[BLEACH] (Enjoy the Silence: part 4) Water Attack! Rust the Lock
Title: Water Attack! Rust the Lock
Author: Merci
Characters: Nova, Cloud, Ririn, Chad, Urahara, Ichigo, Rukia
Rating: PG13
Source: Bleach
Wordcount: 3, 556
Summary: Nova struggles to detect the Bounto’s auras while guarding Ishida in the hospital. Follows the water Bounto episode.
Warnings: Violence, Bounto death… that’s about it.
Disclaimer: I am making no profit from this fanfiction. I do not own Nova, Cloud, Ririn, Chad, Ichigo, Ishida, the Bounto, or any other Bleach characters that appear here.
Notes: This… was created to support another story I have. I don’t know what to say about it, beyond that I spent several days watching the water Bounto episodes over and over again and I’m thoroughly sick of them. I’ve heavily edited it, but I could probably polish it more if it wasn’t just a tag-along to the episode.
This title is strange, but it’s inspired by the Bleach episode, Water Attack! Escape from the Shutdown Hospital
This is a companion piece to a story I’ve written, titled, Scratch Memory! Break the Lock. I guess it was a warmup to Scratch Memory, since it helped me explore a bit of Nova’s budding anxiety (brought on by the water).
I still like Nova and Cloud, though, as well as Nova’s budding feelings for Chad. He’s still got some lingering memories to deal with what won’t come out until later.
Well, if you enjoy this, I’m glad. Please check out the other stuff, because I feel it’s much better than this one.
This is part of a group of stories that are all separate, but since I wrote them one after the other, they do tend to flow together and reference one another. I'm loosely gathering them into a series I call "Enjoy the Silence". If you would like to read them one after the other, I will post links to the next story at the end of each post. If you would like to see the master list of my stories, please visit my table of contents.
Water Attack! Rust the Lock
Nova was the first to sense the Bounto’s faint aura. Around him, everyone slept, after hours of waiting outside Ishida’s hospital room. He’d even caught himself dozing as well, nestled against Cloud and Ririn on the padded couch.
His button eyes flicked to Chad and he watched the human in the semi-darkness. He’d caught himself doing that over the past few days; just silently observing. He found his presence comforting, and being paired with him gave him more opportunities to quietly observe his aura from within his new plush body. Chad demanded no small talk or conversation of any kind, and Nova found this a welcome change from his fellow mod-souls.
After a valiant battle against sleep, Chad had settled into his seat, hunching over the table with his chin resting in his hand.
Nova watched the way his chest rose and fell. The thought of disturbing him left him feeling anxious and he closed his eyes and focused, trying to detect more than a faint sense that Bounto were near. The aura was too faint, unfortunately, and he couldn’t be sure what was there: a Bounto or lost Hollow. He looked to his companions, wondering if they could detect anything.
Ririn and Kon were lying together a short distance away. They slept as well, giving no indication that anything was amiss. Well, Nova didn’t expect Kon to sense these things, but Ririn’s non-reaction left him skeptical of the accuracy of his own senses.
Cloud was leaning against him, hunching over as his thin, purse-body lay flat on the bench. His rabbit ears were folded in front of him and his mouth was open, reflexively breathing, even though he had no lungs. Being in a plush body had its benefits when it came to always being comfortable. Cloud shifted, then, turning his yellow, button eyes towards him, inclining his head in a silent question.
Nova closed his eyes and shook his head. Nobody sensed anything, but the feeling he’d gotten couldn’t be ignored. If something was out there, he wanted to be sure. He jumped to the ground and tip-toed towards the door. He needed more information, so it only made sense to wander out and see if he could confirm anything visually.
Cloud followed him out into the hallway. “Orihime is going to use me as her purse for school tomorrow!” He chewed his bottom lip excitedly. “Isn’t this exciting! Is Chad bringing you--?”
“Something… is here,” Nova cut him off and turned towards the darkened corridor. It was strange that the lights were out.
“Oh… really?” Cloud stopped his silly dance and hardened his look. “Like what?”
“I can’t be certain,” he stroked his chin thoughtfully, momentarily distracted by his fingerless, green hands. “I’m going to investigate.”
Ririn appeared, then, closing the door behind her as quietly as possible as her ears perked up to the conversation. “You should tell them!” she adamantly rubbed sleep from her eyes.
“Ah, but he doesn’t have enough information,” Cloud yawned. “They need to rest, and it wouldn’t help to wake them to say he doesn’t know anything!” He puffed his chest, his floppy ears accentuating his stance.
Nova exhaled a small sigh of relief as he saw them understand his situation. His plush body did have some drawbacks. “Do you two feel anything?”
“N-no,” Cloud stuttered. “I mean, maybe? I might sense something, but nothing specific.”
Ririn nodded, deep in thought. She seemed to be straining to sense the Bounto as well, but was unhappy with the outcome.
