Author Notes: This is pushing the Southern Branch to be more of a gray morality mercenary group that will do anything to survive. The Hollow's origins are hinted in this chapter as the Hogyokū plays a part in this development. Kyōraku will have to make a deal with a metaphorical devil in order to achieve his goal to stop even worse devils on the horizon.
Chapter 22: Underground Tombs of the Hollow Gods
Kyōraku, Nanao and Genshirō followed Grys and Eieno down a dark tunnel, alit by torches. They had been quiet for a while since they allowed the trio to follow them down a secret passage beneath one of the buildings of the bazaar of the town. Nanao narrowed her eyes and broke the silence.
"Who are you? What is this place? Are you an enemy?," she asked, suspecting the two that they were now following.
"There's more than one branch to the Soul Society. You're the East Branch. We're the South...outside of the Head Captain guy, the Royal Guarders and the Noblers...we're pretty much an unknown to ya guys.," Eieno explained as she looked back at Nanao.
"Yeah, the Monk did say there was three other branches and you guys were like a secret society that doesn't really involve itself with people.," Kyōraku noted.
"Why weren't you there to stop the Quincy from destroying the Soul King? As members of the Soul Society isn't it your duty?!," Nanao demanded.
Shunsui said nothing, his eyes narrowed as he figured out the implications a long time ago.
"You probably are aware of the four pillars analogy...When one fails, the other three have to pick up the slack. The Soul King...or rather your Soul King is one of four, nah, six., We have our own "Royalty" to worry about. By helping you guys out, we've put our own at risk." Grys replied.
"What?," Nanao asked.
Grys then stopped at what appeared to be the end of the tunnel, a solid surface.
"It's better to witness than to explain.," he said more menacingly as he tugged open a door.
On the other side were similarly dressed individuals, but they wore different masks and color schemes than Grys. They were walking on stairways, above, on the right, to the left, upside down, diagonally on the opposing side, going up on a downward looking staircase, etc. The imagery looked surreal as cloaked individuals were upside down, walking vertically, diagonally, etc- all in directions that one would naturally cause a normal person to fall.
In the middle of the room was a golden tube with a shrunken, tiny head of a dark skinned man, whose eyes and mouth were sown shut. The expression he gave was in a state of almost screaming at all moment.
Nanao clasped her mouth in disgust, wanting to repress the desire to vomit.
That can't be their Soul King? It's too gruesome!, she thought.
"Believe me. This isn't nearly as bad as the North and the West's Soul Kings' conditions. Though, compared to yours, this is pretty creepy. Our Soul King.," Grys explained, turning to Nanao.
Genshirō looked away in revulsion at the sight.
Kyōraku asked-
"Did you want us to see this? Or something else?"
Grys then looked at a particular individual who had a rainbow striped, but otherwise featureless mask and a rainbow colored cloak on the upper staircase.
He jumped several feet into the air in order to land on the staircase.
"He's gonna get us access to whatever we're looking for I bet.," Kyōraku explained to Nanao.
"Grys? What art thou standing in mine path? What doth thou desire?," said the stoic sounding, tall individual with the rainbow looking down at Grys.
"These guys want to see that.," he said with a bow.
The striped masked fellow turned to see Kyōraku down below.
"What complies thee to bring them hence? These others from the East Branch? Is thou at a loss of sense, for the bitterness of thine duty set by He too burdening?," inquired the rainbow masked man.
Grys was quiet for a moment.
"You heard how He has taken out those guys that were in charge of establishing the laws and punishment for the West Branch? In place of his own? He's likely found out he's going to be double-crossed by them or maybe he's planning for who to bring along for the Exodus if things go-," Grys replied.
"Thou forgets thine place...If it is to be an Exodus, then we will be obey regardless of our own personal reluctance. But, in case the hellions come in and decide to slaughter us like lambs. We have the secret weapon within the southwest chambers-," the rainbow masked individual answered before Grys leaped off the staircase, having learned what he needed to know.
"Insolent little-," he said before he turned to see an even larger rainbow masked individual, but this one with a long white beard protruding under his mask show up behind him.
"Chief Reënboog. Forgive me for I have made a huge blunder.," the other man apologized.
"It's alright. It was destined for this to happen...for the man below to know of the secret we carry.," the bearded man said ominously.
Southern-west Chamber
Kyōraku and his lieutenants along with Grys and Eieno entered into an entrance between the stairways and into a cobwebbed filled cavern. The corridor felt ancient and foreboding.
"What exactly do you do?," Nanao asked.
"We're more like the Soul Emperor's errand boys for the unpleasant work that even the worst of the worst of your Branch can't do, but our official business is to seal away the dead that don't want to pass over or those who can't pass over because they're immortal. For all eternity in the other rooms. We're not like the West who try to tame the danger or be forced to kill them, or the North that tries to lock the problems away or erase them. Or you guys in the East that kill everything that isn't for the balance.," Grys said in a humorous tone of voice, that seemed almost passive-aggressive.
"Of course, some immortals are given gigs as Duped, servants of the Life-Enders. We also know when you're gonna die, like you-," Eieno said before Grys covered her mouth.
"No spoilers. She might try to change it once she knows. It's better not to ponder about the unknown.," Grys said to dissuade Nanao from further questions.
"But, this unknown being known is alright?," Genshirõ asked.
"Oh...you likely know this one better than anyone.," Grys said more menacingly as he opened a stone doorway into a huge room with large tombs lined up vertically on either side, alit by torches. They looked weathered, ominous and towering. Each had a symbol unique to each specific tomb. Nanao narrowed her gaze on two of the tombs.
