Hello, hello :) Done swinging the pendulum :P

Thank all for reading and especially commenting :) Brightens my day, makes me blonder, and certainly improves Szayel's mood :)

Warnings - haven't put any in a while, but, well, cussing.

Democracy is the only form of government that assures each nation has exactly the leaders it deserves.

-- George Bernard Shaw.

Chapter 37 - Where it is shown that a guy with a tragic past is not necessarily a good guy.

The door had not even closed behind the Shinigami group when Grimmjow stalked out of the room in his turn. With a glance that was as reproachful as Kuchiki's had been, he cursed under his breath, and fell heavily on the floor next to Stark, almost painfully knocking his head on the wall as he leaned back.

A few steps behind the Sexta, Szayel Aporro clenched his hands behind his back and slowly slithered forward. Needing no instructions from him, Lumina rushed over, carrying the pillow he had sat on earlier, and keeping a foot behind its master, as if it had intended to drop it at his feet at the precise right moment.

He did not sit though; he simply stood, glancing down at the two for long, cold seconds.

'You have achieved nothing,' Stark foretold.

'In his defense, tho', 'Lilinette muttered from behind, 'he really did try.'

It was the first time, Ishida thought, that he actually saw her walking; most of the time before that he'd seen her jumping, running, bouncing on things or using Sonido when it was entirely inappropriate.

Szayel looked at her, clearly surprised by the words, then coughed, bringing his folded fingers to his lips before adjusting his glasses.

'Let me guess what we have decided,' Stark sighed. 'I am going to retrieve Inoue Orihime.'

Szayel Aporro nodded.

'A hard line could perhaps have been avoided if you had not gone for Kuchiki's jugular,' he dryly responded, finally sitting down – Lumina put the pillow on the floor in perfect sequence, then darted away, looking positively exhilarated in spite of the fact that her master had not even acknowledged its presence.

Stark did not deign to respond. He instead shifted to the side, to accommodate Lilinette.

'Ya OK?' she asked, in a low whisper. Stark nodded. 'Chilled yet?' He nodded again, and looked through Szayel Aporro, to Neliel Tu, who undecidedly stood in the doorway.

'Hey, Nellie,' he said, with a little grin. 'Honeymoon with the Shinigami already over?'

The woman smirked, but remained silent for another moment, visibly hesitating between following Ichigo and staying back. She approached, nonetheless.

'There are no words to express how angry I am at you,' she finally uttered, when she was within earshot. Stark shrugged.

'I like it a lot better when you're angry at Szayel Aporro. In an equally pointless manner, I might add…' he said.

'No, seriously,' Neliel muttered, not taking notice of his words and letting herself fall on the floor to Ishida's side; her sudden physical proximity made Szayel inch away. 'Is there a single skirt in the entirety of Las Noches that you haven't looked under?'

Ishida blushed, as did the Octava; in his turn, Stark shrugged again.

'All of you wear pants,' he blankly replied, his very correct observation rewarded by a sharp jab to the ribs from Lilinette. 'It is true, I say!' he protested. 'The only one who does wear a skirt is Mira Rose, and whatever is under there is of no interest to me...'

'You pissed, Grimmjow?' he asked, casting a side glance at the teal haired Arrancar, who had not made the slightest movement since he'd sat down. 'No reason why you would be,' Stark muttered.

'I beg to differ,' Szayel Aporro shot, in return. 'Just in case Ulquiorra's unflappable demeanor went to your head, Stark, let me reiterate the finer points of our current situation – on one hand, we have Aizen, who is probably converting the entire universe into Numeros, as we speak. On the other, we have captain Kuchiki, who now would like nothing better than your head on a spike, and, by glorious association, my head…'

'Our heads,' Neliel Tu corrected, in a poisonous tone.

