Bleach is owned by Tite Kubo, meaning it does not belong to me. I am in no way, shape, and/or form claiming to be the owner/creator of these concepts, though I do claim any characters not apart of the original Bleach storyline (such as Aporro [in character, not name] and Vicenta Acere) mine. As such, I would appreciate fellow authors and readers to give credit where credit is due and not steal any of my characters and/or concepts. Thank you, and have a pleasant day.
Before Mayuri even finished his explanation, Aporro was hyperventilating and trembling, her eyes wide and her reiatsu fluctuating wildly.
Five darts. Szayel counted, with a sigh as he slipped his tranquilizer gun back into his pocket, walking over to the prone form of his mate.
Five darts before he'd managed to sedate her. And she'd still managed to make it halfway from his main lab to the front door of the compound.
And even still, in her medicated coma, the woman fought, muscles in her body twitching sporadically as Szayel picked her up and moved her to their room, her face scrunched up in pure, unadulterated anger and her limbs flailing on and off as she tried to fight him off and make it for the door.
Szayel could understand her fury.
He could also sympathize.
After all, Vicenta was his daughter, as well, and she'd apparently been abducted by Hollows, more than likely on the order of a Vasto Lorde.
Still, Szayel, as always, had to be calm enough for both of them, because as tempting as Aporro's method was, at the moment running off into the desert, Resurreccion forms blazing would do nothing to help.
Because they were being watched, he was sure of it.
They needed a plan.
They needed to contact the Seireitei and think up a plan.
Because this situation had just escalated beyond their control…
Before they contacted the Seireitei, though, it was necessary to first suffer a little blast from the past…
Leaving the two Kurotsuchi's in a room somewhere, Szayel went to his lab and called his Fraccion to him, giving them orders they hadn't heard in several hundred years.
Szayel ordered his Fraccion to go call the others for an Espada meeting.
Though even Szayel knew he was one for aesthetics, he had little to no idea why he'd designed the Espada meeting room in his compound to mirror the one back in Las Noches exactly.
Had he had an aneurism during the construction?
Had he been struck by a random fit of nostalgia?
Had he been preparing for the event that Aizen would have to take over his home away from home?
Or had it just been for giggles…?
…Whatever the reason, the room that had remained largely untouched since its construction suddenly found itself in use, the four remaining Espada assuming the seats that mirrored the ones they'd had back in Aizen's palace and taking several moments to sit in silence as memories assaulted them.
Grimmjow, as always, was the one who broke the silence.
"What the fuck do you want, Grantz?"
Szayel sighed, sitting up straight in his seat and glancing at Grimmjow calmly, "Vicenta has been abducted." Taking full advantage of the stunned silence that followed, Szayel immediately continued, "As you all know, Vicenta had a mapping project in play that involved ten large, spherical camera pods. Eight of those ten have been destroyed, and early yesterday, one was… 'returned' to us, split in half and sitting directly in front of the door."
Grimmjow listened in stunned silence, shockingly blue eyes wide and his mouth opened slightly. Halibel was focused on Szayel completely, and even Stark was awake and listening.
After a brief pause, Szayel went on, "Vicenta, who I have been trying to keep this knowledge from, found out with the assistance of Mayuri Kurotsuchi and came back to check on the status of her lab. After going outside to check on her pod, she saw what was, presumably, a Vasto Lorde, became enraged and took of after it. Captain Kurotsuchi and his Lieutenant followed her, they lost track of the Hollow, and on their way back Vicenta was grabbed by yet another Hollow and dragged down into the sand, presumably to the Forest of Menos."
"Then why are you still sitting here?" Surprisingly, it was Stark who spoke, his eyes narrowed.
"Because," Szayel sighed, clasping his hands in front of his face, "Over the last few days, several of Vicenta's other pods have been destroyed, as well, and it wasn't just one attacker; there were several of them, and most of them were Adjuchas. This suggests a planned attack by a Vasto Lorde."
"It's just one Vasto Lorde." Grimmjow growled, finding his voice and, with it, his anger, "We'll just slaughter it."
