"Ulquiorra, what happened?" Ichigo asked him, since he fell in pain to the floor in mid-flight.
"I... Felt a terrible pain in my Hollow Hole..." He became even more pale than he already was. "No... Orihime!"
"Wait, don't lose it yet" Ichigo told him as he protected him from a barrage of corpses that Neberu threw at him. "Your mark hasn't faded. She's still alive"
"That's... True. But, are you sure it works that way?" He inquired.
"Mugetsu?" He asked his Spirit quickly.
"You're half right, Ichigo" He replied in his head. "As long as the mark has its colour, the partner is alive, cause that means there's still Reiryoku left in them. On the other hand, if the colour fades... Is because, your Whole is no longer in this world. It happened to me, so... I can assure you it works like that"
"Yeah, don't worry. I'll make sure to give Yama what he deserves for that and everything else. Thank you for explaining"
"Don't mention it" He smiled a bit.
"Ulquiorra, she's alive. Mugetsu said that as long as there's colour in the mark, her Reiryoku still exists" Ichigo calmed him.
"*sigh* Thank you" He felt relieved. "Now, I can get back to business. Huracán Vampiro!"
From Chauve-Souris, a hurricane of slashing black and green wind flew right at Neberu, harming its body successfully.
"Muerte Negra" Ichigo created his black Reiatsu scythe.
He sliced and diced Neberu with all his might, making sure the creature took as much damage as possible, while being careful enough not to be hit himself.
His Espada continued the combo with powerful abilities to make sure that the being didn't have a chance to react.
"Lanzador Verde: Llamarada!"
"Tormenta de Murciélago"
Ulquiorra prepared his strongest attack, in an attempt to damage Neberu seriously, giving an opening to Ichigo.
Nel gave a look at Ulquiorra, and then proceeded to do a dual attack.
"Ichigo, step back!" She told him.
He nodded and did as he was told.
"Now!" Ulquiorra said.
"Lanza de Luz Gamuza!"
"Lanza Relámpago Muerto!"
A massive black, green and pink explosion engulfed the shiny figure of Neberu as it reduced everything in its area to mere ashes.
"That should do it..." Ulquiorra muttered. "Ichigo, get ready"
"When you see the Dark Core, fire your most powerful Light-based attack" Nel added.
"Okay" He cut his hands with his horns, and covered them in blood.
As the smoke dissipated, the three carefully looked at the state of the enemy, ready to encounter a totally obliterated Neberu.
"It can't be...!" They all muttered.
Neberu looked a lot thinner, as if it had lost a great part of its body, but it was nowhere near being as destroyed as they expected it to be.
The next thing it did was scavenge for the corpses that remained in the floor, picking one and munching it in the head.
"What is that...?" Nel asked as she stared in confusion.
Neberu ate more and more heads of corpses, rapidly increasing its body mass.
"It's restoring its power!" Ichigo realized. "Gran Rey Cero: Medianoche!"
The vast pitch black Cero managed to get a loud sound of pain that seemed to come from Neberu, but it was clear that the fight was not nearly over.
"Where is it?" Ichigo asked, as the being had disappeared from sight.
Suddenly, he felt the bodies beneath him had gotten incredibly hot, as if they were magma.
"Argh!" Ichigo yelled as Neberu appeared from between the lava-melted bodies and seized him with great strength.
"Ichigo!" Nel and Ulquiorra saw what happened and rapidly came to his aid.
"Nelliel, use Darkness" Ulquiorra told her.
"I understand" She nodded.
"Cero Oscuras" The two attacked, Nel from her horns and Ulquiorra from both hands.
However, Neberu used its other hand to nullify their combined beam with an explosion of Corrupted Light.
"It's not enough... Fuck!" Nel cursed, feeling helpless again. "Just when he needs me the most...!" She frowned. "If only I was stronger..."
And in that moment she remembered. She could be stronger. All she had to do was go one level above, making the power of Gamuza hers, entirely.
"Gamuza..." She spoke to the spirit, time almost freezing as she entered her Inner World.
"What is it, my Queen?" The beast teased. "Hahaha, just kidding, you're no ruler of mine"
"Why do you neglect me? I did what you wanted last time!"
"Hm... Yes, I guess you did. But you see, I wasn't content with the result..."
"I don't care about that, you are my Zanpakutou, you do as I say!" She declared.
"Wrong..." Another voice said. "Gamuza is our Zanpakutou, and she's way more fond of me"
"What the...?" She looked at the owner of the voice.
It looked just like her, but was wearing a coat and primal skirt made of Hollow fur.
"You...!" She recognized those clothes, just like the ones Bryssling and Satya had. It could only mean one thing. "Scar... Queen..."
"Long time no see... Night after night, I tried as hard as I could to get inside your head, but it seems that the only thing I managed to pull off was to create nightmares... And then I learned that by doing that, I'd be able to influence your behaviour" She confessed.
"You are lying...!" Nel couldn't believe it.
