The Rise of Madness

The Rise of Madness is a Bleach fanfiction. Published on 6-10-07, it is the author Panzerraptor's ongoing story. It currently has 13 chapters and 1 omake.

Plot
This story focuses on the character named Dante Blaine, a young warrior who was accidentally sent to the Seireitei due to a rift in time caused by Ichigo's entrance to the Soul Society during their mission to rescue Rukia. However, even though his appearance was a mistake, he plans on using his stay here to find the one responsible for his kidnapping and experimentation many years before the story. On his journey for answers, he helps fight alongside Ichigo and his team to save Rukia.

Cast of characters
OC:

Cyrus M. Splicer- An African-American individual based off of Deadpool and MyWay parodies. Like the Merc with a Mouth, he is thoroughly insane and breaks the fourth wall from time to time. This young man is also rather loud and speaks with many non-sequitars (much to the chagrin of both ally and enemy alike). If he isn't fighting or poking fun at pop culture, he'll usually try and hit on women (of course, that's usually a swing and a miss). His clothes also change whenever he becomes stronger.

Aside from helping Ichigo, his main goal is to try and take revenge on the shinigami who hired a group of scientists to abduct him from his home and forcefully bond him with a pair of cursed zanpakuto. These swords are the cause of his insanity. Of course, they are his main weapons of choice and give him access to numerous combo attacks and special abilities known as Berserks (the attacks used by Lagi in Panzer Dragoon Saga).

Aside from being acquainted with Ichigo and most of his comrades, Dante also has a rather kindred companionship with Nemu Kurotsuchi (lieutenant of Squad 12) due to their similar origins. Whether or not this will develop into a romance remains to be seen.

Kowa ro Shii Maru- One half of a pair of stolen cursed swords created in the Soul Society, the spirit residing within this sword (called 'Kowa' by Dante) is a large Deinonychus. Due to the bonding process, Dante can morph into this species of raptor (which develops feathers as he increases his power) when he has enough Spiritual Energy. Though looking like a normal katana in its sealed form, this blade takes on the shape of large swords (large katana=> blue spiked zanbato=> red spiked katana=> lightsaber) in its shiki phase. This weapon's special ability increases Dante's specs, though it really focuses on speed and defense. Dante usually uses this zanpakuto during close range battles.

Akumu hi Ryuujin- One half of a pair of stolen cursed swords created in the Soul Society, the spirit residing within this sword (called 'Akumu' by Dante) is a large Dragonmare. Due to the bonding process, Dante can morph into various types of dragons from the Panzer Dragoon series (Mare Embryo=> Heavy Wing Lv. 5) when he has enough Spiritual Energy. Though looking like a normal katana in its sealed form, this blade takes on the shape of a large scythe (which starts from a basic style tool to a technologically advanced weapon with laser blades) in its shiki phase. This weapon's special ability increases Dante's specs, though it really focuses on physical attack and strength of berserks. Dante usually uses this zanpakuto during long range battles.

Features
The Rise of Madness is a piece of fanmade literature whose main character is an insane individual whose origins and behavior is similar to Deadpool. He loves to break on the fourth wall and makes comments about the characters and situations as another person would if they were watching the anime or reading the manga. In fact, Dante himself usually comments on a few of these similarities and sometimes sees himself as another alternate version of the Marvel character. In essence, it can also be considered a spiritual crossover with Panzer Dragoon due to the attacks used and the dragons which Dante morphs into.

The Rise of Madness also tries to expand on the original storyline by adding scenes to characters that haven't had enough screen time or during certain intervals that are usually given to the main character, Ichigo Kurosaki. These scenes usually involve Toshiro Hitsugaya (captain of Squad 10). Whether or not this involves a sub-plot remains to be seen.

Though the story is rated T, there is much foul language used within the text. Especially the 'N' word dropped here and there. However, it is used sparingly and only Dante says it.

Reception
This fanfiction has received positive reactions. However, compared to many other stories, it is not as well received. This would make The Rise of Madness a cult or sleeper hit.

Possible sequels
Panzerraptor has announced that there might be a possible sequel for in mind. Though information is scarce, it is possible that the story may either concern the filler Bount arc or it may become an adaptation of one of the video games that takes place straight after the Soul Society arc.

Trivia

 * Like many of Panzerraptor's characters, Cyrus Splicer is also a template for Dante Blaine. In a way, due to their references to the real world and their similar sword styles, they almost seem alike. However, unlike Cyrus, Dante's a more mature-oriented character who is not afraid of using profanity that is rarely touched upon. Also, Dante uses light-oriented attacks whereas Cyrus uses Dark-type moves.