Nova led the way down the hallway, going on instinct that whatever was triggering him was in that direction. The hospital was dark, lacking the vibrant hum of living souls. He could detect the faint auras of regular humans on the other levels, but it was as if their floor had been wiped clean of any life signs, save for their companions guarding Ishida in the room behind.
Nova shuddered as the emptiness filled him.
“Hey, do you feel anything, Nova?” Cloud placed a floppy ear on his shoulder. “I think I sense something, but… ah, I can’t be certain, not in this body, anyway. I wonder if Urahara-san knew this would happen.” He laughed nervously.
The sound reverberated within Nova for a moment as he pushed outward with his powers. The fabric of space tore under his will, forming a tiny opening through which he expanded his Bounto-sensing capabilities. It was a way for him to look in on multiple locations at once; sensing the people on the other side, and feeling their reiatsu and auras.
He kept going, pushing his powers further until he stumbled across a familiar aura. It was still difficult to accurately connect with them, but he knew the Bounto right away. He could sense two children, but their power was as one… Nova bowed his head; struck by a sudden feeling of nausea and dread. It was as if their auras were masked somehow and he couldn’t penetrate the barrier. The dread amplified as the Bounto noticed him and his throat felt tight as he backed away. They were making their move; their power surging out, flowing all around them and Nova spun back to his friends. “They are…”
“What?!” Ririn shrieked as she led the way back to the room. The Bounto may have been difficult to detect, but the doll that had suddenly appeared in Ishida’s room was vivid and clear to all the mod-souls.
They burst in from the hallway just as a commotion erupted in Ishida’s room.
“What’s going on?” Kon yawned, waking from his place on the table.
“A doll!” Nova said as he clenched his fists. He couldn’t understand how the Bounto were attacking from so far away, but the logistics hardly mattered.
Ichigo burst from Ishida’s room, followed by the others and Chad who carried Ishida on his back. It was a frantic rush to get away, and Cloud was slung over Orihime’s shoulder like a purse. He reached down with his ears, helping Nova climb inside him as they escaped.
Nova was jostled about as he opened the zipper on Cloud’s head and tried to climb in. He pushed his feet through just as he was struck with the realization of what he was doing.
“Haha, don’t worry about it, Nova,” Cloud laughed, sensing the oddity of the situation. “It should be perfectly alright, since I’m a purse!”
Nova could sense the doll following them as they rushed down a stairwell to a lower level. It seemed to follow alongside them, hidden behind the walls as it flowed through the pipes.
“It’s coming!” Rukia shouted in surprise, just as two balls of water jetted toward them, floating in the air, supported by a thin, watery tail.
Ichigo was quick to cut the water apart with his zanpaktou, but it reformed into a large pillar that encased Chad and Ishida.
Nova watched helplessly as the air bubbles escaped from their gaping mouths and Chad looked over to him, his eyes wide and desperate as his mouth gaped like a dying fish.
Nova tightened his fist along Cloud’s zipper, his mind racing for options, but only coming up with panic. It felt like he was experiencing Chad’s panic; his own throat constricting, filling with water. What could he do?
Rukia leapt out suddenly, shouting for everyone to clear the way as she chanted the incantation for a kido spell. A red shot blasted from her palms, splashing the water apart and burning it to steam.
Chad and Ishida dropped to the ground, gasping for breath as steam rolled of their bodies and Nova released his breath. He rubbed his throat, unable to tear his eyes away from them.
“Are you okay, Nova?” Cloud asked, using his ears to pat his friend’s head.
“Ah…” Nova trailed off. His gikon felt tight in his plush insides, throbbing as if it was a racing heartbeat. He crouched down in the purse, watching Chad cough up water. The Bounto were triggering something inside him… and it overwhelmed reality, shoving an image into his mind’s eye that he couldn’t easily blink away. He shook his head and tried to concentrate as Ichigo led the charge down the hall.
“Nova, can’t you get some data on those guys?” he called back.
“Yes, of course Nova could do that,” Cloud jostled alongside Orihime as she ran. “However, with his current body, the distance between us and them is too great.”
“What?!” Orihime cried and looked at them.
Nova looked up at her and shrugged sympathetically. “All we can do is escape.”
That was the focus of their movements as they rushed about, stumbling down corridors until they finally found the elevator. When they reached the lobby and burst outside, however, the first pitter-patter of rain stopped them in their tracks.
“What is this?” Ririn asked, her voice sounding hollow with dread as Orihime stepped back under the overhang of the hospital entrance, clutching her hands to her chest.
Nova climbed out of Cloud and landed on his own feet. He heard Cloud and Ririn land behind him as they instinctively gathered together.
“They’ll attack fast in this rain,” Ririn said to herself, rubbing her chin.
“Agreed,” Cloud nodded. “I don’t understand why we couldn’t detect them before now. Only Nova sensed them, but we couldn’t do anything about it.”
“It’s… the water,” Nova closed his eyes, trying to detect the Bounto once more. He couldn’t feel them at all as the rain filled the air, and it sent a pang of apprehension through him.