"Not at all. In fact, I decided of my own accord to stop the nightmares once you were with Ichigo, so that you would grow more and more attached to him... Although I never thought that would actually become an obstacle in the end" She admitted. "The truth of the matter is that I was planning to take over once you changed into Segunda Etapa for the first time, but that armband... I really don't know what that shady guy with the hat did, but it clearly fucked it all up. Even once your skull was healed, I really thought that we'd be able to meet if Ichigo became dissapointed with you breaking his promise, but it didn't nearly work. Instead, you entwined your souls and became Wholes, thus creating the greatest obstacle I'd have to face... Then, I imagined that there was a chance if he rejected you once he knew who you truly were... Possibly breaking the link! (Although I don't even know if that's possible, but it's all I had!). That impossible possibility was mere luck, I gotta admit, as I didn't pull any strings behind that. Still... I was busted again! As he accepted who you were and loved you as much as always..." She bit her lip with frustration. "Seriously, he's unbeliavable. I might fall in love too if he keeps acting that way..." She sighed and then laughed. "~Kuhuhuhu~ As if that could happen... Although I did feel aroused last time..."
"What do you...?" Nel frowned as she was completely taken off-guard.
"Don't you remember? That moment when you were reaching climax with him for that final time... What did you think in that instant?" She grinned.
"I... I didn't...!" She trembled as she recalled that moment.
"Kill me... And devour me whole... That's the only way we can be together forever!"
"I would never...!"
"Exactly. Those violent and egoist thoughts were not yours, they were mine" She revealed. "I wanted to experience, just for once, what it felt to be one with him... What it was, to be loved... So I took advantage of the fact that your mind was completely blank and slipped into your consciousness, something I had never been able to do before, and I must say... It was a truly delightful experience"
"You bitch...!"
"Careful what you say" She silenced her. "Don't you understand? I am you, Nel. I am the suppressed darkness inside of you" Scar Queen said.
"But... Why... Why do you exist?" She inquired, not comprehending how that was possible.
"Now you're asking the important questions" She replied. "Because before that man came into our lives, we were only one and the same"
"That... Man...?" She thought of the three people that could meet that criteria.
Ichigo, Aizen and Nageki. They all had changed her life in different ways, so any of them could be the one Scar Queen was referring to.
"Quasimodo Gandolfi" Her darkness replied. "Or, his true name, Nakagawa Nageki"
"What? What did he do? Teach me about-"
"Tsk... That's why I hate you. How can you be so damn naïve?" She facepalmed disappointed. "Look, I'm fucking tired of this, so why don't we go straight to the point?"
"Whatever you say" Nel agreed, holding the green sheath.
"Perfect" Scar Queen smiled again, readying a blood-covered Zanpakutou. "Whoever wins, gets out of here with the power you came looking for"
"Fine by me" Nel accepted the duel. "I don't know exactly what you are and why you are here... But right now, all I care about is getting the power to save Ichigo"
"How lovely" Scar Queen mocked. "Now, let's end this!"
The two charged towards the other, Scar Queen with a purely offensive stance, which Nel easily saw through.
"Corte Abrasador!" She attacked before the other could even try anything.
"Gah..." Scar Queen spat blood. "Shunkou..."
"If what you said was true, I figured that you wouldn't be able to use this technique" She looked at her other self with pity. "You are really strong, but you are alone. The power I have obtained ever since I found Ichi, no, ever since I was saved by Nageki... Is not a vicious strength or bloodlust as the one you have. This strength is born of the bonds I've created and my desire to protect them all"
"You're weak... You neglect who you really are!" She spat back.
"No. The only weak one is you, letting yourself be controlled by a void dogma that never earned you anything. If there's anyone I'm happy to betray, it is you" She declared with a determined look in her hazel eyes. "Now, Gamuza"
"I know..." The beast bowed to her. "To be honest, you've met the requirements for a while now"
"I knew I did, that's why I came here" Nel replied, indifferent. "Ever since I became a Whole, I made a promise that's impossible to break, and that goes against my nature, just like Ichigo said"
"Ichigo... Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo!" Scar Queen madly repeated that name. "Everything revolves around Ichigo! Don't you see? If he ever left you or died, your world is done for! You cannot depend on someone else to be complete! That goes against the very nature of Hollows!"
"You know nothing about Hollows!" Nel easily refuted. "We are incomplete since our birth as Menos. We unite and only then we can become Gillian. We feed on countless other Hollows on the next two steps to evolve into a Vasto Lorde, and we break our mask to look for the one thing we've never grasped before... One way or another, we depend on others to get to this point. Don't you see how sad it is when you finally realize what it truly means to be an Arrancar?!" She yelled the last sentence, more passionate than she thought she would get. "It's only fair... That we find one last person to rely on... Someone who has also suffered countless times, and that's missing a part of himself... To finally establish that unbreakable bond of love and become Whole... That is what it means to be a Hollow" She turned her back with those last words and disappeared from that world.
Scar Queen trembled in an unstable way as she tried her hardest to comprehend the words Nel told her. Why couldn't she share that thought? Why couldn't she be complete?
"Nageki..." She muttered the name of the person that made her miserable.
Back in the fight, as if it had been only a second, she raised her Reiatsu beyond her limits, ready to go to the last level, the final stage of her evolution as an Arrancar in terms of power.
Just when Mugetsu had decided to release Ichigo's power to its fullest, an explosion of pink and black Reiatsu changed it all.
