The Shark in the Moonless Night

by The Night Hunter

The Winter war is over. Traitorous Aizen had been slain. But this is just start of the road for Ichigo. He will find allies and enemies alike in places he least expected, while the Ancient evil is lurking in the shadows and plotting the demise of all worlds. Revised verision of The Shark in the Moonless Sky!

6. Lords of the Desert

Chapter 6

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I would like all those who like Kim Possible stories to go read the story ,,Part-Time Sidekicks" written by my friend and other beta-reader Imyoshi.

It has a very interesting premise and like all his works is a high quality piece of writting so go and read it!

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Ichigo awoke with a groan. His soul hurt, literally. Yoruichi put him through such an ordeal, that if someone (most likely him) had died, only then would she give them any leeway. The bad thing about your soul hurting was that it somehow projected to the parts of your body, meaning that Ichigo's body hurt like hell. To the point he flat out refused to get up next day for school, despite Tia's insistence. After a few hours he woke up again, hearing quite a pleasant sound.

When his eyes pried open he saw Tia sitting at his desk writing something in her note book, surprisingly humming.

Ichigo was really surprised that the normally stoic woman would know such a soft tune. Also he had to admit she had quite melodic voice.

He closed his eyes and just listened to her humming. Somehow it reminded him of lullaby of some sort.

Ichigo remained still for a while, not wanting to interrupt her, but he quickly discovered that he was starting to grow sleepy again.

Deciding that he had to get up, he sat up.

He couldn't predict that Tia would've choked on her own spit, in a pitiful attempt to stop her humming, and throwing herself in fit of coughing.

"Are you ok?" Ichigo asked, very amused by her reaction. As if he caught her doing something scandalous.

"Yes I am." She said matter-of-factly, returning to her scribing hoping that Ichigo wouldn't ask….

"So what was the song?" Tia's hopes evaporated. "It was nice."

"I do not remember. All I know is the tune… Probably some remaining memory of my previous life." She replied, feeling slightly embarrassed at being caught.

"Hmmm, sounded like lullaby to me." Ichigo commented. "My mother used to sing a similar one to me." He said nostalgic.

"Speaking of your mother, when I will have the chance to meet her?" Tia asked. A second later she felt that she had just made a horrible blunder, worse than getting caught humming. If Ichigo's expression was any indication.

"You wont." He replied quietly, looking at his feet. "She died many years ago…. Or to be honest, she was killed."

"Who could do such a horrible thing?" She asked, enraged that someone took a mother from a person like Ichigo.

"A Hollow… His name was Grande Fisher. Iever since I could remember I could see ghosts. He fooled me into thinking that a person was about to jump into the river. So I ran to help and he was about to attack me, but my mother shielding me." He balled his fists. "I ended up fighting him after I became a Shinigami, but that bastard managed to escape."

Tia was at complete loss of words. She felt terrible for making him relive all those horrible memories. But that paled in comparison to the fact that it was one of her kind that did it. She never prided herself in being a killer Hollow like some others. The very idea of gaining power by killing and devouring others was sickening to her. Yet the fear of devolution was stronger, so she kept doing the things she hated to the point it was no longer necessary to survive.

She was about to try and comfort him, but Ichigo continued.

"I really hate Hollows. It's like their sole purpose of existence is to make others suffer." He said looking at the ceiling, and missing Tia's shocked expression.

Her mouth fell slightly agape, and she stared at him with wide eyes. He wasn't looking at her, and she was grateful for that. For those few seconds she couldn't mask the hurt on her face. Quick as always she reigned in her emotions, and put on a mask of indifference.

'Why are you so surprised…I'm a Hollow, he's Shinigami, we're natural enemies.' She thought bitterly. She looked at the neat lines of notes she made. 'It's not like it ever had a chance to work out.'

'Come on TI-chan, he surely didn't mean it… at least towards you. If he truly hated you why would he go through all that effort to keep you safe?' Tiburon reasoned.'Just ask him if he includes you, and we'll see that cute embarrassed reaction of his.'

'I... I need to clear my head before talking to him.' Tia replied. "Excuze me Ichigo, I'm going to take a walk."

"Ehh? That's kinda sudden." He looked at her, but she kept her expression guarded.

"I just need some air." She said neutrally, but left the room in an obvious hurry.

Ichigo looked after her puzzled and trying to figure out what just happened. One moment he was telling her about his Mother, next she was bolting out of their room with blank expression…

'Wait a minute…' He furrowed his brows in concentration. 'Was is something I said?'

'Gotta hit you with a hammer you're so dense, you moron. Of course it was!' Hichigo snapped.

'You should be wary of your words in the future Ichigo, they may be cruel to others.' Zangetsu added.

'But what did I say? I just told her about Mom and that I hat-' Ichigo face palmed so hard that whole neighborhood could heard it. "I'm an utter moron."

'Damn strait you are.' Hichigo agreed, huffing in annoyance.

He stood up feeling all his joints scream in protest, but he ignored them. He bolted down the stairs, but found her jacket and shoes gone already. With groan he went upstairs and started to dress in a hurry.

Not even five minutes later he was outside looking for her. Predictably, she hadn't answered his calls. He texted her an apology, but there was no reply.

So he had to use the old fashioned way of simply trying to find her, sheer luck…..

---

Somewhere In The City

Tia wandered around the town with no particular destination. She found herself enjoying the sight of flowers blossoming. After she cooled down a little she realized how childish her reaction was. She saw the text message, instantly feeling better, but she still needed to solve one mystery.

Why those words, which she's heard so many times over, affected her to this extent. If she was any other person she could flood a river by crying.

She really couldn't put her finger on why exactly she had the crushing feeling of hopelessness and bitterness, when she heard that Ichigo basically announced his hate towards her. While it wasn't direct, she was a Hollow, and he hated them, ergo hated her.

'But why does it…. hurt so much?' She thought. 'Why do his words hurt so much?' A sigh escaped her. She couldn't understand any of it. The rational part of the brain simply couldn't come to any logical conclusion.

Finally giving up, she was about to call Ichigo when suddenly a loud voice bellowed behind her.

"Fancy meeting here Daughter-to-be!" Isshin exclaimed, making Tia jump. "What brings you to this part of town?"

"I was just…. walking?" She replied lamely, not being able to think of any better excuse. The elder Kurosaki scanned her up and down, before looking deeply into her eyes. "Is something wrong? Please don't lie to me."

His tone left no room for argument. While most of the time Kurosaki Isshin was a goof, Tia easily noticed the glances he sent her when she went close to either of his daughters. If there was a need, he would be on her in second. Luckily, after spending some time with his family the man visibly warmed up to Tia.

"It's complicated… I'm having difficulty understanding it myself." Tia admitted.

"Looks like we need somewhere to sit. I know nice café nearby." Isshin said rubbing his beard.

The two moved to small Chinese stylized café and ordered tea. "So?"

"I guess I should start to why I was wandering around the city…" Tia summarized the short talk with Ichigo. By the end of the story Isshin was face palming.

"Just to be clear I really did all I could to teach him to mind his words." He ran his hand across his hair." But I want to you know that he doesn't hate you even a bit so you don't need to worry." He reassured her.

"He sent me a message apologizing for his words." Tia felt her lips curved up a bit." But that's not all that troubles me here….today I attended school without Ichigo and I noticed how badly I don't fit there." She sighed." Like I suspected Ichigo's friends only interact with me due to his wishes while the rest is now afraid to do so because of my actions from yesterday. Even if someone tried to strike a conversation with me, I couldn't understand what they were saying or referring to, I'm simply too alien for this worlds."

"Look I know it must be hard to not being able to fit in, I had similar problem too when I left Soul Society, you're here just few weeks you need to give yourself a bit of time to adjust Tia-chan, I won't lie it won't be easy but it's not impossible, you're smart and my son told me how you pranked him at the opening ceremony." He grinned when he saw her cheeks color." You can fit in you simply need time, it's natural to have doubts….have you shared any of those doubts with Ichigo?"

"Some but not all…I don't want to sound ungrateful to him, he does a lot for me and I don't want to cause any more trouble for him with my problems."

" I'm sure he won't see it like that, my son really cares about you so if you have any problem you can speak with him about anything…literally." His grin turned slightly perverted but soon turned serious. "He usually don't talk to anyone about what happened to Masaki, the very fact that he told you speak volumes of how much he trusts you."

"I…." she hesitated she wasn't good at that kind of stuff. Usually she was the one giving advices to others." I overreacted when I heard what he said….I don't know why those words…his words affected me like that." Her face twisted with confusion when Isshin burst out laughing.

"You really don't know?" He asked between laughs.

"No." She replied icily, irritated by his giggles.

"Then it's not my place to explain that to you , you have to figure that on your own." He gave her warm fatherly smile. "You're a good soul Tia, just don't get discouraged and good things will come your way."

For few seconds Tia couldn't find any words. Her throat tightened so ever slightly with warmth spreading through her chest. She couldn't deny it was a nice feeling, Isshin seemed to genuinely care about her. He seemed like a person she could lean on. While Ichigo was dependable too he was very young and had his problems too. His father seemed like a better option to confide her doubts.

"Thank you." She said quietly with her voice laced in emotions. His smile widened, he moved his hand and put it at top of her. Tia surprised herself by not opposing this act.

"If you ever want to speak on any subject and I mean any." This time he kept his face serious all the way." I will always have time for you and I will help you to the best on my abilities both as a human and a shinigami so don't hesitate to ask."

