[BitPR2] Extra Episode 8: Hot and Cold

[Dorizzit]

[Ikari]
Abandoned Warehouse

The inside of the warehouse is dark, even in the middle of the day. The only light comes from the small windows lining the top part of the walls, rendering the inside of the massive building dimly illuminated other than a few slanted columns of light. The building's original lighting is long gone, either burnt out or broken. The floor is completely bare of any obstacles, a single long, flat expanse of concrete. The walls, really, are the only part of the building worthy of note; long, flowing patterns of gently glowing silver line the them, tracing numerous and powerful defensive wards. They are designed not to prevent an assault from the outside, but to ensure that nothing within the building can damage the walls.

The one who inscribed the walls, Nikolina Kummerow, now leans stands in one of the beams of light, a book held splayed in one hand. She has been here for some time, arriving several hours early in order to create the wards. Now, however, it is approaching the designated time she had given to her potential student, passed on along with the address through an intermediary. Her own duties had allowed no time for a previous, in-person meeting.

[strawberryman]

Shizuka Misaki was intensely disappointed in this arrangement. But her duty to Yui Moto at this time was unquestionable. And so, she agreed. But of course there were no questions that she wasn't happy with it.

That said, Nikolina may be surprised by the fact that Misaki walks in exactly an hour before the meeting time, clad in her streamlined black riding suit, and removing her helmet to reveal her plain black hair and natural amber eyes. She has a seat several meters from Nikolina, looking straight without a word.

Was it a psychological ploy? Was it merely extreme punctuality? No, assassins knew that missions were a matter of being as close to the appointed time as possible, to avoid interference. It may well be some manner of subtle insult, but her expression is blank, so who could really tell.

Misaki will wait in silence until the appointed time, or Nikolina saying anything.

[Dorizzit]

The two will wait for the entire hour before the assigned start of the training. Nikolina, for her part, doesn't move an inch; she stands, perfectly straight, only the fingers of her hand moving to turn the pages of her book. She won't react to anything less than a physical assault from Misaki, not even acknowledging the girl's presence. When the assigned time comes, however, she immediately closes the book and slides it into her messenger bag, then turns to face Misaki.

"Highly talented, yet unstable. These were the words that Yui Moto used to describe you to Lord Hein Weisweide."

She folds her hand behind her back, and begins circling around Misaki. She steps in and out of the light as she moves, but it should be no trouble to keep track of her location.

"Tell me, Shizuka Misaki, what does it mean to be a Quincy?"

[strawberryman]

Shikuka Misaki does not so much as react for a few moments. She just blankly looks at her 'teacher'. Then she responds dully. "Strife. Murder. Destruction. Conquest. We are the chosen race of the gods, or god. The world of the living is ours. And we must ensure it's ours no matter how many lives or spirits we need to end."

"The path of the Quincy is a path of destruction." She says this so matter-of-factly, that other quincies may have gotten chills from the obviously antisocial and psychotic response she just gave.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina nods, once, although whether from approval or acknowledgement, it is impossible to tell.

"Good. Many Quincies are too squeamish to admit to the darker aspects of what we are. But wrong. That is a part of what we are, but it is not the core essence."

She stops moving directly in front of Misaki.

"Now, this is your first test. Try to kill me. I've made arrangements so that if I do not return, you will immediately be promoted into the Kaiserlich Rössel without repercussion and without further testing or training."

[strawberryman]

Misaki looks blankly at Nikolina as she explains the test. It's the kind of blank stare that is only really delivered by those who have seen death. Usually by their own hands. When she finishes... she is gone.

It's only a burst of hirenyaku, however, as she is in front of and slightly above Nikolina; reishi forms into a dagger into her hand, spectral gauntlets formed over them. She jabs the dagger straight for her instructor's forehead.

Well, at least she didn't have any hesitations.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina's eyes stare back into Misaki's, easily matching her gaze. While Misaki's gaze is blank and empty, Nikolina's is cold, but full. The look of someone who once had the same eyes, but has moved beyond that point. Compassion is the wrong word to describe what Nikolina's expression conveys; it would be more accurate to call it comprehension.

Nikolina's eyes widen slightly in alarm as Misaki explodes into motion, the unstable girl proving to be much faster than her would-be instructor expected. Even so, Nikolina manages to slide out of the way of the knife, which tears open a small slash in her coat and draws a thin line of blood underneath. Despite the unexpected pain, Nikolina makes no reaction to the cut; she is no stranger to injury.

"Weak."

[strawberryman]

Misaki continues her assault, driving downwards with a leg to Nikolina's calf in an attempt to hobble her. At the same time, she corrects the angle of attack by slashing with a dagger in her offhand, aiming for her neck. The student's eyes are also slightly widened, but not out of surprise. Her pupils constricted, she is beginning to touch on what one might call a 'battle high'.

An assassin like her probably was used to killing in one strike.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina adjusts her stance almost instantaneously, adjusting the position of her leg so that the brunt of Misaki's force fails to properly connect with her calf. Meanwhile, she raises one arm to block Misaki's strike, further twisting around and seizing the assassin's wrist if she doesn't respond quickly. At the same time, Nikolina jabs an open palm towards Misaki's diaphragm, trying to knock the wind out of her.

[strawberryman]

Misaki does not even blanch as her attempts are foiled. Instead, she simply twists her own wrist to grasp Nikolina's as well, then as her instructor attempts to strike, she feels a tug on her arm to the side as Misaki reaches for her hip then pulls out a seele schneider, the blade forming mere inches away as the young assassin attempts to amputate the limb with a simultaneous pivot to avoid it.