The dark light turned pink and white as it shined to its fullest, just like the moon, amd then it all disappeared, leaving the Queen in all her might.
"N-Nel..." Ichigo muttered from Neberu's grip as the monster choked him, beholding the form Nelliel had attained to save him.
Her animal half had clearly grown stronger, looking a bit larger and more muscular.
Her black fur had more pink markings, and the middle part of her back grew a teal coloured piece of fur that ended in her tail, long and gorgeous.
An armor of black skulls with pink traces of Reiatsu covered her human half up to her chest. From there, her skin was uncovered, but had pink lines that went from her chest and shoulders through both of her arms.
On her face, the red line on top of her nose became a pink line like the ones in the rest of her body, and her eyes, just like the others who had reached that state, had black scleras and irises of the colour of her Reiatsu, a furious pink.
The greatest change though, was the complete disappearance of her helmet, finally showing her marvelous turquoise hair in all its glory. Her two dark horns, now came straight from her upper forehead, ramificating into other two pieces that bent to opposite sides.
Finally, beside her, rested a long battle lance with a black handle that looked more like a sword, made with the same material as her horns and with a black metal cilinder to channel the energy. On its bottom, a pink orb emanated her Reiatsu, releasing the energy to the rest of the weapon, creating a lance of pure pink Reiatsu.
"So she finally did it..." Ulquiorra thought. "I was wondering when would she get to Etapa Final... Talk about luck. However, I doubt it's gonna be enough to put an end to this"
"So this is the lance on Ichigo's Hollow Hole... My Final Weapon, Mordred" She thought as she felt the power flowing through the long lance. "Ulquiorra!"
"On it!" He flew rapidly towards Neberu, dragging Chauve-Souris against the floor to set the spear on fire.
Nel used Velocidad to get there at the same time as Ulquiorra was attacking Neberu with his spear, slashing the limb with Mordred.
Alone, they wouldn't have been able to do it, but the two attacks managed to sever and erase the creature's arm as it held Ichigo.
"GGGHHRRUUU!" Neberu growled in pain.
She caught her King in the air with her back, galloping out of the being's outrage.
"Nel... Thank you..." He panted as he rested his head on her back, which was uncovered, having only some pink drawings, as well as her tattoo.
"No, Ichigo. I am the one who should be thanking you" She replied softly. "Even after knowing about my past... You loved me no less, accepting the darkness inside of me like it was your own"
"Please... It's the least I can do" He rested his hands on her shoulders, slowly regaining his strength. "How could I become a Whole with you without accepting all that you are?"
Nel could see her other self as he said that, uncomfortably realizing that such a persona somehow existed somewhere within her. She really wanted to tell him, but with Neberu on a rampage, it was clearly not the best opportunity.
"I love you, Ichigo" She decided to say. "And thanks to you, I went this far..." She charged her lance. "And now, we can truly fight together! No need for you to hold back anymore"
"Wait, are you implying that..." Ichigo blinked multiple times.
"Yes! Ride me to victory!" She raised her frontal legs and charged towards Neberu.
"I'll be covering you from above" Ulquiorra said as he flew past them.
"I know we can do it, Ichigo, trust me!" She said as she prepared to stab Neberu, who was raising its Reiatsu in a dangerous explosive way, randomly blowing up spaces of the chamber.
"Yeah!" Ichigo smiled as he recognized her strength. "Let's do this..."
As he accepted, his Whole Link started shining with Nel's pink Reiryoku and hers was the same with his black energy, until it mixed the two, the two voids being filled with a black and pink orb of pure energy.
"C-Could this be...?" Nel muttered.
"...The moment our Reiatsu is only one and the same!" Ichigo realized.
"If that's the case... I have an idea!" She replied.
"What is it?"
"I've done it with Pesche and Dondochakka, but it's not easy to use, as the energy infused must be in equal quantities so that it is compatible, but being this the case, it won't matter!"
"Then, what do I have to do?" Ichigo inquired.
"Charge the strongest Cero you can possibly make, right on top of my horns"
"Okay!" He concentrated the energy a bit higher than usual, so that it would appear where she requested. "Gran Rey Cero: Medianoche!"
Nel charged a Gran Rey Cero Oscuras to mix it with Ichigo's, the black energy mixing while a single pink shine remained at its center.
"Gran Rey Cero Sincrético!" She said as the two released the attack on Neberu, as she galloped towards the luminous entity, proudly taking her King in her back.
"Revolución del Relámpago" Ulquiorra also attacked to make sure that damage would be done.
After the giant explosion, the three stared once again at the creature, waiting to see how much damage did that assault make.
Out of the smoke, they finally could see what they wanted, they had succesfully destroyed half of the being, who had been forced to move the Dark Core into the half that remained.
With difficulty, it restored the missing part, but as it had used the same energy that remained, it lost a lot of mass, barely being able to stand up.
"Now's our chance" Ichigo knew it. "All we have to do is make sure that it doesn't eat another corpse before reducing it to the Dark Core"
However, things weren't so simple. Instead of giving up, the creature pointed its hand and blasted a Light and Dark attack just like the one Yama had used on Ulquiorra. but in a larger scale.
"No way..." Ulquiorra muttered, flying out of the attack's range. "It still has this much power left?"