'You will excuse me if the relevance of your heads' position is reduced to insignificance when compared to the relevance of mine,' Szayel muttered. 'If you do not go for Inoue Orihime, Kuchiki and crew will withdraw, in no uncertain terms; though I am absolutely overjoyed at the fact that Mayuri Kurosutchi was clearly as popular among his peers as he made himself here, he will lend no further leverage. I even tried that.'

'I think we should take Kuchiki's threats with a grain of salt.' Neliel answered flatly, her words reinforced by Ishida's stern nod. 'Ichigo would not leave.'

'I am sure you can die in each others' arms, in a proper tragic manner,' Grimmjow snarled, not opening his eyes. 'Won't make no difference. Kuchiki clearly let Kurosaki enter Hueco Mundo alone. There's no reason to assume he won't spit Kurosaki like a rotten egg.'

'I vaguely remember making that observation a while ago,' Stark sighed.

'Dude, could you fucking be less chilled?' Grimmjow growled, finally sitting straight. 'They got us with our balls in a wrench here!'

'Excuse me for being yet again unconstructive,' Stark replied, 'but I also seem to remember the three of you fiercely arguing with me about how active cooperation with the Shinigami was a marvelous idea. Did I dream that, Lilinette?' he rhetorically asked.

'Nope,' she answered, shaking her head.

'So, may I be excused for feeling superiorly amused while the three of you whine?' the Segunda shrugged.

'Is this going to be an intellectual masturbation moment?' Szayel Aporro inquired, sweetly. 'Because it is horrendously ill-timed.'

'No, it's a 'You have all the strategic vision of a weed' moment,' Lilinette snapped, in Stark's stead. 'This was fucking predictable, that's what it was!'

'You have a brain the size of a shriveled fig. Allow me to explain what else was fucking predictable,' Szayel responded, obviously losing his temper. 'If we had not gotten this far, Kuchiki would have returned to the Sereitei immediately after we captured Ulquiorra, and, after the show Kenpachi put on, not even my tower would have kept us from hanging over Gin's mantelpiece, at the moment. As is, we are still alive and we are slowly inching forward.'

'If Stark goes out on a limb again, and gets the chick.' The Fraccion said, scowling. 'Tis all rather convenient for ya, ain't it, Szayel Aporro?'

'None of us is hoppin' and skippin' with joy, kiddo,' Grimmjow replied.

'Yeh, but none of y'all has got to go an' show Aizen the middle finger,' she stubbornly responded.

'Let us not be overly dramatic.' Szayel Aporro began, in the soft, sensuous purr that always indicated he had what he doubtlessly thought was a masterful idea. 'That can be easily avoided by saying you could not reach her; granted, that might not necessarily be the best course of action. But before I elaborate,' he continued, with his sweetest, most seductive smile, 'shall we play a little game of spot the element that does not fit in the picture? I would suggest, the living human sitting in the circle?'

'Eh,' Uryu exclaimed, drawing back and almost darting to his feet. The sudden realization of the fact that he was, indeed, sitting amid five Arrancar, and that, oddly enough, he felt genuinely at ease struck him with the force of a solid object. 'I do not have to be here…'

'Very subtle, Szayel Aporro,' Stark chuckled. 'The only less subtle thing would have been asking him to leave so we can plot in peace.'

'Indeed,' the Octava sweetly muttered. 'Ishida Uryu, would you mind withdrawing so we can plot in peace?'

The archer swallowed dry, and stubbornly clenched his teeth, desperately trying to keep his lower jaw from hanging in surprise in a manner that would have made him painfully resemble Kurosaki. Fortunately, he was spared the embarrassment of having to respond.

'He's harmless,' Stark said, softly. 'He has as many friends upstairs as Neliel Tu does. You might as well kick her out.'

'Perhaps. But that simply means he is neither strong enough, nor well connected enough to provide any assistance,' Szayel muttered.

'He still may have a different perspective on all of this mess. What do you think, Uryu?' the Segunda asked. 'Is there any actual merit in retrieving Inoue Orihime? Logical argument, if you please.'