She's using her Ransotengai mastery to pull at Nikolina's strings and swerve her arm off track.

[Dorizzit]

A combat application of Ransotengai. Interesting.

Rather than resist the pull, Nikolina moves with Misaki and pivots into her side, pinning the arm holding the Seele Schneider between their bodies. While this would be a temporary measure at best, in the same motion she attempts to throw Misaki over her and onto the ground, an expertly executed action that leaves little room to escape.

[strawberryman]

And so, Misaki is thrown, only eliciting a grunt from the assassin. But the fight is far from over. Even as she hangs onto the seele schneider in her other hand, she flicks a handful of spiritual daggers up at Nikolina's torso and head.

Depending on how Nikolina responds to this, she rolls away from the younger quincy and flips into a crouch, dispersing the gauntlets on her hands and forming an actual bow in her hands.

"How many?" She blurts out. There is no context to it.

[Dorizzit]

In a truly impressive display of skill, Nikolina's hands blur in a swift motion and catch each knife in midair before casting them aside. Although she doesn't form her own bow, she does allow her cross to slide free of her sleeve, a beautifully crafted piece that seems more of a work of art than a weapon. She adjusts into a combat stance.

"I never kept track. It doesn't matter."

[strawberryman]

"You're right."" However, Misaki's minor distraction pays off as she finishes shaping her bow; a rather odd design, with two circles near each limb. With a leap back, she fires two arrows in quick succession from the air at Nikolina's legs.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina blurs out of the way of the arrows, traveling through a series of Hirenkyaku movements all over the room. At some point, her bow, an equally elegant weapon to the cross, unfolds completely into its full form. She pauses in one place, lining up a shot on Misaki for a split second, but vanishes again directly before firing. She reappears in the rafters above, aiming a shot to pierce through Misaki's hand.

[strawberryman]

What may surprise Nikolina is that the moment the arrows strike the spot where she used to be, they explode like fireworks, sending forth a double-barrage of roughly two-dozen arrows. Misaki has the sense to jump out of the way, landing herself in the rafters, but Nikolina may or may not catch a few arrows while she's darting around on ground level.

In that time, Misaki has already begun to strafe with hirenyaku herself, firing an arrow with each jump; each arrow exploding like a raging pincushion as it hits contact with anything but Nikolina. She's not really worrying about accuracy at this point, just keeping movement to prevent Nikolina from getting a bead.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina modifies her actions at the unexpected burst patterns of the arrows, causing her to immediately head to the rafters rather than darting throughout the room. Nikolina makes a minimum of movement as Misaki fires on her, remaining on the same beam. She pulls back the string of her bow, keeping it pointed horizontally, but making no significant effort to track Misaki with it.

If an opportunity presents itself allowing Nikolina to get off a shot that she can be sure will hit, she does so with an aim to disable, but otherwise bides her time.

[strawberryman]

Misaki fires three more shots in a triangle pattern around Nikolina for maximum exposure probability before disappearing into hirenyaku entirely.

Presuming Nikolina has the good sense to get out of the metaphorical briar patch, Misaki is quite suddenly in her face with a seele schneider in each hand, slicing for her bow hand with one blade while going for a more lethal decapitation attempt with the other.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina's bow dissolves instantly as Misaki assaults her, and she catches the assassin by the wrists, turning her momentum against her and once again trying to throw the younger Quincy away from her. Unlike the last time, however, this throw is much stronger, aiming to send Misaki hurtling towards the ground hard enough to inflict serious injury if she doesn't recover properly.

[strawberryman]

Misaki turns into a roll, hitting the ground (shutting off the reishi flow of the seele schneider to prevent accidental injury) and then immediately disappearing into hirenkyaku.

From there, she begins to take on a much more skirmishing route. Quickly phasing in and out of hirenyaku, she makes quick, not easily overextended strikes between each jump in an attempt to overwhelm her teacher with a sheer number of cuts. Her advantage at this point seems to be speed, and she is capitalizing on it.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina jumps down to the floor of the warehouse once more, and begins dodging Misaki's attacks with the same calculated precision as before.

"Impressive. I acknowledge your skill, however unrefined it may be."

She holds one hand up in front of her.

"But your time is up. Eiszeit."

A pulsating sphere of ice appears in Nikolina's hand, then releases a massive wave of ice that covers the entire room. The walls, floor, and ceiling all become covered in ice, and Misaki herself is at risk of being frozen solid. Once the wave reaches the walls and ceiling, it retracts back to Nikolina, reapplying the ice.

[strawberryman]

Misaki's assault is paused for a few moments as ice overtakes the warehouse.

Kneeling against the rafters as hidden as possible, Misaki breathes slowly, not letting her breath hang in the air by pursing her lips. Her left arm is rigid and pale, with bits of frost hanging on it. She knew that this was probably a losing battle. But a battle it was. And assassins do not lose. They win, or flee. Flight was not a choice. And so, she had to fight.

Perhaps a more reasonable person would cede. But Shizuka Misaki was not well known for her reason. Veins of orange form around her arms and neck, and then... she jumps into hirenkyaku once more.

There's an audible boom as Misaki appears in front of Nikolina again, her form steaming as she slices for Nikolina's arms, her face, anything in reach. There was no refined aim. Simply frenzied, powerful blows, her eyes widened and pupils pinpoint.

