Hello everyone, I have a plea for you: We had a project week called *Enter the digital tomorrow 2039* at my University. My group got the topic *Will journalists be the losers of the digital revolution?* Now there's a voting between all the videos. It would be sooooooo kind, nice, great and awesome if you'd give the video a view and vote for it! The title is German, but don't worry, the rest is in English ;) You'd really do me and the rest of the group a great favor!

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Thank you already!

Chapter 10: Momentous decisions

After a long game of eternal tag I finally was able to snatch my katana back from Nel. Not a long time after, Grimmjow arrived with a satisfied expression on his face. Obviously his trip had been successful. I didn't even want to know how much less Hollows were now running around in Hueco Mundo.

I said goodbye to the group and we went back to Las Noches. Our trip wasn't gone unnoticed though. As we arrived at the entrance of the palace the Espada called Ulquiorra was already waiting for us, staring at us blankly.

"What the fuck do you want here?" Grimmjow asked him immediately with venom dripping from his tongue. These two certainly weren't buddies…

"Lord Aizen wants to speak with the soul reaper woman" he answered emotionlessly and turned around, expecting me to follow him right away. I glanced at Grimmjow who just shrugged and followed the Espada with a bad feeling rising in my stomach.

Aizen was already awaiting me in his throne room. I looked up at him as we entered.

"Lord Aizen, here is the soul reaper woman."

Aizen just nodded. "Thank you Ulquiorra. You can leave now." Said Arrancar bowed slightly and then left. I looked after him frowning before shifting my gaze to my former captain.

"Akane…" he started with his calm smooth but threatening voice. "I heard you sneaked out of Las Noches with Grimmjow."

"You're wrong" I replied making him quirk an eyebrow. "It was Grimjow who sneaked out. He just dragged me with him; I had nothing to do with it…"

He smiled visibly amused. "Did you figure out by now why I got you here?"

Yeah, I had an idea about that.

"You want to have me out of the way before the finale of your plan comes."

"Close enough, but that's not exactly it. I want to give you a chance, my dear Akane. You were chased away from the soul society. They'll execute you as soon as you take a step into the Seireitei because they consider you an enemy even though you didn't do anything."

"Forget it" I said, getting what he wanted to tell me. "I'd rather stay out of the soul society for the rest of my life than working for you. I'll never obey you Aizen. I thought you'd be smart enough to see that. Also, let's not forget who the reason is that I can't go back to the soul society, right?" I glared at him. My decision was standing. He could kill me, it wouldn't matter. But I would never work for that bastard.

"I see… That's really unfortunate to hear." For a second Aizen closed his eyes and he actually was looking kind of disappointed. Had he really expected me to ally with him?! Please, I only wanted to see that bastard dead or even better, being in endless agony.

"I guess I don't have another choice then, my dear Akane. I have to convince you otherwise." I rolled my eyes.

"How often do I have to repeat myself? I won't join you, period!" Aizen only smiled down at me coldly.

"We'll see about that. Kaname, if you might…" My eyes widened, I hadn't even felt the presence of the former ninth captain before he suddenly appeared behind me. I didn't even have the time to turn around or get away in time as his hand hit the back of my head, making me go unconscious.

"That wasn't nice" Gin commented with a huge grin, stepping out of the shadows and looking down at the unconscious body of Akane lying on the floor. Kaname was standing behind her, moving the hand down with which he had hit Akane.

"What shall we do with her now Lord Aizen?" he asked with an uncaring voice. Gin tilted his head to the side and looked up at Aizen as well.

Sosuke Aizen stood up from his throne and appeared in front of his loyal followers. With a small smile he said: "For now we'll put her into one of the cells Gin wanted to have when we recreated Las Noches."

Gin's smile even widened. "I'm glad to hear that they'll finally come in use." He gripped the woman's shirt. "I hope you don't have anything against it if I'll throw her into the cell, Captain Aizen?"

"No, of course not Gin."

With a nod the foxy man disappeared. The prison cells he had insisted on adding to Las Noches – it's never wrong to have a few prison cells ready just in case, especially not with a bunch of uncivilized Hollows around – weren't far away from the throne room and were placed in an extra hallway. He opened one of the cells, dragged the unconscious Akane inside and toward the chains that were hanging at the opposite wall, ready to restrain the prisoners for all eternity. Of course the chains were actually no match for any Hollow to break free from but Gin was the opinion that they belonged to any prison cell. The actual thing that would keep the inhabitants in this room was a neck ring which was suppressing any spiritual energy of the one who had to wear it. Gin had copied it from the one in soul society which prisoners who were sentenced to death had to wear, like the poor girl Rukia.