"It must be desperate" Nel said. "Seeing itself threatened, it might start spamming brutal attacks to force us to stand back"
"But that won't happen" Ichigo prepared his Shinigami Zanpakutou and Muerte Negra on the other hand. "Now might be our only chance to stop it. It has learned our attack patterns in such a short period of time... We gotta end it now"
"Yes... But how?" Ulquiorra asked. "We're all at our limit, aren't we?"
Nel was also panting heavily, as she had used up a lot of energy dodging Neberu's attacks, as well as using powerful abilities in general.
"No, I can still fight" Ichigo got off Nel's back.
"But Ichigo-" She knew he had taken a lot of damage.
"Don't worry, I already recovered almost completely" He comforted her. "And also, I have a plan, and it relies especially on you, Nel"
"Me?" She was surprised. "What do I have to do?"
"You can reverse an attack and direct it back at its user, right? Ulquiorra told me"
"Um... Yeah, but, I doubt I can pull that off with an attack of this magnitude, even with Mordred"
"I know, that's why, Ulquiorra, I need your help" Ichigo asked him.
"What is it?" The Primera asked.
"I need you to help me with a barrier, it's called Barrera Negación" Ichigo explained. "We must focus all our Reiatsu in creating a protective barrier. That way, we'll be able to stop it for a moment, and then, Nel can use that ability"
"I see... It's a good idea" Ulquiorra agreed. "But, it must be a Dark attack, otherwise, it's not gonna work"
"Not necessarily, if we get him to use that powerful beam again, it should be enough" Ichigo theorized. "Light and Dark don't act the same way when they are together, I saw that with my Getsuga Juujishou. The reason I didn't deal him enough damage is because my Shinigami powers are not nearly as strong as my Hollow ones now..."
"I see, if that's the case, we can make it work" Nel accepted.
"There's nothing more to say then" Ichigo went straight ahead. "Let's do this"
Ulquiorra attacked from the distance, while Ichigo charged right in, making Neberu's senses collapse as they didn't leave it a single instant to counter.
To weaken it a bit more, Ichigo even decided to use an attack he felt was taboo until that very moment, due to it being the trademark move of his past enemy, Aizen.
He used Velocidad to appear behind Neberu as he quickly muttered the enchantment, just like Hachigen had taught him, finishing in:
"Hadou 90: Kurohitsugi" Quickly, black layers of energy with a shining violet outline started encasing the space that surrounded the being, finishing in a cubic black coffin with multiple crosses on its top.
"Incredible..." His two Espada were amazed by this technique.
Then, Ichigo released the power, blowing up the tremendous amount of Dark Reiatsu with Neberu inside.
Panting, he stepped back, to the place where Nel and Ulquiorra were.
On the ground, completely overwhelmed, Neberu charged the laser Ichigo wanted, but using all its remaining strength, so that the three Espada would be completely erased.
It was a desperate attempt to survive from the godly being Yama had created, clearly pointing out its imperfection.
It would be devastating, but it was also the only thing powerful enough to destroy it once and for all.
"Now, Ulquiorra! Nel!" Ichigo told them.
"Yes!" The two were ready.
Neberu blasted a massive Light and Dark beam, directing it at its attackers.
Side by side, the old rivals created a red and green barrier with all the power they had left, barely enduring the blast as they used all their strength.
Nel wanted to send the attack back at Neberu, but it was still too strong. She wouldn't be able to do it.
The barrier was starting to crack, unable to withstand the full power of the luminous abomination.
"No...!" Ichigo muttered. "I won't... Be able... To hold it... Anymore...!"
Ulquiorra was the same, but something inside him refused to accept that.
Just as Barrera Negación was shattered, a golden-yellow field appeared, as Ulquiorra's mark brightly shined.
"This power...!" Ichigo realized.
"It's... Orihime..." Ulquiorra smiled.
The barrier was powerful, resisting the beam as it began weakening, but it started cracking, showing that it was still too strong.
"Dammit!" Ulquiorra spat.
However, just as it was broken, Ichigo protected the two from the beam with Zangetsu, getting severly damaged in the process.
"Ichigo!" The two yelled.
"I can... Still... Hold it a bit... Longer...!" He grinded his teeth as he resisted for a couple more seconds.
Once the beam had truly started declining, the moment came.
"Nel...!"
"Nelliel...!"
The two Espada said as the moment had come.
"Yes!" She went in front of Ichigo with Mordred in her hand and used the ability her aspect of death had granted her. "Traidor!"
The beam was completely sent back at Neberu, much to Nel's surprise. Her new lance, instead of having to absorb the Reiatsu to counter, could reflect it completely as long as she was strong enough.
The luminous creature roared with a distorted guttural voice as it started dissolving from its limbs to the body and head.
Even the Dark Core couldn't withstand the chaotic stream of energy it had created, slowly cracking, until it completely shattered.
"We did it...!" They three thought as they saw it.
An explosion of Negative Energy filled the room. It was an abominable amount.
The three felt a rapid change of emotions as they were in that atmosphere. Fear, anger, sadness, pain... Everything shifted constantly, unable to stay calm.
Only in that moment, did they realize what was going on.
