Everything was proceeding as Aaroniero planned. Ichigo and Rana's combined clashing Reiatsu was enough to create a cloud of Reishi that spread across the Las Noches sky. Terrifying strength shattered the canopy, causing the false heavens to fall like burning stars hitting the sea of white sand. Under this much chaos, her presence could be hidden, even when using full strength.
She used her speed to catch the Vanguard lying in wait to ambush Lieutenant Sasakibe off guard. They barely had time to figure out where she was, being cut down and burned mostly to death by her attacks. Cero, Bala and sword swings combined with well timed punches or kicks dispatched most of them as they had no time to properly resist. Not a single one posed a threat to her and she took satisfaction in assimilating them through her signature grotesque devouring process.
Too much time resulted in her secret being found out by the very one her victims were waiting to pounce upon. Lieutenant Sasakibe. Based on previous memories she had no particular connection to the Shinigami. He was so far removed to the rest of the Gotei 13 with the exception of the Captain Commander he left little impact on her mind.
That opinion changed when she consumed his essence and acquired his powers. She was left momentarily stunned just how skilled or powerful the man truly was this entire time, nor how old he was. Secrets flowed from the recesses of the absorbed psyche allowing her access to things she had no idea or comprehension about.
A smile spread faintly across her face as she went out to absorb more targets.
Thankfully, one such was one of her own Calaveras. It was thoroughly incapacitated by the shockwave dealt by the Bala Mente that erupted between her and Angelle Cooney. Dropping beside her now inert replicant, she thrust her arm through its midsection without hesitation. A thick squelching sound later and she withdrew the body's heart, tearing it out in a visceral display that bloodied her sleeve just as the rest of her attire was stained red. Watching her arm morph into a voracious tentacle, she relished the euphoric sensation of the purified core of her creation ride up her limb and deposit deep within her body. Shortly after the body she eviscerated turned chalk white in complexion before it and its clothes turned into decomposing dust.
"Oh yes, I can feel Grimmjow's Aspect in this one," Aaroniero thought with a wild grin spreading across her face, her bloodied upturned hand twitching with ecstasy, "perfect. Accumulating those Vanguards was a boon enough, but adding this really takes my peak higher. Privaron Mosqueda, Sado Yasutora, Séptima Zommari, Exequias Rudbornn, six intact vanguards, and now Sexta Jaegerjaquez. Adding them along with my own prior store of Reiryoku with Rukia Kuchiki's natural strength and I am already feeling more powerful than I could ever dream! I can't imagine how strong I could become once I absorb more, like Nnoitra and his Fracción-"
"What. The. Fuck?!"
Aaroniero, so wrapped up in her musings, forgot to check her surroundings. She cursed the wide radius of Ichigo and Rana's Reiatsu, it was starting to cloud her even most basic use of Pesquisa. Turning to look over to the side she saw the point of the shout and retained her chilling grin that bordered on maddening joy. Narrowing her eyes her voice slurred out almost in a drunken haze, "Ahhhhhh. Angelle Cooney isn't it?"
The petite Arrancar backed away from what looked like a deranged killer. From before, it looked like she was annoying given how she was able to read her moves and knocked her unconscious using her own technique. Her body was lightly scorched across the front, cheeks, thighs and arms swollen a slight pink while her clothes were darkened. She was lucky she used her own Reiatsu to buffer herself from the Bala Mente blast, but was unlucky to have suffered so much damage regardless.
It all seemed like a moot point for she could feel the signature dwelling within this woman's mind was far different than before. In fact, she could feel many voices crying out within, seeming to harmonize with the tongue of this Shinigami that approached her. Despite what she was, Angelle couldn't mistaken this woman as an enemy but more as a monster!
"W-What the Hell are you?!" She squealed out, reaching for her sword while extending a free hand out. Six invisible arms of Reishi were projected from her mind, flowing out through the air at an incredible pace. In her field of vision, transparent hands formed fists to bludgeon her front where she stood.
Having already a hard time to sense what's ten meters away, Aaroniero felt the invisible punches make contact with her body's front. Her heels dragged across half the distance she was originally away from Angelle. Jarred from the impact, she shook her head and rubbed her body from the discomfort. It hurt, but not like it would have if she was at the level her Calavera was.
"Ow, that stung," Aaroniero mused, rolling her neck side to side, placing her hands on her hips as she rolled them to get the cricks out of them, "I didn't see that coming and I paid the price. Still, I thank you, if only to break me out of my stupor of power overload I was experiencing. I'll make sure to stifle my...excitement in the future."
"N-No way! You can't just shrug off a blow like that," Angelle gasped out loud, her drawn sword falling out of her hand into the sand next to her.
"Oh, I can, my mentally unstable friend," The voracious Arrancar said with a thin smile, now walking slowly towards her with a predatory glint in her now violet colored eyes. The slits for pupils narrowed at her newest prey with a hunger that couldn't be known even by the barbarous Yammy. Teeth slowly unraveled by parting lips, they shined menacingly as her tongue slid across her mouth, "and I'm going to enjoy devouring that lithe frame of yours. All of your memories, emotions and the power that comes with it will be mine. There isn't a single thing you can do to stop me."
"YAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Angelle shrieked out in panic, unleashing a wave of Reiatsu infused tendrils that swam through the air towards Aaroniero. This time, her eyes shrank at the sight of her enemy transforming into a black haze, her figure dissipating and flowing down into the darkened grains of sand below. Looking to and fro, she kicked her wakizashi back up into an inverted grip, swallowing hard while cold sweat caked her skin.
A white hot stabbing pain erupted from her midsection from behind and spilled out her skinny chest. Unable to muffle out a scream as blood poured out of her mouth, staining her neck and lower face with red ichor, she could only watch in horror as the marred hand that was responsible for injuring her transformed into teeth lined tentacles. Spreading outwards one could see her shadowy silhouette shake and writhe during the process. By the time she was funneled up the arm of Aaroniero's, the latter had become even more satisfied with the results of her new found strength.
"Not even this powerful brat could stand against me," She spoke out loud to herself with a delighted grin. Examining herself, she sighed with irritation at all the blood clinging to her skin and garments. Shaking her head, she made sure not to worry about such things and focused on locating the others.
Closing her eyes, she found that Angelle's Pesquisa was far more effective than her own Busqueda la Mente. While it seemed to have a shorter range, she could read the surface thoughts of those with a substantial enough Reiryoku, harnessing their Reiatsu as anchor points to locate and track them. From there she could see the remains of the recently elected Espada bleeding and lying on the ground.
"I can acquire them using my Shadow Aspect. Now, how's my last Calavera doing?" She thought as she swept the landscape towards a fair kilometer southwest of the crater. Aaroniero had to be thankful it was far enough that they couldn't have seen the Lieutenant's demise. The need for secrecy wasn't as much a necessity but rather a thrill for her. The longer the mystery stays vague the more exciting it would be to reveal herself to her quarry while they remained unaware.
Frowning, she could tell that the infamous Warden of the Vanguard was giving them both a hard time. Shrugging she knew that their fight would end shortly. Sinking into the earth as shadow once more she ushered through the earth as nothing more than a collective mass of phosphorous Reishi. Pulling the remains of Patros, Sverrie, and Sedosa. She moved to a far enough area so she could consume them in peace and evaluate her battle strategies from there.
