Shadow and Wind Meet

The walls surrounding the Seiretei were burning. Black, thick smoke billowed out from gaping holes, where ceros and errantly-shot kido spells had struck the ramparts. On top of one of the towers that were placed at regular intervals along the walls, Faust looked down at the carnage that was taking place at the closest gate to him, the Western Gate. He took in a deep breath, absorbing the smells of burning bodies and the like. It was exhilarating.

But he had other things to do. He was going to go into the Seiretei and have some fun spreading chaos. Faust could already sense a couple of captain-level reiatsus that were still inside the Seiretei. In fact... he was sure that one of them was coming his way. I guess I should do something about that... we've gotta make these shinigami work their socks off, after all. Faust sonido'd off the tower, the tiles cracking from where he took off. He landed on the roof of another tall building, and sat down, twirling his zanpakuto as he waited for the captain to come to him.

As it turned out, Erika's target had stopped. Erika didn't stop to think about why, for the reason was fairly clear. She wasn't trying to conceal her reiatsu, so it was radiating out like a beacon. Her target knew she was coming, and was waiting for her. Some Captains would criticize her tactics in this regard, bu Erika saw it as a good thing. Since the target knew she was coming - and was clearly a high-powered Arrancar - the act of waiting for her meant that this particular being was not massacring the ranks of weaker shinigami.

Erika arrived on the rooftop with her zanpakuto, a nodachi in sealed form, already drawn. She raised it, aiming the point at her target... Faust. "I'm surprised," she said. "Usually animals flee when in the presence of a predator." Erika was alert now, ready for an attack. The taunt was a potential tactic - for one, it gave her a little time to take in the arrancar's appearance and weapon. On the other hand, it could serve a useful purpose in aggravating him as well.

Faust tilted his head, looking at the female captain who had popped up and began talking to him quite rudely. "Is that so? I view it in a different way." Faust swept his arm across the battlefield in the Seiretei. "I view you captains as the mother-hens protecting your precious little chicks from the foxes." His grinned slowly disappeared, and his other hand rested on one of the tiles on the roof. "Well... if you're not going to introduce yourself, I shall take the initiative. I am Faust Darkhart, an Espada in Bracamarte's hollow army, and I am here to have fun, pillage, and slaughter as I please... starting with you."

In a flash, Faust ripped the tile from the its place and threw it right at the captain's head. He jumped onto his feet, drawing his sword and slashing it in front of him and horizontally to himself, creating a huge gash and causing the side of the building where the captain had been to crumble away. "Now what's your name, soul reaper? I don't want to ask in this manner again."

Ducking under the thrown tile was an easy feat, considering she only had to move about a half a foot below it. Her next move was also fairly easy, leading Erika to believe that this arrancar was toying with her. It was unlikely that he truly believed that such attacks could harm a Captain. Erika leaped gracefully from her slightly ducked position, landing off to Faust's left, alongside the destroyed edge of the building. She couldn't help but smirk at his words though.

"Even you should know that the mother hen can be ferocious when her chicks are threatened," Erika replied, although she wasn't attacking just yet. "I only introduce myself to those that are worthy of hearing my introduction. You are not." While she spoke, making sure to keep her eyes on the arrancar, Erika slipped off her haori, and tossed it away, to drift away on the wind.

Fully expecting an attack within that time, Erika did not launch her own.

Faust's shoulders slumped, his face showing a more stoic expression as he saw the captain just stand there, waiting for him. "A mother hen can be ferocious, eh? But in the end, the mother hen is still a mother hen." Faust rested his zanpakuto over his right shoulder as he eyed Erika. I gave you my name, so don't you think it's only fair that I know your name and rank as well?" Faust stood there stubbornly. I'll wait for a little bit, then I'll start fighting. But it wouldn't feel right savoring the sight of blood if I didn't know who it belonged to.

"A mother hen is quite dangerous when paired against the tiniest of fleas," Erika said, sliding her left foot forward, raising her nodachi into a stance reminiscent of kendo. "You have yet to prove your worth in this world. "You will hear my name and rank when you prove that you are worthy of hearing it." Having grown tired of the talk, Erika solidified her grip on the hilt of her sword, and launched forward. She moved quickly - far faster than any of the shinigami Faust had come across so far in Soul Society - and she did not simply charge in a straight line. Each step took Erika side to side, in a slightly different amount. She planned to end her charge with a strong vertical slash, at the maximum range of her nodachi, which was much longer than a normal katana. It was a simple attack, one that was easy to convert to alternate attacks as well.