'She's my friend,' the Quincy answered softly. 'She is why I am here…'

'That ain't logical, kid,' Grimmjow sneered. 'Logical would be, she fucking resurrected Menoly after I blew off half her body with a Cero. Upper half, for more precision,' he added, with a grin in Szayel Aporro's direction. The Octava predictably gasped.

'That is anatomically impossible!' he shrieked, sounding personally offended.

'An' still, dude,' Grimmjow, 'it happened. Nellie girl is good with her…' he gestured wildly, clearly trying to avoid the word snot, 'but she ain't that good.'

'I am taking it, Grimmjow, you think having the girl on our side is not entirely useless?' Stark asked, arching an eyebrow.

'Quite the contrary, I think she'd be mighty useful. I think you oughta get her, an' get her now.'

'The words 'Grimmjow' and 'think' sit uncomfortably in the same sentence,' Szayel Aporro sighed. For the first time, Grimmjow did not respond; he simply looked up and smirked. 'Even if by some universal failure of logic what he just described is an actual event, and not a result of him getting hit over the head one time too many, I still do not fancy a trip to the human world in the Gotei's illustrious company. Especially since Kuchiki is not too eager to make promises.'

'Unohana seems like a kind person,' Neliel said, thoughtfully. 'She healed Grimmjow, so, I'd say…'

She shrugged.

'Should we vote?' she asked; Grimmjow slapped his forehead, to poignantly show his mistrust in democratic proceedings.

'Vote?' he muttered. 'What's there to vote on?'

'Don't see how else we're going to decide,' Neliel Tu answered, a mild twinge of irritation in her voice. 'We can sit here chatting for as long as you like, but we have until morning…'

'We have a deadline?' Stark suddenly perked. 'Are you fucking kidding me?'

'Sadly,' Szayel Aporro smirked, 'I am not in a humorous mood.'

'You let him give us a deadline?' the Segunda continued, waving his words away.

'There was precious little I could do when you stalked out and demonstrated we are not even inwardly aligned,' the Octava hissed. 'We have until dawn to agree or disagree with getting Inoue Orihime. Should we fail to produce a response, they will withdraw to the Sereitei.'

'Bloody hell!' Stark snapped.

'We can still stall,' Szayel Aporro pleaded.

'What the fuck for?' Grimmjow snarled. 'Makes no difference if you go get her now or in six hours.'

'It makes a world of difference if Inoue Orihime is in our loving midst before or after the Garganta are sealed, and, instead of hauling us over to the human world, captain Cherry Blossom becomes a semi-permanent guest of our hospitable realm.' Szayel answered, slowly, as if he had been addressing mentally addled children.

'Wha'd he say?' Lilinette frowned, tugging on Stark's sleeve.

'I said – getting Inoue Orihime before the Garganta are sealed and the Shinigami can leave: baaad. Getting her back when they can't leave: gooood!' Szayel Aporro recited.

'What?' Uryu and Neliel exclaimed, in the same breath.

'You've heard me,' he rebelliously muttered. 'Don't gawk. It's disgraceful.'

Before anyone could react, he extracted his white controller and clicked it, bringing a new, solid sheet of metal down over the laboratory entrance. 'Well,' he shrugged, to the sudden flicker of fright in Ishida's eyes, 'you did not leave when I advised you to. Now you get to enjoy our company for a little while longer. Not for too long, I assure you; I have no deception in mind. Or well, no way of keeping the deceit up for too long,' he corrected, with a wide smile. 'I would however prefer we kept this segment of the conversation from Kuchiki's perfectly shaped ears until we have reached a decision. In exchange for your temporary cooperation,' Szayel innocently purred, 'I can offer you coffee.'

'Real coffee?' Ishida sighed in defeat; he saw no point in arguing, and he found he was quite interested in the conversation. 'Not an imitation thereof?'