"There is one last Espada I have to check on. And if I know him, he's going to be in an awfully sour mood that the canopy has crumbled. Just how angry is he, I wonder?" Aaroniero thought with an audible chuckle, her body materializing into a solid form as she made a sprint across the desert coupled with long distance Sonido. It would only be a matter of time till the curtain was finally pulled down. When it did, she hoped everyone would be watching and see her marvelous evolution come to fruition!
Chapter 9
Identity Crisis
One Kilometer Southwest of La Muerte Crater
Nelliel could hardly believe how strong Sin has become.
Upon hearing of Aizen's departure, Sin immediately released his Zanpakutō and assumed his Resurrección. No longer simply a formidable warrior who could handle both herself and the seemingly stronger Chad but assumed an indomitable form. The bone clad mask that was just a mouth of a croc had now encompassed his entire head, giving the rest of his white scaled body an eerie albino bipedal reptilian appearance. Gleaming red eyes, sharp claws mounted upon digits, his long rows of sharp teeth and spiked tail truly was a force worthy to be reckoned with.
"I do believe this is the first time you've seen me in my truest self, Lady Nelliel," Sin rasped out with a guttural growl befitting his bestial attributes. Raising up a clawed hand, his mouth cracked open an inch, letting thick fumes of Reishi escape the ridges of his teeth. Eyes gleamed with a sinister intent while his hand clenched with purposeful motion, "but this form of mine isn't simply strong. The Vanguard you faced in battle were part of an experiment of Szayelaporro Grantz's. A special ration comprised of tens of Menos Grande infused into the size of a pill given to them over time. Their power drastically has increased as our Octava has predicted, much to Lord Aizen's approval. The rations are simply dubbed, FEED pills, and far more purified samples have been distributed throughout the army!"
"That explains the oddity in the Vanguard's Reiatsu, not to mention why Rana could withstand my attacks so easily. They reached a whole new league of strength by simply being fed these FEED pills," Nelliel thought with a dry swallow, nervously taking a step back away from the intimidating proximity that Sin boasted of, "I can only wonder how many of the Espada have participated in this sick experiment of Szayel's..."
As if reading her mind, she heard Aaron-Chad scoff out loud and take a few bold steps forward to the Croc Arrancar.
"Let me guess," Aaron-Chad mused out loud, his left revealed eye squinting almost judgmentally at the Croc Arrancar, "you ate some yourself?"
"I wanted to see just how effective the pill was and what it could do for a more proper soldier of Lord Aizen's . It turned out, not only did I become undeniably stronger but I also consequently gained an...addiction," Sin murmured out, his eyes looking away with definitive shame, "it wasn't a matter of just becoming stronger but satisfying my basest Hollow instinct to eat. To consume. Having so much energy and taste of Menos was all I could do to keep me from becoming more mad than the inmates I kept on guard."
"You sad fool," Nel finally said, her eyes now a sad glare, "I see now Nnoitra's betrayal to me was a blessing in disguise. If I was present in seeing that kind of barbaric use of our kin just for the sake of furthering our strength...I can see that part of Rana's resentment to Lord Aizen was justified. He isn't a Shinigami, a man or a Hollow. He's a monster for finding this kind of experiment to be worthwhile."
"Lady Nel-!"
"Stop it!" Nelliel cried out, her body now bristling with revitalized energy. The weariness of battle and exertion she put herself through destroying Nnoitra was now the furthest thing in the back of her mind. Even if this was merely her Resolve equivalent of an adrenaline rush, she was far too angry to think about it. "stop defending him like he's your savior! He didn't do anything but show you a dream that's impossible for you to coexist within his Grand Plan. I understand that better today than I had in the past. What he's planning to do is slaughter, not justified for any reason! He's a madman!"
"I second that," Aaron-Chad said with a small smile, raising his arms up in preparation for the real battle.
After Nelliel crossed her legs and assumed a straight fencing posture, accompanied by her free unarmed hand raised next to her left cheek with forefingers outstretched, she saw him react. His body convulsed and his Reiatsu began to ebb off of him in ripples of dark red steam. Rivulets of Reishi snapped off his scaled body, his hollow hole center between his abdomen and his pectorals, swirling with a chaotic light. Balling his clawed hands into his palms tight enough to draw blood from his own flesh, Sin finally snapped open his mouth and cried out in rage.
"NELLIEL! I WILL TEAR YOU APART FOR BLASPHEMING AIZEN'S NAME! YOUR WORDS ARE ONLY POISON TO MY EARS! NOW JOIN YOUR ALLIES IN THE CRIMSON SAND OF HUECO MUNDO! DIE!"
Roaring out such words the very air billowed thunderously against both fighters' frames. The two of them staggered back from the sonic vibrations the wind carried, attesting to how truly powerful Sin has become now that he had transformed. With his aura dissipated, his bipedal form charged forward like a walking snake, moving with surprising dexterity at his prey.
Nel reflexively parried an incoming clawed thrust by the bloodied hand of Sin, cracking against her sword in a shower of sparks and a plume of exploding air pressure. Her heels dug into the sand as she was sent stumbling back, only to have the process repeated by the enraged attacker with swipe after swipe sent after her. It was all she could do to maintain a defense so she wasn't eviscerated by the power of his assault.
Seeing Aaron-Chad approach out of the corner of her eye, Nelliel crouched timely underneath a clawed swipe that cleaved the air and disembowled the sand meters behind her. Catapulting herself upwards with an uppercut slash making contact with Sin, she heard the Croc Arrancar roaring with frustration as she leaped into the air. At the same time, the sound of jettisoning Reishi was heard loud enough to cause him to turn around to see Aaron-Chad cock his shield arm back in time enough for the strike.
"El Directo!" He shouted out, firing a plume of azure pale colored Reishi that was much larger than his prior uses of the technique.
Not hesitating for an instant, Sin swung his long snout around and opened his exterior mouth wide open. A second before Sado's attack could make impact, a much larger dark green Cero discharged from his interior maw. Spraying out like a geyser of emerald burning liquid, it briefly clashed in a crackle of light with the enemy's discharge before outright dismantling it in a bull rush to consume Aaron-Chad's body.
"Shit!" Aaron-Chad thought with eyes widened behind flapping bangs, his shield shaped arm held up with readied defense. What he didn't expect was the materializing form of Nelliel coming between him and the enormous volatile Cero. With the flat of her blade reinforced by her other hand, she shoved against it, her body's garments and hair billowing out wildly enough to whip out at the Calavera's skin.
"Chad," Nelliel communicated over the deafening crushing weight of Sin's Reiatsu, looking over her shoulder with a determined light in her eye, "can you use your left arm's attack for me? It's the only chance we have at winning this fight!"
"Hm, no problem," Aaron-Chad nodded simply, not wanting to emote just how relieved he was to have backup. Sin Nombre was proving to be much more dangerous than he anticipated.
Opening her mouth wide, Nelliel vacuumed the seemingly continuous Cero that was launched by Sin. Like a torrential whirlpool, the enormous beam of light swirled into her gullet, once again revealing Sin's growling form. Having seen the technique used before, his eyes narrowed at what transpired to his Cero, and walked with a far more calm stride than before.
"Cero Doble again, Lady Nel? That won't work! Even at full strength your Cero's attack power won't stop me," Sin declared confidently, taking long strides towards his two prey.
"I don't intend to use Cero Doble," Nelliel confessed, raising her blade so its edge horizontally faced him and hung just inches below her chin. "and I don't plan on my technique alone to stop you. His, on the other hand..."