All Tia could do was to nod, again having troubles with forming a coherent sentence.

"Ok since that's out of the way call my idiot of a son and tell him that you're with me, I'll give you a lift to home." Isshin called the waitress to pay her while Tia followed his request. She had hard time keeping her face passive while hearing Ichigo's almost panicked voice. She reassured him that she was fine…few times, and promised to come back home.

After twenty minutes of drive Isshin and Tia were back home. No sooner than the Arrancar lady crossed the threshold Ichigo literally assaulted her with pleas of forgiveness.

But luckily before the situation go any more awkward Isshin quickly head-butted his son, pacifying him.

"Now you two can talk. I'll be in the clinic if you need me." He waved them off.

"Damn old goat." Ichigo mumbled, rubbing his forehead. He looked up seeing Tia' barely contained amusement. "Tia I…"

"Ichigo you've already apologized to me profusely, there is no need to prostrate yourself any further before me." She headed off the oncoming steam of apologies. "I also want to apologize for my behavior. I overreacted, know now that you hadn't meant to offend me."

"I had no right-" He began.

"You have all rights." She cut his off again. "My kind killed your Mother, so you have all rights to hate me." When she said it aloud her chest ached a bit. "It's natural to hate the ones that hurt you or your beloved ones…. even the ones that weren't involved in it." Tia closed her eyes, calming her feelings.

"Sometimes you're too selfless for your own good Tia." Ichigo stood. "But I don't hate you Tia, and I doubt that I ever will…. but you know Hollows are really less than loveable." He rubbed his neck.

"I can imagine." She replied with an almost smile. The mood lightened by a large margin, and the awkward air was finally gone.

"So how about we go somewhere to eat? My treat." Ichigo offered trying to sound casual.

"Let me just change into something more presentable."

---

Soul Society

Rukia sighed in irritation. Here she spent another futile hour trying to pry some details from her brother about Ichigo's promotion. The same happened with Captain Ukitake, and basically any other Captain she tried to interrogate. Which in turn made her even more suspicious about it.

"Rukia-chaaaaaaan!" A shout came from behind. The raven haired girl turned round seeing Matsumoto, followed by Ikkaku and Yumichika. "I was just looking for you!"

"Really?" She withheld her sigh. "What I can do for you?"

"I'm gathering the guys up for a little meeting, Kira, Nanao-chan, Isane-chan, Renji-kun, Hisagi, Momo and Iba are already in, sooo?" She gave Rukia a disarming smile.

"Why not? What's the occasion?" She asked.

"Ichigo's promotion of course!" She chirped. "I can't wait for all the hot gossip to come around!"

"Tsk, he got a lucky shot at Aizen. I bet I could've taken him out." Ikkaku boasted.

Matsumoto gave him very long and very blank stare.

"Stop it Ikkaku, being a sore loser is ugly." Yumichika said, brushing his hair to the side. "Let's go, the others are waiting."

The group moved to the bar, exchanging the newest gossip. When they arrived they found the feast in full swing. The table was filled with food, and sake was flowing in rivers, mainly between males of the table.

"OK!" Matsumoto announced, her cup filed with sake. "For our newest Captain, and our beloved strawberry boy Ichigo! Cheers!" Cups clicked and everyone took a healthy gulp of sake. "Soo good!" She exclaimed.

"I really can't believe they made Ichigo-san a Captain." Momo said, taking a piece of sushi.

"I agree, that must be some new record." Iba rumbled. "He's been a Shinigami for what little over a year? Less?"

Renji and Ikkaku scowled darkly.

"That's quite the achievement." Isane agreed. "Captain Unohana was very excited about it too… for some reason." She furrowed her eyebrows.

"Hmm, Captain Kensei seemed pretty pissed off to me." Hisagi stated. "When I asked him about it I got a really good chewing out…"

"Me too. Captain Rojuro seemed angry too." Kira added.

"Well Captain Hirako seemed anxious." Momo told them. "Do you think that something's wrong?"

Renji and Rukia exchanged quick glances.

"Neither of our Captains want to speak about it." Rukia said, not wanting to share what Ichigo had told her and Renji, yet. There was no need to worry the rest.

"I think that there might be more to it than we know." Nanao adjusted her glasses.

"Now that I think about it, hasn't Captain Zaraki been moody lately?" Yumichika said. "I mean even more than usual."

"True, remember what he did to the guy who called Ichigo a pussy for being the Kido Captain?" Ikkaku chuckled.

"I recall a badly maimed member of 11th being hospitalized recently." Isane added with a small smirk.

"Toshi's been rather cold to me too." Everyone groaned at Matsumoto's bad pun. "But I did overhear him speaking to Captain Kuchiki few days ago." She paused dramatically, savoring the anticipation on most everyone's faces. "It looks like Ichigo's promotion was a set up."

Silence was the only response.

"Geez, really?" Iba rolled his eyes. "We kind of figured that out by now. The question is by whom?"

"It's quite obvious, Iba-san." Kira said. "If it wasn't the Captains, that leaves only one possibility."

"Cental 46, eh? But what would they gain from it?" Ikkaku wondered.

"Everything. I mean Ichigo is basically one of the strongest Captains by now." Hisagi pointed out. "Having him with our ranks, not as a freelancer, is the best possible solution for the Soul Society." He took a gulp of sake. "Also they're able to control him a bit more than before…" Only when he said that aloud, he realized what might have occurred.

Looking at the rest he saw that they had similar expressions of disbelief, with the exception of Rukia and Renji. They were looking everywhere, but on them.

"Damn…" Ikkaku mumbled. "So that's why our Captains are so tight lipped about it."

"Rukia, Renji do you know anything about it?" Nanao asked. "Out of all of us you're the closest to Ichigo."

The duo exchanged uneasy looks.

"Ichigo told us few things, but I don't believe that he wanted everyone to know… you can ask him yourself." Rukia said firmly.

"There goes the nice atmosphere." Matsumoto sighed. "All we need now is some unwanted visitor to kill the party."

As if some higher deity was listening, a messenger Shunpo'ed into the bar.

"Vice-Captain Kuchiki Rukia, and Vice-Captain Renji Abarai, you are to depart to the Human World immediately. There has been a release of Hollow Reiatsu in Karakura Town." He said.

"What's the big deal? Surely Ichigo can deal with it." Renji stated.

"We cannot contact Captain Kurosaki, and the level of this Reiatsu is bordering on Vasto Lorde level. Captain Hirako was already dispatched to the scene."

His statement silenced the whole bar.

"We're on it." Rukia stood and moved quickly towards the door, Renji on her tail. The moment they crossed the threshold they Shunpo'ed towards the Senkaimon.

'I hope you're ok Ichigo.' Rukia bit her lip.

---

Underground Training Facility

After their meal Ichigo and Tia went straight to Urahara's to practice Ichigo's Hollow powers.

"What do you wish to learn?" Tia asked when they finally set foot on the rocky ground.

"Basically all you can teach me. I'm not really sure what I can do." Ichigo crossed his arms. "From what I remember I could do a Sonido and Cero, somehow…. or rather he was doing them," Ichigo added with a frown.

"I see…. I'm not certain that you can master all of our Arrancar techniques. Bala, Cero, Gran Ray Cero, Descorrer, Hierro, Pesquisa, Sonido are basically the most standard set of abilities." She stated.

"I'm vaguely familiar with some of them, mostly the offensive ones, but I know nothing about the rest. So I think it would be for the best if we go through everything." He replied, rubbing his neck sheepishly.

"Let's sit somewhere. It will take some time to explain them." She sat on the nearest rock, putting her hand on her knees. Somehow she turned into a perfect image of teacher.

'If only female teachers exposed that much skin.' A traitorous thought crossed Ichigo's mind. He blinked and chased it away.

"We should start with Cero. It's the most basic of Hollow techniques. To put it plainly, it's highly concentrated Reiatsu focused on some point of your body. You can shoot Cero basically from any point on your body. The main idea is to control your Reiatsu flow to a point where it starts to gather outside your body. In this case directly above the area where you're gathering your Reiatsu." She lectured. "You can also revert that power back into your sword and release it from there. Similar to your Getsuga Tensho technique."

"I remember you doing something like that when we fought." Ichigo commented.

"Indeed. That variation of Cero often surprises my opponents. Next is Bala, which is basically the same technique, but it's about twenty times faster than a Cero. However it's considerably weaker due to a lesser amount of Reiatsu used. Lastly is Gran Ray Cero, the most powerful variation of a Cero. You have to mix the blood of an Espada with your Reiatsu to empower it, giving it a tremendous boost in power."

"So it's basically about concentrating crazy amounts of Reiatsu into some area on your body, and releasing it?" He made sure he understood the concept.

"Yes and no. If it was that easy any Shinigami could achieve this. You need to have precise control over your Reiatsu flow, so the energy doesn't leak uncontrollably or explode right after you push it outside your body. Also the power structure needs to be Hollow in nature, since it's raw primal energy. Most Hollows use Cero instinctively, and the same goes for the rest of our Hollow abilities. That is what makes them hard to teach."

"Sooo you're saying that Shinigami are more sophisticated beings than Hollows?" He asked with a smug smile.

"Don't flatter yourself." She replied with a glare that could freeze hell over.

"S-sorry." He stuttered.

"Hierro is basically natural armor. The soul pressure you radiate hardens your skin, preventing weaker beings cutting you, and absorb damage from stronger attacks." She stopped to see if he was keeping up. Ichigo nodded, remembering the fight with Zaraki, when he couldn't' pierce his skin.

