Hi, I started this at around 2 in the morning and slowly added pieces to it, So sorry if it 's a little bit jumpy.
How long had it been since he last enjoyed the company of another living creature? Days? Weeks? Even years? It's hard to tell time among the sands. Though only for a day he got the experience of having companions. But like most things it withered and died.
One step, Two steps. Further into the sand. Nothing but rolling dunes and Violence. He found that he no longer was searching for what he'd lost. Now he roamed the sands for the sole purpose of escaping it. There had been others after, But they died as well. it was never the same reason yet it was always his fault in one way or another.
After a time one will grow tired of caring and unfortunately that had happened. Many things were changing amongst the sands, power shifting from one side to another frantically with different factions attempting to control it. It was amusing how a seemingly stagnate world could be so lively.
No matter what he was doing, The time, The place, He'd always find himself pulled to the moon. Rarely taking his gaze from it some days never even. It was so alluring to him, It never moved only floated in the sky reflecting a dim light from a place he could never see.
" I wonder if even the moon needs a companion? " The Vasto Lorde thought aloud. Yes, he was talking to himself and the question made no sense from an outside prospective. But it was a question he'd ask himself quite often.
A crunching sound like multiple feet pattering away at the sand drew his gaze downwards, From atop the sand hill he was positioned on he could see 3 figures walking towards his position. They were maybe 1-2 hundred feet out from what he could tell. ( Or 30-60 Meters )
Something that stuck out to him was the long aquamarine colored hair on the heads of one of them. I mean hell, It was like a reflector nearly impossible to miss. As well as the pristine fit white uniforms the three humanoids wore.
The closer they got the more defined an image he could put together. The Aquamarine hair belonged to a woman also noticing what appeared to be a fragment of a mask? The other two seemed to be men with Hollow mask's on their faces. One being insectoid with an eye covered and small tufts of blonde hair poking around the back.
The other was.. Well it's hard to describe. It looked like a cantaloupe with a face and teeth that took having a big head a bit too far. He could for sure see they were looking at him directly as they walked which made him curious. The uniforms they wore were eerily similar to Shinigami uniforms but the colors seemed inverted.
He'd long since learned that nobody actively sought him out. Actually it was quite the opposite Hollow's would do their best to avoid or go around him if at all possible and judging by the Reiatsu coming from them they were most definitely Hollows.
He tilted his head to the side slightly, The long Ash Black boney tail attached to him swishing at random. They kept getting closer and closer. By this point they were at the bottom of the sand hill he was standing on. But the woman stopped causing the other two to do the same.
He figured he'd at least see what they wanted, And if it was to fight him he'd just go elsewhere. After a small hop down he was within spitting distance of the group. He could tell who was the strongest considering the two men had begun to slowly shake.
Neither side said anything, Just studying one another until the woman opened her mouth to speak. Only to be cut off before she got a word out.
" Arrancar. " It was a word that had come back to him. He'd heard it once before from a Vasto Lorde he'd fought. At the time he thought it was just the rambling of a long since lost mind but now he understands what they meant. Humanoid, Only a fragment of their mask and a hole in their body to prove they are in fact a Hollow.
The woman nodding which confirmed he was correct. " Do you have names then? " His head slightly ajar.
" We do, My name is Nelliel Tu Odelscwanck, These are my Fracciones Pesche Guatiche. " She pointed at the Insectoid masked Arrancar. " And this is Dondochakka Bristanne " Dondochakka waved his hand afterwords.
" And you? "
" Just Ao. " He raised his arms crossing them.
" Alright, Since Introductions are out of the way I suppose we ought to get down to business. " The woman adopted a more serious face and tone compared to a moment ago where she seemed rather.. Bubbly? Yet elegant at the same time.
" Since you know what we are, I assume you know of Lord Aizen? " She watched the Vasto lorde look up at the moon with a raised eyebrow.
" I've heard that name many times. He forcefully removed the self proclaimed God - King of Hueco Mundo didn't he? " Now looking back at the Arrancar and Company.
" Indeed, And he's the reason we are here. For you, To bring you back to Las Noches with us as he wishes to speak with you. "
Now that he actually thought about it, He'd heard multiple of the Hollow's that challenged him say something about a prize to lord Aizen. Though there was no good reason to pay attention to it since it was always the same.
