Hello all!

Here's Chapter 10. Special thanks to apathyninja, Slothman30, Mileryn, perfect beauty, shaggy-bear, Mungetsu, and stormcrowley for the encouragement and reviews so far.

Wow, that took a while to update. If you're wondering, the reason this chapter took so long is because I tried to have my cake and eat it too – I didn't want to spend a whole chapter dealing with the aftermath of the previous one, and I kept wanting to get back to the subplots (and the jokes), but ultimately I found out that I needed a fairly large amount of story-space to deal with the fallout of the fight, do a little character development, and introduce a couple of familiar faces. The silliness will return next chapter.

Now that the Double Trouble part is done, we'll be saying goodbye to the song lyrics for a while.

I do not own Bleach, or any part of it.

DOCTOR'S ORDERS

Chapter 10 – No rest for the weary, No rest for the wicked

One interesting psychological phenomenon present in nearly every human being is a frequently-triggered logical fallacy called the 'confirmation bias.' In a nutshell, it is the tendency of humans to formulate a theory or hypothesis and then begin gathering data – but instead of modifying the theory to fit the available facts, they modify their interpretation of the facts to fit the existing theory. Most people will even rationalize their way to ignoring contradictory evidence, guessing that such data points are a statistical fluke, or that the opposing information or viewpoints have been corrupted somehow. This logical fallacy causes a great deal of damage on every scale of life, from individuals to huge organizations.

An even more simple statement is that everyone is susceptible to believing what they want to believe, even as others with perfectly reasonable points of view and oh-so-inconvenient 'facts' arrive to challenge the reality that they know.

Karakura Town, Unknown Location - 9:00 p.m.

Alegria watched as Soto finally KO'd the last of the humans. If I ever see another manifestation of a mortal's imagination, it will be too soon.

Alegria and Soto had spent several long hours chasing the humans around the hideout and knocking them out again – it was the "no killing" part that made it so difficult. Each of the fifty humans had figured out how to manifest their power before the fighting was done, and said powers had shown up as everything from fairies to dinosaurs to what she could only describe as demonic kitchen appliances. In the middle of this arsenal of insanity, Alegria and Soto had been forced to spend as much time keeping the humans from accidentally killing each other as they had fighting.

Soto stretched and popped her knuckles. For once, she didn't seem completely thrilled just to be alive. "That… was a lot less fun toward the end there."

Alegria sat down and looked at the mess and exhaled heavily. "Did you hear from Zarraga during the last fight, by any chance?"

"No, I didn't. I actually lost contact from him a while ago, so I guess he used his power. He's probably polishing off the agent as we speak."

Alegria nodded and reached for her communicator, just to double check that Soto had it right, but her hand stopped halfway there. She froze as Zarraga and Bastida's memories of the last hour or so flooded her mind – because her powers were temporally-based, Aizen had arranged it that the death of any member of her team would cause that Arrancar's final memories to appear to her. That's impossible! They should have had no trouble bringing down two Soul Reapers, even if they were lieutenants!

But the facts remained. Zarraga and Bastida had both fallen. Alegria found herself suspended in the air – she was being held up by Soto, who was looking into her face. "Alley?"

"How long was I out?"

"About fifteen seconds. You really spaced out there. What happened?"

"They're dead."

"The Reapers?" Soto smiled.

"…no."

Soto's face fell. "Oh…" There was a long silence. Soto finally set Alegria down. "What do you want me to do?"

Alegria considered. That was half of my team, gone in one night. What do I do from here? What will Lord Aizen think? Should I send Soto after the agent?

She sifted through the new memories again. The agent doesn't seem nearly as on top of things as I'd first imagined, and Zarraga and Bastida managed to not give away too much. No, I should work on securing these humans and gathering the rest.

"There are chemicals in this world – sedatives – that will keep the humans down. We'll use those to maintain control. Go find some and bring them back. What happened to that human you'd spotted at the edge of town?"

