Episode 18: Menace

The giant creatures sway with the wind. They are like sentient trees, howling in a chorus of pain and misery, searching for food to ease their massive grief. Although on closer analysis, they seem more like wild animals, I think of the dinosaurs; they were once massive, aggressive creatures who consumed lots of meat. These Gillians are simply motivated by instinct alone. The conglomeration of thousands upon thousands of souls has made a structure of complete and utter despair...Do I really want to become that?

"We'll use these little hollows as bait." Nel climbs up one of the giant trees with ease and dangles the giant hollow kebab so it is level with the Gillian's noses.

"You're a bit high up!" I shout to her but she assures me she'll be fine.

"When they reach for the bait I want you to grow your claws and slice 'em from the bottom up." She makes it sound so easy but my legs jitter when I notice one of the behemoths has picked up the scent.

Each stride creates tremors in the ground. Even if I were to somehow defeat this giant, how will we survive the felling?

"GRAAAOOOWWWW!"

Shit...

It stomps close to me, the shockwave throws me back. I have to recover so our plan works.

"NOW BANZAI!"

"Hold on..." But she can't wait. The giant hollow is snapping its jaws like an enormous vice. I t bites off more and more of the branch as it nears Nel Tu.

"Shit I have to save her." I assess the situation. Looking at the Gillian's feet is enough to intimidate me. I figure it's best to try and bring Nel down with the tree so she doesn't end up as this freak's dinner mint.

I use my claw growing power and drive my blades upwards. It requires tremendous force and it brings more resistance as I reach higher, but I've carved eight large scars along the trunk. Thankfully the tree comes down. Nel keeps her footing and surfs the falling wood until she reaches the ground, landing smoothly. However she stares daggers at me. I smile weakly but she wipes my smug look away with a swift slap.

"YOU DIDN'T FOLLOW ORDERS. I NEEDED YOU TO HALVE THE MONSTER NOT THE FRIGGING TREE."

"I was trying to save you." I defend my actions but she turns away. "Um...Nel..." She ignores my cries. "NEL!"

"WHAT!"

I remind her through non-verbal communication that there still remains a giant monster above us. She sighs and leaps high into the air with her sword dragging behind. She manages to land on the Gillian's nose. She taps the mask of the beast with the tip of her sword. The giant splits perfectly in half. I step back to avoid the giant falling beast.

"Wow I didn't even see you cut him."

She still revealed a look of humility afterwards, quietly sheathing her sword then indicating to me that, "You can have both halves."

"What? But you deserve it, I was useless and you killed him without dripping a bead of sweat."

"I insist that you devour him. Arrancars don't need to eat as often as regular hollows and besides...he was only a foot soldier anyway."

"You're going to call that giant hollow a 'foot soldier.'?"

She nods. "Did anyone tell you about the three classes of Menos?" She reminds me of that there are the weakest class, the Gillians. "They are fairly common and tend to look the same; they are of low intelligence and hence are considered the foot soldiers."

"But I saw Shrieker as a Gillian and his mask looked different."

"Well then this is where it gets interesting." She now explains the next part of the hollow evolution. "If you have a string will and are able to overpower the millennia of hollow that reside within you, then you are capable of reaching the next more powerful class of Menos – the Adjuchas."

I listen attentively whilst eating my mega meal. "Now the Adjuchas are much rarer than the Gillians and are far more powerful and intelligent, they usually look after groups of Gillians and tend to rule over the forest like warlords."

"I believe I may have already experienced the power of an Adjuchas."

"How ridiculous you would not be talking to me now if you had crossed tails with an Adjuchas."

"It had to be. His reatsu exceeded any other hollows I have encountered and it was able to use this sort of quick step."

"You mean sonido?"

"I guess so...Hey you used that on me when we trained."

"It was only a slow one though."

"Yeah right..." I groan as she continues.

"Well regardless, Adjuchas are not to be underestimated, they must continue to eat hollow or else they will revert back into a Gillian."

"However as strong as Adjuchas are, they can never even rival the power of the third and final stage of hollow evolution...the Vasto Lordes..."

I sense a shiver down my spine when she says the words 'Vasto Lorde'. "Only a few are known to exist but they are of the most powerful entities in Hueco Mundo, not even the strongest Shinigami's will be able to match the power of a Vasto Lorde."

"Have you ever met a Vasto Lorde?" I ask in curiosity.

"No I haven't and still now I wish to avoid the depths of Hueco Mundo so I never come across one. I used to be an Adjuchas before I became an Arrancar so if you think I'm strong then you better learn some Sonido coz' you're gonna need it if you run into a Vasto Lorde."

"Do they look anything like this giant thing I'm eating?"

"Not at all... that is another distinguishing factor between the Menos...there power levels are inversely proportional to their size. Although you may think bigger is better it is not the case with Menos. Adjuchas are smaller than Gillians but are still much bigger than say a human...and Vasto Lorde appear much more humanoid and of similar size to a human."

I feel somewhat empowered again by this revelation of human like qualities. "Then I wish to become a Vasto Lorde then...so I may feel more human."

She sighs. "If that's all you're worried about then you should consider Shinigamification."

"Wh...sss th-t?" I muffle as I dig into a big chunk of Menos meat.

"I have undergone the process of Shinigamification so I share both hollow and Shinigami powers...the only problem is this is where my evolution ends...once you become an Arrancar it doesn't matter how many hollows you eat you will never become any stronger."

As I lower my head in sorrow she lightens her tone. "However it does have its rewards. For one I no longer have to worry about reverting to a Gillian...I'm in a sort of equilibrium now. Another benefit is the extra strength and abilities, and finally the best privilege is the accommodation in Las Noches."

"Wow...but Las Noches..."

"A giant palace that rests atop this forest, it is the home of the Arrancar and of our king."

"A hollow king?"

"That's right. His name is Barragan Luisenbarn. He currently resides over this whole realm of hollows but he is a pretty lazy leader to be honest." She clasps her hands and looks up at the skies in faith. "I just hope another more ambitious...and handsome...leader dethrones him and takes his place...alas that has not occurred as of yet."

Nel's stories inspire and intrigue me. Although my life has been thrown a curveball and I must live as a lowly hollow, there is a whole world which waits for me to explore...so I will become stronger...perhaps even become that true leader she desires so much.

"Thank you Nel for the time we've had together." I kiss her on the forehead which would probably seem disgusting for a hollow to do however she likes it. "I will not forget your generosity and hospitality but most importantly...I won't forget your humanity...you are not like the other hollows."

She blushes in response to my comments. "Oh thank you for being so kind...but I just hope you will be okay to continue your journey."

I finish the last mouthful of Menos and rest my hand on her shoulder. "I will guarantee you that one day we will meet again...and when that time comes...I will be much more powerful...then I can kick your arse in a sparring match."

She giggles. "We'll see about that..." As we part she waves one last time to which I return the gesture. I try and leave quickly so she doesn't see me crying. Her training has helped me feel more confident and enhanced my conscious. I should be able to win over a cannibalistic crowd of hollow now.

As I descend further into the forest I find that chance. Several hollows begin devouring parts of each other; soon more and more join into the orgy of blood and cannibalism. Red reatsu envelops over the display. Now is my chance...I will rise to the top of this havoc and rule over these other hollows

"GRAAAOOOWWWWW!"

Make or break...here's the gamble...will my soul dominate over the others...or have I just made the biggest mistake of my life? Am I destined for success or to be something far more siinister than a lowly hollow? You cannot miss the next epic chapter!