A/N: Weeeelllcommmeee! Are you guys still on a high from the Ulquihime comic that came out last week? I know I am! *heart skips a beat* Anyways, I'm so excited to share this very important chapter with you. It's rather short compared to others, but in another way it's also very big, in terms of what happens. As I had said in my livejournal post last week, we are now a little over 75% done with this story! Can you believe it? :) Okay, happy reading guys!
Chapter 21: The Truth
The sword came out of nowhere slashing down with such force that the air seemed to quiver with fear. Ichigo swung Zangetsu up, blocking the blow just in time to prevent it from slicing open his skull. In his left arm he clutched his baby in swaddling blankets while he focused his energy into his right arm and hand that held Zangetsu.
"Renji! BACK OFF!" Ichigo growled as he pushed Zabimaru away. The blades of the two swords dragged against each other, creating a high-pitched screeching noise loud enough to startle Hisaki. The baby opened his little eyes and let out a loud cry. His wailing echoed throughout the large room.
"HAND HIM OVER!" Renji hissed, whipping past Ichigo and taking advantage of an opening. He switched his grip on the hilt of his sword until he held it with both hands, before stabbing it at the left side of Ichigo's lower back.
Ichigo leaped forward, missing the stab by millimeters. He could feel the rush of air around him as Renji summoned more power. The lieutenant's body glowed a bright red and the entire warehouse pulsated with his reiatsu. It hadn't taken long for Renji to locate Ichigo and Hisaki (much to Uryuu's chagrin). They had been at the warehouse for no more than five minutes before Renji showed up. It wouldn't be much longer until Rukia found them as well since Renji had given the coordinates of the location to her before he flew away.
"Over my dead body!" Ichigo spat out. His body was entirely swathed by his own intimidating reiatsu, materializing in the form of shinigami garments and glowing a bright and brilliant blue.
Suddenly, a neon gleaming arrow whipped past Ichigo towards Renji.
Renji whipped Zabimaru at the arrow, deflecting it off into the farther reaches of the warehouse. Boards, plaster, and sheetrock crumbled down as the arrow hit the back wall. Renji had barely a second before another arrow was shot at his back. He whirled around and swung his sword at it as he turned around. Zabimaru blocked the arrow just in time, but another arrow was already coming at him from his left side. From the corner of his eye and based on Ichigo's reiatsu, Renji knew that the orange-haired former-shinigami was retreating. He wanted to pursue Ichigo, but he couldn't, not when deadly Quincy arrows were being shot at him from every single direction possible.
"I would be careful if I were you." A calm male voice echoed directionlessly in the room.
"Come out and fight like a man!" Renji growled. He was growing increasingly frustrated by not being able to determine Uryuu's location. The warehouse had high vaulted ceilings and was as large and open as a gymnasium. With the exception of the piles of lumber stacked in the back of the room, there was nowhere for anyone to really hide. Where the hell was that Quincy?
"I'm afraid that I can't. You see, as long as you continue to attack I will not become visible. That's the wonderful charm of this Quincy training room. I would put away my sword if I were you…unless you wish to die," Uryuu taunted.
Another arrow whipped past Renji, searing off a lock of his red hair and slicing his right cheek. In the back of the room Ichigo leapt from each pile of lumber until he reached the highest one, hoping to obtain a height advantage so he could use getsuga tenshō on Renji.
Renji took the slightest second to touch the cut on his cheek; blood dripped down the side of his face. The seasoned lieutenant easily ignored the sharp pain, but the focus on the cut and the effort it took to avoid Uryuu's deadly arrows made it impossible for him to dodge the sudden bright ball of energy that was being shot straight at him. The glowing ball hit him straight in the stomach, sending him back against the wall with the force of a bullet. Renji hit the wall, cracking plaster and sheetrock before dropping straight back down like an anvil to the hardened cement floor.
"Put down your weapon, Renji," Chad said grimly as he stepped out from behind a pile of lumber several feet taller than him. He started slowly walking toward Renji, who sat on the floor now looking like a broken doll.
"Never," Renji replied in a low dark voice. He lifted a shaky arm and brushed the broken pieces of cement and dust on him off. "I've sworn to protect Rukia and Hisaki and I'll do that no matter what…even if it means taking all three of you down."
"Why aren't you driving faster?" Rukia screamed at Tatsuki. Tatsuki shot her friend a nervous glance, but otherwise maintained the steady speed they were already traveling at.