"It isn't that simple." Szayel shot him a look, "In the first attack, a footprint was left behind by a Vasto Lorde, if my analysis of what I saw in the recording was correct. After that, most of the remaining attacks were Adjuchas. The attack that landed the final pod in front of El Sanctuario was done by yet another Vasto Lorde, only this one was considerably smaller, weaker, and didn't have the same footprint as the first. This suggests a total of two, maybe even three Vasto Lordes." Szayel looked between his colleagues, "We're being targeted, and if we don't handle this carefully, the Vasto Lorde population could well unite against us and wipe us out."
Once again, the room was immersed in silence.
"…We need to contact the Captain-Commander." Halibel said firmly after several moments, "This isn't something we can handle on our own…"
"We'll also need to tell them to monitor garganta activity between Hueco Mundo and the World of the Living closer than they have been." Stark murmured, staring at the back of the empty chair that Zommari would have inhabited were he alive, "With the Vasto Lorde activity suddenly on the rise, we can't risk them getting to the humans."
"Several of our own pseudo-garganta and senkaimon will need to be temporarily suspended, as well." Szayel nodded, taking out his handheld and slipping the stylus out and scribbling away on the screen, "And our security will need to be strengthened, especially on the reiatsu sealants surrounding the compound… This means that any reishi-based techniques that we may have to use will be greatly weakened in and around the compound, so don't be surprised if it takes more energy than you expect to fire a cero."
"HEY!" Grimmjow summoned attention to himself as he slammed his hand down on the table and stood angrily, glaring at his fellow Espada, "WHY is no one talking about Vicenta?! She's been kidnapped, or have you all forgotten?!"
"…Grimmjow," Halibel began calmly after a moment, glancing over at him and meeting his gaze coolly, "No one in this room has forgotten her, but measures must be taken before anyone can head out to search for her. If we handle this too carelessly, we put the lives of everyone in The Sanctuary at stake."
"WHAT THE FUCK DO THEY MATTER?!" Grimmjow burst, knocking his heavy stone chair over with a resounding crash and grabbing the hilt of Pantera.
A heavy silence settled over the room.
"…You, Grimmjow, are the one who continues so associate yourself with us three." Stark began after a moment, meeting the enraged former Sexta's gaze head on with a cold glare, "You know full well we have assumed the responsibilities of leading the Arrancar, and you continue to come to these meetings. That means you're, in part, a leader here, as well. Whether or not you like it, we have responsibilities. We cannot leave everything to Aporro, and when she is unavailable as she is now, someone has to pick up the slack."
Grimmjow worked his jaw, his reiatsu making the air in the room heavy.
"Don't assume that you're the only one being affected by this, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez." Stark concluded, his eyes wandering over, "Because the father of the girl you're going on about is just two seats to your right."
Immediately, Grimmjow's eyes snapped over to Szayel and he paused.
The scientist was silent, still sitting down calmly and adding to the list he'd started on his handheld. If he felt Grimmjow looking at him, he didn't acknowledge it, though when the blue-haired Arrancar looked closer he could clearly see the tendons in the former Octava's neck standing out a bit more than usual against his skin-tight jacket.
Still livid but now quiet, Grimmjow righted his chair and sat back down, ignoring the small flecks of stone that showered down against his back from the cracked top of the stone seat.
"I'll send word immediately." Szayel said in a low voice after yet another stretch of silence, standing and slipping his handheld back into his pocket, "In the meantime, don't go outside, and keep your zanpakuto close. I'll keep you all informed." That said, he walked out of the room quickly, not looking back.
When Szayel made it back to his room, he jumped as his wrists were seized and he was slammed back roughly against the stone door, pain blooming against the back of his head.
Unwavering, he looked down and into the bloodshot eyes of his mate, saying nothing.
"Where," Aporro breathed, bearing her teeth and digging her fingernails into his wrists, "Is. She?"
"I don't know." The moment Szayel felt himself getting thrown aside, he braced his foot against the door and swung his shoulder back, wrapping his arm around Aporro's waist and flinging them both into the sitting area.
