Author's Note: If anyone's curious, Vandular resembles Bon from Ao No Exorcist. ^_^ And if you want to know what his tattoos look like, google Russian Ice Princess. Most of this chapter will focus on him with a small interlude. Now, on with the show!
Vandular sighed to himself and gently extended his aura, shielding the adjuchas around him from the power of the Soul King's realm. He felt the sting of it, deep in his core. No hollow could survive without devouring others, and in the process some disgusting, tainted souls were always ingested. This place stung those souls, reminding them of their proper place in the order of things, but hollows also had a place. Vandular knew this and faced the pain squarely, his head held high. He had nothing to be ashamed of.
The adjuchas felt the burn far more acutely. Their soul collections were still pliable, not completely stable like a vasto lorde. So he used his power like a blanket, easing the pain for them as they waited. The Soul King would arrive for them soon.
Vandular did not approve of any of this, but regarded it with resignation. The brown haired shinigami who had invaded Los Noches had accomplished his goal. He was the Soul King now and had to maintain the stability of the universe. The dragon had always had a keen interest in the spiritual side of things, and it had only become more pronounced as his power increased. So he knew that the enemy of balance now was not the one he would meet here. Now that he was Soul King, Aizen was constrained by the power he had claimed. He could change things, but he needed to follow the role assigned to him.
"Not that I would care." He muttered to himself, ignoring the nervous glances from the adjuchas. He was beyond concerning himself with the welfare of all things. Some things were more important.
When Aizen-kami arrived to greet them, Vandular was suitably awed and humbled. Or at least, he pretended to be. He was a surprisingly social creature for a solitary hollow and he knew how to ingrate himself to various types. He fell to one knee in front of kami, bowing his head submissively as the other hollows almost prostrated themselves. But he was far above them. He would show respect, but not grovel.
"There is no need for that." Aizen said but Vandular could tell he was pleased. "Rise." The vasto lorde rose to his feet, feeling kami's regard keenly. He felt like the man was examining his very soul, which was likely the case. "Tosen informed me of your reasons for being here. You believe your enemies are also mine?"
"Of course." Vandular said, straightforward but respectful. "You feel my power, and I was defeated. What other goal is there for such to aspire to? And you have demonstrated that it is possible." Until Aizen's plot had succeeded, everyone might have thought becoming Soul King was merely a fantasy. They knew better now. Kami nodded.
"Indeed. I may be all powerful, but I am not omnipresent." The admission was no surprise to Vandular and Aizen flashed him a quick smile. "As you have no doubt surmised, my plots would never have succeeded if the Soul King could see all and know all." Vandular nodded. "Do you aspire to such power?" A dangerous question. Vandular answered it with a laugh and a gesture at himself.
"As a hollow, a corrupted soul? This place does not hurt me like the adjuchas, but it does cause me pain. No, such is not for me." He said easily. "You are a shinigami. You can fit to this place but I never could." The one he'd fought… he wasn't sure that power could ever fit to this place either. But he wasn't sure that stranger would care. Aizen nodded but did not seem entirely satisfied to Vandular's sensitive mental antenna.
"That is true, although it will change when I break your mask." He said and Vandular resigned himself to a bit of suspicion from kami. But then, he would be wise to be suspicious of truly great powers. By succeeding in stealing the heavenly throne, Aizen truly had demonstrated what could be done to his new subjects. Van honestly didn't want it but he knew no way to convince Aizen of that. Time would have to do. "Speaking of which. I will begin with the lesser ranks." He turned his gaze on the cowering adjuchas and Vandular nodded.
Watching the others having their masks broken was instructive and Vandular was ready when his turn came. It was painful, which did not surprise. What did surprise him was the feeling of… rightness that filled him when it was over. He felt as though a long ignored ache had vanished and the sting of this heavenly place abruptly ceased. The sudden lack of pain was shocking and Vandular analyzed himself, trying to understand.
"You have transformed me into a single soul." He realized and now he was truly awed. "But… the tainted souls. Where…?" They were no longer with him. He could sense a small gap in his power, almost meaningless compared to what he had gained. Aizen smiled benevolently at him.
"I have sent them to their punishment. It is a refinement of the original process, something I can do as kami." He sounded pleased and Van blinked, amazed. So he was a pure soul now? That explained Aizen's concern. He could fit in the heavenly throne now… but he still didn't want it. Being the Soul King sounded too much like work, and not the kind he enjoyed. "I probably should redo my original Espada, when there's leisure. But for now, you and the others must return to the Living Realm to be trained by my Espada. Yes?" Aizen could tell Vandular desperately wanted to say something.