'Looks like Shinigami and Hollows aren't so different. It's almost like Hollows are some primitive version of Shinigami… with the soul hunger.' But he didn't dare say it out loud, valuing his life.

"Next is Sonido. It is like the Shinigami's Shunpo, but instead of focusing on moving your physical form, you do it with your spiritual presence. It's similar to teleportation. It's slower, but you don't have to touch the ground to change direction." The look on Ichigo's face told her he was lost.

"I'll explain more when we start to practice it." She decided that he would learn faster with practice.

"Ok."

"Now, Descorrer allows you to create a bridge between worlds. The Human World is easier to penetrate since it has much less Reishi than the Soul Society. The tricky part is to navigate and maintain the connection between the worlds. You have to project the image of the place you wish to travel, and then push your Reiatsu to penetrate the fabric of reality. This creates the connection between point A and B." She rose her index fingers to illustrate the point.

"Sound like some physics." Ichigo commented. "But it can't be that easy?"

"There's always the risk of you falling in the space between worlds and never coming back. Many Hollows have met their ends like that, while preying in the Human World." She told him. "Finally is the Pesquisa. It's an advanced perception technique, which allows you gauge your opponent's strength in an instant. It also assists you in learning new things, as it increases your memory capacity." Tia's eyes lit up in amusement when Ichigo's jaw fell.

"SO THAT'S HOW YOU DO IT!" He shouted. "Man I know what I want to learn first. How come you never told me this?"

"Because you never asked." She deadpanned, making Ichigo send her his trademark scowl. "It will take some time to learn Pesquisa. In contrast to the rest, it's more of a mental ability than Reiatsu. We will train it in our human bodies. Thanks to it you will improve faster and master new skills in a shorter amount of time."

"Ok, so what do we do first then?" Ichigo asked, all itchy to start.

"You're the offensive type, so Cero should probably be first." Her guess was proved right when Ichigo eyes started to shine, watching her with anticipation.

'He seems… eager." Tia noted, averting his look. "For your information I've never taught anyone before, so I may not be a good teacher." She warned him.

"Nah. I believe you would make a great teacher." He complimented her with a smile. Again she felt a little lighter and motivated to prove him right.

"Let us begin then. Concentrate on your Reiatsu, but don't move it, let it flow through you." She instructed him. Ichigo followed her instruction, instantly starting to radiate his powerful soul pressure, but Tia wasn't fazed. "Good now look for the area that your Reiatsu seems to flow to most freely." Closing his eyes he focused on in inner flow of soul energy. He could feel the large quantities of Reiatsu moving through his hands, while areas like his back or neck where almost barren.

"Ok, it seems to go through my hands the most." He informed her, seeing her nod after.

"That's the most common place. Some can shoot it from their mouths, or like Stark from every part of the body."

"Really? That Stark guy must've been powerful." Ichigo commented.

"Yes, he was the Primera Espada after all." She felt a pang of sadness while thinking about the lazy Arrancar. He was probably the only one, along with Lillynette, whom she might call a friend. Aside from her Fraccion, of course. "Now try to focus your power into your hands, and cut the unnecessary flows. Gather it solely in one of your palms."

Ichigo felt his right hand start to get warm with the amount of power he was putting in it.

"You don't need to use that much on your first go." She lectured. "Be careful, you might harm yourself."

Ichigo lowered the flow, feeling the hotness leave his right hand.

"Try to push it out of your body, but keep it from spreading. You need to have it concentrated." She paused. "Don't get discouraged if you fail, and learn from your mistakes Ichigo." Tia added.

Predictably the first few times the Reiatsu escaped from Ichigo's grasp it was in random bursts of energy. Yet the calm encouragement and helpful tips from Tia allowed Ichigo to succeed in creating a small ball of red energy on the tip of his index and middle finger.

"Very good. Now slowly, and carefully, increase the output of Reiatsu, then fire at that rock." She pointed at a rock fifty feet away from them. Ichigo raised his arm, and pointed at it. He increased the output, seeing the Cero grow in size. He cut the flow and shot, blasting the rock to pieces in a small explosion.

"That was rather lame." He commented, dissatisfied with his work.

"That was your first real Cero. Be happy that it did that much damage. Now try to make it stronger." She crossed her arms under her breasts, feeling a bit of pride at his success. "Let's see if you can make it stronger."

"If? The question is how much stronger I can make it." He said cockily, making Tia raise her eyebrows.

He carefully followed the previous steps, and then gradually started to empower his Cero.

'Let's see what this baby can do.' Ichigo grinned, pushing even more power into it. Then something went wrong.

"Ichigo that's enough already!" Tia said in alarm. The power he was packing started to be a serious concern.

"I can't stop it!" He said panicking. "I can't stop my Reiatsu!"

"What do you mean you can't!? It's your power!" Tia exclaimed, backing up a bit. By now the Cero was thrice as big as ordinary.

Her comment caused Ichigo to widen his eyes.

'What the hell are you doing!?' He cursed inwardly.

'Seeing what this baby can do! HAHAHAHA.' Hichigo cacked. 'Now BOOM BOOM BOOM!'

"FUCK!" Ichigo swore when the Cero grew even larger. Feeling that he was losing control, he did the only thing he could.

He released it.

"CEROOOOOO!" He roared, firing the large crimson ball off his fingers. It annihilated everything in its path, and when the power reached its peak the explosion blew everything into dust. Breaking the very sky of the facility and shaking the ground from his power.

They could see the literal mushroom cloud shooting into the sky, and a wave of dust coming their way.

'So that's how people in Hiroshima and Nagasaki felt.' He thought looking at an equally stunned Tia.

Seconds before the after blast reached them, Ichigo jumped in front of Tia. His back was turned to the after blast, with the intent to shield her. But his action was futile. The second the blast reached them he was slammed into Tia. A second later both of they were flung into he air. Reflexively they embraced each other, trying to not get separated in the storm.

At one point they hit the ground, everything went black.

Tia was the first one to regain consciousness. She looked around, seeing that the dust was still falling from the sky, meaning that she must have lost consciousness for a few minutes tops.

She noticed that she wasn't lying on the ground, it was way too soft… and moving. She sat up and looked behind her.

Beneath her was Ichigo with his arms spread wide. She was currently sitting on his waist. Feeling embarrassed all of sudden, she quickly moved off him to kneel next to him.

Like Tia, he was covered in gray dust, with his clothes slightly ragged.

"Ichigo." She spoke gently, tugging at his arm but he was clearly passed out. With hesitation she brushed a lock of hair from his face.

'He's so young.' Tia thought, trailing her fingers along his forehead. She moved her gaze to the gaping hole in the artificial sky. She could already see the structure was self-repairing, but the damage was horrendous. 'To think that this was supposed to withstand the power of three Captains.'

Tia looked again at Ichigo, she knew that he was powerful… even more than her, if his Hollow took over. But at the same time he was still so young.

She really pitied him, having such a heavy burden at such a young age wasn't an easy task. Tia wondered if he was afraid of his own power. He told her about his numerous foes that went mad with power, Aizen included. She always felt that there was some undertone to his stories, some fear that plagued his heart.

'He must be afraid of abusing his powers.' She thought, moving his head to her lap. Not really sure why she felt the urge to caress his hair, but she wasn't the one to indulge herself often. So just sat there waiting for him to regain consciousness.

A few minutes later Ichigo groaned and slowly opening his eyes. You can image his surprise when the first things he saw were a mop of blond hair and mocha brow skin. Blinking he realized that he was looking at the bottom of Tia's bust.

Instantly his face got beet red. He swallowed hard, her exposed skin was just mere centimeters from his face. After all he was a teenager.

"Are you ok Ichigo?" Tia asked, oblivious to his peril. To make matters worse she leaned to see his face, unknowingly bringing her breasts closer to his face.

Not being able to take it anymore Ichigo quickly crawled away from Tia. With heaving breaths he looked at her perplexed expression.

"Y-Yeah I'm fine." He stuttered.

"I see…" She said slowly, not sure how to interpret his behavior. "Can you explain what happened?"

"It seems that my Inner Hollow can now play tricks on me…" Ichigo sighed. "He disrupted my control over the flow the my Reiatsu and did that." Ichigo pointed at the hole in the sky. "Sorry." He hung his head.

"Why are you apologizing? It was not your fault to being with." She replied.

"I couldn't stop him." He stated with shame.

"Not everything is within our sphere of influence. You have to learn that some things will happen no matter how much we try to prevent them." She lectured him calmly, pushing her failures deep into corner of her own mind. "You can't let such things weight you down, Ichigo."

"Thanks Tia, I really needed appreciate that." He gave her small grateful smile.

"Think nothing of it." If not for her mask and high collar, Ichigo would be able to see her lips curve upwards too. "Should we continue our training?"

"Yeah, but maybe something less offensive, like that Descorrer for example?" Ichigo suggested.

"Why that one in particular? You seemed much more interested in Pesquisa?" She asked.

Ichigo felt a blush creep on his face.

"You see….I always thought that it was kind of cool to have something like that. You know how Garganta's have that dark portal vibe…. and it's just really cool." He rubbed his neck sheepishly.

Wordlessly, Tia opened a Garganta behind her. She could do it swiftly, but she allowed the gate to slowly open, showing only darkness behind her.

Ichigo stared at her first with surprise, then with something that was akin to classic fanboying, before finally settle in a familiar scowl.

"You just had to rub it in, didn't you?" He asked crossing his arms.

