Reproach [Theo]

It was pleasing to have his old self back, in this now seemingly old place. Theocelese woke up in his chambers and prepared himself a piping hot shower and a set of fresh clothes. Nice ones, an all-black three-piece suit with a pink tie. For the hell of it, Theocelese also took to trimming his beard to give him a less barbaric of appearance. Once he was prim and proper, he set down to the kitchen and made himself a cup of coffee traditional style coffee, where the grounds were boiled instead of how most countries made theirs with a coffee pot and filters. To go with this, Theocelese fancied himself a freshly baked cinnamon roll and with this and his coffee, he chose a corner seat to keep an eye on the door. A few pages into reading an old newspaper, and already mid-bite into his cinnamon roll, a being walked through the doors. He chewed several times, letting the warm bun rest on the small plate, before raising his ceramic mug up in a greeting before taking a couple of quick sips.

“Greetings,have a seat where you'd like and I'll be with you in a few moments.” He gave a semi-warm smile, then went back to his paper. This Arrancar didn't seem troubled, and the fact a sword and shield resting upright next to him meant he wasn't exactly worried if a fight broke out.

“...”

Theocelese stared at the Hollow, his eyes becoming golden-hued daggers. It was the sort of look, that when given by a man of his tastes and attire, was one that meant he was going to sort this shit out before anything even happened. Was the kind of stare a man would make before someone called him by his name, and the reply would be “Mr. Theocelese, today, my name is Mr. Theocelese”. The Arrancar took one drink from his cup of coffee, and upon letting it rest on its place holding plate, he also let his newspaper stay open against the table. With his eyes locked into the Hollow still, he moved from the table and walked over to where the newcomer stood.

“This shit, as you like to call it, is the result of my hard work, a place for me to rest and relax. Now as long as I have a say in it—and seeing as how there is no one to challenge me otherwise, when you come to my little slice of paradise, you better be waving a white flag nice and high so's that I can see it. If you don't agree with me...I would like to see you go ahead and try.”

As he was speaking, the Arrancar began to slowly unbutton his jacket and his vest, folding them up neatly and tossing them over to a nearby chair.

“Any damage you do here, I'll make it that much more painful before I feed you to someone with a bit more respect for someone else's home. I suggest we take our troubles outside.”

“Let's.”

Theocelese replied in agreement, unbuttoning the cuffs of his sleeves and rolling them up to his elbow, one by one. With a tilt of his head, he gestured towards the door and his form blurred, appearing at the door, then once again as the door swung open and he moved outside. In the sky, the sharply dressed Arrancar stood. His face formed that of an unpleasant leer, his lips were curved down and his brows narrowed. He'd regained enough of himself to find a willingness in adhering to some sense of civility. Now, he might not have attacked a Shinigami who bothered him outright, but if there were blades drawn at him he wouldn't hesitate. Had Inigo come in as anything but hostile, things might have gone differently, but he knew these types. He was one of these types for a good, long while, and he knew that if this didn't end the way he saw it ending, both parties would find it beneficial. In almost all cases, one would be not without his or her Zanpakutou, but in Theocelese's case, he didn't even seem to carry any weapons on him. That should have been most unsettling for any opposition.

Theocelese spoke no insults, nor any words meant to ridicule. He didn't even take a fighting stance, but of all things he did do, Theocelese began adjusting his tie.

“I'll recall that comment as I gift your broken body to the next Adjuchas who makes me crack a grin. How does that make you feel, I wonder? Knowing full well your hardships to become what you are will be cast aside as a gift to another?” Theocelese called out as the Bala came at him. His aura exploded violently, something he couldn't help now a days. He would have chalked it up as a price to pay for a massive gain in power received not too long ago. Waves of purple washed over his form, spiking upwards like a raging fire, though his own hands began to glow as this happened. The tips of his fingers looked as though they formed into claws.

The Arrancar took immediate stance, his hands poised outwards and the fingers bent to mimic the appearance of a feline's paw ready to strike, and strike they would at the Bala. In very small clusters like this, they weren't much of a threat or too difficult to dispatch. Most would unleash a torrent, but not this one, he did as Theocelese himself would: use them as a distraction to get close. He hadn't counted on the Sonido used by the Vasto Lorde to be as precise and swift, and that caught him off guard. Although the attack was met by the overwhelming resistance of Theocelese's Hierro, and anyone else would have their shoulder punctured and vulnerable from that, this Arrancar could turn this situation into an advantage. His reaction upon being stricken was quick, turning with the blow and using the momentum to follow up with a single punch turned into many, aimed right for the inside of the Hollow's elbow.

