Chapter 2
Power Shifts
Renji growled as Yammy struck him back. "Dammit! How are we going to-!"
"Devour, Inferniero Desovar! Cero!"
"Getsuga Tensho!"
"Cero."
"Licht Regen"
Yammy looked up only to see all four attacks hit him.
The group descended, and Rukia, Renji, and Chad were surprised to say the least.
Not only had Ulquiorra attacked Yammy, but another arrancar had joined him.
Rukia Kuchki, Renji Abarai, and Yasutora "Chad" Sado looked at the mixed bag of spirit beings that had just arrived.
However, the attacks had done almost nothing to the massive Espada.
"Ulquiorra! What the hell do you think you're doing?" The giant yelled.
"I have been shown the future. Aizen is going to betray us. I don't expect you to believe me however, given how simple you are," responded the ever calm Arrancar.
"Damn right! I dunno what these weaklings told you, but you're a dumbass for believing them!"
Ulquiorra sighed. "Pity."
Ichigo jumped up and delivered a Getsuga Tensho. He was a little surprised; the move wasn't its usual black. Instead it was a bluish-white, and it seemed to have more power behind it. Not as much as hollowfication, but still impressive.
Yammy's chest was given a deep wound that stretched from his shoulder to mid torso.
"Ya bastard! Come here!" Yammy yelled as he grabbed Ichigo and began crushing his bones.
Ichigo screamed in pain as he felt his bones begin to shudder.
"Hado 33: Sokotsu."
A blast of blue energy slammed into Yammy. Simultaneously, a left leg was severed at the joint.
"Whaaaat?" yelled the giant as he fell over and released Ichigo.
He had a confused look on his face before realizing that he was falling.
"Whaaa!" He hit the sand and a plume shot up.
After the dust cleared he saw two very familiar figures.
"Kenpachi? Byakuya?"
The two bantered over something before looking down at the substitute shinigami.
Yammy wasn't done yet; he had begun to rise from the sand.
"Ichigo Kurosaki, step aside," commanded the current head of the noble Kuchki Clan.
"Stop looking dumb," Kenpachi, the battle crazed captain, added. "You get beaten up wherever you go."
"It's pathetic, so move out of the way you piece of crap!" Kenpachi raised his sword.
"Eh?" Ichigo managed to say, before Kenpachi brought down his sword where Ichigo had just been, having barely dodged.
"W-Wh-What are you doing Kenpachi! You swung at me for real!" Ichigo managed to stutter out from a good distance away. "That's dangerous! Are you trying to kill me?"
Kenpachi gave Ichigo a dark look. "Of course. Wimps should die." He charged at Ichigo, who raised a hand as if to stop Kenpachi.
"Wait Kenpachi! Now's not the time to be doing this!"
Suddenly, Yammy's fist swung out and batted Kenpachi away, barely missing Ichigo in the process.
There was an eruption of stone as Kenpachi impacted one of the strange buildings that dotted the desert within this dome.
"Kenpachi!" Ichigo yelled.
"That hurt..." Growled a deep, loud voice.
"I won't forgive you! I won't forgive you! How dare you cut my leg!" Yammy began to glow red. "I'll kill you! I'll kill you you damn bug!"
Suddenly a massive stone block came at Yammy from behind. The Espada promptly smashed the failed sneak attack with a swing of his arm.
"Oh, good." said Kenpachi. "So you can punch..."
\\../
Victor used his Sonido to recover Ichigo. "Wait here, my Cero Finale is done charging. Kind of glad it took Inoue that long to heal Ulquiorra."
Ichigo placed a hand on his shoulder. "I wouldn't do that. Kenpachi really doesn't like it when people get in the way of his fights."
Victor sheathed his half drawn sword. "Sounds like I don't want to fuck with him. Let me guess he's the guy throwing around buildings?"
Rukia, Chad, and Renji were still a bit uncomfortable to have Victor and Ulquiorra in their midst., and the outsider could tell.
"Ah I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Victor Perivos, I'm an arrancar if you couldn't tell. Don't worry, I'm on your side. Maybe I should fill you all in on what happened up there."