"I can't, Rukia," Tatsuki replied. "There's all this traffic…"
"Tatsuki! Are you kidding me? It's my son! If you really know nothing about this like you claim you do, if you're really not Ichigo's accomplice…" Rukia threatened through gritted teeth, "Then you better step on the gas. I don't give a damn if you hit other cars or get a speeding ticket!"
"Rukia, please stay calm…we're doing everything we can to help you," Orihime reasoned from the backseat of the minivan. Everyone had piled into the van since everyone seemed to want to 'help.' Rukia sat in the passenger seat of her minivan since Tatsuki had wrestled the steering wheel away from her after reasoning that Rukia was in no shape to drive. Tatsuki reminded Rukia that they could do not help Hisaki if they all died on their way to the warehouse.
"How did Renji locate the warehouse so quickly?" Nel asked quietly from the back of the minivan.
"Uhm…probably just followed the trail of Ichigo's reiatsu? I don't know!" Rukia snapped. She ran a frustrated hand through her dark hair as she took a couple of deep breaths. "I'm sorry…" she apologized. "I just..can't think straight right now."
"It's okay, you're shaken up and worried," Nel said calmly. Nel and Orihime had taken the two separate seats on either side of the minivan while Starrk and Ulquiorra had been forced to wedge their long legs into the very back row of the car.
"You've no remaining ability to detect reiatsu?" Starrk asked curiously.
"No…" Rukia said, suddenly turning the volume of her voice into a whisper. Guilt was written all over her face. "I exchanged all of that ability for the chance to be human and marry Ichigo."
"We'll be there in no time," Orihime said, trying her best to reassure her friend. She leaned forward in her seat so she could reach forward and squeeze Rukia's shoulder. "It's not much further, right Tatsuki?"
"Uhh…yeah," Tatsuki said hesitantly as the minivan suddenly slowed down.
"What's going on here?" Rukia yelled, her voice turning hysterical again. Before them was a gridlocked intersection. The street running perpendicular to the street they were already on seemed to have an endless line of cars. The backup had essentially blocked the route they were on, leaving no room for them to get through.
"There must have been some kind of accident or construction going on," Tatsuki murmured as she angled her head forward in an attempt to see how far the traffic stretched.
"Well don't just sit here! MOVE IT!" Rukia growled as she reached for the steering wheel. Tatsuki quickly shoved the petite woman away, almost losing control of the steering wheel itself.
"STOP IT, Rukia! You're going to get us all killed. And I really don't feel like rear ending this guy in front of us! That's just going to hold us up even more if he gets out and is all pissed and wants to exchange insurance information," Tatsuki reasoned.
"UGHHH!" Rukia screamed with frustration as she pounded the dashboard with her fists.
"What should we do?" Orihime asked lamely. It hadn't been too hard pretending to know nothing about Ichigo's plot, especially when Rukia was so distraught. She seemed more interested in just getting to the location than interrogating anyone for information. And since Renji had already supplied the coordinates for the warehouse, Rukia's main priority was to get to the targeted location.
Everyone in the car was silent for a moment; no one had an answer for Rukia. They were in the middle lane of one of the city's busiest streets. Impatient cars surrounded the minivan, preventing any opportunity for them to turn the vehicle around.
Suddenly Rukia grabbed the handle on the passenger door and opened it, hopping out before anyone had a chance to inquire as to what she was doing.
"What− !" Tatsuki cried as she reached with one arm for Rukia. She managed to grab hold of the hem of Rukia's sweater. The young mother turned around and glared at Tatsuki with flashing violet eyes.
"Let me GO!" Rukia snapped as she tried to pull her sweater back from Tatsuki.
"NO! You're not going anywhere!" Tatsuki yelled, her nerves and concern for the young mother triumphed over irritation in this situation. The two women played tug of war with the hem of Rukia's sweater until Rukia twisted around and slipped herself out of the sweater.
"RUKIA!" Orihime cried as Rukia fled the scene.
"Where's she going?" Ulquiorra asked, his voice holding the slightest hint of tension.
"Oh my god, look! She's trying to steal that car from that little old lady!" Nel said, reaching immediately for the handle on the sliding door of the minivan. Several lanes over, Rukia had opened an elderly woman's car and had dragged her out. The white-haired woman protested vehemently as Rukia closed the driver's side door and revved the engine.