'You're cheap, Uryu,' Lilinette giggled warmly.

'I have not slept in two days,' Ishida murmured. 'Coffee would be most welcome…'

Szayel nodded, and Verona quietly withdrew in the shadows.

'So what's this about you sealing the Garganta?' Neliel asked.

'Did I say – me?' the Octava smirked, arching an ironic eyebrow. 'I am referring to Aizen. Though, of course,' he sighed, 'the finer components of the technology are of my making…'

'Why would he do that?' Neliel interrupted, with a frown that showed she was not in the mood for giving Szayel Aporro any sort of gratification.

'I gather you have not shared our vision of Aizen's intentions with captain Kuchiki?' Stark inquired, his concentrated stare making it clear that his question superseded Neliel's. The Octava shrugged.

'It is the only minor tactical advantage we still have,' he answered. 'I saw no reason to renounce it for the moment.'

'It's admirable you thought of that…' Stark remarked, genuinely sounding impressed.

'After everyone else stopped thinking and went into whining, cursing or bitching sprees? Woefully familiar territory,' the Octava whispered; light gleamed across his mask as he pushed it upwards on his nose, and Ishida could not truly discern if the pink-haired Arrancar had even considered the acknowledgement. 'In any event,' he sighed, addressing Neliel, 'myself and Stark are going by the theory that Aizen has no genuine use for Inoue Orihime other than dividing the Gotei. I think Kuchiki fears the same, which is why he is so eager to retrieve the girl fast, or not at all.'

'And you're thinking Aizen will actually seal them in Hueco Mundo?' Stark asked, with a small frown.

'He has the means of doing so,' Szayel shrugged, shifting slightly to the side to allow Ishida to pick up his coffee cup. 'I provided him with certain pieces of circuitry that could only be used to impede cross-world travel. And he certainly is not expecting them to stay of their own accord,' he added, after a second of watching the human inhale the aroma of the brew as if it had been ambrosia.

The Segunda scratched his goatee, and shot a questioning glance at Lilinette.

'Well if he can, why ain't he done it yet?' she asked, in his stead.

''Cuz he doesn't think he can beat us, if they stick around.' Grimmjow answered, his eyes narrowed to the size of knife blades. 'Don't think he was counting on facing nine on either side of the fence, and definitely not with five on his side. D'ya think he can tell you can't evolve no more?' he thoughtfully asked the Segunda.

'Even I didn't know I couldn't evolve anymore,' Stark muttered.

'That was quite predictable,' Szayel shrugged. 'If you had asked me, I would have told you that what the Hougyaku took, only the Hougyaku can return. Sadly you did not ask, and I am not in the habit of volunteering information.'

Stark glanced up, with an unreadable expression.

'Yes,' he answered softly. 'It is one of your more loveable qualities.'

'So maybe he thinks now that you ate Ulquiorra, you're even more bad-ass than you were before,' Lilinette smirked, poking the tip of her tongue out at Neliel, who'd scowled reproachfully. 'An' he figures that the longer he keeps the doors open, the more chances there are the Shinigami will turn tail and run.'

'How can he guarantee you won't follow?' Ishida asked. His question fell like a small pebble on a marble floor, and all glances incredulously turned to him.

'Hee!' Szayel Aporro snickered. 'You're awake, Quincy!'

'Yes, well, ahem,' Ishida returned, in a far less self assured voice than he would have liked. He took another sip of the coffee, before lifting the cup in the form of a tiny salute. 'I can still taste it is synthetic,' he said in an innocent tone, to Szayel's overly curious glance, and the Octava snickered again.

'At least it contains caffeine' he said, shrugging in amused defeat; Ishida smiled timidly in return. 'Aizen knows us a lot better than any of us would like,' Szayel reiterated, curling his knees on the pillow. 'I am never overly keen on leaving my tower…'

'Yeh, cuz in the world outside, you're a bug,' Grimmjow muttered.