Aporro hissed when the back of her head hit the arm of the sofa, but she struggled to regain her footing and brought her knee up into Szayel's gut, "Let me go!"
"No." Szayel hissed venomously, bringing his knee up between her legs forcefully and spinning her around, pressing her face down into the seat cushion and using his body to pin her.
"SZAYEL APORRO, LET ME GO!!" Aporro roared, thrashing.
"No." Szayel hissed again, less venomously than before.
"SZAYEL, LET ME THE FUCK UP!" She kicked at his ankles and twisted her upper body back and forth when he grabbed her wrists and wrapped his arms around her, pinning her hands against her stomach, "I HAVE TO GO FIND HER!!"
"You know I can't let you do that, Aporro." Szayel growled in her ear, pressing down against her heavily and pressing her diaphragm roughly against the arm of the sofa, emptying her lungs so she couldn't scream.
When she exhaled more than he expected her to, though, he backed off, not wanting to hurt any of her internal organs.
As soon as Szayel pulled back slightly, though, Aporro inhaled sharply and brought her head back, smacking her skull into Szayel's mouth.
Szayel balked and stumbled back, the gloved hand he pressed to his mouth quickly getting soaked with blood. Before he could recover, a heavy force slammed into his stomach and sent him crashing back onto the hard stone floor, the back of his head meeting rock for the second time in two minutes and stars bursting before his eyes.
Scowling when he felt the weight on his chest scrambling off in the direction of the door, Szayel wrapped his legs around his mate's waist and swung them around again, grabbing her wrist and pinning her to the floor.
Aporro's eyes, her pupils narrowed to pinpricks and her amber irises standing out against her now red sclera, looked up at him unseeingly as her mouth opened and a ball of violet energy started to form, swirling around and quickly growing in size.
Szayel didn't flinch.
He stayed where he was and stared down into her eyes, daring her to fire.
Wetness gathered in the corners of Aporro's eyes and she shook violently underneath him, the cero finally stabilizing and waiting to be released.
Szayel still didn't move, continuing to stare down at her with a blank face.
Aporro let out a roar of anguish and closed her mouth, the cero winking out of existence as she swung her leg up and kicked his waist.
Szayel gave in and let her, staring up at Aporro when she pinned him and pointedly ignoring the scalding droplets that fell onto his face for the sake of not stressing his mate further.
"I'm going after her." Aporro barked hoarsely, her fingers digging into his upper arms and her body shaking.
"No, Aporro, you're not." Szayel countered easily, smoothly, his glasses flashing in the dim overhead light, "Not yet."
"I don't give a fuck about 'handling this properly'." Aporro snipped, going to stand, "We are not leaving he—"
Szayel quickly reached up and grabbed her waist with both hands, making her look back down at him, "You're staying, Aporro, until going out is safe."
She stared down at him for a moment, silent, her eyes searching his and her jaw working back and forth. When she didn't find what she wanted to see, her face scrunched up and her trembling got more and more violent as she built up the energy for a last-ditch effort.
Quickly, using sonido, Aporro flew off of him and flung herself towards the door, but before she could make it halfway Szayel wrapped his arms around her from behind, holding her arms down at her sides as he pressed his weight against her back and brought her to her knees.
She thrashed and screamed.
She cursed him, his name and his existence, declaring over and over that she hated him.
She struggled until her limbs felt like lead, and then she struggled even harder while she still had the drive.
She called out.
She called for Vicenta to come out of wherever she was hiding, to end this cruel prank and show her that she was okay.
She cursed her daughter, and her daughter's name, and she told her she hated her over and over.
And then, for the first time in a long time, Aporro bent over on herself, until her chest touched her legs and her forehead rested against the stone floor, and she cried.
She shook violently and wailed, begging, pleading to be let go, because she had to find her. She had to find her baby and make sure she was okay.
When Szayel finally let her go so he could wrap his arms around her shoulders and pull her against his chest, she didn't fight. She collapsed against him and clung to his jacket, crying into his collar shamelessly.
Slowly, slowly, Aporro crumbled in on herself and broke, her lamentations reverberating against the stone and echoing throughout The Sanctuary until all was silent beyond the walls of the master bedroom.