"Rukia STOP, PLEASE!" Orihime begged as she followed Nel out of the minivan. The two ladies ran toward Rukia's new car, but it was already too late. Rukia had turned the car over the curb onto the sidewalk and had already done a u-turn. Her new little red car squealed loudly as she sped off in the opposite direction of traffic on the sidewalk. She was pressing on the gas so hard that black smoke came out of the muffler and it seemed she did not care whether or not she was going to hit any pedestrians. The few people who had been on the sidewalk dove aside in order to avoid being run over by Rukia. Her car drove through the dead potted plants that decorated the streets and the advertising menu stands outside of restaurants, sending debris, paper, soil, and snow up into the air.
"Oh MY GOD! She's going to kill someone!" Orihime yelled as she slowed down. Running at this point was useless. They could barely see the car anymore; the only evidence left was the disaster her little car had left behind. Pedestrians were bewildered, some of them talking loudly and quickly on the cell phones with the police. It was quite clear how shocked the elderly woman was that Rukia stolen her car so abruptly She seemed horrified as she chatted nervously with nearby strangers.
"Rukia doesn't care who she kills at this point as long as she can get her child back," Starrk said from behind Nel and Orihime. The two men had stepped out of the minivan as well, but saw the folly in chasing after the car. Both men stood watching the disaster with their hands in their pockets and distress in their eyes.
"What should we do?" Nel asked, turning as if she were asking only Starrk. After being married to him for so long, she was used to depending to Starrk in crisis situations.
"We go after her of course!" Tatsuki said. She had already parked their minivan since it stood no chance of going anywhere by being in the middle lane. She ran over to the car that had been directly behind the car Rukia had stolen. Before anyone could protest, Tatsuki pulled the young man from his car and tossed him aside like a doll. The bespectacled young man hit a nearby parked car and fell to the ground.
"GET IN!" Tatsuki ordered as she revved the little Toyota's engine. Orihime, Starrk and Ulquiorra ran over and hopped into the car. Then, before the young man could even get back to them to stop them from stealing his car, Tatsuki followed in Rukia's tracks and turned the car around before speeding down the sidewalk.
"WAIT! Someone's coming!" Chad yelled, his low voice echoing across the vast emptiness of the warehouse. With the exception of Hisaki's wailing cries, all four men shut up and stopped what they were doing. The fight had persisted on and on with Renji on the losing side since he was up against three other men. He had been in many battles before where he had been outnumbered, but this situation was entirely different. These were his friends, and he wasn't actually sure how much he wanted to hurt his friends. It was also incredibly difficult taking shots at Ichigo when Hisaki was in his arm. The shape of Uryuu's body slowly became visible since the four men had stopped fighting. They stood silently, panting heavily and sweating blood.
"What's is it?" Ichigo asked, gripping the hilt of his sword even tighter with alert anticipation.
"Do you hear it? It's a high-pitched sound with a great deal of reiatsu wrapped around it," Uryuu said, his body completely visible again.
"It's getting closer!" Renji said as he turned and faced his three friends with alarmed eyes. Before the men could even respond, what seemed like hurricane force winds blew through the side wall of the warehouse, blowing blocks of cement, plaster, wooden beams and causing debris to go flying across the entire room. All the men ducked in order to avoid being hit with passing fragments of the wall. Ichigo covered Hisaki with his body as he crouched over to protect him. Then, the wind stopped as suddenly as it came leaving nothing but plumes of dust in the air.
"What was that?" Renji asked as he coughed loudly after accidentally inhaling the dense dust. He did not think it was possible, but Hisaki's crying became even louder and grew alarmingly gurgled. It was clear that the explosion of the wall and the plumes were making it difficult for the baby to breathe.
"Ichigo, get Hisaki out of here!" Uryuu commanded as all three men instantly felt the presence of several others. As the dust cleared, they could see the shadowy outline of three men.
"We come in peace," a cheerfully amused voice snaked out. When the air finally thinned, they could see the outline of a green and white striped bucket hat.
"Urahara?" Ichigo cried in bewilderment.
"Why hello, Ichigo! Long time no see," the pale blonde man said as he waved his fan back and forth, blowing dust away from his smiling face.
"Hello, hello, indeed!" Another amused by dryer sounding voice chirped. This time, a tall thin man emerged from the debris.
"Shinji!" Chad said, his eyes widening with surprise.
"The one and only!" Shinji said with a smirk. He whipped his katana in front of him, slapping away the remaining dust from his body. As the air finally cleared, they saw the final silhouette of the third man.
