Chapter 14: Miracle
"Ichigo? Ichigo, are you in here?" Renji yelled, as the smoke surrounding the door he just busted in cleared and light fell into the dimly lit cell.
"Renji?" Ichigo felt his heart skip a few beats. Had his prayers been answered? He'd carefully laid Uryu onto the floor and stood in front of him, protectively. "Renji, is it really you?"
The red-haired man gave him a broad smile and the Substitute felt his legs move of their own accord, jumping him and giving him a very welcome hug, shouting out his joy. He felt Renji answer the hug before patting him on the back and pulling away, a little embarrassed.
"I can't believe we've finally found you. We've been looking for you for weeks! One day you were gone, just like that!" The Shinigami started rambling, probably because of the emotions. "We've all been looking for you, but it was like your spiritual pressure had completely vanished. Then, suddenly, we felt your spirit like an explosion!"
"Really?" Ichigo couldn't recall when that could have happened, but… he didn't remember torturing the Quincy either.
"No Shinigami alive could've missed that energy spike you made! Neither did your friends. What did you-" Ichigo swayed a little, from weariness and the emotions of recent events, and that shut the red-head up. "Are you alright?" Renji's voice sounded concerned and he grasped the Substitute by the shoulders, stabilizing him.
"Yes, just a little tired, but…" Ichigo answered as he stepped to the side to reveal the unconscious figure behind him. "Uryu is… he's dying…" Ichigo's voice broke and his eyes were already filling with tears again. "Help him, Renji. Please…" He couldn't hold back a few fresh tears as he gazed into the Shinigami's flabbergasted face.
"It's okay, pal. We're here now." The red-head said, voice laced with worry. "We're getting you both outta here." Ichigo could only manage a nod and tried to stop his tears by rubbing his eyes. He couldn't help the display of sentiments right now and he knew the Shinigami'd understand he'd been through a lot. Renji went to stand into the hallway and yelled. "He's here! Send help! Now!"
While Renji took out a few guards that charged at him in front of the door, Ichigo went to sit by the Quincy's side again and checked his vitals. He still had a pulse, but he didn't know how much time the other boy had left, as he was barely breathing.
"Hang on, Uryu." He clasped the other boy's hand and managed a faint smile. "They've found us! They've finally found us! We're getting out of here!"
While Ichigo was wiping his tired, red eyes again. He heard a girl's voice shout out:
"If you're joking about this, I'm gonna kill you!"
"I wouldn't dare, Rukia! I've been worried, too, you know!"
The girl burst into their cell and just dashed towards him. Ichigo didn't even have time to stand up, as she was already hugging his back.
"Thank god, we found you, Ichigo! You've been missing for 3 weeks and-" Then she gasped as she saw the Quincy in his pitiful state. "W-what happened? Are you alright?"
"I'm happy to see you, too, Rukia. Yes, I'm alright, but Uryu really needs help. He's been… gravely injured a-and… and…" He trailed off, the emotions gripping tight around his throat again. She gave him a soft smile before whispering.
"It's okay, Ichigo. You've probably gone through a lot and we can talk about it later. Help is on the way, I promise." She planted a kiss on the back of his head before standing back up. "I'll leave this to her. I'll go signal the others. There's no end to those guards. Hang in there for a little longer, alright." She dashed towards the entrance and shouted: "Stay with him, Renji!"
"'Course I will, you doofus!" The red-head shouted after her as she took off. "Like I'd lose sight of him now." Then he turned towards the substitute again with a grin on his face while rubbing the back of his head. "With 'Uryu' you mean Ishida, right?"
Ichigo didn't know why, but that comment made him smile. Yes, Renji was still himself. And yes, it felt good to smile for a change. Even if he was still worried sick about the Quincy. He had so many questions to ask Renji, like how they'd found them, but his primary concern right now was Uryu's life.
"Have… have it really only been 3 weeks?" He asked Renji a little confused. "It felt like an eternity in here… We couldn't even tell if it was night or day in this place."
"It has been long enough, Ichigo. Judging from the state you both are in right now."
Renji was right, of course. It had been too long. Far too long. Uryu and he had gotten scars of which he didn't know they would ever completely heal. But there was no time for this right now. They needed to get the Quincy out of this dump. They needed to save him. Then, he remembered the girl's words and asked:
"By her did Rukia mean Inoue? Is she here?" Ichigo felt a ray of hope start to thaw his frozen heart.