The energy had nowhere to go. Up to that point, the Dark Core had been the one absorbing all the Negative Energy their enemies had released.
The vicious Dark Energy roamed aimlessly looking for something that could contain its unstable existence.
"The King of Hueco Mundo..." It thought with its collective consciousness. "Impossible"
It kept searching.
"The traitor, Primera Espada, that must be enough!" It believed.
But much to its surprise, Ulquiorra didn't nearly have the amount of darkness it was looking for.
"What is this... Light?! Gah!" It was forced to retreat as a golden-yellow spirit banished it from the Arrancar's soul, leaving only one option left.
The Dark Energy started concentrating itself as it finally sensed what it needed.
"What is this... Darkness? This tremendous amount of negativity?" It wondered as it flew towards the source. "Could it be... That this girl...?"
"What is...?" Nel muttered as she felt how the energy forced its way inside her soul.
"Nel!" Ichigo saw what was happening, thinking that the Dark Core's consciousness was trying to attack her in some way.
He extended his hand as he tried to do something, but his lack of Reiatsu stopped him. He couldn't do anything, in fact, he was about to pass out.
"Whatever happens, I..." Nel murmured. "I will always love you... Ichi..."
And then, everything came back to normal, the disgusting Evil Aura had disappeared from the chamber.
"What the...?" Ulquiorra didn't notice what had happened.
"AAAAARRRGGGHHHHH!" Ichigo and Nel screamed at the same time, their bodies collapsing with pain.
~~~~X~~~~
Orihime had finished healing Pesche and Dondochakka, and was going to help Nageki now.
"I still can't believe what I saw" Yoruichi said, looking at the girl.
"Neither can anyone else, I'm sure" Harribel replied. "I didn't even know that she had become an Arrancar"
"But thanks to that, she was able to survive" Ashido noted.
Orihime went with the immortal Arrancar, who was barely conscious.
"I...noue-san" He murmured.
"Everything will be alright, Nageki-san" She told him as she started rejecting the damage that had been done to his body.
"But I... Failed to protect the one thing I was asked, again" He complained. "He took the Heart of Tsukoyomi"
"But, you told me that box is unbreakable, and the only way to open it is with a massive amount of Hollow Reiatsu, right?"
"Yes... But still, he has it. It is a matter of time before he finds that out. When he does, he'll come back and raid Las Noches in order to collect it, and even if he didn't know, he would kill us all, just because of his revenge"
"Wait. What do you mean?" She asked as she finished healing him.
"I better tell everyone. Thanks, Inoue-san" He stood up. "Guys, is everyone okay?"
"Better than you at least" Grimmjow teased, trying to get the bad taste of Yama's escape out of his mouth.
"Haha... I guess you do" He sadly smiled. "Look, I guess you saw what happened..."
"Yeah, he took the artifact, didn't he?" Satya asked.
"Yes... But as you know, that isn't so great of a deal on its own" Nageki sighed. "The real problem is... That I found out Yama's reason for his hatred towards us, as Hollows I mean"
"Really? He hated our race especially?" Grimmjow inquired as he shrugged. "I thought we were just in his way"
"No, it's deeper than that. In fact... I think I should reveal some other details so that you can get the bigger picture" Nageki replied.
He told everyone about Mugetsu's relation to Yama, as the other direct descendant of Tsukoyomi, as well as the gruesome details of the ancient Raid in Hueco Mundo.
"So, to summarize, he hates us cause we're a piece of Tsukoyomi's legacy..." Harribel simplified. "That's why... He won't give up until he sees us all erased from existence"
"How awful..." Lilynette commented.
"So he wants to take revenge on us and the Old Gods, though it seems like we're the main course, based on what you said" Gin pointed out.
"Tch... He's not that big of a deal" Grimmjow spouted. "Just some overpowered little bitch with daddy issues. I'm sure I can kick his ass with a little bit of training"
"I'm not so sure about that, Grimmjow" Bryssling replied. "He took out all these men on his own. If it wasn't for Nageki-san, I'm pretty sure we would've been in serious trouble too"
"A wise observation, Bryssling, how atypical from you" Satya teased.
"Nah, I'm just stating the obvious. With or without his full power, he's still the King of Jigoku. We can't take him lightly"
"I hope everyone's okay down there..." Orihime thought about the remaining people in Jigoku, especially Ulquiorra.
"They'll be alright" Apacci said.
"I believe so as well" Mila Rose agreed.
"After all... They are the strongest, right?" Sung-Sun pointed out.
"And besides, Kisuke and Hirako are there to help them if things get too complicated" Yoruichi said as well.
"True" Orihime smiled. "What could possibly go wrong?"
~~~~X~~~~
"Ichigo! Nelliel!" Ulquiorra looked at the two, but wasn't able to act in any way.
A painful second that felt like an eternity passed, their Hollow Holes feeling just like a heart being slowly crushed.
The next moment, the two went back into their base forms and fell unconscious
"What just happened?!" Ulquiorra went to Ichigo's side first.
He was breathing.
"He's alive..." He sighed with relief. "But... The mark...!"
His Hollow Hole had the Lance, but it had no colour.
"Don't tell me that she's...!" Ulquiorra imagined the worst as he realized what that meant.
Before he could go see her though, she had already reacted.