'No,' Szayel responded, between clenched teeth. 'Because in here, I am a God.' He snappily added. 'He's very certain we would not rush to follow into the human world because he probably knows the Gotei won't offer any guarantees. Needless to say, none of us except for Neliel Tu is known for their blindly trusting nature.'

'So, let's do a recount,' Stark yawned. 'If Kuchiki goes home, with or without Inoue, we're through. Maybe the Shinigami will beat Aizen in the end, but that's of little relevance to us. On the other hand, if we cross over, we might get used as shields or killed in the aftermath. Neither they, nor us, are willing to take any chances - that's the main disadvantage of a troop entirely made of captains,' he snickered. 'Nobody can really be sent to die for the greater good.'

'The only way you detachedly win,' Ishida thoughtfully said, finding the simple existence of a planning session was a welcome change from Kurosaki's normal behavior, 'is if Kuchiki is stuck here and Aizen attacks in the human world first. In that case, he'd either get crushed there, and you would have nothing to worry about, or he would be sufficiently weak for you to defeat him here.'

'Oh, you really are awake,' Szayel giggled. 'Yet, you forget one possibility - we also detachedly win if Aizen attacks us first, but we have a person who is capable of resurrecting anything bound to our side. As I am sure none of you can even imagine, there are endless advantages to being unkillable.'

'So, what do you wanna do, dude?' Grimmjow muttered. 'Pray that there's a shift in power overnight, and Aizen seals the Garganta of his own accord?'

'I am sure he's actively looking to replace Ulquiorra,' Szayel shrugged. 'Or any one of us, I guess…If he can find suitable replacements, or just feel safe with numbers, he will seal the Garganta. All we need to do is stall Kuchiki for long enough.'

'Those are a lot of variables to align, Szayel Aporro,' Ishida said, softly. 'You need for Aizen to find what he is looking for and do so in the next few hours, and seal the Garganta, and attack the human world…and find an opening to get to Orihime…all in a limited time.'

'Not necessarily,' Stark frowned. 'We can stall even longer; we can give them a response in the final minute of the final hour. If Aizen doesn't move by then, we could try to press events a bit - provided I can reach her, I could get Orihime and take her for a lovely desert walk. I'm definitely better at conversation than Ulquiorra, I am sure I would not bore her in a couple of hours. Once he loses her, Aizen will definitely cut any pathways out of Hueco Mundo.'

'I ain't down with this,' Grimmjow muttered. 'Longer we wait, more Adjucas he turns, deeper shit we're in. Let's just fucking do this. What does it matter if it's in the human world or here? If you're so hell bent on thinkin' the Shinigami are gonna have our heads, what's to stop 'em from turning coming back for us? How much worse could it get?'

'I agree. The last thing we need is to dig ourselves in even deeper with yet another deception,' Neliel frowned. 'Does it occur to you,' she sighed, 'that the reason why captain Kuchiki is so uneager to offer us any promises is because we've constantly proven unpredictable?'

'I beg to differ,' Stark snarled. 'If we had been nicer, we'd have grown pretty wings like Szayel Aporro…'

'What was your stunt with Ulquiorra, then?' she hissed; Lilinette rolled her eye.

'That really sucks, Nellie,' the Fraccion muttered. 'I don't like it better than you, but ya're talking like you ain't got no garlic on your breath.'

'It made him look absolutely ruthless and amoral,' Neliel continued, frowning deeply.

'Yes, well, at some point, image has to catch up to reality…' Szayel Aporro remarked, with a little satisfied sigh.

'Shut up, Szayel Aporro!' the former Tercera spat. 'I expect all of this pleases you immensely – I doubt you've done anything from the front in your entire existence. I disagree with this plan. It is risky in the short term, and a recipe for ruin in the long run. Even if it works, we'll have pushed the Shinigami's patience for us to its very limits. There's no way we can expect to get away in the end.' She finished, giving Szayel Aporro a murderous stare. 'I think Kuchiki has been honest so far, even if brutally so. We should at least try to be honest in our turn, and actually talk to him and Unohana…'

'Were you not just in the side room doing that, without accomplishing anything?' Stark ironically asked. 'No, no,' he laughed, 'you did accomplish something: you got us a deadline by which to comply.'