Also, the door was very solid and made of a special material that would keep everyone in who was weakened by the neck ring.

Gin put the young woman down at the opposite wall and started to chain her with the shackles before he carefully placed the ring around her neck, snapping the lock close.

He then walked back to the other wall and leaned against it, next to the door, with his arms crossed casually, waiting for her to wake up.

When I regained consciousness again I firstly had no idea of what had happened. Slowly I opened my heavy eyes but everything was blurry. My head hurt, especially the back of it. I couldn't move my arms and legs and if I tried, something rattled.

"You're finally awake. I was starting to worry about you little girl." My head snapped up, the movement causing me sharp pain. Groaning I carefully lifted my head and after my vision cleared I saw a grinning Gin Ichimaru leaning against the opposite gray wall, watching me even though he had his eyes like usually closed to slits.

"Gin…" I mumbled. My brain was still not working. "What happened?"

"Kaname knocked you out pretty hard and I dragged you here. You opposed Captain Aizen, remember?"

My eyes widened when the memories came back all at once. I gasped, looking right and left from me. I was kneeling on a cold stone floor; my ankles were attached to chains holding me down, my arms were hanging above my head, bound by a long chain going down from the ceiling. Also I could feel something cold against my neck.

"Where am I?" I asked, trying to suppress the sudden fear and terror rising inside of me.

Gin chuckled. "You're in one of my prison cells where nasty persons like you are shut in. How do you like it?" he asked proudly looking around.

I didn't answer but looked around further. The room was small, had plain gray walls, no window and only one door.

I didn't want to find out why Gin had brought me in here, I didn't want to know what Aizen was planning now. I had to get out of here, quickly!

However, when I tried to destroy the chains with the force of my spiritual energy, I found out that I couldn't even summon it! My eyes widened in shock, making Gin grin wider.

"Don't bother, you can't escape from here. This thing around your neck keeps you from doing so. You're now helpless like a human…" He looked at me in a way that made my skin crawl.

"What do you want Gin?" I asked with as much courage as I could muster.

"Asking you if you could do little old me a favor and join Aizen; you don't have to like him… Just play along, like you did all these past years. Then I could get you out of here."

This was bad… Really, really bad. And I realized the mistake I had made the whole time: Taking this situation too lightly. It should have been clear that Aizen didn't only kidnap me so that I couldn't get in contact with the soul society. He didn't kidnap me to let me team up with Grimmjow, stealing the Hogyoku and escaping from him.

He had taken me because he apparently needed some more pawns for finishing his plans. He wanted to make me a part of his army.

I've been too reckless, naïve, and careless. I should have taken the best opportunity I could to escape from Las Noches instead of hanging around with his Arrancar and trying to tease Aizen. After all he was as powerful as deadly.

Damn I was so stupid! Did his sword influence me so that I've been playing along the role of a prisoner? But if so why did he put me into a cell instead of convincing me through illusions that I should obey him? Or wasn't his katana that powerful after all?

I let my head hang down in defeat, looking to the ground. Quietly, almost in a whisper I said: "Fine, I'll do what you want… just… just get me out of here, please…" Gin laughed and I knew that he didn't fall for it. Of course not, he was too smart.

"You will only be released when you mean it. My dear, you would make your situation so much simpler when you'd just suck your pride and bow before Captain Aizen, you know?"

"Seems like you didn't notice it yet, but he isn't captain anymore. Neither of you are" I hissed, glaring at him. I wouldn't, couldn't bow. I'd never do that.

Gin sighed and rubbed his neck. "Oh my, what shall we do with you stubborn little thing?" he mumbled and his smile faded away to turn into a frown. I didn't reply. It was silent for some moments, Gin tipped with his forefinger against his chin, thinking about who-knows-what and I was staring at the gray wall, pondering about how I could get out of my misery.

Suddenly the door next to Gin opened. "Gin, Lord Aizen wants to see you." Gin jumped slightly and his wide grin was once again spread over his face.

"Kaname, didn't you ever hear something about knocking before entering? You scared me..."

Tosen didn't say anything, he didn't even move a muscle but just stepped back to let Gin pass through the door.

"Well then little Akane, see ya!" Chuckling Gin waved at me and then left the room, shutting the door behind him, leaving me alone in utter silence. Just then I noticed that I've been tensed up the whole time during Gin's stay.