He paused then looked over to Ichigo; the redhead was not exactly looking thrilled about him telling the truth.
"Actually, for all you know, I could be lying. What reason could you have to trust an Arrancar, right? Why don't I let Ichigo tell you?"
He walked past Ichigo and prepared to jump onto a nearby rock, to get a better view of the fight going on near them. However, he stopped and whispered:
"Tell them what you want them to hear, Kurosaki. I won't force you to let them know you... transformed." He then sonido'd up to the rock and sat down cross legged.
Ichigo explained a half true version of the events when he, Orihime, Uryu, and Ulquiorra on the roof. He made up some part abut during the fight, Victor accidentally ripped out his inner hollow trying to stop he and Ulquiorra.
His friends seemed to accept the story, and Orihime happily tried to get Ulquiorra to mingle with the group, despite the obvious awkward air.
Victor observed the two captains fight. It was as if they were on a whole other level than the giant Espada. He watched their techniques, their fighting styles.
He remembered the attack that Byakuya had used upon arrival. He stood up and this got the attention of the group.
"Hey, what's up?" Yelled Ichigo.
"Trying something." He raised his right index and middle fingers on an outstretched arm in a random direction, away from the fight.
"Hado 33: Sokotsu." A ball of blue energy formed at his figertips and shot out in a condensed wave of blue energy. "Interesting. Glad to see that ability still functions."
"How did you do that?" asked a surprised Rukia.
"Hm? Ah yes. That's another one of my abilities Miss Kuchki." He remembered to add the "Miss" to differentiate between her and Byakuya. "It's kind of a 'monkey see monkey do' thing, if you understand. I see an ability and I can perfectly copy that ability, albeit at roughly 80 percent of its base strength. Which reminds me, I have something else I want to try."
He drew his sword and raised it. "Getsuga Tensho." He swung the sword... and nothing happened. "Hm, I see. Intriguing."
Ichigo cocked his head. "Not that I like you trying to steal my technique, but why didn't that work?"
"I'm assuming because unlike the Hado Captain Kuchki used, the Getsuga Tensho is your ability, and yours alone due to it being from Zangetsu. In other words, since my sword isn't Zangetsu, I can't use Zangetsu's abilities."
He sheathed his sword and looked to Rukia. "Miss Kuchki, do you know any other moves, like defensive or skill boosting spells?"
She nodded. "It's called Kido. I know a few binding spells, although they aren't that strong seeing as I'm not a Captain."
"Kido? Interesting. Say, why don't we make Kurosaki here your guinea pig. Use the binding moves on him." Victor looked over to the young man who gained an angered expression on his face.
"Who the hell are you calling a-eh?"
"-with this light, divide into six!" Finished Rukia.
Six rectangles of light struck Ichigo in the torso and he was immobilized.
Of course he was strong enough to break free after a while. "You bastard..." Ichigo fumed at Victor.
"Bakudo number 61-Six Rods Prison of Light." Poor Ichigo was once again bound, although it took him less time to break out of this one due to its decreased power.
"That's it come down here so I can beat the crap out of you!" Ichigo was furious by this point.
"Fine. I'd like to test your abilities at this level anyway." Victor looked over his shoulder at the battlefield where Ichigo fought Grimmjow.
"Over there. Also, we're taking Inoue. If you get serious I might need her abilities." He was trying to give Ichigo a false sense of confidence.
"I don't know," Ichigo said. "You might have another trick up your sleeve."
Vicktor sonido'd over to Orihime and threw her over his shoulder, earning a squeak from her.
"Hey! Don't just toss Orihime around like that!" Ichigo was displeased with how he handled his friend.
"Good, get mad. I want to see you fight like you mean it." The two used their respective fast movement techniques to leave the rest of our heroes behind.
\\../
When they arrived, Vicktor all but dumped Orihime onto the ground.
"My apologies Miss Inoue for the roughness, but I knew that would provoke your friend here into using his power to its fullest. You are unharmed, correct?" He whispered.
Orihime gave a slight nod and stood up; the sand made a decent cushion. Ichigo and Victor stepped forward until they were a good distance away from each other.
