Zero Six-Six

The pain is dull now finally, they’ve stopped their torture.

*Sigh.

Never have I felt anything more wrong than being violated this way, I let the tears fall in my solitude. A shiver runs through my spine, fuck that wasn’t right.

I pull my knees to my chin, the metal arm cold against my thigh bringing my attention back to it again. I went through that violation for this thing, my left arm gone replaced by metalloid bones. I wipe the tears tracking down my face, one eye working while the other remains blind from whatever they did to me. What the fuck did they do to me?

I need to heal up and kill everyone of these people; I was a fool chasing dreams thinking I’d become a cultivator and now look at what’s become of me.

I’m nothing, I’ve always been nothing but now I’m a doubly crippled nothing who peed himself and begged. I actually begged for them to stop, no Bantu-jin worth their blood begs anyone for anything! Fuck but that hurt, thinking of that pain a shiver goes through me.

It isn’t right what they did in there, it just isn’t. The useless thing where my arm used to be clatters on the stone as I force myself to get up and put on the robe hung on the wall.

I cast Recover again, pulling from my surroundings manna structured in a way to convert into energy to feed my body. Manna suffuses my body bursting out with refreshing energy that has me at full health, but I’m not at full health. Reconstruction strains my manna channels as their suffused by mana structure to align me previous optimal structure of self. I cast again with nothing happening. My leg, teeth and ear grew back when first I woke and cast the spell but my eye and arm didn’t. Even now no new flesh grows to replace the dangling cold piece of crap they’ve attached to my side.

I’m going to kill these fucking dwarves.

‘’Oh, you’re already awake. Not usually the case,’’ a slender long-haired human woman says carrying a white silken cloth that has all my attention. ‘’Here,’’ she places the cloth on the bed uncovering what’s inside.

The silver sheen is bright even in this windowless room exciting my eye, I nearly gasp as I see the knuckle guard and immediately recognise it as mine. A dull-silver curving rectangular plate to cover the fingers and knuckles, bumpy with little indentations that give it a weathered feel. I run a finger along the curving plate. Ruggered bumps on the metal give it a feel of already being worn from overuse. The palm grip is large, I don’t know how I’ll close my fist over that but I don't hesitate to grab it.

I slide my fingers into the rings just as one would normal brass knuckles, my hand fitting as in a glove made for me.

‘’That is your zanpakuto, your soul-weapon-‘’I don’t hear what else she says as I close my fist and become whole. Like a syringe being triggered a part of the palm handle is injected into the plate as my fist clenches over it, I busk in that wholeness.

My lids flutter open, I am alone in the room. I don’t know how long I’ve been like this, with my thumb I caress the metal. The entire knuckle-guard is a single piece of metal with no interconnected pieces. The plate hugging my knuckles perfectly, it captivates me with its simplistic beauty. I even forget I’m one-armed until I try to grab the door with my left.

Frustrated I punch the knuckle-guard against the wall.

DOO, it's as though the entire cave shakes. The punch cracking the stone all around a crumbling crater 30cm deep in the stone from the concentrated force of the strike.

The crooked door opens again, my manna domain spilling out letting me perceive my surroundings before scattering again at the edge of the courtyard beyond some stairs. A different person now stands surveying me, he indicates, I follow without a backward glance. My fingers are tingling, it felt extremely good to punch that wall. Arousingly good. I want to punch something harder even now there’s an itch on my knuckle guard to punch.

Wait, how do I know what the weapon is feeling? How does a weapon even itch?

‘’Up there,’’ my guide nods up some stairs and then walks back the way he came. My manna is within my control but my manna senses still scatter about the place, I walk up the stairs arriving in a chamber with 6 people all looking at me with widely varying expressions.

‘’I should kill him now!’’ the hate in the voice is hot, a gleaming dagger in his hand as he sizes me. A danger connected to him in a similar way my knuckle-guard is connected to me. Dangerous.

I smirk at the threat; my manna domain is in the frits but I could still kill all those here fairly easily judging from their manna evolution levels.

‘’Calm yourself Lord Katara, King Sanderson here has assured us this man is an ally in our fight against the invaders. Isn’t that right Lord Zero Six-Six is it?’’