"My, my, my…just look at this place! What ancient technology," the dry voice said with distaste.
"Mayuri!" Renji yelled, his heart bursting into panic as he lunged forward with his sword for an attack.
"That's enough," Shinji said calmly as he jumped in front of Renji, blocking the path with his katana. "We're not here to take the baby," he explained as Renji's sword clashed with his. As they pushed against each other's sword, Shinji took an open opportunity and kicked Renji's stomach, sending him flying backwards into a pile of rubble.
"You're not?" Ichigo said dumbfounded. He shifted Hisaki in his arms despite the shaking nerves in his body. His mind was spinning and conflicted: on one hand, he had always trusted Urahara, but on the other hand Mayuri was the one who was after Hisaki.
"I hardly needed you to do that," Mayuri hissed at Shinji, his yellowed eyes glaring indignantly. "I am more than capable of ripping this underling to shreds with my own bar hands," he added more casually as he pointed at Renji. The lieutenant was having a difficult time standing up from the pile of rubble he had fallen into.
"Hush, hush," Urahara chided, waving his fan back and forth and coughing as he inhaled dust. "We'll explain everything, but we did not come to fight so put down your weapons…that includes you Shinji," Urahara said, his gaze snapped to the side at his companion.
"Mmm," Shinji said with a bright toothy smile. He had never been a man to raise his sword unless necessary; Shinji put away his weapon in one smooth gesture.
"If you're not here to fight then why did you blow out an entire wall!" Uryuu said between gritted teeth. He had somehow managed to almost completely destroy one of his father's best training warehouses.
"I like grand entrances," Mayuri said with a wave his hand, long fingernails fanning in front of him. "And we had to get you boys to shut up and sit still anyway," he added in a low and slightly irritated tone.
"There was no way you four would stop if we didn't do a little something," Shinji explained, stepping forward toward Ichigo. "Is there a way we can stop that baby from crying so loudly?" He asked politely as he flickered a brief glance at Hisaki.
Urahara smiled and murmured a short incantation. The room warmed as Hisaki started to subtly glow. The crying stopped and the little baby yawned, closing his eyes and gurgling a little bit before falling asleep.
"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO!" Ichigo screamed, shocked at how his yelling did not stop his baby from falling asleep. He dropped his sword and shifted Hisaki in his arms, gently poking him to wake him up.
"Just a little sleeping spell, nothing harmful! He'll wake up in a couple of hours," Urahara explained with a gentle wave of his hand.
"Ah, we've got company," Mayuri commented. They could hear the loud squeal of car brakes followed by the slamming of a door. A sweaty, pale, out of breath woman ran into the broken down warehouse, jumping on and over several blocks of cement and wooden beams. Her dark hair was plastered to her damp forehead and the fatigue in her eyes told everyone that she was nearly on the verge of passing out from physical and emotional exhaustion.
"Hisaki!" Rukia cried as she ran straight for Ichigo and the baby. All the men noted the certain level of crazy in Rukia's eyes as she got to Ichigo. She ripped Hisaki from Ichigo's arms and held him protectively in her arms. She turned from Ichigo, giving him only a view of her back as she began to walk away from him. "Ichigo! I will NEVER FORGIVE YOU!" She whispered angrily. She was still panting and out of breath from the exertion of running.
Rukia clutched Hisaki to her chest as her violet eyes took in the crew of guests that had already arrived. Her eyes widen with immediate fear, gasping at the sight of Mayuri. "What…what are you doing here?" Rukia asked.
"Don't be afraid, Rukia. We're not here to harm Hisaki and we're not here to take him away from you," Urahara said, his eyebrows lifting with a warm smile.
"WHAT? Do you expect me to believe that, especially when he's here?" Rukia replied, referring to Mayuri's dark presence.
"Oh for the love of…" Mayuri protested, stopping himself from yelling the various profanities he had in his head. "I told you we should have contacted them sooner! Now the Commander Captain has brainwashed them into believing we're the bad guys!"
"Rukia, we want to explain everything to you and your friends. There has certainly been a lot of misunderstanding and half-truths thrown around, but we're running short on time and there are pressing matters at hand," Urahara explained. He snapped his fan closed and stuck it into a pocket of his pewter grey jacket. "Chad, I do believe you own a bar not too far from here? Would you be so kind as to host us?"
"What's wrong with your store?" Uryuu asked, confused. "And why has it been vacated?"