"What are you doing here?" Frowning Lilynette looked at the blue-haired Espada who was lying casually on the bed, flipping through the pages of a book.

Grimmjow didn't even look up but ignored the Arrancar girl completely.

"Hey, I asked you something!" she snapped, glaring at him, balling her tiny fists, ready to jump onto him to beat the answer out of him like she always did with Starrk.

Grimmjow only snorted annoyed but still didn't answer.

"Where is the soul reaper?" Lilynette asked another question. She let her gaze wander around the small room but the prisoner wasn't there. She knew that Starrk had asked her to stay away from the soul reaper for whatever reason but she got bored, Starrk was sleeping right now anyway and she really wanted to see the woman again. Lilynette never had been in the human world, she never before had crossed ways with a soul reaper but after the stories she heard in Las Noches from the other Arrancars about the soul reapers, she had thought about them more... brutally, evilly, dangerously. But this Akane was actually nice and kind, she had claimed Lilynette to be sort of her friend instead of wanting to attack her and they had get along pretty well. She felt sorry for breaking her word to Starrk but she really wanted to meet the soul reaper again and couldn't see why it should be such a bad thing.

However, the soul reaper wasn't in her room. Instead she had found Grimmjow lying on her bed, flipping through the book that originally belonged to the prisoner.

"How should I know?" he finally meant grumbling, still not looking up at her.

Lilynette huffed impatiently. "You've been with her only an hour ago!"

"And so what? Like you said, it was already an hour ago. Now get lost bitch before I'll paint the walls with your guts."

The little girl growled. "Do you even know who I am?! I'm Lilynette Gingerback the Fracción of Coyote Starrk, the first Espada! He can wipe the floor with you anytime, so stop acting so tough!"

Now Grimmjow was looking up, glaring daggers at her hatefully. "Shut your trap bitch or I'll make you. And I don't care who you are or whom pathetic Fracción you are."

Her right eye twitched in annoyance and anger and she was about to release her sword from her helmet when a heavy hand was put on her shoulder, making her jump and whirl around. Hovering over her was that always-smiling creepy Gin.

"Na na, we're not fighting each other, are we?" His voice had a threatening, warning undertone and Lilynette tried to gulp the upcoming fear down her throat. Grimmjow had turned his attention back to the book.

"Ah Grimmjow, glad I found you here... Captain Aizen wants to see you, you should better come." Once again there was that hidden warning.

Gulping once more and putting a strong look on her face, Lilynette asked: "Do you know where the soul reaper is?" Gin smiled down at her, with his head titled slightly to the side.

"Who are you my dear?"

"I'm Lilynette Gingerback, the Fracción of Coyote Starrk!" she stated loudly and angrily.

"Oh well... Lilynette..., our dear Akane was sadly a nasty girl and is now at a place where nasty girls belong to. She'll stay there until she'll once again be a good girl." He chuckled and Lilynette frowned in slight confusion. But before she could ask any further, Grimmjow stepped to them with a bored expression on his face, his left hand in his pocket and the book in his right hand.

Gin removed his hand from Lilynette's shoulder just to ruffle through her short hair, making her wince and growl. He though only chuckled and left then the room with Grimmjow in his tow.

Frowning, the Arrancar girl looked after them. What the hell happened to the soul reaper...?

Looking bored Grimmjow entered the throne room, refusing to look up at Aizen but staring at the walls. They were ways better to look at.

He had no idea of what happened to Akane but according to Gin's words she must be in trouble. Had it something to do with their trip? Speaking of which... he actually had waited for the soul reaper in her room to come so that they could go to that old Barragaon together but seemed like he had to do it alone after Aizen would have told him whatever that bastard wanted to.

Out of the corners of his eyes he glanced up at the arrogant man. Did he summon Grimmjow because of the trip? Was he in trouble too? But why exactly? After all it wasn't forbidden to leave Las Noches and he brought the bitch back after all.

"Grimmjow, how are you?" Aizen asked with his faked friendliness. The Espada just shrugged.

"Tell me, why did you leave Las Noches?"

Once again he shrugged but added: "To kill something. I was bored."

"That's not surprising" Gin commented from the side. "There is really nothing one could do in this place except when you can sleep all the time like good old Starrk."

The widening of his smile was the only reaction Aizen showed but then he stood up from his throne.

"Grimmjow, I'd like you to come with me." It wasn't a plea or a request but an order.

Trouble is about to come...

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