Soto brightened. "The big one? Well, normally when I punch a human they go down. But I punched this guy lots of times and he just kept fighting! Then his arm went all weird and he started shooting energy blasts at me, and that's when you told me to get back here. I get the feeling he was leaving town, so I dunno where he is now."

Alegria shook her head. "Fine. Just continue your search within the city. There are bound to be another fifty aware humans somewhere inside the spiritual nexus – find them and bring them here. Find those drugs first, though – try a hospital or something."

Soto nodded energetically. "You got it!" She bounced off to the edge of the room.

Alegria watched her go, wishing she could switch moods that easily. She shook her head to clear it – if Zarraga and Bastida had been gunned down by Lieutenants so easily, then they clearly weren't worth keeping around or mourning over – that was how Lord Aizen seemed to operate. She pushed the thoughts of them out of her mind and got to work hooking the humans up to the equipment, as they had been before. It's only a momentary diversion. Today's incident with the humans actually did more to delay the completion of my mission. Everything will be fine.

Las Noches, Throne Room - 9:00 p.m.

Sosuke Aizen, Lord of Las Noches, Leader of the Espada, etc, leaned back. Static filled two of the four screens in front of him. "A fine performance from the Vice-captains, wouldn't you say?"

Gin nodded and got up. He shouted to the other room. "Hey, Kaname! You wanna watch the next fight with us?"

Tosen's irritated voice emerged from the antechamber where he was working on his latest project. "That was in terrible taste."

Gin chuckled. "Well, at least it wasn't another speech about justice."

Aizen got up as well. "I need to make a few additional preparations. Would you be kind enough to ask Harribel to join us next time?"

Gin tilted his head. "Sure." There was a clear question in his posture. Aizen's own expression made it equally clear that he wasn't going to answer it unless Gin asked out loud.

"Good."

Karakura Town, Urahara's Training Grounds, 9:33 p.m.

Urahara stood fairly still in his underground training room as Tessai watched. He nodded his readiness, and the big man asked, "So tell me, what day is it today?"

"Friday, although not for much longer."

"And where are we?"

"We're in a huge cave underneath my shop, created by you, myself, and Yorui-" Tessai suddenly struck out with his left hand, two fingers pointing at his boss. With neither chant nor name, a burst of Kido-generated lightning flew out and struck Urahara squarely in the chest, leaving a smoking hole through the center of it. The merchant continued to stand for a couple of seconds before his knees buckled. Rather than falling to the ground, however, he exploded in a shower of fake rubbery bits.

Urahara – the real one this time – appeared out of flash step behind Tessai. The big man nodded as the two of them began heading for the ladder up to the shop. "I'd call it a success. When did you make the switch?"

The merchant opened his fan. "A good magician never reveals his secrets!"

Tessai made a noncommittal grunting noise while Urahara climbed up onto the shop floor. "I still say that it will never work on Aizen, especially since you've done it before."

"I'll bet you a thousand yen that it does."

Before Tessai could respond, there was a loud banging at the door. "We're closed!" Urahara shouted.

The banging continued. Urahara opened the door, and changed facial expressions mid-snark. Isane stood there, supporting Renji's unconscious body, drenched in blood, sweat, and alcohol. Urahara took Renji from her and carried him back to the room he used for healing the injured that so frequently wound up at his store.

Karakura Town, Karakura Hospital - 10:28 p.m.

Soto stepped out of the elevator and on to the fourth floor of Karakura Hospital. What a coincidence! Everything in this city has the same name as the town!

She walked down the hall, her mind rapidly shuffling between the geography of Karakura, her assignment, Alegria's odd collapse, and the knowledge that Bastida and Zarraga were dead. It bothered her that she couldn't think about any of those things for too long. She remembered, once upon a time, that she hadn't had this much trouble concentrating. How long ago was it? Four months? Four years? Ohh… that's an amazing view of the – no, focus! She leaned against a wall for support. I miss being able to think clearly.

