Wrath of the Archdemon: Ares

Onslaught! First Stage of the Invasion!
''"I am tired and sick of war. Its glory is all moonshine. It is only those who have neither fired a shot nor heard the shrieks and groans of the wounded who cry aloud for blood, for vengeance, for desolation. War is hell." '''

-General William Tecumseh Sherman

The next few days happened as if it was only moments for some of the Reapers preparing for war. Civilians were all sent to secure shelters where they'd be protected by Captain Unohana and a number of select volunteers numbering up to two hundred able bodied Soul Reapers. Captain Unohana's Lieutenant would manage the hospitals and emergency med teams as best as she can, and is ordered not to engage hostiles unless her med teams are in danger.

Regular patrols done by the Stealth Force and joint equipment utilized by the 12th Division scoured any cracks within security as well as send a few scouts to check the outlying Rukonagi Districts for possible enemy infiltrators. Their ninja-garbed bodies moved to and fro with swift speed and caution, not wanting a repeat of what happened to their comrades when discovering Ultharon.

The Gate Guardians were on full alert, honing themselves and keeping in sharp readiness for any incoming intruders who might try to make it for the gates. With revitalized strength and vigor, they are eager to prove themselves after the humiliation of failing to stop the Ryoka Invasion prior twelve years ago to this date.

The 7th Division worked in conjunction with the 11th and the 9th Divisions in order to patrol along the large circular wall of Sekkiseki, making sure no single side could be breached without their knowing. Sajin Komamura almost hesitated in working near Kenpachi Zaraki again, but Kensei Mugurama kept the two of them from fighting, and the powerful fighting force worked in a cohesive, necessary manner around the walls of the Seireitei.

Despite the walls being as resilient as they were, the fact that Ultharon was able to penetrate its defenses as if there was no barrier or wall in his way was nearly beyond belief. With this in mind, Captains Shinji Hirako, Shunsui Kyōraku and Jūshirō Ukitake operated the central internal security force with their respective Divisions and Officers, in the event the enemy got past the outer Seireitei gates and walls.

Waiting on standby would be the 10th, 3rd, and 6th Divisions underneath their respective Captains: Toshiro Hitsugaya, Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi, and Byakuya Kuchiki, along with their respective Divisions and Officers.

Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto would be directing all strategems and oversee the battle on Sōkyoku Hill, his Division in full force and battle readiness surround the rocky formation in strategic locations, but make sure not to be too close to their leader. When the Head Captain reacts, there would too much collateral to his own men to make it worth securing them nearby.

With all this being said, Seu-Feng was finally able to be released from the Hospital under Isane's orders, only if she didn't do anything reckless like she did fighting Ultharon. While she said she'd make no promises, she assured her she would approach this war with a more tactful, calculated outlook than before. She wouldn't be a burden to anyone...especially now.

"You okay?"

Next to her stood Akisame, his weapon slung over his back and his hands in his pockets as he looked over to his comrade. His face didn't show it, but his voice gave a slight hint of concern. She had just gotten out of the hospital, and still probably not capable of fighting at her full capacity.

"Its been three days, Akisame," Seu-Feng said offhandedly, fastening her forearm protectors as well as her additional shin guards, made of specially crafted material to add protection while granting light weight to allow her maximum speed abilities, "if I stand around while my men patrol out there, I'm doing both a disservice to the Stealth Force as well as to myself. Its not like I'm going to use Bankai outright...its usually not my style," she eyed Akisame briefly, before smiling at him with hidden meaning.

In return, the man gave her a slight smile, and looked back out into the distance. "I'd say so. I've never seen it up close, but based on the bright light that I saw in the Cracked Valley, I'd say that it wouldn't be the best thing to use in here."

Seu-Feng smiled wryly, patting him on the cheek as if touching a child, "Nice try, but you'd have to get me incredibly willing to disregard all my practiced forms of combat in order to use such a flashy attack like that. Especially just to show off for the likes of you," she then turned around and adjusted a breastplate over her black linen uniform, before grasping her Haori, "its the burden we Captains cannot unload. Going into duty, despite if its convienant or not, is what we swore to do as we taken these positions of distinguished, honorary titles."