She seems to be sloughing off the ice as it coats her body, as well, almost like her natural temperature had increased.

She's not likely to give up, especially in this state.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina slides between Misaki's strikes with extraordinary speed and grace, neatly avoiding each of the assassin's strikes. While she certainly doesn't possess the raw speed displayed by Misaki, she has impressive reflexes and the uncanny ability to predict the strikes aimed at her. It quickly becomes obvious that although a single good blow would end the fight, Misaki will never get the chance. Upon being provided with a single opening, Nikolina launches into the air and claps her hands in front of her before spreading them wide in front of her.

"Graupel."

She releases a spread of small pellets of ice that launch themselves in zigzagging patterns across the room, impacting like small meteorites that explode into disproportionately large shards of ice. If these shards contact Misaki, they will then expand further, weighing her down. They also refuse to melt off, unlike previously. Regardless of whether the attack connects or not, Nikolina uses the opening created by Misaki dodging or being hit to appear behind her and catch the assassin in a choke hold. As soon as she does so, diamond-hard ice begins spreading over Misaki's body, freezing her in place. Finally, as she does this, she slams Misaki into the ground, adding concussive assault to the laundry list of attacks.

"Gefroren Wirkung."

[strawberryman]

There is really very little Misaki can do in this addled state. She was outmatched. But she wasn't going without a fight. She stabs, bites, and bucks to the last second...

But still ends up on the floor, unconscious. And frozen. Probably best not to leave her that way for too long, cold slows the bodies' activity.

[Dorizzit]

Well aware of the threat the cold poses to Misaki, Nikolina immediately melts the ice off of her body, then evaporates the ice coating the room as if it had never been there. Reaching into her bag, Nikolina withdraws a pair of chemical warmers wrapped in cloth. Briefly checking the assassin's temperature to ensure she isn't in critical condition, Nikolina then strategically lays the warmers the younger Quincy. Nikolina is skilled enough that none of Misaki's injuries are serious apart from mild frostbite, which the warmers will be able to treat. Once she is satisfied, Nikolina moves back to one of the columns of light within the warehouse, withdraws her book once more, and waits for her student to regain consciousness.

[strawberryman]

It doesn't take quite as long for Misaki to recover as a normal human would. But that's a given, of course.

But there's no sudden movement as she does so. She simply lays there for a few moments, then removes the heating pads, sitting up and simply resuming her blank, meaningless stare. Before Nikolina even considers speaking, however, the young assassin breaks the silence.

"...you're different." There's a reflexive twitch in her hand. Maybe she considered trying again? Or perhaps she's just thinking about the lives she's ended. Worth nothing more than a twitch to her. "I have a lot to learn." Wow, some humility? Who'd have thought. "...But I will not fail next time." Not a threat. Simply factual.

At the back of her head, she thinks of Yoshi.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina finishes her sentence and snaps the book closed as Misaki awakes, allowing the assassin to make the first move. She is impassive as Misaki speaks. Practically a speech from the quiet young girl.

"Good. First lesson: there's always someone better. Never enter a fight assuming that you will win. Equally, no fight is absolute. I underestimated you and it cost me-" she taps at the wound Misaki inflicted earlier, now covered with a thin sheet of ice "-because I knew I was stronger than you.

Abruptly, she shifts tracks.

"Would you like to take another guess at the meaning of the Quincy? Or should I simply tell you?"

[strawberryman]

"What are we?" More rhetoric. More 'greater calling'. These were the things Misaki expected. But she's a killer. It can be justified as much as one wishes. But killing is killing.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina fixes an intense gaze on Misaki.

"Before we go any further, there is something I should explain. This is not idle rhetoric. It is not a justification of what we do. We are the Mortal World's immune system; we will obliterate all invaders, without remorse. It is justice, but it is more. It is our purpose, regardless of petty ideals of "right" or "wrong." I'm sure that my statements seem to be unnecessarily verbose bulls*** to you, but they are as much a part of this training as anything else."

Nikolina begins pacing.

"The Quincy first took up arms in response to the incompetence of the Shinigami. They were too slow. Too inefficient. Too incompetent. Our predecessors took up arms because they would no longer accept their loved ones being ripped from them by unchecked Hollows. Because they would not allow the fate of humanity to be determined by those who had already passed from this world. To be a Quincy is to choose to fight for a reason, or person, you believe in. The person I care the most about in the world is my sister; for her sake, I have made my body nearly untouchable. So that she will not be harmed, I have devoted all of my training to defense."

Nikolina stops moving, once again looking at Misaki.

"The words 'highly talented, yet unstable' were applied to my sister and I as well, when we were first trained. We began formal training at age 12. The file I received about you was irritatingly vague, but indicates that you have been training for most of your life. Yet, as I believe I have conclusively proven, I am stronger than you. My desire to protect my sister has given me the strength to achieve this."

She ***** her head to one side.

"Do you have a person or ideal that you care for?"

[strawberryman]

Misaki's gaze is as blank as ever, until Nikolina asks her question. Then there is a second of doubt, hesitance. Somewhat out of character, one might say.

"...yes. But emotions make you sloppy. I can't be sloppy." There is some minute hesitance, but the girl seems as trapped in her own rhetoric as she expects any others to be.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina nods.