‘’Yes love, 0-6-6 it is.’’ Manna is densely suffused all through my body, I send her a tap on the cheek with it.

‘’To give a zanpakuto to this... to this...,’’ Katara turns red in the face stabbing the air towards me with his empty hand.

''Outborn,'' Magnus Sanderson supplies helpfully.

"Outborn!''

The dwarf in the room shifts uncomfortable where he sits, it is the lean Hito old man beside him that speaks.

‘’A zanpakuto was paid for, a zanpakuto was forged. It was an honour to work on Zero Six-Six, we learnt much during the forging.’’ He nods to me, ‘’never before have we created two zanpakutos in one go. You are resilient to still be alive, a strong soul connected with conviction to your body.’’

‘’Two?’’

‘’Your left eye and your knuckles,’’ he patters forward with bare feet on stone. ‘’You do not feel it?’’ he asks gesturing to my face as he starts fiddling with the skeletal shaped metal that’s preventing my left arm from healing back with Recover.

‘’I don’t,’’ I watch him while I watch the room.

‘’The arm, you haven’t bound it yet.’’ He steps back, the woman steps forward gesturing to the king and I and the room. The exit door is on the other side of the room behind them, I have already heard the warriors gathered at the foot of the stairs behind me.

‘’King Sanderson has told us of your bargain. I understand you have taken care of a creature that was plaguing Sandersoria, what can you do for us against the threats we face?’’

‘’What do you all think you will accomplish coming at me this way? I can feel the guards down there and I'm sure more wait beyond that door.’’

The big silent one moves first rushing forward in a lunging dive overhead axe slash that scores forward before him. I Blink behind him grabbing a clamp of hair by which I drag the fucker’s head into the stone. Fist smashing, his face shatters like an egg as my hand goes through until the knuckle-guard is stopped directly on the stone floor. Cracks spread gapping across the stone floor.

His axe lodges deeply into the wall behind me, no one else moves as I rise from the headless corpse.

‘’I don't owe you people anything let's not get any ideas otherwise. But, at the very least I can give you all the information you require about the culture and people you face. Maybe then you will realise fighting is futile and run for your lives.’’

‘’Why have they come?’’

‘’They come to conquer, isn’t that obvious?’’

‘’How large are these bantujin forces?’’

No one says anything about the headless corpse at my feet, I unclench my fist releasing the trigger, releasing the harmony I had with the knuckles the urge to punch fading away. I look at the thing that’s replaced my left arm, I can feel it now, Instinctly used it to grab the guy’s hair in the heat of the moment. Maybe I don't need to kill these people. Shit, I will pay them by not killing them for the pain they put me through.

''There are only a few million Bantu-jin in total, about 10 000 or so Moya Family Bantu-jin which are the ones you have to worry about as they control the lands the portal gate is located. You have no chance of a victory against them, not from anything I’ve seen of your capabilities.’’ I have all their attention.

‘’The ones you’ve faced are children compare to real powers in the Moya, not even exceptionally talented children at that. Also keep in mind you’ve only faced 5 of them so far. There are thousands more just as strong.’’

‘’There were over a dozen in the last battle.’’

‘’Five Bantu-jin and some dozen Faceless. The training and power is similar but at the end of the day a Bantu-jin is more than a Faceless. In any case, even if you’ve killed a few dozen 2nd continent cultivators how many did you lose in the process? I saw the battle, a 3rd continent cultivator could annihilate your entire armies on it’s own.’’

''Those are just arbitrary words to us, how strong is a cultivator of these Continents?''

''What you've faced is the first step into the 2nd Continent. the difference between Continents is like heaven and earth. There is no comparison, a person of the 4th Continent could blow away your armies with a single breathe while a 5th Continent could lie here take all your best weapons without waking from their sleep. That is the power of Bantu-jin and the Moya have dozens of 4th Continent Cultivators.''

They look at each other, the blood from the exploded head is a nice backdrop to emphasize my words. I think they're starting to get that they're in some shit.

‘’You have some possible solutions for us?’’

I shrug, ‘’not really. As I said, run and hide.’’