"Last resort eh?" he smirked, rifling around an object in his right pocket. "I can understand that. But I can be impressed pretty easily."

Seu-Feng smirked, crossing her arms as she arched her brow, before her voice asked her from behind, "Really?"

WHIZ!

Within a blink of an eye she disappeared before his eyes as she had initiated the Flash Step maneuver that made her almost nigh invisible. It was...almost in comparison to Yoruichi if Akisame would think back to his times as a boy who looked up to a godesss.

"Okay okay, you got me."

He let out a sigh, still retaining his smile. At first he was initially taken aback by her incredible speed, and how similar to Yoruichi the woman was. "She taught you everything, didn't she?"

"Not everything," Seu-Feng said with a tinge of remorse, clenching her knuckles lightly, "the one art that the preceeding Commander-in-Chiefs of the Stealth Force always carried with pride and honor, was Shunko. Not even my Lady could harness its full potential, as it was said to rival the use of even a Bankai at its prime."

"Oh." he replied, looking down slightly as if he regreted bringing her up. "I've heard of Shunko. It's a fused variation of the user's hand to hand prowess and Kido, right?"

"Which is a incredibly difficult art," she answered readily, grasping her Zanpakuto and properly fastening it onto her waist horizontally in a habitual manner, "one must be both a master in the Kido Arts as well as Hand-to-Hand combat in order to utilize its fullest potential. By harnessing its core on the users back and shoulders, this allows all momentum to the limbs to be incredibly augmented. You need a incredibly high amount of stamina and physical resilience as well as complete fluid control over the millions of spiritrons vibrating around your body, and then harness the release of spiritual energy simultaneously with personal speed and physical strength," as she finished adjusting her Zanpakuto, she then turned around to wrap a yellow border-black headband across her forehead, before adjusting her hair into a single braid to let it flow freely down her shoulders past the small of her back, "in other words, if even my late Lady Yoruichi couldn't even perfect it, neither could I. No...I think the next generation will get it right, I'm sure of it."

"If you keep at something for long enough, you're bound to get it right someday." he added, putting his hand on her shoulder reassuringly, and giving her a cool smile along with it. "Who knows? Given enough time and patience, you may just be the first to perfect it after all."

"Yeah," She said before shrugging off his hand, walking towards the exit of the hospital room, "in another decade or so, maybe. If we survive this war, I'll maybe show you a thing or two about it...perhaps you could learn a thing or two from it."

"Might just do it, though from what you've probably guessed, i'm a pretty slow learner." he said, catching up to her as they both left the hospital to greet the shining afternoon sun.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot...."

He then pulled out a black and silver necklace, with a black wolf pendant at it's very center, having it's mouth open as if it was howling with two diamond eyes that one could see themselves in if they looked.

"Here." he said, holding it out for Seu-Feng to take it. "It's an old good luck charm that a chief of a Native American tribe gave to me when I was wandering around the Human World. It's a good luck charm for leaders of warriors of the tribe."

Seu-Feng looked at Akisame strangely, almost as if he was giving the wrong kind of gift to the wrong person. Then, she thought it would be rude to refuse a gift like this, so she extended her hand and grasped it gently, letting it string down to hang in front of her eyes, letting her look at the beautiful reflective diamons engraved within the pendant, "Its beautiful craftsmanship...though I'm pretty sure they don't make these any more," she then looked at him peculiarly, jingling it in emphasis, "are you sure you want to part with something like this?"

He smiled warmly as he put his hands back in his pockets. "I'm sure. I always intended to give it to someone special anyway. Plus if I keep it then it would probably get broken, since it would be in my pocket." he finished, rubbing the back of his head.

Seu-Feng made a blank-looking face as she said, "Figures."

She then pocketed the pendant, making sure it was fastened safely and securely, before heading out of the room, "Did you get an assignment from Head Captain yet? I don't believe I know your specific post within the Soul Society's defenses..."