"I have no idea what you are talking about Ichigo." She replied in a perfectly even voice.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" He grumbled, but he was smiling. Ichigo was always happy to see the more relaxed side of Tia.

"Amusement value aside, like I said you need to project the image of the place you want to travel to, then make a connection with it. Be sure to use you Hollow powers. For safety sake maybe you should put your mask on. It should prevent any more interferences." She reasoned.

"Hmm last time it didn't worked so well." Ichigo mumbled.

"Now though you are aware of his machinations. Also, wasn't that mask supposed to keep him at bay?" Tia inquired.

"It should, but he somehow managed to find a loop hole in it and used it. Now that I'm aware of what he's doing I think I'll be able to stop him." In one swift move Ichigo put his mask on. "What now?"

Again Tia was stunned by the sight on his powerful golden eyes. She couldn't explain it, but there was something in them that grabbed her utter attention.

"Tia are you ok? You're staring." He spoke waking her up.

"Pardon me. I was thinking about the best way to explain this to you." She lied smoothly, hoping that he couldn't see the slight blush on her face. She couldn't believe that she was having such reactions around him. "Try to focus on some image from Hueco Mundo…. possibly the one you feel strongly about."

Ichigo closed his eyes going thought the many places he passed through.

The Menos Forest, the desert around Las Noches, Las Notches itself, and finally the roof….

'This one will fit.' He thought. "I got a place."

"Now…. Simply desire to go there." Tia said.

"What?" Ichigo asked perplexed.

"I told you that Hollow powers are very instinctive. It's hard to understand them, but to create a Garganta you have to want to travel to some place. Hollows travel to Human World driven by their hunger. They go back to Hueco Mundo looking for safety from Shinigami, and all of this is driven by instinct. When you practice enough you will be able to open one without such things, but this is the easiest way to learn. Try to image a reason you would want to go to this place." She tried to explain as best as she could. "It doesn't have to be real, just strong enough to awake your feelings."

"I think I got it."

Ichigo closed his eyes and focused on the image of the roof of Hueco Mundo. The place where he defeated one of his strongest foes, in a way he wished never happened. A place when he lost his humanity for a moment and turned into a monster, hurting his friend in a process. He wished that he would be able to stop himself. To go back in time and prevent it from ever happening. To restrain himself from the greatest mistake he ever committed.

Tia observed Ichigo with keen interest, or rather she studied his mask now that she had to chance to see it motionless. On first glance it resembled Barragan's mask, yet upon closer inspection it appeared to be more demonic in nature. Also the twin stripes added the savagery to it.

Her musings were interrupted by the silent snap that signaled the opening of the Garganta. The gate opened very slowly, yet with every passing moment it grew bigger and bigger.

Tia had to admit that she was impressed that he accomplished it on his first try.

"Congratulations Ichigo, you did it." She announced grabbing his attention. She half expected a gloat or jump in joy, but his reaction surprised her.

"Yeah." Ichigo said quietly, staring at the ground. He took off his mask, revealing his downtrodden face.

"Is something wrong Ichigo? You seem troubled." Tia asked in concern.

"I used a bad memory to open the gate… guess I'm not as over it as I thought." He sighed.

"Do you wish to speak about it?" She asked awkwardly. Tia was still not used to personal things like this, but she tried to follow her Hollow's advice.

"Maybe some other time Tia. I still don't feel comfortable about it." He replied hesitantly.

"Very well." Tia nodded.

"Look it's not like I don't trust you, or-" He started. Tia closed the gap between them, and in bold move, at least for her, she put her hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry, I understand that you have something that you're not comfortable sharing with others. But know that if you want someone to listen… you can always come to me." She added after a small pause. She felt slightly embarrassed offering this to him. Surely Ichigo had lots of other people that he would rather share things with than her.

But to her utter surprise he put his hand on hers and smiled warmly.

"Thanks Tia, it means a lot…" He blushed slightly. "I'm glad to have you as a friend."

Tia was rendered speechless at the statement. Even her heart skipped a beat when she heard those words. She felt her face growing hot. The fact that she felt the warmth of his hand hadn't helped either.

Before either of them had the chance to speak, Ichigo was ripped away from Tia by a man-blur named Tessai. He slammed into the unsuspecting Ichigo, and grabbed him into an iron hug.

''Ichigo-donooo!" He howled.

"Hey knock it off!" Ichigo yelled, trying to release himself from Tessai's hold.

"Ichgio-dono I've got terrible news! You've broken the facilities barrier, and sent almost Vasto Lorde level Reiatsu outside. Shinigami are already all over the building. I managed to hide your bodies, but you two need to get out of here!" Ichigo paled in an instant, while Tia's stomach sank. Their cover were about to be blown.

'There has to be a way.' Tia thought, going through the possibilities. Then she found the one she was looking for. "Ichigo, we can find shelter in Hueco Mundo for the time being."

"Good thinking!" Ichigo said. "See ya later Tessai, tell Urahra that I'm sorry about the roof!"

Tia opened a dark portal, jumping in closely followed by Ichigo. When the duo disappeared Tessai looked at the gaping hole in the artificial sky.

"Good thing I persuaded Urahara-dono to add few more barriers between here and surface… Otherwise the earthquake would've surely been stronger than a two degree on the Richter Scale." With that thought he moved to repair the damages .

---

Urahara's Shop.

"There you are!" Shinji opened a cupboard impetuously, but to his despair Ichigo wasn't there. "Damn…"

"Captain Hirako I don't think you'll find Ichigo in the kitchen either." Urahara said with exasperation. "He's simply not here."

"That's bullshit and you know it. Nothing like this happens without him poking his nose in it." He crossed his arms. "Besides the center of the release was barely a kilometer from here, so you have to know something about it."

"Araarara you think too much of me Hirako-san. I'm just a humble shopkeeper." Urahara waved his fan.

"Ok look. I need to write something for the report, and no one will believe me if I say you didn't have something to do with it, so spill the beans Urahara." Hirako grew serious.

"I'm afraid that I don't know any more than you do on this matter. I haven't had a chance to analyze the info I have. Your reaction time was unusually swift today." He sounded surprised.

"We ended a war like a month ago, it's obvious that we're still not out of the heightened alert state." He replied. "So what happened?"

"From what I know Ichigo played with his Hollow powers." Urahara finally said. "That's all I know."

"Why the hell did he do that without saying anything to me!? I could teach him how to do it safely!" Hirako lamented. "We're best buds after all!"

Urahara pretended that this was normal.

"I don't know why, or where, he went. I'm sorry but I can't help you." He said with finality.

Before Hirako could reply, Rukia and Renji entered the room.

"Hello Urahara-san, where is Ichigo?" Rukia cut straight to the chase. "Is he ok?"

"I think so, but I don't know his whereabouts." He said with sigh.

Three blank stares were sent his way.

"So you wouldn't have anything against us investigating it?" Renji asked.

"I guess so?"

The trio stood up and went straight to the source, aka the Underground Training Facility. What they saw stunned them to their very cores.

"Woah…." Renji mumbled.

Aside from the giant hole in the sky, an enormous crater was directly beneath it, smoke still coming from it. In the distance they saw Tessai doing some gesticulation. They moved to him, noticing that his movements where in reality hand seals.

"Ok spread out and see what we can find, while I'll go and have a chat with Tessai." Hirako ordered.

Renji and Rukia circled the crater looking for clues, and except from finding the firing spot there was nothing there aside from rubble. Yet the very search took them over an hour because of the sheer of size of the crater. Empty handed they returned to Hirako.

"Nothing Captain." Renji reported.

"Well Tessai basically said the same as Urahara." Hirako sighed. "They're hiding something, but it's not like I can pry it out of them."

"Damn, looks like Ichigo is stirring things up again." Renji sighed.

"Yeah, it's like he doesn't want thing to get calm." Rukia chuckled. "But I guess without any problems he would get bored."

"He can always hang out with me." Shinji mumbled, clenching his fists. "WHY CAN'T YOU ACCEPT MY FRIENDSHIP, ICHIGOOOOOOOOO!?" He yelled dramatically to the sky.

A Garganta opened in the sky, instantly putting three Shinigami on alert, however what came out of it stunned them beyond belief…

---

Hueco Mundo

The duo landed on the soft white sand of Hollow world. Ichigo looked around seeing some rock structures with plenty of holes. What intrigued him were stairs leading to the one of the rock formations.

"Tia where are we?" Ichigo asked with curiously.

"You recall when I told you about the place I lived before joining Aizen?" She asked. Seeing his nod she continued. "That is it."

"Oh so this's your home?"

"Home…." Tia pondered the word. "I suppose you can say that. Let us go inside."

Ichigo followed her silently into a cave. Aside from the stairs everything looked just like a natural cave. What really surprised him were the torches inside. Coming right out of the walls, they gave off a bright light without any visible fuel source. When they finally reached the main cave they halted seeing something out of place.

Six hooded figures were sitting around a rock which acted as a table, a some sort of map lying on it.

Tia and Ichigo froze in their tracks. The figures were dressed in dirty, ragged brown robes, with longs sleeves. Some of them looked human, but the others were disfigured, not even resembling humanoids.

Suddenly all six heads turned in their direction.

"Some friends of yours Tia?" Ichigo asked.

"It seems that my home has new inhabitants now." She replied, but her attention was focused on the intruders. She felt there was something wrong with them. "We mean no harm."

"They're strong." One stated in such bizarre accent that they almost couldn't understand him.