"Two of them are empty. One doesn't look like it ever had anything and the other looked like something escaped out of it..," the black haired girl noted, seeing that one was opened with no apparent individual ever inside and the other with the door forced open.
"We needed a complete set in case we ever got him and the other...went on a bit of a rampage before he was put down by a stranger. Sorry, the name stays a secret for a little bit.," Grys explained.
"You brought us over here for a reason. Mind if you stop beating around the bush?," asked Kyōraku more seriously than usual, emitting a powerful Spiritual Pressure.
Grys wasn't intimidated, but he just gave a sigh while Eieno looked on.
"You believe that Menos have 3 levels- Gillian, Adjuchas and Vasto Lorde...that's only partially true from a public standpoint. Certain Vasto Lorde who manage to break their limits without going Hollow become something greater...something more human-like.," he said as he then conjured an image that looked very familiar yet strange at the same time-
A pale white skinned version of a Soul Reaper with a hole in the middle of their abdomen area.
"What is this?," Genshirō asked.
"Oh it's more of a theoretical example, they go from being monstrous to going back to human like, but not like Arrancar, their masks are now hidden unless they need it for an extra power boost. What's in the tombs are something greater than that and what's needed for the future.," Grys explained. The white Soul Reaper than vanished quickly as it appeared.
"What was that?," Nanao asked.
"It's a Gran Rey Hueco (Grand Hollow King), it's what the Grand Rey Cero is named after, the reason why being lost to the ages to the common populace of Hueco Mundo. They're Vasto Lorde who bypassed their limits to regain human like forms without breaking their masks. A Royal Guard member would struggle with them- maybe even lose if they ever got into a fight. They're essentially humans with Hollow powers like a mask, but they got pale white skin and holes in their stomaches. And also the creepy black eyes with yellow irises.," Eieno said, in a pseudo-creepy voice.
"That's right, but what's in the tomb that's the bigger deal...it's where the Hollows came from...Or rather, it's their blood sample that the Soul Kings took to create their own monsters that the Hollows came from.," Grys explained.
"Excuse me...what?," Nanao asked with a shocked expression on her face.
"Why don't we ask them about the story?," Grys said with a slightly comedic, but also threatening tone of voice as he reached for one of the tomb covers.
Shunsui got in front of Grys with his Shunpo.
"Something tells me that it's going to be very dangerous if you open that.," the Head Captain said.
"What you saw before you were brought her, wasn't even the tip of the iceberg of what's coming once the Gates of Hell break loose, more like a sliver. It's better to fight fire with fire., Monsters with Monsters" Grys said as he pushed Kyōraku aside and opened the covering, revealing a nine foot tall giant with pale white skin, a green flattop, and a Hollow hole in the center of his abdomen area.
"What is that?," Nanao asked as she took a battle stance.
Eieno then backed away to hide behind a rock.
"That's one of the progenitors of the Hollow race, a Dio Hueco (Hollow God). If we don't rely on them, we'll be in big trouble. Chief Reënboog gave me permission to...because the bigger threat just attacked Ichigo Kurosaki's son at his school and Ichigo Kurosaki himself is being taken to the Soul Emperor under false charges, based on the trickery of those creatures We, as in those who under the Six Soul Kings aligned with them in the first place because they seemed to be a fair alliance as what came before wasn't nearly as fair , but now that they're not willing to play by the rules. We're cutting our loses here and now in order to save our skin...and maybe your skins as well as a bonus.," Grys explained.
Kyōraku, Genshirō and Nanao's eyes widened with shock.
"Ichigo Kurosaki is under arrest?," the black haired girl asked.
Grys didn't reply to this statement, but nodded.
Kyōraku looked at the tall man within the tomb.
"So that's a Dio Hueco? Compared to the Hollows we face, they're much less frightening to look in comparison.," the man said with a light-hearted tone.
"I'd stay back...he's about to wake up.," Grys said in a foreboding, happy sounding tone.
Kyōraku instinctively leaped backwards as the Dio Hueco opened his eyes and stepped out of the tomb. His irises were bright green.
He then yawned and he walked to the other tombs, tapping on each individually and ignoring the other much smaller than he was.
"Awaken my brethren.," he said in a respectful and archaic tone of voice as the tombs' covers burst opened as seventeen other individuals rose from the tombs.
Nanao looked in utter shocked terror as she saw the entities before her.
Eighteen shadows loomed over the opposing wall.
"So this is your ace in the hole?," Kyōraku asked.
Grys gave a nervous gulp in reply as he nodded.
An eight foot tall Dio Hueco whose head and shoulders were covered in black bandages and looked at Kyōraku. He reached out his palm and Nanao was somehow pulled towards him. The palm closed when it grabbed her chest, slowly crushing it.
He then turned to look at Kyōraku with red sclera eyes as he asked with an aloof and sophisticated tone of voice-
"Where is the Deus Ex Machina? The thing your ilk calls the Hogyokū?"
"If I tell you? You'll help us?," Kyōraku asked as he bowed, looking at Nanao with saddened eyes. Humbling himself in order to save her life.
Genshirō clenched his hands at his helplessness to stop the situation from occurring.
Some of the Dio Hueco smirked at this suggestion. The bandaged one then proceeded to let Nanao go.
"Thank you. It's kinda ironic that we're helping each other. Soul Reaper and Hollow-," Kyōraku said before the bandaged man interjected.
"You bowing to us, Soul Reapers of the current blood. This is quite a contrast to the five that sealed us ages ago...now where is the holder of the relic we desire?"
Next Chapter: Light of the Sun