Chapter 3: The Escape
(Happy New Year Aizenfans! :) Spunky loves you!)
"I don't know how you convinced me to do this!" Gin said softly, as he walked, unseen, past the guards at the entrance to the Seireitei, "This is insane! There are so many people here who have not been hypnotized by you. We could be seen..."
Only if someone knew to look more closely, but you look just like any other simple, unseated shinigami. We fit in, Kyouka Suigetsu answered, Remember that full control of my target's senses must be gained using the hypnosis ritual, but my innate ability is the power of suggestion and deception. As you can see, most people do not bother to look closely enough to be of concern to us.
"Well, that surprises me," Gin said, shaking his head, "With the war barely over, I would think that their defenses would be up. But then, with Aizen behind bars, what have they got that would be anywhere near as much of a threat, ne?"
Yes, exactly. They have relaxed their guard, here in the Seireitei, even though security remains tight in the living world, where cleansing is going on, and around Central 46.
"Then, how do you plan for us to get inside?" Gin asked, frowning, "Assuming they will be on guard, how will we get past their security and reach him?"
Gin could almost feel that if the sword's soul was a live person, he would be smirking.
Leave that to me.
"How did I know you would say that?" Gin said dryly.
Because you know my master well. I am only an extension of his soul, just as Shinzou is an extension of yours.
The mention of his own zanpakutou sent a pained jolt through Gin's midsection.
Don't worry, Kyouka Suigetsu assured him, as though reading his thoughts, He will be back. Remember that you almost died. It is going to take some time for him to regain his strength. But during that time while the two of you fully recover, you will have me to protect you. And do not forget, you will have him as well.
"If he doesn't just decide to kill me again," Gin sighed, "Sousuke isn't known for trusting easily. And where he has been betrayed, he would certainly never trust again."
He will be resistant, and until the meeting with our benefactor, you must not reveal the name of the one whom we are taking him to. That person alone must reveal the truth to him. Only then will he be able to brace the soul king.
"This is so strange," Gin muttered, shaking his head, "Everything is upside down. As much as I went with him and seemed to support him, I never really wanted him to kill the king. I didn't even care if he lived or died."
Yes, you did.
"What are you saying? I tried to kill the man!"
But you also saved his life before he and the hougyoku were fused. Do you remember, Gin?
"Ah..."
He stood on the balcony outside Aizen's bedroom, looking up at the moon and frowning as Rangiku returned to his mind. He knew he should just have returned to Aizen's bed, but as the days of their time in Hueco Mundo wound down, he was finding it harder and harder to continue deceiving the shinigami traitor.
"Snakes aren't supposed to have hearts," he whispered, to remind himself, "I am here for one reason and one reason alone. I must focus on that. I must focus on..."
He was taken out of his thoughts as he heard a very soft click and an even softer footstep. Within the room, Aizen sighed in his sleep.
"Gin..."
And in that moment, all thought left Gin's mind. Before he realized what had happened, he had flash stepped back into the room and Shinzou was in his hand and releasing. The blade sank into the chest of the assassin, and with his deadly eyes glaring into Gins, the man slid to the floor.
For a moment, Gin and the awakened Aizen gazed in surprise, into each others' eyes, each feeling the weight of what had happened. Then, Gin slid his weapon back into its sheath and gave Aizen his trademark smirk.
"You'll want to be a little more on your guard, I think," he commented, trying not to let on the shiver that had come into his heart, "You should expect that people will go to great lengths to kill you."
Aizen smiled and extended a hand, welcoming the silver-haired man back into his bed as more guards entered the room and dragged away the body of Aizen's attacker.
"Come, Gin," Aizen said warmly, "Lie down with me. I am a much less tempting target with a snake curled around my body, ne?"
"That was a whim. It was just..."
Instinct. You did not want him to die.
"I..."
Come, Gin, you must focus completely on your task. We must free him, and the shinigamis must not sound the alarm...not yet. As soon as the soul king knows that Aizen has escaped, he will stop at nothing to retrieve him. And if he finds out that we are the ones who freed him, he will make sure that we pay for it. Remember, you are in a precarious position when it comes to him, Gin.
"So you told me before," Gin acknowledged, slowing as he reached a growth of trees, just short of the Central 46 chambers.
Memories flooded back then...of his entry with Aizen into that place, of watching silently as Aizen used his powers to blind the councilors to his presence, then murdered them one by one.
There was only one word for him then, Gin remembered, He was a monster. But...it was a monster that was made by an even greater one. And while Sousuke may not be beyond redemption, the soul king is. He started all of this.
He set it all into motion.
