Chapter 5: Shackled together
Ichigo kept an eye on the Quincy, whom was still unconscious. He'd drunk a bit of water, but had left most of it for the other teen. With a piece of cloth torn from his Shihakusho, he'd wiped the blood off Uryu's pale face. After examining the blood on his right hand, he realized they had tortured him by pushing something sharp underneath his fingernails. Ichigo flinched at the thought. Uryu had told him he didn't think it was about revenge, but if that wasn't the case, the other teen had surely gotten the bad end of the deal.
With nothing else to do, Ichigo decided to get some rest himself. He preferred sleeping against the wall, in one of the corners, as that gave him a feeling of safety, even if it was false. When he tried to walk away, the chain of the shackles pulled tight and he cursed, having momentarily forgotten he was now chained to Uryu. He grabbed the other teen by the shoulders and dragged him over the floor towards where he wanted to go. Hoping he hadn't added up to any injury underneath the other's clothing.
Spreading out onto the hard floor, he didn't have a lot of freedom to move with his shackled wrist. He let his back rest against the wall, laying on his side. His gaze went over to the Quincy sprawled out besides him and his eyes set on the soft rise and fall of his chest. Staring at the gentle rhythm of that movement made him relax and soon he drifted off to a dreamless sleep.
How long Ichigo had slept, he had no idea as of the passing of time were lost in this blank, windowless room, but he woke up feeling more rested than before. He was still laying on his side, but had turned to face the wall. He blinked a few times while his eyes adjusted to the dimmed lights, realizing he wasn't in his warm bed, but in that damned cell. Yawning brought moisture to his eyes, but he blinked it away in amazement. Something warm was pressed against his back and an arm was draped loosely over his waist. In his sleep, Uryu must have fitted their bodies together for warmth.
"Uuum… Ishida?" He was a little embarrassed. The Substitute glanced over his shoulder to find the other boy was still sleeping.
"Hmmmm?" Was the response he got while the Quincy buried his face against Ichigo's sleeping back and pulled him close.
"Ha! You will turn beet red the minute you wake up." Ichigo couldn't help but chuckle. Trying to downplay the situation helped him to keep his spirits up.
"Hmm? W-what?" Uryu yawned while slowly opening his eyes.
"Good morning, sunshine. Was it as good for you as it was for me?" Ichigo quipped.
"What?" The other teen jolted awake. Realizing what he was doing, he released his hold over Ichigo and sat up straight. His cheeks flushing crimson.
"Called it!" Ichigo laughed.
"Kurosaki… w-what?" asked the confused Quincy while readjusting his glasses with the dim hope of hiding his embarrassment. He pulled Ichigo's arm towards him by doing so, as he hadn't taken the shackle into account. The latter lost his balance and toppled forward, successfully pinning the Quincy beneath him. Uryu froze and just stared up at him in undiluted surprise and with heated cheeks.
"Owww…Don't be like that, Ishida. It was so nice to wake up with you pressed up against me." Ichigo joked with a sultry voice. The other boy looked at him angrily.
"Don't make fun of me like that!" Uryu pushed him off of him. "You must have been so stupid as to pull my shackle forward! That's why my arm was around your waist, you moron!" The archer tried to defend himself, but the Substitute just covered his mouth with his palm to keep him from laughing out loud.
"Come on. I'm just yanking your chain, Ishida." The Substitute couldn't keep his hearty giggles in any longer and just burst into unfiltered laughter.
"Kurosaki!" Uryu yelled as his cheeks turned even brighter. "You idiot!"
Ichigo let the Quincy rant about the indignant situation for a few more moments, before the teen suddenly clasped his head.
"Are you feeling dizzy again?" Ichigo had instantaneously changed the atmosphere and showed genuine concern.
"Yes, I sat upright very sudden and-"
"I've saved water and a chunk of bread for you." Ichigo interrupted him, as he recalled water being a key element to keep the other's blood pressure under control. Uryu looked up, releasing his head when Ichigo sat up in front of him. "It's over there on the tray, but you'll have to come with me… unless you want me to carry you, bridal style." He really couldn't help himself and the bewildered look the other teen shot him was priceless.
"Idiot!" Uryu shouted while Ichigo burst into laughter again.