She had, at one point, been a rather powerful Adjuchas, on the verge of Vasto Lorde status – her body had mostly finished compressing into a humanoid form and size, and her powers had been incredible. She'd been more cheerful and carefree than most of her brethren – she'd had to hunt down and consume other Adjuchas, of course, but she hadn't seen it as a real problem. Then Ex-captain Aizen – or was he Lord Aizen now? She kept forgetting – had appeared, and said that he'd be able to advance her to an entirely new level of power and control, freeing her from the destructive cycle. Already bored with a life of tracking down and eating Adjuchas, she'd agreed, and he'd used the power of the Hogyoku to remove her mask.

But something had changed in her, something she didn't like, and it frustrated her that she couldn't even spend too much time thinking about that before her own mind betrayed her, shifting to some new topic without her consent. She was sure that if she could just focus on it for a little while, she could work out what was wrong and fix it. Slowly but surely, she was able to remember snatches of what she was thinking about before she lost her mental footing – that was how she knew something was wrong in the first place.

She turned her mind back to her mission – for some reason, she never had trouble concentrating on her work. She never had difficulty drawing up enough focus to use her powers, either.

Did Aizen arrange that? The thought barely crossed her mind before it was blasted away. Mission! Right. I need to find sedatives.

She stalked along, finally locating a supply closet. "Excuse me, what are you doing here?" Soto turned around to find a very irritated-looking nurse standing in the hallway. "Visiting hours are over."

"Oh, it's alright. I'm a patient." Soto said happily.

"A patient?"

"Yep. It hurts when I do this." Soto moved with blinding speed, and a moment later the nurse lay unconscious on the floor. Soto laughed, sounding much less sinister than when Zarraga did it. "That one never gets old." She bound the nurse's hands and feet, and got back to work.

She returned to the door. It was locked, and she thought for a moment. Then she simply lifted her leg and kicked the door in. She searched through the medicine cabinets, finally locating a large supply of what she was looking for. Sweet! This was easy.

She gathered the supplies into a large bag, then headed for the elevator. Before she got there, though, the doors opened to reveal a white-haired doctor. He peered down the hall at the nurse, and then looked at Soto. "What are you doing?"

"I'm the new intern! Your nurse over there was all tied up, so I'm taking over some of her work."

He adjusted his glasses. "If that was a joke, it wasn't very funny. Even if it had been, it wouldn't save you. Stay exactly where you are." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cell phone.

Tch. No sense of humor at all. Soto lunged.

She'd moved just as quickly as before, but when she struck the man was no longer there. Uh-oh. She ducked aside as his kick passed through the spot where her head had been a split second before. I don't need to fight this guy. Time to leave. She rolled into the elevator and hit the button. As the doors closed she saw the man consider her for a moment, and he appeared to be raising his arm as they shut. She sighed happily. I didn't even damage the medicine! Then she felt a sudden attack – a rush of spiritual power heading her way.

Reflexively, she shifted to her Arrancar form and used her power. The *real* joke's on you, Doc!

On the other side of the door, Ryuken Ishida opened fire. He saw his arrows streak toward the elevator – it was insured – and knew that they would easily pass through the doors to skewer the thief within, although the injuries should be nonlethal. Coming here was a big mistake, fool girl.

Just before reaching the elevator door, though, they turned around – instantly – and flew right back at him. What? Only highly-tuned reflexes saved him, as he twisted aside and managed to dodge his own attack. The arrows sailed down the hall, blasting a hole in the far wall.

There's no mortal technology or technique that could have done that. Ryuken walked toward the elevator, watching as the numbers scrolled down, and knew that he shouldn't pursue an enemy that could turn his attack like that – besides, he now had no way of tracking her. I didn't sense any spiritual pressure until right at the end, and it was *very* faint. What's going on?

After escaping the building, Soto began making her way back to Alegria. I don't think I want to try to capture that guy. He was cranky and waaaay too accustomed to using his powers. I don't think I could beat him without killing him.