"Might cause problems for our masters."

"Extermination may be in order."

"Let's keep the blonde one. Master should be pleased with her."

"Enough. We dispose of them now and proceed as planned."

"Tia let's get out of here." Ichigo said calmly, grabbing her shoulder. In blink of an eye they disappeared in a blur of Shunpo.

"Pointless effort." The leader commented, not even a second later all six of them followed.

Outside the cave Ichigo and Tia reappeared, landing on the sand.

"Sorry for grabbing you like that. What should we do about them?" Ichigo asked,

"It seems they are up to something. We need more information." Tia stated, pulling out her blade.

"You read my mind." With a grin he too pulled out his blade.

"Poor decision." The leader commented. "You might have prolonged your life by a few minutes if you kept running."

"Arrogant bastard." Ichigo growled.

"Don't let his taunts anger you Ichigo. Keep a level head." Tia told him.

On an unspoken order the figures dropped their cloaks, revealing their true forms.

Three of them could pass for human or Arrancar, if not their dry, ghastly gray skin, completely white eyes, and needle thin teeth. All of them were bald as well. They were dressed into almost matching tattered loin cloths, and had beads made from unknown materials hanged all over their body. In addition their bodies were covered in tattoos from head to toe, including their faces.

The apparent leader also had some sort of helmet with withered green feathers atop it.

But the other three were a vastly different story. In reality they looked much more like regular Hollows, yet were emitting a bizarre aura.

The largest one resembled a cross between man and a spider. The lower part of his body was literally a spider's body. It had eight long thick and furry legs, with a massive abdomen towering above the rest. Where spider's mandibles should be, a human male's torso grew out. Like the other three that almost looked human, it's skin was gray and tattooed. He had long white hair and a face that could have been handsome if not for it's milky eyes and needle-like teeth. Those were the only traits that he shared with humans. His forearms were long, bent sickles.

The next one seemed scorpion like. He had a large, thick tail ending with a nasty stinger, and a pincers for hands. His whole body was covered in black chitinous armor, obscuring his face.

The last one drew the most attention from both Tia and Ichigo. He was the most repulsive one, and probably the most disgusting thing they had seen in their lives.

His whole skin was rotting over with what seemed to be raw wounds, and growths all over it. He was hunchbacked with bones sticking out his back, making him look like a mutated hedgehog. He was crouching with his unnaturally long arms touching the ground. His milky white eyes were glued to Tia, which caused her to be even more wary.

But their hideous appearances weren't the thing that shocked the two. What stunned them even more was the fact that all six of them were Vasto Lorde's.

Ichigo could tell that by the power they projected. He guessed since he'd never seen a real Vasto Lorde, except the ones that evolved into Arrancars.

To Tia, who had seen her share of Vasto Lorde's in her life, there was something off about them. While all Hollows lacked a soul, there were at least some remnants needed to keep whole spiritual structure intact. Some traits that defined the abilities and appearance of particular Hollow.

But these Vasto Lorde's were…. empty. Not even a faintest trait of humanity could be sensed within them. Tia couldn't feel even an echo of what they once were. Which was even more disturbing since every Hollow was made from thousands of other souls.

They seemed like husks, dead yet somehow alive.

"Ichigo." Tia spoke gravely. "Be on your guard all the times, there's something wrong with them."

"Ahh it seems that the impure one can sense it." The leader said. "There is nothing wrong with us, hybrid. We are near perfection in our evolution, unlike you who tainted yourself with the Traitor's powers."

Ichigo and Tia shared a bewildered look.

"I have no idea what are you talking about." Tia replied.

"It doesn't matter, you will die soon. Alzec, Minat, Rotar take care of the impure one. The rest are with me." The leader said.

One of the human looking Vasto Lorde's, followed by the scorpion looking one and the hedgehog, moved toward Tia.

"If you think I'll let-" Ichigo started.

"Silence trash." The leader stated, waving his hand. Suddenly the ground between Ichigo and Tia ripped open by a mighty force, sending the two flying in opposite directions.

"Keep the impure one alive. I want to examine it." He instructed, heading to where Ichigo flew.

Ichigo stood up, and spit out sand that fell in his mouth.

"What are you?" The Vasto Lorde asked approaching him. "You Reiatsu structure is…. unique."

"I'm Human if that helps." Ichigo replied sarcastically. "What the hell are you?"

"My name is Xalec, and my companions are Othar and Midar." He pointed the spider then the humanoid respectively.

"What do you want with us? And who are these Masters of yours?" Ichigo asked, brandishing his sword.

"You don't need to know." His mouth spread into a nasty grin. Xalec's two companions jumped at Ichigo. He blocked Othar's sickled arm, while at the same time grabbing Midar's fist aimed for him jaw. Gathering his Reiatsu, he jumped back and released a blue Getsuga at them, forcing a retreat.

"He seems strong." Othar commented.

"Irrelevant. Nothing can stop our mission. Annihilate him or face my wrath." Xalec said idly, as if he wasn't making death threats.

"It shall be done." Midar stated. He rose his hands into the air, and then started chanting in an odd language. "Una arrak sotior kaha! Ghori trieti! Sobok nuri! Mitar harat ordon demitis!"

His tattoos started to glow a sickly yellow color, and pulsing as if alive. Then they started to move slowly, leaving his body and forming tendrils around him. Each tendril had ended with a snake head. Now five tendrils made of dimly glowing green tattoos were lazily swaying around the Hollow.

Ichigo was watching this with slightly wide eyes. He had never seen anything like this before. None of the Hollows he'd ever met acted this way, or gave off such a foreboding aura.

'Need to be careful.' Ichigo thought. Midar glowed with power before lunging at Ichigo with a primal snarl, followed closely by his companion, glee on his face.

Ichigo lifted his sword in defense, awaiting the onslaught. Midar's snakes struck at him, but Ichigo swatted them away with one swing of his sword. The Hollow itself was already on him, burying him under storm of strikes. To make matters worse, he had to dodge the snakes too, not to mention his companion.

Each time one of Midar's hits collided with Ichigo, he felt his bones tremble. Every contact with Othar's sickles caused a waterfall of sparks to come from his blade.

"Gyah!" He yelled when one of the snakes penetrated his defenses, and bit his left forearm. Instantly that whole limb burned as if aflame. With a growl Ichigo sliced the snake in half, and jumped back to gain some distance.

He looked at his forearm in disgust. The remnants of snake head melted into a green goo. In one quick move he swatted it off him, yet the damage was done. His whole arm felt numb, as if life less.

Ichigo's eyes widened when he realized what happened. The Reiatsu from his arm had been totally sucked out.

'Some absorption technique?' He thought, redirecting some of his power to that arm. He glared at the Vasto Lorde who was smirking smugly. The snake Ichigo cut off, regenerated and hissed at Ichigo. 'Looks like I have to up my game.'

He pointed his sword at his foes.

"Ban-Kai!" He uttered, disappearing behind a wall of black Reiatsu. His release caused a powerful wind to pick up, sending a cloud of sand in every direction.

Both Hollows squinted their eyes, trying to see through the cloud, but to no avail. When they realized that Ichigo was upon them, it was far too late.

The young Captain's fist collided with Midar's face with monstrous force, sending the Vasto Lorde flying backwards. Not wasting a second Ichigo lunged at the other Hollow, raising his sword high.

Othar managed to block him using both of his sickled arms, yet he hadn't expected the force Ichigo was putting into his attack. The spider Hollow was instantly driven backwards by the Shinigami.

Snapping out of his daze he braced himself, and using all the strength his eight legs possessed, he dug them into the ground. Ichigo's tempo started to slow down. He tried to press more, but the Hollow was putting up a fight.

Othar snarled at Ichigo, baring his needle like teeth.

"Arrogance will be your undoing human!" He opened his mouth, forming a Cero. He didn't expected Ichigo's sword to start emitting pure black energy.

"Getsuga Tensho!" Ichigo snapped, releasing his signature attack. Othar screamed in pain as the attack ripped into his body, sending him flying backwards too.

The orange haired Shinigami hadn't had the time to catch his breath from the minor victory, Midar suddenly appeared behind him, intending to pierce his heart with his outstretched arm. Ichigo's top-notch reflexes prevented that.

In the blink of an eye Ichigo spun around, grabbing Midar's arm and throwing him into the air. The Shinigami lunged after him, intending to end the fight, but the Hollow was ready. A green Cero appeared in each of the snake's mouths, and a second after a literal rain of blasts fell on Ichigo.

With his speed he avoided all of them, slowly reaching the Hollow. Unfortunately he was too focused on dodging.

Another Cero, fired by Othar, hit him in the back, disrupting his movements. The second that happened three green Ceros hit him up front, sending him flying away at terrifying speed.

Ichigo hit the ground with a powerful thud, launching a geyser of sand into the air.

The two Vasto Lorde's had no intent of letting Ichigo regain his footing, and went in for the kill.

Their haste cost them dearly, as if was what Ichigo had been waiting for.

"Hadō #63. Raikōhō!" Ichigo uttered.

Time seemed to slow down for the two Hollows. The veil of dust suddenly parted, revealing a ragged and smoking Ichigo, with a violent ball of yellow energy in his hand. Before either of them managed to dodge, Ichigo shot a devastating ray of electric energy at them.

The attack hit one and chained into the other, electrifying both of them and giving Ichigo the perfect chance.

He jumped into the air, and pointed his sword down. With an incredible burst of speed he descended on Othar like an eagle. He stabbed his sword right into the middle of his furry abdomen.

