For some time, there had been rumors of some sort of monster roaming the sands of Hueco Mundo. An odd thought, for a world full of monsters that one in particular would bring such fear throughout the land. It is said that the weaker hollows that came across this creature would simply fade to dust, while the more formidable among their ranks would be swallowed whole in bursts of golden light. Clans of lesser hollows had been wiped out overnight, with many others deciding to risk moving closer to Las Noches than risk the wrath of whatever it was that roamed through the wastelands.

Whatever horror it was that had cursed these lands couldn't be stopped, wherever it went leaving a black mark on the land. The boundless dead littering it's path of destruction. Time would only tell if this horror would ever be stopped, if it even could be stopped.

- - -

"Arashi, I don't think we're ever going to get home" Akane muttered, speaking to her zanpakuto as she holed up in some forgotten corner of this endless desert. As usual, the spirit of her weapon would simply ignore her once again. A blessing really, as this zanpakuto spirit tended to be overly negative and downright rude to it's wielder. With a sigh, the young shinigami would wrap the tatters of her captain's haori in a make-shift head wrap as she heads out once more. It had been quiet for a few days now, little activity on the hollow front, and even less activity on the shinigami front. If she could just find one scouting party, they might be able to bring her home and back to safety. After all, it wasn't every day a captain would just up and disappear, how had they not sent people looking for her? Today might finally be the day, at least that is what drove her on as she walked on-wards into the endless night, trying to sense even the hint of an ally... Or anything with the means to get her back to her world, willingly or not.

Seiji had gone to Hueco Mundo to train. Why? Obviously because he wasn't worthy yet, duh. What his sister Kat had said secretly shook him to the core. His father might not recognize him. He might not see him for who he was. If he wanted to draw Ika Mazi's attention, he needed to get stronger, and what better way to do that besides communicating with his Zanpakuto than by going down into Hueco Mundo and messing up Hollows? He wasn't let out his anger. No way! Why would you suggest such a thing? Jealous? Not Seiji. Nuh-uh. In any case, as the young Shinigami finished beating another Hollow to death he turned and spotted something white moving off in the distance. A Hollow mask? Seiji didn't mind if he did.

With a zip and a Shunpo, Seiji was in front of the girl. His hand was raised, ready to swing on her, but he quickly realized a very important fact, "You're not a Hollow, what are you doing here?" He tilted his head as he lowered his gauntlet-clad arms and stared at the girl.

Despite trying to pay attention to her surroundings, Akane seemed to completely miss someone approaching her. Well, at least consciously. As the shinigami decided to advance upon her, he would find the unassuming figure to be something that he would not be able to handle alone as she reacted with instinct alone. Her speed was frightening, as she drew her invisible blade and circled her 'attacker'. With the tip of the blade pressed squarely at his back she would come to her senses. Really, the only thing that was more concerning than her speed was the overwhelming spiritual pressure she had suddenly began to wield. The surprise alone would floor most people, but she had quickly contained this outburst before she could do any real damage.

"I could ask you the same thing" She would sheathe what seemed to be an empty handle as she settled into a more relaxed stance. It had been so long since she had seen someone, it was hard to tell if she could trust them, but maybe they could get her out of here? "My name is Akane Makishima.. Shinigami, I guess" She would tug her head-wrap off, revealing almost startlingly red hair. "Who are you?" She had avoided his questions for now, more concerned that someone else had been stupid enough to come to this endless desert alone.

Seiji grunted as he felt a sudden, fleeting burst of awesome spiritual pressure and... killing intent? Oh shit. Even Seiji, someone who took great pride in his speed and reflexes he'd honed over the years, was unable to follow the woman's movements as she pressed her Zanpakuto against his back. Seiji instinctively raised his hands and let out a nervous chuckle as a bead of sweat rolled down his brow. "Seiji Mofubuki... Unofficial member of the Mazi clan, I guess." He offered the startling the flame-haired girl an easy and laid-back smile. The kind that either made you think "Ah this guy has no cares in the world," or "Ah, this guy's an idiot isn't he?"

"I would ask what you're doing out here all alone, but I'm sure someone like you could easily handle themselves in a fight. Seems my concern was unwarranted." Seiji shrugged and stuffed his hands into his pockets and let his posture relax. His body was loose, and his eyes were constantly watching the surroundings even though he looked too relaxed.

Akane would bow upon hearing his name, interesting to see yet another member of the Mazi clan... Unofficial or not, there didn't seem to be and end to them. "Sorry, I really need to tone it down sometimes... I've actually been stuck here for a while now." She shrugged, carefully peering around the endless desert around them. There was a problem with hollows, at least the dumber ones, they were drawn to mass amounts of spiritual pressure. Something Akane had learned early on in her exodus.

"I got stranded here on a mission, so I've just kind of been wandering. I might be going in circles for all I know... there's nothing around here to use as a guide. Though we should get moving unless we want to get swarmed" She motioned in what seemed to be a random direction, they could chat and walk after all and she was hoping this person had a way out of this place... Assuming he wasn't some sort of exile of course. Assuming the other shinigami followed along, after something of a short walk they would reach the top of a dune to come across sheer destruction.

