Ch. 6 The Storm Clouds Gather

It had been 3 days since the incident with the Hollow almost eating Melody. Brittany hadn't gone to school since she had heard what had happened to her daughter. Alvin had no choice due to his ONLY good grade being his A in gym. The others constantly worried about what would happen next. Satoshi and Takeshi reported to Soul Society daily since the Hollow attacks had gotten even worse. It was only a matter of time before they revealed their sinister plans.

One evening after dinner, Satoshi and Takeshi were in the living room using a special link to Soul Society that the two were able to quickly and easily attach to the T.V. Brittany and Alvin were sitting on the couch with Melody on Brittany's lap, between the two Captains. On the screen was a man whom they had just been introduced, a man who had lived over 100 of Daves lifetimes, the Head Captain of Soul Societys 13 Guard Squads, Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto. He was a tall man, with a long white beard that reached to his knees, and was very well trimmed. His head was bald, but he spoke with as much kindness as could be expected from a person in his postion.

"All Squads will be prepared for battle immediately. All ranked officers will arrive within the week and will begin guarding the town. If our greatest fears are realized, we may be witnessing an attempt for the former Captain of Squad 5, Sosuke Aizen, to escape from the prison in which we have placed him."

It was at that exact moment that Brittany decided to speak, "Sir, why exactly is this Aizen person in prison? I mean, what exactly has he done?"

Satoshi and Takeshi looked at her suspiciously, while Alvin smacked his face and shook his head. Yamamoto merely smiled at the little ones curiosity, "A good question, and one I believe needs answering if you are to understand the situation entirely. Sosuke Aizen was once a Captain of the Guard Squads. He was one of the greatest Captains we had ever witnessed, or so we thought. His appearance and behavior were all just a hoax in order for him to betray us all and join the Hollows. He stole an item that had been hidden in Soul Society, an item called the Hougyoku. This small item had the most terrible power we have ever witnessed..."

"What kind of power is that?" Alvin blatantly interrupted.

Yamamoto glared at him and continued, "The power of the Hougyoku, was the ability to separate the boundary between Hollow and Soul Reaper."

Brittany gasped, Alvin looked shocked.

Yamamoto continued, "After stealiing this item, Aizen fled to Hueco Mundo, the world of the Hollows, to build an army of Arrancars, or Hollows who have removed their masks to become like Soul Reapers, that he tried to use to take over the Soul Society. His efforts failed, and we now have him in custody. But at great costs. Many were affected by his actions, but no one was harmed as much as Liuetenant Hinamori. But now is not the time to go into those specific details. We believe one of the Arrancars that was able to survive the battle may be plotting to rescue Aizen from his prison. And that is not the worst of it..."

"Wh-what could b-be worse?" Brittany stammered as she shook, holding her daughter in her arms tightly.

"We believe whoever is behind this plot is planning to use an ancient ritual the likes as no one has ever performed in the last 2000 years. This ritual, known as the "Tamashii no Kaihou" (Soul Liberation) is an ancient ritual which can only be performed by a Soul Reaper/Hollow hybrid. To perform it, the hybrid must devour the soul of a virgin with the Spiritual Pressure equal to or greater than the person whose soul they intend to liberate."

"Well, I don't see what the problem is then," Alvin said in a calm and collected voice, "I mean, where are they gonna get a virgin with that kind of Spiritual Pressure?"

Yamamoto looked straight into Alvins eyes and said, "The problem is that YOUR daughter has the exact same level of Spiritual Pressure as Sosuke Aizen!" he said in an urgent voice, "And whats worse is that it is growing in strength every day."

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!" came a sudden scream that made Melody begin to cry. Everyone turned to look at Brittany, who was trying to calm herself and her daughter, tears flowing from her face as she began to cry.

Alvin reached over and took Melody from her arms and quickly calmed her, then put an arm around Brittany and began to whisper to her gently, attempting to calm her.

Takeshi broke the silence that had occured, "Brittany, no one is going to let Melody be taken by those monsters. That's why all of the Soul Society is going to amass here within the week to protect her. They won't succed in this plot."

"B-but wh-what if you guys f-fail?" she asked, calming down slightly.

It was Satoshi who answered that question, "Brittany, IF, and ONLY IF we fail to protect her, I promise you that I will go to Hueco Mundo, to the depths of the Menos Forest if I have to, to bring her back unharmed."

With those words, Brittany calmed herself and said "Thank you, Satoshi."

Two Days Later...

Brittany and Momo were sitting in the living room, playing dress up with Melody while Satoshi sat on the roof keeping watch for Soul Reapers and Hollows. Within a few minutes, the Senkaimon appeared, and out walked 6 Soul Reapers. 3 Captains, 1 3rd Seat, 1 Lieutenant, and 1 Unseated Soul Reaper.

The Captains and their companions approached the house as Satoshi dropped down to meet them. One had long black hair that he kept in small braids across his face, one had long white hair that was neatly brushed, and the third Captain had long black hair that he kept tied in a ponytail, as well as partially covered by a large straw hat. The Captain with the braided bangs stepped forward, Byakuya Kuchiki, Captain of Squad 6 and Head of the Noble Kuchiki Clan. "We have arrived on schedule," he said in a calm voice. Behind him stood Jushiro Ukitake, Captain of Squad 13, and Shunsui Kyoraku, The hatted Captain of Squad 8. Both men stood silently, waiting for the briefing they knew was to come. Instead they got a surprise as Satoshi said, "Come inside, it's too dangerous to brief you out here."

"Sir, with all do respect, shouldn't we get to our posts as quickly as possible?" said Renji Abarai, Squad 6 Lieutenant.

"Not with so many Hollows appearing here, get inside quickly."

Shortly afterwards, the men had been briefed and assigned their territories. War was coming, this much all of them knew. Soon, they would be fighting to save the lives of not only these chipmunks, but also the lives of all the souls in that town.

But their worst fears would soon be realized...