The spider Hollow roared in pain. He wriggled like crazy, trying to thrown Ichigo off, but the blade was firmly lodged.

"GET OFF YOU FUCKING SCUM!" He snarled, trying to reach behind and failing.

"Getsuga Tensho" Ichigo fired point blank, right inside Othar's body and ripped the whole abdomen apart.

"Guah…" Othar coughed an ungodly amount of black blood out of his mouth, swaying on his four remaining legs, as the others were blown off. Literal rivers of the blood were coming from his back, creating a small waterfall behind him. "Impossible-" With that the life left the Vasto Lorde. His body fell limply to a sandy dune, never to move again.

Ichigo glared at the other Vasto Lorde, quite satisfied when he saw that the confident smirk had left his face.

"Don't think that you have won!" Midar snapped. "Arat uk noron qut seka tokan gonit beskan!" He chanted.

The snakes started to glow green, and slowly retreated into his arms, forming two blades. With a battle cry he lunged forward, swinging his bizarre swords furiously. Ichigo blocked his attack with some difficulty. Midar's attacks were powerful, and each time their swords clashed waves of sand were pushed to the side.

After exchanging dozens of strikes, their swords locked and each side tried to overpower the other.

Ichigo almost puked when Midar's breath reached his face. It reeked of death and decay.

"You will perish like many before you." The Hollow stated.

"I will if I continue smelling your breath even a second longer." Ichigo snapped and kneed the Hollow in solar plexus. Midar staggered backwards, gasping for air. He looked up only to see the tip of Ichigo's blade moving towards his head, with worrying speed. Tilting his head to the right, he avoided the blade and counter attacked with a stab of his own. He managed to graze Ichigo's side, but nothing more.

The opponents separated again.

'I underestimated him.' Midar thought, glaring at Ichigo. He hadn't even looked winded. 'Just how much Reiatsu does this brat have? I took a sizeable portion earlier.' Then he felt a presence next to him.

"I have grown impatient." Xalec said next to his comrade. "I always knew that Othar was a weakling, but you severely disappoint me."

"B-But that boy has proven to be especially skilled. I just need more time!" Midar felt fear clenched his heart.

"You dragged this on long enough. I don't tolerate failure… yet you can be a use to me…." Xalec grinned.

"No! augh!" Midar tried to run, but Xalec was faster. In one swift move he plunged his hand in his companion's chest. The other Hollow gasped in pain, spitting mouthfuls of black blood. "Mercy…"

"Mercy…. you were always the funny one." With that Xalec ripped Midar's heart out. Silent the other Hollow fell, while his leader had a gleeful expression on his face. He licked his lips hungrily looking at a piece of what seemed to be pure darkness.

"What the hell is that?!" Ichigo exclaimed, horrified.

"Have you wondered why we don't have a Hollow Hole?" Xalec grinned, tiling his head to the side. "Behold." He showed the matter of pure darkness. "This is how perfection happens!" With that he bit into it, making sickening squelching noises. In seconds he devoured everything. "Delicious."

"You're sick!" Ichigo uttered, disgusted.

"You're dead, so I guess we're even." He suddenly appeared behind Ichigo and delivered a powerful kick in his back, sending the young Shinigami flying. Ichigo hit the ground a few times, before he actually stopped.

He didn't even have a second to regain his bearings, when the Vasto Lorde was upon him. Rolling to the side Ichigo avoided having his head crushed by the Hollow's foot. He swung his sword low, aiming to cut off his foot, but the Hollow lazily jumped avoiding it with ease.

Ichigo jumped to his feet, and charged with a battle cry. His Reiatsu flaring, yet Xalec only grinned and extended his arm forward with an open palm. He did a simple pushing motion.

The young Shinigami felt as if invisible wall hit him, and the mighty unseen force flung him backwards. Xalec started to swing his fists, as if trying to hit the air, Every time he did, a literal storm of invisible hits fell on Ichigo. They were so fast that all he could do was to stand and take them, since his opponent hadn't given him the time escape.

"HAAAA!" With mighty roar Xalec lunged forward, physically punching Ichigo in the middle of his chest.

The hit was so powerful that it actually created a crater beneath them, as the ground wasn't able to withstand the pressure.

Ichigo's eyes bulged out, and he felt his ribs crack. The Captain was catapulted from the ground, spatting up a disturbing amount of blood.

'Fuck.' Ichigo thought while flying, up with tremendous speed. Looking to the side he saw Xalec already on him.

Doing an acrobatic front flip, Xalec used his heel hit Ichigo's back with monstrous force. Sending him diving to the ground in a speed so dire, that it created sonic booms on the way.

A second later Ichigo hit the ground. The impact caused the very ground to shake. A seven stories high geyser of sand shot into the air, blowing dust everywhere.

Xalec slowly landed on the ground, admiring his handiwork.

"Othar, Midar you pathetic garbage, you fell to that?" He snorted, turning his back to Ichigo's crash site.

He paid dearly for his superiority. A burning sensation ripped through his back, as cold steel cut into his skin. The slash caused him to stagger forward a few steps. Turning back around Xalec, for the first time in a really long time, was taken off guard.

Because before him stood a fellow Hollow, with a demonic skull mask and golden blazing eyes. Only Ichigo's torn up uniform and orange hair allowed Xalec to recognize his opponent. Even his Reiatsu structure drastically changed.

"What are you?" He snapped. A Hollow taking on Shinigami powers was one thing, but a Shinigami taking Hollow powers? 'Unforgivable!'

"Your worst nightmare." Ichigo growled. "Getsuga Tensho."

A literal wall of darkness descended upon Xalec. He lifted his hands in defense, attempting to withhold the onslaught, but the second it connected he was throw back by the show of force.

"Don't think that this will stop me!" He howled. "Arton NOX!" Xalec's tattoos started to glow a pure white color, and similarly to the Midar started to move. They traveled to his hands elongating them and turning them into long thin claws, that appeared to be made of light.

With a primal snarl Xalec ripped apart the black Getsuga, and landed in crouch on the ground. A second later he lunged at the oncoming Ichigo.

The two clashed, causing an explosion of power. In a series of high speed slashes, they tried to overpower one another. Numerous cuts appeared on both of them, yet nothing life threatening. That hadn't stopped them from trying their best to murder each other.

Each time their blades collided sparks would fly, followed by bursts of Reiatsu.

Xalec's temper flared. To think that someone like this Shinigami dare to challenge him. What's more, mock him with the usage of Hollow powers.

He slashed his clawed hand violently, forcing Ichigo to retreat. Using that moment he jumped back, glaring at Ichigo.

"Time to end this." Xalec spat, gathering his Reiatsu. It appeared gray in color, yet it wasn't like the others. His tattoos visualizes too, entwining his whole aura.

Ichigo didn't care, he followed suit, flaring his black Reiatsu too and raised his sword high.

Both of them simultaneity lunged at each other with blood curdling shouts.

When they clashed their power obliterated everything around them, creating a massive typhoon of Reiatsu.

In the eye of the storm Xalec and Ichigo fought a battle of wills, trying to overpower the other. The glowing white eyes started into blazing black golden ones. Energy circled around them and sometimes burst in a random flare, as the warriors raised their Reiatsu ever higher.

To Ichigo's terror Xalec started to overpower him. His eyes started to glow even brighter, for a second gaining a green tint to them.

Millimeter by millimeter his claws pushed Ichigo's blade back, despite pushing all his strength forward. After what seemed like an eternity Xalec finally swatted Ichigo's sword to the side.

"You're mine." He uttered and slashed, digging into Ichigo's chest and causing a fountain of blood to erupt.

The release of the power resulted in a massive explosion of black and gray, causing an minor earthquake and massive storm at once.

Ichigo's body flew out of the storm cloud, blood and smoke trailing behind him. He was bleeding dangerously, and his mask was broken, leaving only the lower part of the jaw intact.

'What a monster.' He thought numbly. At some point he felt himself losing consciousness, but he couldn't move a finger.

In a stroke of extremely bad luck Ichigo managed to see the fate of his companion and a friend. Suffice to say this day couldn't get any worse.

---

Tia gracefully landed on the ground. She wished to aid Ichigo, but her way was cut off by the three Vasto Lordes that were sent to deal with her.

Tia started blankly at the trio, gauging their powers. The two less human looking where rather average, with the hedgehog the weakest among them. Yet the human looking one was an entirely different story.

'Better to play it safe than sorry. Ichigo is in need of help.' Halibel flared her yellow Reiatsu. "Hunt, Tiburon!"

Out of nowhere a typhoon of water surrounded Halibel, shielding her from her opponents.

'I need to finish this fast.' She pointed her shark tooth shaped sword in the direction of the Hollows. "La Gota."

In quick succession, she fired three bursts of water at them. To her dismay all three of them swatted them to the side with next to no effort.

"Oh no she's slashing water at us." The scorpion one said mockingly. "What should we do?"

"I have a few ideas what we could do with her." The hedgehog leered, showing his long black tongue.

"Rotar focus on the task at hand." Alzec, the human looking Vasto Lorde, nagged the hedgehog. "Minat, Xalec wants her alive, non-lethal attacks only."

Tia glared at the apparent leader of the squad. He seemed way too confident, if his causal attitude was anything to go by.

"But let's not stall things for too long. Xalec is rarely patient." Alzec looked to Tia with his disturbing milky eyes.

They said that the eyes were gateway to soul. Right now Tia felt that the sand beneath her feet had more soul that this creature standing before her.

