20 advance chapters in my Patreon.
Patreon.com/Saintbarbido.
::-------------------------------------------::
(General P.O.V)
(DIMENSION AFTER TIME)
There was a stir in the timeline.
Inside a cracked dimension, a realm that was basically the dumping ground for what existence found a problem with, a man trudged forward.
Behind him on the ground, he dragged a car door laden with different materials.
There were discarded computer parts, most notably a few of the those big CRT monitors.
his haul also included rusted chains, a few wires and circuitry that he could use to complete his machine. Today had been a good salvage.
The outside world had been dumping more broken junk through these portals that kept appearing in the sky.
He could have used them to escape but unfortunately they were gone before he could do something with them.
Not to mention, the irregularity in which they appeared ensured tracking where the next one would manifest, next to impossible.
Still, he had what he needed now. His balance was steady as he passed by the uneven terrain filled with all manner of things.
The sky was always a mute blue with no sun in sight. And time was weird. They had no need for food, no need for sleep.
'They' because he was not alone. There were others here. Trapped in the dimension with him.
Ripped from their lives and it was all the Flash's fault.
He could remember that day with a clarity that ensured the memory always remained flesh; all so his hate kept burning fiercely.
He had been a simple man caught in a fight between the Flash and the Scarlet Devil, a supervillain who was more than a match for the Flash Family.
An anti-thesis to the Justice League.
As the man had tried to hurry his family away from the scene, there was a flash of light and thunder.
Next he found himself in this forgotten realm. He felt something get ripped out of him as he was snapped out of reality.
The timeline had been reset into a new world by the Flash Family. They, those lost in the middle of the dimension away from time, were left behind.
He was left behind, discarded like the salvage he pulled with his ropes.
He crossed the small hill of debris and found their encampment.
There were four others like him. But they weren't as lucky as he had been. He was an engineer, a scientist.
Discovering how things worked was in his nature.
Which was how he had discovered this dimension's energy and learned to tap into it. The others had only wanted to survive, having given up hope on going back.
He passed 2 of them sleeping inside a damaged car. They barely acknowledged him. No matter. He would survive this and make the Flash Family pay.
He would make the Scarlet Devil pay.
All of them would know the wrath of... Paradox!
(Elsewhere)
Deadman had crossed the entirety of North America to get here.
Gotham.
He crested the hills, choosing not to go through them as he normally would.
Choosing not to get close to those hurting on the ground.
They weren't human anymore.
He couldn't imagine what the modern day equivalent to Sodom and Gomorrah would look like, taking into account the state of places like San Francisco.
But it had to be bad, right?
It had to be b...
Bad?
This was not bad!
Deadman couldn't help it, the words left his mouth at the first scene of the city.
"Why is there a large statue of Davian in the middle of Gotham?! Batman would never allow it!"
Deadman asked in disbelief.
And true enough, there was a statue erected where the city council building used to be.
Additionally a dome of green energy covered the entire city in a protective bubble.
The contrast was great.
The outskirts of the city were nothing but rocks and cracked earth, with abandoned cars filling the highway leading in to it.
Nothing seemed to move.
And yet, the city looked to be full of life even from this far out. He could feel such a large concentration of energy.
"This is what I wanted you to see. To know who exactly you are dealing with, Champion."
His goddess' spoke to him.
"The Spirit King has warded off his territory from the outside world. I suspect he has attached a pocket dimension to the city. Which allows him to provide for his people without the need for venturing out into the wilderness."
"Close. He didn't attach a pocket dimension as much as expand the space within."
A foreign voice told them.
Deadman whirled around instantly, ready to defend himself.
The girl floating in the air was dressed in a white haori over a black tight under-suit.
She had with her two short swords strapped to the small of her back. Tantos, Deadman recognized them.
Short hair framing a beautiful face with rich brown skin and a pair of lovely blue eyes watched him passively. She looked at him up and down.
"You're not Uncle Brand."
She finally told him, snapping a finger.
Shadows dressed in completely black clothes with red masks similar to what Davian wore appeared around them.
"My name is Auerilia Shivon Prince Mabuz, I am the Captain of the Stealth Force, the second division of the Gotei 13. Come with me quietly and no harm shall be done unto you. Resist..."
She let out a burst of energy. The same pressure that Davian would produce.
The difference was that while Davian's pressure was like a hammer, hers was like a sharp blade. Silent yet deadly.