As she walked along, she tried to regain the line of thought she'd had before. Some scattered details came back to her. Something about Aizen? Maybe if I do well enough on this assignment, he'll help me fix my problem. She tried to cheer up at that thought, but something about it bothered her. She'd slowly taught herself to trust these subconscious impulses, and began to suspect that they were fragments of still more memories that she couldn't recall. No, maybe I should leave him out of it. I think I can recover on my – oh wow, that human's pretty cute!

Karakura Town, Downtown - 11:16 p.m.

Uryu Ishida raced through the streets, making heavy use of Hirenkyaku whenever nobody was around. While he was in a hurry, his primary reason for using it so heavily was that he needed the practice after his powers had been gone for so long. The battle that had just occurred was unlike any he'd felt before – several spiritual presences had popped up out of nowhere, then they had started fighting, then all of them had disappeared for a while, and finally three of them had returned, only to quickly be whittled down to one. Something very strange is going on.

That alone wouldn't have been enough to get him out here, but less than an hour ago, there had been a break-in at Karakura Hospital, and a number of medicines had gone missing. The police had been notified, but both Uryu and Dr. Ishida had realized that the intruder was a supernatural entity, despite the total lack of spiritual pressure. His father hadn't asked for his help in finding the culprit, of course, and Uryu certainly wasn't doing this to help Ryuken, but he had a strange intuition that these events were connected, and if this was some kind of Arrancar plot, Uryu wanted it stopped.

He slowed down as he approached his destination, finally deciding to use Hirenkyaku to move to the top of one of the still-stable buildings to give himself a good view of what was going on. He looked down at the devastation. The authorities were tripping all over themselves to call it a gas leak, but he knew better. The area might as well have been hit by a spiritual tornado. Hollows, Soul Reapers – at least two of each had participated in a knock-down, drag-out fight on this very street.

And there was still someone here. He could feel it.

He finally grew bored of waiting for his unseen stalker to make a move, and called out, "I know you're there. What do you want?"

A young woman emerged without any preamble – no sarcastic clapping, no gloating, no damning-with-faint-praise declarations that he was "talented (for his age) to have noticed me," or some such tripe. It was honestly highly refreshing. "I'm on a mission."

He raised an eyebrow. "And this mission is…?"

"I can't tell you that."

"That isn't very helpful. How do I know that you're not an enemy?"

"It would depend on what your definition of 'enemy' is, wouldn't it? You're the Quincy, aren't you? That would make you an enemy of Hollows *and* Soul Reapers."

"That's none of your concern, but assuming you're correct, which one are you?"

"Neither, of course."

"That doesn't make much sense."

"Now who's being unhelpful?" She sighed. "I thought that out of the Ryoka, you were supposed to be the *smart* one. We're at an impasse, then. That's a shame. I only have the best interests of your kind at heart."

He smiled thinly. "I find that highly doubtful in more ways than one. It would be safer for everyone…" he extended his hand, his weapon forming in it, "…if I were to destroy you!"

He began his attack, only to stop when his target disappeared. Then he felt a hand grasp his shoulder. Her speed is incredible. I *know* I'm fast, but I still didn't even see her move!

Her voice sounded amused. "There's no need for that. If it makes you feel better I'll cut the BS and speak plainly – I'm here to stop one of Aizen's plans, and I need some backup to do it. The problem is, I know of at least one Soul Reaper who will try to get in my way – you should be able to recognize her, she looks just like me. If you can keep her off of my back, I'll be able to finish my mission quickly, and your town would be that much safer. It's a win-win scenario, wouldn't you agree?"

He turned around to face her. "It is… if you're telling the truth. The problem is that I'm not convinced that you aren't a tool of the Soul Reapers myself. What exactly are you?"

"I'm a Mod-Soul, created for use by the Second Division. While that would indeed normally make me a tool of the Soul Reapers, something has gone horribly wrong. I'm fairly certain there's a traitor around, and it's probably the one who was using me to control this Gigai. So when she used me a few minutes ago, I simply refused to give the Gigai back. She's stuck in her spirit body – it should be easy for you to find her."