"Well, yeah! You know that girl better than me. If she sets her mind to something, there's no stopping her, right?"
"Thank god for Inoue's stubbornness." Ichigo smiled. Carefully, he tried lifting the Quincy up in his arms. "He has a better chance to survive this if I rush him to Inoue right now." The sudden movement was too rash and the unconscious archer whimpered while blood trickled down his legs. Ichigo shrieked in panic and froze, heart racing. He started trembling and almost let the other boy drop down.
"Whoa! Whoa!" Renji was right there next to him, taking Uryu out of his hands and carefully laying him back down, while Ichigo tried not to have a nervous breakdown. "I think it's best if you don't move him right now. Rukia went to tell the others about your location. Your friend will be here soon."
"Y-yeah…"
"You sure you're alright, man? I have no idea what happened here, but…"
Ichigo's face must've been radiating how bad he really felt right now, as the red-head promptly trailed off and watched him worriedly. Yes, he felt like an emotional wreck right now. And as he stood there on wobbly legs, shaking with stress, peering down at the dying Quincy, the resolve that he wouldn't let his emotions get the better of him right now slipped for a moment. It was only Renji right now, and he trusted that man with his life.
"I… I did this to him, Renji." Ichigo lamented, voice breaking, while grasping his head. "It's been a nightmare here and I… I'm a monster." His heart was still pounding, as the memories of what he'd done to Uryu came rushing back in and he sank back to the floor.
"Hey!" Renji snapped, crouching before him while grabbing his shoulders. "I'm sure there's an explanation for all this. I'm here if you wanna talk, buddy, but right now, we need to get you two outta here."
Before Ichigo got the chance to answer anything to that, he heard a lot of commotion outside and 2 figures rushed in.
"Is it true?" He heard a female voice ask. Looking over his shoulder, he spotted Orihime and Sado standing in the door frame and he quickly steeled himself again. If he acted all emotional right now, there was no telling how bad Orihime would take it… Besides, he didn't want the others to see him vulnerable like this. That was unbecoming of a hero like him.'
Before Ichigo could even greet the pair, the girl had already dashed towards him, then tripped and tackled him to the ground with the weight of her impressive bosom. "Kurosaki-kun!" She shouted, tears rolling down her cheeks. "We've been worried sick about you! What happened? Are you alright? Did they hurt you?" Before he even got the chance to answer anything, she gasped sharply as she noticed Uryu. "Oh my god! What happened to Ishida-kun?" She exclaimed, while sitting up and breaking their hug.
"It's… It's a long story, Inoue. And yes, I'm happy to see you, too. And you, Chad." Ichigo managed while he sat back up as well. The large teen hummed in agreement, before Ichigo continued. "Thank god you're here. Uryu has been… mortally wounded and…" A tremor ripped through his body again, silencing him.
Orihime gasped, as she took in some of the other boy's injuries. As she tried lifting a bit of the Kosode Uryu was currently wearing, Ichigo felt a tad of protectiveness and insult run through him and slapped her hands away. The Quincy had been humiliated enough, she didn't have to gape at his naked body. Nor did he want to give her or the others an idea of what had happened.
"Don't!" He snapped, angrier than it was intended, then sighed as the auburn-haired girl got all teary eyed again.
"I was just checking his wounds, and-"
"I know, Inoue. Sorry, but we don't have time." Ichigo tried to amend. "His left lung is punctured and an artery was ruptured, so please… save him." His voice broke again on those last words. He couldn't have a breakdown now in front of his friends…
Oriihime quickly dried her tears before giving him a determined look and getting on with it.
"Souten kisshun. I reject!" She yelled and a small, yellow dome appeared over the Quincy. "I'll take care of him. Come sit into the light, too, Kurosaki-kun."
"Why? What…" Then he noticed the blood smeared onto his bare torso and stammered: "N-no… it's not my blood. It's…" He trailed off as his throat risked clogging up again and he clutched his Shihakusho Hakama while staring down, shielding his eyes from the others.