"Even in the worst of times, he still manages to triumph over Fate. Over me. This timeline is meant to be discarded, but it has branched off on it's own. He is sustaining it purely through his power."
Rama Kushna sighed.
Auerilia frowned, ready to give a sign that would incapacitate the spirit energy of this rogue soul and take him in.
But Deadman simply disappeared, leaving an irate girl looking to prove herself to her mother and siblings by bringing in the Soul spying on Haven.
The Head Captain would not be pleased. Luckily he was her big brother.
(Elsewhere)
(The Present)
(January the 13th, 2010)
Deadman appeared in the middle of a street with honking cars.
A taxi cab would have plowed into him and surely caused a lot of damage if he had a physical body.
With his soul form, he merely allowed it to pass through him.
The disembodied soul sank through the street and into the tunnels below.
Apart from slow moving water carrying sludge and other forms of waste, there was no other sound.
He allowed himself to materialize.
Something he could apparently do now. It wasn't his real body, merely using his energy to give weight and mass to his soul.
The spirit sighed, holding his head in his hands.
"How?"
He asked while gritting his teeth.
"How did any of that happen?! What happened to the League in the future? Hell, what about Lex and all those other villains that try to take over the world?!"
He snapped.
"How could they let those...things take over? Why didn't they do anything!!?"
Deadman blinked and found his hand buried into the wall behind him.
"The Spirit King kills them all. The villains first. Then those who grow to fear his power...then eventually those who question his motives."
Rama Kushna explained.
"He single handedly begins the 3rd World War."
She added.
Dead man sucked a deep breath at that. His goddess continued.
"By the time the world is recovering from the effects of a war between every superpowered individual and The Spirit King, the Trench attack en masse. The world falls without it's heroes."
"What about him? Davian?"
Deadman was quick to ask. He hadn't known the Scarlet Devil that long but he knew willful people.
Those whose resolve would burn so bright, there was risk of the world burning with them. He guessed in Davian's case that became quite literal.
His Goddess' reply didn't fill him with hope.
"I do not know."
(Davian's P.O.V)
An Arrancar level hollow would be more than enough to go up against any of the Justice League members and hold their own.
Barragan was past that level. I could see the merits of sparing his life and keeping him around.
He would be a massive help. Especially in understanding how Hollows used their Reiryoku.
Was Sonido different from Shunpo? Were the principles of Pesquisa similar to Reikaku?
What about Cero? Was it really a race specific ability or could I use it as well? To me it shared similarities with, of all things...Getsuga Tensho.
Barragan had been able to simply add as much energy into it without destabilizing the attack.
The only skill in my arsenal that could do that was Getsuga Tensho.
I couldn't simply overload Akai Inazuma or Byakurai and use it to wipe Superman off the face of the earth.
Long story short, keeping Barragan around was more advantageous in the long run.
IF IT WASN'T FOR ONE. SIMPLE. THING.
I couldn't trust him.
I also didn't trust Cheshire yet. But she didn't have the capacity to kill me when I wasn't looking or was weakened.
Barragan's last feat in Canon Bleach, had been to try and strike Aizen down when the Old Hollow King realized he was dying.
I gazed down at him, past the bones and deep into his essence. There was resentment there.
There was anger there.
And there was hate there.
That more than anything decided it for me.
Barragan must have seen through my intentions.
"Wait! I can be useful to you, Lord Death. I can..."
He went quiet as my spirit pressure fell upon his body.
Cracks appeared all around his skeleton as the ground he was kneeling on similarly shattered into a spider web pattern.
I frowned.
"A king begging for his life? Where's your self respect, Oh God of Hollows?"
"I...I..."
He tried to speak but the pressure was too much, so instead he held out a hand to the side.
The dome around the city begun to crack.
Flakes of energy broke off, drifting towards the ground. The whole city started to shake.
Laughter bubbled out of me.
"A suicidal attempt to make sure I die with you. What a convenient way to show where your loyalties lie. Your pride would never allow you to be under someone again, would it, your majesty?"
It was almost admirable.
I placed a foot on his head, pushing his face into the ground.
"Well? What are you waiting for? Kill us then."
Barragan let out a furious howl and the entire weight of the ocean came bearing down on our heads.
The swirling dark water swept through everything.
What a petty king.