They look at each other, the woman nods indicating I take a seat at a table between me and them. I sit, studying the metal bones that now feel like a true part of me. I have so many questions.

‘’What would be the best possible outcome?’’

‘’For you all,’’ I think about that. ‘’If you surrender you’ll be taken as slave warriors and groomed to eventually join the Faceless ranks. You’ve already proven yourself capable warriors for having killed 2nd continent cultivators, it rarely happens where I’m from. Not by mortals.’’

‘’What’s the bantu-jin’s next move?’’

‘’Likely the Bantu-jin you faced will be replaced with 3rd Step 2nd Continent cultivators and you’ll be fucked.’’

‘’How much more powerful are they in comparison to what we’ve already faced?’’

Pff, I snort. ‘’techniques that are more solid, that hit harder, that last longer. Basically a two step difference could be the difference of 100 years of training.’’ Why am I taking pleasure in shattering their hopes so much with the truth, I grin.

‘’Can you demonstrate for us?’’

‘’I’m not a cultivator.’’ Or am I?

‘’What are you?’’

I clench my fist injecting the knuckle-guard handle with myself harmonising, even without a working Core I have long ago learnt the theory of cycling so why not try. I concentrate.

I’ve known how to cycle chi since before I cast my first spell; readily I fall into the breathing patterns. Concentrating I pull essence grasping at anything that will respond as I close my eyes to focus, the itching on my soul-object causes my entire fist to tingle.

The roof is ripped off the ceiling without warning, cutting wind chi scores the stones and people raw scattering us about scathing my skin. I can see chi without an array! My jaw is on the floor as I pick myself up to gawk at the wind essence cutting everything around to shreds in a spray of mud, blood, innards and splintered leveas.

It can't be!

I move, Blink, Blink and I’m there witnessing a pillar of crystal ice as wide as a building materialising like a rode piercing the sky. Wind chi is everywhere cutting people, trees, buildings, shattering glass scoring the ground bare.

My domain is free, Reconstruction, reforms the skin I’ve lost, flesh forming over the metal bones of the left arm I’ve now accepted as my own.

Shit, what does it mean for him to be here?

Instinctively I slap aside a scattering blade of wind that wonders to close, the flesh of both hands is ripped apart but between knuckle-guard and bones of iron I blocked a piece of chi unleashed by a 4th continent cultivator. I gap at it.

‘’Uncle Kolisa.’’

*

Kolisi Moya

Kolisa Moya, a 4th Continent cultivator from Omega steps through the portal onto the planet Gaia. His senses quickly picking up eyes on him from multiple directions.

A strange assemble of eyes far in the east quickly pulls away as they see they’re seen by the arriving cultivator. Slitted cunning eyes fade in the distance, a crystal ball cracks blinding another voyeur. Giant eyes of stone open after millennia closed, stirred to alertness by the appearing power of one not of this place.

Mhm, this world is more interesting than I thought.

Kolisa takes a breath of the air, tasting it as he flexes his chi control within the new environment. The air parting for him easily, too easily for his liking eliciting a shockwave like whip of air going miles out splitting clouds.

I need to get out of here before this place makes me soft, he decides displeased with the lack of resistance of the air chi here to his control.

‘’Summon the children to my presence,’’ Kolisa steps.

Arriving at a peak overlooking the construction being done by the helots below. A fort to house and protect the portal has already been completed and a protective shield formation has been setup around the whole mountain but a privacy screen has been neglected.

Kolisa gazes at the helot artisans directing slaves working on the mountain stone carving out a castle from the rock. He is unpleased by his nieces and nephews for their lax security measures.

These idiots prioritise having a castle built into the mountainside over having privacy array put in place.

He gets himself comfortable, cycling the wind chi, being pleasantly surprised at the ease and speed of the flow of the wind’s essence into his Core. Pure essence that entices out the spectre of his wind dragon to soaring translucently in the breeze above him.

‘’You summoned Uncle,’’ Noluvuyo says arrives first. Each of the remaining youth heads down in their elder’s presence as they arrive.

Kolisa doesn’t bother to open his eyes already seeing everything he needs to see.

‘’Where is your cousin?’’