“You’re right, Nova,” Cloud hummed. “It must be acting like an insulator to their reiatsu.”
“This isn’t good,” Ririn looked about frantically. “They’re coming, but we can’t sense them!”
Nova looked up to Ichigo, and then Chad. “It’s unavoidable.”
Cloud seemed to understand and nodded firmly. “Nova’s right, we have to go along with Ichigo as best we can. We’ll find a way to help when we can.”
“That’s very optimistic of you,” Ririn said, suddenly looking out to the rainy parking lot. The sudden Bounto reiatsu put the mod-souls on alert.
The twins were standing a few feet away, completely at home in the downpour. Their dolls hovered at their sides, mirror images of one another. Then, with one command from the twins, the dolls raced forward, twinning together and doubling in size.
Ichigo’s voice echoed among the raindrops, telling Orihime and Chad to take Ishida and run. Cloud and Nova joined them while Ririn and Kon stayed behind. Without any plan of their own, they could only follow Ichigo’s orders.
Chad led the way down the rain-soaked alleyway, with Orihime and the mod-souls trailing behind. There were few options for them, but he seemed to have an idea of a construction site that Orihime was familiar with as well. Nova and Cloud went along for the ride as they rushed forward, hoping that Ichigo could survive, and that he would somehow know where to find them.
+++
They arrived to the construction site and ducked inside a mostly-completed building. The rain beat against the windows and several leaks in the roof had formed puddles on the ground. Chad set Ishida down against some crates, while Cloud and Nova inspected their surroundings.
“Is this the place without water you talked about?” Cloud said, inspecting his reflection in a puddle of water.
“It’s better than outside in the rain,” Chad said, kneeling down to look at Ishida.
The Quincy wasn’t doing so well, even as he insisted they leave him behind. His skin was looking sickly and his breathing was laboured. He really shouldn’t have left the hospital, but with the Bounto attacking, there weren’t many options.
Chad and Orihime shook their heads firmly. They would stay with their friend, even if it cost their lives.
Nova stood quietly defiant as well, his heart skipping along with theirs as the Bounto’s voices echoed behind them.
Their attack was sharp and quick. In a flash the water doll was upon them, knocking Chad and Orihime down, while a ribbon of water encircled Ishida and lifted him high. His limp body was at the mercy of the liquid as it squeezed, wringing a shrill cry from his dry lips.
Ichigo appeared with the others just as Chad activated his power; holding his arm out and forming a red-black shell that heightened his strength.
“We have to do something!” Cloud hissed, his ears flipping in irritation.
Nova nodded without any suggestions of his own. The water flew past them, though, something felt different. He could feel the malice burning in it as the water exploded into a mess of droplets in the air.
“Chad!” he could barely yell his partner’s name before the water had gathered around his face, suffocating him in a small pool of water that pushed its way into his nose.
Ichigo and the others were under attack as well, and Orihime desperately tried to push the bubble away from her face, her fingers slipping on the fluid mask that pushed its way into her body.
“Ah, this is terrible!” Cloud hopped from one foot to the other, his ears flopping about his head. “What do we do?”
“What did you do to them?!” Ririn nearly screeched as Ichigo fell to the ground, his face convulsed in terror as he struggled for breath. The water inside him twisted to the Bounto’s will and he coughed on its suffocating mass. Ririn turned to Kon, commanding him to do something, but he was at as much of a loss as she was.
Nova couldn’t look away from Chad, seeing the awful, foreign aura that suffocated him from the inside. Part of him was immobilized with terror and he felt as if he couldn’t breathe.
Chad’s eyes were dark and hard, almost looking emptily at him.
Almost.
Chad was still alive, but Nova had to act quickly to save him.
Cloud danced frantically beside him, a desperate mantra of, “What do we do? What do we do?” spilling from his fabric lips.
Nova thought back to the moment to when the dolls had faltered while they were rushing to the construction site. The dolls had briefly attacked, but Chad had separated the twins, which had weakened their bond.
If only… it hit Nova like a lightning bolt. “Let’s go!” he said to Cloud.
“W-where?”
“We’ll give it a try!” Nova didn’t explain further and simply led the charge toward the Bounto. He didn’t know if he had enough power, but he would do his best.
Cloud ran alongside him, his ears flapping wildly around him and he bellowed an attack cry as Nova used his powers to teleport one of the twins away from the other.
He found it was difficult to control if he wasn’t physically teleporting as well. He relied on his instincts and manipulated the dimensions at a distance, drawing one Bounto through a gateway and ejecting him from another further away.
“Ban!” the Bounto shouted in surprise, looking to where his twin had appeared. The water dolls seemed to waver, their power weakening.
“Hou?” the other Bounto barely had time to catch his breath before another gate enveloped him.
Nova strained, trying to push him further. Further apart! He needed to weaken their strength. He looked back to Ichigo and Chad; their bodies were still glowing with the doll’s power, immobile and drowning as it shredded their insides.