With all this in mind the spark of curiosity had set a fire in his mind. The short version : He was curious.
" Mm, But how did you find me? " It wasn't like he was impossible to find but it wasn't a walk in the park either. He was always moving from one place to another Never remaining anywhere for long.
" Actually, It was Lord Aizen that told us how to find you. ' Follow the moon, And there you will find him. ' .. cryptic but not untrue. "
" So, Will you come with us peacefully? " Up till now the two male Arrancar's behind her had been silent and seemed to be slightly afraid of the Vasto Lorde. In honesty who could blame them? He didn't look the least bit friendly.
And yet they still spoke. The two bowing their heads from behind the woman asked in a polite tone.
" Please come with us, Don't make Lady Nel fight. " Even through their fairly obvious fear they had gathered the courage to speak up and make a request to a being that is far stronger than them self.
In his mind that was praiseworthy. " Alright, I'll come with you. But you're going to have to explain to me what this Aizen person wants of me. " The Fracciones rose their heads with a loud exhale as if they'd dodged a bullet.
That seemed fair, So she began to elaborate. " Lord Aizen is gathering the strongest beings in Hueco Mundo to recruit them and make them like us. I'm fairly sure it's the same for you. "
" I see.. " He gave the moon one more glance as if to ponder it. If this Aizen person was as strong as he assumed him to be refusing would do him no good. And these Arrancar's don't seem to have any intent to fight.
" Alright, Lets go, I do not wish to fight you so I will come peacefully. " He said looking back down from the moon.
The body language of the three told him they were hoping this would be the outcome. The serious expression and tone the woman had was mostly gone left only a smile.
( I genuinely don't know how Arrancar's get around Hueco Mundo so i'm going to say they just walk/run like Regular Hollows do. Correct me if I'm wrong though. )
" We have a long ways to go, So we should set out. " The group closed their eyes for a moment before they turned and began to walk.
How did they know exactly where to go you might wonder? Well, Leaving small marker's of Reiatsu in a place can let you leave and come back by Sensing your Reiatsu once you find it you just follow the trail back to where the marker was left. Or in the case of Las Noches follow the absurd amount of Reiatsu due to all the Arrancar's present.
He followed the group silently remaining a ways back. They would walk like that for several days never changing formation. But in turn him staying in the back and watching the group he learned more about them. This Nelliel woman was extremely kind but for some reason keeps up a facade.
Her Fraccione Dondochakka and Pesche are similar in personality and extremely loyal to the point of jumping into a Beasts mouth to save her if necessary. The fracciones would always look at him when they thought he wasn't paying attention. Which he guessed made sense that they would be wary.
Every so often they would talk to him, Start some form of conversation but he had nothing to say so it was always short. Not that he minded he supposed the thought was nice enough.
Stepping over another dune of sand there it was. A massive building.. No, a Castle fit for a king and his army. There was one thing that the Arrancar's taught him along their journey. The Sonido, A high speed movement technique similar to the Shinigami's flash step. He'd never known it existed before just using his raw speed rather than any technique to move around since the Sonido had a good deal to do with the way you actually moved your feet rather than just pushing off of them.
He practiced it a few times but was by no means a master at it. But he began to use the Sonido multiple times in spurts to go from the back of the group to a fair distance ahead of them getting the que they did the same following him to the building.
It didn't take long to make it to a massive white door, Seconds after he arrived the other three did the same. With the Aquamarine haired Arrancar almost Pouting at him which confused him.
" Don't run off like that! At least say something first. "
" Sorry. " Turning to the door he raised a hand to it and pushed it open.
" Wai-! " She was going to stop him but by the time she got it out the door was already open.
A severe case of wrong place, Wrong time. A dagger found itself planted in his ribcage. And then another, And another. After he realized it was booby trapped he began to dodge the daggers. Almost comically. Once the daggers had stopped flying he looked behind him at the Arrancars.
" Sorry- " He said again before pulling the dagger out and throwing it aside.
" It's fine, Just don't open doors. If anybody that's not recognized by Szayelaporro's stupid security system does they get hit with some kind of booby trap. "
" Un huh.. Who's Szayelaporro? " The wound in his chest quickly regenerating.