Barragan blinked and found himself floating in mid air as we watched an impossible sight.
"Impossible..."
He even muttered in disbelief.
Below us, was a lively underwater city filled with Atlanteans swimming about their every day lives.
The Xebelian royal palace stood grand in the middle of the city, none of the damage we had brought down on it, present.
No one could see or detect us while hidden behind the veils of space.
"What...what is this?"
The Hollow turned to face me.
I smiled, crossing my hands infront of my large chest.
"You mean you can't tell? These are all the people you killed. I undid it all, King of Hollows. While you have the ability to control time, you use it so crudely."
I swept out a hand.
"This is how you use ultimate power. There's a time for Destruction but there is little as rewarding as rebuilding and creating."
Barragan's entire self seemed weighed down. A self deprecating laugh escaped his mouth.
"I...lost. Again. Even after all my preparations...I still lost."
"Oh don't feel bad."
I told him, spearing a hand through his chest while pulling closer to him.
He gasped in pain.
Being aged up like this gave me more than just power.
I didn't have a lot of time left in this form though. I could feel my Spirit Energy getting expelled through my Saketsu.
The sheath's Fullbring support abilities were working overtime to fix my body every split second it broke down.
But... I'd learned something.
I could sort of force a Bankai activation. By force, I mean I could use one of the Bankai's main skills. In fact I had already used it before.
When the possessed Flash and I had battled, my strings had sucked in some of his speed force energy which had led to a change in Shunpo.
I did not know of my Bankai's name. All I had was a lot of power and an idea.
The hand that was stabbed through Barragan broke apart into billions of cell thick strings, wrapping around his essence before pulling on his energy.
I sucked it all.
If Barragan had eyes they would have widened in shock when I begun steaking everything from him.
I devoured his Reiryoku, his skills and lastly, his Ressureccion.
Not his memories though. That was the limit of the forced activation.
The king of Hollows form broke apart into a dark cloud of energy that was absorbed into my being.
Instantly, my soul begun pulsing with a lot more spirit energy. Some of it foreign.
Energy I could not contain for long.
One last thing then. I had already brought back Xebel and it's people while also sending all of us into our original timeline.
All that was left was to see if I could bring her back.
Raven.
20 advance chapters in my Patreon.
Patreon.com/Saintbarbido.
::-------------------------------------------::
(General P.O.V)
(DIMENSION AFTER TIME)
There was a stir in the timeline.
Inside a cracked dimension, a realm that was basically the dumping ground for what existence found a problem with, a man trudged forward.
Behind him on the ground, he dragged a car door laden with different materials.
There were discarded computer parts, most notably a few of the those big CRT monitors.
his haul also included rusted chains, a few wires and circuitry that he could use to complete his machine. Today had been a good salvage.
The outside world had been dumping more broken junk through these portals that kept appearing in the sky.
He could have used them to escape but unfortunately they were gone before he could do something with them.
Not to mention, the irregularity in which they appeared ensured tracking where the next one would manifest, next to impossible.
Still, he had what he needed now. His balance was steady as he passed by the uneven terrain filled with all manner of things.
The sky was always a mute blue with no sun in sight. And time was weird. They had no need for food, no need for sleep.
'They' because he was not alone. There were others here. Trapped in the dimension with him.
Ripped from their lives and it was all the Flash's fault.
He could remember that day with a clarity that ensured the memory always remained flesh; all so his hate kept burning fiercely.
He had been a simple man caught in a fight between the Flash and the Scarlet Devil, a supervillain who was more than a match for the Flash Family.
An anti-thesis to the Justice League.
As the man had tried to hurry his family away from the scene, there was a flash of light and thunder.
Next he found himself in this forgotten realm. He felt something get ripped out of him as he was snapped out of reality.
The timeline had been reset into a new world by the Flash Family. They, those lost in the middle of the dimension away from time, were left behind.
He was left behind, discarded like the salvage he pulled with his ropes.
He crossed the small hill of debris and found their encampment.
There were four others like him. But they weren't as lucky as he had been. He was an engineer, a scientist.
Discovering how things worked was in his nature.
Which was how he had discovered this dimension's energy and learned to tap into it. The others had only wanted to survive, having given up hope on going back.
He passed 2 of them sleeping inside a damaged car. They barely acknowledged him. No matter. He would survive this and make the Flash Family pay.
He would make the Scarlet Devil pay.