"I'm just trying to lift your spirit up, you know. Sorry if I offended you." The substitute said and stood up, rattling the shackles. Uryu looked away and pushed himself off the ground with his hands, hissing when his abused fingers dug into the floor. "How's your hand?" Ichigo asked him, and held out his own. The Quincy hesitated for a moment, but grabbed the other's hand to stand up more easily.
"I've had worse… although I don't recall when this happened." They walked over to the wall where the tray lay on the floor and proceeded to sit down. Uryu first had a bit of water that made him cough again. He then ate the bread while Ichigo just watched him in silence for a bit before pressing what had happened.
"What do you remember of when they took you?" Uryu stopped eating for a moment and looked at the Substitute.
"I remember everything up until a certain point. They chained me up to some sort of table and let me wait for a fairly long time, while activating the collar a few times. Szayelaporro was probably asking you questions during that time."
"Yeah." Ichigo answered. "And whenever he zapped me, you felt it too." Uryu nodded to that.
"That's what I figured." He tore off a piece of bread and chewed it down. "When that freak Espada showed up, he started asking me questions about you."
"About my Hollow form? That's what he wanted to know from me." Uryu didn't anwser that, but just looked down at his feet, taking another bite from his piece of bread. "Yeah, I thought so…." said the Substitute, validating the silence for him.
"I… I didn't want to tell him anything, so after he realized that I wasn't going to talk, he injected me with something."
"Sounds familiar."
"After that… things got blurry and…. I don't know how much information he's gotten out of me. It was like… my lips were moving on their own." The Quincy sighed, and looked at Ichigo with concern in his eyes. "Sorry, Kurosaki… I…"
"Hey, you were drugged. Alright."
"Yes, but…"
"No buts." He looked at Uryu intently. "I understand, Ishida."
The other teen sighed again. "Yes, but I don't want to be a liability so he can use that information against you."
"He could as well have gotten the info out of me. He drugged me too."
The Quincy chewed on his last piece of bread. "There was something strange, though. I don't remember what, but right before my memory gets foggy, that's the last thing I can remember. That he shocked me with something."
"Maybe it'll come back to you?" Ichigo said.
"Maybe." Uryu answered, absently clutching his tortured right hand. When he hissed again, the Substitute asked:
"You sure, that hand's okay?"
"Marvelous, Kurosaki." Uryu snarked. "There's nothing I can do about it anyway. The bleeding must've stopped while I was unconscious, so I can only keep those cuts clean and hope my fingers will heal fast." Ichigo nodded and put his arms behind his head, leaning into the wall.
They just sat there for a while, talking about everyday things, as they had nothing to do. Ichigo asked the Quincy lots of questions, as it bothered him there were so many details he didn't know. Uryu didn't always feel like answering embarrassing questions, but things like his favorite food and favorite movies were open for discussion. After some time, Ichigo noticed the other teen was softly tapping his feet on the floor.
"Why are you fidgeting like that?"
Uryu was looking down. "I need to use the toilet." Ichigo looked up at him and saw unease on his face.
"So? Just go already. Your tapping is annoying me."
"I can't." The Quincy held up his left wrist and shook the shackle to prove his point.
"Is that all? I'll just come with you then."
"Yes, but…. I'm shackled to you with my left wrist."
"So?"
"I'm left handed."
"Ok, so it'll be a little awkward, but I'll live."
Uryu rolled his eyes, but stood up anyway and walked up to the corner of the room with the half height wall, where he proceeded to stand in front of the toilet bowl with his legs apart.
"Kurosaki, you'll have to stand on the other side of the wall. Next to me."
"Sure." The Substitute only now realized that the other teen hadn't used the toiled during the time he had been with him. At least not while he had been conscious. Since they were already locked up in there for several days, he probably tried to make due whenever Ichigo wasn't awake. The Quincy fumbled a bit with his hands.
"It's not gonna work like that. I need to use my left hand, so can you maybe hold your right arm a little down my side of the wall, so I have some leeway to move?"
"Like this?" He asked. Ichigo did as he was told, and let his right arm glide down the half height wall, while he was leaning over it. The whole situation was indeed getting uncomfortable.