"Ungh..." She regained consciousness, looking at her surroundings.
"Nelliel!" Ulquiorra rushed to her side, helping her to get up. "Are you alright?"
"Alright...?" She murmured, looking around, feeling how she could move freely in a body of flesh and bone, rejoicing in the fact that she could feel truly alive. "~kuhuhuhu~ I've never felt better!" She pushed him away.
"What the-" The Primera fell roughly to the floor, completely dumbfounded.
"Finally...! Finally! I can... I can...!" She madly spouted. "I can finally understand..."
She walked towards Ichigo.
Ulquiorra didn't know why, but he felt something was awfully wrong with her.
He pointed his finger and shot a Cero at her, out of pure instinct.
"Argh!" She stopped, frowning. "What the fuck?!"
"Get away from him..." Ulquiorra said. "You... Are not... Nelliel"
"~Kuhuhuhu~ What are you saying, Ulquiorra? Of course it's me!" She giggled evilly.
"I don't know why..." He frowned. "Your Reiatsu is the same as hers, though a lot stronger... Yet... I can just feel that you are not her" He stood up with Chauve-Souris in hand. "Deep within you... There's something as evil as Yama...! OR should I say more evil than Yama!"
"Looks like you're way sharper than I thought. That '1' is not there just for display, is it?" She bitterly mentioned his tattoo. "Yes, I am not the Nelliel you used to know" She admitted. "That person is now gone. But... I am certainly Nelliel, no. I am the true Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck"
Ulquiorra simply stared at her as she spoke of things he couldn't understand.
"If you think I am possessed by the Dark Core or anything... You're terribly mistaken" She continued. "I am just the result of the Negative Energy finally releasing the seal placed on me all those years ago..."
"What do you want?" He asked her, ready to fight.
"Simple. I want Ichigo" She replied, looking at him straight in the eye.
In that moment he saw it. The innocent hazel eyes he knew had disappeared. Instead, bright yellow irises and long reptile pupils stared at him.
"W-What?"
"Throughout all these years, I was empty, isolated in the darkest corners of that fake Nel's mind... But now, not only did I take control of this body, but I infused her in my being as well. I can finally, feel..." She seemed to drool with that thought as she looked at Ichigo. "And because of that, I need to kill him and swallow him whole. That way... He will be a part of me, and we'll become one in a way that even transcends being a Whole!"
Ulquiorra had heard enough. He tried to attack her with his spear, but she easily dodged him and kicked him in the stomach, rendering him useless.
Normally, he would've been able to react, but he was way too exhausted.
"What a weakling, you should be ashamed of yourself" She bashed him. "Primera Espada... I deserved that title more than you or anyone! Cause I'm the only one who deserves to be by his side" She spat as she turned his back on him. "Don't worry, I won't be taking his life just yet... He must grow stronger, way stronger! And for that..." Her tone became suddenly sorrowful, so much she could cry. "I have to leave him"
"Eh...?" Ulquiorra did his best to remain conscious, trying to understand her.
"This is the only way for us to be together now..." She muttered, as she went to his side.
Once she got there, she kneeled and beheld her beloved.
"Aw, my poor Ichi... You got all wounded protecting us back there" She licked one of his wounds, the saliva quickly restoring it. "~Mmnhhh~ So sweet..."
She carefully licked each and every wound in his body, savoring it as well as making sure it healed completely.
"Is she... Blushing?" Ulquiorra tried to see, though for the distance, he wasn't sure.
She moaned as her tongue tasted his blood, proceeding to suck on the wounds as she caressed his body, face and hair.
"Oh Ichi..." She embraced his head and placed it between her soft breasts. "I finally understand it... I couldn't comprehend what it meant but now, I do... So you must become stronger, insanely stronger! So that when we unite again... No one will be able to stop us!"
"No... Way..." Ulquiorra thought in disbelief, as he saw what that vile shadow of what Nel used to be did with Ichigo, passing out immediately afterwards.
The wicked Nelliel's tears fell over Ichigo as she softly rubbed her face against his, trying to retain his scent permanently.
"I am sorry... Oh, Ichigo, I'm so sorry!" She weeped. "But I know..." She forced herself to stop her lament. "This delightful anguish... This beautiful agony... This wonderful misery... It will all make you strong"
She stood up and cut her palm with her Zanpakutou.
She deposited the dripping blood in Ichigo's lips, knowing that she wouldn't be able to leave if she did something deeper.
"Don't forget that taste, Ichi..." She whispered, walking away. "Please..."
She used Velocidad and rapidly disappeared from the place.
~~~~X~~~~
A couple minutes later, at Hell's Throne Room...
"Yo, Kisuke!" Shinji saluted.
"Captain Hirako, long time no see! About, a couple days hasn't it?" Urahara teased him in the same way he did with the others.
"Haha, pretty funny" Shinji rolled his eyes. "Also, how many times do I have to tell you to call me Shinji?"
"Well, you are a Captain and I'm not, though I was just playing. Anyway, Hirako-san, it looks like the party's over"
"So it seems. The mountain of corpses I left back there confirms it" He said with bother. "Will they ever come out of that hole?" He approached the destroyed floor.