And then, what seemed hours later, Aporro started to taper off.
Weak and shaking, her sobs reduced and the tears started to stem, while her head remained lowered and her back still heaved slightly.
Aporro's lungs and stomach burned with pain, other areas throbbing from the struggle and something wet (probably blood brought by Szayel's teeth) trickled down through the hair on the back of her head.
Listless and utterly defeated, Aporro slumped heavily against Szayel's lap, staring at the floor exhaustedly and struggling to breathe.
When Szayel, after several long moments, picked her up and carried her across the room, she didn't struggle. When he laid her out on the bed, the mattress sinking further when he settled down behind her and wrapped his arm around her waist, she didn't try to pull away from them.
She could only ask, "Why…?" Why wouldn't he let her go…?
"Because, Aporro." Szayel murmured, pushing her hair aside and pressing his mouth to the back of her shoulder, "We've been over this, so many times…" After a pause, he moved his mouth up to the exposed skin on the back of her neck, tracing along where skin met cloth collar, "You're mine. I decide when you die."
Aporro trembled and closed her eyes, grabbing his arm from around her waist and bringing it up so she could press her face into his palm.
Szayel sighed and let her, closing his eyes and feeling her scrunch up her face and let a few more tears leak out into his hand. Slowly, absentmindedly, he pressed his fingers to her forehead and weaved them through her hair slightly.
"Aporro, don't upset yourself like this… Vicenta isn't weak, and she isn't helpless. She has Gavilan Pintado with her."
"I know…" Aporro whispered loudly, holding his wrist and hand tightly, "But… Szayel… she's out there all alone… and I can't feel her. I can't feel my baby…"
"None of us can." Szayel sighed, pressing is forehead to the back of her head, "But don't forget, Aporro… she has one thing going for her. One exponential thing that will make whoever took her regret their decision so severely they may well return her to us, pleading for us to take her back…"
Aporro paused, waiting to see what he would say.
Szayel smirked.
"She's your daughter."
Fun in The Sanctuary~!
Catnip…!!
She so should have tried this years ago, Aporro decides with a giggle as she watches her pink and white tabby cat, Kohaku, roll around, purr loudly, crawl across the floor, and basically go bat-shit crazy over a hollow ball filled with catnip.
After another one of her many (and infamous), recent bouts of boredom, Aporro had decided to try to entertain herself with her cat, who she hadn't really been spending much time with thanks to his reclusive feline ways.
After tracking the elusive tabby down and bringing him back to her and Szayel's room, Aporro had locked him inside and run off to Szayel's indoor greenhouse, slipped skillfully past the genetically engineered gigantic Venus fly traps, slunk around to the back and picked several springs of genetically engineered nepeta cataria.
Or, as Aporro liked to call it, 'kitty cannabis'.
One modified toy and a bit of exposure later, and Kohaku was been reduced to a puddle of furry goo that wanted nothing more than to immerse itself in its wonderful kitty crack.
And Aporro was happy to oblige, rubbing a few leaves between her hands before picking her cat up so she could pet him, grinning widely as he purred and nuzzled her hands and stomach.
Of course, she hasn't really yet considered what would happen if—
Suddenly, the door bursts open and Aporro looks up, blinking when she sees a flushing, wide-eyed and heavily panting Grimmjow in her doorway.
After a pause, Aporro quirks a brow, "Grimmjow?"
The former Sexta says nothing, just staring at her with dramatically widened pupils.
Suddenly, Grimmjow pounces, swiping Kohaku out of the way and pinning Aporro to the bed, where he abruptly starts to purr loudly and nuzzle her hands and stomach.
"Ach, G-Grimmjow!! What the fuck are you—?! Ah… Ah, NO!! No, BAD Grimmjow!! S-Stop that right n—aah… Aaah…!!"
Szayel steps into the doorway of his room and freezes, watching as his daughter's mate molests his mate with a twitching eye.
Slowly, the former Octava's hand grabs the pale-lavender hilt of his zanpakuto, drawing the blade.
"Sip…!!"