"If I might request, could I be sent to Barragan for my training?" He asked humbly. "We were companions for some time, during the War of the Red Queen." That was what hollows had named it, at least. Van had no idea what shinigami called it. It had been the last great disruption of the three worlds, a time of great suffering. Aizen frowned at him.
"Are you talking about the Red Locust war?" He asked and Van nodded. Given the insect like form of the invaders, that was a good name for it. "Interesting. I was not aware they attacked in Hueco Mundo as well." Aizen looked introspective for a moment. "I will have to send you to the Kuchiki clan to have your account recorded. But for now, yes, Barragan will be quite acceptable." He said and Vandular felt a bit relieved. He knew Barragan well but he didn't know any of the other arrancar at all. They were much younger and mostly newly turned vasto lorde.
"Thank you." He said gratefully and Aizen left as the servants in the heavenly realm began providing them with basic clothing. Van shed his loincloth and pulled on the fabric, handling the buttons easily. It didn't fit very well, but that hardly mattered.
He could get something better when he saw Barragan.
"The new arrancar is going to be arriving soon. I wonder what he'll look like?" Ggio said and Soi-fon sighed to herself.
The newest arrancar to have his mask broken had specifically requested to be sent to Barragan and his fraccion for training. Ggio and the others were of the opinion that he must want to become part of the fraccion. That meant that they would be evaluating him as much as Barragan and they were all keenly interested. Apparently, most applicants failed miserably in their efforts.
The stranger arrived perfectly on time and Soi-fon grimaced to herself as the fraccion eyed him like a piece of fresh meat. From the feel of his power he wouldn't succeed in his… then she abruptly frowned. At first glance his power appeared to be weak, but she was a taichou. She was more than familiar with how very powerful Soul Reapers concealed their strength and her eyes widened as she realized there was a reservoir of power that he was trying to hide from them. Narrowing her eyes, she tried to determine how deep that well went.
She didn't have time as the stranger walked towards them. He was really a very handsome creature. His hair was dark on the sides, with a crest of gold in the centre. His mask fragments were spiraling horns, partially hidden behind a bandanna he wore over his forehead. His eyes were a warm brown, flecked with gold and amber. His face… his face was simply gorgeous, with an aquiline nose and clean cut, regular features. He became even more gorgeous when he smiled, revealing tiny fangs. His ears were pointed and pierced in several spots, decorated with little gold studs and loops. He was tall, built for both speed and strength.
"Greetings. I am Vandular Sturmdraggan, but you can call me Van." He said and his voice was a very pleasant baritone. He hesitated a moment before giving them a small bow and Soi-fon smiled to herself. That courtesy seemed alien to him. No doubt he'd known something quite different, when he was alive. But she returned the bow respectfully and decided not to enlighten the fraccion about what she had sensed. They were in for a nasty surprise.
"I'm Findorr Calius. I hear you're looking to join Barragan's fraccion." He said and the stranger looked briefly startled. Then he smiled, flashing his fangs again.
"I'm afraid there's been a misunderstanding. I'm here for training before taking my place among the Espada." The fraccion exchanged glances and Soi-fon could practically hear them thinking. Is this guy serious? "Leave that to Barragan." He advised them, not unkindly, before holding an arm out. The sleeve of his uniform left several inches of skin exposed. "In the meantime, I was told I could have some uniforms tailored? I don't care for this style at all." He was wearing a generic uniform and it was clearly meant for someone shorter and wider. It was short in the cuffs and baggy in all the wrong places.
"I'll help you out with that!" Charlotte said happily and the rest of the fraccion let him. "You'll be beautiful when I finish!" Vandular looked at the fraccion with alarm and Soi-fon took pity on him.
"I'll help as well." Charlotte pouted, sensing that his fun had just been curtailed. But Soi-fon didn't care. It was hard to tell from a first meeting of course, but she had a feeling she would like this arrancar. And she was quite curious about him. She wanted to spend more time evaluating the depth of his strength.