"Alright then, Kurosaki. I want you to put all your power into one attack from that Getsuga Tensho." Victor unsheathed his sword and placed his hand over it.
"Devour... Inferniero Desovar!" He changed to his released form.
"Getsuga..." The sword was surrounded with bluish-white energy. Ichigo brought the sword up.
"TENSHO!" The subsequent blast created a canyon in the sand as it sped towards Victor.
Victor growled as his Hierro shattered, layer by layer... but the attack couldn't shatter the final layer.
As his barrier regenerated, Victor charged at Ichigo, slashing with his bony claws. He knew his own weaknesses; he was bulky, and therefore his sonido was slower, as were his reactions.
Ichigo did a superb job of blocking Victor's attacks.
"Come on Ichigo, you can do better! Quit blocking and attack! Unless you can cut my Hierro, you'll never be able to cut the armor of the other arrancar, especially the Espada!"
Victor found a break and grabbed Ichigo by the throat. Then, he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. A small arrancar with a cracked mask stumbled into view. Ichigo followed the Arrancar's line of sight and chocked out "N-Nel! Run!"
A red ball appeared at the tip of Victor's fingers. He was going to use his Cero Rapido. He knew enough about the girl to be aware of her former Espada status... and her Cero Double...
"Itsyugo?" Nel looked at the shinigami and her face lit up.
"Kid, you'd better move unless you want to be killed." Victor said casually.
Nel stood her ground and he fired the first Cero.
She opened her mouth, swallowed it... and then spit it back, making the attack a Cero at 125 percent power. Victor threw Ichigo away and tried to block the blast. However, it shattered his armor and damaged him.
When the smoke cleared, he managed to rise. He staggered over to Nel, grabbed her by the scruff of her jacket, and threw the scrawny arrancar at Orihime.
"Use your powers on the brat. If you do... we'll have another Espada on our side. Then there's one more..." He wasn't used to sensing riatsu.
Ichigo rose and came at Victor, who used his sonido to catch Ichigo's sword arm. "Easy there. I used my Cero Rapido and knew she'd return it. Also, I've determined that we'll need two more Espada to make up for your lack of Hollow powers."
Ichigo was confused as Victor released him. "First off, why is Orihime healing Nel? She wasn't wounded."
Victor reverted to his "sealed" form. "You see, Inuoe's powers don't' heal, but more accurately reverse time. Essentially she makes it so the wound never happened. Remember how Nel has a cracked mask?"
Ichigo nodded. "Yeah she turned into an adult. Why?"
Victor crossed his arms. "Wish I had a cigarette." Victor sighed and then continued. "Her mask's crack was releasing her riatsu. However, if the mask were to be repaired..."
Ichigo realized what he was getting at. "She'd turn into an adult again!"
"Bingo Kuros-!"
"Ichigo."Ichigio interrupted him.
"Huh?"
"Call me Ichigo, I'm kind of sick of you acting all formal and crap. It doesn't fit your look." Ichigo had some strange but true rationalizations.
Victors' messy black hair that fell down below his waist , coupled with messy bangs over his face and long sideburns that flowed from under the piece of his mask that rested just above his left eye, he did look rather unkept and uncivilized. He had been calling them by last names out of respect, but if Ichigo said to call him by his first name, then he'd do it.
"Right then... Ichigo. You're correct. She'd-!" There was a gasp as Neliel stood tall next to Orihime. She noticed Ichigo and tackled the man. "Ichigo I was so worried about you! What happened to you?"
Ichigo was being crushed. He was a healthy teenage boy, although he held high respect for women, so he might have enjoyed the fact Neliel had her chest pressed against his, except for the fact that he was struggling to get air.
"U-um, Miss Neliel, I think he's about to suffocate, and would appreciate it if you learned your own strength." She released Ichigo and entered a fighting stance. "You were fighting him, and then you attacked me!"
She drew her sword and before he could even block, she had shattered his Hierro and blown past him. He felt blood spray from a wound in his side, staining his white jacket. 'God dammit...'