'That's because we were yet again dishonest,' Neliel sighed. 'Did the thought of actually telling them what you think Aizen intends even pass through your head, Szayel Aporro?'

'No,' the Octava answered, carefully.

'Then that is what we should do,' the woman decisively said. 'We should go upstairs, explain the exact situation, and stop hiding. We cannot expect them to rely on us on the battlefield if we keep holding back information.'

'I believe their plan is to rely on us a little too much,' Szayel answered.

'And speaking of honesty, Nellie…' Stark began, slowly. 'Your openness drive would have nothing to do with getting on Kurosaki's sweet side?'

'You have no right to ask that,' she rebelliously muttered.

'It's a legitimate question,' the Segunda smirked. 'If you were a man, I would tell you you're thinking with your balls.'

'Screw this,' she whispered. 'I will not be a part of Szayel Aporro's backstabbing schemes, and you should be ashamed of yourself for even considering it, Stark.'

'It's all in the correct angle, Nellie,' he responded, without anger. 'I am looking for the correct angle.'

'And it does not strike you like the correct angle might be facing the enemy, in fair combat?' she furiously asked.

'Like you did Nnoitra?' Stark laughed; she darted to her feet, cheeks and eyes in flames.

'You know what?' Neliel Tu breathed. 'Grimm's right, there's no need to vote and no need to debate this further. We're not doing this.' She stated, her voice suddenly cool and flat. 'We are not going to stall, and we are not going to lie. Not anymore.'

'What do you think you are doing, Nellie?' Stark asked, without even sounding surprised.

'Going upstairs,' she snapped, turning on her heels. 'We are done talking here.'

His Hierro closed around her, rising from the floor and solidifying in an instant; Ishida barely had the time to acknowledge the movement of Stark's reiatsu. He felt Neliel's next, stinging, acidic rays radiating from her standing figure, and looping dangerously between her clenched fists; it was only seconds later that he actually perceived Szayel's as well, almost as if the flat, delicate ribbons had been caressing his skin.

'I'm not afraid of you,' Neliel said, in a voice that showed she clearly wasn't. 'You can writhe your tentacles at me all you like; I can get through your Hierro, and I know you won't come after me.'

'Won't I?' Stark dreamily asked.

'No. Regardless of anything else you might be, you've been my friend since the day I was made. You brought me back from the shape in which Szayel's treachery put me, and though you have your hang-ups and sharp corners, you'd never really put me in harm's way more than you would Lilinette. I know it, and you know it.'

To Ishida's surprise, Grimmjow lowered his head and snickered in a way the Quincy could not quite place.

'I am unsure, Neliel Tu,' the Segunda followed; within the confines of the Hierro, the woman's knees trembled. 'We've never been in a situation where you threatened to put me in the hands of a bunch of people I despise. You wanted a democratic decision; we're four, and we are split. Do you want Lilinette to have a vote?'

'…I fucking should, too…' the Fraccion mumbled.

'As if we don't bloody know where that's gonna go, kiddo,' Grimmjow sneered. Lilinette simply latched on to Stark's arm and made a horrible face in Sexta's direction.

'If I had a vote, I'd go with the honest approach,' Ishida put in, shyly.

'Well, when you're dead and an Espada, you'll get a vote. Stick to the honest approach with Shinigami, and in a couple hundred years, you just might,' Stark answered dryly. 'For the moment, though, we are four. Two of us want to die after they demonstrate some intelligence, the other two want to die without even trying to. From my point of view, this conversation will be over when we have a majority decision.'