They spent the better part of an hour with the seamstresses, measuring and designing clothing for the brand new arrancar. The real difficulty was his wings. They had been hidden by his outsized shirt and Soi-fon couldn't help but laugh as she saw them. They were bat wings but tiny little things, barely reaching past his shoulder blades. He flashed a smile over his shoulder and deliberately fluttered them at her.
"Adorable, no? I think they'll go back to full size when I release my zanpakuto, but I haven't tried it yet." He rested a hand on one of his swords. She noticed he had two short swords, resting on either hip. An odd form for a hollow zanpakuto but hardly unknown.
"I love your tattoos!" Charlotte said, edging closer and running a finger over the patterns. With his shirt off, they could fully see the glory of those tattoos. They were tribal patterns, but like no style Soi-fon had ever seen before. Black images, they were flowing and elegant, depicting antelope, reindeer and other prey animals from the high steeps. They were on his upper arms and shoulders, trailing off down his chest and back.
"Thank you. They are marks of rank, from when I was alive." Vandular said, reaching up to rub a tattoo before sighing softly and putting back on his shirt. The new style he'd picked would be a vest, designed to leave most of the tattoos visible. "Odd, that breaking my mask returned them to me. Or were they there all along, hidden beneath the bones? Well, I'll never know." He sounded melancholy and Soi-fon wondered what the tattoos meant to him. Quite a lot, perhaps. They all looked up as the door opened and the seamstress shrunk back with a small squeak. She wasn't too afraid of Soi-fon or the fraccion, but everyone had a healthy dread of the Segunda Espada.
"So." Barragan studied Vandular slowly, his expression blank. The other hollow gave him a small wave and an innocent smile. "It is you. What are you doing here?" He asked and Soi-fon bit her lip as the elderly hollow slowly stepped into the room. His power flowed through the room and Charlotte winced as the seamstress gasped. But Vandular just gave Barragan a slightly hurt look.
"You don't want me here? I could leave – OW! Barragan!" Van said and Charlotte and Soi-fon both stared as the Segunda Espada gave the newcomer a punch in the shoulder followed by a powerful hug. "You don't have to crush me." He wheezed dramatically and Barragan laughed.
"Such a liar. We both know you're fine." He said before letting go and Vandular smiled cheerfully. "But why are you here? Zommari could never have taken you." Charlotte blinked and Soi-fon nodded to herself. The newcomer had a deep well of power indeed.
"I surrendered myself to him. My nest was raided by strangers, my mate and pup taken." Vandular said with quiet, but heartfelt sorrow. "My mate is dead. I feel it here." He touched his chest. "I'm not as sure about my pup, but I fear she would be better off dead." He said softly and Barragan gripped his arm, giving him some rough sympathy. The hollow managed a half-hearted smile. "They are beyond my power to reach, so I gave myself up in hopes of gaining power and allies in my quest for revenge."
"I see." She could tell Barragan was itching to question the new arrancar about the strangers, but was putting it off in an effort to be tactful. An effort that was largely wasted as Vandular laughed.
"You want me to describe what happened. Why don't we do that over some drinks?" He suggested and Barragan looked faintly relieved. "Although I doubt you have any fermented mare's milk." Van said thoughtfully. Soi-fon winced at the thought. Fermented mare's milk? What kind of hideous abomination was that? It sounded vile. Barragan rumbled a laugh.
"No, but we have some fine vintages. Have you ever tried wine?" Barragan asked and Vandular shook his head. "My quarters are secure enough. Soi-fon, come. Charlotte, see to your duties." He added as the fraccion tried to follow. Charlotte pouted but quickly put on a dutiful look as Barragan gave him a sidelong glance. The seamstress was clearly glad to see the last of them.
The next hour was both pleasant and useful. Van gave them clear descriptions of everyone he had faced and Soi-fon frowned as he described the power of the final man, the one who had defeated him. Barragan was frowning heavily and she glanced at him, wondering how he would evaluate Vandular's power. She knew he was very strong but not precisely how strong. Perhaps…?
"Your Majesty? How would you evaluate Van's power against your own?" She asked, using his title to take any sting from the question. Vandular winced a little as Barragan chuckled.
"You know how strong Aizen was before he absorbed the Hogyoku?" Soi-fon's eyes widened. Was he seriously…? "He is approximately that strong. Double the strength of a normal taichou… and double my power." He said plainly and she stared at the other arrancar, who looked embarrassed.