“What’s going on?” Hou cried, stumbling as he tripped and fell to the ground.
Ban rushed toward him, but Nova caught him by surprise and whisked him away. Every time they rushed closer, he tore the space before them, drawing them into an infinite loop that would keep them apart. Every step forward was three back, and they kept going.
The sounds of the dolls collapsing gave Nova strength, even as he felt his energy weakening. His body was just too small for this strain.
The Bounto’s desperation was palpable as they tripped to the ground, screaming for each other. But Kon and Ririn’s voices were loudest in Nova’s ears, cheering him on and giving him the strength to push further.
“Can’t you teleport them further away, Nova?” Cloud asked as he ran alongside him.
“Just this takes all I have…” he set his jaw. “Just a little further.” His strength was running out, he had to do something more permanent than the stop-gap measures that were buying them time.
They rushed up to the closest Bounto. “You guys…” Ban hissed. It was the last thing he would ever say.
Nova pushed his strength, drawing on his power to create one more gateway. It burned bright red and black behind the Bounto, drawing him inside and transporting him above a deadly drop to a lower-level of the building. He fell head-first and crashed into the cement, several storeys below.
“Ban?” the remaining Bounto called as the water doll collapsed on him. “Ban!” he screamed more desperately as he ran to the ledge and jumped off. He shook his twin desperately, but it was no use.
Nova and Cloud rushed to Ichigo’s side to check on their friends. Ichigo and Renji were sputtering on the water the gushed from their lungs, while Chad and Orihime gasped for air, coughing lightly on the remaining drops in their throats.
“Thank you, Nova,” Ichigo smiled before turning his attention to the Bounto.
Nova bowed his head as Cloud placed a floppy ear on his shoulder. “That was amazing, Nova!”
“Ah,” he sighed. The Bounto was shouting something from the pit as Ichigo muttered something back.
The Bounto had lost, and trying to control both dolls at once would fail. He might have sensed it too, even as he commanded his doll to go in for one final attack. His power was waning, stretched thin as he desperately laughed in victory. Even if he couldn’t win the fight, he could take someone out with him.
Everyone scattered as the doll moved in, firing blasts of water in all directions. Nova and Ririn dove behind a barrel as a barrage of water tore through the metal container.
Rukia tried standing her ground, blasting it with her kido spell, but the water knocked her over, sending her attack flying wild.
Nova peeked from around the barrel, watching as Chad set Ishida down behind some crates. He caught Chad’s eye as he turned around, ready to join Ichigo’s side once more. Nova could sense the apprehension in the human’s soul, his aura burning with worry he kept hidden from his face.
Nova moved to step out as well, but Cloud held him back.
“Teleporting those Bounto around must have been so tiring for you,” he said. “Perhaps you should rest?”
“That’s unnecessary,” Nova sighed, forcing himself to move out to join the others in their stand against the doll. His already-wobbly legs were shaken to the ground as part of the wall exploded into sand beside them.
Nova tumbled to the ground as two new people joined the fray. They weren’t Shinigami, at least… no, Nova could sense one of them was, albeit weak, while the other was an entirely different kind of soul.
“I heard ya needed some firepower, Ichigo!” the larger man laughed and withdrew a large sphere from his pack. It had the telltale signs of explosives, with a short fuse just waiting to be lit. He lit the end and threw the bomb into the doll. The water swallowed it up and extinguished the fuse.
The bomb hovered there for a moment, jostled about in the water beside the Bounto’s seal, before the fuse reignited and blasted everything apart. The droplets of water flew in all directions, caught in the fireworks that exploded through the air, smearing scorching colour through the air and heating the doll to steam.
The seal dropped from the air, catching flame as it rolled to a stop, just as the Bounto’s scream of defeat reverberated through the burning air.
His face turned ashen, sinking in as the life force was sucked free. He held his hand aloft for a moment, as if to curse Ichigo and his friends, but turned, then, to face his brother, throwing himself across his body as they died together, their immortal souls finally freed and extinguished into nothingness.
Chad gasped in surprise. It sounded peculiar in Nova’s ears and he perked up at the noise. “What is this?”
The rest of them said nothing, watching the clothing crumple to the ground; the only evidence that Ban and Han ever existed.
“Where… is Ishida?” Orihime turned suddenly, looking to the crates where the Quincy had lain.
Nova tried scanning their surroundings, but couldn’t detect anything at all. There were no other Bounto in the area, and Ishida had vanished. “We should find him,” he said to Cloud, even as Ichigo began organizing their search parties. He leaned heavily on his friend; he didn’t have the strength to continue, but he wouldn’t give up.
“Uh, it might sound strange for me to suggest this, but I guess it’s okay since I’m a purse…” he pointed to his head, with the zipper that glinted invitingly at him.