They resist openly looking at each other but none dares speaks first for fear of the coming punishment.

Gigantic claws of invisible air grab all 4 in a vice that has their eyes and tongues bulging out.

[TLAA!]

In a splatter of blood each has their is tongues ripped out of their mouths so quickly they don’t know what’s happened until the pain hits and they regurgitate blood.

Lukhanyo splatters blood on the frozen mount stone attempting to speak, too late for that now.

‘’Take them, a thousand lashes each.’’

Two Faceless in black mesh suites and hooded cloaks take the four and disappear through the portal back to Valeria.

Kolisa lets his wind travel about the mountain peaks, travel bellow at the mountain valleys over the ocean and up in the air. His wind chi spreads and spreads as he takes wind essence in, cycles and expels wind chi out. Spreading his influence and perception with the spreading wind chi. With no resistance, it spreads far letting him perceive everywhere the is wind.

The burnt empty territories, the various creatures making life in and around the mountain range, the birds and other fliers that fill the skies. His wind incites the stone eyed one to bristle in challenge cancelling all his chi about it, but beyond it, nothing else resists until his wind reaches a forest that scatters his sense. Again he is resisted by nine beings that look at him as he looks at them from across all the distance.

And that’s where I need to be.

Wasting no time he moves with the wind, arriving above a small but prosperous settlment judging by all he witnesses. 3 of the 9 beings float up to meet him, each different from the other in appearance and power but there is no mistaking the power these beings have, yet he can't gauge what cultivation continent they're in. Interesting.

‘’Release my nephew and I won’t completely annihilate you from existence.’’

One of the beings with a multi-coloured face smiles a toothy grin. ‘’We are sidhe. The city and its immediate surroundings are under our control, your war you can continues outside those boundaries without our interference.’’

Kolisa studies these beings, his senses not picking up any chi from them yet his own chi not penetrating into them, instincts warning of danger. His nephew Luyolo is somewhere within the settlement, alive.

I was hasty to come here without first getting an update of the situation, I may have underestimated this world’s inhabitants. As a Bantu-jin with pride he can’t back down, not after such a declaration. He uses his wind pulling two White Faceless towards his destination as he prepares himself for action.

‘’Witness,’’ he commands depositing them just beyond the mountain to mountain spanning wall so they can attest if he dies here.

‘’I am Kolisa Moya of the Bantu-jin, feel my displeasure.’’

VHOOO, cold harrowing wind cuts everything within 100km radius apart in a torrent.

Stones, buildings, trees, people and everything else is sliced by powerful sharp winds as the technique charges. People scream as their skin sloughs off, stone weathered by the wind as it passes on its way to the 3 beings standing before him in defiance.

The invisible cyclone of wind smashes forward as two of the beings summon personal shields with one sidhe taking the brunt of the Technique on an quickly adulating sphere levitating before it. The sidhe's clothes are stripped to bloody tethers as it takes cutting wounds while the crystalline sphere spins and bulges while its summoner laughs a manic laugh even as his flesh is stripped away by the pervading winds.

There is a clap of thunder as Kolisa launches himself from a cushion of air. Arriving, his fingers rake another sidhe from horn to torso even as a pillar of ice 30m wide occupies the space he was at piercing empty sky.

FTLEEE, in a shower of blood Kolisa’s target is clawed into three pieces that fly apart as Kolisa air steps again. Clap!

Ding!

His fist rings on a summoned shield; his opponent launched through the air to crash through a dome that blooms over the settlement to destroy buildings before skidding to a stop.

The gushes from air-claws mend and the previously bisected sidhe is black together oozing blood.

‘’Uncle Kolisa.’’

The word stops him in his tracks as he feels his grandnephew’s state of being, a grandnephew he certainly didn't expect to ever see again. The boy has been maimed! His anger roils none existent clouds to thundering as invisible wind of vastly more power prepares-

‘’Uncle.’’

He pauses, completely shocked as his nephew brandishes a boney metal hand with an air-chi wound not spreading. The wound caused by Kolisa’s chi held at bay from spreading by Luthando's chi. Luthando shouldn't have chi...

Kolisa takes both his nephews and the two Faceless, carrying them away in currents of air.