Her verbal trail ended with Aaron-Chad moving with speed he hadn't displayed until Angelle's attack on the Shinigami. Blurring forth in a movement that confused Sin for Sonido, the red highlighted pale arm crackled with azure lights around the knuckles. Swinging forward, he murmured with lethal intent with a violet glow escaping his eyes, "La Muerte!"
In a heartbeat reaction of self preservation the Croc Arrancar crossed his arms in front of his chest for which the Calavera attacked. The severity of the force was as awesome as it was painful. A ghoulish scream escaped the shockwave that riddled his body and carved into the air, creating a silhouette of a demonic skull behind Sin's body. The instant it did so, both arms from the elbow up exploded in an ashen incineration followed by a skull branding impact into his upper torso.
With steam ebbing off his body, disarmed by the attack, Sin's bloodshot eyes turned back to the human bodied offender with pure anger. Snapping his mouth open faster than anticipated, he latched his mouth around with a bone crushing bite around the left shoulder to lower right hip over the back. Blood spewed between his teeth sooner than Aaron-Chad could yell out in pain.
The last thing he expected was the effigy of Sado to launch a right hook into his left eye, hard enough for him to stumble back at the sudden loss of sight. The ocular nerve was crushed along with part of his face, his prey now free to fall to his knees with pain. Snarling, he dedicated all of his attention to him as his arms regenerated in a bursting squirt of fluids and blood.
"To think I had my arms torn apart and my body receive damage from that attack. You truly are a fiend of nature for your kind, human," Sin commented with a distasteful spat.
"Damn," Aaroniero thought through his Calavera's exhausted body, "I thought I had enough time to recover from the first La Muerte. Even adding the Calavera's power with both Tesra and Nnoitra's Reiryoku wasn't enough to kill this bastard. What the Hell is he made of?"
"After I'm done with you, I will have words with-gulk!" Sin Nombre began to declare until he felt a white-hot pain stab through his back straight through his chest, just inches above his hollow center. The blade that dripped with his blood he could see was glowing a pure pink outlined alabaster hue, having focused the power of his Cero and her own Reiatsu into the sword.
"I'm not one prone to backstabbing, Sin," Nelliel whispered apologetically behind Sin, earning a turn of the head futilely to see her crouched form holding the sword hilt with both hands, "but this is a war I can't win by holding back, even against old friends."
"You've turned on Lord Aizen, the Espada, on all Hollows...for the sake of a Shinigami?!" He asked an outraged yet clearly confused tone, feeling himself unable to move from his given spot.
"I was betrayed once, Sin. This is just the consequence of that betrayal to me," She explained, a somber look entering her features, "I see that there was never a chance to return to Lord Aizen's side. No matter the loyalty I once had, I pledged myself to another man, much more worthy of my attention. For that, I will kill even you so that he and all that he cherishes may live."
"Lady Nel-!" Sin began to protest, feeling a sickening tug on his chest that he couldn't explain other than the pain was starting to break him apart on the inside. If only it was so. His body began to shift, tremble and convulse as a geyser of dark red light funneled into the pink blade and onto the swords woman herself. Soon his entire Resurrección shattered and his sealed form returned with his ax lying broken at his feet. A dead look entered his eyes before he finally fell to his knees and collapsed onto the sand, soon turning into a thick gout of grey colored dust.
Aaron-Chad gaped what happened and even more so at Nelliel's new appearance. Garbed in a green form-fitting coat with a similar pair of slacks that possessed fur-lined trim across the elbows, cuffs, waist and collar. Her curvaceous bosom held a framed top so it can still be observed but not as obvious as before. With her scabbard returned to her waist, she sheathed the sword and looked down at him apologetically.
"I'm sorry I let you get hurt, Chad, but it was the only way I could take him by surprise. I hope you can forgive me," She pleaded, kneeling down to offer a hand for him to take.
Hesitantly grabbing it, Aaron-Chad stared at her incredulously with one visible eye while clinging to his wounded chest and shoulder, "What did you do?"
"I used a technique similar to Cero Doble, but instead I robbed him of his Reiryoku in its entirety. It is...a technique I don't wish to use redundantly," She shuddered, holding onto her fur-silk covered body with emphasis, "it leaves a bad impression on me as a whole."
"So you stole his power and made it your own? I never pegged you as the dark type," Aaron-Chad said aghast, though held a hint of teasing that Aaroniero herself would have done in person.
"I can only imagine how strong the other Espada are, or the rest of Aizen's chosen army. I have to do whatever it takes to get stronger and help Ichigo. Even if it means doing the unthinkable," Nel rationalized, unfurling her arms from herself and instead used herself as a crutch for Aaron-Chad. Not encumbered by his weight in the slightest, she used Sonido to break the distance between them and the others. She just hoped she could forgive herself for what she did to an old friend just as she had to for Nnoitra.
The Ruins of the Debaucherous Palace
Mayuri was intrigued by this scenario presented before him. Before he was almost all but done with his desire to dissect his enemy and bring him back to his lab for probing. However, he revealed something both clear and unwittingly to him. This Project MEAT's first production, Crisol de Razas, was a new kind of Modified Arrancar he never encountered before. That and the place he erupted from must be a laboratory; one ripe with specimens and data for him to collect for his own uses.
The boy's appearance was peculiar too. Unlike the other modified Arrancar that served under the Espada, this one looks largely unintimidating and didn't emanate anything resembling animal behavior. If anything there was a distinct bored glaze in his eyes, as if what surrounded him was nothing to concern with. Even locking onto his gaze he could tell it was like he was in his own world bottled up within his head.
"Damn, that kid moved fast," Renji blinked a few times. He watched the Arrancar boy rip apart the falling, burning debris with nothing but punches and kicks. He could only compare his own Captain for such incredible speed but he could tell it wasn't natural. "I don't even see a Zanpakutō on him. Is he unable to transform, like those other weird Arrancars of his?"
"I wouldn't know. Kind of in a tight bind at the moment," Uryū hissed out, feeling the Lieutenant keep a painful lock on his arm while driving a knee into his back. Combined with his bodily internal damage and he was experiencing something nearly as excruciating the time he last faced Mayuri. He could only laugh inside how ironic it was to rely on his aid rather than putting an arrow between the eyes. "a little help is appreciated!"
"Do I look like I'm in any condition to push her off you?" Renji asked dryly.
Growling, Uryū squirmed a little while Nemu did little to move from her spot, "Hey! Can't you ease up a little?"
"No," Nemu replied bluntly.
"As amusing as your banter is," Szayel sighed out loud, interrupting their antics, earning their gaze while returning his attention to the Captain. Waving a hand once again over his silent creation, he beckoned the forward leaning Shinigami to respond. "I'm curious to hear what you think of my pet. Fascinating, isn't he?"
Mayuri, instead of replying, began to walk forward. The Espada's smile began to shrink when it became obvious the venomous researcher's gaze was elsewhere. Waltzing past the still Crisol, he shuffled past the both of them till he was only a handful of meters behind them. Turning his head to look over his shoulder, just as Szayel did himself, he pointed forward at a small opening in the disheveled field of sand and rubble.
"Project MEAT was it?" He prodded, eyes widened with his mouth driven to a thin look of curiosity, "he came out of that pit. Is that your laboratory?"
At the mentioning of his lab, Szayel's eyes widened and his breath hitched in this throat.