"Even so, your spiritual pressure needs replenishing." Without hesitation, Orihime pulled his arm and with a startled sound, Ichigo found himself inside the healing light as well. He sighed and shot the girl a faint smile, which she returned with a broad one of her own.
"Might as well take you up on that." Ichigo said. It was true, he could sense his spiritual pressure was low. No wonder, after that vile form he took. After what he did… He had no idea what had happened when he got out of this room, but he must have done some impressive damage to blow up Szayelaporro's shield. That was the only answer. His friends were here now because he'd destroyed or deactivated the shield somehow. Uryu was being given treatment. Finally! He bit his lip to keep his tears at bay, overrun by emotion that something good was actually happening right in front of his him. He was watching the other boy intently again, deciding he was going to stay with him in the healing light until Uryu was out of danger. Unless anything bad happened again, as that freaking Espada was probably up to no good. They had to get Uryu out of this place.
"Ichigo." A big hand came to rest on his shoulder and that broke his train of thought. "It's gonna be alright now." As he stared into the calm eyes of Sado, he really wanted to believe him, but he couldn't afford to relax just yet. The Quincy's life was still in danger. Because of what he did.
Ichigo needed to refocus, as there was no time to fall apart right now. They needed to get to safety first, before he could even start thinking about processing all that had happened. He didn't want to tell the others just what had occurred during their captivity. They didn't need to know about all of this. And he was sure Uryu would agree. The less they knew about their ordeal, the better. The guilt and shame of what he'd done to the Quincy was still too fresh. He felt so bad about it that he wouldn't even be able to speak the words. What would his friends think of him? What would they think of Uryu? He wouldn't be able to take their judgement right now. He was a hero, not that awful monster Szayelaporro had wanted him to be. He swallowed hard and pushed that tornado of agonizing thoughts back down. For now…
"Thanks, Chad." Ichigo managed to say after taking a deep breath in and out, trying to slow his heartbeat down. "You guys should be careful, though. We've been captured by Szayelaporro, and he's probably watching us right now."
"Sizzel-A-Porn?" Renji exclaimed. "That wacko Espada? But how? Captain Kurotsuchi took care of that freak in front of my eyes?"
"That bastard had a clone of himself lying around, and he captured us to…" He didn't want to go into details about any of the mess Uryu and he had gotten themselves into. Gripping his Hakama pants hard between his fingers, he spilled. "He… he wanted to torture us, a-and…"
Orihime gasped and Sado gave a startled hum.
"Torture you?" The girl asked, shocked. "But why?"
"I… I don't know." Ichigo admitted. It was true. He still didn't understand what that freak had wanted with him, but he was a crazy bastard. Why had he made him do all those nasty things to the other boy.
"Is that why Ishida-kun is…" Her voice was laced with sadness.
"Yes." Ichigo answered quickly. Of course, the girl would have absolutely no idea as to what had really happened, he wanted to stear clear of that subject. It was too difficult for him.
"Ishida and Renji fought him in Hueco Mundo, right?" Sado's low voice asked. "Did he want revenge on Ishida?"
"Y-yeah, I think so." Ichigo answered. This was the easy way out for him. And his friends would probably buy that, too. He wasn't sure yet of Szayelaporro's reasons, but if they thought it was about revenge, he could just go with that. "He controls us with these collars. Whenever he presses a certain button on his remote, we both get zapped with a high current of electricity." Sado made a startled sound.
"Is that why you couldn't escape?"
"Well… it's not like we didn't try, but… It's complicated…" His gaze fell onto Uryu again, but he tried to shut everything that came rushing into his head out and focused on his friends. "I'm amazed he's not zapping us right now, actually."
"Thank god for Urahara!" Renji burst out. "Give him the thing, Chad." Renji said, while looking out through the door for more guards.
"Urahara-san made a little trinket in case you were restrained with something or confined, but I think it'll work just the same." Ichigo gave him a questioning look while he produced a sort of metal spider from one of his pockets. "Here." Sado continued and placed the thing on Ichigo's collar.
Ichigo watched in amazement how the little spider latched onto the collar and sat down. Then, it produced beeping and zooming noises while lifting up it's 8 metallic legs in a specific rhythm, before suddenly a blue light lit up at its back and the collar opened. Ichigo gasped in surprise.