“Uh…” Nova heaved a sigh before giving in. He’d already ridden in Cloud once that evening, and it would be nice to be carried around for a change.
Author: Merci
Characters: Nova, Cloud, Ririn, Chad, Urahara, Ichigo, Rukia
Rating: PG13
Source: Bleach
Wordcount: 3, 556
Summary: Nova struggles to detect the Bounto’s auras while guarding Ishida in the hospital. Follows the water Bounto episode.
Warnings: Violence, Bounto death… that’s about it.
Disclaimer: I am making no profit from this fanfiction. I do not own Nova, Cloud, Ririn, Chad, Ichigo, Ishida, the Bounto, or any other Bleach characters that appear here.
Notes: This… was created to support another story I have. I don’t know what to say about it, beyond that I spent several days watching the water Bounto episodes over and over again and I’m thoroughly sick of them. I’ve heavily edited it, but I could probably polish it more if it wasn’t just a tag-along to the episode.
This title is strange, but it’s inspired by the Bleach episode, Water Attack! Escape from the Shutdown Hospital
This is a companion piece to a story I’ve written, titled, Scratch Memory! Break the Lock. I guess it was a warmup to Scratch Memory, since it helped me explore a bit of Nova’s budding anxiety (brought on by the water).
I still like Nova and Cloud, though, as well as Nova’s budding feelings for Chad. He’s still got some lingering memories to deal with what won’t come out until later.
Well, if you enjoy this, I’m glad. Please check out the other stuff, because I feel it’s much better than this one.
This is part of a group of stories that are all separate, but since I wrote them one after the other, they do tend to flow together and reference one another. I'm loosely gathering them into a series I call "Enjoy the Silence". If you would like to read them one after the other, I will post links to the next story at the end of each post. If you would like to see the master list of my stories, please visit my table of contents.
Water Attack! Rust the Lock
Nova was the first to sense the Bounto’s faint aura. Around him, everyone slept, after hours of waiting outside Ishida’s hospital room. He’d even caught himself dozing as well, nestled against Cloud and Ririn on the padded couch.
His button eyes flicked to Chad and he watched the human in the semi-darkness. He’d caught himself doing that over the past few days; just silently observing. He found his presence comforting, and being paired with him gave him more opportunities to quietly observe his aura from within his new plush body. Chad demanded no small talk or conversation of any kind, and Nova found this a welcome change from his fellow mod-souls.
After a valiant battle against sleep, Chad had settled into his seat, hunching over the table with his chin resting in his hand.
Nova watched the way his chest rose and fell. The thought of disturbing him left him feeling anxious and he closed his eyes and focused, trying to detect more than a faint sense that Bounto were near. The aura was too faint, unfortunately, and he couldn’t be sure what was there: a Bounto or lost Hollow. He looked to his companions, wondering if they could detect anything.
Ririn and Kon were lying together a short distance away. They slept as well, giving no indication that anything was amiss. Well, Nova didn’t expect Kon to sense these things, but Ririn’s non-reaction left him skeptical of the accuracy of his own senses.
Cloud was leaning against him, hunching over as his thin, purse-body lay flat on the bench. His rabbit ears were folded in front of him and his mouth was open, reflexively breathing, even though he had no lungs. Being in a plush body had its benefits when it came to always being comfortable. Cloud shifted, then, turning his yellow, button eyes towards him, inclining his head in a silent question.
Nova closed his eyes and shook his head. Nobody sensed anything, but the feeling he’d gotten couldn’t be ignored. If something was out there, he wanted to be sure. He jumped to the ground and tip-toed towards the door. He needed more information, so it only made sense to wander out and see if he could confirm anything visually.
Cloud followed him out into the hallway. “Orihime is going to use me as her purse for school tomorrow!” He chewed his bottom lip excitedly. “Isn’t this exciting! Is Chad bringing you--?”
“Something… is here,” Nova cut him off and turned towards the darkened corridor. It was strange that the lights were out.
“Oh… really?” Cloud stopped his silly dance and hardened his look. “Like what?”
“I can’t be certain,” he stroked his chin thoughtfully, momentarily distracted by his fingerless, green hands. “I’m going to investigate.”
Ririn appeared, then, closing the door behind her as quietly as possible as her ears perked up to the conversation. “You should tell them!” she adamantly rubbed sleep from her eyes.
“Ah, but he doesn’t have enough information,” Cloud yawned. “They need to rest, and it wouldn’t help to wake them to say he doesn’t know anything!” He puffed his chest, his floppy ears accentuating his stance.
Nova exhaled a small sigh of relief as he saw them understand his situation. His plush body did have some drawbacks. “Do you two feel anything?”
“N-no,” Cloud stuttered. “I mean, maybe? I might sense something, but nothing specific.”
Ririn nodded, deep in thought. She seemed to be straining to sense the Bounto as well, but was unhappy with the outcome.