"They won't come here, it's much safer" Akane didn't seem worried, despite the scars through the surrounding otherwise featureless desert. It trailed onward, dotted across the horizon into the distance. From deep gouges to wide-spread craters. With fragments of what could only be hollow masks strewn among the sands. "So you never said why you were here! They didn't send you out by yourself did they?" So far, she just assumed someone who could travel to this dimension must be a shinigami, she didn't know of anyone else with the ability other than hollows... and he didn't seem to be one of those.

"Don't worry about it, I'm used to death-threats." Seiji maintained his good-natured grin while waving his hand in front of his face as the girl before him apologized. He let out a small grunt as the girl mentioned she had gotten stranded in Hueco Mundo on a mission before motioning with her head in a random direction and beginning to walk. After she took a few steps, Seiji realized she wanted him to follow her and he jogged forward to catch up. As the two of them crested a large dune of the endless desert sands, Seiji looked down and let out a small whistle of amazement. "I should think not, clearly some dangerous beings did battle here. The noise and Reiatsu would definitely scare off pretty much everything around for a mile or so."

"Why I'm here, huh? Well..." Seiji chuckled awkwardly as he rubbed the back of his head. "Intense training, I guess? Really spartan, you know. I came out here unofficially to really test my mettle in life-or-death battles and gain more experience. As I am right now, my father wouldn't even acknowledge me, much less look at me. I'm... not yet worth his time."

"Oh? Maybe you need to find some better company" The red-head just shrugged as she navigates the devastation, holding back a laugh as he described the war-zone around them. "I do get a little carried away sometimes, but I'm not dangerous" She certainly didn't look dangerous, but so far he had found out first hand that this was simply a ruse, though it wouldn't be clear if this was done intentionally on her part or not.

"I guess that makes sense, training out here is probably going to help! Or get you killed I guess." The girl stopped finally, deciding that they were more or less safe at this point. "So what, you were just gonna stay here and fight a bit? How is that going to help your father notice you? Surely you need to do something impressive!" Tapping her chin thoughtfully, there wasn't exactly much to do here other than fight hollows... maybe he could find a proper challenge and take some trophies? Who knows.

"Well, the truth is..." Seiji let out another laid-back chuckle as he followed behind the red-haired girl by a pace or two whilst navigating the area of utter devastation with little difficulty. The Shinigami took a moment to consider how he was about to phrase his next words. While they didn't necessarily matter in the context of such idle chatter, he still felt rather strongly about this topic. This was a lot of baggage he had only just begun to unpack. This whole thing was coming on so fast. Seiji had only recently learned he had a father, siblings, a family all this time. While one would normally wonder where these people had been all this time Seiji had realized a very important truth after conversing with his newfound sister Kat: that wasn't the Mazi way.

Was he ready to take on such a burden? Was Seiji even worthy to tout the Mazi name? He certainly didn't think so. Doku, Ika, Kazuku, Kat... These were people who existed in the realm of monsters. Beings of unparalleled strength and ability. Seiji may have been talented, but compared to them he was a small-fry. A nobody that existed far outside of their notice. "My plan is more or less to fight Hollows and converse with my Zanpakuto to gain further insights into her nature. I don't feel as if she's acknowledged me yet, and if even she hasn't, well..." Seiji trailed off for a moment and sighed before grinning his laid-back grin. "Then I'm far from earning any sort of recognition from Ika Mazi, aren't I?" The excitement had begun to fade, being replaced by feelings of anxiety and worry that swirled deep in Seiji's heart underneath his goofy and relaxed exterior.

"I guess not!" Akane knew of the Mazi family of course, though she wasn't particularly involved in any of them. It didn't exactly surprise her that this boy had sort of been left by the wayside by that particular family. "Why don't you show me what you can do then. I might be able to help" She let the suggestion hang for just a moment as she cleared a little distance between them, drawing her zanpakuto once more. Though, oddly enough she seemed to just be holding a handle, with no blade to speak of.

"Just a friendly match, I promise I'll go easy on you" How easy that was would really depend on just how capable this other shinigami really was, if he was willing to fight the cause of all the devastation around them. "In fact, you can even go first!"

Seiji nodded and slowly drew his blade with an easy smile. His entire body was loose, but not in a ready-for-battle kind of way. He was in an overly-relaxed while stifling a yawn. "Sure, I need all the help I can get..." Seiji chuckled while slowly blinking his eyes. As his eyelids rose like the curtain before a show, something in his gaze changed. It was harder, almost bloodthirsty in nature as he muttered aloud his command' "Hunt in the snow, Shiroi Tora." His Zanpakuto shone brightly and morphed into a pair of metal gauntlets as Seiji exhaled and shifted into a more suitable combat stance with his legs feet a shoulder-width apart and his body turned to make it a smaller target.

In a flash he was gone to the average gaze though the red-haired girl would definitely have seen his muscles tense with explosive energy and power gather throughout his body in an instant as he Shunpo'd right in her face. It was an honest move, up-front and no-nonsense as Seiji unleashed an uppercut with his right hand while glittering ice blades formed at the tips of his fingers. Whether or not he hit, Seiji would then shift lower and pivot on the balls of his feet while swiping his left arm in a circular motion with the ice at his fingers carving a circle around him with their Zanpakuto-level cutting power.