"I wish you wouldn't reveal all my secrets like that." He complained and Barragan just shrugged, taking a drink of his wine. "This is very good." Van said as he took a sip of his own glass. "Although rather sweet." He murmured and that made her wonder what fermented mare's milk tasted like. She thought the wine was dry.
"So the enemy you faced was double the power of most taichou." She said and Vandular hesitated before nodding. "We do need to know these things." Soi-fon gave him a hard stare and Van looked a touch embarrassed again.
"I suppose. I just don't like to flaunt my power. It's so much easier to be underestimated and let the prey come to me, you know?" He said and she nodded. She really did understand. The Onmitsukido was all about stealth and being underestimated was quite useful. "Although if I'd displayed my strength, maybe this wouldn't have happened to me. I don't think they were expecting to rouse a monster when they took my mate and pup." He said softly but Barragan shook his head.
"Or perhaps they would have been ready for all of you and you would not have escaped." He pointed out and that cheered the new arrancar slightly.
"You might be right. In fact, you probably are right. He was very strong." He said thoughtfully. "If he had weakened me with a few more before he attacked… well." He made a throwing away gesture. "No point worrying on it. Can you tell me a bit about this place? I've been to Soul Society before, but that was only to steal some clothing." Vandular admitted and Soi-fon blinked at the thought. But the very humanoid vasto lorde did have uses for clothing which the lower ranks mostly lacked.
The discussion went to life in Soul Society then and Soi-fon mostly let the content pass her by, analyzing the interplay between the two hollows. It was clear to her that Vandular was trusted by Barragan. That was highly unusual, the old hollow never trusted anyone at first meeting. She was sure there was a long history between these two and she wondered what it could be. Had they been lovers? Clearly Vandular appreciated females but that didn't mean too much, with hollows. Then she paid attention as the discussion came to her.
"A consort?" Vandular sounded astonished as he glanced at her and Soi-fon met his gaze evenly. "I… somewhat assumed she was the highest ranking of your fraccion." He admitted and she grimaced a little at the thought. Although it made sense, from his perspective. "You've gained an interest in children?" He asked and Barragan shrugged.
"It is the will of Kami that the arrancar continue to exist, and the simplest way is through breeding." He said and Van frowned, a darkness entering his eyes.
"No one mentioned that to me." He said, his tone reserved. But Soi-fon could sense the anger lurking beneath it, like a leviathan sliding through the cold waters. Barragan just snorted.
"Nor will they. No one is that tactless. I believe shinigami observe a period of mourning… no doubt Tosen will not approach you until your vengeance is complete." He said and Vandular just stared at him for a moment before nodding and clearly attempting to relax. "But do not be surprised if he assigns the Kuchiki woman to you as a fraccion."
"Argh!" Van grimaced before taking a deep drink of his wine. "Barragan, you know I never have female fraccion. And you know why!" He almost whined and Soi-fon bristled a little, wondering what problem he had with females. He seemed to notice that and gave her a charming smile. "It's not that I don't like women – I love them – but the head of a fraccion is supposed to manage his fraccion. I don't manage females, females manage me." He sounded so mournful that it surprised a laugh from her. Barragan shrugged.
"I don't understand why you can't assert yourself with them. Particularly since I've never noticed you having a problem disciplining your female children." The old hollow said and Soi-fon wondered how long these two had traveled together. Quite a while, it seemed. Vandular frowned.
"That's different. If you don't discipline children, they grow into monsters. Women are supposed to be approached with awe and deference." He said, then sighed. "Which exactly the opposite of how to manage a fraccion. Well, nevermind. I suppose I'll survive. Can we begin training tomorrow? I'm eager to learn my abilities." He sounded quite eager and Barragan nodded.
"You'll find they're much the same but there are often refinements. And I think you can spar with my fraccion, to begin with." He said and Vandular gave him a questioning look. "They told me that an 'arrogant stranger' had arrived, assuming he would be Espada. I think they need a lesson in humility."
"Oh. Hah! That should be fun, I'm looking forward to it." Van said cheerfully and Soi-fon smiled to herself. The fraccion wouldn't know what had hit them. It would be interesting to watch.
The evening wound to a natural conclusion, with a servant being summoned to show Vandular to his suite and Ggio came in to help prepare Barragan. Soi-fon grimaced but stripped away her clothing before obediently taking her place on the bed and fetching the oil. She would endure this. It wasn't particularly painful and she had no real choice.
But that didn't mean she would enjoy it.
