What's up everyone? Sorry it's been a while since my last update, but a combination of work, sickness and a lousy Internet connection have prevented me from updating. Your patience shall be rewarded however, for this is the BIG chapter, the one that sets the stage for the other planned fics in this series. Enough of this though. On to: THE REVELATION (dramatic music)
Disclaimer: Tite Kubo owns everything except my ideas and concepts.
Ichigo marched down the hall, surrounded by arrancars. The tall one with the braid that had ordered him to follow him was out in front. A bulky arrrancar with his mask remains sitting on the bridge of his nose like glasses was on his left, and a thin one with a cocky demeanor was on his left. A fat one and a short one with a sharklike grin brought up the rear. He had been allowed to keep Zangetsu, but he could sense enough of their spirit energy to know they were strong, almost on a level with the one that had been guarding his cell. There was no way he could break free.
He sensed a sinister aura up ahead, and knew that they were getting close to their destination. Sure enough, the hall ended, leading into a huge throne chamber. Ichigo stepped into it, his hollow guard fanning out into a semi-circle holding formation behind him, leaving Ichigo exposed in the center.
There were three figures ahead of him. On his left stood Ulquiorra, who stared at Ichigo with the same dispassionate expression he always wore, but he could sense his readiness. On the right stood Gin Ichimaru, wearing the same mocking grin that was always on his face. As he stared at Ichigo, his grin changed slightly, becoming no less wide, but growing more sinister in nature.
In the center, slumped in the enormous throne-like chair, sat Sosuke Aizen. His facial expression was bored, but it changed slightly when he saw Ichigo. It reminded him of a predator suddenly spotting his prey.
Ichigo wondered that if he donned his mask if he could catch Aizen by enough surprise to kill him in the 11 second time limit. No… Ulquiorra and Ichimaru were watching them too closely for a surprise attack like that. Better to bide his time and wait to see if the situation changed.
"Ah, Mr. Kurosaki, you've finally woken up I see," Aizen commented. "Very good. I've been waiting to see you for quite some time." He shifted his glance to the assembled arrancars. "Espada, dismissed," he ordered. The arrancars bowed and left, closing and locking the single large door as they did so. The Lord of Hueco Mundo turned his attention back to Ichigo. He glared defiantly at the traitor. "Yeah? And exactly why would you want to do that?"
Aizen smiled faintly. "Let me tell you a story, Mr. Kurosaki." He settled into the throne, and gestured for a minor arrancar to bring a chair for Ichigo. Once he was seated, Aizen began his tale.
"A few days after my friends and I left the Soul Society, I noticed a curious sensation in the back of my head. With a little probing and an application of spirit energy, I discovered something quite fascinating: a memory easement kido had been performed on me. It was quite strong, and only by leaving the Soul Society behind had I been able to discover it, for it had weakened in the different atmosphere of Hueco Mundo. By the strength and skill of the spell, I determine that the caster was none other than the esteemed Captain-General himself.
"Bull," interrupted Ichigo. "Why would the old man take the time to cast such a powerful spell on you?"
"Ah, but that's one of the fascinating things. The kido was not limited to me. There were spells of an exact strength on Gin and Kaname as well. However, the spell itself is not that important. The contents of the memory it lock are, however.
"The memory was that of a promising soul reaper, kind, skilled, and extremely powerful, with great potential for growth. He had been dispatched by his captain to take care of a hollow in the World of the Living. It was a routine mission, one that he had done dozens of times before, so nobody was expecting anything to go wrong. But something did.
"The soul reaper easily defeated the hollow, but it wasn't over yet. The hollow had simply been bait for a trap. A few dozen more powerful hollows attacked. The soul reaper managed to defeat most of them, but during the fight he had sustained a head injury. His backup arrived and took him to Squad 4 immediately, but it was too late. He had suffered partial memory loss and had to be discharged from the 13 Court Guard Squads." Aizen leaned back in the throne, his tale concluded.
Ichigo leaned back in his seat as well. "So what does this fascinating story have to do with me?" he asked. The predatory smile returned to Aizen's face. He stood, and with a single flash step, he was in front of Ichigo. "Why don't I show you…?"
Ichigo had Zangetsu drawn and pointed at Aizen's heart in a heartbeat. It made no difference however. Aizen held his palm out in front of Ichigo's face. A mysterious power seized the younger soul reaper. He was forced to his knees. With a flick of his wrist, Zangetsu was torn from his grip. It buried itself in the ground at an angle about five feet away. Ichigo screamed in agony as he felt Aizen's spiritual pressure penetrate his mind. The tentacles of energy forced their way deeper, and flashes of memory began to surface.
He saw himself dressed in the uniform of a soul reaper, much like he was now. He was wearing a unit patch tied to his upper right arm. Zangetsu was strapped to his back, but it too was different. It was in the shape of a normal, albeit oversized katana, and was resting in a large leather sheath, much like it had when he had first gotten his powers.
The memory disappeared. He was on a dark street, sword in hand, facing down a monstrous hollow. He was fighting the said hollow. He was panicking, shifting into shikai mode to fight the dozen or more hollows that had suddenly appeared. There was a blinding pain in his head. He felt the memories disappear in a rush, but they remained in his head as something exploded in the back of his skull, setting them free
He snapped back to reality. He was on his knees, and now he fell to all fours, and retched onto the ground. His memories had returned. He had been a member of Squad 9. He was a member of the 13 Court Guards. This revelation stunned him.
Five feet away, Zangetsu was undergoing a revelation of sorts as well. It morphed into its previous form of an oversized katana. The similarly oversized sheath appeared on his back, waiting to receive its blade.
"By the way," Aizen began, "I'll be taking my payment now…"
Ichigo felt searing pain rip through him again. He felt as if a very part of his soul was being stripped away. He screamed again, only this time there were two voices shrieking in agony.
When the pain finally stopped, he felt… different. Empty. He saw the reason why almost immediately.
His inner hollow was now standing next to Aizen. It was like looking in a mirror, except with all the colors reversed. The hollow stood frozen for a second, then began to laugh maniacally at his new freedom.
Aizen leaped back into his throne, a satisfied smirk on his face. Ichigo wanted to wipe it off of his smug face. "BANKAI!"
He was rewarded by seeing the smile disappear. "I didn't want to fight, Ichigo," he began.
"Too damn bad," Ichigo snarled as he stood up. "GETSUGA TENSHO!!!" A giant crescent blast of black and red energy shot out of Zangetsu at Aizen. He slashed a hand through the air horizontally, slicing the energy in two, dissipating it. Aizen had a gesture with one hand, ripping open a portal. The roaring tunnel sucked Ichigo in. He dimly heard Aizen say, "Give my regards to Yamamoto…" The last thing he heard was his hollow, still laughing maniacally.
Well, there you have it folks, the titular revelation. Things are just getting exciting. As always, a couple of things before I leave you.
How did you like my revelation? I thought it was rather clever, myself.
The return of Zangetsu's giant katana form is upon us! Let me know what you think.
In case you didn't catch it, we have 5 new Espada in the house! They are Grimmjow's Fraccion (yeah I know I mangled that spelling) I'll explain the new numbering order next chapter.
Ichigo's hollow is out of the Soul Reaper! How do you think he fits into Aizen's grand plans? FYI, he will be called Shirosaki (white one) until further notice.
Well, I've given you a lot to think about. Ill update again soon, I promise. Please review! I'm dying to know what you think. See ya later!