"Ah…yes, well we would like to remain as inconspicuous as possible. As you know, Soul Society is looking for us," Urahara said slowly, the left side of his lips curving into a sly smile. "I'd prefer for people to believe I'm on vacation."
"If you want to know everything, you'll keep quiet. We don't want Soul Society interfering," Mayuri added, waving his long fingernails at the sky with irritation. Outside, a car's engine roared to a stop letting everyone know that the rest of the gang had arrived.
"Ah! That must be our other guests," Shinji commented to Urahara.
"Right on time," the blonde man replied. "Anyways…Chad?"
Chad turned to Ichigo looking for confirmation that it was okay to go ahead with Urahara's request. Ichigo gave a loud frustrated sigh, ran a hand through his crop of orange hair, and then nodded reluctantly.
"Alright," Chad said and then turned to Uryuu. "Let's go meet Orihime and Tatsuki outside and tell them the news."
"I suppose," Uryuu said. "I need to get out of this get-up then," he said dryly, referring to his Quincy uniform.
"Rukia?" Renji asked, looking to her for answers on how to proceed. Renji looked the most beat up out of all four men, his shinigami uniform tattered and his face covered in blood and dirt.
"I guess…it doesn't seem like we really have a choice," Rukia replied warily. "We've got a few little details to work out though…I made a bit of a mess downtown..." She said, thinking of the car she had stolen and the damage she had done to the city's downtown district.
"I'll take care of that for you guys," Shinji said smoothly. "And I'll meet you there later. I already know the story Urahara and Mayuri are going to tell anyways," he added, giving Rukia a wink. Ichigo could see his wife recoil with embarrassment.
"Alright, we'll meet at Chad's," Ichigo muttered.
The bar was dark as night when Chad stepped onto its threshold. It had been closed on and off for the past few days so randomly that it drove away customers even when the bar was open. Chad tried his best to not think about how badly his business was doing, despite how much the bar meant to him. He had built the business from the ground up and had put every cent in his pocket into the investment. It brought him more joy and pride than anything he had ever accomplished, short of being able to protect his friends. He tried to remind himself over and over again how important his friendships were to him; it helped him deal with the painful idea of his business sinking.
He flipped on the lights and the bar illuminated with a warm orange glow. Christmas lights turned on right away, flickering with various colors. The tree was immaculate as ever, silver ornaments shining and tinsel shimmering.
"I like what you've done with the place, Chad," Urahara commented casually as he followed Chad into the bar. The taller brawny man merely grunted in acknowledgment. Urahara could feel the unhappiness and reluctance in every single one of the young adults in front of him. Ichigo and Rukia looked exhausted. Renji, Uryuu, and Tatsuki looked pissed, and Chad and Orihime seemed distraught. The Espada had joined them as well; Nel, Starrk, and Ulquiorra filed in after everyone else. They had all congregated outside of the bar as they waited for Chad; since then the Espada had not said a word. Along with their silence, their faces had turned as unreadable as ever. It was a skill they had all cultivated over the years as a coping mechanism for dealing with unfamiliar human emotions.
"Tell us what's going on, Urahara," Ichigo commanded simply. He had no patience for platitude and small talk at this point.
"I suppose there's no reason not to right now," Urahara replied, his casual smile disappearing as if it had never existed. From the shadow of his hat, his pale eyes shone with distress for the slightest second. He waited as everyone found a seat and fixed their attention on him. He noted that the Espada all sat together, while Orihime, Uryuu and Tatsuki sat with Ichigo. Off in another corner, Rukia and Renji sat together with Hisaki quietly sleeping in his mother's arms. Chad had disappeared behind the bar and into the back room before he reemerged.
"You said the sleeping spell would wear off soon, right?" Rukia asked, still sounding anxious.
"Yes, he will wake in about an hour and a half," Urahara answered.
"Can I get anyone a drink?" Chad asked, always playing the host when he was in his bar. Everyone gave their orders to him while Urahara settled onto one of the stools in front of the bar counter. Mayuri refused to take a seat, instead choosing to stand next to Urahara with his arms folded in front of his chest.
"Let's just get started! We don't need drinks!" Mayuri snapped.
"I think the drinks will help everyone relax while we explain everything," Urahara countered.
"I have some green tea?" Chad suggested to Mayuri.
"Okay, fine!" Mayuri muttered.
