Chapter 7: Scorn at Your Reflection

A lone figure sat on the edge of Sokyoku Hill, legs swinging over the steep precipice. Their eyes wandered about, taking in the sight which befell them. Red flashes of light flickered throughout the Seireitei as the battle between the Shinigami and Black Sun raged on.

The Gottesengel had busied themselves with the Captain class officers of the Gotei 13- she could tell.

Surges from their battles could be felt by the woman. As the different Reiatsu of enemy and comrade alike were sensed by her, the woman identified each one she recognized, counting on her fingers.

"One, two, three, four." She continued on until reaching fourteen, where she realized it was near impossible to find the individual she sought for.

Disappointed, she crossed her arms whilst slightly pouting like an upset child. She lay on her back, purple curls sprawling out under her head. Her hand reached up, placing itself onto the side of her face as she sighed.

Her amber eyes lit with excitement as she remembered an old and almost forgotten technique. She slowly closed her eyes as she let her mind be absorbed by the surrounding battlefield. Shouts from both sides filled her ears as if they were part of a bizarre choir.

Opening her eyes, the young Quincy found that she was encompassed by hundreds of white and red spirit ribbons. Quickly outstretching her hand, she grabbed onto a white one, smiling widely. "Found you~!"

Shunsui Kyoraku swung right, deflecting a bullet from Raphael Schoenholtz (Gottesengel G)'s spirit weapon. Held in each hand were the dual swords of Katen Kyokotsu. Between the two of them was a small, partly glistening pool of vomit.

"Well I'll be damned," Raphael commented. The wavy haired blonde watched Kyoraku's movements with an impressed look. "Just throwing up a little was all it *HIC* took to get you back on your feet."

"Don't sound so sure," Kyoraku grinned. "I'm not even half as fast as I was before. You really did a number on me with all that alcohol. Besides, I'm not sobering up for no reason." He held up one of his blades for Raphael's attention. "Futotta Okoto is a game where the person who eats or drinks the most in the least amount of time wins. So the sake you gave me is currently leaving my system."

"I thought you could only recreate *HIC* children's games that actually exist. *HIC* I've never heard of any game like that before. That's cheating!" Raphael accused cheerfully

"Try speaking for yourself," Kyoraku shot back. "How do I know you weren't drinking water this whole time? You don't even look drunk at all. "

"That's just because alcohol only makes me *HIC*... Makes me *HIC*." Raphael beat his chest with his free hand in an attempt to fight off another fit of hiccups. "Do that."

Kyoraku stepped around Raphael and made an overhead swing, only to have his sword pushed away by another bullet shaped Heilig Pfeil. He glanced left at Adolf Röthke (Gottesengel D), who stood by quietly with his hands in his pockets.

"Aren't you going to join us?" Kyoraku asked as he batted away two more Heilig Pfeil.

Adolf smiled nervously and pointed at the Captain's hand. "Um, I'm not really too good with swords. I think I'll just sit this one out."

"Oh really? That's too bad," Kyoraku said. He flashed in front of Adolf, now sober enough to use Shunpo. "You should try and have some fun with us." He took a swing at Adolf's body-

-And missed completely.

Though it didn't even come close to cutting him, Adolf leapt away with his hands in the air.

"Woah, woah, woah, WOAH!" he blabbered out. "I thought you were just a nice and laid back guy! Oh no. No, no, no, no." He began clasping the sides of his head, emerald eyes livid with fear. The following words all came out so fast that it sounded like he was speaking some unearthly language. "It was a trick this whole time, wasn't it? He pretended to be all lax just to get us into a false sense of security when in reality he's a cold hearted killer who likes to toy with his enemy by using mind games and then killing them like a psychopathic sadi- "

Raphael slapped Adolf along the back of his head, ending his junior's incessant rambling. "For Xelia's sake would you stop with all those unrealistic scenarios!" he practically yelled. "He just likes acting uncharacteristically sometimes. Does he seriously look like what you just described?"

Kyoraku hesitated to nod in agreement, mildly caught off guard.

Adolf seemed to calm down a little, though the ever present nervous expression he wore didn't leave his face. Turning, he tapped Raphael on the arm. "Uhmm..." He started whispering to him, who in turn started whispering back. Soon enough, they were in a deep discussion.

"Hey, wait a second," Kyoraku called out with a dejected expression. "It's not good to whisper. You're making me feel left out."

"You mind not using that color game of yours?" Raphael asked.

Kyoraku blinked. "Pardon?"