"Urahara's a genius!" Ichigo exclaimed, while rubbing his neck. "Thank god, I'm finally free of that horrid device! Quickly, take Uryu's collar off, too!"
"Of course." Sado said with a low voice. The large teen collected the little, mechanical insect-like thing and put it on the collar of the unconscious boy. As Uryu's collar fell off too, the Substitute felt a flash of relief warm his frozen heart a little. At least, the Quincy couldn't be tortured that way anymore. Ichigo resisted the urge to intertwine their fingers, like he'd done before to encourage him, as he didn't want to make the situation awkward. His friends had no idea how intense these last few weeks had been. Nor how the two of them had bonded…
Suddenly, chaotic sounds emerged from outside the cell. The volume of the alarm turned up a tad and a voice shouted:
"Alerting all Fraccionés! Hostiles have invaded the perimeter. Kill on sight, but capture specimen 1! I repeat: don't kill specimen 1!"
Renji huffed and Sado made a disapproving grunt.
"Who the hell is specimen 1?" The red-head blurted.
Ichigo raised one of his eyebrows at that and said: "That would be me, I guess."
"Oh. So they need you alive, eh?"
Suddenly another voice blared through the halls.
"Son? Ichigo, if you can hear me, it's daddy! I've come to rescue you! Just a little longer and I can cuddle you breathless, ya hear! No, Ryuuken, stop that! It's my turn! I wanna talk to my so-"
"Uryu? Can you hear me?" Another voice intervened, while Ichigo's father was heard whining in the background, making the Substitute sigh in exasperation . "I've come to your aid, before you can embarrass me even more as a Quincy. I still can't believe you were dumb enough to get captured by Arrancars-"
Screaming and shouting echoed over the transmitter before it made a flat zap and everything went silent again. Renji was laughing out loud, while Sado and Orihime looked a little embarrassed.
"Well…" Orihime said, smiling sheepishly. "I guess now you know your father is here, too."
"Yeah…" His father was weird sometimes, but at least, his desire to rescue him was wholehearted. "That other guy was Uryu's father, right?"
Sado nodded. "Yes, we decided to search for you in pairs, and your father wanted to team up with him."
"Figures." Ichigo said. He couldn't believe what that guy just said to Uryu. What an arrogant bastard, he thought. . It wasn't below him to judge his son like that, before knowing anything about the whole situation.
"Renji! A little help here!" Rukia shouted from the doorway before taking off again.
"You got it!" The red-head answered before dashing towards her. "We'll take care of the Arrancars here, your father is fighting his way over, too." Pulling out his Zanpakuto, Renji jumped the nearest Fraccioné.
"Wait!" Ichigo wanted to help them. Even without his Zanpakuto, he could still do some pretty good damage. Slowly, he stood up and walked out of Orihime's healing light.
"Kurosaki-kun, don't." She said, hesitantly. "Your spiritual pressure hasn't been completely restored yet."
"Well, it'll just have to do." Ichigo countered. As he walked up to the door of his cell, Sado's low voice held him back.
"Don't, Ichigo." He said. "It's our priority to get you out of here. We don't know what the Arrancars want, so don't join in on the fight."
"Yes, but, I still have a bone to pick with that pink bastard." Ichigo answered, gritting his teeth. Thinking back on everything that had happened in this place just set his blood to boil. He wanted to tear that freak apart, for everything he made him do to Uryu. And more.
Suddenly, Rukia lept into the cell again.
"Inoue, when Ishida is stable enough to move, we're getting outta here."
"Count on me!" Orihime replied, determinately. "Ishida-kun's injuries are really bad, but I'm getting there. He's almost out of critical danger."
"Good." Sado hummed. "Once he's stable, we move. Urahara is maintaining the Garganta for us. You can finish healing Ishida there." Orihime hummed in acknowledgement.
Ichigo clenched his fists and let his gaze drop to the floor. Even though he felt a powerful relief spread through his body at what Orihime had just said, and Uryu was almost out of mortal danger, he didn't want it to end like this. After Uryu's confession, he just had to know if Szayelaporro had tormented the Quincy like that because he knew off his feelings for him somehow. That was reason enough to strike him down. He didn't want to think about the implications in all this, he didn't want to think about any of it at all right now. First, they had to save the Quincy. He could start to examine his emotions about everything that happened after that. But if that freak Espada was still alive, who knew what he'd still be capable of, or if he would come after him again. Or worse, if he'd capture Uryu again. No. There was only one solution…
"Chad, I'm counting on you to get Uryu out of here. You can easily carry him. The girls can cover you." Sado gave him a questioning look and wanted to dispute, but someone else beat him to it.