"Is he going to be okay?" Lilynette sounded like she was about to cry. Starrk was holding his other half against his chest, his grey eyes wide and stunned with hurt. Unohana thought she had never seen anyone look as tragic as the Primera did right now.
"We're doing everything we can, Lilynette-san." Szayel said as Unohana nodded, unable to speak. Her gaze was fixed on the tiny baby cradled in the incubator. He was hooked up to numerous tubes and monitors, a little knitted cap over his head to hold in every precious bit of body heat.
Everything had gone wrong just this morning. She'd been having even more troubles, water retention and high blood pressure. Szayel had been doing his best to help but despite everything the Espada could do, she'd gone into premature labour. It was hard to know exactly how long the pregnancy should have run, but this was too soon. She'd given birth in just over an hour, which was not a good thing. It was a sign that the child was too young, too small. He'd already stopped breathing once but Szayel had gotten his lungs working so fast, they were almost sure there would be no damage. They wouldn't be absolutely certain for some time.
That was if the child survived at all. Unohana felt tears gather and wiped them away, trying to remain composed. Her first child and he was so terribly vulnerable. Not sick, not yet, but so undeveloped.
"Takeshi." Starrk suddenly said and they all looked at him, surprised. "His name is Takeshi, because he is a fighter. He will make it." The Primera sounded so absolutely sure that Unohana wanted to believe it. And perhaps… perhaps he was right. Perhaps he really had a premonition of the future.
"Takeshi." She said, tasting the name and the idea behind it. "It's a good name." It wasn't one they had discussed but Starrk was right, it was fitting. She turned back to the incubator, resting a hand on it and looking at the infant inside. He was twitching, trying to move. "Be strong Takeshi." She whispered. Starrk was right, he was a fighter.
He would cling to life with all of his strength.
Soi-fon felt a great sadness as she looked at the man strapped to the rack.
Ggio's misadventure had proven to be the lucky break they needed. The Onmitsukido had managed to track that one man, leading them to several other ringleaders, and it had snowballed from there. Finally, they had moved. Her Division had done their best but almost all of the ringleaders had committed suicide rather than be taken for questioning. Another sign that something more was behind this than mere criminals. The Onmitsukido was noted for severity, but also for being willing to bargain and reward informants. They had taken plenty of prisoners, but they had all been mere gangsters.
Except this man. He'd tried to commit suicide but she had taken his capture personally, and she'd managed to use a serum of Szayel's on him before he could end his own life. Now it was her sad duty to question him. Barragan was there, watching without emotion as Ggio got the torture implements ready. Dark grey eyes glared at her furiously.
"Hisagi, please, don't make us do this." She had tried to reason with him before and it hadn't worked. She didn't think it would work now but she had to try. She was not really a friend of Shuhei's. He'd never been a member of her Division and she was a taichou while he was a fukutaichou. Their paths simply didn't cross much, but she still respected him and the last thing she wanted to do was hurt him. "Please tell us what you know."
"Fuck off, bitch!" Hisagi snarled and Soi-fon frowned at the rage in his eyes. For one moment, she wished she knew him better. This seemed out of character… but then, he'd lost his taichou and his best friend, Kira. His zanpakuto was Kazeshini so theoretically, a desire to destroy and murder had to be part of his character. The pain he'd suffered must have drawn it out. "Whoring to this arrancar… I never thought you would sink so low." She stiffened a bit at that but didn't let it get to her.
"Continue insulting my consort, shinigami, and I will make this more painful than it has to be." Barragan growled, insulted on her behalf. "We will – yes? What is it?" He asked and Soi-fon turned, surprised. Vandular had just opened the door with a smile.
"I just wanted to show you my – unh." The new arrancar stopped, a bit taken aback at the scene in front of him. "What is this?" Soi-fon just stared at him. Was he really that thick? Barragan huffed a sigh.
"What does it look like?" The King of Hueco Mundo asked and Van grimaced a little, running a hand through his hair before answering.
"Something pointless and cruel." He answered and Soi-fon felt an urgent desire to punch him in the throat. Pointless? Cruel it certainly was, but it most definitely had a point. "Why don't you try removing that foreign reiatsu in him and see if that helps?"