"Yes, but…" Uryu's pale features turned a tad pink. "Could you please look the other way and not down towards me like you are doing right now?"
"Why?"
"Why? So, you're able to pee when someone's looking directly at your…." He trailed off, but his face was now flushed. Was it from anger or embarrassment, the Substitute didn't know. Probably both.
"Jeez, Ishida, I have like zero interest in your dick!"
"Oh, that's nice, Kurosaki! Really adult of you, too. Do you have any idea how embarrassing this is?" Uryu snorted.
"Just take a leak already, I wanna sit back down!" Ichigo spat. "Jeez…."
"You're lucky that you don't even have to pee! This is so easy with the hand of a jackass attached to my good hand!"
"Just shut up and piss, Ishida! I'm really, really not interested in your dick, you moron!"
"Fine! Your funeral!" The Quincy huffed and averted his gaze. His face was still flushed, albeit now definitely from anger. So Ichigo just ignored him for a few moments while he got on with it, before he felt the other boy fumble with his hands, which indicated he was done.
"Jesus Christ, that was something! You drama queen." Ichigo taunted. "If it's like this when you gotta pee, I don't even wanna imagine what I'll have to do if you need to take a-"
"Shut up, Kurosaki!" Uryu yelled at him. Furious, he marched away from the toilet, dragging a snickering Ichigo behind him. The archer proceeded to sit down in the corner closest to the tray again, and took a sip of water. He looked everywhere but at the Substitute. Ichigo decided it was best to leave him alone for now. He knew he should know better than to tease the other teen like that, but he was just trying to get through the situation at hand. Even if an enraged Quincy wouldn't do either of them any good. After they'd sat in silence for a while, Ichigo wanted to try to change the atmosphere.
"Hey, I was only trying to lighten the mood here." He said.
The Quincy huffed and refused to look at him. "You'd better put your energy into a plan of getting out of here."
"True, but I still wouldn't give up on Renji and the others. Surely they've noticed we're missing by now and-"
"I told you about the shield, didn't I?" Uryu interrupted him. "We don't even know where we are, with that barrier blocking our spiritual pressure, I don't think we should count too much on Abarai and the others to find us. At least, we can't bet everything on that."
"Aren't you a little pessimistic? As always?"
"I'm being realistic, Kurosaki. We can't just sit around and hope that someone will come for us. We have to try everything we can to escape by ourselves."
"You're right about trying everything we can." Uryu looked a bit astonished that he agreed with him for once. "Don't give me that look. I never liked to sit around doing nothing anyway."
Suddenly, the door opened and Ichigo jumped to his feet. Uryu stood up carefully, so he would't get dizzy. A few Fraccionés marched into the room, their pointy shock staves in attack mode.
"Kurosaki, get behind me." The Quincy said, hushed. Without having the time to react, the raven-haired teen had already summoned his spirit bow Ginrei Kojaku from his Quincy cross. "Szayelaporro isn't with them, so if I take them down… maybe we can make a run for it."
"Hey! It's not because I can't use Zangetsu that I'm helpless!" Ichigo snarked, and glared at the other teen.
"I'm not saying anything like that, Kurosaki!" Uryu answered, keeping his eyes on the guards. "But I can't use my left hand to fire arrows if you're not close enough. And since I'm the only one with a weapon here, I just thought that-"
One of the guards stepped forward with his staff and tried to give Ichigo a dose of electricity while snarling some orders at him, but the Substitute dashed forward and kicked the Fraccioné in the face, while successfully dragging Uryu with him so he almost tumbled over. Unthinkingly, the Quincy jolted his injured right hand on the floor to keep his balance, making a sharp hiss.
"Kurosaki!" Uyru yelled angrily, retrieving his painful hand.
"Shit! I forgot about the shackles." Ichigo threw him a dumb smile and rubbed the back of his head. The other teen didn't waste any more time and motioned for the Substitute to get behind him. It didn't feel right for a hero like him to stand by and do nothing, but he trusted the archer and knew he could handle the situation. Besides, he'd have to take out those guards empty handed, and that would make them lose valuable time.