"Adolf here doesn't work too well in actual combat,at all," he explained. "But it's obvious that he's going to have to be involved in this little scuffle. If possible, I'd like it that he doesn't end up nearly dead or… you get the idea. And that's pretty likely to happen with the color game."

Kyoraku adjusted the straw hat atop his head, tilting it down over his face. "That's really kind of you as a friend, and I respect that. But you're in a war now. There's no 'fair play' anymore."

"Well now… that's too bad." Raphael pushed Adolf out of the way right before the Captain appeared in front of him. Kyoraku swiped forward, aiming for Raphael's turtleneck. His flowery kimono fell behind him, revealing his white haori. "Whi-"

Raphael lunged forward and formed a dagger of red Reishi. Kyoraku grazed his chest, yet it had no effect. "Pink."

A large gash ripped open in Kyoraku, starting from the middle of his left breast and ending just above his collar bone. His eyes snapped open while he stumbled away.

Raphael threw off his grey overcoat and reformed a revolver, firing instantaneously. "Grey." Kyoraku felt searing pain in his thigh as it split open on its side, staining his leg crimson.

'W-what the hell?!' his mind sputtered. 'Iro oni… isn't being played correctly?!' His eyes fell on Adolf, who wore the guiltiest of expressions. "What did you do to me?" Kyoraku demanded gravely.

"I… I- " Raphael cut him off. "Sorry. He's not all too content with his Schrift. Brings up bad memories."

Kyoraku smiled, though this time there was little amusement in it. "And why's... that?" He winced from the weight his body was putting on his wounded leg.

"I'm… Gottesengel D," Adolf cautiously answered. "And… well…"

Raphael finished for him. "This kid's a clutz beyond imagination. Pretty much every place he goes, calamity is sure to follow. His Schrift stands for 'The Disaster'. Any worst case scenario you can think of, it's manifested into reality."

Kyoraku felt a growing sense of dread. His games were no longer able to be played correctly.

A chunk of of his shoulder was blown off as Raphael took advantage of his distracting thoughts.

He tapped the side of his hip with the barrel of his gun, then lifted it towards the Shinigami. "Sorry Mr. Cap'n. We bet big and don't worry about how large the odds of winning are. This is a game of risk you just won't win so easily."

"Bankai: Zendo Sogyo no Kotowari."

Eric Costas (Gottesengel I) watched as Ukitake disappeared from sight, rain washing away the image of his body. Water was now up to Eric's chest and quickly over his head. The surface was now nowhere to be seen, water stretching in all directions.

Eric peered into the dark abyss which shrouded him. His hand found its way to his throat, gripping the Adam's apple which stayed unmoving.

'My throat… I can't speak. My eyelids are inexplicably heavy. My body feels like it's made of lead. If it weren't for Blut Vene, the pressure surely would have crushed me by now.'

His hand left his throat and pointed outwards. 'Fackel.' The space surrounding him was illuminated by the sphere. Steam rose in bubbles around as the heat evaporated nearby water. In the distance, two large creatures circled around a fixed point in an endless loop. Eric used Hirenkyaku to catapult himself closer, unable to move efficiently on his own.

Upon closer inspection, he found that the giant creatures were two serpent like dragons, one black and the other white. Eric stopped in his tracks, unsure if they were docile or aggressive. He simply stared at them, waiting for them to make a move.

"It looks like there's a guest!" two overlapping and disembodied voices echoed. They were soft and quiet, like a timid child.

Eric flicked his eyes around him. There was no one close enough for him to be able to see, much less hear.

"Why do you look around?"a third voice questioned. This one was deep and husky, bearing more animal like qualities."You are the only one standing before us."

Eric looked towards the beasts which continued to swim in an endless loop. 'Are these animals the ones speaking to me?'

"We are,"the children's voices answered.

Eric's eyes widened with intrigue. 'Mind reading?'

"You are only partially correct,"the beast's voice replied. "We have no other choice but to speak through your thoughts, for you cannot use voice."

'Just what are you beings? Are you the spirits of Sogyo no Kotowari?'

"Our existence is of no trivial matter. We only live to serve our master. My given name is Kuro," the white dragon stated.

"We're called Shiro," camethe black dragon's reply.

'This place. Where exactly am I.'

"A place beyond the planes which you understand as life and death."

"This is where your fate will be decided."

Eric raised an eyebrow. 'Which is?'

"Whether you have the right to live."

Kuro and Shiro picked up their pace, forming a whirlpool in between their serpentine bodies. The whirlpool continued to grow until it was large enough for a man to walk through. Peering through, Eric could see a path leading into a different realm.