" Szayelaporro Granz, He's the researcher of Las Noches. But you'll be told about all that stuff later. " She walked over grabbing his wrist like you would if you led a child through the entrance.
She dragged him through multiple different winding Hallways and rooms. At one point into a massive open area on a bridge. But that wasn't what caught his eye.
After a glance upwards he stopped which in turn halted the Arrancar. " What is this? " He sounded bewildered.
Picking up on his question she answered. " It's an artificial sky made by Lord Aizen that he uses to Moniter Los Noches. "
" He made a sky? " In his mind the sky was a place untouched by any living creature. A place free of the burdens of the ground. A place only a god was allowed to tamper with.
The Fracciones behind chimed into the conversation. " Yeah, he did it before we got here though. "
" I see.. " Before they could resume their little mission however Nelliel made an obvious groan as did her Fracciones.
A tall lanky man was walking their way from the other side of the bridge who wore a similar Uniform with an eyepatch. And.. ( Okay seriously, What the fuck is his weapon called? Let me google this. Couldn't find the name.) A long metal pole with a chain attached to the base as well as his hip. The blade looked like two Crescent moons with their backs against one another.
He looked... Creepy? He also had shoes that looked strangely like an elf's shoes without the bells. But Ao wasn't really paying him any mind. His gaze was locked onto the fake sky as it fascinated him to no end.
The man had made his way up to the group focusing on Nelliel specifically. " Nnoitora, What can I do for you this time? " She forced out.
" I want a rematch, I've been looking for you but I couldn't find you. Well.. Until now that is. " The mans long tongue hung out of his mouth showing a number on his tongue. 8.
" I'm not going to fight you Nnoitora, I'm in the middle of a mission. " And finally the man noticed the Vasto Lorde in the group along with her fraccione.
" The hell's that thing doing here. " He pointed.
" Again, Lord Aizens business not yours. " She attempted to just drag Ao and her Fracciones past him but he moved in the way.
" Like I care, I want a fight right fucking now. " He demanded.
" I said no, Now move. " Sadly for her, He had no intention of doing that.
Ao finally looked down from the sky noticing they'd moved a bit. And the conflict between them. He had heard what they were saying he just wasn't paying attention to it.
" Move. " He said now looking slightly up at Nnoitora who was a bit taller than himself.
" Move? " The Arrancar looked at him like he was an insect.
He thought the Vasto Lorde was weak since he couldn't sense much Reiatsu from him. And as such went to backhand him. Much to his surprise when his hand was caught.
" Stop Interfering " He then quite literally pushed him off the bridge. Finding it not very hard considering the moment of shock he was in.
Not to say that Ao was stronger than Nnoitora. He just got caught off guard. Without much more of a word they continued through las Noches until they arrived at another large white door. This door was even larger than the one he'd opened before.
" So, What's in there? " He asked getting no response only for the door to open showing a massive room full of talking. A crowd of Arrancar? On the left and right. Straight ahead sat a throne which who he assumed to be Aizen sat on.
Once the door had opened the large crowd of talking had then become silent. All of their eyes glued to him. Nelliel and her Fracciones walked past him and to the right into one of the groups of people pointing him to the center of the room. So he walked in and stood there.
He was now face to face with technically the strongest being in Hueco Mundo. The man raised his hand in a greeting gesture. " So glad you could make it. " His voice was.. Soft? But you could almost feel the confidence in it from across the room.
" So you're the Vasto Lorde I've heard so much about. I presume Nelliel has explained why you are here? " Receiving a nod he continued.
" This is Las noches, As you know. Home to the Espada Which are the strongest of the Arrancar here. Numbering from 10 to 1. " He paused.
" I see. So that's what the numbers are for. " The man on the throne merely nodded.
" I'm going to get to the point, Would you like to join us? " The man stood pointing out at the large group of Arrancar to his left and right.
" What would that mean for me? " He asked with a slight squint.
" Well, It would mean that I will give you the power to Evolve. Take the next step in evolution to become an Arrancar. If you're strong enough you may even fight an Espada for their position. "
" It's not that I don't want to join your group.- " This irritated certain members of the crowd just being called a ' Group ' Mostly Grimjow.