The shackles rattled and the Substitute watched how Uryu's injured fingers closed around his spirit bow and held it tight, making the archer hiss again. Ichigo's arm was pulled forward when the other boy drew an arrow from the spiritual pressure surrounding them, before piercing the front Fraccioné with arrows, making the shackles between them rattle. The creature shouted and turned into dust. The others dashed forward, shouting, but the Quincy was too quick for them and took them down.
"Good job!" Ichigo complimented him.
Uryu huffed. "I almost fell on my face because of you. Watch it, will you?"
"Yada, yada! Let's go!" Before they could make it to the door, more Fraccionés stepped in. Ichigo punched one in the face while Uryu shot 2 others down.
"Quickly, Kurosaki! If that freak Espada notices, he'll activate the collars or worse!"
Shackled together, the 2 teens stormed outside. As some Fraccionés were coming from the left, Ichigo started running to the right to try and shake them off. Dragging Uryu with him. The corridors all looked the same, with a door here and there, so they had no idea where they were going. After they'd rounded a few corners, they arrived at an intersection. Shouting and footsteps came from the right.
"Left! Go left!" The Quincy shouted as they almost hit the wall of the intersection. "No, the other left! Kurosaki!" He jumped backwards right in time, before the substitute had almost made him crash into the wall. The chain between them rattled, and Uryu looked annoyed.
"Sorry!" Ichigo said with a half-grin. "I'm not used to having someone attached to me like that."
"Come on! He'll notice we broke out anytime soon!"
"Ah!" Ichigo grunted as he suddenly felt a sharp sting in the back of his shoulder. "Shit."
"Kurosaki? What's wrong?" A dart was sticking out of the Substitute's shoulder. He quickly removed it and crushed it under his foot. Uryu gave him a serious look, before popping down the Arrancar that had apparently fired at them from around a corner.
"ILet's go, we don't have time for this!" Ichigo said and started running again. Uryu didn't argue with him on that, but…
"You sure you're alright? Do you think they gave you that same stuff that-"
"I don't know alright!" Ichigo yelled, annoyed. The other teen fell silent at that and just eyed him concernedly.
When they rounded another corner they stepped into a similar corridor leading up to a heavy, double door. A few Fraccionés were walking about, wearing lab-coats and carrying books and documents. Since these Arancars obviously weren't the soldiers type, the Substitute and the Quincy didn't kill them, but opted to take them out by kicking them over, as to not waste any time.
The doors in front of them opened to the side and they found themselves in some kind of laboratory when the doors closed again behind them. The lights here were dimmed, but they could see 2 surgical tables in the back, with wires dangling on top of them and all kinds of instruments on small tables on the side. There were 3 screens, one attached to each wall except where the entry was. Apart from that, and some large water tanks to the side, there was nothing in the room besides a large table in the middle, all made out of the same metal-like material. The usual cameras were decorating every corner.
"Fuck! It's a dead end!" Ichigo bawled.
Right about then, a high pitched sound went off and they both knew it had to be some kind of alarm. Probably activated by the lab coats they hadn't killed. Suddenly some kind of thick glass wall dropped down from the ceiling, only a meter or 2 away from them, successfully capturing both the Shinigami Substitute and the Quincy inside.
"Dammit!" Uryu shouted. "We're trapped!"
Suddenly, Ichigo flailed and sank partially down next to the center table. He had not informed Uryu about the heat he'd felt spreading through his body ever since that dart hit him. It was moving faster by the second and made his breathing pick up. He grasped his head on a groan, and tried to get himself back upright on his wobbly legs.
"Hey, are you okay?" The Quincy held out his hand to help him stand up, but he slapped it away. The archer scanned him for a moment with slanted eyes. "It's that same stuff again, isn't it?"
"Yeah, I think it is. So, what? I can handle it!" Ichigo was getting angry really fast.
"I'm trying to help you. Before-"
"Before what?!" Ichigo snarled. The heat was spreading from his fingertips and toes to his head and his vision was spinning.
"Before you become like that. In case you didn't notice, we're stuck in here, and-"
"Just shove it, Ishida! Your stupid plan got us in here!" Ichigo yelled at him. He proceeded to sit down next to the table, dragging Uryu down with him. His mind was getting foggy again, so he shook his head to try and clear it somewhat.
"Kurosaki…." The Quincy was kneeling in front of him. "Let me help you. We need to move to see if we can get outta here."