"You will walk the path of purity,"Kuro instructed. "Each trial you pass will enable your soul to be cleansed of each one. Once you complete them all, you will finish undergoing the process of purification. Then, we will release you."

'And if I fail?'

"Then you get to become a soul and pass on!" Shiro informed cheerfully.

'What if I refuse?' Eric could feel the situation becoming more and more drastic.

"Then I will swallow you where you stand."

Eric closed his eyes, knowing he would not win if he were to confront the beast. 'So be it then.' As soon as he took a step forward, the whirlpool swirled around him and washed away his surroundings. Eric now stood in a cave, lit by an unseen flame.

"You will now begin the Tsugunai no Gishiki,"Kuro's voice boomed. "The first vice: wrath. Those consumed by wrath are engulfed in violence and self destruction, as if by a great fire."

Eric's eyes snapped open wide when the entrance behind him burst into white flames which spread towards him at an alarming rate.

"Joka no Hono. You must run towards the exit of this cave before the fire catches you. Only then can you advance to the next trial."

Throwing up his hand, Eric frantically gathered the light emitted from the flames. "Ewigen Schutz!" A blue disc formed in front of his body, protecting him from the fire. Only it didn't last. The flames ate away at the shield, devouring it completely. Shocked, Eric did what any cornered animal would. He ran.

Spinning on the ball of his foot, Eric turned around and fled in the opposite direction. The fire followed close behind him like an enraged beast. Pushing his Hirenkyaku to its limits, the Quincy searching for any light indicating that he would be free. He would have found it unharmed had it not been for one thing. He had forgotten to remove his cloak.

The man's mantle caught fire which immediately covered the rest of Eric's body. His eyes became bloodshot, pain pulsing throughout his very being. It felt like he was being burned from the inside, as if the flames had entered his veins and were now traveling through every blood vessel. Still running, he desperately poured Reishi into his veins.

"It's useless. No amount of Blut Vene can protect you from this fire."

Eric looked in front of him to find Ukitake's image. His wounds were all present, though he did not look on the verge of death. His appearance was ethereal, ghostly even.

"Joka no Hono is the collective rage of every creature," Ukitake continued. "It does not disappear, eventually returning when extinguished."

"What is this Bankai?" Eric nearly spat. The pain he felt was excruciating now.

"There can be no world without some form of balance. A sinful person, or Hollow for that matter, in theory should not be allowed into Soul Society. That's what Shinigami are for, to cleanse them. But their sins do not just die out. Zendo Sogyo no Kotowari animates those sins in an attempt to purify anything it affects. I'm sorry for doing this. I never wanted to use my Bankai against you."

Eric collapsed, the fire eating away at what little life remained. The skin all over his body was mottled with black, skin peeling where he lay. Everything began to blur as vision eluded him. In a matter of seconds, Eric Costas no longer lived.

"Awaken."

The man's eyes fluttered back open, the pain he felt only moments ago now gone. His body was now pressed against a surface resembling molten rock. He lifted himself up taking note of the absence of any wounds inflicted upon him. Looking down at his hands, the Quincy held himself in mere shock. 'Shouldn't I be dead?' Eric looked up to find a smaller version of Shiro hovering above him.

"What happened to me?" Eric questioned.

"This is the trial, silly!" the two voices of Shiro answered.

"The trial? Wasn't that what the fire was for?"

"Of course! That's what let's the trial begin. Kuro already told you, didn't he?"

"So I have to die to pass on through each trial, then?"

"Exactly!"

'So that's what the white one meant,' Eric thought ruefully.

"We'd better not talk for too long," Shiro warned squeamishly. "The crowd is getting really rowdy."

Eric now became aware of the noise around them. Turning his head, he found that they were in an arena, surrounded by crowds of people. Or what appeared to be people. Ethereal figures of white flames roared with angry shouts and aggressive movements.

"Those are- "

"Rage," Shiro concluded with a solemn tone for the first time. "Those are people who have been consumed by anger. They sit in this stage for eternity, watching random individuals from the crowd do battle with the executors, so blinded by wrath that they don't even care to worry about when it will be their turn in the ring."

"Executors?" Eric heard the rattling of chains behind him and turned to find another humanoid staring down at him. It stood well over nine feet with pale, blue skin. The bald creature's body was covered in golden armor and weapons, as if it were ready to take on an entire army. But that wasn't even close to its most intimidating feature.

The being's eyes were pitch black; the sclera, pupils, and irises all absent of color.