"Emotions can make you sloppy, yes. They can cloud your sight and confuse you. But they can also be a source of infinite power. I have shown you this beyond a shadow of a doubt. Suppressing your emotions, in the long run, will not benefit you any more than letting them run wild. It will stunt your power. Prevent you from protecting your ideal. What you need is balance. Accept the emotions as part of you, use them to fuel yourself and your power without being capriciously ruled by them. There is a middle ground between utter suppression and absolute lack of control, and it is in this balance that the path to true strength is found."

[strawberryman]

"So you are saying that my father, and Moto-sama are wrong." Her eyes narrow. But it's obvious she's looking for a direct answer.

[Dorizzit]

"If they have told you otherwise, then yes."

There is no hesitation.

[strawberryman]

There is another break in the conversation as Misaki stares at her instructor, still with that ever-blank expression.

"Good. I hated my father." Well that may have been unexpected. "And Yui is my employer. For now." Succession is a given, Yui does have a son after all.

"But you understand if I don't trust you. I only trust one person." It's up to Nikolina's imagination on that one.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina nods.

"I would not expect you to trust me. I am unworthy of trust by nature. As long as you listen to what I have to teach, I don't care what you think of me, or what your desires or goals are. Your thoughts are your own; for now, you are useful to the Zerreißen Himmel, and I will train you to better fulfill that role. Why you fight, who you fight for, these are not things that matter to me. That said, I have a warning as well. If you ever take action against Hein Weisweide or the Zerreißen Himmel, I will execute you myself. Weigh your options very carefully before you make that choice."

[strawberryman]

"I thought you read my file. I'm a killer. Not an idiot." Misaki tilts her head. Her tone is the closest thing to teasing that most people that know her have heard.

There is probably an unspoken understanding, however, that even if she wouldn't do it, it is her habit to always consider the possibilities.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina inclines her head.

"Fair enough. Now, we will begin by evaluating and training your basic skills. Speaking of your file, it mentioned a lack of familiarity with Ginto techniques. We will begin there, as it is a specialty of mine. The use of Ginto is regarded by many as being unwieldy and difficult to apply in combat. This is correct. With appropriate tactics or preparation, however, these limitations can be overcome, and Ginto provides access to a wealth of unique capabilities that cannot be..."


Do you want to play out any of the basic training, or skip straight to the next big scene?

[strawberryman]

Misaki listens quietly, toying with the handle of the seele schneider, but never activating it.

A skip is fine.

[Dorizzit]

The next months prove to be a combination of education and brutality. Nikolina is a pitiless and ruthless instructor, pushing her pupil to the very limits of her abilities, but never quite beyond. She moves methodically among each area of Quincy skill, training Misaki until she has a very thorough understanding of the basics. Once this is done, Nikolina determines the areas that Misaki has the most affinity for, and helps that talent to further develop until it is combat ready. In a few situations, she also passes off control to her sister to elaborate on areas that Nikolina is less familiar with, such as close combat applications of Seele Schneider and Blut Arterie. Although not as professional as her sister, Isalda is still very skilled and, with some unheard prodding, keeps on track enough to impart a wealth of useful information. The lessons provided by both are lightly interspersed with more philosophy; as before, however, it always serves a purpose with the end goal being the achievement of a driven but focused state of mind merged with enlightened self-fulfillment. Unlike the rest of the training, these sections are not enforced; ideas are introduced, their logic explained, and then they are never mentioned again. Misaki is free to take or leave any of it.

As basic training draws to a close, Misaki enters the warehouse one day to find it fully illuminated by the overhead lighting. Nikolina stands at the far end of the warehouse, a large, sealed box marked with the emblem of the Zerreißen Himmel next to her.

"Only the most advanced sections of our training are left."

She holds up two fingers.

"We can proceed in one of two ways. Are you prepared to risk death if it will give you the chance to achieve greater power?"

[strawberryman]

Misaki is ever the efficient and questionless student. What qualms she has with the teaching, she keeps to herself. She takes to every skill with remarkable proficiency; clearly, this young woman is quite gifted indeed. Or perhaps, much like many martial arts movies suggest, her mind is simply emptied of other distractions. She has been sculpted for this purpose. And the purpose, being very good at killing.

To the philosophy... she says nothing. But she only takes what is applicable to her own goals. The advancement of the Moto family, and her darling Yoshiro.

--

Misaki observes her surroundings. Not out of hesitation, but rather, comprehension. Her eyes scan the crate. Then carefully over Nikolina. Her response is measured and robotic as ever.

"Yes."

[Dorizzit]

Looking around reveals something useful: with her new-found understanding of Ginto, Misaki can see that Nikolina has significantly improved the usual wards added to the walls of the warehouse. Previously, she used three sets of all-purpose wards. Now, a number of smaller, more specific wards have been added to the walls, protecting against certain types of attacks. Lightning, fire, noise, and a dozen other forms of attack would prove far less effective against the walls were they attempted. Picking up the box on the floor, Nikolina strides forward.

"Good. Put this on."

Nikolina drops the box on the ground to the floor and slides it to Misaki. Inside is a modified Sanrei glove.

Do not move. Do not think. Gather as much power as you can into yourself. Until you are prepared to explode. Hold it all in."

[strawberryman]

Misaki observes the glove quietly for a few moments. There was a reason she did not bother with it for so long. It was a relic. Or so she thought. Being in front of her now, perhaps she required a different viewpoint. It was a tool, same as any other, to reach her full potential.

She picks the glove up, considering it for a few more moments before slipping it on, and clicking it into place. She flexes her fingers. A natural fit. A bead of reishi forms in her fingers... then she clasps it, fighting against the glove's natural dispersal to draw as much reishi to her as possible.

