ROUND TWO: SEARCH AND RESCUE

[tidesnpc]

Characters: The fighters of the Winding Way and a few off the Fiertia
Content: Get in there and find those kids!
Setting: Inside Grita's castle
Time: Right before Long Night!
Notes: Okay, this is going to work a little differently than last time. The primary goal is finding the kids -- I will provide NPCs to subdue as needed. Feel free to NPC

Comments

[princelyspirit]

The men and women of the Winding Way weren't the only ones on a rescue mission.

Some time after the fighters from the other ships arrived, a small biplane zig zagged towards the castle, and barely managed to land in the hangar. It halted to a screeching stop and, after the pilot and passenger realized they hadn't crashed horribly, they sighed in relief and looked around.

The pilot was the first one to notice the other planes. He glanced back at his companion and whispered, "Hey, who do you think those could belong to?"

"I don't know," she replied. The young woman removed her goggles, untangling the straps from her long, pink hair, and continued, "But your sister wasn't the only child taken, right? Whoever they are, they must have had the same idea we did."

"That would be nice, wouldn't it?" He laughed nervously and grinned at her. "We need all the help we can get."

She smiled back, her lips thin and her face weary, before she braced her hands against the body and jumped out. He leaned forward, about to follow suit, before she raised her hands and shook her head.

"I-no, we need you to stay here," she said, her voice quiet but firm. "You're the only one who can get us out of here, and if something happens..."

The woman glanced away for a moment, fist clenched, before she looked back at him. "Well, I don't know about your sister, but I know I can't fly that thing."

"Hmph. And what about you, huh?"

"Don't worry about me!" she said over her shoulder, as she jogged towards one of the doors, "I'll be fine - just trust me, okay?"

Before he could protest, she had drawn her sword and dashed inside the castle. He sighed, and glared at the door; now all he could do was wait, and hope that that madwoman was right.

[flight_15]

Ichigo heard footsteps approaching rapidly behind him. That would be his first opponent. He'd cut through as many people as he needed to in order to get to the kidnapped kids. He pulled his sword out of the hooks that held it to his back and whirled around, braced in a fighting stance and ready to --

....stare in shock at the familiar face. It had been over a year, but he'd know that hair anywhere. "U-utena?!" he gasped, unable to believe his eyes. "What--you're alive? What are you doing here?! I thought you were--"

He'd thought she had died, back on the Amadeus two Lunasas ago. He had gotten as many people off the ship as he could, but Utena hadn't been one of them, and he hadn't seen her in the nearest town....it was a massive shock to find her alive, and on a floating castle in the middle of nowhere on top of that.

[princelyspirit]

Utena stalked down the hallway, blade in hand, ready for any and all enemies that lay in wait. It didn't take long for her to see another figure: he was tall and gangly, dressed in black, with an almost impossibly huge blade strapped to his back. In fact, it almost looked like a giant meat cleaver-

Only one person would be both ridiculous and powerful enough to have a sword like that. Utena gasped, but didn't have time to react; the stranger had spun around. She tensed and, eyes wide and mouth agape, sputtered, "I-Ichigo?! Ichigo Kurosaki?! I can't believe you made it out of there!"

She remembered all too well what happened to the Amadeus. She stayed behind to help one of the other pilots ferry passengers and crew off the ship, and just barely caught a flight out herself. Unfortunately, despite her best efforts, she hadn't been able to get ahold of Kurosaki.

...the lack of a permanent difference engine might have had something to do with that.

[flight_15]

"I can't believe you got out!" he shot back, just as shocked. "Where have you been for the past year?!"

Ichigo hadn't completely forgotten about his mission to rescue the kids, but it wasn't every day an old friend came back from the dead. "Why didn't you say something over the network? I thought you had died!" With the rest of them, he didn't say. He'd mourned those who had not gotten out, whose lives had ended so suddenly.

[princelyspirit]

"I tried!" she exclaimed. "But you never replied!"

Utena didn't yell out of anger; she shouted out of shock. In a few seconds, once the adrenaline wore off, she'd be flooded with gratitude and relief, but right now she was simply stunned that he was standing there in front of her. After losing so many of their comrades, his presence had yet to sink in.

"And I've been trying to find the others," she added, her voice quieter. Key word being: try. Her efforts hadn't exactly been as successful as she had hoped.

[flight_15]

"I lost my difference engine!" Ichigo shouted back. "That's not the kind of thing you grab out of a sinking ship!" He was yelling because she was yelling, and because he had already been on edge and meeting her had taken him completely by surprise. Shouting was how Ichigo handled situations like this.

"And about the others. Some of 'em made it off, some didn't. I could tell you who made it off for sure, but now I dunno who died and who didn't because here you are!" Not that he was angry. He wasn't. He was actually truly, deeply, incredibly glad to see her, both because it meant someone he thought was dead was alive and okay, and also because he knew she could fight. Ichigo needed more fighters right now.

He was just too thrown off-balance right now to express his gratitude properly.

[princelyspirit]

"Well I lost mine too!" she yelled. "And how do you think I feel, seeing you-wait a minute, who else got out?! I know Gibbs and Marshall did, and the Bunsen twins, and..."