All of them would know the wrath of... Paradox!
(Elsewhere)
Deadman had crossed the entirety of North America to get here.
Gotham.
He crested the hills, choosing not to go through them as he normally would.
Choosing not to get close to those hurting on the ground.
They weren't human anymore.
He couldn't imagine what the modern day equivalent to Sodom and Gomorrah would look like, taking into account the state of places like San Francisco.
But it had to be bad, right?
It had to be b...
Bad?
This was not bad!
Deadman couldn't help it, the words left his mouth at the first scene of the city.
"Why is there a large statue of Davian in the middle of Gotham?! Batman would never allow it!"
Deadman asked in disbelief.
And true enough, there was a statue erected where the city council building used to be.
Additionally a dome of green energy covered the entire city in a protective bubble.
The contrast was great.
The outskirts of the city were nothing but rocks and cracked earth, with abandoned cars filling the highway leading in to it.
Nothing seemed to move.
And yet, the city looked to be full of life even from this far out. He could feel such a large concentration of energy.
"This is what I wanted you to see. To know who exactly you are dealing with, Champion."
His goddess' spoke to him.
"The Spirit King has warded off his territory from the outside world. I suspect he has attached a pocket dimension to the city. Which allows him to provide for his people without the need for venturing out into the wilderness."
"Close. He didn't attach a pocket dimension as much as expand the space within."
A foreign voice told them.
Deadman whirled around instantly, ready to defend himself.
The girl floating in the air was dressed in a white haori over a black tight under-suit.
She had with her two short swords strapped to the small of her back. Tantos, Deadman recognized them.
Short hair framing a beautiful face with rich brown skin and a pair of lovely blue eyes watched him passively. She looked at him up and down.
"You're not Uncle Brand."
She finally told him, snapping a finger.
Shadows dressed in completely black clothes with red masks similar to what Davian wore appeared around them.
"My name is Auerilia Shivon Prince Mabuz, I am the Captain of the Stealth Force, the second division of the Gotei 13. Come with me quietly and no harm shall be done unto you. Resist..."
She let out a burst of energy. The same pressure that Davian would produce.
The difference was that while Davian's pressure was like a hammer, hers was like a sharp blade. Silent yet deadly.
"Even in the worst of times, he still manages to triumph over Fate. Over me. This timeline is meant to be discarded, but it has branched off on it's own. He is sustaining it purely through his power."
Rama Kushna sighed.
Auerilia frowned, ready to give a sign that would incapacitate the spirit energy of this rogue soul and take him in.
But Deadman simply disappeared, leaving an irate girl looking to prove herself to her mother and siblings by bringing in the Soul spying on Haven.
The Head Captain would not be pleased. Luckily he was her big brother.
(Elsewhere)
(The Present)
(January the 13th, 2010)
Deadman appeared in the middle of a street with honking cars.
A taxi cab would have plowed into him and surely caused a lot of damage if he had a physical body.
With his soul form, he merely allowed it to pass through him.
The disembodied soul sank through the street and into the tunnels below.
Apart from slow moving water carrying sludge and other forms of waste, there was no other sound.
He allowed himself to materialize.
Something he could apparently do now. It wasn't his real body, merely using his energy to give weight and mass to his soul.
The spirit sighed, holding his head in his hands.
"How?"
He asked while gritting his teeth.
"How did any of that happen?! What happened to the League in the future? Hell, what about Lex and all those other villains that try to take over the world?!"
He snapped.
"How could they let those...things take over? Why didn't they do anything!!?"
Deadman blinked and found his hand buried into the wall behind him.
"The Spirit King kills them all. The villains first. Then those who grow to fear his power...then eventually those who question his motives."
Rama Kushna explained.
"He single handedly begins the 3rd World War."
She added.
Dead man sucked a deep breath at that. His goddess continued.
"By the time the world is recovering from the effects of a war between every superpowered individual and The Spirit King, the Trench attack en masse. The world falls without it's heroes."
"What about him? Davian?"
Deadman was quick to ask. He hadn't known the Scarlet Devil that long but he knew willful people.
Those whose resolve would burn so bright, there was risk of the world burning with them. He guessed in Davian's case that became quite literal.
His Goddess' reply didn't fill him with hope.
"I do not know."
(Davian's P.O.V)
An Arrancar level hollow would be more than enough to go up against any of the Justice League members and hold their own.