"Thank you, Chad," Urahara said politely before he turned his attention to the rest of the room. "Alright, what you heard is correct, there is indeed a new hōgyoku." There was the obligatory gasp from the entire crowd at this confirmation. Urahara ignored it as he continued, "It was created by Szayel. He's been working on it for quite some time in private. Eventually when Mayuri and his lab found out, they began to exchange information on the progress."
"Why do you need another hōgyoku to begin with?" Renji asked, disapprovingly. "Wasn't what Aizen did enough?" His sharp glare was directly focused on Mayuri.
"Oh please, as if I have any interest in repeating another silly man's mistakes," Mayuri snapped back. "I was only interested in the science of what Szayel was doing."
"But…the hōgyoku was used to create arrancars…and…" Uryuu said, trailing off as he glanced briefly at Ichigo.
"You have to remember the original intent when I was first starting conceiving of the hōgyoku," Urahara explained. "After what Aizen did to Shinji and his friends, I devoted a great amount of time to trying to find a cure. We were unable to do that, as you all know; we were only able to help them learn how to control their inner hollow. But...what I failed in doing, Szayel has accomplished."
"You're giving him far too much credit. He got it nearly right. He sought a way to escape his human body and return to his former self. By the time Kisuke and I found out about what Szayel was really doing, it was already too late. He tested the hōgyoku on himself, hoping that it would reverse the process of his sentencing. Unfortunately, that's not what happened," Mayuri said.
"The original two hōgyokus were able to manifest the desires of whoever possessed them. But there was no way to really control or predict what it would do. Szayel wanted to be able to control the hōgyoku by forcing it to take on the desire you tell it. It still works in a similar way as before, allowing the line between shinigami and hollows to be erased, thus having the ability to manipulate shinigami and hollow abilities. But, what is most noticeably different about this hōgyoku is that it can also erase those abilities as well," Urahara said.
"Szayel made a couple of fatal mistakes which led to his hōgyoku completely destroying his soul," Urahara continued. He glanced briefly at the three Espada in the room, looking for a reaction from them. The three Espada did not so much as bat an eyelash in response. Their faces remained blank yet guarded. Urahara had been aware that the death of Szayel had shaken up the lives of the remaining Espada, but he could not deduce the nature of that concern− whether their reactions were altruistic grief or self-preserving fear.
"Kisuke and I looked over Szayel's notes, and after tweaking his formula we were able to stabilize it," Mayuri told them.
"What does that mean? Stabilize it?" Ichigo asked, knitting his brow with concern.
"We believe it is in a state right now that is receptive to taking on a person's desires. According to Szayel's formula, this hōgyoku is capable of reversing the hollowfication," Urahara said in a low and steady voice. He knew that this particular part would come as the ultimate shock to everyone.
Indeed, it struck every single person in the room right in the heart.
After a quiet thoughtful moment, Starrk slammed his glass of water down on the table, startling everyone, and stood up. His dark eyebrows were furrowed with emotion now. "What do you mean reverse?" he asked as he ran a hand through his dark mangled hair.
"In the case of arrancars, it has the ability to purify your souls," Mayuri said.
"So their souls can move onto Soul Society, right?" Tatsuki said, remembering her conversation earlier that day with Starrk.
"It can take away my hollow powers?" Ichigo said, his brown eyes wide with shock.
"It can take away any power that manifested as a result of being around hollows or those with irregular reiatsu," Urahara clarified, turning and giving Orihime and Chad a meaning look.
The room continued to be quiet as everyone processed the news. It seemed no knew exactly what to say. The silence in the room became thick as each person tried to understand how it would affect them. How would it change their lives?
"How do you know it will work?" Uryuu finally asked.
"You never know with these things," Mayuri said disdainfully. "But we are statistically certain, according to our calculations."
"What happens after?" Rukia asked in a soft and shaky voice. "…To the hōgyoku, I mean. What happens after it destabilizes? Will you be able to destroy it?"
"It is barely being held together now since it can only feed on the desires given to it. We believe it will disintegrate very soon since we are not feeding it anyone's desires," Urahara said, finding himself having to fake a bit more confidence in his statements than he had planned.
"How would it work? …with us that is?" Nel asked quietly, biting her lip as her nervous emotions began to show.
"We would assume that using the hōgyoku on you would cause you to die like any other human does, and then your souls would have the ability to move onto Soul Society. It would strip your souls of any hollow or shinigami reiatsu it has left. Where you go is a bit uncertain, it will depend on how your souls have lived during this time of being human. It could also depend on how you've lived in your previous lives. It's very possible your soul may not go to Soul Society, but instead go to other darker places," Urahara said, clearing his throat. He felt a bit adverse to using the word 'hell.'