His mouth spread into a wide, cold smile.

"Let us see what this Hollow has have to offer." In an instant all three of them disappeared in a burst of Sonido.

Not even a second later Tia had to block a nasty undercut, a swipe to her midsection, and dodge the pincer that threatened to take her head. All of that took as long as is takes to blink. To a common shinigami the whole fight would look like a random burst of sparks here and there. To a trained eye it was deadly battle. Tia had to put everything she had, and then some, in keeping her defense firm.

The Vasto Lorde's were relentless and brutal in their slaughter, not giving her a chance to counter attack.

Thinking fast she charged a weak Cero, and drew it inside her sword. Then she slashed, creating a wide arc of yellow, forcing the trio to retreat and give her some much desired breathing room.

"Hirviendo!" She shot a wave of boiling water at them, forcing them to spread even further a part. Content with the results, she Sonido'ed towards Rotar, since he was the weakest one. She wanted to finish him off first… also the look he was giving her pissed her off.

Taking her sword in two hands, she fell on the Hollow with a mighty force. She expected him to dodge, but his maneuver surprised her greatly. He laid flat on the ground, with his spiky back facing her. Just when she was about to slash, the spikes suddenly exploded in length. Tia twisted herself at an impossible angle at last second, avoiding being turned into Arrancar-kebab.

She was about to fire a Cero at him, when the timely intervention of Minat prevented that. She used her sword as a shield, blocking his stinger from stabbing her. Which was rather fortunate, since now her blade was covered in purple venom.

Acting on instinct she kicked backwards, hitting Rotar in the middle of his chest and sending him flying. Immediately she was back to fighting Alzac again. Raising her forearms, she blocked his flying kick, which made her bones shake.

She swung her sword, but missed her target. Gritting her teeth, the fight was already dragging on far too long.

She was starting to get a nasty flashback to the last real fight she had. Like hell she would allow someone she cared about to be hurt. This realization hit her like a tons of bricks, almost making her lose her focus.

'I care about him?' The revelation shocking her, before having to parry Minat's pincer. 'No, focus on the matter at hand.' She went for a nasty stab, grazing the scorpion Hollow's side, but his black armor withheld the strike.

Using his pincer he locked the sword in an iron grip. Drawing his other pincer back he was about to strike Tia, but she wisely let go of her sword. With the sudden lack of resistance the Vasto Lorde lost his balance.

The Arrancar woman banked on the opening. She created a Cero in her hand and charged forward. Planting the ball of energy in the Hollow's gut, while grabbing her sword with the other hand.

Minat gasped feeling the point blank Cero about to pierce his Hierro. He let go of her sword, and was sent flying by the sheer of energy Tia put into the attack.

Using the temporary disarray of her opponents, she charged forward, creating a massive Cascada. With water snaking around her she plummeted down upon Alzec and Rotar, catching the latter within the sphere of water.

"Hirviendo!" She uttered, instantly boiling the hedgehog Hollow. She could see him opening his mouth in a wordless scream.

It wasn't a method of fighting she often used. It was needlessly cruel in her opinion, but effective all the same. Rotar, in a last ditch effort, charged numerous Ceros around his body and shot them all at once. He managed to disperse the water around him.

He fell to the ground, horrible burn wounds all over his body.

"Y-You whore…" He rasped shakily, climbing on his feet. Tia lunged forward, intending to finish him off, but she never reached him.

Alzec jumped in out of nowhere, scoring a firm hit against her. He planted his fist against her cheek sending her flying.

Tia hit a sand dune with incredible force. Her whole left side of her face was numb, but she knew that there wasn't much time before he would be on her again.

She jumped to her feet, her sword risen in defense, but no one attacked her. She saw the three of them standing in line before her.

She noticed that Minat was heavily bleeding from his midsection, and Rotar could barely stand. Alzac looked between them, then he spoke turning his head to Minat.

The scorpion Vasto Lorde moved in an instant. His pincer closed around Rotar's head, crushing it utterly. Black blood slid down his pincer in streams. Then he used the other one to dig it into his fallen comrades chest, pulling something out.

She couldn't see what it was, but she could see that Minat devoured it quickly. She watched as Alzac rose his hands to the air, starting to wave them in weird motions. A few seconds later the tattoos on his body started to glow in dull gray color. Then almost if they were alive they started to move and expand beyond his body. In a matter of seconds two large dull gray wings grew of his back. From this distance it almost looked like they were made of bones.

'What is this technique?' Tia wondered. She had never seen anything like it before. No Hollow known to her ever used something like it.

No sooner did she finish this thought, Alzac disappeared from sight. Before she could manage anything, horrible pain went down her back as something incredibly sharp pierced her skin. She spun around, aiming to cut her opponent down, but only cut air.

She frantically looked around, but she didn't seen anyone. She felt the blood dripping down her back, but she ignored the unpleasant sensation.

Suddenly she was bathed in dull gray light. Looking up she saw Alzac charging a gray Cero.

With wide eyes she managed to jump to the right, before the ground where she stood was eradicated in a powerful blast.

Sadly Minat was already waiting for her, and engaging her in fevered combat. By devouring Rotar he had healed himself, and was at full strength again.

She went for a stab, forcing him on the defensive, but not for long. Alzac fell on her from above with a vicious war cry. Tia dodged him, yet a bleeding wound on her shoulder was a proof that she wasn't fast enough.

The scorpion Hollow used her retreat and lunged at her, slashing his with pincers in an X motion. Tia lifted Tiburon in defense.

The blades collided with a clang, creating a waterfall of sparks. Tia grunted under the pressure but held firm. Knowing that Alzac would be on her any second, she flared her Reiatsu, forcing the Hollow back by the sheer pressure. She jumped into the air creating a large dome of water above her head.

"Cascada!" She sent the violent torrent of water at him. As she predicted he jumped into the air. Tia pointed her sword at him and charged, but was blocked by Alzac's wings. To her surprise the tattoos started to wrap around her sword, immobilizing it.

Tia tried to yank it out, but the grip was too firm.

"You've lost." Alzac grinned.

Tia eyes widened when she felt a presence behind her, but it was already too late. In lighting fast motion Minat's stinger hit her back, coming out the front.

Tia started at the stinger sticking out of her side. It was dripping with purple venom and blood.

She looked up seeing Alzac's sinister smile.

Her body was growing numb fast and her power left her. She fell from the sky fast, and hit the ground with thud.

The two Vasto Lordes slowly descended, landing next to Tia's prone from.

"Heh, bitch got spunk." Minat's commented walking closer, attempting to kick her.

"Wait you fool, she's still-" Alzec attempted to warn him, but it was already to late.

Tia using the last ounce of her strength, jumped to her feet and stabbed the scorpion Hollow straight through the chest, penetrating his Hierro.

"To Hollow bitch!" He rose his pincer in attempt to decapitate her.

"Ola Azul." Tia uttered weakly.

Minat's back literally burst out, showering everything, including Alzec behind him, in black gore.

He gurgled, coughing black blood out of his mouth. His milky eyes staring with disbelief at Tia.

"Perish." She uttered slashing up, cutting the upper part of his body in half. He awkwardly stepped back, with two hales of his upper torso leaning to the sides. A second later he fell… Tia followed him shortly after, her body finally giving in.

She heard the sand shifting beneath Alzec's feet as he came closer. Tia couldn't even lift her head. Her body was getting totally numb, as the venom finally did it's job.

Alzec grabbed a fistful of her hair and forcibly yanked her upwards. He looked into her eyes with disturbing intensity.

"You're strong." He commented. "Swear your loyalty to me, and I'll convince Xalec to spare you."

Tia didn't honor him with a reply.

"So be it… I'll enjoy it either way." He grinned, slowly leaning to her neck. Then in one swift motion he sank his needle-like teeth into her, causing her to gasp.

Tia opened her mouth to scream, but no sound came.

'He's, he's….' Her vision started to fade as her Reiatsu and blood was sucked away.

Just before she fainted, he pulled away grinning at her with crimson red teeth.

"Delicious! So fresh and full of life!" He commented with a maniacal chuckle. "I haven't feasted like that in centuries… I'm definitely keeping you." He caressed her check in a mock caring manner. "I'll-ara?"

He paused when a blur of orange and black passed next to them.

"I-Ichigo…"Tia breathed.

"Looks like your little friend's down too." Alzec said in amusement. "Now where were we?"

"Alzec!" A voice snapped from behind him. "Have I allowed you to consume her?" Xalec growled, entering the scene.

"It was just a taste, fabulous mind you." He chuckled. "Where's the rest?"

"Dead. I see the same happened to you… Hmm they have proven to be much more resilient than I imagined." Xalec rubbed his chin. "We need to-"

"LET HER GO!" Ichigo shouted, stumbling towards them.

"You're getting sloppy Xalec." Alzec chuckled. "Wait…what the hell is up with the mask?"

"Apparently he's a hybrid too, Shinigami with Hollow powers." He replied folding his arms.

"Damn abominations…. well this one is quite exotic." He shook Tia's head, much to Ichigo's anger.

"I-Ichigo…." Tia wheezed, hoping that he could hear her.

"Ohh looks like she wants to tell you something!" Alzec exclaimed in sadistic pleasure. "Come on dear, speak up I'll allow it."

"Ichigo….run!" She choked out. "Run!" She begged to whatever deity that was listening.

The young Shinigami heard a sound from behind. Looking back he saw a Garganta behind him.