"Ichigo!" Rukia shouted, momentarily sheathing her Zanpakuto and looking sternly at him. "We came to get you out of here, I'm not leaving without you! And neither will the others!"
"I get that!" Ichigo shouted back. "But if we don't take down that Espada, I have no idea what he'll do. He could even go so far as clone a few more versions of himself and attack Soul Society for all we know. We have to take him down." His voice was unwavering and he knew the others would realize he was not backing down.
"You need to get away from here." She tried again. "I understand the Espada that captured you is a real pain in the ass, but don't you think in your condition it's wiser to leave him to us?" Sado hummed agreeingly to that. Orihime remained silent, concentrating on improving the Quincy's deplorable state.
"No. There's nothing wrong with my condition. I'm just a little tired. It's Uryu who got most of that freak's wrath." He felt anger rise in him even more. "That fucking maniac! He put us through hell! If you guys hadn't shown up here today, Uryu would have… Don't you understand? He would've…" Ichigo couldn't even say it. He closed his eyes and pushed those feelings of despair that shook him up so much back down.
"Ichigo…" Sado said calmly. "You are clearly not well. Why don't you just let us handle this?"
"That bastard needs to pay! For what he did to Uryu! For what he did to me! I have to take him out!" Ichigo tried to channel the sorrow he'd felt over almost losing Uryu into anger, and it set him positively ablaze. Fury raging inside of him. Orihime gasped when she saw his fierce eyes and stammered:
"Kurosaki-kun…"
"Ichigo, just let us handle this!" Rukia shouted, desperately.
"No!" The Substitute held his ground. "He needs comeuppance for what he did. For what he put us through. I need to do this. And I need answers from him."
"But you don't even have your Zanpakto!" The girl countered.
"That bastard's taken Zangetsu from me. It's bound to be here somewhere in this lab and I have to get it back. That's just one more reason for me to go looking for that Espada, Rukia."
The petite Shinigami knew him well enough to know once he set his mind to something… "Fine…" She sighed, shoulders slouching in defeat. "There's no stopping you anyway when you get like this." Sado hummed in agreement.
"Damn right." Ichigo approved. "You three get Uryu out of here, and make sure he's safe. I'll continue the fight with the others here. Then, I'm coming right after you." The others made assorted noises, from Orihime's worried whine, to Sado's defeated grunt and Rukia's worried sigh.
"We'll get Ishida to safety, Ichigo, but don't do anything rash." Sado said.
"I won't." Ichigo answered and gave them a faint smile, before his gaze shifted towards the Quincy. He hadn't want to show anything in front of his friends, but… the urge to say something to Uryu was stronger. He didn't want them to think anything weird, so he just knelt in front of him and clasped his hand. "You're gonna make it, Uryu. Just a little longer and you'll be safe." He smiled, resisting the urge to wipe his hair out of the Quincy's face or place his palm onto a pale cheek. Then, he stood up and turned towards the exit. "Rukia, Chad, Inoue, I'm counting on you to get Uryu outta here. Please, take care of him. I'm coming after. I promise."
"Be careful, Kuroaski-kun!" Orihime shouted when he dashed outside.
"I'm coming with you, pal!" Renji shouted and made Ichigo chuckle.
"I didn't expect any less from you, Renji! Someone needs to babysit me, right?"
"You got that right!" The Shinigami scolded. "You don't even wanna know the things Rukia will do to me if I lose sight of you!" That made the Substitute laugh out loud.
"Renji!" Shouted the short girl, but before she could manage anything else, Ichigo and his fellow Shinigami were shunpo-ing and rounded the nearest corner.
Ichigo had no idea where Szayelaporro was, but how big could this place be? Besides, his father was probably fighting from the other end, and they'd meet up eventually.