"But it's possible? You're telling us that we can move on? We can finally find…peace," Starrk said. He was still standing, now feeling too anxious to sit. He had his hands on his hips as he began to pace back and forth next to the table Nel and Ulquiorra were sitting at.
"What if...we don't use it...?" Ulquiorra asked, his voice low and distant sounding. His syllables were distinct and the pauses between his words long, as if he were asking himself and not the two scientists.
"That's your choice," Mayuri shrugged. "If I were you, I'd want to find out though."
"Your souls may never find peace if you choose to remain as you are. We know no other way of purifying an arrancar soul. If you choose to pass on this opportunity, your souls will be released from these human bodies after you've lived out your sentence, but there's no guarantee what will happen to you then. Your souls are still that of arrancars, evolved hollows. Best case scenario, you return to your old life in Hueco Mundo as hollows again. You could also end up hollows tied to earth, unable to move on to Soul Society. And since there are no soul burials for arrancars, that may be an eternity," Urahara replied reluctantly.
"So you have to choose?" Tatsuki said, her face full of concern. "Everyone has to choose?"
"That seems like an impossible task," Ichigo said. His voice sounded faint and disbelieving.
"You would leave this world? Would you really to do that?" Orihime asked in a high tone. Her large grey eyes darkened as she stared straight at Ulquiorra from across the room. Ulquiorra met her gaze, his green eyes shimmering in the soft light, but his lips remained pursed and closed, his despondent face framed by his frowning thick eyebrows. There were no signals of reassurance from him.
"That does sound like a very hard task…choosing what to do," Chad said, thinking to himself about his ability to protect his friends, even if it was with powers achieved through undesirable ways.
"It's a simple choice," A loud booming voice declared as the front door slammed open. Eyes went straight to the entrance as they all gasped at who now stood there. Framed by the evening and street lights behind them, Grimmjow and Nnoitra stood next to Shinji.
"I brought friends," Shinji said dryly as he breezed in past the two Espada. He took off his light grey blazer as he whistled to himself. His yellow tie flopped around as he turned to Rukia and the baby. "Rukia, you sure caused a mess downtown! It took forever for me to clean that all up."
"Oh...sorry...I mean, thank you…" Rukia whispered, embarrassed and unable to say anything else. She barely knew this man and did not know to act around him. Shinji started to make his way to the bar but paused and looked at the pale young woman once more with sympathetic eyes.
"No problem," he replied simply.
"Nnoitra…" Nel said. An empty moment of emotion waited to be filled as all the Espada tried to figure out how to react.
"Oh…my…god, I've been so worried," Nel whispered, her eyes filling with tears. She stared at Grimmjow and Nnoitra for another silent second before jumping up with such force that she nearly knocked over her chair. She ran to the other two Espada, pausing only briefly to decide to hug Grimmjow first before turning to Nnoitra and staring him straight in the eyes. The room was awkwardly quiet as everyone watched the Espada reunion. Nel took one final deep breath before closing her wet eyes and hugging Nnoitra. His face was flat and disinterested, but his dark eyes told the world of his intense emotions. He wrapped his long thin arms around Nel, letting her cry into his chest.
On the other side of the room, Starrk watched their reunion with cold grey eyes. Grimmjow looked at Starrk and then back at the reuniting couple and then decided to say hello to his friend in a weak attempt to distract him from getting even more upset. He jumped down the couple of stairs at the threshold of the bar before two long steps took him to where Starrk was standing.
"Starrk," Grimmjow said in greeting. The two men shook hands with as much solemnity and respect as possible for a male friendship.
"Grimmjow," Starrk replied, his voice sounding gruff and uncomfortable as he tried not to keep watching Nel and Nnoitra. "Glad to see you're not dead."
Grimmjow didn't reply; he merely turned around and gave Ulquiorra a nod of a greeting before he sauntered over to the bar and hopped onto one of the stools. "Is this a real bar or what? Can I get a cold beer here?"
Chad grunted as he stepped over to the bar and poured Grimmjow a drink from the beer on tap. Ulquiorra did not respond to Grimmjow's acknowledgment nor did he seem interested in watching the Nel/Nnoitra reunion. Instead, Ulquiorra's haunting green eyes were fixed on the floor, lost in his own thoughts.
