Illusion – Chap. 25

(Originally posted 7/8/12.)

XxXxXxX

The way to the Spirit Realm was open.

Ichigo took a step forward through the gate, then another, and then stopped, struck by wonder.

He had speculated what the Spirit Realm might be like, but had not imagined that it would be so beautiful, so… intense, so real. They were in what at first looked like an ordinary forest, albeit with trees of a vastness he had never seen in the world of the living, with light filtering in from far above through a canopy of pale green leaves. But then he became aware of the density of the spirit particles whirling all around him, like dust motes spinning in sunbeams in the thick green air. The colors all seemed to have more depth, more vividness, than those he remembered from his past life; the leaves were a green so vibrant they seemed to hold the very essence of life within their luminescent veins; the brown of the earth beneath his feet was a rich loam redolent of chocolate. The sunlight was brighter than the dim light they had left behind; it was even brighter than it was in the world of the living on the clearest days; but somehow, it did not hurt the eyes. Instead, Ichigo gazed up directly at the sun gleaming through the leaves and it felt as though the sunlight were a form of nourishment, as though he could draw it in through his corneas and optic nerve; it flowed into him like an abundant golden stream and it made him stronger, clearer, happier. He found he could breathe more deeply with each breath.

Off in the distance, a bird warbled, and Ichigo had never heard a more melodic birdsong.

Drops of water were beaded on a leaf before his eyes, and he could see each drop glittering with all the prismatic colors of the rainbow, as though the droplet were a diamond, reflecting and refracting every ray of sunlight, scattering light that somehow lifted his heart, wherever he gazed.

Indeed, Ichigo felt the density of spiritual particles around him as a support rather than a weight, as though he could rest his body against the air and be carried along. The breeze caressed him now, curling around him like a lover's embrace, carrying a complex array of scents that mingled together in harmony, fragrant yet invigorating.

He glanced at Aizen and saw the other man was also breathing deeply of the sweet air, his eyes half-closed, a faint smile on his face. Aizen opened his eyes and smiled more broadly at Ichigo. "It has been a long time," he murmured. "More than a hundred years since I breathed the air of the Royal Forest."

"It's beautiful," said Ichigo, for once a gentle smile on his face rather than his customary scowl.

Behind them, all the others had followed them through the gate, stopped and were gazing about with wonder and awe.

"Welcome home, Ichigo," said Aizen. Ichigo shot him a glance, eyes wide. Aizen's smile was benign and all Ichigo could read was a sudden, pure happiness from the older man. "This is your birthright as the true king." He gestured at the forest around them. "These are your grounds, and in that direction—" He lifted an arm and pointed ahead of them and slightly to the left, "is your castle."

Ichigo looked in the direction Aizen pointed. There was a path, carpeted by fallen leaves, underneath the trees, curving off into the distance. Ichigo extended his senses but the reiatsu density was thick and overwhelming, and he could not sense anything further than his eyes could see. His abilities felt oddly muffled and he frowned. He should not be gawking at the world around them like a tourist; he had a job to do. He looked around at the crowd of people behind him, all depending on him, all following him.

The scowl returning to his face, he nodded curtly to Aizen. "I guess we should be getting on with it then," he said shortly.

The brown-haired shinigami nodded, a look of understanding crossing his face. At his gesture, they all began marching forward, their footsteps muted by the soft loam underfoot.

They had been proceeding in this manner for a few minutes when Rukia strode up beside him, her hand on the hilt of her zanpakutou, casting suspicious glances all around them. "Ichigo," she began, "this place makes me nervous."

He flashed her a glance. "Why?"

"It's too quiet," she muttered. "I can't detect anything outside a few feet; can you?"

He looked around again, at first seeing only the beauty of the natural scene around them. But Rukia was right. The reiatsu-sensing ability that had been only recently developed by his training sessions with Aizen was now deadened by the thickness of the spirit particles all around them. It was true that an ambush could be waiting around any boulder or bend in the path, and none of them could detect it.