"Go!" Tia urged him desperately. She saw that he was in no condition to fight. He was burned and bleeding all over. "Save yourself!"

Ichigo stared at her in disbelief.

'She wants me to abandon her?' Ichigo felt something awakening in him. 'To sacrifice her?'

"Isn't that sweet Xalec?" Alzec burst out laughing. "FRIENDSHIP! How long has it been since we've seen something like that in a Hollow!?"

"It's been quite long." He uttered as amused as his companion. "So what will you do boy? Will you run? Or will you stay and perish with her?"

"I told you I want to keep her." Alzec said looking straight at Ichigo, while licking Tia's bleeding neck. "It's too much of a waste to kill her."

As soon as he did it, a powerful pulse of Reiatsu came from Ichigo.

"You motherfuckers…." He let an inhuman hiss out of his mouth, his golden eyes blazing with fury.

He started to see red.

'Ya called Kingy?' Hichigo laughed.

'No!' Too late Ichigo realized what he had done. A white mass started to come out of his mouth, chest, and eyes and started to cover his body.

'I can save her you know, these pussies ain't got anything on me.' Hichigo stated with laughter.

'S-Stop.' Ichigo felt his control quickly slipping. By now a horned helmet formed on his head, along with red fur around his neck. Ichigo tried to pry the mask off his face, but his hands felt numb. He fell to his knees struggling with all his might, but he was losing the fight for his sanity.

More and more of his body disappeared beneath the white mass. His screams stopped sounding human, and now they resembled the roars of a wild beast.

Meanwhile Alzec, Xalec had completely forgotten Tia and watched Ichigo's sudden transformation. All amusement drained. The power he was projecting was simply unbelievable.

"This might become dangerous." Alzec said, dropping Tia to the ground. "We need to terminate him now."

"Agreed, let's go."

Both Hollows lunged at Ichigo, gathering all the Reiatsu they could. They fully intended to end this in one go. But they were too late.

Ichigo pried his now clawed hands off his face, showing a demonic skull to whole world

"GRAAAAAAA!" He roared, creating a powerful sound wave. So powerful that it actually stopped the Vasto Lordes in their tracks. Stunned by the sheer of force they missed that Ichigo wasn't in front of them anymore.

"Where did he-" Alzec couldn't even finish as Ichigo suddenly appeared before him. His black sword raised high, he slashed down the Hollow's chest, leaving an oblique wound. Black blood gushed out of it.

Xalec slashed his claws at Ichigo, but he almost lazily blocked them with his sword. Then he punched the Hollow in the face, sending him crashing to a sand dune.

Ichigo focused his attention back to the struggling Alzec, letting a low growl come out of his mouth.

Ichigo disappeared in burst of Sonido, reappearing behind him not even a second later. He dropped his sword and grabbed the base of the tattoo wings. And he pulled.

"STOP ITTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!" Alzec howled in horrible pain. They both fell from the sky, making a crater upon contact.

Ichigo used his feet to gain better leverage, pulling even harder. The Vasto Lorde's screams rose an octave before finally breaking, when Ichigo savagely ripped off his wings off.

There was no blood, the tattoos just dissolved away, but the way Alzec's body convulsed was the testament to the anguish he was in.

But in his current state Ichigo couldn't give a damn about that. He viciously stepped at the back of his head, crushing it in one swift merciless show of force.

He turned his head to the side, seeing Xalec charging on him. Using the same technique as before he started punching the air before him.

Yet to his horror none of his hits could penetrate Ichigo's Hierro. The Hollowfied Shinigami summoned his sword and slowly, mockingly approached his enemy.

Xalec unconsciously took a step back.

He was told that all creatures here were weak and pathetic, but before him stood living proof against that.

He grit his teeth in fury.

"You dare to mock ME!?" He yelled. "I AM XALEC! SERVANT OF ANCIENTS! I will eradicate you scum! Hator urdot dukat tok sejam tikaran bibit MORIS!" He chanted. His tattoos started to glow almost blinding. His claws solidified even more, pulsing with energy. The sand around him started to fly away with each pulse of energy. "I will destroy you in the name of my Masters!"

Ichigo rose his sword into the air. A second later Reiatsu of pure darkness started to escape it.

He slashed down releasing a darkness so deep that it obscured Hueco Mundo's moon.

The Vato Lorde looked at the oncoming wall of black with awe. His arms hung limply at his side.

'Such power.'

Xalec's light was swallowed whole, along with his body, leaving no trace behind.

After his attack silence fell on the battlefield. Not even the wind dared come.

Tia, who witnessed the whole thing, just stared with disbelief at what happened. Ichigo almost effortlessly obliterated his foes. Her mind and body were numb. Former from shock, latter from poison.

'This power… I never imagined it was so vast… No wonder he is so afraid of it.' She thought, looking at his back where his long orange locks fell down his back.

Then he turned to her. Tia's breath caught in her throat. She broke eye contact, not being able to withstand the pressure. She blinked and he was now standing right in front of her, not even a meter apart.

Her eyes strained up, staring at his jaw. She hated to admit it, but she was afraid of him. This was a well know fear. The fear of a superior predator.

She swallowed hard, feeling that her throat and lips as dry as the dessert around them.

Tia saw that he was reaching for her. Her breath hitched as she slammed her eyes shut, expecting the worst.

Much to her surprise instead of killing her. He slid his hand under her knees and back, lifting her up bridal style.

Her eyes shot open. Tia was as stiff as board, but made no attempt to stop whatever he was doing. Not that it would do her any good. She was too weak to resist whatever he had planned.

She was completely at his mercy…again. To say the least that didn't seat well with her.

Ichigo, or rather the one that was using his body now, carried her over to the Alzec's body and surprisingly put her down gently.

He pointed at her then the body. Tia's eyes widened in realization at what he was implying.

"I'm not going to eat that thing!" She protested weakly.

He pointed at her neck and side.

"No." She said firmly. Ichigo made a noise sounding like exasperation and kneeled next to the body. He stabbed his hand in it and ripped out a chunk of meat, moving it close to her face.

Tia tried to turn away, but Ichigo simply stared deeply into her eyes stopping her.

She looked into those bottomless pits of darkness, and knew that she was treading on thin ice. She could sense his annoyance.

Sighing she decided to fold… but on her terms.

"Give me that." She'll be damned if she let that thing feed her, or anyone for that matter. The Hollowfied Shinigami brought her hand up to her face and dropped the meat into it, while still staring at her.

Fighting back disgust Tia bit into it….and almost puked. Normally other Hollow were…manageable. Yes, with shame, she had to admit the feeling of devouring other Hollows was fulfilling. Not to mention the power she received from it.

She could feel that with each bite a bit of her power came back…. It was almost like she was eating… she couldn't even describe what is was. The only thing she knew was it was vile. When she finally finished the first one, much to her despair, Ichigo handed her another one, and another until she was able to stand on her own feet.

Breathing heavily she spat in a very unlady like manner, trying to get rid of the foul taste.

She had looked up at him, and watched as his clean hand moved towards her face. Stiffening she allowed his clawed hand to rest on her cheek. To her surprise he hadn't cut her skin, he just pressed his palm to it. Then using his thumb he slowly wiped the black blood from her lips, causing her to stare at him in shock at this display. He leaned so their faces were only millimeters apart.

Tia had no choice but to stare in those bottomless pits that acted as his eyes.

"Mine." He said in a low guttural rumble. A moment later his mask broke into hundreds of pieces, revealing Ichigo's face.

His eyes rolled back and his knees gave out instantly. Tia managed to catch him before he fell, grunting under his weight.

The disgusting meal might have given her a portion of her strength back, but she was barely able to stand.

She ignored it, as Ichigo's Reiatsu was dangerously low. Even with his wounds somehow healed, it was almost on verge of disappearance.

"Hold on Ichigo… I'll get you out of here." She opened a Garganta, and carried his body there.

The way to the Human World seemed like a dream…. more specify a nightmare. Tia was so weak that she could barely form a decent pathway. She had to concentrate for every step, or they would plunge into the darkness around them.

She cursed herself for eating only an amount that allowed her to stand. If she had more she wouldn't be having problems now. She looked at the Shinigami she was carrying, noticing how deathly pale he was.

Worry instantly filled her heart.

"Just a little bit more…" She said marching forward by sheer force of will. Her body screamed in protest, but she forced it to move. "Don't die Ichigo." She knew that speaking to him was pointless now, but she did it anyways.

She couldn't stop her feelings now either. A man who granted her a second chance, was now on verge of death, and only she could do something about it. She was the part of the reason he was in such a state. If she wasn't around he would never have had to run from Shinigami, and would never have had to go as far as he did to win the battle.

Tia bit her lip, actually drawing blood.

Again someone was suffering because she was too weak.

'It's all my fault.' She felt bitter feelings rise in her chest. 'He should should have let me die… I bring bad luck to those around me…' For some reason that thought stung more than she imagined.

Finally she saw the light at the end of the tunnel.

Revitalized, she picked up the pace walking straight into the air. Realizing her blunder she tried to harden it, but her reserves were depleted.

The ground was coming close fast. Tia did the only thing she could do it this situation.

He wrapped her arms around Ichigo as tightly as she could, and positioned herself in a way that she would hit the ground first.

"Please… don't die Ichigo." She whispered in his ear, before hitting the ground and losing consciousness.

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A/N

Woah that took a while sorry for the horrible wait but my exams were insane this year, I hope you all enjoyed the new version of the Lords of the Dessert, don't forget to leave a review!