return... to the way you were..."

"And you will never know..."

The woman readied herself for another attack, but to her surprise, the dragon took a step back and started to turn. She swallowed the lump that had formed well within her throat, but gave no motion to drop her guard.

"Remember this well, Amagumi Rydia..." the dragon spoke one last time. "I will take control, there is no doubt about that. I will not allow this body to perish by your own hands."

And with that, the dragon's body faded seemingly from existence. Rydia stood there, dumbfounded for a moment before her own eyes began to close. Within the realm of her Zanpakuto, her inner Hollow had called out to her. For as long as she could remember, Rydia had only had few instances where her inner darkness had attempted to seek control. However, since then, they had reached an unspoken accord. Ryuuzin had never sought power or control. Recently, though, he's been constantly dragging her into their spirit world... he still hasn't expressed his reasons, but from what Rydia can gather, there's something extremely different about him. What was once a mutual bond was now a pure sign of an enemy... one that Rydia certainly could not underestimate. While she was able to fend him off in the past, recently he's become stronger... far stronger than she. Nevertheless, he has yet to finish her off....

"Why..." Rydia brought a shaky hand up to the wound on her head, only now realizing just how serious her injury was. "What's wrong with you Ryuuzin... what has you acting so?"