'No,' Neliel Tu returned. 'I stand where I stand – regardless of what you choose to do, and when you choose to do it, I refuse to let them become trapped here.'

'But you have no similar qualms with us, I take it,' the Segunda observed, as Neliel's right knee suddenly jerked forward under the pressure. Ishida frowned, but Stark paid him no heed, just as he paid no heed to Lilinette's painful grip on his arm.

'You have a choice of action.' She answered. 'As long as you keep them in the dark, they don't.' Her voice had trembled ever so slightly, however, and a clear bead of sweat had slipped down her cheek and on the soft curve of her neck.

'Dude, you're seriously fucked up,' Grimmjow snarled, jumping to his feet in his turn.

'Stay out of it, kitty, lest you've changed your vote already.' Stark warned, in such a calm voice that Ishida shuddered and unwillingly drew back. 'I am trying to enforce a democratic process; I am not asking Neliel to change her opinion. I am asking her to discuss it. Perhaps she may end up changing my mind. What is it, Neliel? What makes you so confident? Share it with me,' he sneered, 'so I become confident as well. Do you perhaps think he'll take you to Soul Society, or to the human world, in the end of it all?'

'As a matter of fact, he has already said he would,' Nel whispered. Her shoulders still straight despite the obvious pressure, she spun around to face him; she no longer looked furious, but heartrendingly sad. 'If you could just bring yourself to trust Ichigo, he'd trust you,' she said, softly. 'He'd speak on your behalf, if Kuchiki truly intended to…'

'He would,' Ishida breathed – Stark laughed, throwing his head back, with the same crawling, creepy echo that had terrified the archer on their first encounter.

'I am very sure Ichi-kun would,' the Segunda managed to articulate. 'What neither of you seems to get is that once the battle starts, and Ichi-kun shows his new tricks to his old friends, he won't be in any position to speak on his own behalf.'

Grimmjow drew a sudden, deep breath.

'You know what I'm talking about, kitty. And Neliel does too; she was there when he fought Ulquiorra. She saw it as well. So let's not fucking pretend Kurosaki can do anything for us. You know he can't. This discussion is about the Shinigami alone.'

The Sexta looked to the floor, his fingers clenched on Pantera's hilt – Neliel too remained chillingly silent.

'Any changed votes?' Stark asked, in a tone that struggled to be indifferent. Grimmjow was the first to slowly shake his head.

'No way. I don't wanna stall because I'm tired of jerking off cold, and I don't think it makes any difference where we fight. I ain't waiting to be rescued.'

'This discussion is over,' Neliel whispered; she turned away once more, this time obviously struggling to keep on her feet. 'Do you want me to draw against you?'

The words came in a cut-off breath.

'I will, I swear,' Nel whimpered. Propping her shoulder against the barrier, she advanced an inch. 'You cannot stop me from doing what is right.'

'The hell I can't,' Stark finally snarled; the white blot on his jaw suddenly pulsed and extended, and Neliel unwillingly yelped, falling to one knee. 'Let's see you draw,' he breathed. 'Let's see how far it takes you.'

Within a flash, Gamuza left her scabbard; Ishida had not even registered the movement. The blade had simply gleamed on the edges of his vision, splitting the air in a swift circular movement as Neliel stood and spun round. It was the last thing he actually saw before Stark's furious reiatsu swept him back. Despite the daze, he darted to his feet, noticing that Lilinette had wisely retreated to the opposite corner of the chamber – or perhaps, the Quincy thought, feeling his heart was lodged in his throat, that was where the mere tension of the Espada's reiatsu had pushed her. He worriedly turned to Neliel, suspecting that whatever had happened to him and Lilinette had been the simple shockwave, not the actual hit.

Ishida frowned.

Surrounded by a faint aura, that still crackled and writhed with dark energy, Szayel Aporro stood between Stark and Neliel, who'd fallen to her knees. In spite of the fact that his shield had taken most of the blow, and of the fact that Fornicares was defensively placed along his raised left arm, the Octava's sleeve was burned and stained with blood. Somewhere behind, Lumina and Verona screamed in unison.