After a few seconds, she begins to glow. Then, a humming sound, as particles of reishi reflect off one another and vibrate in the air. She continues to draw in... Then, something interesting happens. The aura around her turns orange, and the temperature in the warehouse begins to climb. Heat causes distortions directly around Misaki as she continues to gather energy.

In these moments, Misaki's thoughts are swimming. Everything she had been taught... to set aside emotion for cold tactical precision and application... it had been sufficient. But now, to meet the challenge that new foes would set, she would need to adapt to the playing field. She would need to embrace the emotion. And the emotion she had most of... was passion. Obsession. She acquiesced to her father's training for the good of one man, to do things that he would not do. To improve his standing in the world. She murdered a Quincy clan leader. She killed many others. And despite everything, she felt nothing for them. Nothing but the escalating passion she had, to give Moto Yoshiro a place in the world fitting of his perfect self.

The beams of the warehouse groan as the heat steadily escalates, and Nikolina begins to feel roughly like she is standing in an oven. Spiritually aware beings may be resistant to certain environmental phenomena, but with the temperature rising she will likely need to take countermeasures before too long to prevent her bodies' compensating systems from being overloaded.

Nonetheless, Misaki continues pulling the reishi in the warehouse towards her... glowing outline quickly growing into a blistering radiance.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina observes impassively as Misaki literally begins to heat up, growing more and more powerful. The reishi in the room begins to chaotically vibrate and move in the air. Worse, contained by the wards on the walls the heat is reflected back into the warehouse rather than being able to escape, further amplifying the oven-like effect. Once she is sure that Misaki's attention is completely diverted from her, Nikolina drops to one knee and allows the coat, scarf, and hat she wears to slip from her shoulders. Underneath, she wears only a light halter top and shorts; her sister's choice of clothing for the day. On its own, this would be pitifully inadequate against the rising heat. Luckily for Nikolina, she has already prepared further countermeasures.

Fire and ice. More elementally, heat and cold. These directly opposing powers were not meant to coexist in one body. In a response to the presence of their inverse, the powers of the active personality seek to force out the other. This starts out barely noticeable, but gets progressively closer to dangerous levels the longer one personality stays in control. Right after they fused, Nikolina and Isalda had to switch constantly in order to avoid being overwhelmed. Seven years of training to control their power has allowed them to slow this process considerably. Nikolina, however, has not relinquished control of their body in over 12 hours. Fighting extreme heat with extreme cold isn't an ideal solution, but it proves effective enough here to allow her to continue to function.

I suppose I should be thankful I had a contingency plan...she is surprisingly strong.
What, you want me to take over? I could take this heat on the chin and not even flinch!
Absolutely not. She is my responsibility.

Slowly, Nikolina extends an arm towards Misaki, and activates Blut Vene. Drawing on the meager supplies of Reishi left in the air, Nikolina forms a single tiny spike of pure, crystalline ice in the air in front of her finger. The heat would melt any normal ice instantly, but Nikolina exerts total control over it; heat can only affect ice by forcing the molecules that compose it to move. Nikolina allows not even this, keeping the ice at a temperature well below freezing. Taking careful aim, she fires, sniping off the edge of the Sanrei glove.

The catalyst for Vollständig.

[strawberryman]

The glove cracks. Then shatters completely.

Misaki screams (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuLaA79iTNg).

It's not a scream of fear. It is an long overdue release of pure, unfettered emotion. And perhaps of pain.

Because as this happens, the energy building around her begins to burn. It does not scorch her skin, but there is an unmistakable sound of sizzling as the heat and reishi combine to steadily and surgically burn every inch of her body. For lack of anything else to target, it goes for her clothes. There is not even flame. The cloth just disintegrates, leaving Misaki nude, protected only by the fact that Nikolina is a fellow female, as well as the blinding light of the energy around her.

In Misaki's mind, there is only pain. Her body may be protected by its instinctive use of blut to prevent her from being incinerated... but somehow, the pain is still going through. She is being burned, seared, cast into a fire without being consumed. A mere second of lapse could at the very least leave her scarred. But her mind is not on that now. It is on Yoshiro.

Why else would she be doing all this? Risking her life, staining her hands, all to make Moto more powerful. She had no true allegiance to Yui Moto... or in truth, to Weiswede. But here she was, doing what needed to be done. This world had been in the hands of those like the Akiyama for too long. Those who would cooperate with the Shinigami, who would kill or capture quincy like her if they had their way. They had done it before, after all.

And yet, here she was. Burning. The pain overwhelms most of her thought, such that only one thing remains. A simple, elemental thing. Longing. Passion. Lust, if you'd like to call it that. All this time, despite the burning, Misaki has not stopped drawing energy. Or perhaps, she's simply become similar to the sun at this point, having a gravity all her own, that the reishi cannot escape. Nonetheless, the brightness and heat continue to increase with the building energy around Misaki. Helpfully, the increase in temperature has slowed. But Nikolina knows that lesser quincy would likely just pass out in this environment, with the heat trapped and building.

Misaki lets out another scream. She's pure white light now, her body no longer even visible. Perhaps by now, even she would concede to the energy around her, and she would simply cease to be.


But that's not the way of things. Outside, not even a minute has passed. But to Misaki, the pain stretches this out to seem... much longer. It is hard to tell how much. But the brain reacts odd ways in response to imminent death. The longing Misaki has... it begins to twist that pain. Becoming something odd. Something she could use for strength. Even as she continues to burn, she will not be overwhelmed.