He deserves to die.
Gin moved forward slowly, swallowing hard as the sentries met his eyes for a moment, then nodded briefly in greeting and let him pass.
Amazing.
But then, they think that Kyouka Suigetsu is dead.
They think I am dead.
And even if they knew that I lived, they would not believe that I would return to him. I don't believe it. But then, nothing between the two of us has ever been simple, has it?
He proceeded through the hallways, remembering perfectly from being there before, how to reach the entrance to the prison levels. He stopped at the first checkpoint and watched as the guard looked at an identification badge that was only a false image.
"Go ahead, sir," the guard said, nodding.
Gin walked on, amazed all over again that, even after the betrayal from before, Central 46 was so terribly unprepared for Aizen's power. Although, again, they thought it to have diminished. But even so, Aizen Sousuke wasn't the only traitor that had ever existed. He was just the only one powerful enough to completely bypass the defenses of this place that was like a fortress. A smirk came to his lips at just how easy it was for a snake to enter even a well guarded fortress.
He continued on, passing each checkpoint without challenge and coming into the lowest level.
I can't believe I'm here.
His heart pounded fiercely in his chest as he left the final checkpoint and approached Aizen's cell.
I can't believe I'm doing this.
It is the last thing I thought I would ever do.
He reached the door and paused, shivering at the coldness of the environs and the dark presence of the imprisoned man he was going to see. Already, he felt Aizen's heavy reiatsu. Even sealed away, it was palpable...almost suffocating. He forced out a breath and pushed open the door to the cell, entering and keeping his eyes lowered until he had reached the prisoner and stood only a few scant steps from him.
He was surprised when he looked up, to find that both eyes had been covered, and his mouth as well.
"You must have misbehaved, ne?" he said, smirking as he uncovered, first, Aizen's mouth, then his eyes.
The dark brown eyes blinked slowly, then focused on him and widened and darkened.
"Gin," he said in a low, deadly voice, "So...you are alive. And...free?"
Gin looked back at him, still reeling at being so close to the man again and unable to answer.
"I see. I must admit that I am surprised that they wouldn't have just killed you. I certainly can't imagine this group of fools ever welcoming you back into the fold, even after you revealed your true colors and tried to kill me."
"I think they would have been more willing to consider it if I had been successful," Gin answered, his heart still pounding madly and sweat breaking out on his forehead, "But alas, I underestimated you."
"Yes."
A long silence passed between the two.
"But if you are not with them, then how did you get inside the prison? And in addition to that, why would you come here?"
Gin gazed back at him wordlessly, his heart beating harder and dizziness sweeping over him as the moment of reveal arrived. He reached into his cloak and took hold of Kyouka Suigetsu, drawing the sword and holding it out in front of him. Aizen's eyes widened in surprise and his smile grew more predatory.
"Oh. so you are not the only one who unexpectedly survived!" the prisoner exclaimed, "And I see that my zanpakutou was able to find his way to you. He overcame you, then? He controls you? Why Kyouka Suigetsu, I am touched."
Gin sucked in a surprised breath as the zanpakutou spirit slowly materialized at his side.
"I do not control Gin," he said calmly, "He came to the battlefield and found the broken pieces of me."
"Gin...saved you?" Aizen queried, sounding surprised.
"No. It was not Gin who saved me."
"Then...?"
"When you began to transform...when you transcended and I began to crumble, a power from within the hougyoku prevented me from dying. I laid on the battlefield as you were defeated and sealed away. And as the hougyoku fell under the seal, it used a last flicker of power to sustain me. In that last moment, it revealed to me that I must find my way to Ichimaru Gin, and that we must come to you and bring you secretly to the spirit dimension."
It is as he says, the hougyoku whispered into Aizen's mind, making the prisoner flinch uncomfortably.
"So, you choose to speak to me again? I thought that I was beneath you."
You did fail in your mission to become king. But all is not lost. It was, however, necessary to wait until the right time to awaken. We must be cautious. You have a powerful enemy who, unlike the shinigamis, does have it within his abilities to kill you. And although you are protected by my powers and are immune to most deadly things, Gin is not. And if you still want to win your crown, you need him to remain alive.
"I need him?" Aizen repeated, frowning, "Why would I need Gin? He is nothing but a backstabbing snake. I only kept him near me because I wanted to use him to help me evolve. You know that."
I know that is what you think. But your feelings about this do not matter. Gin is important and must be protected.
"And why should I listen to you, who failed me and left me bound and imprisoned in this cell?"