Faust had to chuckle a bit as the wordplay continued between the two. "As much as I enjoy this exchange of wit, I guess it is time we take this seriously." As soon as he finished this, the captain rushed forward towards him. He was surprised by the speed that she was moving - Who would have thought that beings could rival an Espada's sonido? - as he kept a close eye on the way she was zigzagging. Faust expected her to continue until she was right next to him, but she stopped short of that spot. An instant later, Faust realized why, as her zanpakuto extended to reach him, swinging downwards upon his head. Faust pushed off his right foot, flying onto the top of the adjacent building as Erika's attack slashed through the now-wrecked roof.

"Now, now, us hollows are already doing a fine job of destroying your precious Soul Society. It's just overkill for soul reapers to cause damage themselves." In a flash, Faust sent a bala that exploded at the ground right in front of Erika, sending bits of tile flying in her direction and blocking her view of him for a moment. He used sonido to appear to the right and behind Erika, delivering a sideways slash with his sword towards her unprotected back.

Sure enough, Faust did not remain in place to take her attack. As he dodged, Erika pulled her swing, so that she did not follow through and slam her nodachi into the roof, avoiding doing any further damage to it - not that she would even if the attack went through. She wasn't swinging recklessly after all, her attacks were aimed to hit her opponent and nothing more.

"I see no damage caused by my blade," Erika replied simply, turning as the ground before her exploded upwards. Since the attack hadn't been directed at her but in front of her, it was safe to assume that the true attack was coming from another direction. The only logical direction for the attack to be launched from was from behind, since Erika herself shielded only that area from the shrapnel of the blast.

So, expecting the attack from behind, Erika whipped around just as Faust appeared, her nodachi coming up in a one armed vertical block at her side. The weapon's size and positioning allowed her to stop the blow fairly easily. Her other hand, however, was on the offensive, palm aimed back at Faust while she uttered a few simple words. "Hado #33: Sokatsui." Faust would have very little time to move as the blue fireball was loosed point blank at him.

Faust was a little surprised that Erika completely blocked his slash, though not too much. In hindsight, anyone could have guessed where I would attack. Faust narrowed his eyes as the captain's other arm raised to aim at him, her palm glowing with energy. He pushed his feet off the ground, while at the same time releasing a bala to his left. Using Erika's zanpakuto, which was still blocking Faust's sword, as a pivot, Faust spun to his right as the fireball roared right past him, burning the top part of his left arm. He landed away from Erika, gritting his teeth from the burning pain in his arm.

"I must say, it's been a while since I've been matched so evenly," Faust admitted, ripping his dangling sleeve from the rest of his shirt. "But I don't like fighting fair; it's much more fun to overwhelm your opponent in an instant. That's why I think it's time I show you why I am the master of the shadows."

Faust thrust his sword into the roof's surface. As soon as the tip touched his shadow, the sword seemed to melt into the shadow. A column of energy erupted around Faust, as he looked up, bloodlust in his eyes. "Whisper... El Diablo Reservado!"

As her opponent landed, Erika turned to face him, with her nodachi raised before her in one hand. She had a bit of an amused grin on her face as he spoke, apparently finding humor in what he had to say. "Still underestimating the shinigami," Erika mused, bringing her nodachi up to a high stance with it over her right shoulder. Instead of bringing her other hand up on the hilt, however, she used it to support the flat of the blade three quarters of the way down. She watched like this as his transformation took place, noting that there was not a whole lot of change. What she did take note of was the usage of the shadow, and the fact that he no longer cast one himself. Even if Erika believed she wouldn't have a huge problem with this fight, she was not so arrogant as to believe she could take on an Espada's resurrection with just her sealed sword.