"As a matter of fact..." he began, shifting his hands to his pockets and following her once more. "...he assigned me to you. I'm to follow your orders like all the other subordinates under your command."

"Great," Seu-Feng looked blank and unamused by the sentiment, "it seems my superior won't forgive me for not subduing you, so he placed the troublemaker within possession of the Stealth Force leader's hands. I guess he's counting on the fact that if you step out of line, I'll put an end to you...how much of a pain this is going to be, I can't even fathom," she grumbled with the blank, bemused expression on her facial features as she walked out of the 4th Division's barracks, vaguely noticing the additional security of some spare 1st Division members, all garbed in their traditional borderline regal attire.

"Hey I'm not that tough." he replied, walking alongside her. "You could end it in one swift movement....unless I'm in Bankai of course." he said, retaining his teasing smile.

"Don't flatter yourself," Seu-Feng said with a fox-like smile, speaking a bit evilly as she narrowed her eyes into sharp corners as she sideglanced at him, "you wouldn't even see me coming. That is...the nature of a Stealth Force Soul Reaper after all, and I am their Commander-in-Chief and Captain. So, even if a Soul Reaper releases the true form of their Bankai, I can still move as fast as if they were standing still...you've not even begun to grasp the true prowess of my abilities."

"How do you think I held out against that Vasto Lorde?" he said back, still smiling in a teasing way. "If my Bankai is activated, physical attacks do very little to no damage to me. The opponent would have to resort to using ranged attacks like Kido to do anything."

He then folded his hands on the back of his head, looking up to the sky. "But then again. You are a Stealth Force Captain after all, and Yoruichi-"

He stopped himself before he could say more, knowing how sensative of a topic Yoruichi was to both of them. "...And there was only one other person capable of finding a hole in it's physical defense."

"You don't need to coddle me," Seu-Feng said in a almost spiteful manner, though she made no inclination at any anger towards him other than his forgetfulness as she fixated her eyes upon the secured road, "I'm an adult and I know how to handle grief when appropiate. Shell shock is something even Captains can find themselves susceptible in, if you haven't already guessed."

He let out a sigh in response. "Sorry. It's just-"

"Captain."

A youthful appearing man then appeared before the two of them. He wore the standard Soul Reaper attire, save for a metal armor piece on his left shoulder and a blue strap that went diagnally towards his lower right waist. His eyes were grey, and his hair was long and blue as he knealt before Seu-Feng in the manner that all subordinates would.

"The Commander has requested an immediate update on your status." he said plainly.

Seu-Feng briefly acknowledged him with a narrowing stare before she spoke back in her professional tone, "Tell the Head Captain I'm back on my feet and ready to fight to the death, if necessary, for the betterment of the Soul Society," she then briefly closed her eyes, before reaching out with her Spiritual Pressure to her outlying men, feeling them move swiftly and silently through the outer reaches of the Rukonagi Districts and the edge of the forests beyond it, "what's the status of our security?"

"It hasn't changed, unfortunately." the man replied, still kneeling. "The Research Department still hasn't been able to discover how the enemy manages to breach our defenses, and at least six of our scouting parties have gone missing in the past two hours."

"Then they aren't far off." Akisame commented to himself, crossing his arms and having a serious expression.

"But that only means that the enemy is holding back the bulk of their forces for when they actually breach our defenses," Seu-Feng deduced, looking over to the horizon in emphasis, "the fact that they're laying low and taking out only the scouting parties means they intend to wait until the last absolute second before deploying their full strength. Even if Ultharon has raised an army as large as he claims it would be suicide for hundreds of Hollows to launch a berserk strike against both the outlying Stealth Forces and the Gate Guardians protecting the wall. They'd need a great deal more bodies or more powerful ones if they'd force the three Divisions off the wall to aid in the fight."

"One of our scouts managed to send a report before going off the hook." the Soul Reaper replied, standing up and folding his hands across his lower back. "They've spotted at least three Vasto Lorde level Hollows. One of them is the supposed Pale Rider himself, and one of the other ones appeared to be a feminine Arrancar. They appeared to be heading towards our east flank."