(you know I dont care dude, this is just for funsies)

“That's a bit of an understatement, I've already broken part of it. Now for the rest.”

Theocelese's Reiatsu let out in a horrid and violent fashion with a war-like scream of his own, shaking the sand dunes below enough to cause the size of the landscape to literally shift. Large dunes became small, small ones were engulfed by others to become large. It was the perfect sight, if any caught it, what exactly Hueco Mundo was like. A majority of the time, no one was safe, no matter their size or power. Only a handful could be a part of those who were unchallenged. Theocelese thought himself to be one of those few, though one would have quite the time trying to pry those words out of his sealed lips.

It would have been appropriate to guess someone of his caliber was prone to full on frontal attacks, but instead of using Sonido by itself, or in conjunction with any of the Hollow's staple attacks as Inigo used them, Theocelese's form surged with raw power and his movements took him skyward. Further skyward, that is, and at a speed one only took either to tactically retreat, or to come to the aid of another that would be in truly dire need. For the briefest of moments, Theocelese disappeared in the black sky. The purple aura became a speck, then nothing, but he could still he felt. The stillness and sudden lack of noise lasted as briefly as it came, with Theocelese's form coming back down aimed right down at Inigo. The aura grew tremendously, spouting black veins like a diseased appendage. Whether or not he hit the Vasto to the effect of carrying him to the ground, once contact was made with the ground, a veritable sinkhole would form due to the released energy in an atomic fashion.

“You could not comprehend the agony suffered to gain this strength. An early demise, an altering of my mind, enslavement, and loss. That is all I have experienced in my very few short years living as what I am. Only until recently I kept a positive face, I strode towards useless talks of peace and tolerance in regards to others. I returned from an ordeal started hundreds of years ago to find my home in ruin...”

From within the still wisps of dust clouds of the crater, Inigo could see Theocelese's eyes glowing, his form against the moonlight showing his left arm held out straight with his palm facing the Vasto Lorde. “I made the stipulation clear as day to you, and you chose threats and violence. I wanted to finish my breakfast, read my newspaper and enjoy my coffee. These are luxuries I have not had within my grasp for some time, and I do not appreciate it when others barge into my home, spitting in my face when a guest ought to be humble and happy to be taken in.” The Arrancar had waked towards the Vasto Lorde as he spoke, his arm still stretched out whilst the right arm remained at his side. As his face became clear and visible above the now settled sand clouds, it held not a look of anger as his words might have suggested, but a half-grin one made when a winning hand came to him in a heated game of poker.

His eyes widened and the semi-grin turned into a happy-go-lucky smile. A quick flash of light offered annoyance at Inigo's eyes, not even the sort meant to distract or throw someone off. It was a sign of something about to happen, and of an event already in its stages of unfolding. There were two straps against the Arrancar's left arm now, one his hand held and the other against the upper area of his forearm. Connected to these straps, a large shield.

“Make Them Rest In Peace, Alacos Thanatos (Beautiful Death)”

“Do I fancy myself as some kind of protector? No. Not anymore, not to anyone stretching past the boundaries of my walls.”

His voice, no longer human in sound, came from the billowing of smoke and sand. It was something unearthly, something perhaps Inigo could find to his own liking. It was as if Hell itself gave Theocelese his voice, deep and harsh. It was far from what the Vasto heard thus far, and to most it was an experience more terrifying. The first glimpse given to his opponent were two purple eyes, glowing outwards from behind a helmet. The wisping light escaping out the opposing corners of his eyes trailed along the outside of his black-plumed headdress. More revelation of his form showed more of him was armored, the torso, his forearms and his legs from the knees down. Still latched to his left arm, a shield but this one different in color and insignia. Held in the grasp of his right hand, a six-foot long spear that could be used to slash, pierce, and if it came to it, use the back end as a bludgeon. For a few brief moments post-release, ethereal wings remained fully stretched out behind him. Perhaps it was a glimpse of a part of him that once was, or maybe this was something he used for show.

“Civility is just a nice way to say ‘I won’t kill you for the fun of it’, at least, that is my current use of the word. I will tell you something, Hollow, you have courage unlike many other. Most others with the potential to be a threat to me decide it is best to try undermining me with plots and plans spoke of and enacted within the shadows. You appeared before me with threats of my undoing. While I can applaud such a thing, I also know courage is just another word for incompetent. Survive, and we can break words more befitting of those seeking mutual gain. Die, and...Well to be honest with you, I don’t really care if you die.”