"Not a good plan when you have yet to see a Captain in battle." Erika finished her statement, just as a swirling of air began to gather around the tip of her nodachi. "Toppuu, Kyoufuu." The swirling air turned opaque, becoming a sort of mist or fog as it swirled back to engulf the length of the sword. The column of swirling mist lengthened then, to a point just over six feet, before it faded away to reveal Erika's shikai. Her weapon, in its true form, took the shape of a guan dao, a weapon she was far more proficient with when compared to the nodachi. "I will let you in on a secret, Faust. I am the master of my own domain. Perhaps, if you prove yourself, I will show it to you."

As the column of energy subsided, Faust stood up, his skin now covered in a dark and shadowy substance. He raised his zanpakuto, scowling darkly at Erika's words. "I do not have to prove anything to you, soul reaper. If anything, you have to prove that you can survive my first attack in this form."

With that, Faust activated his "Shadow Step" technique. He decided that he'd only need to gain control of two shadows: one of the many around him, and Erika's own shadow.

Faust suddenly thought of something that might catch the captain off guard, just enough for him to go in for the kill. He glanced at the shadow of one of the wall's towers falling upon the roof. "Or maybe I'll just find other people to kill. See ya!" Faust dashed to that shadow, disappearing into it as if it were a pool of water.

But this was all part of Faust's plan. His zanpakuto appeared in Erika's shadow behind her, his arm extending as he stabbed his sword towards the captain's torso. He was hoping that the captain would be momentarily puzzled by the combination of the Espada's decision to leave the fight and his shadow ability. And the first attack...

Faust's actions did succeed in one aspect - Erika was somewhat surprised that he turned his back on her, and ran to jump into the shadows of the tower. This confirmed Erika's suspicions - he was able to move into, and more than likely through shadows. Erika narrowed her eyes. It was quite unlikely that Faust would simply leave - after being so high and mighty earlier, she doubted he would leave without finishing their engagement.

So, the moment after Faust faded into the shadow, Erika leaped into the air. The idea was to give her a better view on the area, temporarily, since she could not remain in the sky indefinitely in the Seireitei. This would hopefully let her see where Faust popped out, and allow her to attack from above. As luck would have it though, this very action saved her from taking a serious wound. Instead, the sword cut into her side as she leaped away, leaving just a light gash in her side - something that could be ignored. What couldn't though, is what this told Erika.

Faust could move through shadows. The shot of pain through her side had prevented her from using her full strength, and as such her leap was much shallower. Twisting in the air, Erika pointed her finger back at the spot Faust had appeared from. "Hado #4: Byakurai." The bolt of yellow energy shot forth at the area she had been, obliterating the part of the roof where she had been hoping.

Meanwhile, Erika's jump took her near the edge of the building, where her shadow would appear far below on the ground, and on the wall of the next buildin over - far enough away that she would have plenty of time to act. "That's an interesting trick," she said, taking a hand off her guan dao briefly to quickly inspect her wound.

It would have been an understatement to say that Faust was a bit disappointed that he had not killed his target. Damnit! This takes away part of my advantage!. With the top half of his head sticking out of the shadow, Faust saw Erika turn around and shoot a spell in his direction. He quickly ducked back in the shadow, getting away just in time. He reappeared in the shadow cast by a doorsign, looking up at the captain.

"It doesn't really matter whether you know about my abilities. I hardly think you can take into account the hundreds of shadows that exist all around you." With that, Faust quickly drew up a half-charged cero. Just as it was about to shoot out, Faust thrust his hand into a shadow on the wall beside him.

This same hand poked out of the shadow that Erika was currently casting, and a cero erupted from the tip of Faust's finger, aimed right at the captain.

"I guess I was right in assuming you had never fought a Captain before," Erika said, spinning the guan dau around into a lower, somewhat defensive grip on the side of the building. Now that she knew that he could move through shadows, either with all of his being or just an arm, Erika knew in part what she could expect when he moved into the shadows. It would be an attack from another direction, most likely the rear as that was the most difficult position to guard.

So, when Faust charged part of a Cero and shoved his hand into a nearby shadow, Erika was already moving. With her shikai released, one thing was easy to notice - she moved much faster, much more fluidly, as if an external force were aiding her movements. Even without shunpo, she was fast enough to put herself out of danger from the cero. Erika did not stop there; two long steps carried her the distance to where Faust was standing, and the guan dao's crescent blade came around from below, in an attack that would catch him if he tried to slip into the shadows at the last moment as if to dodge an attack from above.