Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.

Chapter Forty-Two

Nel vs Nnoitora

"Ahhhhhh!" screamed Nel's friends as they ran in terror away from Tesra. Despite the blonde Arrancar's best efforts, the wily duo proved to by annoyingly fast. Tesra shot a Bala at the pair but Dondochaka ducked and it missed, blasting a hole in the wall ahead of them. The two took the opportunity to run out of the hole and led Tesra out into the desert beneath the dome.

"Hah!" Nnoitora smirked as he and Nel continued to do battle. It was clear that despite her exile, Nel still retained her warrior instincts and her edge. That said, Nnoitora's weapon had been altered since she'd last battled him and it gave the man a longer range to cut the woman. "What's so funny?" Nel asked, back flipping away.

"You gotta ask? Those pesky Fraccións of yours just ran out on you. Not that it matters where they run. Tesra's not the kind of guy who lets people go that easily. He's going to come back with their heads on a pike. Hope you're still alive so I can see the look on your face," he said with a sneer.

"Don't underestimate Pesche and Dondochaka." Nel merely glared at her nemesis as they locked weapons. "They kept me safe in the desert of Hueco Mundo all this time. No ordinary Hollow could do that. If I were you," her lips formed a smirk. "I'd be more worried about your subordinate."

Nel jumped back and held out her sword. "It looks like Orihime and Rukia need me. So I'll make this quick." Her eyes gleamed as she prepared herself. "Praise: Gamuza."

Nnoitora cursed as Nel disappeared with a burst of spirit energy. When she reappeared, she emerged in her Resurección, now a centaur clad in armor and armed with a green lance. "Goodbye, Nnoitora. My friends need me more than you need this pointless fight." She hauled back with her lance. "Lanzador Verde."

The Arrancar hurled her lance at Nnoitora. The tall Espada brought his weapon up to block the incoming attack. But Nel's strength was too much and her spinning lance tore through his weapon and struck him in the side, blood spilling from the wound. Cursing, the man dropped to one knee while pressing a hand to his bleeding side.

"Give up, Nnoitora." Nel slowly made her way over to her old enemy and pointed her lance at his face. "Otherwise I'll put a hole in your other eye."

It didn't surprise Nel one bit when Nnoitora looked up and scoffed at her. "Don't make me laugh. You're the one who doesn't stand a chance."

At that moment, Nel felt a sinister burst of spirit energy come from nearby. "That's…" She recognized the pressure. "Aaroniero? But…" She could feel the bizarre Arrancar's spiritual pressure and it felt darker and more sinister. "What happened to him?" Nnoitora's mocking laughter made her turn back to him. "What's so funny?"

"Heheheh…the look on your face." Nnoitora slowly reached for his eyepatch. "News flash, bitch. That number on your back doesn't mean jack anymore. Even Aaroniero could mop the floor with your ass."

"What are you talking about?" She sensed her former master's hand in this. "What has Aizen done?"

"Heh, he gave us all a new toy. Thanks to Halibel's new boytoy, we've got something that'll put all of you in the ground." Nnoitora ripped off his eyepatch, revealing the cube in his eye. "Feast your eyes on our new Mejorada Resurección!" Nnoitora swung with his weapon and forced Nel to jump backwards. Raising his weapon high, he grinned from ear to ear. "Last time I dumped your carcass outside of Las Noches. This time there won't even be a body left to throw away! Pray: Santa Teresa!"

As Nnoitora's weapon glowed yellow, the cube in his head came alive with black and red energy. Nel braced herself as the Espada was engulfed in a tornado of volatile energy. "This…pressure…so heavy…" she grunted, her hooves skidding as the massive pressure pushed her back.

Then, out of the tornado, a black, clawed arm shot out and grabbed her by the throat…

Meanwhile…
Halibel vs. Grimmjow

The dome of Las Noches burst, Grimmjow spilling out and landing in a heap on the roof of the fortress. He made it to his feet as Halibel emerge from the hole in the roof, her eyes burning with pure fury. "Hot damn. If this was all it took to get you to fight me, I should have snatched that brat as soon as you popped her out." Despite his glee at getting to fight the Number Three Espada, he was, to turn a phrase, getting wrecked. Most of his chest was burned and his face was covered with blood.