Indeed, he realized he felt more normal here in the Spirit Realm; in the world of the living or even the Seireitei it had sometimes seemed that he noticed too much, that he had to be constantly shutting down his powers to avoid sensory overload, or worse, hurting people around him. As a result, here, he had relaxed the hold on his spiritual pressure somewhat. The ambient pressure around him was keeping his own natural reiatsu density from expanding too strongly. His initial impression had simply been that it felt very relaxing to be here, that he felt somehow at ease, but now he realized that it could make fighting more difficult. He would have to push through the ambient reiatsu density all around him in order to have any effect with his powers.

He grinned down at the petite shinigami. "Thanks, Rukia. You're right, as always. I'm going to be more careful."

She scowled back up at him but there was a sparkle in her violet eyes. "Of course I'm always right." She lowered her brows. "I'd think even someone as dense as you would have come to realize that by this time."

His grin widened, but then a concern struck him. "Are you able to handle it okay? The heavy ambient pressure, I mean."

Her eyes blazed as she stiffened with pride. "Of course I can handle it, idiot," she growled. She glanced behind them. "But you might need to send back some of the unseated shinigami."

Ichigo followed her glance. Some of the younger and weaker members of their group had fallen behind; a few were staggering, and many seemed to be gasping and struggling. Instantly, Ichigo called a halt. He walked back along the lines, calling out all of the shinigami who were having difficulty. "You, you… and you…" he announced, "You are all to be our rear guard, to stay in Seireitei and stand watch over the gate." There were a few feeble protests, but at Ichigo's glare, the small group straggled back over the way they had come. Watching their backs, Ichigo detected relief in their reiatsu.

He turned to scrutinize the others. His nakama were all fine, and none of the Arrancar or Espada appeared to be having difficulty with the heavy ambient pressure. Harribel and Nel smiled at him while Grimmjow shot him an insouciant grin.

Aizen appeared at Ichigo's side and followed his eyes. "Yes," he explained with a faint smile. "Grimmjow thought I just liked to torture him, but in reality I was training them all to withstand the high spirit pressure of the Realm." Ichigo's eyes widened as he turned to meet Aizen's glance. "I had always planned on the Arrancar following me into the Spirit Realm to fight the usurper directly. Of course they had to be prepared."

Ichigo shook his head. "Is there nothing you didn't plan for?" he asked, resuming his forward march.

Aizen shot him a glance. "You should know me by now, Ichigo. Everything is in my plan."

Ichigo snorted and deliberately turned away from the older man, moving ahead of him as he sensed the other's amusement. He felt another person come up behind him and recognizing the reiatsu, he stiffened momentarily, preparing almost unconsciously for an attack. But the blow never came.

Isshin fell into step beside Ichigo, his face uncharacteristically reflective. After a moment, he glanced sidelong at Ichigo. "Your mother and I used to go for walks in this forest, Ichigo." He gave a heavy sigh. "It was her favorite place."

Ichigo looked over at his dad. His eyes seemed brighter than usual, and Ichigo's brows lowered. Those couldn't be tears in the old goat's eyes, could they? The man gave a loud, theatrical sniff. "Masaki would have wanted you to do this, son." His eyes gleamed. "I should've brought her poster, Ichigo! You could have unfurled it and flown it like a banner! No, even better! I should have embroidered it onto cloth and made it into a flag." He was grinning maniacally now at Ichigo as he thumped his chest. "I could have been your flag bearer, Ichigo!" He mimed holding up a standard in an exaggerated manner. "See? All your enemies would have fallen at the sight of me holding the flag of Masaki!" He spun around, holding up the imaginary standard, and pranced ahead, beginning to walk backwards gesticulating wildly at Ichigo, who had begun scowling more and more fiercely as his father got more wound up in his act.

Isshin was running backwards now at full speed, shouting. Ichigo's eyes widened as he saw the direction his father was heading. "Wait, Dad, stop it!"

"No, don't tell me to stop, Masaki wouldn't have told me to stop—!" he cried.