"Oh, so it is your lab," The Captain stated at seeing the fear sprout over his nemesis' face. His grin stretched ear to ear, taking a few more steps forward while gesturing to the spot he knew the boy had emerged from, "you don't mind if I take a peak inside, do you?"
"CRISOL!" Szayel called out, causing the bored look on the young appearing Arrancar disappear. A light entered his eyes and his face turned to look at his master immediately. Stretching his hand out at the laxly retreating Shinigami, he commanded openly, "KILL HIM! NOW!"
"Yes, Master Szayellapporo."
"Hm?" Mayuri turned around, finding it odd that the voice echoed inside of his own head. What startled him the most was the sudden evaporation of the lithe entity and the reappearance just shy of his own face. Reflexively he used Shunpo to jettison himself backwards, narrowly avoiding a snap kick, rupturing the sand beneath him. Stopping himself he raised his sword above his head at the sudden shimmering foot ax kicking towards his crown.
The rosy hued aura of his own Reiatsu strengthened the resistance to the brute force crashing against his sealed Zanpakutō. Sparks flew and groans of metal stretched between the two opposing forces. In contrast the Arrancar seemed to push his boot's heel harder against his target's weapon. His own bright blue Reiatsu gently lapped against his skin as it rose up to combat the Captain's strength.
"I have no time to deal with you, pest," Mayuri grunted out loud, finding himself exerting more strength than he desired. Outstretching his sword wielding hand's forefinger, a brief synapse of light coursed around the digit. Before anyone could guess what was about to happen, a golden beam of Reishi cracked against Crisol's face. His head snapped back, his body spasmed backwards as his visage trailed smoke.
"Ouch."
Once again, the gentle toned voice murmured in his mind, almost in a mocking way. To elaborate, Crisol landed dexterously on both hands, springing himself back towards the Captain in a flying double kick. Planting himself in his solar plexus, the Shinigami was sent flying across the air, tumbling head over heels before crashing into a particularly large piece of canopy debris.
Landing on all fours with the grace of a cat, Crisol's bright blue eyes stared cautiously at where his target was sent crashing. It wasn't until seconds later a series of sporadically fired Reishi beams lanced through the air towards him. Deftly dodging each one with musical footwork, barely rising off the air to avoid the attacks sent his way.
"You're not quick enough," Mayuri hissed from behind Crisol as he stepped slightly to the right, right into the looming shadow of the venomous opponent. Swinging his sword down to bifurcate her from the head down he growled at the instinctive palming he did with both hands. That was, until the false sneer turned into a smile of delight, "Tsuzuri Raiden."
Crisol's eyes widened with his body's literal shock he was undergoing. The electrocution was enough to cause his whole body to go numb at the unexpected attack. After the shocks were halted, the Mod Arrancar was shot point blank by a much larger Reishi beam from Mayuri's left hand. Scalding his back his lithe body was sent careening across the desert ground before lying face down on the pale grains a dozen meters from the assembled group.
"He's certainly more durable than I gave him credit for," the 12th Division Captain murmured musingly, raising his left arm up for inspection. Exposed seams crossing the artificial limb was seen, venting steam from the overheating it prevented the device upon. He only added the concealed RBP, aka Reishi Beam Projector, as a last second thought when adding fine tuning to upgrades to his own body and Nemu's for the upcoming battle. However..."I shot him with maximum destructive capability and he only received superficial damage. He certainly boasts quite a great amount of strength for something so small."
Upon finished speaking to himself, Crisol's pile of rubble began to vibrate. Raising his gaze up inquisitively he could see cyan rays of light bleeding through the cracks as it vibrated. The Reiatsu that had been displayed before was now inclining at a rapid rate, enough for him to take his new found enemy seriously.
"It'd be wise not to take him so lightly, Captain!" Szayel called out, taking comfort that no one bothered to even pose a threat towards his person. With Crisol out, no one could let their guard down around him. Especially while he still breathed. "he's far more capable than you may peg him for."
"So noisy," Mayuri sighed out, turning around to keep his back to the now erupting beam of Reishi blasting away the boy's prison of sand and rock. Twisting his sword around, he sheathed it into the scabbard held in front of himself. Reaching Nemu and the other two's proximity, he looked down at them thoughtfully before turning his stare to his Lieutenant, "Nemu, I need you to buy me some time. The means to defeat this particular foe requires a bit more meticulous work."
"As you wish, Master Mayuri," Nemu calmly replied, releasing Uryū thankfully from his painful grapple, allowing him to gasp in relief while she strode past her Captain.
Grasping her shoulder, he pulled her closer to his head, enough that he could whisper something unintelligible. Unseen by the two ground prone heroes, the surrogate daughter of his had her pupil's contract and her mouth part slightly. When she released her shoulder, her posture returned to normal rigidness and strode toward the now upright Crisol purposefully.
"My directive is to kill the Captain Shinigami. Stand aside."
Nemu heard the voice warn her, but didn't register it outwardly. When it looked like her slow approach had now sign of yielding, Crisol swiftly sped towards her. Thrusting an arm in the movement of a sword he found himself staring a pair of hands grasp his outstretched forearm. Raising his gaze he saw the Lieutenant's body arc up and over his leaning form, whipping a pair of heels planting firmly into the back of his blonde scalp.
His mouth opened to release a silent cry of pain in the same instance as she kept her grip on his arm. Off balance he was easily thrown head over heel across the air. Not even making six meters of distance, Nemu crouched and kicked off the sand, reappearing right towards his intended area of impact to plant a palm thrust into his spiraling back.
"What the Hell?!" Renji exclaimed, ignoring the fact the Captain was kneeling next to the Quincy.
"What are you doing? More importantly, what did you say to her?!" Uryū asked in a bout of understandable panic, seeing the Head of Research and Development pull out a green vial attached to a syringe. Squeezing out a stream of the lime colored juice, the Captain looked aggravated by the questions. Regardless he turned to briefly gaze at the shockwave of force that sent Crisol bouncing across the sand.
"I programmed Nemu to receive a number of vocal orders to adjust her level of strength. She's currently using fifty percent of her full potential. I normally keep her at a ten percent margin. You can see how serious I'm taking this thing our enemy has created," Mayuri explained the the second half so casually. Without Uryū in any real position to move away he roughly stabbed the needle into his neck, pouring the serum of bizarrely tinted concoction into his veins. "what I'm doing to you is improving your body. This is an advanced form of my past regeneration vial. It will erase harmful viruses, create super antibodies to combat illness, heal internal and external injuries. Even painkiller is established for someone who clearly can't stomach that sort of thing."
"So...you're helping me while making me your guinea pig?" Uryū coughed out, wincing as the needle was extracted from his neck.
"I don't do anything for free, boy," Mayuri remarked with a shrill giggle, his gold plated grin sickening the Ishida heir to the core.
But that feeling would subside with the warmth flooding his limbs. A series of sharp pangs stabbed and twisted within his insides, forcing his throat to vomit up bile and blood in the excruciating process of organ breakdown so they can be replaced with fresh ones. Throughout the process the Captain turned to look at the Lieutenant, who took turns staring at the horrifying regenerative scene, and the man's artificial creation kick the Mod Arrancar like a beach ball.
"You Lieutenant," Mayuri cooed out, withdrawing three particular shots each filled with bright colored vials, squeezing them within each of his chalk colored digits while capturing the look of horror in the Abarai's face, "had some bold choice of words to share with me. Thankfully for you, I am a generous man myself. I have three particular serums I'd love to demonstrate for you. Care to have them one at a time or all three?"
