Chapter Seven – Experimentation

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Syazel stared at Ichigo's expressionless face, tapping his fingers impatiently against his clipboard.

"Mr. Kurosaki, are you listening to me?" he asked with a hint of annoyance.

Ichigo grunted, unable to actually answer due to the metal gag in his mouth.

Syazel smiled. "Very good, Mr. Kurosaki. You're avoiding the razor nicely."

Ichigo's hands flopped uselessly, locked down onto the examination table with a combination of metal and kido. His Soul Reaper attire had been replaced by a simple white robe, which had already undergone two variations—the first had bloodstains, and the second had been covered in bile. His vibrant orange hair was plastered onto his face, no longer as wild and spiky as it had been.

Syazel leaned his chin in his hand, casually brushing away a few pink strands of his hair from his eyes. "Now then, where were we? We recently finished the cardiac tests—Mr. Kurosaki, I've never known a heart to pound that regularly through electric shocks—and we've examined your zanpakuto. Your adrenalin seems fine, though I'm intrigued by the sudden spike that occured when I mentioned Miss Kuchiki. Very curious."

Ichigo glared at him, still attempting to break free of his bonds.

"Oh, and psychologically you are very amusing. Let's see…dependant personality disorder, possibly an Oedipus Complex…I never would have expected it of you." Szayel's smug expression grew at the sight of a faint blush on the boy's skin. "But then again, I'm hardly one to talk."

Syazel cleared his throat and continued: "Let's see…perhaps we'll do a abdominal examination today. Are you up for that, Mr. Kurosaki?" He feigned concern as he leaned over Ichigo, tugging lightly at the gag. "Shall we take this off you today?"

Ichigo grunted in affirmative, his eyes glaring daggers.

"…But we have quite awhile before that. We haven't evaluated you audio-metrically yet. Perhaps a bit of Moonlight Sonata? No? Or maybe some of that band…what's it called? Something about a disco…" Szayel picked up a pair of nearby earphones and put them over Ichigo's ears.

Before Ichigo could utter another grunt of complaint, Syazel had cranked the volume on the CD player up to 40 and sat back to watch the results. Ichigo squirmed at the roar of the guitar and drums, trying to nudge the earphones off. Szayel simply readjusted them.

"What are you doing, Syazel?" Aizen suddenly asked from the doorway, his serene expression just the tiniest bit marred.

"Experimenting, Lord Aizen," Syazel said smoothly, cranking the volume up another notch.

"I told you not to deafen him." Aizen's voice suddenly deepened. "You were not to permanently damage him—that was the rule." His voice grew gentler. "Or did you simply grow too…excited with your subject?"

Syazel's eyes widened. "Uh…well, Lord Aizen, I can expl—"

"Syazel, I would like you to leave for a moment. Mr. Kurosaki and I need our daily chat."

Syazel grinned and bowed. "Of course, Lord Aizen."

With that he strutted out the door, leaving Aizen and Ichigo alone.

Aizen turned off the music and took the earphones off Ichigo, placing them by the CD player. Ichigo gave him a pained expression mixed with a bit of relief.

"Mr. Kurosaki, how are you today?" Aizen asked as he took the gag from Ichigo's mouth.

"Awful," Ichigo replied in a hoarse voice, breathing heavily.

Aizen chuckled fondly. "Of course, of course. I have some news about Miss Kuchiki."

"How is she?" Ichigo cried, thrashing around. "If you sons of"—he swore loudly—"hurt her, I swear I'll kill you!"

"Now, now, Mr. Kurosaki, calm down." Aizen placed a soothing hand on Ichigo's shoulder, quieting him. "She is currently contacting her zanpakuto. No one is anywhere near her right now—disrupting a Soul Reaper in the middle of something of that intensity isn't wise."

Ichigo nodded. "Where is she?"

"Far away from you." Aizen replied simply, sitting down beside Ichigo on the edge of the table. "But if you want, I can create her for you." He smiled coldly. "In whatever way you like."

"You're sick," Ichigo spat.

Aizen raised an eyebrow. "Not really. I'm actually perfectly sane, judging by Captain Unohana's psychological tests back in Soul Society. However, I suppose due to Gin, I would say I am a little perverted."

Ichigo snickered. "Hard to believe coming from you."

"You'd be surprised, Mr. Kurosaki. Sometimes the 'villain' isn't as awful as people make him out to be."

"Liar," Ichigo retorted, giving Aizen an icy glare.

Aizen sighed. "Mr. Kurosaki, you aren't very respectful toward adults, are you?"

"I'm only respectful to those that deserve it. You don't."

Aizen chuckled and turned to leave. "Very well. I'll leave you in Syazel's capable hands for now."

In a flash Syazel was back, grinning widely. "Where should I begin, Lord Aizen?" he asked eagerly.

Aizen smiled gently in return. "Oh, anywhere you want. But remember: no permanent damage."

Syazel bowed as Ichigo struggled against his bonds once again. "Of course, Lord Aizen. Your wish is my command."

Aizen nodded and turned away. "Naturally, Syazel. Naturally."