"What… is that thing?"

Three people were thrown into the ring rather violently on either side of Eric. One came too close to the Executor and was roughly grabbed by the neck and cleaved in two by its scimitar. What was most horrific wasn't the action, but the fact he did not die. The burning man was stabbed repeatedly in various places. He screamed and thrashed the best he could, but still he would not die.

Eric recoiled back in disgust. "Where in Xelia's name did you bring me to?!" he asked accusingly.

"You mean you haven't figured it out yet?" Shiro asked back. "This place is where people who have committed unforgivable acts of rage go; the first sector of Hell."

Eric's body was completely still, trapped within a dome of water. His eyes were glazed over in a trance like state. He was surrounded by mirrors which hovered in the air in circumventing rows, each one tied to the next with a red rope. Leaning against a collapsed wall, Ukitake sighed as his wounds were being healed by Momo Hinamori.

"He should be too exhausted to fight if he survives my Bankai,' he assured. "As long as those mirrors stay in tact and no one disrupts the water, he won't be able to escape."

Shinji Hirako nodded as he looked at Eric, his lopsided fringe of blonde hair faintly bobbing. "It's a good thing we jus' happened to be in the area when we were. Ya probably would have died with those injuries. Say, what's that Bankai of yers even do?"

"Zendo Sogyo no Kotowari isn't a Bankai that relies on physical attacks," Ukitake explained. "The sins of the affected person are absorbed by those mirrors and reflected back into the water, causing them to hallucinate. They're put through a series of 'trials' in a sort of mental journey. If they get killed by all of them whilst under its effect, they end up dying in real life. Basically, the Quincy over there is fighting against his own sins, all inside his head."

"So it's an illusion based Bankai," Shinji summed up, grinning. "Kinda reminds me of mine, sly bastard."

Ukitake had to smile at his fellow Captain naturally making light of the situation.

"So what now?" Shinji asked with a frown. "From what ya told me, I can't jus' go over an' kill 'em while he's like that. Besides, that ain't exactly my style either."

"Right now, we should just wait it out," Ukitake answered. "My Bankai only lasts as long as I'm conscious. Honestly I'm exhausted, so I estimate that it has about another fifteen minutes or so left. We'll wait another five, then I'll deactivate it. Time is warped inside the hallucinations, so he'll be just about tapped out as I am. Lieutenant Hinamori, can you contain him after I do that? We might be able to get a lot of valuable information on the enemy from him."

"Of course!" Momo replied with a smile. She was an expert at Kido; conjuring one strong enough to restrain Eric would be a simple task for her.

"We shouldn't waste time here. I have an ill feeling that our friends are having just as hard a time as- " Ukitake's eyes snapped open. "Behind you, Hirako!"

Shinji lunged forward just as a hooded man attempted to slash him across the back. The cut was clean but ended up shallow, a minor flesh wound. Shinji spun around to face the attacker, drawing his zanpakuto.

"Are nahin," the newcomer hissed in Hindi, gripping the hand guard of his pata. The blade of the gauntlet sword gleamed with fresh blood which slowly dripped off its tip as he held it steady in the air.

"Jus' who are you, and where'd ya come from?" Shinji nearly demanded. "That was pretty cheap, sneakin' up on me like that."

"Sahir Matthai," the man answered. "Sorry for my 'cheapness', I wouldn't dare intentionally step on your honor as a warrior." Sahir's tone held evident sarcasm in it.

His hood had been thrown back by his previous motion, revealing silver eyes set into a brown face. The Quincy's hair was black and neatly combed, any existing bangs swept to the side for convenience.

"As for how long I've been here, well, that doesn't really concern you." Sahir's eyes slid to the side to where Eric was trapped.

"That so?" Shinji smirked. "Yer a pretty quiet fella."

Sahir slowly inched backwards, ready to dash for the sphere of water.

"But ya obviously had been lyin' in wait t'be able to sneak up on me like that," Shinji continued. "Which means….ya heard our little conversation about ol' Ukitake's Bankai."

Momo leaped into the air, zanpakuto at the ready. "Snap, Tobiume!"

Sahir was blown forward as a ball of fire slammed into the ground just inches from his feet. The following explosion knocked him straight towards Shinji, who locked blades with him as he stumbled to him. Scraping his foot along the ground, he kicked up some dust, sending it into the other man's eyes. Backing up, Sahir bat Shinji's sword away and regained his balance.

"Calling me cheap and then using a dirty move like that," Sahir muttered. "Some honor you have."