"Maybe we should take a look, they might've passed out after giving it their all"
"True, let's go"
The two men came down into the flesh chamber. By now, the remaining bodies were about a tenth of what they initially were, and since Neberu had been defeated, they were now slowly disintegrating.
"Man, this place is hideous..." Shinji shook his head. "There they are!"
"Ulquiorra, Kurosaki-san..." Urahara located them, calm as he could feel their Reiatsu. "Hm...? I don't see Nel-chan around..."
"She's Ichigo's fiancée, right?" Shinji also looked for her. "Ichigo is always so damn lucky with beautiful girls..."
They kept inspecting the chamber, looking for answers.
"Now this is really odd..." Urahara was getting worried. "Hm?" Something else caught his attention.
"What? Found something?"
"Just this strange white object" He showed Shinji the broken cocoon.
"It might have been the Demon King's secret or something of sorts..."
"Whatever happened, Yama is clearly not here" He looked disappointed.
"Wait" Shinji slashed the cocoon, widening his eyes as he discovered what was inside. "Oi, Kisuke... You might wanna have a look at this"
"What's wrong?" He looked as well. "What... What's the meaning of this?"
Inside the cocoon, a nude little girl of pale skin laid on the floor, sleeping.
She had beautiful straight hair, black on her left side, and white on the right. From her head, two little black horns came out. She was a Demon.
"Whatever this is... We can't just overlook it" Shinji admitted, showing the importance of the discovery, strong enough to beat his lazyness.
"That's for sure" Urahara agreed. "I should've asked Hikifune-san to make more Enhanced Food"
"Heh, you went to see her and you didn't tell Hiyori? She's gonna kill you"
"*sigh* No wonder she never liked me as her Captain. Though I don't really care" He smiled. "In the end, it's just like you said at that time... I'm no good at understanding or either caring much about how others feel"
"Nah, don't be so hard on yourself. You're just bad at connecting with people, not a complete sociopath... Or so I want to believe" Shinji clarified. "Though I doubt I'd find anyone more manipulative... The only difference between you and Sousuke is that you know how to act 'ethically', for saying something"
"That's not so comforting, Hirako-san" Urahara chuckled.
"I've never been good in the social aspect either and you know it" The Captain grinned. "But our problems aside... Where the Hell did this girl go? Quite literally..."
"I have no idea and I'm starting to worry..." Urahara admitted. "I can assure she's not dead at least"
"Yeah, I know what you mean" Shinji nodded. "Ichigo wouldn't be idly sleeping if that was the case"
"Which also discards the possibility of her being taken away..." He held his chin as his mind thought of multiple possibilities in a couple seconds. "Guess we'll have to ask them to find out"
"I'll take Ichigo and the girl" Shinji said. "You take the creepy guy" He pointed at Ulquiorra with his head.
"Sure, but still... Where could she be?" He was bothered by the oblivious nature of the situation.
~~~~X~~~~
Nelliel was roaming through the higher levels of Jigoku, looking for an alternate way out.
"...Anyway you look at it, it doesn't matter wether we destroy the Gates of Hell or not" A white haired man covered in black bandages said.
"But then what do you plan to do? The Togabito that died during this time did not resurrect. We're alone and have no chance of defeating a warden" The other man replied. He had purple hair, parted in a fringe, and chains and shackles in his neck and body.
"Hello, you are damned souls, right?" She smiled at them, though she was just pretending to be friendly. "I'm kinda lost, do you know a way out?"
The two Togabito looked at each other stranged.
"We prefer the term Togabito, but, you don't look like one of us... Your Reiatsu is that of a living being"
"Of course it is, I am alive, dumbass" She got tired of the act. "Look, I just need to get out, this place is done for"
"What do you mean?" The other man asked.
"The King of Hell himself has left. The Dukes, the Princes, they're all dead" Nelliel replied. "You all could just go back to wherever you came from and no one would care. But, for that, you need to know this place and I, simply don't"
"So... We're basically, on our own?" The purple haired man smiled. "I mean, I realized that security was light but... This is just amazing!"
"Yes, you're free, congratulations. Now, where do I have to go?" She was containing her urge to destroy him just because of his uselessness to her.
"If what you say is true, the Main Gate is the way to go" The other man answered. "We'll be heading there right now, so why don't you come with us?" He offered, but was clearly seeking something in return. "This woman is strong, I can easily tell. If anything happens, she can take care of it"
"*sigh* Fine..." She facepalmed wanting to get out of that place as soon as possible. "What's your name?"
"I'm Shuren, and this is..." The purple haired man replied.
"Kokutou" The white haired man responded. "Who are you and, what are you doing here?" He asked her.
"I'm Nelliel. I don't wanna go into detail but... I came here with someone, due to all this chaos, but we got separated and that's that" She quickly made up something quick, basing in the actual events.
"Very well then, that means you're strong enough to fight powerful Demons, right?" Kokutou wanted to make sure.
"I would kill you two in an instant if it wasn't for the fact that I'm lost" She confessed. "You can imagine what I'll do to the goddamn Oni, Majin or whatever if it gets in my way" Her yellow eyes shined with murderous intent.
"*gulp* Yes, I can..." Shuren shook a bit.
About an hour later, they reached a colossal gate of black Devil Iron, sealed by multiple locks and chains.