You should listen to me because I know that you do not want to remain in this cell. The longer you are here, the more time your enemy has to find the way to kill you. And believe me, before your time is served, he will discover the way. You need to escape and make your way to the spirit dimension. The one who waits for you there will explain things in full.
Aizen's eyes narrowed.
"And why do you not explain now? What are you hiding, hougyoku?"
Only what I must until we are under our benefactor's protection. But it is your choice, of course. You can stay here and wait for the soul king to learn the way to destroy you or you can come with Gin, Kyouka Suigetsu and me and we can travel to the royal realm. The way will be dangerous. We will not be able to use the direct path, but must use the precipice world and enter by way of a secret pocket dimension that has been opened for you.
"Ah, then, by all means, release my bonds," Aizen agreed, "We should leave quickly, ne?"
Gin remained standing in front of the prisoner, his blue eyes slitted and his lips frowning.
Gin?
"As soon as I release him, he will kill me and leave me lying here," the silver-haired shinigami concluded, "I will not live to see the outside of the prison. Before I release him, I want some assurance that will not happen."
That would be inadvisable, said the hougyoku, for I will tell you this...we cannot enter the spirit dimension without this man. He is the 'key' we need to enter there.
"Gin is the key?" Aizen said, eyeing his former colleague and noting the surprise on the silver-haired shinigami's face, "And I see that he was not aware of this. I think that you had best tell us why Gin is needed? How is it that he can open the way to the royal realm? I think before we move from this cell, you need to inform us."
I can say no more. As I said, all things will be revealed once we reach our benefactor. Until then, you must use your powers to protect Ichimaru Gin. If he dies, then you will eventually be killed by the soul king. This is a matter of fate, not design.
"And who exactly are you to speak to me of fate? I created you. How would you know of these things, yet I do not?"
I think you have already begun to suspect that I am not wholly your own creation. But I will explain..."
"When we reach the royal realm," Aizen sighed, looking into Gin's partially revealed eyes, "Well then, it seems I have no choice but to accept your terms for now. I will agree not to send that snake to the painful death he deserves until we have reached the one in the royal realm. Until that time, I will use what powers I have to protect him."
His eyes met Gin's again, expectantly.
"Does that meet with your approval, my treacherous former lover?"
Gin's face paled, but he nodded briefly. He moved forward on unsteady legs and slowly unbound the brown-eyed man. Aizen's eyes watched him closely as he worked, sending small shivers of warning through Gin.
It is so clear that he would just as soon kill me as look at me. I wonder if that warning the hougyoku gave him will be enough.
All too soon, Aizen was free. Gin started to step back, then sucked in a hard, frightened breath as a hand clenched the front of his clothes and yanked him into a long, brutal, open-mouthed kiss. Gin froze, unable to react as those hot, hungry lips enslaved his, feeling every bit as passionate as they ever had. But beneath that kiss was a burgeoning, deadly hatred. Gin tore himself away, gasping and shaking softly as Aizen gave him a dominating smile.
"What was that about?" he asked breathlessly, "I know that you hate me for betraying you."
Aizen stretched languidly, then stepped forward slowly, stopping in front of Gin and leaning close to whisper into his ear.
"I kissed you like that so that you could feel how much I hate you for betraying me!" he hissed softly, "Know this, snake. You are alive so that I can reach the royal realm, and that is the only reason you are alive! As soon as you are of no more use to me, I will murder you in the most foul and horrid way I can think of to do so."
Gin swallowed hard and managed a smirk.
"You are just as I remember you," he commented, handing Aizen the green-hilted zanpakutou.
"As are you."
Aizen gazed at him quietly for a moment, then slid his weapon into the belt at his waist. Kyouka Suigetsu gave Gin a look of reassurance and slowly faded.
"Well then," said Aizen, finding Gin's eyes again in the darkness, "You may lead the way, Gin."
"I don't know if I dare turn my back on you," Gin said, regaining a bit of his composure, "I am not sure I won't be run through again."
"That is a good instinct," Aizen said, with somewhat more warmth, "But...I do not see Shinzou."
"My zanpakutou has not returned," Gin said softly, "I have my flash step and a bit of kido, but that is all."
"I see. Well, then you are fortunate that the hougyoku wants you alive. Enjoy that good luck while you have it."
Gin turned his back on Aizen, forcing down the cold chill that went through his insides as he did.
I wonder what he would think if I told him about the child.
I wonder why the hougyoku didn't mention it.
Perhaps he shouldn't know just yet.
He led Aizen out of the cell and started back on his way outside, the man who most of all wanted to kill him, walking quietly at his side.
And even as he felt the coldness of the man's fury, the warmth of Aizen's kiss refused to leave his blushing lips.