"You got some snide bark in ya," Shinji replied as he crossed swords again. "But let's see if yer bite's any good." Striking out, he made sure to stay on the offensive as he forced the Quincy back.

The gray clad man stepped backwards in a small retreat. Light flashed in the corner of his eye and he instinctively took a step to the left, avoiding a red Kido attack. Shinji reengaged him and continued his dominating onslaught of sword strikes. Being literally centuries old made him the more skilled swordsman, which was made obvious to Sahir. He tried retreating again but was met with another Kido from behind. He glanced back, taking a quick look at Momo.

Gritting his teeth, he once again was forced into swordplay with the Captain of the Fifth Division. 'I shouldn't have let the girl get behind me,' he thought as the tip of Shinji's zanpakuto barely missed his brow. 'She's there to make sure I can't make a break for Costas. Mal. I didn't realize they would stop me from getting to him so easily. Bad decision. I should have just gotten him out from the beginning. Guess I need to use my Schrift sooner than I thought.'

The duo continued their combat in a flurry of swings, Shinji forcing Sahir into a corner. The (much) younger adversary was having more and more trouble holding off his senior. Not paying attention to his surroundings, his foot hit a sizable piece of rubble. He tripped and fell back, losing his balance. Now finding an opening, Shinji stepped up with his zanpakuto raised above his head-

-And spat up blood. The Captain fell to one knee as pain seared through his back. The wound which had certainly been minor was now somehow much deeper than before, as seen by the blood which profusely poured from it and stained his haori. 'What the hell?!'

Sahir held his hand up, thumb pressed against its palm. Flicking his arm, he guided the blade of his pata across Shinji's shoulder. "Verstärken." The small cut became a deep gash in seconds, rendering his sword arm useless. He quickly grabbed his sword with his other arm only to be skewered in the bicep.

"Not happening, Shinigami. I know better than to get in another sword fight with you." Heat fell upon Sahir as a ball of flames connected with his body. Jumping to the side, he dodged another of Momo's attacks from her zanpakuto, aware again that she was behind him. He threw his smoldering mantle to his feet, revealing a simple and completely uncustomized Quincy military uniform.

Momo ran forward to heal Shinji and stopped dead in her tracks, realizing she was leaving Eric and herself open. 'No!' White light flickered around Sahir's feet and he was behind Momo, slashing her down her back. The Lieutenant cried out and fell down on her hands. Sahir turned around, wasting no time.

In an instant, he was in front of the mirrors surrounding the sphere of water containing Eric. As he raised his pata, red markings traveled up his arm. "You better be thankful I came to help you when you're out of this thing." With a heavy swing, he brought down his weapon.

A loud clang resonated in his ears as Ukitake's sword blocked his blade. "Woah there! That's pretty eager of you," the white haired Captain commented.

"I'm a person who lacks a lot of patience," Sahir replied with furrowed brows. "And you're doing a good job of testing it." He lifted up his free arm and formed airborne Reishi into a katar. He punched down at Ukitake's head in an attempt to split open his skull. The Captain had enough energy to avoid it and grabbed Sahir by the shoulder, shoving him away from Eric.

"I believed being near death would leave you out of commision," Sahir told him. "One bad decision after another." The katar and pata he held vanished and were replaced by an Indian steel bow. "My fuse has just about burned out." He sent a volley of arrows at Ukitake, beyond annoyed.

Normally, he would have been able to deflect them. However, Ukitake was out of stamina and frankly in no condition to fight any longer. Two of the arrows detonated against his chest. Two powerful arrows. Flying back into the side of a building, he slumped down to the ground, out of energy. The unnatural force behind the arrows nearly caused him to pass out as they had taken the wind out of him.

"What did you… do to me?" Shinji ground out from his kneeling position as Momo entered a state of quickened breathing in front him.

Sahir sighed, placing a hand on his forehead and rubbing his temples. "This is one of the reasons why I don't like battles. Having to explain my power to people is a drag, so I'll just tell you the name. It's not like saying what it is will come back to bite me. My Schrift is F: The Fatality. Basically, anything which receives affliction around me, no matter how little, gets a surplus of damage dealt to it. A little cut can turn into a gash. The common cold might as well be as deadly as the plague. And speaking of which…"

Shinji followed the man's gaze directly set on Ukitake. "He's going to die soon."

Shinji lifted himself up, his hands scraping against the bloodied pavement he nearly lay on. "Bastard…" he grit out with crimson stained teeth.