'What is it, Szayel Aporro?' Stark snickered, in a voice that was surprisingly deprived of malice. 'You also want to do the right thing?'

'No,' the Octava painstakingly exhaled. 'I want to change my vote.'

'It was your idea,' Stark reminded; to Ishida's slowed down mind, the Segunda had sounded almost amused. Nonetheless, as suddenly as it had surfaced, the pressure of Stark's reiatsu was gone.

'Please,' Szayel Aporro breathed.

The Segunda defensively lifted his palms, and, within a flash, his Hierro stopped imprisoning Neliel; Szayel Aporro wasted no time in lifting the sheet of metal that covered the door. She had barely glanced at him before she hasted out, and he did not turn around to watch her leave.

'And now you let her go, just like that!' Grimmjow exclaimed, landing and looking at Stark in tremendous confusion.

'What can I say,' Stark answered, not taking his eyes of Szayel Aporro. 'I truly am a firm believer in democracy, even when it leads to the most obviously wrong choices.'

Szayel Aporro was still shaking, yet Ishida knew better than to imagine that it was with fear or pain. No – it was something worse. Renouncing his idea must have felt like cutting off a limb, and, judging by the look on Stark's features, which was an incredible mixture of pity and disappointment, the Segunda must have known it too.

'Szayel Aporro,' Stark began softly. 'Do you wonder if she might not have skipped you if only you had bigger balls than she does?'

'Often,' the Octava answered, in a voice that cracked like a dry twig. The reply did not leave much room for more words.

His shield finally stopped buzzing, and he turned around, fluidly clenching his fingers behind his back.

'Where are you going?' Ishida asked, in spite of himself. When Szayel's glance met his, he could have sworn he saw a little flicker of a smile in the gold depth.

'To change my clothes,' the Octava snickered. 'And exfoliate.'

A small hesitation.

'I doubt I can control Gabriel from the human world. I will be damned if I die in an outfit that's torn, and with clogged pores to boot. Fortunately,' he added, suddenly grinning wide, 'I am sure I will not live long enough to get wrinkles.'

He disappeared into the corridor that led to his bedroom before Ishida could utter another word, and the Quincy's attention turned to Stark, who slowly stood, and shoved his hands in his pockets, after a long and regretful yawn.

'I cannot shake the feeling that I am to blame for all this,' Stark said, to no one in particular. 'None of this would be happening if I could still grow.'

The Segunda shrugged.

'Will you go for Orihime right now?' Ishida asked, trying his best not to sound hopeful, but failing miserably.

'I still need an hour,' Stark answered, softly, running his fingers over the patch of white skin without truly touching it. 'I'm not trying to delay,' he added, when the archer looked doubtful. 'I respect a commonly made decision, but I am not done…'

'…digesting,' Ishida whispered, shuddering at the word. Stark contented himself on a nod, then headed for one of the two tall windows in the very back of the dark laboratory.

'Is there anything left of the man you once were?' the Quincy inquired, the question leaving his lips as if it had had a soul of its own.

Stark looked over his shoulder.

'Except for her,' he said, with a small smile, tilting his head to indicate Lilinette, who stood facing Szayel Aporro's panels as if the rest of the Universe had been too painful to behold, 'not much.'

He slithered though the glass of the window, and disappeared into the darkness.

'Bloody fucking hell!' Grimmjow exploded, making the young human jolt out of his dreamy state. He headed for Ishida as if he'd meant to slap him, and the Quincy unwillingly drew back. 'That's why too much thinking ain't good,' the Sexta snarled. 'It fucks you up, up here!' he menacingly growled, pointing to his temple. With another loud, long, and unspeakably creative curse, he headed out into the corridor, on Neliel's trail.

Up next - Opportunity knocks.