Shouting, Ichigo let his fists crash into the helmet of the first of a group of Fraccionés that came dashing towards him. It felt so good to finally let out some of his frustration ! Renji wasted no time using Zabimaru on them. Some of them were carrying firearms, but the Substitute and his friend were too fast for them to even use them. Using a little of his Hollow power, Ichigo snatched a rod from one of them, before flinging it around like it was nothing, hitting several guards at the same time. One of them tried sending a message:
"Specimen 1 is in corridor C5! I need backup! Aah!"
Before the words had left the guard's mouth, Ichigo had already caught him. Glaring angrily at the Arrancar, he shoved the borrowed rod right through his gut. The Fraccioné screamed, before going limp in front of him and turned to dust. Ichigo was panting a little, mostly out of pent up anger that tried to free itself. When he took a good look at the bloody mess he made, and the crimson liquid that was now dripping down the staff in his hands, he promptly threw it down. He'd seen enough blood on his hands lately to last him a lifetime. Especially Uryu's. That thought gripped his heart again and he bit his lip, pulse shooting up.
"You okay?" Renji asked, worriedly. "You seem startled."
"I'm alright. It's just…" Ichigo trailed off. He needed to stay focused. Yes, he had put the Quincy through horrors, but if he gave into those feelings right now, he wouldn't stand a chance against Szayelaporro. Taking a deep breath, he tried to calm himself down. Uryu was in the hands of his friends now. They'd protect him and get him away from this place. He couldn't afford to think there was a chance they would fail, he just had to believe in them. "I've been through so much in this place, Renji, but… I must stop thinking about that right now and…"
"I understand, Ichigo. You won't have to face that bastard alone, you know." The red-head gripped one of his shoulders and squeezed. "Then, we're outta here."
"Yeah…"
Trying to keep his thoughts focused on the task before him, Ichigo shunpo-ed around the hallways, with Renji right beside him. They kicked in every door, looking for the Espada. After a while, they halted in front of a pair of heavy double doors. Ichigo had been here before. This was the lab where Uryu and he had busted into while shackled together.
Renji gave him a determined look as he stood there gaping, before kicking one of the doors hard. A startled shriek spun from the red-head as the door suddenly slid open and he fell forwards on his knees. While Renji was trying to pick himself up, Ichigo cautiously walked into the room.
He'd been right about this. It was the room where Uryu and he had fought while bound together. Where he had made Uryu crash into the glass wall. Where Uryu had taken that blow for him that had led to his poisoning and had eventually led to his deplorable state. Thinking back to that specific incident, he gasped. The pink-bastard had told him 'the Quincy had passed the test' after Uryu'd jumped in front of him. He'd been trying to figure that one out for a while now, but… if what Uryu had told him was true, and the Espada was testing his feelings to get leverage on the both of them, then… It made Ichigo's heart feel stone cold again.
"What the hell are those?" Renji's remark brought him back to reality and he let his eyes glide over the room.
At the back were 2 surgical tables, just like he'd remembered, and there was a large screen on either wall, but… his attention was immediately draw to the large water tanks. There were 3 of them on either side of the room, totaling 6. The last time he'd been in here, they'd been empty. He was absolutely sure of that. But now…
Ichigo gasped in horror as he closed in. Each tank held a humanlike creature.
"What are they? They're disgusting." The red-head interrupted his thoughts again. "It looks like they're decomposing."
"No." Ichigo answered firmly, as he felt his heart throbbing loudly in his chest. "They're not decaying. They're developing."
All of the creatures were in various stages of development. Some of them had arms, others legs. One of them even had a face. But what really made the floor drop out from under Ichigo was that the creatures all had one very distinctive trait.
Short, orange hair.
"Oh my god…" He muttered, as realization sank in. "Szayelaporro, you bastard…"
Unexpectedly, a glass wall dropped down from the ceiling, shutting both Shinigami off from the back of the room. Just as it had happened when he'd been here with Uryu, only now they were on the opposite side.
"Kurosaki Ichigo," the voice he'd come to despise with all his being purred as the Espada entered the room through an invisible back door, "so nice of you to join me. I take it, you've met your… siblings."
While Ichigo clenched his jaw hard and tried to calm down his pounding heart, Szayelaporro let out a haunting laugh, in full knowledge that the payback he'd been anticipating was about to be unleashed.