Halibel said nothing. She simply held out her sword and pointed it down. "Hunt: Tiberon!" Grimmjow watched as his former comrade disappeared in a torrent of water to reveal her release state. "Grimmjow…you have always been a barbarian, even more than Nnoitora. But you are a complete fool." Her eyes narrowed with hatred. "You dare try to trick me using my own daughter. I'll paint Las Noches with both yours and Aizen's blood."

If Grimmjow was intimidated, his grin didn't show it. "Hah, say what you want, but you know this is exactly what Lord Aizen wants. Hell, you even knocked me up here above the dome just to release. Seems like you still respect him enough to follow his rules."

The pissed-off Halibel disappeared from Grimmjow's sight, slipping right past his Pesquisa and giving him a massive bitchslap, sending him sprawling to the ground. "Don't you dare think I'm following his orders. I only dragged you up here because in my release state, I could destroy Las Noches while Ichigo and Asahi are still inside." She heard Grimmjow chuckling and it only stoked her fury. "What the hell is so funny?!" She swung her huge broadsword, charging it with a Cero before blasting Grimmjow away.

Most of his body burnt to a crisp, Grimmjow struggled to get to his feet and only barely brought his sword up in time to block Halibel's, his blade cracking from the sheer power bearing down on him. "You really think…you can win? Heh…heheheh…"

"I see you've already lost your mind. I'm Number Three. You're Number Six. You don't stand a chance in hell against me."

"And it looks like, your boyfriend has made you lose yours. You really think Lord Aizen would let me fight you without a winning hand? Szayelapporo has been busy with Ichigo's spirit energy," he explained.

Halibel swung hard again and knocked him back. "And? So what? Are you going to power up too? I've seen what happens. You'll only blow yourself up."

"That was when a simple Arrancar like Barragan's men used it. But while you were taking your sweet time getting here, Szayelapporo put the finishing touches on it. Wanna guess what happens when an Espada incorporates your little fucktoy's spirit energy into themselves?"

Halibel didn't need an answer. At that moment, she felt Aaroniero's spirit energy down below. "What?! This…can't be!" Her eyes widened with horror when Orihime's spiritual pressure disappeared. "No! Orihime!"

The expression on Halibel's face made Grimmjow laugh. "Hah! To think you'd care about some girl. I guess Barragan wasn't kidding when he said you were feeling Human again. Like I'd lose to some touchy-feely bitch like you. You went to the World of the Living and spread your legs to the first guy you found. And when you realized you fucked up, you ran and hid like a coward. Well, unlike you…" Grimmjow removed his sash to reveal the cube in his Hollow hole. "I'm a Hollow, through and through. Aizen said I can't kill you…but that only makes this so much more fun. You're about to find that the number on your tits means nothing anymore! Grind: Pantera!"

Ichigo's black and red spirit energy erupted from the cube, Grimmjow disappeared in a burst of power. Halibel braced herself as Grimmjow's spiritual pressure grew monstrous, surpassing even her own. "Aizen…what have you done?"

A figure burst through the tornado of power and shot towards Halibel. The Espada swung her massive sword at Grimmjow and knocked him back. But when she pulled back, she was horrified to see that a huge chunk of her sword was gone.

Grimmjow stood in his new form, completely healed. His form had become bestial, even more than before. His hair had now grown longer, sprawling down his back like a mane, and had turned pure white save for the blue tips on the ends. At the crest of his head, his hair was black and his eyebrows were alight with blue flame, giving him a crown-like appearance. He'd lost the white armor that usually covered his body and now his chest was covered in black tattoos. His lower half was covered in white fur, also covered in black stripes similar to the tattoos on his chest. The fur on his arms and legs blended into black as they reached his hands and feet, now horribly clawed. Behind the Espada, two tails whipped madly, kicking up a flurry of dust. His Hollow hole on his stomach was aflame with black and red spirit energy.

Spitting out the chunks of Halibel's sword he bit off, Grimmjow leered at her and took a stance. "Get ready, bitch. You're about to find out who's top dog now."