"Shit..." Renji murmured, soon finding himself more preoccupied with Mayuri's looming sinister shadow than seeing Crisol turn on his attacker.
"That hurts!"
Crisol shouted in Nemu's unresponsive mind, twisting around in the air to a sudden lurching stop. With nothing but an exertion of pure Reiatsu, a spherical blast of azure light struck the charging Lieutenant's body like a speeding car. Unlike a pedestrian, she seemed to take the blunt trauma in stride, bouncing thrice before landing like a cat onto her feet. Watching Crisol hang in the air, sporting a few scuffs to small bruises, the Arrancar didn't even bother to wipe the blood oozing out of his lower left lip.
Instead he dropped to the ground on his left foot with his right knee upturned, slapping his forearms in an X in front of his face. The azure light soon transformed into a cyan blaze, cycling around him like a vortex. When a tornado howled forth, the sandy rubble littered battlefield soon became a hazard just by standing in its proximity. This wind continued to whip across the viewers, with the only exception of Szayel who took a precaution in vibrating his own Reiatsu enough to create a bubble of protective energy in a pinkish hue.
"That's it, my creation. Show them the culmination of all my work. Reveal your nature to their very eyes!" Szayel thought with a depraved smile spread across his face, waving arms to either side as if to make a mock embracing posture to the twister itself.
"Whirl, Giralda!"
Crisol's voice echoed within the minds of all who were present, just as it dissipated to reveal his new appearance. His upturned leg, still in the same stance as it was moments ago, was now outfitted with a beige toned bone greave, one for each leg. This was wrapped up his lithe thighs to create a kind of leg armor similar to a pair of talon pauldrons fixed on each of his shoulders. Lastly a hawk shaped crest was affixed to his forehead, visually solidifying his adaption to the Resurrección he was now employing.
"Is that his Released State?" Uryū inquired silently, his eyes widened upon finally surviving the drug's healing powers. Pushing himself up to his feet, he raised a hand to block some of the flying sand landing inside of his nostrils or mouth. What he saw was an incredible pair of twisters, now siphoning out of the boy's boots, creating bird headed tornadoes that moved at his whim.
"That's odd, he should have used a Zanpakutō but I never saw him with one when he arrived. He just entered a stance and assumed this new form. What kind of Arrancar did Szayel make?" Uryū thought with apprehension, feeling the waves of Reiatsu mingle with the wind.
Forgoing caution he flung his left arm out and renewed his Ginrei Kojaku. Watching his bow glow brightly, he noticed that he had much more ample Reishi to work with than before. Turning his gaze to Nemu's cat-like crouching just beneath the first of the avian twisters rushing down to crush her. Dexterously vaulting over the more solid base of its head she spun around the second that charged her way, clapping her hands together in preparation.
Taking only a second's glance to see Crisol twirl on his feet and adjust his footing, he knew what was better to target.
"Sprinkled on the bones of the beast!" Nemu murmured, backflipping away from another twister swipe an avian headed cyclone made.
"Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring. Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm," She hissed while somersaulting forward to avoid another swift jab by the shrieking column of rotating air currents. Diving head first to meet her ground prone adversary, she finished the incantation, her clasped hands on the verge of emitting a crackling golden light, "the sound of warring spears fills the empty castle!"
In a surprise move, Crisol seemed to teleport, leaving behind a solid afterimage of himself for Nemu to stare on while fazing into form behind. Before he could plant a surprise attack, his attention was diverted by a pair of Reishi arrows zooming from his periphery vision. Turning around to be more upright in the air, he easily dispersed the projectile through a Bala gestured from a flick of his wrist.
Unfortunately it was all the time Nemu needed to twist around, having her back crash into the sand, giving her the reinforcement she needed to fire the Kidō of choice.
"Hadō #63, Raikōhō!" Nemu declared valorously, discharging a wide arc of lightning, splitting the sand beneath her with such projected power. In a surprise twist, she saw the twisters cross just mere moments before the lightning's tip. They rapidly disintegrated but bought Crisol time to propel himself by shooting Reishi air waves from his greaves, giving himself a sonic impression in the sky as he swerved around at high speeds.
Flipping back onto her feet, Nemu felt her left jaw explode in pain in a shrieking pass as Crisol zoomed past her, not even bothering to watch her twirling body spin in midair. Catching herself on the sand, she was caught by the throat and carried high up into the night sky. Because of the inclining velocity and the fierceness of his grip, Nemu couldn't free herself from him as they ascended.
"If she gets hit from that high up, she could be in real danger," Uryū muttered to himself, all but blocking out Renji's tortured wails by Mayuri's hand. The real threat was this boy's power and he didn't want his benefactor to meet an untimely end.
"You're strong, but its time for you to die."
Crisol declared in Nemu's mind, halting his ascension just enough to let go of her neck. Not given enough time for retaliation he launched an over the shoulder kick to her face, sending her hurdling to the ground below. Even pinwheeling he readjusted himself above, forming a pentagon with his index and pinky fingers to charge a red colored Cero. The warbling prime of its charge could be heard even as she struggled to regain control of her fall.
In a loud shriek of the Cero's launch, it rumbled downward at a thought defying momentum, aiming to catch up to her within seconds.
"Gottesschild!" Uryū called out during a quad formation of light joining at the point of the Cero. Instead of exploding the energy column seemed to widen exponentially, manifesting into a pentacle shaped shield of blue light just above Nemu's retreating heels. Caught ten meters underneath the massive Quincy spell, Nemu shook her head as her body was cradled bridal style by the man in white.
"Ishida?" Nemu asked, her vision clearing up from the kick that marked an instant bruise on her left cheek.
"That was a nasty kick you took," Uryū replied nonchalantly, daring to crack a joke amidst the battle they were having, "but that fall looked worse so I intervened. I hope I didn't break your doll-like pose. I'm sure your Captain would have hated that."
"I don't mind," She responded mutely, smiling slightly at the momentary warmth. She had never been held before in her life. It felt nice; but duty overcame personal comfort. That in mind she pushed herself off Uryū and landed atop the Reishi platform he currently kept himself afloat with. Looking upwards, she could feel the Reiatsu shift in nature beyond the shield, even as they neared it, "he's transforming again."
"What? His Sword Release has multiple forms?" Uryū asked out loud, thankful he had someone who may understand better than he did. For all of his encounters prior to Szayel he still had limited knowledge of Arrancars.
"Rip Off, Golondrina!" Crisol declared in his telepathic projection to his enemies.
"No," Nemu responded firmly, just as the Reiatsu nature shift ended and their enemy finished. The sound of whirring blades could be heard between them and the shield. Through a bout of instinctive self preservation, Uryū rocketed his platform horizontally away from the shield. Just in time for him to witness the shield torn to shreds by crescent shaped saws, she finished her response, "he has multiple Resurrección. That's Crisol de Razas' special ability."
He couldn't find the nerve or time to shout how ridiculous that was. Seeing Crisol's form lower downward in a drastically different visage changed his mind. The blades that spun around in the air, cleaving through his shield like sheet paper, returned to white bone holsters that formed the frame of the wings segmented to Crisol's back. His overall body shape remained the same, but bore a pair of discus golden pauldrons that kept the wings attached to himself. A feather headdress adorned his head, flowing down the length of his back while the same material was knitted into his sleeves and slacks, giving the impression he transformed into a bird of prey.