Utena stopped herself, and shook her head. "We can talk about this later! You're here for the children, aren't you?!"

Like Ichigo, Utena was more than glad to see that her old companion had made it out. Normally, she'd be absolutely ecstatic; after all, how often does one see a man come back from the dead? But...well, the reunion could wait.

[flight_15]

"The twins?!" Ichigo started. "I didn't know they --"

A gust of wind cut him off. Well, it seemed like a gust of wind. It was actually a man, moving at incredibly high speed, which became apparent when he stopped and smirked at them.

"Well well well, look who's come back," he said, running a hand through his already slicked-back hair. "Was the beating you got last time not enough? Don't worry, though. If you're really a glutton for punishment, I'll do my best to obli--hey!"

Apparently, the speedster didn't like being ignored, which was exactly what Ichigo was doing. "Yeah, I'm here for the kids. I got this new job, you see...."

[princelyspirit]

"Whoa, what the-!!"

Utena jerked back and gripped her sword tightly, her attention now fully on the stranger who just rushed in. How in the world could he move so fast?! Was it some sort of magic, or something else? She glanced towards Ichigo, curious to see how he was going to prepare for this fight...

...only to see him ramble on and on.

"Ichigo," she groaned, "Can't we talk about this later? Please?"

[flight_15]

"Oh yeah. ....huh? It's this guy again?" Ichigo stared at the man, tapping his chin in thought. "Rick something, wasn't it? Rick Aiya? No, that's not it...Adios? Mmm, closer, but not quite. Why do I wanna say it was Asshole...?" Ichigo could take this guy. He knew it. He remembered how fast this bastard was, and was confident that he was now faster.

"Aiolos!" their opponent growled, before resuming his usual rapid speech. "You should remember me! I'm the one who kicked you to hell and back last time! I'm surprised that stab wound's healed up already. Or maybe it hasn't?" A grin spread across his face.

[princelyspirit]

Utena looked at Aiolos, and glanced back at Ichigo. If he was telling the truth, he was definitely somebody to be concerned about, but Ichigo certainly didn't seem to be worried...

"So," she asked, speaking over his boast, "How bad is this guy?"

[flight_15]

"He's quick," Ichigo admitted, ignoring the fuming speedster. "That's what got me last time. Uses throwing knives, too. Look out for those. But they're small and don't do that much damage."

"They're elegant!" the man raged, poise forgotten. "But you wouldn't know anything about that with that oversized cleaver you don't even know how to use!" He clenched his hands into fists. "You don't stand a chance -- not now, not ever! You'll never be as fast as --"

[princelyspirit]

"Got it!"

Utena nodded sharply, and while Aiolos fumed and raged, she sprinted towards him, sword in hand. If he was quick, then they'd just have to be quick, too!

"Hya!"

And with that, she rudely interrupted him - with a jab from her blade, aimed towards what she assumed his throwing arm was.

[flight_15]

"Agh!" the man cried, stepping back with super-speed. "What the-- I was talking!" he yelled, pulling his arm back. She'd nearly caught him. He wasn't used to people getting that close. He'd been distracted. "You interrupted me! Did nobody teach you manners? Respect?" ranted Aiolos.

He took a deep breath. "No matter," he said quietly. "I'll just have to teach it to you." And then Aiolos was not standing where he'd been a moment ago.

Faster than she could blink, a powerful punch hit Utena's solar plexus, strong enough to send her flying back.

Ichigo gripped his sword tighter and took a fighting stance. "Told you he was fast," he said. "Don't worry, though. I'm faster. I can handle th--"

And a punch sent him reeling back, as well. Ichigo landed on his ass, coughing hard. It had hit the same spot where he'd been stabbed a month ago, and though it was mostly healed, it was still a weak point. "Dammit," he choked. "Didn't you just say something about not interrupting people?!"

[princelyspirit]

Utena shifted on the ground, and she moaned lowly; no other sound could come out, thanks to that punch to the gut. She couldn't even cry out (in shock, or in pain, or even a warning to poor Ichigo).

That hurt she thought, when she finally managed to get to her feet. Her hand clutched her stomach for only a moment before she glared at Aiolos; she had to defeat him! But how...?

He may be super fast, but that doesn't mean he's super smart! After all, she thought, if he could be distracted once, then he could be distracted again. She scowled at him and ran forward with a yell, sword raised, in a foolish and sloppy gesture-

Then half-way through her charge, she jumped to the side, away from Ichigo and (hopefully) away from the counter-attack she expected from Aiolos.

[flight_15]

"You're either stupid, or you like getting hit," Aiolos mocked as Utena charged towards him (though his words were barely audible over her yell). "You into this, girlie?" He took another super-fast swing at her -- but missed his first try.

It took only an instant for him to recover, though, and correct his mistake, throwing a lighning-quick punch to her face.

Off to the side, Ichigo climbed to his feet. He wasn't about to let this guy do whatever he wanted, and if this kept up, he didn't have time to wear Aiolos down.

He had to use it.

To those sensitive to the spiritual, a whirlwind of energy appeared around Ichigo. Others would simply feel a sense of power radiating from Ichigo on an instinctual level. He held his sword straight out in front of him. It would only take a moment...!