"Caius," Seu-Feng said with a grit of her teeth before narrowing her eyes, "the fact that the Leader of Ultharon army is heading towards one direction means they intend either a ruse to direct our fighting force to repel them needlessly while they infiltrate another position, or they intend to call upon the bulk of their forces behind them and charge with the support of three Vasto Lorde Hollows."

She then turned her attention back to the officer, speaking in a commanding tone, "I will take Akisame and meet the enemy headlong. Tell all scout parties to pull back and make patrols within the Rukonagi on all angles possible. I don't want infiltrators coming in from opposite directions if this is indeed a ruse."

"Yes ma'am."

With that, the officer used a Flash-Step, leaving the two of them to their devices.

"Ready when you are." Akisame said, looking over to her and smiling. "Captain."

"Right," Seu-Feng said, before shimmering away in a near soundless Flash Step, leading the way for her new subordinate. Hopefully, she could slow them down enough...she hoped.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

"So this is the Eastern Rukonagi District?" Rana said with mild disdain as she traversed across the dirt road of the now abandoned neighbourhoods. Rows upon rows of shacks bunked against each other to make a conglomerate of metalic, ceramic, and brick constructs that barely passed as reasonably living quarters for the citizens of the Soul Society. Within the borders of the Soul Society, it already looked like a near-hellish existence for these pathetic creatures. As they've drawn nearer, she could hardly say the living space was...impressive at all.

"I'm thoroughly disappointed in them for making such a dump of a living space for its citizens," she proclaimed as she closed her eyes, her crimson-black bordered robes swayed within her slow wake and flourished around her impressive figure, her Zanpakuto slightly jingling with each step she took in the Soul Society.

"Did you honestly expect any better from the likes of Soul Reapers?"

Just next to her was her superior, Caius Louisenbairn, on top of his mighty steed while steadily and smoothly traversing the abandoned buildings. "The only thing of concern to a Shinigami is the preservation of it's military might, and the protection of that useless Royal Family."

"Its the arrogance that they think they're in the right when they treat their own kind this way...that sickens me most," Rana said with a hissing sound, looking around the slum-covered landscape. She could faintly feel subtle Spiritual Pressures flowing to and fro just beyond reach of them, apparently taking caution to what they heard happened to their scouts.

"It seems like their gate is the only thing standing in our way," Rana pointed out as they neared the structure of the gargantuan wall, its height only second to the towering walls of Las Noches, as their distance was merely fifty yards away, "and yet they're not sending anyone to attack. Do they think this is just a mere ploy to break away their defenses?"

"Remember General Rana," Caius spoke to her in a subtle and respective tone. "Our objective is not the front gate. With recent events, it is almost certain that the bulk of their defenses will be based on the inside. Our goal here, is to lure them out of the Seireitei, and out here to strengthen their forces and thus leave the inner area past the gate open for the King."

"Right, I'm just saying-"

PHEEEEEW!

"-incoming!" Rana spoke aloud as she leaped to the side as a large projectile, over the size of a grown man, flew towards the group, with enough concussive force that it caused a pillar upheaved from the earth, with a wave of dust in its wake.

Caius had felt the oncoming attack before Rina ever even spoke the words, having used his Sonido to avoid the blast, his horse doing the same. He reappeared on top of one of the shacks, still on horseback as he looked out towards the source of the attack.

"Well now. You came earlier than expected." he said to the attacker.

As Rana observed the projectile from a safe distance, she could tell it was incredibly dense mineral as through the impact it stuck out of the ground without as much of a scratch on it. It was easily her size, with a girth about a meter & a half, with it being perfectly shaved to a smooth surface with slight spotch marks from large hands grabbing it.

A large, bestial appearing man appeared with a stomp onto the ground, as his appearance was as dramatic as his attack. His face gleamed with an evil, feral grin as he showed off yellow teeth with his mane-like hair hanging down his tall back. Although slightly crouched, he stood over two stories tall, with thick roiling muscles curled around his limbs and torso, his bandoleer roman-esque outfit showed that he was a warrior and didn't have any particular affiliation anybody would recognize but the Rukonagi Easter District.