The empowered Grimmjow lunged for Halibel. She raised her sword up and focused her energy to fire a Cero but he was too fast. She screamed as Grimmjow's claws tore into her belly and was sent sprawling by the impact. "Guhhh…"

Then she felt Orihime's spiritual pressure fade to nothing. "Orihime!"

Grimmjow stood over her. "Looks like Aaroniero's busy chowing down on your friends. That's right, Halibel…" He grinned when he saw the horror on her face. "This is the end for you. For all of you."

Meanwhile…
With Ichigo

Ichigo could sense the terrible spiritual pressures echo all across Las Noches. He remembered feeling something similar during the earlier fight in Karakura Town. It felt like there were multiple Ichigo's fighting right now. "This is-"

Ulquiorra snapped his fingers and the images on the walls disappeared. "Szayelapporo took traces of your spirit energy during your first encounter with Barragan and incorporated it into his men's bodies. However, it appeared that nobody less than an Espada could withstand your energy. As a result, Barragan's men only experienced a superficial power-up and most of them ended up exploding from being unable to contain it. Shortly before you arrived, however, Szayelapporo perfected the process and Lord Aizen gave us all enhanced release states using your spirit energy. We call them the Mejorada Resurección."

"Mejorada…Resurección?"

"Correct." Ulquiorra snapped his fingers again and two images came up on the walls. One was of Aaroniero and the other Grimmjow, both in their new forms. "These new transformations grant us extraordinary power. You may have been trained by the third strongest Espada. But now all of us surpass even your master. Like it or not, you and Halibel are now at the bottom of the totem pole."

Hearing such harshness from the cold Espada's words made Ichigo's blood boil. "Barragan thought he was invincible too. And I still beat him."

"No. You did not." Ulquiorra was as blunt as a mallet. "You did not 'beat' Barragan. Your battle with our Number Two was not decided by strength, skill or power. You were only able to claim victory because you were able to trap him in the Precipice World on the day that the Cleaner just so happened to be passing through. Do not try to pass that off as a victory, Ichigo Kurosaki. Victory by luck is no victory at all." Once more Ulquiorra snapped his fingers. The images of the two Espada were replaced by a large image of the ruined portion of Karakura Town, decayed skeletons lying about the streets. "The Soul Society charged you with protecting Karakura Town as its Deputy. Does this look like victory to you?"

Again, Ichigo said nothing. All he could was stare at the image with shame gnawing at him. He didn't dare verbally admit that Ulquiorra was right but deep in his heart, he knew that his victory against Barragan meant nothing compared to the massive loss of life that'd happened as a result.

The argument was interrupted when Ichigo felt Orihime and Rukia in trouble. Turning around, he headed down the hallway. "Where do you think you're going?" Ulquiorra asked, not moving an inch.

"I'm going to help my friends. I'll be back for you later," he threatened. But he didn't get very far before he felt Orihime's spiritual pressure vanish completely. Fear and anguish stabbed his heart as he realized what just happened. "Ori…hime?" he mumbled as the reality set in.

"Is dead," said Ulquiorra. The cold Espada slowly walked his way towards the anguished Ichigo. "One of the Ninth Espada's powers is Synchronized Awareness. He can broadcast everything he's seeing to his comrades instantaneously. So that's how I know when I say that Orihime Inoue is dead. Aaroniero devoured her whole. And there's no way you'll be able to reach Rukia Kuchiki in time before she suffers the same fate."

"Nghh!" Tears started to fall down Ichigo's face. The thought of Orihime, the kindest person that he knew, dead because she chose to follow him to this hell was heartbreaking. "You…monsters…"

"You have only yourself to blame. Had you accepted Lord Aizen's initial offer, your friends would not have to suffer. All of this could have been avoided if you hadn't decided to try to fight your fate. If you want to condemn someone for the death of your friends, look in the mirror."

Ichigo started to shake from head to toe, tears dripping onto the floor. First grief washed over him. And with the grief came emptiness. Orihime didn't deserve to die. Not like this. Not because Ichigo had asked her to help him rescue his daughter. The idea that his friend had been murdered by these monsters filled the emptiness that carved away at him with red hot anger. "No…it's not my fault…" he finally mumbled. Slowly he reached for the hilt of Zangetsu.