Nova led the way down the hallway, going on instinct that whatever was triggering him was in that direction. The hospital was dark, lacking the vibrant hum of living souls. He could detect the faint auras of regular humans on the other levels, but it was as if their floor had been wiped clean of any life signs, save for their companions guarding Ishida in the room behind.
Nova shuddered as the emptiness filled him.
“Hey, do you feel anything, Nova?” Cloud placed a floppy ear on his shoulder. “I think I sense something, but… ah, I can’t be certain, not in this body, anyway. I wonder if Urahara-san knew this would happen.” He laughed nervously.
The sound reverberated within Nova for a moment as he pushed outward with his powers. The fabric of space tore under his will, forming a tiny opening through which he expanded his Bounto-sensing capabilities. It was a way for him to look in on multiple locations at once; sensing the people on the other side, and feeling their reiatsu and auras.
He kept going, pushing his powers further until he stumbled across a familiar aura. It was still difficult to accurately connect with them, but he knew the Bounto right away. He could sense two children, but their power was as one… Nova bowed his head; struck by a sudden feeling of nausea and dread. It was as if their auras were masked somehow and he couldn’t penetrate the barrier. The dread amplified as the Bounto noticed him and his throat felt tight as he backed away. They were making their move; their power surging out, flowing all around them and Nova spun back to his friends. “They are…”
“What?!” Ririn shrieked as she led the way back to the room. The Bounto may have been difficult to detect, but the doll that had suddenly appeared in Ishida’s room was vivid and clear to all the mod-souls.
They burst in from the hallway just as a commotion erupted in Ishida’s room.
“What’s going on?” Kon yawned, waking from his place on the table.
“A doll!” Nova said as he clenched his fists. He couldn’t understand how the Bounto were attacking from so far away, but the logistics hardly mattered.
Ichigo burst from Ishida’s room, followed by the others and Chad who carried Ishida on his back. It was a frantic rush to get away, and Cloud was slung over Orihime’s shoulder like a purse. He reached down with his ears, helping Nova climb inside him as they escaped.
Nova was jostled about as he opened the zipper on Cloud’s head and tried to climb in. He pushed his feet through just as he was struck with the realization of what he was doing.
“Haha, don’t worry about it, Nova,” Cloud laughed, sensing the oddity of the situation. “It should be perfectly alright, since I’m a purse!”
Nova could sense the doll following them as they rushed down a stairwell to a lower level. It seemed to follow alongside them, hidden behind the walls as it flowed through the pipes.
“It’s coming!” Rukia shouted in surprise, just as two balls of water jetted toward them, floating in the air, supported by a thin, watery tail.
Ichigo was quick to cut the water apart with his zanpaktou, but it reformed into a large pillar that encased Chad and Ishida.
Nova watched helplessly as the air bubbles escaped from their gaping mouths and Chad looked over to him, his eyes wide and desperate as his mouth gaped like a dying fish.
Nova tightened his fist along Cloud’s zipper, his mind racing for options, but only coming up with panic. It felt like he was experiencing Chad’s panic; his own throat constricting, filling with water. What could he do?
Rukia leapt out suddenly, shouting for everyone to clear the way as she chanted the incantation for a kido spell. A red shot blasted from her palms, splashing the water apart and burning it to steam.
Chad and Ishida dropped to the ground, gasping for breath as steam rolled of their bodies and Nova released his breath. He rubbed his throat, unable to tear his eyes away from them.
“Are you okay, Nova?” Cloud asked, using his ears to pat his friend’s head.
“Ah…” Nova trailed off. His gikon felt tight in his plush insides, throbbing as if it was a racing heartbeat. He crouched down in the purse, watching Chad cough up water. The Bounto were triggering something inside him… and it overwhelmed reality, shoving an image into his mind’s eye that he couldn’t easily blink away. He shook his head and tried to concentrate as Ichigo led the charge down the hall.
“Nova, can’t you get some data on those guys?” he called back.
“Yes, of course Nova could do that,” Cloud jostled alongside Orihime as she ran. “However, with his current body, the distance between us and them is too great.”
“What?!” Orihime cried and looked at them.
Nova looked up at her and shrugged sympathetically. “All we can do is escape.”
That was the focus of their movements as they rushed about, stumbling down corridors until they finally found the elevator. When they reached the lobby and burst outside, however, the first pitter-patter of rain stopped them in their tracks.
“What is this?” Ririn asked, her voice sounding hollow with dread as Orihime stepped back under the overhang of the hospital entrance, clutching her hands to her chest.
Nova climbed out of Cloud and landed on his own feet. He heard Cloud and Ririn land behind him as they instinctively gathered together.
“They’ll attack fast in this rain,” Ririn said to herself, rubbing her chin.
“Agreed,” Cloud nodded. “I don’t understand why we couldn’t detect them before now. Only Nova sensed them, but we couldn’t do anything about it.”
“It’s… the water,” Nova closed his eyes, trying to detect the Bounto once more. He couldn’t feel them at all as the rain filled the air, and it sent a pang of apprehension through him.