Oddly enough, the name of the released state and the appearance was so similar it clearly was an imitation Uryū wish he forgotten.
"That's Cirucci's Resurrección! How can he have her Zanpakutō's true form?!" Uryū asked indignantly, turning to look down at Szayel whom was closer than he would have liked. Watching him laugh out loud, he knew the morbidity of the situation was much more sickening than he cared to have known.
"Now you see, Quincy? Crisol de Razas is a Modified Arrancar, created using the Reiryoku and flesh of dead Shinigamified Hollows who were all at one point Espada material. I salvaged as much I could, stewed it within my lab and waited for it to bake. Behold! The perfect weapon, obedient to my every whim and incapable of speaking back other than through a psychic projection to those within its Reiatsu radius," Szayel boasted, turning around to continue his prideful speech at Mayuri's kneeling person, "see that, Captain?! Your Lieutenant isn't special! My creation is better than yours and you can't stand it, can y-"
Unable to keep up his speech when a fist wedged powerfully into his face, he heard his nose breaking and teeth loosening shortly before an explosion of pain was felt in his skull. His eyes rolled to the back of his head during the flight his body was sent, pinwheeling through the air until his back smashed into a particularly large palace wall remains. Smashing it to bits, his body slumped down, groaning into unconsciousness as the unseen left arm of Mayuri's returned via cable extensions pulled it back to his stump, clicking back into place with a few audible snaps.
"Finally shut him up," Mayuri mumbled to himself with a little more satisfaction. Raising up his spare arm, he sighed happily in finishing up his administration of the last dose of drug into the Lieutenant's system, "now I can watch the progress of my miracle drugs effects come to pass in peace."
"Twisted...bastard," Renji growled, feeling himself finally recollect himself from the spasms of pain and convulsions of nausea pass over him. The fire in his veins lessened but still remained. It felt like all of the Reishi was ignited in his blood but kept at a level from bursting outward. Looking up, unseen to himself, his eyes glowed a bright blue while his mouth tasted like rubber, "what did you do to me?"
"I gave you improvements, Lieutenant. Be grateful it's not costing you anything other than an implantation of probes to monitor your anatomical status. I don't want to be unaware if your body suddenly suffers critical failure, or an untimely end, after all," He cheekily grinned, pleased with his sadistic verbal jabs that made the 6th Division Shinigami glare even more intently at him.
Around them, the wings of Crisol's new form came tumbling down, blades embedding into the sand. The saws stopped vibrating, blue sparks crackling across the frames from which they were severed. Above the Captain and Officer's heads the one responsible was bearing his Seele Schneider in hand.
"Hadō #33, Sōkatsui!" Nemu chanted out loud, kicking off the platform to discharge a wafting blaze of fiery Reishi into Crisol's body. With only his arms to fend off the infernal wave of Kidō, the Mod Arrancar grit his teeth as numerous arrows spiraled through the energy gout, pummeling his body repeatedly to break his Hierro. Unleashing a Cero in retaliation, a bright explosion of light separated the three to give him enough time to somersault higher up and whirl in a spherical blast of Reiatsu.
"He's transforming again!" Uryū snarled, pulling back his bowstring to fire a few arrows at the transmuting shape tailored to its new Resurrección. Much to his chagrin the arrows seem to fizzle out of view, a bright aura of crackling light coursed within the night skyline.
When he emerged, he definitely could see a more drastic change to his body's overall anatomy transpired. His lower legs had merged, forming what looked like a smooth skinned tail that extended for a distance of three meters in length. A vertical fin stretched from the edge of his tail all the way up his back to form a finned crest atop his blond unkempt mane. Slit shaped blue eyes stared coolly back at Uryū and Nemu, as webbed hands extended outward, with a glossy complexion stretching across his now bare chest and slim frame. This was the true form of Odios Choque's, the 1st Generation Cuatro Espada, Zanpakutō.
"Jolt, Relámpago Anguila!"
Nemu looked on in visible awe with Uryū, both never seeing an Arrancar with the power of electricity at their beck and call. This reverie was broken the moment Crisol's sinuous body gracefully appeared in a heartbeat with hands outstretched. The pair narrowly responded with Hirenkyaku and Shunpo to backpedal away from the attacker. The thrust of hands turned into a swipe of limbs, showering the air with shocking Reishi that arced towards them at various angles.
Uryū responded by firing a number of arrows simultaneously, counteracting the forked tongues of energy by causing them to latch out instinctively. Looking over he was surprised the arcs that narrowly missed him sizzled upon striking Nemu. Subtly he saw a small radiant glow of transparent indigo Reiatsu flow off her body, seeming to push all contact of force around her including the lightning.
Leaping forward, she lunged and surprised Crisol with a flying kick into his abdomen. Gaping out momentary in silent pain, the boy sneered with a dexterous whip of his tail, striking her with a vibrant crash against her repulsory side. Ricocheting the two back, Nemu rushed in to land a palm thrust to an extended forearm raise before being sent hurdling back by a vibrantly lit Bala that sent her spiraling backwards.
Uryū used that bought time to reignite his Seele Schneider, using Hirenkyaku to approach the Mod Arrancar's rear flank. Sensing his movement with his advanced Pesquisa, the Shinigamified Hollow swept his left arm in a knife swipe towards the Ishida's downward thrust. Only when he witnessed his very arm being severed by the real cutting edge did he see it was a feigned gesture by the Quincy. Wasting no time to eye the azure sparking stump, Uryū flipped the handle to an inverted grip, diagonally uppercutting Crisol across his chest in a dazzling stroke of sparking blood and burnt tissue.
Stumbling back through the air, he nimbly avoided a few more sword strikes from Uryū, his lips trembling with visible agony.
"It hurts..."
"It's supposed to," Uryū called back to the voice projected in his head, swinging thrice more for which he skillfully danced around, "do more," finishing with a left palm toss, sending a Gintō directly into the sparking field of Reiatsu in front of his body, "than that!"
Watching his own wound ebb a tendril of foreign Reishi to tap onto the tube, Crisol barely had time to comprehend the volatile explosion of bright blue Reishi that consumed him. His form was sent away from the cobalt silhouette that Uryū attained from the cylindrical localized Wolke he caused. Flipping head over fin the Mod Arrancar's body was badly burnt, his mouth hanging open and tears flowing endlessly out of his eyes. Creaking them open they opened painfully wide with his mouth on feeling Nemu's gravity aided ax kick.
A daunting crash of force happened two dozen meters away from the finally recomposed Renji and the amused Captain Kurotsuchi. Deep was the crater that buried the pain-induced experiment of Szayel's. But besides all of the damage done to his body it didn't feel like his power had dropped by any margin. Such was an obvious notice as an orange eruption of Reiatsu flowed upward like a pillar of fire and anger, as their enemy transformed again.
"Ascend, Rey Dragón!"
Crisol declared in a brazen tone within all of their minds as he rose upward, spiraling upward in a glistening coat of black and white. Much to his enemies' frustration, he looked to be completely recovered from the damage inflicted by Nemu and Uryū's combined efforts. Only when he turned to see them, they looked legitimately frightened by this particular form.
Wings outstretched to either flank, the black veined and bordered body full of white scales showed a much more muscular physique. Horns rose up at an angle that arched up and protruded up from a crown mask that covered his upper visage; this allowed his eyes to glow outward in a blank cerulean hue. Talons were affixed to where his fingers and toes were once seen, his body bristled with incredible strength and resilience. This terrifying form was the Resurrección of the first generation Espada Diez, Santo La Futuro.