"Well, here we are" Kokutou said with a sigh.
"Ha! I told you we had to destroy the gates of Hell!" Shuren claimed proudly.
"We still don't know if that's gonna work" Kokutou refuted.
"I'll tear your mouth open if you keep talking, how's that?" Nelliel got fed up.
"S-Sorry!" Shuren cowardly apologized.
Kokutou simply stood in silence.
"Shunkou!" The Dark Nelliel used the ability Yoruichi had taught its good counterpart. "Good... This should be enough" She drew her Zanpakutou. "Corte Infernal!"
With a dark version of Corte Abrasador, powered to a new level by the Dark Energy inside her, she opened the gates of Hell in five slashes, as they were hot enough to melt the Devil Iron chains and locks.
Behind the gates, a portal that shifted between various destinations of Earth were on sight, allowing the user to choose from its variety, although they were all close to Karakura due to it being the Important Spirit Ground.
"Thank you for bringing me here, now get lost before I change my mind" She told the two, feeling good-willed only thanks to her quality time with Ichigo.
"So long..." Kokutou exited through the portal. "It seems that the disappearance of Jigoku's ruler has rendered the chain useless, so I'm as good as free" He thought with a grin.
"Farewell" Shuren made a reverence and left, not wasting Nel's time by making an annoying remark to Kokutou.
Nelliel was about to cross the path herself when a sudden pressence stopped her on her tracks.
"Not so fast, Miss" A man told her.
"Ugh... What now?" She turned around.
A young man of blue eyes and mid-length black hair had stopped her. He had a dark-blue tunic with golden chains around it. A gold emblem with a scale engraved hanged from a necklace, and he had two swords of different sheaths on his back.
"I know what you are. That Evil Aura around you is, without a doubt, the Dark Core" He said.
As she heard that, she prepared her blade to counter-attack. However, there was no attack to counter.
"Don't get the wrong idea" He tried to calm her. "I'm not gonna hurt you, as that puts us on the same team"
"Did he see when the Dark Energy enter this body?" She wondered. "If that was the case... What do you want?"
"Simple. I bet Yama-san will be delighted to have you as an ally. He loves seeing Hollows killing each other more than anything else, and you clearly have what it takes to be of use to him"
"Oh, really?" She gave him a dread look. "Now I'm gonna tell you, don't take this the wrong way. I'm not your, or Yama's friend, much less your toy. If I do anything, it's only because I want to do that"
"It's fine by me" He shrugged, not caring much. "All I can do, is offer you the chance to have Kurosaki Ichigo"
That got her interested in the blink of an eye.
"If that's the case... We can have a deal, but, I'll only do it with Yama himself" She clarified.
"Of course, I would expect no less" He nodded, opening a Kimon that came out in no other place but the Seireitei.
"Who are you, by the way?" She inquired.
"My name's Mitsuyo. I am the Four Horsemen's Famine" He replied, entering the portal.
"This could be a trap... But who cares?" She giggled. "After all, the one who betrays... Is me. And if this is the best way to ensure we meet again, Ichi... I'll do it a thousand times"
I hate myself. I don't know if it's some kind of test I decided to put myself when I made this happen, but as an artist, I believe that not everything you create must be something you're comfortable with.
Sometimes, in order to achieve a more complex development, an artist must create something that makes him uncomfortable, if possible, to the point that he despises himself, so that he can grow along with the art he's creating.
That's what I did right now, shattering everything that felt perfect and pure. Tainting my favourite character just to see how far I can get...
A truly self-destructing behaviour, isn't it? But at the same time... That's so like me.
Reviews:
Antex-The Legendary Zoroark: Another great chapter! Whoa! I was SO not expecting Orihime to temporarily die then suddenly revive herself again! She was extremely lucky! Still, she'll need to be VERY careful if she gets into another life/death situation. Otherwise, if not strong enough to (possibly) use her ability more than once, she's gone for good!
I digress though.
Looks like not only are things going bad for Ichigo, Nel, and Ulquiorra as they're facing V, it also seems that besides the Regai attacking Soul Society, there's also the Four Horsemen and Yama! Insane!
Also, when Yama mentioned something about a "trick" Nageki did to Nel...what did he mean? Hmm...somehow I've a bad feeling should this truth come to light...
Reply: I remember someone asking what could her power to reject become if she turned into an Arrancar, and this is pretty much my answer.It's important to note that the Four Horsemen conquered the Seireitei while it was taken over by Kageroza, so you'll see how that develops.
Finally, that explanation comes next Chapter, but it explains the existence of this isolated consciousness Nel recognized as Scar Queen, and... The reason why she's no longer herself as well.
Please, stay. This is not the end, I swear. So don't rage-quit the story just cause something terrible just happened.
I'm sorry. Evhron.
PS: Dark Nel's eyes are just like Albedo's from Overlord, in case you're wondering how it would look.
Glosary:
Huracán Vampiro: Vampire Hurricane.
Mordred: A character related to the Arthurian leyend. He's treated as his traitorous nephew, so it relates to Nel's aspect of death. The lance looks just like the one from CFYOW.
Corte Infernal: Infernal Slash. Corrupted Corte Abrasador.