"You shall go no further, Hollow scum!" Kaiwan spoke aloud as he stood to his full height, already unholstering another of his human sized spikes from his bandoleer as he spoke, "you will be a fine addition to my collection, with your masks and skulls slung on my pikes! For I, Kaiwan, Guardian of the Eastern Blue Stream Gate, will slay you where you tread!"

To this, Caius gave a reluctant sigh, looking down slightly in dissapointment. "A Gate Guardian? How insulting for the Gotei 13 to send one as pathetic as yourself to stop beings of our calibur."

Kaiwan growled, moved at a incredible pace as he disappeared from sight, rising high above the airspace where Caius was, throwing down his spike with a incredibly ear-piercing screech as it reached him and his steed within moments, "YOU DARE MOCK ME, DECREPIT CREATURE?!"

"I wonder if he can even feel our Spiritual Pressures?" Rana asked with a bland, unimpressed look on her face as she saw the Gate Guardian engage them in combat.

TANG!!!!!!!!!

With just one arm, Caius blocked the oncoming attack, using no visible effort as he grasped the weapon with his hand. He then looked at the gate guardian with two piercing red eyes.

"Begone, abomination."

SPLURCH!!!!!!

A massive cut appeared on Kaiwan's gut, a green surge of electricity shooting out from it as Caius let go of the weapon. Just to the building across from them, another figure, the source of the new attack appeared, his back facing Kaiwan and his head tilted back to look at him with an almost disqusted face.

Rana crossed her arms, not even bothering to fight against such a low level opponent. She just decided to watch the prowess of her fellow Hollows, and see how quickly they could take him down.

"GAUGH!" Kaiwan clutched his gut as he fell to the earth with a mighty crash, dust and debris flew towards different directions. However, Kaiwan managed to slam his fist into the earth, standing back up as his left hand clutched his wound while snarling at the other Hollow that had attacked him, "beat me at my own game, will ya?! I'll show you! I'll show you scum what Kaiwan the Guardian of the Blue Stream Gate can really do!"

Grasping multiple spikes simultaneously, he moved with renewed speed towards the new target, moving at surprising speed despite his stomach wound he bore. With a wide-eyed manical gleeful expression on his face, he leaped and appeared behind the new attacker, throwing two spikes towards him with inhuman strength before rebounding to another position, throwing wave after wave of spikes at his opponent...before reappearing above him, unsheathing his butcher blade and swinging a precise, brutal strike towards its neck, shouting, "DIE HOLLOW SCUM!!!!"

WHOOSH!!!!!

SPLURCH!!!!

The new Hollow disappeared, then reappeared just behind Kaiwan. This time, an even bigger cut appeared on the giant's shoulder and went all the way down to his lower left waist in a diagnal direction.

"Such a waste of my time." he commented in a raspy, hollow like voice.

"GAUK!" Kaiwan's eyes widened with bewilderment and pain as he fell down heavily, unable to even utter a response in the wake of a devestating attack that was inflicted upon his person.

Rana sighed as she flicked some of her bangs off her face with her hand, "Well...that was boring to watch. I was hoping he'd hold back a little so it'd last a little longer."

"No point in it." Leon replied, letting one of his razor sharp fingernails come out as he examined it. "Something like him wasn't even worth our time. Besides, we came here to fight real opponents, not pushovers."

"I agree." Caius said as he and his steed landed back on the ground. "Let's keep this up. The more commotion we cause, the more forces they send out to attack us."

PHEW-PHEW-PHEW!

A number of throwing knives and projectiles came upon the group, both accurate and more lethal than the prior, despite their downgraded size. The silent shadows that blurred around them at random, but did not come out to engage outright made it clear. The Stealth Force Reapers have arrived!

"Get down!" Rana spoke out as she used her Hierro to batter the majority of the projectiles before they reached a potentially viable point, but also used a number of graceful flips and sidestepping in order to avoid them, not having to move too much despite the rain of weapons coming upon her person, "they may be just Reapers, but they're still capable of harming us. Don't hold back against them!"