Ichigo tried again. "Dad! Stop! Look behind you—"

There was a resounding crash and Ichigo winced. Isshin had run full-tilt into a tree.

XxXxXxX

Ichigo narrowed his eyes. He thought he felt a ripple in the ambient spiritual pressure ahead. But before he could focus on it, he felt a tug at his sleeve.

"Kurosaki," Ishida said coolly, "I need to speak with you for a moment."

Distracted, Ichigo gave a short nod. "Sure. What's up?" Another ripple.

"Look at me, Kurosaki," Ishida demanded. When he turned, he saw an expression of fury on his friend's face.

"What is it?"

"Something odd happened to me last week."

A jolt of adrenaline shot through Ichigo, but he kept his face neutral. "Oh? What happened?"

"There was a period of a few days last week where my memories seemed kind of vague. But for some reason I didn't even think about it too much until earlier today, when I got a chance to speak to Rukia."

Ichigo froze. "Oh?" he inquired.

Ishida glared at him. "She seemed to think I had been in the Kuchiki fortress for a few days last week."

"Really?" asked Ichigo lamely. His mind was spinning. What could he say to Ishida?

"Yeah. What do you know about that, Kurosaki?" demanded the black-haired boy. "Apparently I was rooming with you."

"Uh… yeah," responded Ichigo, frantically trying to think through what he should say. Wait—if Rukia said Ishida was there, he had to go along with it. "Yeah, you were." He met Ishida's eyes and tried to emulate his cool attitude. "So?"

Ishida said pointedly, "Well, how come I don't remember sharing a room with you in the Kuchiki fortress. Nor do I remember traipsing cross country from the Seireitei to rescue your father and sisters." His voice was rising. "And I especially do not remember performing an ancient Quincy spell to break a dark shinigami kidou that used villagers as human shields!" He stared at Ichigo, who was squirming.

"Uh… you don't?" asked Ichigo weakly. He cursed himself. He was a terrible liar. It suddenly occurred to him that he should have asked Aizen to tutor him in the subject of deception as well.

Ishida's eyes narrowed. "Are you going to tell me what was going on?"

"Uh, you don't remember?" tried Ichigo. "Do you think someone modified your memory? Because I certainly don't—"

"That was my first thought," interrupted Ishida in a tight voice. "The Quincies," he explained, "have certain abilities you shinigami do not. One of them is a spell that detects and reverses a memory modification. At first, I was worried that I had somehow been possessed for a few days and used to perform secret Quincy magic. It would be upsetting if I had been used that way, especially if I had betrayed any Quincy techniques to outsiders. So I performed that spell on myself and found, much to my surprise, that I had never left my home during the days in question. I seem to have been placed in a captured time stasis. However, the individual who placed me in that stasis was very clever and left no traces behind." He glared at Ichigo. "Do you happen to know who that person was?"

Ichigo's face was flaming now. "I—" he began.

There was a hand on his shoulder and a smooth, deep voice in his ear. "You seem rather distressed, Ichigo." Aizen turned to the other teen. "May I suggest that whatever you are asking the Prince wait until we have faced the enemy? Emotional distress might hamper his functioning during battle. All of our lives may depend on it." Aizen's voice was chilly and Ishida only stood his ground for a moment before he flushed, muttering an apology.

Ichigo exhaled. He had never been so glad for Aizen to come to his aid before.

—What are we going to do? he asked telepathically. He knows he was put in stasis!

—Do? rejoined Aizen coolly. Nothing. You must simply act as though you believed it was him the entire time.

—But what if he asks me more detailed questions about what happened? He's not stupid, you know. He's going to think of Kyouka Suigetsu sooner or later.

—Simply answer with what appeared to happen publicly… but leave out any of the more private conversations.

Ichigo blushed again. He could tell Aizen was amused.

—But what if Rukia tells him… you know…

Aizen's mental voice was cool. —Rukia's innuendoes mean nothing. She has no evidence of anything. Often the best lie is merely to say nothing. Stick to the truth as best you can. Ishida was with you on that journey.

—But what if he asks for details on the 'Quincy' spell you did? asked Ichigo, still panicked.