"Don't even bother. You stand no chance, Ichigo Kurosaki. Your only hope of survival is to join us. Even the Soul Society sees you as Lord Aizen's weapon. And we Espada agree with that assessment. No matter what you say or do, you will always be within Lord Aizen's grasp."

Staying silent, Ichigo took Zangetsu and pulled it off his back. "Left and right, all I hear is everyone saying that I'm Aizen's puppet. That I'm just his tool, his weapon, his pawn. Well I'm sick of it. Everything that I've had to endure. All the hardships I've had to face has been because of his twisted meddling. Well I'm sick of it…" He turned around and already Ulquiorra could see he was transforming into his Vasto Lorde state. "This is all Aizen's fault! I'm going to make you all pay for what you've done. I'M GOING TO KILL YOU! AND THEN I'M GOING TO MURDER THE OTHER ESPADAS! AND THEN I'M GOING TO RIP AIZEN LIMB FROM LIMB!"

Now transformed into his Hollowfied state, Ichigo released his Bankai and charged at Ulquiorra, his blade bursting with spirit energy full of hatred. The Espada coolly drew his zanpakuto and prepared himself as Ichigo rushed him.

"Fool."

Meanwhile…
With Rukia

Laying half-buried in rubble, Rukia could do nothing but scream and cry in horror from what she just saw. There was nothing left of Orihime. Aaroniero had swallowed her whole. "GIVE HER BACK!" she screamed, clawing to get out of the rubble to get to her fallen zanpakuto.

"Now, now. Getting angry isn't going to bring her back. You brought this on yourselves when you followed Ichigo Kurosaki here." Aaroniero slowly walked over to the fallen Rukia, enjoying the sight of her struggling. "She was delicious. We haven't tasted anything like her. Orihime was a delicacy among Humans. Hahahahaha!" the creature cackled, pointing a finger at Rukia while she finally freed herself. "The look on your face is priceless! Tell me, were you two close? Please tell me you were. It makes this all the more better."

"Shut…your…mouth!" Rukia screamed. "Hadō #33: Sokatsui!" She unleashed her blue fireball and hit Aaroniero point blank in its left face. Over and over again she fired her spell at him. But for all her skill in Kidō, it was nothing to Aaroniero, who walked calmly towards her. The Espada wasn't even fazed.

"You're a slow learner, Rukia. Nothing you can do can save her. She is already a part of us. Watch." Aaroniero raised a hand. "Santen Kesshun."

Out of Aaroniero's chest burst three spiky objects that formed a purple shield in front of it. The shield easily blocked Rukia's last fireball. Rukia stood in horror at the realization that Aaroniero now had Orihime's powers. Still, her anger and anguish blocked the pain of her damaged spine and legs and she slowly made it to her feet. Picking up her zanpakuto, she recklessly charged at the Espada. "How dare you?! You have no right to use Shun Shun Rikka!"

Aaroniero grinned with its two faces and one of its tentacles rose up to block Rukia's strike. Rukia's Sode no Shirayuki stabbed into the tentacle only to suddenly disintegrate, much to Rukia's horror. "What? Guh!" she cried out when Aaroniero grabbed her by the throat.

"Did you forget that we have all of Metastacia's abilities? And that includes the power to make a Soul Reaper's zanpakuto disappear? Don't worry. You won't miss it for long." Aaroniero raised its maw and then, like with Orihime, licked Rukia's face with it. "Heheheh…looks like Kaien Shiba gets his revenge after all."

"Guhhh! Give…back…Orihime…" she gasped in vain. "You…aren't…Kaien."

"Shhhh…it'll all be over soon. You'll see Orihime again…inside our belly." Aaroniero raised its maw, the horrible appendage growing in size and looming over her head.

"Nghhh…Ori…hime…." Closing her eyes, Rukia waited for the end, her mind traveling backwards to a better time…

The night was filled with a map of stars. Orihime and Rukia stared up at them, lying on a blanket together. "Hey, Orihime…" Rukia started, breaking the silence between them. "Um…I don't really know how to say this…" She looked away as uncertainty masked her face. "I never really got the chance to say it before but…thank you for coming to save me."