Nikolina may recognize this in Misaki's continuing scream. It changes. From pain to... almost pleasure. She's adapting to her environment, to her abilities, so she is not simply consumed. But overall, the scream reveals another thing. Misaki may have seemed cold, robotic, but much like Nikolina, underneath it all is a now literally burning well of emotion.

As Misaki's scream cuts out, there's a flash. And then... silence. The heat remains, but the escalation stops.

As the light fades, a pure white being stands in Misaki's place. It shares her figure, of course. But it's... alien. Otherworldly. It has no face, no hair, no features. Nikolina knows that this is undoubtedly her student, but she is covered head to toe in white spiritually fabricated material, much like a jumpsuit. Her feet arch upwards, heels resting on a spike that mimics a high heel. Her head is entirely encapsulated in a white helmet with no openings, simply a ridge in the middle, running down and splitting it.

...but then, a pair of eyes opens on the helmet. They are angled entirely wrong, now vertical instead of horizontal. But they are in exactly the place her eyes would be; what is more, they share her color, burning amber somewhat magnified. And yet, they are not the last. In a straight line, more open up along the helmet, in two perpendicular lines. Then, along her arms, and torso, and legs. Though her body is motionless, her new eyes are active, moving in an erratic fashion. Likely she is completely overwhelmed by the new sensory input. The normal human brain was not exactly made for that many eyes. And yet... she would likely find a way to adapt, because rarely does a spiritual being manifest powers it cannot eventually control.

And so there she stands. This is the form of Misaki's Vollständig.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina endures the blazing heat, the only concession to her own frailty being covering her eyes with one forearm to block out the increasingly bright light. She gives no response to the incredibly violent reaction of Misaki's Vollständig, simply weathering it.

As the room begins to cool, Nikolina lifts her coat off the ground and drapes it around her shoulders once more, although she does not seal it and allows it to hang open. Striding forward, she circles around Misaki.

"Interesting. Can you speak?"

[strawberryman]

There is... no immediate response. The eyes on Misaki's suit do follow Nikolina, so she at least has gained some semblance of control, and she is breathing, from her slow and steady chest movements. There is a temporary hitch in the breaths, a sign that she is attempting to speak... but no sound comes out. Perhaps the helmet is too thick, or constricting her jaw movement, but there is really not even a audible grunt from her.

There is a reflexive twitch of annoyance as her hands move, palms out. Nikolina can see the single eye on each of her inner palms, as Misaki moves them around, looking on the warehouse, Nikolina, every little detail. Her fingers extend and fold, twitching erratically. It is hard to tell from her eyes due to the lack of eyebrows, but it is apparent with the reading of her motions that she is frustrated. Her hands go to her helmet, touching it, looking for some way to remove it, perhaps, but there is none.

It would seem she is without speech. Or perhaps...

She extends her arms outward, heat pulsing from her form yet again as the eyes close in concentration. Then, reishi alights around her hands andat her back, forming brilliant halos of energy... before taking on a more solid form. A great wheel forms, much like a chariot behind her back, nearly her entire height in size. It is mirrored by two smaller wheels, the length of her forearm each. The wheels rotate slowly for a few moments before her eyes open again. Revealed along the track of the wheels are yet more optical orbs, increasing to the alien feel of this form. The eyes on her palms close again as she clenches her outstretched fists, the speed of the spinning increasing rapidly, generating heat, and causing a vibrating hum in the air. The wheels around her hands fluctuate in speed a few times, and the heat fluctuates as well. She is experimenting. Testing this new form.

This continues for nearly a minute, before... something resembling a voice is achieved. Air vibrates against the wheels, guided by subtle grooves in the spokes, and forced through the spinning circle by heat. It is... amusingly deep, and therefore somewhat masculine, and of constant volume, echoing throughout the room with a great presence.

Can. Speak.

[Dorizzit]

"Curious, but effective, I suppose. Test your power a bit. The effects the Vollständig transformation has vary based on the individual."

[strawberryman]

Misaki lets her left down, the wheel following like an extension of herself. She opens her right hand, extending her palm, the eye upon it opening once more and looking around, her arm moving to facilitate a more focused view. It settles idly on one of the steel beams, observing it... before firing a heilig pfeil from its iris, hitting dead on. The pillar is not destroyed, but the impact site begins to glow, as if the heat from the wheels translated to her shots as well. She fires a few more bolts, compounding upon the heat until it bubbles, then flings the wheel like a projectile, cutting through it. The other beams groan, in response to the now-uneven weight, but almost as if mourning their fallen brother.

In a flurry of motion, she brings up her other arm, focusing on another pillar. The other eyes on her body do the same as she takes quick steps forward, firing orange bolts in every direction at a rapid pace, and without stop... until she spins in a wild almost-dance, the twin wheels flying outward and flaying the struck beams, molten steel dripping to the ground, and still-whole pieces clattering in a din of noise.

[Dorizzit]

As Misaki works, Nikolina reaches into her bag and begins taking notes with a pen and paper.

[strawberryman]

...That appears to be the limit of what Misaki can display for now, as she turns, multitude of eyes on Nikolina.

The wheels spin again, emulating that odd 'voice'.

Satisfied?

[Dorizzit]

"For now. You should suppress yourself. First transformations can lead to excessive power drain under the rush if you're not used to controlling it."

Finishing her notes, Nikolina folds up the notebook and places it back in her bag before waiting for Misaki to reseal.