Shinji practically plummeted down the little amount of distance he had from the ground. Sahir grew grave as he felt a monstrous amount of Reiatsu fall onto his shoulders. "Mal," he ground out slowly. "It's that time already?"

Otto Richter (Gottesengel P) was stooped into a bow, ignoring the chaos which ensued within the Seireitei. Margaret Xelia stood over him, having recently left the confines of the Dämmerung and entered the Garganta.

"Otto, please stand up. There's no need to use such formalities around me. How has the invasion gone so far?"

"Eric has reason to believe Jushiro Ukitake knows the whereabouts of the Soul King's heart," Otto answered as he stood up. "He's currently engaging him as we speak."

"And the casualties?"

"Fortunately none of the Gottesengel are anywhere close to death. Most of the Kallaverist have survived due to their superiority in terms of strength compared to the Shinigami. As for them… the best way I can put it is that their forces are being decimated."

"That is not what I asked," Xelia told him sternly.

Otto froze. "Your Majesty?"

"My question was how many total casualties have there been. And yet you only informed me of deaths on the battlefield."

Silence.

"Otto?"

"Five thousand, four hundred and forty-seven," Otto corrected warily. "That is the amount of spirits having lost their lives within Rukongai.

Silence followed. Each moment weighed heavily on Otto's shoulders. His throat hadn't been as dry a minute ago. Seconds seemed like centuries. But Xelia would not open her mouth.

After what felt like an eternity, she finally spoke. "Why…" Her voice was barely audible and extremely soft. "Why have so many civilians died?"

"It… it was unavoidable in order for us to move such an immense fighting force to this realm," Otto explained.

"Unavoidable?" Xelia's voice quivered. "You call the deaths of thousands of innocents unavoidable?"

Otto immediately realized his mistake.

"End the invasion." There was anger in the woman's voice.

"But we still yet to have discovered the location of the Hear- "

"Then maximize your efforts." Though Xelia had barely raised her voice, she might as well have been screaming.

"Yes, Your Majesty." Otto's shadow stretched away from him and began to change shape and revealed a young woman. Her amber yellow eyes sparkled with excitement and she lunged at Xelia, curly and purple hair bouncing as she embraced her.

"Ms. Xelia! I came back from the World of the Living!" Sylvia Altschul (Gottesengel Z) exclaimed. "Did you miss me, Ms. Xelia? I went to the Dämmerung as soon as I could, but you weren't there. But Isaak told me about the invasion, so I came here!"

Xelia returned her embrace and gave her a warm smile. "It has been certainly been a long time since I've seen you, Sylvia. You've grown into a fine young woman." Sylvia beamed at the compliment. "I would very much like to hear about your travels, however there is something I need you to do."

"Anything, Ms. Xelia."

"Your friends. Could you call them here for me."

"Really?" Sylvia asked. "They can come play?" She looked back at Otto, noticing him for the first time. "Mr. Richter! I'm so happy to see you again!"

"It is a pleasure to see you too, Sylvia," Otto greeted politely. "Who are your friends exactly?"

"I'll show you!" Sylvia jumped outside the Garanta and landed on a rooftop. Reaching into her pocket, she produced a Quincy, a traditional one at that. "Beurteilung." Reishi formed around it and shaped into a cross associated with Christianity. Standing with her back to it, she raised both arms to the side where any onlooker would think she were being crucified. Then she began to chant.

"Herr des ewigen licht. Hüter der schlüssel des schicksals. Öffnen die tore der göttlichen strafe, damit bist du richter suchen kann die welt."

On the ground, a large circle appeared. Ancient writing and strange line patterns filled it to the point where it resembled an intricate alchemist circle. Red light spewed into the air as an unnervingly immense Reiatsu signature filled the air.

An enormous grey arm rose out of the circle as if it were a gateway to another dimension. A large skeleton missing everything below its spine followed, its skull elongated and protruding at the back. Golden eyes glowed eerily inside their sockets. Soon creatures identical to the first rose after it, one after another. From inside the Garganta, Otto stared wide eyed underneath his mask.

"Your Majesty… what are you planning to do?!"

Xelia remained unfazed, responding to him with absolutely zero emotion in her voice. "What is necessary."

Stood around Sylvia was a legion of Hell's guardians. The Kushanada.

A/N: This chapter has been way overdue and I apologize. But it was very enjoyable to write. I'm especially happy with the design for Ukitake's Bankai, so I hope it is received well. The invasion has probably about 5 chapters left, and then the story is going to take a different direction. Until, I hope the rest of this little subarc will go smoothly. Criticism and reviews are welcomed and encouraged.