Orihime's soft smile beamed like a ray of sunshine in the night. "You don't need to thank me, Rukia. When I heard about what happened to you, I swore to myself I wouldn't let you die."

Emotion flushing her face, Rukia scooted closer to her friend. "Thank you. I know that you went through so much just for me. And…after Ichigo told you the truth about Halibel, I know that must've been hard on you."

Reaching forward, Orihime took hold of Rukia's hand. "It was. I was hurt when I found out about her and Ichigo but then…spending time with you here…made me realize something."

"What?"

"That you matter to me just as much as Ichigo does."

Her eyes tearing up, Rukia let her instincts guide her and leaned forward, surprising Orihime with a kiss. Orihime's eyes widened, having never kissed another girl before but she quickly wrapped her arms around Rukia in return. When Rukia broke the kiss, the girl smiled at her friend. "You matter to me too, Orihime. You're more than just my friend."

Back in the real world, the maw was about to come down on the helpless Rukia's head, Aaroniero's twin faces cackling with glee.

"I Reject."

"Huh?" The face on the left turn to its companion. "Who said that?"

"Wasn't us." The face on the right looked at the limp Rukia. "Wasn't her, either. Where-"

"I Reject."

Aaroniero stopped cold when it realized that the voice came from both of them. "What? How?"

"How is she still conscious?! She should have become part of our consciousness by now!"

"I Reject!"

CRACK!

A large crack in Aaroniero's chest appeared. Dropping Rukia, the Espada staggered backwards and looked down at itself, a new terror forming on its faces. "WHAT? NO!"

Rukia allowed herself to chuckle. "You swallowed more than you can chew. Orihime isn't just some Human girl." She looked up at Aaroniero and smiled. "Her heart is too strong to ever let it be taken by someone like you."

A golden glow erupted from the crack, widening it until it looked like Aaroniero would be split clean in half. "THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING?! WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE INVINCIBLE!"

From the crack came Orihime's voice. "Sōten Kisshun! I REJECT! I REJECT! I REJECT!"

"LORD AIZEN!" the left head called out to its master, hoping for salvation. "SAVE US!"

But it looked like Aizen had no intention of saving his subordinate. Rukia watched as more cracks formed on Aaroniero's body. "You get what you deserve you monster."

"DAMN YOUUUUUUUUU!" Aaroniero screamed at Rukia. It pointed its maw at her in order to take her with it but it was too late to do anything. The crack in its chest burst brighter and the Ninth Espada finally exploded, torn apart from the inside. Rukia covered her eyes as the monster finally detonated, blown to pieces. When the dust settled, Rukia finally took her arm away from her eyes to see what'd became of Aaroniero. All that was left of the twisted Arrancar were the creature's feet-hands. With Aaroniero dead and gone, its power over Sode no Shirayuki vanished and it reappeared next to Rukia.

And there, lying on the floor, was Orihime.

Shielded by her healing barrier, Orihime panted for breath before returning her spirits to her hairpins. Her clothes had been shredded thanks to the teeth in Aaroniero's maw. "Wow…now I know what it's like to be a noodle…" she panted. While Orihime wasn't able to protect herself from getting devoured, before she was assimilated inside the monster's belly, the girl used the last of her strength to put up a barrier around herself, slowly expanding it until she gave Aaroniero a little more than just indigestion.

Rukia crawled towards Orihime and the girls hugged. "Thank goodness you're alive! I…I was so scared you were gone!" Rukia tearfully cried.

Orihime hugged her friend. "I'm okay, Rukia. Although…" She looked down and frowned at her torn clothes. Her shirt and skirt were in tatters and her underwear was showing through them. "I hope he had a wardrobe stashed somewhere."

"We'll look for one later." Rukia kissed Orihime before she winced in pain. "Before that though, we should heal ourselves and go help the others."

"Right. I can sense that Nel's in trouble!" Orihime went to work in healing them both. While they both took comfort and knowing that they'd eliminated a terrible opponent…they knew that their fight with Aizen's forces wasn't over.

They'd won the battle. But the war was just getting started.

To be continued