"Gimme one too," Nnoitra demanded after letting go of Nel. He walked past her easily, forgetting her already as he headed to the bar. That was the way Nnoitra always was− his feelings for Nel being so intense but so fleeting at the same time, like a flickering light bulb that could not be fixed. Nevertheless, Nel was always waiting and always hoping. She stood still helplessly and watched him leave her for a simple drink at the bar.
"Can we please get back to business?" Mayuri shouted with impatient irritation. He scowled at Chad for shuffling around and getting everyone drinks as if this were some happy hour party.
"We have briefed Grimmjow and Nnoitra about all this already," Urahara pointed out.
"What? When?" Nel asked, frowning as she returned to her seat. She gave Starrk a brief glance, but he had his back turned to her, uninterested in having a silent resentful argument with her.
"Some time ago," Urahara dismissed with a casual wave of a hand.
"He approached me a while back in New York," Grimmjow grumbled, taking a long deep gulp of his ice cold beer. He made a loud smacking noise with lips in appreciate of the refreshing drink.
"Back to the point!" Mayuri snapped. "For god's sake, this is why you never get anything done, Kisuke. You waste too much time with idle chit chat. I've got other things to get to you know."
"Alright, you explain the rest then," Urahara replied lightly. He knew that managing such a large crowd would be next to impossible. He chose instead to turn his attention to his drink, which up until now he had not touch.
"As you all know, this is all very illegal," Mayuri explained, his voice taking on a stern authoritative tone. "I had to go through quite a lot of hassle to keep this from leaking to the other Captains and the Commander. It was no easy feat and, as you know, they began to suspect that I had started another hōgyoku project. We were able to lead them to believe that our interest was in the Kurosaki baby and not in the Espada, but we need to maintain that cover."
"How are you going to do that?" Ichigo asked, dumbfounded.
"You continue as you were doing, pretending to be very concerned about Mayuri kidnapping your baby. I have taken care of the three day limit by having Nemu send some new fake information to the Commander. He will believe that we've retreated to Hueco Mundo after a deadly fight with Nemu and the stealth force. Nemu will tell them we are trapped there until the hōgyoku awakens. The time she gave them is the same estimate we've got for how long the hōgyoku will be stable."
"Stealth force?" Uryuu asked randomly, confused.
"She is the Captain of the Second Division now. Soi Fon was promoted to the Royal Guard," Urahara explained.
A chorus of "Oooohhhs," and "Wooowwws" came from the crowd who was familiar with the hierarchy of Soul Society.
"My how the times change…" Renji, who had been quiet up until now, muttered.
"Thank god I was finally able to get rid of that useless girl!" Mayuri complained. "She was nothing but a pain in the ass, dumber than rocks. I've got a much better prototype in the works right now. Her name is Memu!"
"How original," Rukia muttered sarcastically. Mayuri shot the girl an angry look and was about to give her a piece of his mind when he was cut off by Nel.
"Why did you approach Grimmjow and Nnoitra and not any of us?" Nel asked, referring to herself, Starrk, and Ulquiorra.
"Based on the intel I've received from Nemu, they seemed the most agreeable when it came to letting us experiment on them with the hōgyoku," Urahara explained, shrugging. "But then we realized what little time we had left, so we decided it was time to just let everyone know." He paused for a moment before turning his silvery-blue eyes on all the Espada. "You may never have another opportunity like this..."
"It's simple, Nel. We all do it," Grimmjow said with severe finality.
"And what if things go wrong?" Uryuu asked, giving Grimmjow a skeptical look. Mayuri seemed to not understand the question since he frowned and stared at Uryuu with blank eyes. "What if the hōgyoku does not behave as you believe? Could it not cause more harm than good?"
"My dear boy," Mayuri began, his voice thick with sarcasm. "That is the nature of science. Gather information, test your hypothesis, report your outcomes, reject or accept the null hypothesis."
"One can never be 100% sure," Urahara cut in, his voice sounding gentler. "I was not entirely sure I could get you guys to Hueco Mundo that one time, but I managed to somehow. Part of it is science, as Mayuri said, but the other part is about knowing what you want your life to be and what you value the most. Once you have that figured out, it gets easy; you just have to take a leap of faith. "
Tadaaaa! Hope you enjoyed it. As always, I love reviews so keep 'em coming ;) and comments and music over at my livejournal: mmagnoliastorm dot livejournal dot com. See you next time!