Escarcha
From Inga no Kusari wiki
Escarcha is Shimizu Yukiko's Mask.
Sweeping her fingers over the left half of her face as if moving hair out of it, Yukiko allows Escarcha to inhabit her mind and augment her abilities. Black reiatsu with an azure outline forms into her Hollow mask. It tells of the likeness of a Snow Oni, sporting two large horns like those of a ram that spiral outward. The jaws of the mask are present now, and the chin juts slightly outward with the two bottom canines being twice as large as the other teeth. She also gains a mantle made of white fur that is attached to the bottom of her mask. It drapes over her shoulders and back, parting in the middle like in inverse of the v-neck she usually wears. Her hair, no matter what way it has been tied, is unbound and becomes unkempt. Her eyes become just like Escarcha's, and whenever her reiatsu is visible, it is the same black and azure.
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Inner Hollow
Within Yukiko's inner world, Escarcha takes on a similar likeness to herself, however, she is dressed in the old clothes Yukiko used to wear in her home in Rukongai. They consist of a worn, white yukata and hakama, each covered in stitchings and patchwork from all the fights she had gotten into. Her hair is untied and unkempt, and her feet are bare. Escarcha's skin and hair are white as snow, but the sclera of her eyes are black and her irises are the same azure. She carries a nodachi-style zanpakutō exactly like Touchuukaku, who's released color scheme is an exact invert; a transparent black blade with ice-blue cloth.
Mask Personality
Escarcha is much like Yukiko herself in personality, though she lacks a lot of the behavior that some would consider weaknesses. She doesn't enjoy the girly things that Yukiko does, nor does she fear insects of any kind. She is just as brash, if not more so, than Yukiko herself. She is as optimistic as Yukiko, though hers is a more twisted variety. She absolutely loves to fight; whenever allowed, Escarcha greatly increases her other self's blood lust.
Plaga del Invierno (Plague of Winter)
Whilst masked, Yukiko's breath transforms into a Reiatsu-based plague gas. This gas is visible and takes on the appearance and feel of an icy mist, though it possesses no unique odor. She may exhale large amounts at will, however the amount she exhales is dependent on her lung capacity; the rate the gas is emitted is what is increased by this effort, and servers no special purpose other than to project it faster and with direction. The gas itself behaves not unlike liquid nitrogen; it is a very low temperature, and as such, a lot of direct contact will result in cold burns, the severity of which depend on degree of exposure. For example, the a Shinigami wearing the standard attire will suffer sever cold burns over much of their body if completely enveloped by the gas, while another Shinigami with even some protection from cold temperatures, or even a barrier or some method of warming themselves with Kidou, etc, will suffer little to no major effects from skin contact alone. The true danger lies in breathing in the Plaga del Invierno. Upon inhaling, it begins to slowly spread throughout the body, delivering effects similar to Tsuku Kanpuu (relentless shivers, greatly slowed body response) initially even if only a small amount enters. Further inhalation of the icy vapors (longer than three post cycles) results in fits of coughing and significant loss of feeling in extremities in addition to the previous effects. Prolonged inhalation (anything further than five post cycles) will result in severe hypothermia (specifically, difficulty speaking, sluggish movements, difficulty using hands, and stumbling) setting in, though this cannot progress to fatal levels unless the victim's player allows. Yukiko is naturally immune to her own plague, as it is derived from her Reiatsu, and the gas will remains for one post cycle following her mask's removal, after which it dissipates. Afflicted victims retain symptoms for the rest of the thread until medical treatment is applied.
Bajo Cero (Sub Zero)
Yukiko's Cero manifests as a conical freezing blast rather than the traditional vaporizing Cero. While this version of Cero is less immediately destructive than a normal one, it is also capable of flash freezing everything that it comes into contact with. The initial blast is never strong enough to kill, but the ice left behind is so terribly cold that it accounts for the rest of the Cero's destructive power. Any part of the body caught by the ice will slowly sustain the same amount of damage as if it were hit by a full fledged Cero over the course of two post cycles, at which point the afflicted area will become deeply frostbitten. Beings of significantly high spiritual energy may resist the effects to some degree, depending on how well they are able to fend off a normal Cero of the same tier (for example, a person capable of shrugging off a normal Cero of whatever tier Yukiko uses, would be able to shrug off the ice with no more ill effects than said normal Cero). After achieving Most Mask, Bajo Cero also replaces Yukiko's standard Cero.
Hielo Buffet (Ice Buffet)
Yukiko launches a small projectile of azure energy roughly the size and speed of a Bala. When making contact with anything that possesses reiatsu, it converts the reiatsu directly into ice. This causes kidō, cero, any such projectiles, and even body parts to be frozen in ice. For each Buffet, the ice formed cannot exceed 50 cubed centimeters in volume. This ability can be used to bind her opponent's feet to the ground, or to lock their body parts in place, or even to cancel out projectiles. The ice formed is cold enough to induce frostbite if left untreated.
Strengths
I Can Feel My Blood Freezing - Yukiko's plague is radically effective on the unprepared; those without some means of protecting themselves from the elements will find that they succumb quickly to her mask's primary power.
Winter's Grasp - Yukiko's Hielo Buffet and Plaga del Invierno go a long way towards limiting the movements of her enemies. As such, speed differences become less of an issue.
Weaknesses
Stupid Wind - As Yukiko's plague is delivered via a gas she exhales, it is naturally subject to all of the rules a gas must typically follow. It can be blown away, however the movement is sluggish even with strong winds. Those with substantial facial protection will be able to avoid breathing most of the gas, though initial exposure effects will set in (albeit delayed by a post cycle) if they are using something as rudimentary as a rag. Actually possessing a working gas mask will prevent inhalation. Similar means of obtaining the same result (filtering out harmful gases in any way) whether mechanically, via kidou, or otherwise, will also work. Thermal protective wear, or some kidou or other device designed to achieve the same result will prevent the gas from making skin contact, though close sources of significant warmth can help.