"Wait, what?" Soi-fon said, shocked as Barragan stared at Vandular then whipped his gaze to Hisagi. The captured shinigami looked just as confused as any of them, staring at Van wide eyed. She turned her senses on Shuhei but could detect nothing out of the ordinary. "What are you talking about? I can't sense anything." She said and Van frowned, stepping closer. She vaguely noticed that he was wearing his new clothing, a vest and loose pants. The vest had slits for his wings and the little bat like appendages fluttered as he walked. His uniform was white of course, but he wore a bright red belt wrapped with chains of gold. It was a shocking splash of color against the white and black.
"It's the same kind of power I fought in Hueco Mundo. I might have been sensitized to it. Although… it's strangely familiar." Vandular tilted his head to one side and regarded Hisagi. Meanwhile, the young shinigami was recovering from his shock.
"Fuck you! No one is controlling me. Stay away, arrancar filth!" He snapped and Van just gave him an amused look.
"Don't bother. Talking to you is about as useful as talking to a hand puppet." He said, not unkind and Hisagi gaped at him again. "Now hush. Hmm…" Soi-fon watched as Vandular scratched his chin. Shuhei took a deep breath and began screaming insults at him but the arrancar was indifferent to it. "This really is familiar. Something… so long ago…" She could hardly hear him as he mumbled to himself. "Ah, of course! It's like the horses. I have this. I just need to find…" Vandular gripped Hisagi's head, keeping snapping teeth away from him as he sniffed the shinigami's chest. Soi-fon blushed a little before looking away. That looked wrong, but there was clearly nothing sexual about it. The arrancar was just trying to find something.
Then he stepped back before touching Shuhei's left shoulder. Blue light bloomed and they all watched as he touched the shinigami's right shoulder, following it with his forehead and his navel. Shuhei seemed to be paralyzed as blue light flowed from each point, forming a cross. Vandular lifted his hand and the light dissolved into spiritual particles, flowing into his body. The hollow finished absorbing the energy and Hisagi slumped in his chains, shaking his head. Van licked his fingers for a moment, taking up every bit of stray energy before he glanced at Barragan.
"What happened…?" Shuhei's voice was strange, dazed and confused. Soi-fon felt a moment of hope. Perhaps, if they could demonstrate that he'd been under someone else's control, Hisagi would be spared. Aizen didn't require him for his breeding projects – they didn't have many female arrancar – but he could always be assigned to one of the male arrancar as a fraccion.
"We were hoping you could tell us that." Vandular said gently, his voice soft and soothing. Soi-fon blinked at him, wondering if he'd ever been an interrogator. He certainly knew how to create calm. "Was there a moment that things changed for you?" That made Shuhei think and he blinked, lifting his head and staring at the arrancar in front of him.
"Yes… there was a man. I managed to escape the final battle and hid in the Rukongai. He was organizing a resistance against Tosen… I wanted to get revenge for my friends, my taichou. But I was just angry… he did something to me. After that I wasn't angry, I was obsessed." He sounded like he was having a revelation. Soi-fon bit her lip. The control must have been very subtle. "I was going to kill myself if I managed to… why would I do that? What the fuck did that bastard do to me?" He sounded angry now, but not at them.
"He enslaved your reiatsu to his own." Vandular said, still in that gentle tone. "But please, tell us more. That man was no ally of Soul Society." He said as Shuhei hesitated. "He was the same kind as the ones who raided my nest in Hueco Mundo. The power they use is not shinigami at all. You were used, Hisagi Shuhei. Please, tell us how this came to pass."
"…Fine." Hisagi suddenly came to a decision. "I'll tell you everything I know. No one enslaves me." He said firmly and Soi-fon nodded. That did make sense. "But I want some assurance you won't torture me to death afterwards." Not the least bit trusting and for very good reason. Ggio was looking quite disappointed.
"Give us the information we desire and you will come to no harm. Although you will almost certainly be chained to an arrancar as a fraccion." Barragan told him and Shuhei scowled for a moment before jerking his chin at Van.
"If I have to be with anyone, I want him." He said definitively and the arrancar looked startled. "He seems okay, for an arrancar." That made Barragan laugh and slap Vandular on the back, right between his wings.
"It seems you will have a male fraccion after all. Very well, I will mention that to Tosen-sama. Now, speak." The ancient hollow commanded and Hisagi began to detail his experiences. Soi-fon began taking notes. She hadn't expected her notepad to get much use, but she'd brought it anyway and now she was glad she had.
Willing cooperation was always so much better than hot irons.