Disclaimer: Dun dun dun dun!! I don't own Bleach. Too bad so sad!!
So everyone, welcome the chapter eight of That Unmendable Hole in my Heart, have you all been enjoying it so far? Here begins my little Hueco Mundo arc, and now before anyone asks, I'll tell you about my timeline. Okey dokies, in the prequel, it was obviously after episode 132 and around the time of finding out about the arrancar. But in all my fanfic, I throw it in somewhere in the timeline or around the timeline of the actual anime, so there are always references, but no exact times or events. So here Ichigo and Rukia and Renji and them have already been to Hueco Mundo before to rescue Orihime, okay?? The defeated espada are still defeated, but Aizen is alive and as evil as ever, as is his posse of faithful followers.
Okay then. Onward chapter eight!!
Chapter 8: Invisible Puppet Strings
Making a path out of spiritual particles wasn't very fun, according to Karin. She didn't have too much trouble with it, but seeing Hitsugaya's perfect little path made her mouth twitch and irritated her. Ichigo, who sucked at controlling spiritual pressure, ran on his wonky path, but it had improved a lot from the last time he had been there.
Eventually they arrived in the actual Hueco Mundo place, which was a dark, desolate desert. Ichigo landed on the sand and reached back to touch his sword, as if to reassure himself that it was there. Karin walked beside her older brother, unable to stop looking around and gazing at the scenery. Hitsugaya really didn't give a damn about where he was or what was around him. Right now, as soon as he had stepped down onto the desert-like place, his heart began pounding crazily; there was only one thing on his mind now and it was Aizen.
Hitsugaya was normally quiet, but his silence made Karin wary. She kept walking and looking around at the dark landscape, but she worried about him.
Ichigo sweat-dropped as he saw the familiar white building stretching out in front of him. It was Las Noches.
The last time they had come here, Ichigo and his friends had trouble getting to Las Noches, because they kept running and running and could never get anywhere. But for some reason, this time, they were just in front of Hueco Mundo, and Ichigo could say he was relieved, because this way he could get to Rukia a lot faster.
Ichigo frowned. He wanted so much to focus on saving Rukia and defeating Grimmjow again if he were to meet him but he was so worried about Karin. How could Karin possibly handle the Espada and their Fraccion? They had been lucky not falling into the Hollow forest under the sand but would Karin even have been able to defeat those Gillian and Adjuchas?
To their surprise, the doors of Las Noches opened right before them, as though they were welcome visitors. Ichigo was immediately on his guard, and the strange haunting smells and spiritual pressure from the building making him feel a little sick inside. He glanced quickly at Karin, noticing the way she tensed up and froze at the presence of the strange pressure.
Immediately, he turned to Hitsugaya and started, "Hitsugaya-"
"I won't take my eyes off her for a second." Hitsugaya readily replied, before Ichigo had finished speaking, without looking at him and staring straight ahead. Although it was dark inside the building, and they could hardly see anything, Hitsugaya felt Aizen's presence so heavily he held his breath. Aizen… He was definitely here somewhere. Immediately, Hitsugaya's hands tightened into fists and he glared out into the infinite darkness ahead of him.
Karin felt the pressure in the castle creep up her skin, shivering. It was a heavy spiritual pressure, but she could handle it. Still, she knew she was the weakest here. But… Hoshi Matsuri… while her zanpakuto was not with her in sword form right now, she could feel its presence so clearly inside her, and it made her feel better. Like the first time she had met Hoshi Matsuri, she remembered asking if she could borrow her strength, and telling her that she wanted to be just like Ichi-nii and Toushirou, because they were both strong and courageous and not afraid of anything.
And now, she was here, in Hueco Mundo, right outside Las Noches, on a mission to rescue Rukia, along with the two people she admired most in the world. Sure, she was weak but she would learn. She wasn't afraid of a little pain right now, and she knew it would be difficult. But… she was gonna keep going without looking back, getting stronger every step of the way. And… if Hitsugaya was so ready to protect her then it was up to her to stop him from fighting Aizen.
Hoshi Matsuri was worried, and Karin could feel it. But, Karin knew she had to do it. She swallowed her fear and glared out fiercely into the darkness and took the first step inside. This spiritual pressure is not too strong but it still bothers me. But there will be much more intense pressure later on… so I better get used to it!!
Hitsugaya was right behind her, the expression on his face so cold and serious it shocked Ichigo. Ichigo also narrowed his eyes as he entered the building, feeling sure that Rukia and Aizen were somewhere within this castle.
He was slightly bothered by the way the doors had so eerily opened right before them, but he tried not to think too much about it. Yet as he, Karin and Hitsugaya went deeper inside the building, all he could think about was that someone had definitely been expecting them.
--
Aizen was sitting casually at the table where he normally gathered his Espada, but today he was the only one sitting there. He was leaning his head on one hand, feigning boredom. He could feel a different pressure entering his castle, but all he did was smile cunningly. He recognized both Ichigo and Hitsugaya's spiritual pressure but there was a third one with them that he didn't know. It felt similar to Ichigo's but it was the weakest of them all, though he sensed it could have great potential.
He wasn't worried. He had been waiting for this time for so long!! Finally! He knew Hitsugaya so well, he knew that there would be an explosive battle between them soon; Hitsugaya's thirst for revenge would be so great, and Aizen would definitely enjoy it.
