Chapter 7

It was dark out when the Shinigamis' and Hollow awoke in Urahara's shop. Tessai was cooking dinner with Ururu's help, the rest of the house quiet. They got up and quickly made their way to the main room. Renji threw open the door and they found Peri, Yoruichi, and Urahara sitting at the table drinking tea.

"Oh, you're finally up," the man spoke behind his fan.

"Cut the crap, Urahara," the Lieutenant snapped as they filed in, sitting around the table. "We want answers." His eyes locked with Peri's. "Now."

The young woman slightly glared at him. "Are you trying to get on my bad side?" she asked dangerously.

Renji slightly backed away from the table.

"What is going on, Peri?" Ichigo asked. Her gaze turned on the orange haired boy. "How long… How long have you had Spiritual Pressure?" Peri didn't answer. "How long… have you had that power?"

The girl looked away, staring at the cup in front of her. "What the hell are you?" Hichigo asked. Peri looked up at the Hollow sitting across from her. His gaze was hard.

"I've had this power since the day I was born…" Peri began. "I've always had Spiritual Pressure, but have learned to contain it to a point where it is near impossible to detect. I can appear to be a human."

"Appear?" Toushiro asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Peri, who are you?" Renji asked.

The young woman looked at everyone, before her eyes ended on Urahara. He nodded his head. "I was an Angel."

"Was?" Rangiku asked.

Peri looked down at the table, not wanting to meet anyone's gaze. "It all started over two hundred years ago… At the time I was living in the Arch Quadrant. I was a Lieutenant of the leading command force… "


Before I was born Heaven and Hell had been at war since the beginning of time. The Bible and other forms of books that worship God tell of stories involving Angels and Demons. They don't even know the half of it.

It was the Winter Solstice, the height of the war at the time. Heaven's Angels were on the front line, waiting in the clouds. It was cold, the dark sky threatening to snow at any moment.

"So, what do you think, Lieutenant?" Gabriel, Peri's head officer, asked. "Think they're going to show up?"

"Of course they will," Peri answered. "They always do, even if they're late."

"There's something ominous in the air," Zadkiel, Peri's right hand man, warned. "I don't think we should do this, Lieutenant."

"What are you saying?" Peri asked, looking over at the Angel. "If we don't fight then Hell will be at our doorstep. If we fall back then everything would be for nothing."

"That's not what I mean." The young woman cocked an eyebrow. "I don't think you should be here, Lieutenant."

"They're coming!" Ariel yelled from one of the lower clouds.

"The gate is opening!" warned Uriel right next to her.

"Prepare yourselves!" Peri yelled, standing tall. "The enemy has arrived!" All of the Angels readied their shields and weapons. "This is it! Think of our God!"

A loud roar came from below as the ground split in two. "Think about those helpless souls those Demons have devoured!"

Loud screams and howls came from below. "Think of our fellow comrades, who died for this day!"

Through the ground emerged the Demons, clawing their way out of their hellhole as some flew into the air. "STAND AND FIGHT!"

There was a loud roar of cheers and warrior cries. Peri jumped into the air in a nosedive. Then one by one the Angels jumped off the clouds after her. They shot out of the clouds coming head on at the enemy. The Lieutenant raised her shield, positioning the staff above her head. A bright light came from the orb as Peri brought down the weapon. There was a flash of light as both sides clashed.

I will never forget that day. The battle was evenly matched, however, it was the one day I should have heeded Zadkiel's warning and should've had my guard up.

"We're pushing them back!" Ange yelled.

"Hold your ground!" Peri yelled. "Don't let up your guard until they are gone-!"

A loud roar came from the large crack in the ground. All of the Demons looked at each other before retreating into the hole once again. A loud rumble came from it and the earth shook violently.

"What the hell was that?" Gabriel asked when it stopped. All of the Angels looked at the crack.

The Earth shook again, and again, and again. It sounded and felt like footsteps. A loud roar erupted from the hole and Peri's blood ran cold. "Run!" she screamed at all of the Angels near the tear in the ground. The young woman rushed forward as the Angels looked at her. "RUN!"

There was an explosion of fire from the hole and Peri jumped into the air, head on at the emerging monster.

The monster's name was Vritra, enemy to the Gods, a vial serpent monster. It ripped through our defenses like we were nothing. I ordered a retreat for those that were still standing, but I stayed behind.

Peri laid on the ground, face down looking off to the side. Her eyes were hazy as it looked over the bloody battlefield. The hole in the ground had closed up, and all the Angels had returned to Heaven. The stench of the Demon's rotting corpse stung Peri's nose, but she was too injured to move. Her breaths came in short gasps.

It had started to snow, covering the bloody ground and corpses with a thin layer of white. By now Peri had lost all feeling in her body from the blood loss, so she couldn't even feel the cold flakes brush against her skin.

Footsteps sounded in the field at a distance. The young woman couldn't even call out to them. There were some shuffling noises and murmurs here and there. Finally a pair of feet stopped in front of Peri's face.

"So you're still alive," a male's voice spoke. "I'm surprised with your injuries." The person bent over, resting a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, we're going to help you."

My right wing had been completely ripped off, my left one barely hanging on by the muscles. I managed to stab the Vritra through the heart and then rip off its head. Once that happened the gates to Hell closed up. However, when an Angel looses their wings they can never return to Heaven. They loose all contact with their comrades and are banished to Earth until they can regain them.


