Bounts

The Bounts are a group of humans that possess immortality and powers through their consumption of Human souls from the anime, Bleach.

History
The Bounts came into being due an accidental explosion generated by an experiment in the Soul Society, conducted by Ran'Tao. It had been designed to create eternal life, using the souls of Shinigami as a base, which already aged extremely slowly. However the substances used in the experiment crossed with the developing souls in the Human World, creating a new spiritually empowered species, Bounts. But they were treated unkindly almost everywhere they went, due to the fact that they never aged after reaching their 20's or 30's. Ran'Tao managed to gather the Bounts together in a society within a series of caves, hoping to improve the quality of their lives since she felt responsible for the cruelty they'd been subjected to. However due to their embarrassment over the Bounts creation, the fact the explosion had wiped out a tenth of the Seireitei, and the threat they posed to the balance between the Soul Society and Human World, the Central 46 ruled that it had to be covered up. This meant wiping out the Bounts and a troop of Shinigami were sent to their community, slaying most of the Bounts, though some escaped. One of them was a young Jin Kariya, who was given a seal that would unlock the Bounts' ability to use their Dolls. The remaining Bounts became wanderers, under constant attack by Hollows until one day Kariya activated the seal, merging with his Doll. The other Bounts eventually, they took refuge in another cave, where they planned to try and reach the Soul Society, the only place they thought they could consider a home. Kariya was against this plan, believing that the only thing that awaited the Bounts there was subjugation and death. However the Bount leaders didn't listen, planning to get to the Soul Society with help from the Quincys, but they refused to aid the Bounts. They fought each other and during the battle, the Shinigami arrived, with most of the Bounts getting slain by the Shinigami or the Quincys. Enraged by this, Kariya gathered the remaining members of his race and prepared to get their revenge on the Soul Society. During the time before the events of the series, the Bounts managed to perfect the process of using their Dolls. However as Kariya led them to attack the Soul Society, the Bounts were slain by the Shinigami or turned on him and were killed for doing so. Kariya himself fell in his battle with Ichigo, leaving Gō Koga the only remaining member of the Bounts.

Members

 * Yoshino Soma


 * Ryō Utagawa


 * Jin Kariya


 * Hō and Ban


 * Gō Koga


 * Ugaki


 * Sawatari


 * Mabashi


 * Yoshi

Powers
Bounts possess immortality due to their consumption of souls, which also grants them special powers, however they are unable to reproduce. Though they normally feed on souls of humans that have already died, they can feed on the souls of the living, but killing that person in the process. The Bounts' primary weapon are their Dolls, which function like a Shinigami's Zanpakuto and which they summon with the command, "Zeige Dich" and saying the Doll's name. After feeding on a large amount of souls, Bounts can also manipulate space with the command, "Andere Welt anschliessende Port, tauch' dich sofort auf" which can open a Senkaimon, a portal to the Soul Society. Another command, "Mache sogleich das Tor fuer unsere Bounto auf!", allows Bount souls to travel through the Senkaimon.

Trivia

 * There are two poems in TV Animation Bleach Official Soundtrack 2's liner notes, one of which talks about the Bounts and the second of which most likely does as well. The first one goes:

"A long time ago... An infinitely long time ago... We lived in the shadows of history. Countless are those who have experienced hardships, tragedies beyond description... it is under these circumstances, that now, the Bounts will finally emerge from the darkness."

The second one goes:

"We have lived on for ages... So long, that our countless memories have long since turned ash-gray."


 * The same way that Hollows and Arrancar have a spanish motif to them, the Bounts have a German motif. The command to summon their Doll, "Zeige Dich" is German for "Show yourself", the command to open the Senkaimon is German for, "The portal which connects to another world, appear now!", and the command that lets them pass through it is German for, "Open at once the gate for our Bounts".