"I am fed up with being prodded. Being cut up. Broken. Hurt. Want me to show you how that feels?"
Uryū shuddered at hearing the pathetic, boyish tone inflected in the very serious voice quaking in his conscious. Nemu seemed to understand the necessity of self preservation, distancing herself away from Uryū and even moreso from Crisol. When she felt her back hit the hard as iron chest of the Arrancar's, did she visible project cold sweat. His looming figure stood stalwartly, peering down at her with mild interest as she slowly turned her head around to look at him.
"He's so fast! I didn't even feel his Reiatsu when he moved," The Quincy thought with an audible swallow, his fingers twitching at the unnerving sight.
"You're scared. I was scared of being born. Emerging from fire and darkness."
Nemu wordlessly retaliated with a spinning kick, breathlessly left to hit nothing but a mirage her slow senses picked up. Her hair was yanked back by a materializing talon, causing her to shriek out in uncharacteristic outcry. A knee drove into her back, causing the breath to be torn out of her. Whipped around her gut was punched hard enough for bile and blood to escape her facial orifices, feeling herself completely outclassed.
"HEY!" Uryū cried out, halting Crisol's beating of Nemu, holding her aloft by her scalp while turning to look at him from over the shoulder. Having been angered enough to shake off his trepidation of the newly formed Mod Arrancar, he raised his Ginrei Kojaku and gathered an immense amount of Reishi from the atmosphere around him. Even the sand below swirled upward, turning into azure colored sparks of Reishi that dismantled at his beck and call. The bow that was once his size expanded to twice and then three times his own width and height. "let her go, or I'll put an arrow into you that'll make the one I shot at the bastard below us look like a kid's toy!"
Crisol, unnervingly, possessed now physical reaction to Uryū's threat. Choosing to raise up Nemu's woozy form up, he didn't care to even fully face the Quincy. For as much as he saw, he was beneath him now.
"NOW!" Uryū bellowed out once more, pulling back the drawstring to his cheek, feeling his construct tremble with bolts of unstable Reishi dancing in the air.
"Do you want to die first?"
"No, how about you?!"
Crisol's quiet inquiry was overshadowed by the loud shout from below. Blinking a few times to register the new challenger, he peeked below, seeing a rapidly zooming neck of beige tinted bone with spikes adjoined with it. Turning to his right, he was taken for a ride by a large red maned snake skull by the maw, releasing Nemu immediately.
Powering down his bow, Uryū didn't hesitate to jettison his platform across the sky, soaring off to catch Nemu. To his surprise, he stopped just short of her as she righted herself and held a hand out telling him to stop. When he blinked in surprise, he saw her right herself up and smile grimly at him.
"Master Mayuri wasn't the only one who underwent the faux body transplantation," Nemu explained right away, wiping the excreted fluids from her mouth, only lightly staining her lower chin and jaw, "any damage inflicted on me is superficial. Unless I am dismembered I can still fight."
"That's reassuring...I guess," Uryū sighed with partial relief mingled with a shudder at the morbid thought of her being dissected up by the deranged Shinigami scientist. Turning around, he viewed the bewildered Crisol being dragged across the desert floor that was once the palace they were trapped in. Rocks, sand and rubble were kicked up or smashed while being plowed through by the Lieutenant, "Lieutenant Abarai's Reiatsu has spiked. I thought I was feeling Ichigo's presence for a moment when I heard that maniac shout."
Looking down, Nemu could see even from the altitude they hovered, Renji's glowing eyes and bulging veins. His Bankai having once been submerged in the dust after he was brutally assaulted by Szayel had arose once more, fueled by his vigor and endurance to the vile affects the drugs had on him. Seeing even the empowered Crisol taken off guard was a testament to Mayuri's mad ambitions and Renji's resolve.
"He's undergoing three serums at once. It's good he isn't dead yet," Nemu whispered quietly.
"What?! You mean he wasn't simply healed like me?" Uryū asked flabbergasted, anger tinting his voice and the glare aimed down at the madly grinning Captain. He looked to be ignoring the entire endeavor, examining his own sword, as if he was in another world. Could he even tell Renji was fighting a dangerous enemy at the moment?
"In order, he had the same kind of Regeneration Serum he gave you, monitored by special bacteria implanted into you during your last...encounter," She answered, watching Crisol finally break free in a burst of violent Reishi, flying upwards to fire a number Bala at the segments of Renji's large Bankai. During the explosions that cast orange overcasts in the sky, blasting away the sand, she continued debriefing Uryū, "the next is the Resolution Potion. It is powered by the Resolve a Shinigami can muster up in a bleak or intense situation, focused like an Adrenaline shot for humans and intensifying their Reiatsu. The last is the Amplifier Syrup, a stirring agent that strengthens the Reiryoku of the Shinigami three fold."
Her explanation relatively finished, they were able to see the bone segments that were broken apart rise up, visibly tangled in crimson currents of Renji's own Reiatsu. Spiraling around they zoomed to and fro, dancing across the air like guiding cannon balls, crashing into Crisol repeatedly when they weren't battered aside using his monstrous strength. Arcs of lightning sprouted from the mere connection of the independent body parts.
"If he wasn't using the Regeneration Serum, there's a high probability he could die afterwards," Nemu murmured as an afterthought, causing Uryū's palms to grip tightly. With bow in hand, he zoomed off with platform underfoot, Nemu following him after kicking across the air. Getting closer, she added curiously, "for someone who is a Quincy you value the Lieutenant and myself's safety quite highly. Unorthodox for someone of your kind."
"It's not like I'm infatuated with you!" Uryū answered hastily, his cheeks slightly flustered as he tried to look indignant at her statement.
"I didn't suggest that," Nemu dryly retorted.
"Then, its not like I'm against aiding allies against a common enemy! I still hate Shinigami! Period!" Uryū enunciated with a verbal spat, turning his head away, making sure to pull the bowstring back while taking aim at their nemesis.
"I don't care," She sang out.
"THEN WHY BRING IT UP?!" Uryū asked with an offended expression on his face, still holding back the bowstring even as she glided up a little too close to his face.
"To see if you really cared about me more than Master Mayuri did. I found it baffling a human, a Quincy, kept keeping my well being above his own. I wanted to confirm it. That's all," She finished with an emotionless visage as she made a turnabout to their enemy whom eyeballed their approaching figures.
"Tch, you're insufferable," Uryū finished with an almost wry grin that betrayed his liking to the girl's charm, "but maybe that's what makes you better than your father."
"Hm," She hummed, cupping both hands at her right hip, gathering a large amount of Reiatsu into both of her palms.
Amidst the attacks Crisol had to parry off, he found himself attacked from below, above, and around him on all sides by this new antagonist. Seeing the Quincy and the Shinigami girl return to fight caused his eyes to narrow behind the eye slits. Despite the serious physiological advantage his new state benefited him, the Lieutenant below boasted enough power to challenge him outright. Having the two of them clash in addition could be problematic. Even then, he had kept periodic watch on the Captain he was ordered to kill and saw he made no sign of entering the conflict.
"You're delaying my order too long. It's time I finish you all off at once. Enemies of Master Szayelapporro shall die at my hands!"