“You’re right, Nova,” Cloud hummed. “It must be acting like an insulator to their reiatsu.”
“This isn’t good,” Ririn looked about frantically. “They’re coming, but we can’t sense them!”
Nova looked up to Ichigo, and then Chad. “It’s unavoidable.”
Cloud seemed to understand and nodded firmly. “Nova’s right, we have to go along with Ichigo as best we can. We’ll find a way to help when we can.”
“That’s very optimistic of you,” Ririn said, suddenly looking out to the rainy parking lot. The sudden Bounto reiatsu put the mod-souls on alert.
The twins were standing a few feet away, completely at home in the downpour. Their dolls hovered at their sides, mirror images of one another. Then, with one command from the twins, the dolls raced forward, twinning together and doubling in size.
Ichigo’s voice echoed among the raindrops, telling Orihime and Chad to take Ishida and run. Cloud and Nova joined them while Ririn and Kon stayed behind. Without any plan of their own, they could only follow Ichigo’s orders.
Chad led the way down the rain-soaked alleyway, with Orihime and the mod-souls trailing behind. There were few options for them, but he seemed to have an idea of a construction site that Orihime was familiar with as well. Nova and Cloud went along for the ride as they rushed forward, hoping that Ichigo could survive, and that he would somehow know where to find them.
+++
They arrived to the construction site and ducked inside a mostly-completed building. The rain beat against the windows and several leaks in the roof had formed puddles on the ground. Chad set Ishida down against some crates, while Cloud and Nova inspected their surroundings.
“Is this the place without water you talked about?” Cloud said, inspecting his reflection in a puddle of water.
“It’s better than outside in the rain,” Chad said, kneeling down to look at Ishida.
The Quincy wasn’t doing so well, even as he insisted they leave him behind. His skin was looking sickly and his breathing was laboured. He really shouldn’t have left the hospital, but with the Bounto attacking, there weren’t many options.
Chad and Orihime shook their heads firmly. They would stay with their friend, even if it cost their lives.
Nova stood quietly defiant as well, his heart skipping along with theirs as the Bounto’s voices echoed behind them.
Their attack was sharp and quick. In a flash the water doll was upon them, knocking Chad and Orihime down, while a ribbon of water encircled Ishida and lifted him high. His limp body was at the mercy of the liquid as it squeezed, wringing a shrill cry from his dry lips.
Ichigo appeared with the others just as Chad activated his power; holding his arm out and forming a red-black shell that heightened his strength.
“We have to do something!” Cloud hissed, his ears flipping in irritation.
Nova nodded without any suggestions of his own. The water flew past them, though, something felt different. He could feel the malice burning in it as the water exploded into a mess of droplets in the air.
“Chad!” he could barely yell his partner’s name before the water had gathered around his face, suffocating him in a small pool of water that pushed its way into his nose.
Ichigo and the others were under attack as well, and Orihime desperately tried to push the bubble away from her face, her fingers slipping on the fluid mask that pushed its way into her body.
“Ah, this is terrible!” Cloud hopped from one foot to the other, his ears flopping about his head. “What do we do?”
“What did you do to them?!” Ririn nearly screeched as Ichigo fell to the ground, his face convulsed in terror as he struggled for breath. The water inside him twisted to the Bounto’s will and he coughed on its suffocating mass. Ririn turned to Kon, commanding him to do something, but he was at as much of a loss as she was.
Nova couldn’t look away from Chad, seeing the awful, foreign aura that suffocated him from the inside. Part of him was immobilized with terror and he felt as if he couldn’t breathe.
Chad’s eyes were dark and hard, almost looking emptily at him.
Almost.
Chad was still alive, but Nova had to act quickly to save him.
Cloud danced frantically beside him, a desperate mantra of, “What do we do? What do we do?” spilling from his fabric lips.
Nova thought back to the moment to when the dolls had faltered while they were rushing to the construction site. The dolls had briefly attacked, but Chad had separated the twins, which had weakened their bond.
If only… it hit Nova like a lightning bolt. “Let’s go!” he said to Cloud.
“W-where?”
“We’ll give it a try!” Nova didn’t explain further and simply led the charge toward the Bounto. He didn’t know if he had enough power, but he would do his best.
Cloud ran alongside him, his ears flapping wildly around him and he bellowed an attack cry as Nova used his powers to teleport one of the twins away from the other.
He found it was difficult to control if he wasn’t physically teleporting as well. He relied on his instincts and manipulated the dimensions at a distance, drawing one Bounto through a gateway and ejecting him from another further away.
“Ban!” the Bounto shouted in surprise, looking to where his twin had appeared. The water dolls seemed to waver, their power weakening.
“Hou?” the other Bounto barely had time to catch his breath before another gate enveloped him.
Nova strained, trying to push him further. Further apart! He needed to weaken their strength. He looked back to Ichigo and Chad; their bodies were still glowing with the doll’s power, immobile and drowning as it shredded their insides.
