Release
A/N: What did Aizen do to Orihime on the inside? Dark fic inspired by chapter 423 of the manga. AiHime. Angst/Hurt/Comfort. One-shot.
This is not in the same story line as Twin Spheres.
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.
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She crept along the dark, rough-hewn passageway, resolutely ignoring the faint cries of pain in the distance and the heavy vibrations and rumblings beneath her feet. She had concealed herself with kido to hide from the many watchers along the path, and none had sensed her. But the way had been long and hard, and her body was near its limit. She stumbled once again, but some compulsion drove her to continue, pushing her exhausted body onward. She could feel her goal ahead of her, a lodestar shining in the darkness, an unerring string tugging her heart in a single direction.
She passed a bend in the passage and saw two guards ahead, monstrous shapes black against the dim walls. They dozed, leaning against the sides of the corridor, and her kido was sufficient to hide her as she slipped by, invisible, between them.
Around the final bend she saw a barred gate. A massive padlock, thickly bound with heavily knotted spells, secured the lock. Glancing around to make sure the guards could not see her, she lifted her hands. "Souten Kisshun – I reject!" she whispered. The brilliant light of her shield sprang into existence. In a few moments the padlock and all its associated spells had been unmade. She passed through the gate, a silent shadow once more.
In the dim room beyond, a single, angular black chair with a high back was chained to the stone floor. The structure was wound tightly with heavy, dark bands reinforced with layer upon layer of complex, powerful binding spells. In the chair, gazing calmly at her with deep brown eyes, sat a man, his slender form dwarfed by the massive bindings that wrapped his body, strapped his arms and legs to the chair, and even lashed his head to the chair back, obscuring part of his handsome, arrogant face.
"So you have come, Orihime." His deep voice sent shivers through her body.
She knelt before the chair and lifted her hands one more time to invoke Souten Kisshun. The shield appeared, dazzling golden light flaring in the room so that she had to narrow her eyes. She could see through the radiant translucence of the shield that the man had not turned away from the light. His eyes were wide open and dark with triumph as her power cut through the multiple spells that bound him.
She had to strain to remove layer after layer – it was difficult because of the powerful reiatsu from many different beings that had been worked into the spells. She continued doggedly dissolving the binding energies one by one. Finally the last spell parted and her shield faded. She collapsed exhausted on the floor, panting for breath.
The man before her stood up and flexed his limbs. He was garbed in a plain, tight-fitting black jacket and slacks. He did not look at the woman kneeling at his feet, but off into the distance, a look of pride and victory on his face. He stepped forward, and finally, looked down at the woman. He threaded a long-fingered hand through her thick auburn hair, lifting her head so he could gaze searchingly into her eyes. With his other hand he reached down and touched the center of her chest. There was a flare of energy and she gasped. Her eyes came abruptly into focus.
"Wha—Where am I?" she asked in a small voice.
The black-clad man smiled. "You have come through the eight gates and circles of Hell to rescue me, Orihime, as I once commanded you when I placed my Hougyoku within your soul."
"Oh…" she murmured dazedly, "was that it?"
His smile broadened and he turned toward the exit. "Come," he said. "We have revenge to take and a kingdom to win." He reached out a hand to take hers. She struggled to her feet, but then stumbled with a yelp of pain.
He looked down at her and his gaze darkened. Her shoes had been torn to shreds, and blood was oozing from the soles of her feet. He picked her up easily and set her in the black chair, grimacing slightly as he did so. Holding his hands over the wounds on her feet, he began to send healing kido to the damaged tissue. She whimpered in confusion, then quieted as the process completed.
In a single, swift movement, he swept her up into his arms and she relaxed against his shoulder. With a few quiet words, he drew a spell of darkness around the two of them. Then he flash-stepped away down the long, dim corridor.