[strawberryman]

There is a pause, as the many eyes look upon Nikolina, even on the wheels as they steadily rotate.

Then they spin again, spitting out more 'words'.

Feels good. Cannot stop.

Her hands go up in a combat stance, eyes that were focused on Nikolina now fire orange bolts without mercy.

Fight me.

...it is vaguely possible there is some innate mind-altering effect at play here.

[Dorizzit]

Nikolina dodges to the side, rolling into a crouch. She sighs, shaking her head and not-quite smiling.

"That, of course, is the other possibility."

She holds up one arm to examine it, rolling back her sleeve. Unbidden, lines of frost are beginning to plate her body.

"Regrettably, I seem to be at my limit. Isalda."
"Well, it's about f***in' time!"

Isalda flips into the air, ripping off the coat and letting it fall to the ground. Tearing the Cross from her wrist, she snaps it in half and creates a pistol around each piece. Landing, she quickly directs a barrage of fire at Misaki.

"Come on!"

[strawberryman]

((Music! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJC9wbKOSlg)))

Misaki blurs into hirenkyaku, immediately in front of Isalda, thrusting simply at her torso with an open palm, and simultaneously shooting a bolt of energy with the eye upon it. Though the large number of bullets hit only air, a couple do, in her jump, hit the shrouded' quincies torso... but they simply bounce off the deceptively tough material, perhaps bolstered by blut vene. There is a subtle shift in the air, perhaps Isalda, with her control of fire can more readily feel it; as the bullets are deflected off her body, there is a hike in the temperature around her, most notably the spinning wheels.

[Dorizzit]

Isalda dodges to the side to avoid Misaki's attack, managing to avoid the blow almost completely. She is still clipped by the energy blast, however, which rips open a hole her side. Instead of reacting in any sane manner, she just laughs.

"Ooh, that smarts. But I wonder...how much can that little deflector trick of yours take?"

Continuing to fire with one pistol, she lifts the other to point at the ceiling. Fire begins spiraling around the barrel.

[strawberryman]

Misaki follows up with a sweeping kick, further fortified by bolts from each of the eyes on her legs. Depending on the success or failure of the action, she either drives down with the burning wheels for a painful hammer blow, or spins, striking at Isalda with each wheel. Even a glancing blow carries with it a inherent heat comparable to a active flame.

The bullets that do hit her, for all her fast movements, continue to bounce off, orange veins typical of blut visible for fractions of a second with each impact. And yet, the temperature continues to build with each hit.

[Dorizzit]

Isalda jumps over the kick, but is struck by the follow-up spin. Landing gracefully, she finishes charging her gun and blurs behind Misaki.

"Falter Von Flamme!"

The barrel of Isalda's gun releases a powerful cloud of flames and cinders, coating a large section of the room and potentially blasting Misaki backwards with sheer force.

[strawberryman]

Misaki is blown back, but she quickly rolls in the air, the large wheel behind her simply lazily righting itself for lack of being as nimble as her. Traces of blut vene fade as soon as they appear, but in response to the flames, she does something interesting. Holding her hands forward and spaced apart, she puts the chariot wheels in front of her like twin shields, spinning rapidly and absorbing the flame. The seemingly wooden structures catch fire to no ill effect, even as Misaki fires another volley of orange bolts from her eyes.

The wheels continue spinning, kicking up the ash and cinders like a cyclone.

More.

The 'voice' is even louder now, the air passing through the wheels being proportionately hotter than the air on the other side.

[Dorizzit]

Isalda once again dodges using Hirenkyaku, landing, catlike, on a rafter. She rolls her neck out.

"Alright. No more pissing around."

Lines of red begin to cover Isalda's body as she engages her monstrously powerful Blut Arterie. Leaping down, she fires another set of shots at Misaki, but these are much more powerful than her first array.

[strawberryman]

Continuing to use one wheel as a shield against the incoming spiritual bullets, the reishi is harmlessly broken down by the extreme heat. Her other hand, however, swings down behind her back as she kneels slightly, then flicks forward at Isalda, the flaming wheel riding the ground up to the quincy, leaving a trail of molten concrete in its wake.

Spinning around, Misaki just barely touches the large wheel on her back, bringing it to her front... and using it as a fan, blowing flames and scorching winds from it. Particles of the molten concrete are caught up in this typhoon, sending globs of the bubbling red material in every direction.

[Dorizzit]

Isalda snarls as the wheel is sent towards her, and drops one of her pistols, allowing the construct to dissipate as that half of the cross dangles from the chain connecting it to the other. Whipping out a Seele Schneider, she uses it to either block or cut the wheel in half. With her other hand, she points the remaining pistol at and begins charging another shot. Bits of molten concrete land near or even on Isalda, but she does not flinch and ignores the attack entirely before firing off a concentrated lance of energy. This will not be easily dissipated or defended against like her previous attacks.

[strawberryman]

Like a puppeteer pulling the strings, Misaki flicks her hand upward and back, and the wheel follows the path, returning to her hand before Isalda potentially damages the odd weapon. Stopping the burning wind, she pirouettes away from the lance... but it still manages to graze her, a tear forming in the white pseudo-skin, now stained with red from blood around her ribcage.

However, with that injury, the heat only increases, the concrete at her feet even beginning to redden and bubble. The wheels at her hands spin as she shudders... not out of pain, or fear. Isalda might almost recognize it as one of pleasure, like she is receiving ecstasy from the sensation. The fiery 'voice' roars out even louder.