"Just give me a minute, dammit. I got this!" The Substitute shook his head again.
"Come." Uryu grabbed one of the Substitute's arms and tried to get him onto his feet. "I want to examine that glass wall, but since we're still shackled together, I can't-"
"Oh, so I'm a burden now?" Ichigo yelled.
"That's not what I mean, Kurosaki! I just can't move if you're sitting down. I know you probably need to rest because of that injection, but-"
"I don't need to rest, you dick! Stop acting like I'm a liability! 'Specially since it was your stupid idea that got us in this shit!" Ichigo was fuming. The heat was soaring through his body and it was becoming unbearable. He groaned and closed his eyes, trying to regulate his breathing. Then he went completely still.
"Kurosaki?" Ichigo felt the raven-haired teen tried checking his vitals. His anger exploded and he roared:
"I said I don't need your fucking help!" In a heartbeat he had wrapped his side of the chain around the other teens neck and pulled on it hard, choking him. That should shut that stupid Quincy up for a change! As Ichigo jumped up, he pushed the other boy down, straddling him. It felt good to let his frustration out for once!
"Ku-kuro… saki… F-fight it…" Uryu tried. He grabbed the chain with both hands, sticking his fingers underneath so Ichigo couldn't suffocate him.
"Fucking Quincy! Always acting like you're better than everybody else! Just shut the fuck up for once!" The Substitute pulled the chains even harder, making the other teen groan.
Suddenly, Ichigo was startled by a sharp pain. He'd just taken a punch to his face, as Uryu obviously had no intention to surrender. His grip on the restricting chains gave a little and the other boy sucked in a sharp breath.
"You jackass!" Ichigo yelled at him, feeling his blood boil, but the Quincy tried hitting him again. The Substitute caught that next blow easily, but he'd released the chain without thinking, and Uryu filled up his lungs with a deep breath.
"Are you crazy!" Uryu shouted. "Get off me and fight those drugs they gave you!" Ichigo was now countering both his fists with his hands. The Quincy started bucking. "Get off! I'm not your enemy!"
Ths Substitute managed the smack him in the face, but the other boy could catch his wrist before he could do it again. Ichigo started laughing when he saw Uryu struggle, while he managed to pin his hands to the side.
"Fight all you want, Ishida, but I will always be stronger than you!" He laughed again as he watched how that realization sank in, but still, the Quincy did not yield.
"Screw you!" Uryu countered and with his Quincy speed managed to get his legs around Ichigo's waist. He couldn't use a lot of strength in that position, but he'd created a small momentum in which the Substitute had released his wrists, trying to get his legs off of him. Uryu didn't hesitate and used everything he had to punch the other teen square in his crotch. Ichigo screamed.
"You stupid fuck!" The orange-haired teen grabbed his abused parts with both hands and fell to the side. The Quincy panted for a few seconds before jumping up again, checking his neck for any injuries.
"Stop this, Kurosaki! We need to find a way out!"
"Fuck you! You know-it-all! You're not better than me!" And with that, he swept Uryu's legs from under him and made him crash to the floor. Ichigo didn't waste any time and jumped at him again, but the archer reacted fast and threw him over with his legs.
"Kurosaki!" He yelled. "We don't have time for this! Pull yourself together and listen to m-"
"Stop telling me what to do! You scrawny asshole!" The Substitute sat in a crouching position so Uryu braced himself for the tackle that would follow. However, he had underestimated Ichigo… The latter put on his Hollow mask and dauntlessly jumped forward, pulling the Quincy with him. Then, right before the glass wall, he stopped and pulled the chain forward with everything he had.
"Kurosaki!" Uryu screamed right before he crashed hard into the wall. Fortunately, the Quincy had had the presence of mind to protect his head with his arms. Otherwise his glasses would have been ruined and he'd been wide open to head trauma. As the archer slid down the glass, groaning and stunned from the impact, Ichigo saw blood trickle down the side of his face. A rather nasty gash had opened above his eyebrow and was bleeding quite heftily, as all injuries to the face tend to do. Staining his white clothing.
It made Ichigo smirk.