" We're not some damn ' Group ' . This is an army! Anybody who can't see that shouldn't be here. "
The man who interupted was known as Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez The Sexta or Sixth Espada.
The Vasto Lorde turned his head to look at the blue haired Interruption. He was going to say something but didn't get the chance to.
" Grimmjow, Please take a seat. " The man on the throne asked in a serene voice. But that was all it took for the 6th to silence himself and sit down.
" I guess being a king has it's perks. " Ao said in a tone to emphasize he was joking.
With a small chuckle the man responded. " I suppose it does. So, You were saying? "
" I don't mind joining you and your, 'Army' but I don't want more power. " That one statement made Aizen squint ever so slightly.
" Well, That does pose a slight problem seeing as you need to be an Arrancar. " The man put his hand on his chin.
" Tell me something, What makes an Arrancar special? " Ao asked with a tilted head.
" Well, An Arrancar is the combination of a Hollow's power and a Shinigami's. "
" And to become one all I have to do is remove my mask? " he asked with the same tilt to his head.
" Mm, " The man pondered on how to answer for a moment. " Yes, But forcefully- " He started to say that Forcefully pulling off a mask isn't the best of idea's.
But was cut off by the Vasto Lorde's next action. He reached up putting a clawed hand on his masked face and began to rip it off. The Espada and others in the room even Grimmjow were cringing at the sight.
Hell, It even caught Aizen off Guard even if it didn't show. Ao's mask began to crack and snap as the cracks cascaded down his mask to his neck and further, A piece of the mask broke off revealing his right eye.
If he had to answer as to why he was doing this, He really had no reason not to. Everything to gain. And nothing to loose pain was never something that bothered him. As another chunk. And another chunk, Another fragment came loose showing more and more of his face.
As odd as it sounds, He'd had the feeling or.. urge? to take his mask off for a long time now. He just never did thinking it to be pointless.
The Ash black and blue bone mask and coating on his body gave way finally separating from his body fully, Leaving his bare body encased in a Dark blue energy that couldn't be seen through.
- Flash back.-
He awoke in a space separate from the home he's familiar with. An endless stretch of water he lay on his back in this water. But didn't sink sitting up and giving the area a glance it was endless Dark blue water with a massive moon loomed over it shining a radiant white light across the semi dark space. He couldn't tell the depth of the water, And oddly it never moved. Only ripples caused by his movement.
Standing up fully he finally saw it. A large stone. With a sword sticking out from the center. He walked towards it and just as he reached out to grab it he awoke.
- End of flash back. -
At the exact instant his mask broke he found himself in this familiar space again with an inkling about what to do. Taking a few steps towards the stone he grasped the handle and began to rip it from the stone, The further he removed it the more aggressive the water around him became. Until he'd removed it fully and the waves were in turmoil tossing and turning every which way.
He could barely make out a whisper, A word, No a name. " Tyde Break? "
After being kicked from this.. realm he remembered where he was. But something was different. Moments ago stood a monster made of Ashen black bones. And now stood a Man. Decently tall around 5'9 or so.( Or 152.4 Cm ) Long spikey black hair that down to his waist. With tan skin and muscular but lean build. Having a mask Fragment that covered the right side of his head. An Ash black mask fragment that had a large horn jutting out to the right side.
The fragments of his body began to glow and shift, Raising and conjoining in his left hand to form a sword, the sheath was Ash Black with a Navy Blue spiral crisscross pattern with a dark silver guard that spiraled in on itself to meet the tang which was a simple Black cloth with Diamond shaped Dark blue spots at intervals along. With a simple round dark silver pommel.
Oh, Yeah. He's buck naked. Causing most of the women to turn their heads. But Aizen's interest was officially more than piqued. He had just watched a Vasto Lorde forcefully evolve into an Arrancar. How was this possible? He'd never seen such a thing before. Under normal circumstances it takes a decent amount of time for the body to change so that it won't kill itself trying to combine the two energies into one.
The man on the throne looked down at the new Arrancar and asked the one question on his mind. " Did you use up your Reiatsu to force the evolution by using instant Regeneration as you removed your mask? " He said with his hand on his chin.
He tried to respond, But his vocal cords seem to be different as well it felt like he hadn't spoken a word in over a hundred years. It was actually hard to even get a whisper out. Aizen noticing this put his hand up to silence any attempt.