MORE!

Disappearing into hirenkyaku, the temperature suddenly goes to an almost volcanic state as Misaki is in front of Isalda, spinning and striking wildly with her wheels, while simultaneously firing orange bolts at erratic angles, fires starting with every impact, and any unwarded materials being instantly incinerated. Trailing behind the wheels is an aura of flame that hangs in the air like dust, except one thousand times more deadly. Around her arms burns the typical veins of blut arterie, but they quite literally burn, trails of light and heat reflecting off of them.

The area around Misaki... Well, there is a large difference between the heat of the sun, and of typical terrestrial magma, and it is closer to the magma... but it is hard to think of something hotter on earth than the woman in front of Isalda.

[Dorizzit]

Isalda begins to try to defend herself, but is quickly beaten down and overwhelmed by her superior opponent. Pulling away, she begins using Hirenkyaku to keep just out of reach.

Niky, I don't think I can beat her.
Of course you can't. She has Vollständig.
Then we should-
Absolutely not. She'll burn herself out soon. Stop holding back.
Yeah...yeah, okay.

Suddenly, Isalda spins on her heel and turns to face Misaki. A vicious glint appears in her eyes, matching a very unpleasant smile.

"Good news: paradigm shift."

Isalda explodes with power, waves of heat and fire blasting from her own body with enough intensity to match Misaki. Her Blut, as well, begins glowing almost blindingly bright. Heedless of her own defense, Isalda rushes forward, planting one fist into her opponent's gut before unleashing a rapid barrage of blows from her arms and legs, accepting counter-hits without even trying to block them.

[strawberryman]

There's no more words, only a dull, ever-building roar as Misaki too forgoes defense, trading blows with Isalda. The roar grows as she takes the punch to the gut, responding with a blow to Isalda's neck. A crack to her shoulder is given a punch in the lower left ribs in retort. Right abdomen, chin. Left clavicle, right clavicle. Punch, punch. Kick, kick.

Somewhere in the mess, Misaki's mask cracks, then shatters, her mouth uncovered. The response to the fight is... almost disturbing, repeating euphoric screams of more.

The temperature... if Isalda were not resistant or immune to the heat, she would have passed out. Or worse. In the steadily escalating heat, the floor begins to sink and almost boil, and the warehouse groans, threatening collapse. It may well do so, if Nikolina were not so thorough as to include the floor in her wards. With the concrete flooring steadily turning into a pool of magmatic goo, there is not much keeping it up.

And so, the titanic clash continues, almost without end. Misaki's screams escalating, the roar of heat and flame not even able to drown her out. The white fabric covering her body begins to burn away even as she trades blows, eyes closing and fading with each encroaching fiber. In time, she is almost nude, save for the half-helm covering the upper part of her face. The wheels burn away entirely.

In one final scream, she throws her last punch, the built-up energy exploding with such force and heat that it should rightly obliterate everything in that warehouse. And so, the helmet shatters, and she falls. Maybe Isalda would just let her fall into the molten concrete, and that would be the end of it.

[Dorizzit]

Isalda, too, grows in intensity and power as the fight goes on. Although her reaction to the battle isn't as sexual in nature, she, too, is clearly enjoying the pain and violence far more than is healthy.

The floors, although partially protected due to runoffs of the wall wards, are nowhere near sufficiently defended against the natural disaster occurring within the warehouse. Neither is the ceiling. Chunks of steel and wood rain down, only to melt or burn away to nothing in seconds before the blazing onslaught of the two combatants.

With the final blow the battle, Isalda is smashed into the ground, and the warehouse falls completely, the walls suffering too as their wards are disrupted. Isalda, for her part, rises to her feet on pure adrenaline before she begins to fall again. As she loses consciousness, however, Nikolina instantly steps in to take her sister's place. As she does so, some of the numerous injuries dotting their body begin to close, healing just barely enough to be noticeable.

Nikolina snaps her hands out to the sides, flash freezing the magma beneath her. Thinking quickly, she lashes out with a claw of ice that grabs Misaki as well and prevents her from falling into the lava. Whether or not it would have killed the Quincy is unknown, but Nikolina despises risks.

Laying Misaki down on the icy platform she has constructed, Nikolina looks down at herself and sighs.

"Of course. The same year Isalda learns how not to burn her own clothes off in a fight, she finds someone else to do it for her."

[strawberryman]

There in the claw of ice Misaki lies motionless and nude, save for slow, barely labored breaths. At least the clothing loss was even. Even now she is showing the signs of bruising and lacerations from the fight.

Nikolina may now recognize the tattoo on her bare back, quite a lovely cherry blossom tree. If she read into any of the rumors likely included in her file, supposedly it had something to do with the number of lives she took, and if so, she has quite an impressive tapestry.

((Not sure what more you have, so you can pretty much set the stage for whatever Nikolina would do from here. :smalltongue: Given this was her first release, she will probably be out for a while.))

[Dorizzit]

Anticipating this as a possible end scenario, Nikolina made sure to schedule this session during a period when the district was almost completely abandoned. She had also arranged for a group of Quincy to arrive on the scene to assist. Unfortunately, they weren't due for another half hour. Nikolina takes note of the tattoo on Misaki's back, admiring the artwork for a moment before standing. The possible symbolism is not lost on her, but she isn't particularly interested, either.

Nikolina begins systematically cooling the lava down, ensuring that no more damage comes to the city as a result.

((We can call it here.))