He fell to his knees, but Neliel wasn't done yet; she sped past him again, landing a similar cut on his left arm. Blood sprayed out and Victor winced when he hit the sand; it was essentially rubbing salt in a wound. He hissed and saw his vision blur. He reached for his sword but found his hand pinned under Neliel's foot.
"I don't know who you are, but I'm not letting you hurt Ichigo or I any more."
Ichigo finally regained consciousness after passing out from lack of oxygen. He saw Victor lying on the ground and Neliel about to decapitate him. "Wait, Nel it's alright! He's not an enemy!"
She turned around to look at Ichigo, confused. "What? But he attacked both of us!"
Ichigo walked over to Neliel and placed a hand on her shoulder. " We need to talk." He waved Orihime over and she began "healing" Victor.
While Victor healed, Ichigo explained their current situation to Neliel. She crossed her arms.
"That certainly seems like a problem, but it's kind of creepy he knows this much, including all our names and my Cero Double, isn't it?
Ichigo shrugged his shoulders. "Well, he did kind of goof up when he released my hollow, so maybe he's sticking around to help fix that? I don't know. Either way, he's our ally."
Victor groaned as his injuries began to complete their healing. He looked up and saw Orihime healing him.
"Ugh... Inoue, did you catch the number of that bus that hit me?" He vaguely remembered green and aqua before eating sand.
"That wasn't a bus." Replied Orihime simply. "that was Miss Nel!"
"Ah Miss Neliel, that's right." The healing finished and he stood up.
Neliel sighed. "Sorry about that. It was a total misunderstanding. My name's-"
"Neliel Tu Odelschwanck. Arrancar, former 3rd Espada. Powers include the release of your Zanpakto, your unique "Cero Double" and lightning speed. I know about you. Why else do you think I led Ichigo over here"
She had wide eyes that quickly narrowed. "How do you know so much?"
Victor had an emotionless look on his face for a moment. "Because it's my job to know."
He hadn't said anything, but he had observed Neliel's Cero Double as "Nel". He wanted to be able to mimic the full version however.
"Miss Neliel, I would like to ask something of you."
She eyed him warily. "What would that be Victor?"
He looked to Ichigo. "Take Orihime a ways from here." He then turned to Orihime. "You'll probably need to find a piece of me and resurrect me after this, but I want to learn something."
The two humans vanished.
"Miss Neliel, I've observed your Cero Double when you were in your other form. However," He drew his sword. "I want to learn the actual technique. So I'm going to show you my Ultimate Cero."
Neliel closed here eyes. "Sorry, but that's not a move I can just 'teach"."
"You aren't teaching me anything. One of my abilities is Copia De Gato. [1] I can mimic any move I see. As far as I know the only limits are Zanpakto specific attacks, such as Ichigo's Getsuga Tensho."
He placed his hand over the blade of his sword. "Devour, Inferniero Desovar!"
He transformed and lowered his horns. "You may want to stand back a bit."
She sonido'd a good distance away.
"Cero Finale." The massive black energy blast sped toward Neliel... and was consumed.
She then returned the hit.
Vicktor dodged, but lost an arm as the blast, roughly 350 percent the strength of a standard Cero blast, smashed through his armor and incinerated his left arm from the deltoid down.
He staggered on his feet before nodding. "Alright. Anyways, go get Inoue and Ichigo."
Neliel nodded and vanished in a sonido and soon returned with the two.
Victor did his best to raise the stump of his arm. "Hello, it seems that I've been disarmed by Miss Neliel. I'd like it if you could restore it Inoue."
She nodded and began restoring his arm.
"Ichigo, remember how I said there was one more Espada we needed?" Victor shuddered a bit at the feeling of his arm regenerating.
"Yeah, but who-!"
There was a groan behind Ichigo. From under a mound of sand rose the Espada who had lost to Ichigo and been left for dead.
Grimmjow.
End of Chapter.
So far no complaints about the formatting.
This chapter's a bit longer than the last; I'm guessing a fourth longer?
Anyways, Next Time: Grimmjow's attack and Victor's first true battle.
Oh yeah, [1] "Copycat" lit. Cat of Copying
Also, I'm trying new formatting with this story. It's different from Project: EVE because I'm doing it myself instead of having someone else format.