" Relax for a while, We can resume this conversation once you regain your voice. " In truth he wanted answers right then and there, But he was a patient man. A few hours or even days wouldn't be an issue.
" Nelliel, Find him a room would you? " He figured he'd ask her since they were already acquainted And then he took notice of the.. Elephant in the room? Specifically the one flapping in the wind.
" And some clothes. " He added that second part with a very slight hint of hilarity lining it.
And so, The same mop of Aquamarine hair and the other two masked Arrancar's popped out of the crowd making their way over. " Come on, You really need some clothes right now. "
He didn't really care about the lack of clothes personally as.. Well all Hollow's are naked technically. So it's more of a Shinigami thing. But nodded and followed all the same.
Before they left the man had one last question to ask, " I take it this means you intend to remain here? " The freshly born Arrancar turned and bowed before nodding before leaving with Nelliel.
After that display, She led him out of the room with decent distance between them winding through the building towards the living quarters, Each Arrancar had their own room even the Fracciones. After leading him to one of the many identical rooms she pointed inside.
It wasn't much, But it was better than anything he'd had before. There was an actual fucking bed. He went in looking around before finding a closet. Digging around in the few select options. He settled with an Overcoat it was long going down to the waist with a black trim he had a black tight fit shirt beneath it with the same Hakama Tabi and Zori.
The Espada was waiting outside of the room for him to finish along with her Fracciones patiently personally they were curious if he was well.. All - right, Mentally. The level of pain and.. just damage that a forced mask removal can do is extreme.
After a few minutes he walked out in front of the group. The three clapped as if complimenting the sword hung at his waist on the left side by a simple black cloth strap that wrapped around the sheath and then around his waist.
Being unable to speak was already beginning to irritate him. It was less exhaustion and more just as if he hasn't used his voice in a long time. Never the less even if it was rather slow he could feel it coming back to him. A few hours at most before the irritation of silence passes. Which is ironic considering he is normally a silent person.
" Well, You should situate yourself here, Rest for a while. We'll check up on you later. " And with that the three left off to do their own thing. That being? Nobody knows.
He really had no idea what to do, So he just laid in the bed provided, The feeling was.. Well when you spend an extremely long time sleeping on mother fucking sand and rocks. And then get to sleep on a soft bed. You'd understand. Taking only a minute or so for him to black out.
He had only just fallen asleep yet his eyes opened again, Back in this realm of water oddly it was relaxing. Being in the middle of the endless once more calm water. Sadly with all things the serenity didn't last.
Laying there on his back looking at the sky he saw.. Himself? He was crouched beside Ao. Same outfit and in general an exact copy of himself. " What are you? Oh, hey my voice is back. " He remarked looking at the copy.
" I'm you.. Sort of. It's a pain in the ass to explain. Listen, When you broke our mask. You separated me from you.. Damn this is giving me a headache. "
" So, You're me? "
" Kind of, I'm your past and current self. " The clone was scratching the side of his head.
" But, OH! Alright I'm pretty much your sword. " The clone shrugged.
The clone had the same deadpanned Black sclera and blue eyed face as Ao a strong face but nothing special.
" I don't wanna talk about this crap anymore, Say what about that Nelliel girl She was pretty hot. "
Ao Deadpanned at himself. " Are you sure you're a part of me? Because I doubt it. "
" Ouch, Rejection hurts man. "
" As interesting as this conversation is I'd rather be asleep. " He said before closing his eyes again. This time falling asleep for real He slept for around 7 hours straight only waking up due to the current violent shaking he was experiencing.
upon re-opening his eyes he saw Pesche and Dondochakka both had ahold of one of his arms and were shaking him like they were making an Arrancar smoothie.
Upon noticing him awake they quickly let go and backed away. " Sorry! We couldn't get you up.. No matter what we tried. "
" It's fi- " He coughed. " It's fine. " Now with a hand on his throat.
" What did you need? "
" Lady Nelliel sent us to wake you, Lord Aizen wishes to speak with you again. "
(Well, Thats two. I do hope it was good honestly thinking about it so much gave me a headach. But on another note, I appologise if the Espada rankings are, Or will be incorrect as I don't know what the espada rankings where at the time in canon.)