—You may tell him the truth. Aizen's voice was calm. It was indeed a true Quincy spell. Now, he cautioned, I suggest you return your focus to the world around us. I sense a threat approaching.

There was an abrupt crashing through the vegetation up ahead, followed by a reiatsu flare. Ichigo reached for Zangetsu. They came around a bend in the path to a clearing.

Filling the clearing were a band of shinigami captains and Fullbringers in battle ready position, Yamamoto and Ginjou at the fore.

Ichigo stopped short, drawing his sword.

Aizen's eyes narrowed. —It's a pity you weren't able to bring the Fullbringers to your side, Ichigo. He drew Kyouka Suigetsu. There are several of them who have not been exposed to my shikai, so my zanpakutou will not be able to help us against them.

Ginjou, wearing his skeleton-like armor, his black hair flying loose, had caught sight of Ichigo. Grinning, his muscles flexed as he lifted his huge sword and advanced on the youth.

Ichigo scowled and took a firmer grip on Zangetsu. —It's not like I need to depend on illusions to defeat any of these guys.

—An excellent attitude.

Aizen had turned to face Yamamoto. The old man's face contorted with fury as his eyes lit upon Aizen. Behind them, more combatants spread out across the clearing.

XxXxXxX

The ferocious clash of potent reiatsu all over the battlefield echoed through Ichigo's mind, distracting him from the fiendishly powerful attacker before him. Ginjou was approaching again, and Ichigo could not spare a second to allow his focus to drift. Yet he wanted desperately to see what was going on in the rest of the battlefield, there under and around the trees of the forest where all his senses were curiously blunted. He knew his friends were fighting desperately, fighting for their lives against extremely formidable opponents. He had caught a glimpse of Rukia locked in combat with a dark-haired woman, of Renji giving ground against another man. Behind a pall of smoke, Aizen was talking rather than fighting with Yamamoto. Ichigo half-snorted. How typical that Aizen was talking… well, maybe it was taunting, because he could sense a rapid rise in fiery rage from the captain-commander at Aizen's words.

Ichigo staggered under another of Ginjou's ferocious blows. "Hey," Ginjou said. "I'm glad I finally get to fight you one-on-one. Former traitorous substitute shinigami to current traitorous substitute shinigami." He grinned.

Ichigo panted under the blow and moved back to get into position, ignoring the taunt. Instead, he asked the question that had been uppermost in his mind, ever since he learned of Ginjou's allegiances. "Why?" he asked. "Why did you return to serve the usurper, when you already knew what Soul Society was like?"

Ginjou's eyes narrowed as he circled around Ichigo, looking for an opening. "You mean, that I know that they used me, controlled me, and put surveillance devices on me just like they did with you?" He exhaled loudly. "How Ukitake pretended to be so nice when all the while he was plotting behind our backs?" He grinned again. "You gotta watch out the most for the nice ones." He jerked a thumb at Aizen. "That guy was also one of the nicest captains. 'Ginjou-san,'" he mimicked in a falsely-sweet tone, "'we deeply appreciate your assistance in our incredibly important mission to save the world.'"

Again a heavy blow came down on Ichigo, who blocked it, lurching under the impact. "So why are you with them again?"

"You're the one who's working with Aizen now." Ginjou bared his teeth in another snarl. "One might ask you why as well." He circled to the side, his eyes on Ichigo's. "I've finally been promised something worthwhile."

"What?" asked Ichigo, grunting as he leaped forward, landed a blow on Ginjou and then had to immediately give way.

Rather than answering, Ginjou took a step sideways, then another, the point of his sword lifting. "Why don't you use Getsuga Tenshou? It's likely the only attack that could reach me. If you want to defeat me that's the one you should try." His voice was mocking and Ichigo took a step forward.

"Watch out!" came a voice from behind him. Ishida was standing there, his Quincy bow gleaming, a flaming arrow on the string. "He's provoking you, Kurosaki!"

"Why are you interfering in my fight, Ishida?" shouted Ichigo.