That stupid Quincy! Serves him right! It felt so good to hurt him. The other teen moved his lips and stuttered something to him, but he didn't listen. Nor did he care. Uryu tried to get up again, but Ichigo grabbed him by his collar and was ready to strike. The impact to the head had clearly done the trick, as the archer sank partly down again while doing his best not to let his head loll completely backwards, with only Ichigo's left hand holding him up into midair.
"How does it feel now, Ishida? Now you're the liability here." Ichigo laughed, and removed his Hollow mask. Uryu just stared at him wearily, and slid his hands around the wrist that held onto his collar. Probably hoping Ichigo would release him.
"I-I'm not… your enemy…" the Quincy tried.
"I don't care!" The Substitute answered with a sinister grin. "It's just so much fun kicking your ass!" Uryu just watched him in disbelief, while struggling to get his legs back under him.
Suddenly, the door opened and Szayelaporro leisurely walked in with his hands behind his back, wearing a toothy smile that made him even more freakish than he usually was. Ichigo lowered his fist, because his priorities had changed. He wanted a piece of that Espada! He wanted to beat that fucking smile off his face! Right now!
The Substitute released Uryu, whom hit the floor with a thud. The raven-haired teen coughed a few times, but stayed down. Sitting as far away from Ichigo as his chain allowed, with his left arm that was bound to the Substitute held in the air by the shackle. Ichigo smirked as he noticed how the Quincy was trying to staunch the nasty cut on his head by applying pressure with a piece of his cape he'd torn off.
"My, my, Subsitute Shinigami, plus extra. Seems like you boys were having so much fun."
"Care to join us? I'd love to have a piece of you, too." Ichigo sneered.
"Oh my! Wouldn't that be interesting!" The 8th Espada grinned. "Unfortunately, I am otherwise occupied, but I'll take you up on that later."
"Of course you do, whackjob. Still, I'd love to get a piece of you. Right now." Ichigo continued.
"Watch it, Kurosaki." Uryu said, hushed and on guard. "He hasn't activated the collars yet. He's up to something."
"Oh, Quincy darling! Thank god, one of you has brains enough to foresee that I'm plotting something." The 8th Espada let his head fall back and laughed hysterically. The way that pink-haired freak carried himself, with his air of a lunatic, made Ichigo's blood boil right now. Uryu made the chain rattle by trying to stand up, but kept his distance. He shook his head against the dizziness and the Substitute shot him a cold glare.
"Just shut up, Ishida." Ichigo snarled at him before he had the chance to say more. "That asshole's mine!"
"Ooow. You two lovebirds are so predictable. You played right into my hands." Szayelaporro snickered. "You didn't get here by accident, you know. You were foolish enough to fall for my game. When I let my guards chase you, you considerately chose the passages opposite from them. How stupid is that?" The Espada laughed darkly. "I just wanted you to get your hopes up that there was something you could do to escape. But the reality is, you're trapped here like rats in a maze. There is absolutely no way to go."
"Don't act so high and mighty." Uryu said disdainfully. "We'll make sure to try everything we can to escape."
Szayelaporro just laughed at that. "Oh my! I'm looking forward to that!"
Suddenly, Ichigo turned towards the raven-haired teen again.
"I thought I told you to shut up, Ishida. I don't have time to play with you anymore." He pulled at the chain and gave the Quincy a black-eyed grin. His Hollow power spreading like dark flames around him, while he pulled the other teen towards him. He couldn't help but laugh when he saw the stupefied look on Uryu's face. "Now just fuck off and you just might survive this!" Ichigo kicked Uryu's legs from under him again and he fell, staring up at him in complete disbelief. Like he was an alien. Then he averted his gaze and the Substitute stopped using his Hollow powers to intimidate him. Ichigo directed his attention back to his primary target.
"You two are hilarious!" Szayelaporro bellowed. "As far as entertainment goes around here, you two are prize winners." He laughed again.
"Shut the fuck up and let us outta here!" Ichigo yelled. "I wanna rip your head off!"
"Of course you do!" The Espada laughed. "I must say, Kurosaki Ichigo, as for the experiment you're part of right now: you passed." He smiled wickedly.
"Experiment? What experiment? Let me outta here, you stupid fruitcake!" The Substitute roared and started throwing punches at the glass wall, infuriated by Szayelaporro's taunting laughter.