"Think again!" Renji roared out, reattaching his Bankai back to its full length, yanking his hilt back to coil it directly underneath Crisol. The ligaments, one at a time, began to funnel a large eruption of Reishi through its segments. His finishing move was going to fire at any moment, and he could only hope Uryū and his fellow Lieutenant got the hint. "Uryū! Let's hit this guy together!"
"You got it!" Uryū primed his bow fully, deciding a widespread attack was more beneficial to hit him within the horizon.
Nemu, on the other hand, seemed to lie directly next to him. The massive amount of Reishi that swirled around her palms billowed her braided ponytail, ruffling her Shikhakushō while her eyes dimly burned a bright purple. Combined they made a bright aurora that challenged the moonlight high above their head, creating a new kind of Sun for Crisol stare agape at.
"Hikotsu Taihō!"
Just as Renji roared out, the Arrancar child looked below his feet, seeing a voluminous blast of crimson race towards.
"Licht Regen!"
Folding his arms around himself, he could see the hail of Heilig Pfeil coming towards him.
"Hadō #73. Sōren Sōkatsui!"
Finally, he saw the burning second eye of cerulean energy transported above him, crashing down against him just as the two other attacks. Folding his wings around himself, he created a cocoon of Reiatsu to buffet the damage. It appeared massive to the beholders, bursts of blue, red and white elliptically detonated across the air. So much pressure was in the explosion that Uryū, Renji and Nemu had to back away, shielding themselves as much as they could from their own combined efforts.
But within the haze of Reishi constructed mist, something writhed and convulsed within its center. Before either three could perceive it, the movement of three white sinuous limbs stretched out and wrapped around each attacker. The constriction of each iron thick protuberance was enough that each felt no amount of budging could loosen them.
"Dammit!" Renji snarled, feeling the effects of the latter two serums finally fade from his system, rendering him exhausted within the grip of his enemy.
"Ngh!" Nemu grunted, her shoulders squirming as her chest felt to be bulging uncomfortably upward within the small space her uniform had.
"It can't be this quick!" Uryū gasped out, feeling the force behind the grip to be almost unfathomable in its strength. Staring at the five remaining limbs dancing in the air around the newly transformed Crisol, his eyes widened at the drastic change in appearance, "he could change Resurreccións that quickly this whole time?!"
"Strangle, Trepadora."
Crisol announced calmly, his uniform now mimicking the late Luppi Antenor, the temporary fill-in for the unknowingly deceased Grimmjow. Long sleeves draped over his hands to the point of concealing them. A circlet of bone wrapped around his blonde hair, now reformed into a braided ponytail. His blue eyes stoically stared at Uryū in particular, his breaths coming out even from his X-shaped breastplate that connected the eight additional octopi arms along his back.
"I have you all right where I want you. Now I can make you feel the same pain I had. When I am satisfied, I can crush you and then do the same to the Captain."
As he applied more pressure to his victims, something happened to them other than unadulterated agony. Spirals of lime colored light escaped Renji's mouth, rocketing upwards to wrap around Crisol's startled body, becoming a brilliantly glowing python. Jettisoning from Uryū's neck was fiery chains full of barbs, thrusting into each of the of Crisol's additional arms, holding them tightly. From Nemu's shoulder flowed out a ice formed hands, grabbing and numbing the Arrancar boy's final four humanoid limbs.
"What-"
"-the Hell?!" Uryū started and Renji finished, gaping in pain at the sudden discharge of Kidō coming from their own bodies, binding and trapping the formidable Arrancar.
"On the contrary, Arrancar boy. I have you where I want you," Mayuri spoke, now behind Crisol's body, causing his now very paralyzed form to bead sweat. Turning his head around, he saw as much as he felt a painful sword impale him shallowly through his back. Due to his current level of strength, it was all the Captain could manage with his now active Shikai, but it was all needed. He could feel himself unable to even squirm within his bindings as the bleeding wound infected him with a paralyzing agent and something else more sinister.
"Ever wonder about what makes us intelligent, even if we lose memory of past events or experiences?" He asked rhetorically raising up Ashisogi Jizō as he talked further, "I say, its the memory that we beings of sentience can retain even if forgotten in the forefront of our minds. Memories can be what makes and breaks a soldier, if you understand. That's why I created a concoction that erases every trace of that experience from your body's consciousness."
Raising up a now visible emerald vial the shape a teardrop, he jiggled it, sloshing contents within to show that it had been recently used. To Crisol's point of view, he felt like he saw something but then forgot it. What was he saying again? Why was he in pain? Wait, is he in pain?
As questions of his own current and past state of being were dredged up in his confused eyes, Mayuri smiled, and put away the potion within his coat, "You might ask yourself what the importance would be if you lose a memory of something? Then, you have to remember how you walk. Communicate with another individual. Breathe. Eat. All of these motions can be forgotten potentially at an alarming rate. Luckily for you this is a temporary side affect as this drug never was perfected. But at the very least...you will forget the reason why you even emerged from that pit."
Crisol's mouth opened agape, his consciousness leaving him as all of his power shrank and hid within his body. The form vanished in a plume of light as did his restraints. As his targets looked on dumbfounded at the Captain's victory all couldn't help but feel a bit of pity at the childish appearing nemesis falling. When his lithe form hit the ground, he asked a simple yet scared question that echoed all of their minds.
"What...am...I?"
AN: WHOO! This took awhile to chug out. I don't mean for these Chapters to take long but, let's face it, when it doesn't get as much feedback as my other stories you normally just chalk it up to lack of popularity and the drive to keep writing diminishes. As of late, some of the BLEACH updates have gotten me reinvigorated for what is to come in this series and I hope to share it with you in the following Chapters.
Before I go over some things, a big round of thanks to my good friend Lastation. Without him I wouldn't have fixed the errors plaguing the final draft. Thankfully for that, it's in pristine condition for your entertainment. Again, many thanks!
Things to cover?
How about Aaroniero. She's starting to feel the effects of power craze, something that she's trying to keep under wraps. The methodical, calculated mind of Aaroniero has been tainted by the luxurious amount of power that's swimming his mind and body. Even as he dispatches more of the Vanguard, the devouring of the Lieutenant may have consequences. As what they are, we shall see whom they affect the most. More importantly, who is she going to face next? We shall find out in the next Chapter!
Sin's passing, I wanted, to be in a way that honors his existence. Out of all the Arrancars, I liked him the most simply because he's a sad case of pure loyalty. Unlike Rudbornn, whom valued Aizen's direction so much he ignored any of the wrongdoings he's committed. But with his power stolen and imbued into Nelliel, what will this do to Aaroniero's plans?
As I keep bringing up more questions, the last bout was my most favorite one. Crisol de Razas is the Modified Arrancar brewed and born from a bubbling mass of molten genetic stew. Only knowing his link to those that make up his physical and spiritual powers (to which two of their Resurrecion I owe to a Reviewer for helping me conceive so he/she may view it in-story to some capacity). While I do wish he had some Captains to face, his infantile state of mind and lack of experience made it easier for our heroes to face him in combat. Of course Mayuri steals the win, clever bastard, using what I'd like to call, "Bakudō #78, Sanjū Mahirō," so you guys know what the spell is called.
Anyways, that's all I got. Next time we'll finally get to see Ichigo's fight with Rana resolved and maybe even clue in what Aaroniero's next confrontation is. Will our heroes pull out of this or are they just escaping the frying pan and into the inferno? Find out, on the next update of A Predator Among Us!