“What’s going on?” Hou cried, stumbling as he tripped and fell to the ground.
Ban rushed toward him, but Nova caught him by surprise and whisked him away. Every time they rushed closer, he tore the space before them, drawing them into an infinite loop that would keep them apart. Every step forward was three back, and they kept going.
The sounds of the dolls collapsing gave Nova strength, even as he felt his energy weakening. His body was just too small for this strain.
The Bounto’s desperation was palpable as they tripped to the ground, screaming for each other. But Kon and Ririn’s voices were loudest in Nova’s ears, cheering him on and giving him the strength to push further.
“Can’t you teleport them further away, Nova?” Cloud asked as he ran alongside him.
“Just this takes all I have…” he set his jaw. “Just a little further.” His strength was running out, he had to do something more permanent than the stop-gap measures that were buying them time.
They rushed up to the closest Bounto. “You guys…” Ban hissed. It was the last thing he would ever say.
Nova pushed his strength, drawing on his power to create one more gateway. It burned bright red and black behind the Bounto, drawing him inside and transporting him above a deadly drop to a lower-level of the building. He fell head-first and crashed into the cement, several storeys below.
“Ban?” the remaining Bounto called as the water doll collapsed on him. “Ban!” he screamed more desperately as he ran to the ledge and jumped off. He shook his twin desperately, but it was no use.
Nova and Cloud rushed to Ichigo’s side to check on their friends. Ichigo and Renji were sputtering on the water the gushed from their lungs, while Chad and Orihime gasped for air, coughing lightly on the remaining drops in their throats.
“Thank you, Nova,” Ichigo smiled before turning his attention to the Bounto.
Nova bowed his head as Cloud placed a floppy ear on his shoulder. “That was amazing, Nova!”
“Ah,” he sighed. The Bounto was shouting something from the pit as Ichigo muttered something back.
The Bounto had lost, and trying to control both dolls at once would fail. He might have sensed it too, even as he commanded his doll to go in for one final attack. His power was waning, stretched thin as he desperately laughed in victory. Even if he couldn’t win the fight, he could take someone out with him.
Everyone scattered as the doll moved in, firing blasts of water in all directions. Nova and Ririn dove behind a barrel as a barrage of water tore through the metal container.
Rukia tried standing her ground, blasting it with her kido spell, but the water knocked her over, sending her attack flying wild.
Nova peeked from around the barrel, watching as Chad set Ishida down behind some crates. He caught Chad’s eye as he turned around, ready to join Ichigo’s side once more. Nova could sense the apprehension in the human’s soul, his aura burning with worry he kept hidden from his face.
Nova moved to step out as well, but Cloud held him back.
“Teleporting those Bounto around must have been so tiring for you,” he said. “Perhaps you should rest?”
“That’s unnecessary,” Nova sighed, forcing himself to move out to join the others in their stand against the doll. His already-wobbly legs were shaken to the ground as part of the wall exploded into sand beside them.
Nova tumbled to the ground as two new people joined the fray. They weren’t Shinigami, at least… no, Nova could sense one of them was, albeit weak, while the other was an entirely different kind of soul.
“I heard ya needed some firepower, Ichigo!” the larger man laughed and withdrew a large sphere from his pack. It had the telltale signs of explosives, with a short fuse just waiting to be lit. He lit the end and threw the bomb into the doll. The water swallowed it up and extinguished the fuse.
The bomb hovered there for a moment, jostled about in the water beside the Bounto’s seal, before the fuse reignited and blasted everything apart. The droplets of water flew in all directions, caught in the fireworks that exploded through the air, smearing scorching colour through the air and heating the doll to steam.
The seal dropped from the air, catching flame as it rolled to a stop, just as the Bounto’s scream of defeat reverberated through the burning air.
His face turned ashen, sinking in as the life force was sucked free. He held his hand aloft for a moment, as if to curse Ichigo and his friends, but turned, then, to face his brother, throwing himself across his body as they died together, their immortal souls finally freed and extinguished into nothingness.
Chad gasped in surprise. It sounded peculiar in Nova’s ears and he perked up at the noise. “What is this?”
The rest of them said nothing, watching the clothing crumple to the ground; the only evidence that Ban and Han ever existed.
“Where… is Ishida?” Orihime turned suddenly, looking to the crates where the Quincy had lain.
Nova tried scanning their surroundings, but couldn’t detect anything at all. There were no other Bounto in the area, and Ishida had vanished. “We should find him,” he said to Cloud, even as Ichigo began organizing their search parties. He leaned heavily on his friend; he didn’t have the strength to continue, but he wouldn’t give up.
“Uh, it might sound strange for me to suggest this, but I guess it’s okay since I’m a purse…” he pointed to his head, with the zipper that glinted invitingly at him.
“Uh…” Nova heaved a sigh before giving in. He’d already ridden in Cloud once that evening, and it would be nice to be carried around for a change.