Barragan was past that level. I could see the merits of sparing his life and keeping him around.
He would be a massive help. Especially in understanding how Hollows used their Reiryoku.
Was Sonido different from Shunpo? Were the principles of Pesquisa similar to Reikaku?
What about Cero? Was it really a race specific ability or could I use it as well? To me it shared similarities with, of all things...Getsuga Tensho.
Barragan had been able to simply add as much energy into it without destabilizing the attack.
The only skill in my arsenal that could do that was Getsuga Tensho.
I couldn't simply overload Akai Inazuma or Byakurai and use it to wipe Superman off the face of the earth.
Long story short, keeping Barragan around was more advantageous in the long run.
IF IT WASN'T FOR ONE. SIMPLE. THING.
I couldn't trust him.
I also didn't trust Cheshire yet. But she didn't have the capacity to kill me when I wasn't looking or was weakened.
Barragan's last feat in Canon Bleach, had been to try and strike Aizen down when the Old Hollow King realized he was dying.
I gazed down at him, past the bones and deep into his essence. There was resentment there.
There was anger there.
And there was hate there.
That more than anything decided it for me.
Barragan must have seen through my intentions.
"Wait! I can be useful to you, Lord Death. I can..."
He went quiet as my spirit pressure fell upon his body.
Cracks appeared all around his skeleton as the ground he was kneeling on similarly shattered into a spider web pattern.
I frowned.
"A king begging for his life? Where's your self respect, Oh God of Hollows?"
"I...I..."
He tried to speak but the pressure was too much, so instead he held out a hand to the side.
The dome around the city begun to crack.
Flakes of energy broke off, drifting towards the ground. The whole city started to shake.
Laughter bubbled out of me.
"A suicidal attempt to make sure I die with you. What a convenient way to show where your loyalties lie. Your pride would never allow you to be under someone again, would it, your majesty?"
It was almost admirable.
I placed a foot on his head, pushing his face into the ground.
"Well? What are you waiting for? Kill us then."
Barragan let out a furious howl and the entire weight of the ocean came bearing down on our heads.
The swirling dark water swept through everything.
What a petty king.
Barragan blinked and found himself floating in mid air as we watched an impossible sight.
"Impossible..."
He even muttered in disbelief.
Below us, was a lively underwater city filled with Atlanteans swimming about their every day lives.
The Xebelian royal palace stood grand in the middle of the city, none of the damage we had brought down on it, present.
No one could see or detect us while hidden behind the veils of space.
"What...what is this?"
The Hollow turned to face me.
I smiled, crossing my hands infront of my large chest.
"You mean you can't tell? These are all the people you killed. I undid it all, King of Hollows. While you have the ability to control time, you use it so crudely."
I swept out a hand.
"This is how you use ultimate power. There's a time for Destruction but there is little as rewarding as rebuilding and creating."
Barragan's entire self seemed weighed down. A self deprecating laugh escaped his mouth.
"I...lost. Again. Even after all my preparations...I still lost."
"Oh don't feel bad."
I told him, spearing a hand through his chest while pulling closer to him.
He gasped in pain.
Being aged up like this gave me more than just power.
I didn't have a lot of time left in this form though. I could feel my Spirit Energy getting expelled through my Saketsu.
The sheath's Fullbring support abilities were working overtime to fix my body every split second it broke down.
But... I'd learned something.
I could sort of force a Bankai activation. By force, I mean I could use one of the Bankai's main skills. In fact I had already used it before.
When the possessed Flash and I had battled, my strings had sucked in some of his speed force energy which had led to a change in Shunpo.
I did not know of my Bankai's name. All I had was a lot of power and an idea.
The hand that was stabbed through Barragan broke apart into billions of cell thick strings, wrapping around his essence before pulling on his energy.
I sucked it all.
If Barragan had eyes they would have widened in shock when I begun steaking everything from him.
I devoured his Reiryoku, his skills and lastly, his Ressureccion.
Not his memories though. That was the limit of the forced activation.
The king of Hollows form broke apart into a dark cloud of energy that was absorbed into my being.
Instantly, my soul begun pulsing with a lot more spirit energy. Some of it foreign.
Energy I could not contain for long.
One last thing then. I had already brought back Xebel and it's people while also sending all of us into our original timeline.
All that was left was to see if I could bring her back.
Raven.