He was curious about the unknown spiritual pressure but not worried about it. Whoever it was, they'd be taken care of.
Aizen's smirk grew deeper as the pressure in the room stirred and there was the soft sound of someone's footsteps nearby.
"Aizen…" the voice came from the corner of the room, the person half-hidden in the darkness.
"Yes, I know. They've come for you… Miss Kuchiki."
--
Stark, the Espada who was normally always sleeping suddenly opened his eyes. It surprised his Fraccion, who rushed to him.
Lilinette asked, "What is it??"
Stark's eyes became weary and his droopy eyelids fell over his eyes again. He murmured with his slight smile, "It seems we have some visitors…"
--
There was a thoughtful silence in the room. Rukia leaned against the stone wall, her shihakusho was frayed and torn around the edges and sleeves and a segment of the Hollow mask covering one eye, much like an eye-patch. She said nothing.
"You remember what I told you before? Soon you won't feel anything anymore, no pain of any sort. Then… you'll become my ultimate weapon. My little… experiment hasn't been completed yet but it is going just the way I planned. Your powers are steadily growing and the Hougyoku has flourished being back in its original vessel. It won't be long now, Kuchiki, soon, we can finally begin testing. There's a reason those friends of yours are here in this building. Very soon, we can see the results of this." Aizen said.
Rukia lowered her head and closed her eyes as she thought. Yeah… she could feel him. Ichigo!! And then… there was also Hitsugaya and… Karin?! What the hell was she doing here?? Rukia immediately raised her head and her eyes widened in shock and worry. Why Karin? Why would she come here? She would get killed!!
Aizen saw Rukia's emotion and smiled deeper. "Ah, it's almost time Miss Kuchiki. You'll be able to show your beloved Ichigo your powers. He's lucky. He'll be the first one to see your abilities now. Think of it as a small present for him before he dies… by your hands!!"
Rukia froze. No. No!! She could not do it!! But she couldn't hide under the pretence that she was recovering from the beating up she had received last time, as that had all healed in no time at all. She couldn't pretend that these powers Aizen was developing in her were still uncompleted, because she could feel this overwhelming pressure inside herself and continually shocked herself whenever she accidentally used it.
"Don't even think about disobeying me, Miss Kuchiki. You know what I have here with me." Aizen's hand slipped into his pocket and Rukia froze. Aizen pulled out something. Rukia almost vomited.
"You might be surviving and living by the power of Hougyoku inside you right now, but your survival ultimately depends on me. Don't you dare forget that I have your heart sitting here in my hands. It's a lot like a remote control, don't you think? There are like invisible puppet strings here, between you and me… I can make you do anything I want. So… if I were to tell you to kill Ichigo, you'd have to do it."
Rukia felt sweat building up on her forehead. She could almost feel the pain before it happened. Still… inside, she resisted.
"I already told you, Miss Kuchiki! It's futile to resist." Aizen had a big cruel smile on his face. "You know what happens. Puppet strings are so handy." And with that he gave the bloody object in his hand a hard squeeze.
Immediately, Rukia fell to the floor with a huge thud. Her eyes were widened with fear and pain etched deep into them. Her whole body shook and she felt like throwing up. This horrible wrenching pain bit deep into her body and spread out into every vein and artery. No… it was back. This terrifying feeling inside. No!! Not again. She couldn't handle it. Tears began seeping out of her frozen blue eyes. This. The taste of death she had experienced before. The wounds she had before which had healed seemed worse than ever. The bruises and scars and cuts were back, it seemed. And she felt a tiny stream of blood trickle from her mouth.
Aizen smiled, his cruel eyes resting on her shivering form. He stood from his chair and turned away. "It won't be long now. Soon, Miss Kuchiki. Kill Ichigo Kurosaki."
Rukia's eyes were teary and blinded for a second. She felt Aizen's footsteps vibrate on the floor and then heard his final words. "And don't forget, Miss Kuchiki. Remember those invisible puppet strings between us."
--
Ulquiorra Schiffer stood outside the room, hands in his pockets as usual. His solemn green eyes could see the form of Rukia lying on the ground, blood specks sprayed across the floor, the tears sliding down her face, her whole body wrecked with pain and feeling this immense pain and hurt inside, as well as the insatiable coldness spreading inside. She shivered, she shook, she couldn't stop. It was so cold inside her, freezing… so cold… she couldn't feel anything anymore.
Ulquiorra's eyes flickered upwards when Aizen came outside. Ulquiorra said nothing but Aizen could tell exactly what he was thinking.
"There's nothing to worry about, Ulquiorra," he told his faithful Espada. "She'll do whatever I say, because of these puppet strings. Besides, if the experiment fails, we can simply destroy her and start all over again."
Aizen walked off down into a hallway and casting one last gaze at Rukia lying there, Ulquiorra followed his leader.
His green eyes were cold and unfeeling as always. I wonder what this is I'm feeling? Some kind of obnoxious mocking pity for her… nothing but an experiment and a puppet…
To be continued!! Hee hee!! By the way, there'll be more Espada appearing soon!! Hurray!! There'll also be more information on stuff that's happened to Rukia, as well as the animosity the Espada bear towards her. It could get terribly sad later on, but get used to it! This is after all, the horrible angsty inner evil of emichii!! MWAHAHAHAHA! Well then, read and review!!
PS. Look, Sebbo, it's your favourite Ulquiorra!!