Mod-Isane let him go and crossed her arms. "So how about it? Does it offend your Quincy pride too much to work with me? I'll remind you again that I'm trying to stop one of Aizen's plots. It can only help you out in the long run."

Uryu narrowed his eyes, adjusted his glasses, and considered. It was true that he didn't like Soul Reapers – and had recently taken a vow not to associate with any ever again. On the other hand, he liked the idea of Aizen nuking Karakura town and ascending to godhood even less. "There was a break-in at one of the local hospitals not too long ago, and we're fairly certain that no human is responsible. That wouldn't have been you, by any chance, would it?"

"No." She said simply. "I have no need to go raiding hospitals, and I've been in this area for the last few hours anyway, trying to get my bearings. Being stuck in a pill most of your life has quite a few drawbacks, after all. My former Reaper, however, is from the Fourth Division. Make of that what you will."

"Fine." Uryu turned and walked to the opposite edge of the roof. "I'll see what I can do to help you out. Good evening." With that, he disappeared over the side of the building.

With nothing else to do here, Mod-Isane took off. She was finally reasonably confident about where she was, and now she had several contacts to meet.

Karakura Town, Variable Locations - 12:54 a.m.

Isane only remembered later how much different it was from her first visit to Urahara's shop. He never cracked a joke, and the air of goofy haplessness was completely gone. She insisted on treating Renji first, and he made no effort to argue. Her big shock of the evening had been when Urahara had opened the cabinets, shelving units, and drawers around the empty-looking room to expose an array of medical tools and equipment to rival one of Fourth Division's full operating theaters. He and Tessai moved quietly and competently, following her directions and offering insightful suggestions and analysis on their own. Both proved highly proficient in healing Kido, and several hours later, she finally acknowledged that they had done all they could for Renji and consented to have her own injuries seen to.

When all was said and done, Isane got up slowly, testing her range of motion with the new bandages. "Thank you for all of your help, Mr. Urahara."

Some trace of his old personality came back. "No problem. Would you like to stay here tonight, or…?"

"I'll go back to my apartment. It isn't far away. Please call me if anything happens to Renji."

"Certainly. I assume you'll be back tomorrow?"

"Yes, if that's alright." Isane gave a small bow, and left with Urahara's goodbye. She arrived at 'her' apartment dead-tired, in more ways than one. It had been a long day even before fighting two Arrancar, and the trek to Urahara's shop and the long, Kido-heavy procedure had drained her spiritual power to dangerously low levels. She was exhausted and hungry, and all she wanted now was to grab something to eat and then sleep forever.

She staggered back into her apartment, not particularly caring whether or not anyone saw the door open and close itself, and made her way to the little kitchen space. She opened up her refrigerator, and stared in horror at what she saw. It was empty – empty like her stomach.

How did this happen?

Isane straightened up and experienced an honest-to-goodness flashback from several hours ago.

Flashback

Isane walked with Renji through downtown Karakura town. Renji turned to her. "By the way, Isane, I packed myself a light lunch from your stuff. I hope that's ok."

"Sure! As long as you didn't empty the refrigerator." She laughed easily.

Renji shuffled nervously. "Ah… right. Oh, look! There's where we're headed!"

End of Flashback

She leaned back on the counter. "That moocher cleaned me out!"

Back at Urahara's shop, the unconscious Renji sneezed.

Isane made it to her bed, managed to set her alarm, and collapsed, figuring even her usual run of nightmares had to be better than nothing. I can't even think straight anymore. I'll figure out what to do about food and the Mod-Soul tomorrow.

End Chapter

And there we go. I wouldn't say that we're halfway done, but it's getting close. Also, I already know what the next chapter will contain – everything that I wanted to put in this one! The delay shouldn't be nearly as long.

As always, reviews are highly desirable and appreciated.