"Urahara was the one who found me. He healed my wounds and took me in. I went back to the field, but found it completely cleared of any remains from the battle. I tried calling out to Zadkiel and Gabriel, but there was no answer. I found my staff, stuck into the ground. Once I touched it, it turned into my earring.

"After all that happened I turned into a child. We think the reason for that was because my powers were drained for a time. It wasn't until eighteen years ago that I actually started to physically grow like a human, and when that happened it was because my Spiritual Pressure was starting to grow again.

"I've been living on Earth for two-hundred years now, waiting for the Demons of Hell to resurface again. Now they have returned, which means that Hades is reigniting the war once again."

"What I don't understand is why your men didn't come back for you," Renji cut in.

"If a retreat is ordered you cannot go back for those fallen. That is our rule in battles. Besides, most of those who have fallen are either dead or have lost their wings, which means their return to Heaven is very impossible."

"Couldn't they have helped you?"

"No. Wings are apart of Angels and once the wings are broken they are nearly impossible to grow back."

"You said it was possible," Toushiro pointed out.

"They can grow, but it's painful. The pain is torture to your body. Think of the human skeleton structure. Our wings are attached at the spine. Once snapped off the re-growing of them could drive a person mad. The bones grow out of the spine, penetrate the skin, and continue to grow, ripping open your back even more. Then you have to take the nervous system into consideration. The nerves have to grow back as well and refuse with your back, the entire time being pulled and stretched."

"Sounds like you've encountered this before," Ichigo said.

"I have."

"What did you do?"

Peri was silent for a few seconds. "I ripped them out."

"Why would you do that?" the teen exclaimed.

"Because I couldn't handle the pain!" she snapped back. "You do not know the pain your body is put through. It feels like you're is being ripped apart from the inside. That is why less than 2% of Fallen Angels return to Heaven. Besides, your wings don't even fully grow back. They only come back halfway."

"Why is that?" Rangiku asked.

"The only way for a Fallen Angel to regain their wings is to redeem yourself."

"Like what?" Toushiro asked.

"Save a human being or two from a wrongful death is one way, or guiding a lost soul to Heaven."

"You've been living here for two-hundred years and have yet to do any of those things?" Renji asked a little dumbfounded. "You work at a clinic."

"It's different for me. Those tasks are for lesser Angels who are of lower ranking. Because I was a Lieutenant I have to do a lot more."

"Peri has saved lives in the past," Urahara spoke up. "She's almost regained her wings a few times, but they always stop halfway through the process."

"Why is that?" Ichigo asked.

"We believe that the reason is because God wants Peri to stay on Earth for a reason."

"I still say I'm damned," the young woman mumbled. "I think Hades placed a curse on me, which does not allow me to return to Heaven. After all I did kill his precious serpent pet."

"So why are they showing up now?" Toushiro asked.

"Because Hades wants to. He's ready to start the war all over again, which means his army has grown and he's more powerful."

"What made him stop?"

Peri grinned dangerously. "I showed him my strength, however, because I disappeared from Heaven he took the time to build his power. Now he's back."

"Why are you so important?" Hichigo asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Because I am a high messenger of God. You know how the Espadas were ranked?" Everyone nodded, surprised by her knowledge of that incident. "Angels are ranked as well one through twenty."

"What number are you?" Hichigo asked, now very interested.

"I don't have a number."

"Then how are you important?"

"Because I was given a special."

"Oh?" Hichigo's eyes searched Peri's.

"The elite Angels are ranked one through twenty, but I surpassed them all. I'm Number Zero."

Hichigo grinned sadistically. "I wanna try that power."

"Easy, Hichigo," Urahara warned. "You're still injured. In your condition Peri would wipe the floor with you." The Hollow growled at the man.

"There's something that has been bothering me," Ichigo said. Peri looked over at him. "You said your wings grow back from time to time. How come I've never seen them before?"

"Urahara and Yoruichi managed to create something that freezes the growth internally."

"What was it?"

Peri looked over at Yoruichi before turning her back on everyone. Pulling the hair over a shoulder, Peri pulled the shirt over her head, exposing her well-toned body, flawless skin, and a large black tribal tattoo that reached from both shoulders down to the hips. The tattoo looked like Angel wings, greatly resembling the top piece design of her staff.

"The tattoo is pumped with Spiritual Pressure, which is absorbed by the nerves in my back. It cuts off the growth so I don't have to go through that pain anymore."

"It was a challenge, but we finally managed to perfect it," Urahara said with a grin. "I'm a genius if I do say so myself."

"How come we didn't detect those things?" Renji asked. "They were huge! Yet they snuck up on us!"

"Because Demons do not have Spiritual Pressure. They are dead, Demons, empty. They are nothing, which is why you didn't sense them. Hollows, souls, Angels, humans, and Soul Reapers have Spiritual Pressure because they are held to Earth in some way shape or form. Demons are not. They are controlled by Hades and reside in Hell, only coming to Earth when they wish. They have no emotional ties to Earth."

"Is there any way we can sense them?" Toushiro asked.

"You can hear them scream or their victims. Believe me, you'll know the difference between the Hollows because the Demons are much, much scarier and deadly then Hollows."

"Can we kill them?"

"Yes, but it is difficult."

"What if we are faced with one?" Renji asked.

"You fight for your life."

"What if you're faced with many?" Ichigo questioned.

"You better pray for your damned soul."

A/N: I don't own anything