Suddenly, Ichigo felt light headed and swayed. He sank down to one knee, grasping his head. Groaning, he turned towards Uryu. "Ishida, what the-"
"Seems like the drugs are wearing off." The Quincy said.
The Substitute looked at him intently. He gasped as his eyes went over the other teen's head wound and clasped a hand around his mouth.
"I-I gave you that wound, didn't I?" Uryu didn't answer, but looked away. "Ishida, I'm sorry, but-"
"It's the meds, alright." The Quincy intervened. "I know you're not yourself when-"
The Espada snagged their attention again with:
"Shinigami Substitute, if you can break out of here, I just might not vivisect your girlfriend."
As he heard the Espada laughing tauntingly, renewed anger filled his gut. Ichigo stood up and started attacking the wall with renewed vigor.
"It's no use, Kurosaki." Uryu said while pressing a hand against his head again. "He's toying with us."
"I gotta try something, Ishida. Weren't you the one telling me we should try everything in our power?"
Ichigo used the Hollow power and let it burn in his hand. Like black fire. He started clawing at the glass wall with everything he had.
Szayelaporro just watched, chuckling. "Give it your best shot, Kurosaki Ichigo." He grinned. "You've tested my bounds before. I'm curious as to see what you can do."
Ichigo didn't listen to him. He used his fists to punch the glass, over and over again, burning the black flames in his fists. He let out a frustrated yell and picked up the speed, but it wasn't working. His fists were getting chafed, but that didn't stop him. That stupid Espada bastard was watching him with a taunting smile on his face. He wanted to smash him into the wall and silence that unbearable laughter.
Suddenly, the glass disappeared into the ceiling again with the speed of light. Ichigo was taken completely by surprise and fell forward. In a split second both teens saw why Szayelaporro had kept his gloved hands behind him this whole time. Smirking wickedly, he'd produced some kind of sniper gun from behind his back, aimed and fired directly at Ichigo.
"Fuck!" He screamed and readied for the impact, while still falling forward. Everything went so fast…
"Kurosaki!"
A few seconds later, the Substitute opened his eyes again, confused. He had fallen to the ground, but… Uryu stood in front of him, his left arm strainingly pulled backwards towards Ichigo's shackle, his right arm spread out sideways.
"Ishida, what-" As the Quincy turned around, Ichigo saw a rather big dart protruding from the middle of his abdomen. Pink colored liquid was injected into his body. He gave Ichigo a faint smile, before falling over. "Ishida!" Ichigo caught him before he hit the floor and pulled the needle out of his belly. "You moron! Why did you use Hirenkyaku to get in front of me?"
"I-it's ok…." Uryu answered. "I just wanted to-" His body went limp against him.
Szayelaporro was laughing maniacally again. "Dear god! You are so wonderful!" He sang.
"Ishida? Ishida?" Ichigo tried, but the teen had already lost conscience. Furious, Ichigo snapped. "The hell did you do to him?"
The glass wall was gone, and Ichigo wanted to use Shunpo to hit the 8th Espada with the speed of light, but he couldn't do that with an unconscious Quincy attached to him. Besides, the latter had already taken his remote, and pushed it with a dark glare. The collars buzzed, and apparently Szeyaloporro had upped the voltage. Ichigo gripped his collar and screamed out his frustration. Having the bastard within an arm's reach, but being unable to do anything.
"You'll find out soon enough." The Espada said with a sultry voice. "This experiment is complete."
While the collars were still pumping electricity through his body, Ichigo saw the Espada produce some kind of mask from inside his clothes and put it on. He gave a nod to the camera's and suddenly small compartments opened up low on the walls and pink gas started filling the room. The glass wall slid back into place behind them. They were now trapped in a small section of the room, before the center table, with Szayelaporro smirking at him.
"Shit…" Ichigo mumbled as he felt the gas act really quick. Combined with the collar's current, it was too much for him. He felt his eyelids grew heavy and his movements slow down.
"Yes, go to sleep, Shinigami Substitute." Szayelaporro purred. "Oh and by the way, the Quincy passed, too." He let out roaring laughter.
It was the last thing Ichigo heard before darkness consumed him.