"Because don't you see it, Kurosaki? His attacks are incorporating your reiatsu. That means he's probably stolen some of your abilities."

"But we never finished the training," Ichigo insisted. "He didn't get a chance to take over my Fullbring."

Ishida glared. "Maybe not that, but—" Ginjou was charging forward.

"Hah! The chance to get my revenge," roared the Fullbringer.

Alarmed, Ichigo raised his sword. "Getsuga Tenshou!" he yelled and the air exploded with the force of his power, only to be met by an equally ferocious counter.

"I may not have all of your powers, Ichigo Kurosaki, but by fighting me, I've gotten at least some of them." The black-haired man's lips peeled back from his teeth. "Getsuga Tenshou!" he bellowed and the air flashed a brilliant white and the acrid tang of ozone invaded the battlefield.

Ichigo gasped and fell back, astonished at the sheer potency of the Fullbringer's attack, and shocked that his own abilities had been stolen after all. How could he do that? If the man could steal his abilities just by fighting with him, it was going to be difficult to counter him. Ichigo swallowed and a lance of fear shot through him. He realized that it would only take one strike to bring him down, and then everything would be over. Getsuga Tenshou was a ferociously powerful attack, as he knew very well, and no one knew better than Ichigo how hard it could be to evade. He stared up into the black, pitiless eyes. This man had once been an ordinary human like him, had felt betrayed by Soul Society… just like him. And now they were on opposite sides. Could this man be the one to kill him?

The man charged him and struck, and Ichigo barely was able to defend against it. Another heavy blow from Ginjou brought him to his knees. Ichigo struggled to keep from falling over. He had taken a deep cut to the side and blood was pouring out of the wound. His vision began to haze over, and he tried to lift his sword, but his arms felt weak. No, Ichigo thought, it couldn't be over. But he could not get up, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ginjou advancing triumphantly, sword upraised.

But before the other man could deliver the final blow, he staggered back abruptly from an unseen impact. Ichigo looked up to see what had happened.

Ishida was standing tall across the field, his bow held out at arm's length, flaring brilliantly, its radiance causing everyone around him to shield their eyes. He loosed arrow after arrow at Ginjou, who faltered as the arrows rained down on his odd body armor.

Given this respite, Ichigo was able to catch his breath. Remembering his training, he focused on the most devastating wounds he had sustained and directed healing energy to them. As he felt life and strength returning, Ichigo pushed himself to his feet and advanced on the black-haired Fullbringer. The tables had been turned by Ishida's attack, and the other man had fallen to the ground, gasping hard. "Wait!" he wheezed as Ichigo approached. "Before you kill me, you should know about the enemy you should really be fighting."

"Hah!" Ichigo sneered. "The enemy I should really be fighting? Screw you. I'm tired of you bastards trying to shake my resolve like this." He raised his sword.

"Exactly!" came a voice from behind him. Ishida looked exhausted but fierce. "Your goal is to pressure us mentally with the 'truth' now that the tide of battle has turned against you. It's an old trick, and it won't work."

Ginjou shot a sly glance at Ishida. "You're the one who's tricking him, aren't you, Quincy?"

An unreadable expression flashed across Ishida's face. "Whatever are you talking about?"

Half-stumbling, half-crawling over the dirt, Ginjou reached behind Ishida and pulled something loose from his belt. He threw it on the ground in front of Ichigo. The youth took a step backward involuntarily, and then stared at the object. It looked like a badge, but a badge marked with an odd variant of the Quincy five-pointed star. This one was a five-pointed cross with the flanges broadened at the tips. Ichigo had never seen such a symbol.

"Don't you know what that represents, Ichigo?" thundered Ginjou. "A secret group that has caused more deaths than even Soul Society!"

"What?" Ichigo turned to stare at Ishida for a moment. "What is he talking about?"

"Nothing," said Ishida coolly. "He's lying to try to talk his way out of being killed. Ignore him." He fitted another arrow to his bow.

"What's more," asserted Ginjou, taking another step backwards, "he's in league with—"