The sand behind Theocelese exploded as he rushed forward, his innate speed increasing dramatically since revealing this form. His intention was to skewer Inigo with his spear right through the torso.

(borrowing my mommas chromebook while im out of state, i hate this thing, just look at profile for release stuff lol)

There were no more words from the Arrancar, just the adrenaline bursting through his veins. The whispy glow of his eyes closed slightly and beneath his helmet, he grinned as if he were not a beast reborn, but truly a Chesire Cat. Getting in such a close proximity, while again Theocelese could applaud such bravery, this creature knew nothing of that. All Inigo was, all he ever would be was nothing more than instinct on two legs. The Arrancar dropped down to a single knee, his left leg dug into the earth while the right stuck out behind him to brace him for the Vasto's actions, and to take a counter measure of his own. In a single motion, Theocelese's right arm shot out towards the Vasto Lorde's body, a metallic glow forming around his entire forearm. His left arm shot downwards, letting the bottom of his shield catch the incoming foot. This would stop most of the force, letting the rest hit the well-braced and planted leg, while in turn letting the Hollow essentially kick the shield upwards to block the Cero.

Appearing around his forearm were the Chains of Prometheus, and much like the ones that bound him all those many moons ago, Inigo would find himself in a similar position. A thick, single band of chain lashed out as though it were a viper, looking to strike the Hollow and in by doing so, binding him as the Cero beat down in futility against the Arrancar and his shield. Such an event would be the end of this altercation, though there were more plans in the Arrancar's head than to let this be the end of it. He knew the rage of the Vasto Lorde, and he also knew what that could be molded into, should the situation turn out that way. Theocelese went from looking to kill, to finding out of this beast could be something of a kindred soul. A being forged in the pits of the Hell, whose scars upon his flesh were nothing more than a recorded history of victories.

From the now smoking plateau, Theocelese rose slowly, his shield lowering as the chains constricting Inigo tightened more and more, as if the weapon itself were alive and each link wrought with his fury. The Arrancar stood, his head tilting up to look to make eye contact with the Vasto Lorde. “Do you know why I beat you? It was not because I am stronger. It is because you lack many of the things you attempted to ridicule me for. Look where that got you, good sir, in the grip of the asp.” With a downward swing of his left arm, the shield shot from his grasp and dug into the sand. With that same arm and hand, he lifted the helmet from his head, revealing a full head of braided hair and carved beads and hair pieces of ivory, gold, silver and bronze. Some were fitted with gems of various colour, though most looked like opals. This was not the look of some seat-comfy king, this was the appearance of a warrior who mowed down his enemies like an unstoppable machination of war and used his loot from the fallen to spend without frugality.

“You can speak of me with contempt, and I of you, but that will get us no where now. You are powerful, and resourceful. Your willingness to continually press the attack will, in the end, get you killed. I would see to it you do not find an end alone, and in this fashion, bested due to hastiness and a temperament fitting that of a child. Everything you are, is nothing but one giant heap of raw potential that I wish to see molded.

In laymen's terms, I could use a good arm like yours. You've a lot to learn...but you're at the pinnacle of our kind's evolution. You have little to no boundaries, that is a blessing in itself. What I propose to you, is that when the time comes, you fight for me. With me. Under one banner, against any and all...perhaps soon enough, even the Gotei. They've got much to suffer for, and all of those I once called friends and brothers in arms have deserted their home. That, I may guess, is something you do not care for. However, that is something you will have to accept in time.

Make no mistake, Hollow, I care not for any wretched title like many before me and many that will come after. I'm no king, I'm not up to the task of ruling. I'm just a warrior, the kind who ultimately seeks a glorious death on the battlefield, for there is no greater glory than to die in the midst of combat. Though I am not stupid enough to brazenly charge against a hundred-thousand, I will face that hundred-thousand if I have a fraction of that total. I am in need of strong warriors, and although we do not live in a realm where coin is currency, I can only pay you with tools similar to my own, my knowledge, and the promise of war.”

This in itself was a small test. Theocelese was waiting for the assault of questions, anticipating them, as all before Inigo asked much of him. There was the feeling that at a promise of war, Inigo would go all in on the hand given to him. With that thought in the back of his head, he hoped at least something in the form of a question came at him. Even if it was to cut out all the silver lining and get straight to the damn point, that would be good enough for him.