"Ichigo."

The searing light that had consumed him had left him temporarily blind and the teen soul reaper sat motionless waiting as the dark blurs on a backdrop of pure white became something he could see. The blur closest to him moved closer and spoke again.

"Ichigo, can you see anything?"

"Rukia? I thought I'd lost you. No I can't see yet, you?"

"Just colours, like your hair. I thought I'd lost you too. That place...it was so dark and I had no control but I felt Grimmjow. We tried to hold on to one another but when we hit the white light it was like it was trying to tear us apart. It did, in the end."

"The same thing happened to me." Ichigo said. "I had Uryu and as soon as we hit the light I felt this force trying to separate us. But then why would I end up with you?"

He blinked. Rukia became more than just a dark spot and he could make out her hand raised up to her chin in thought.

"I felt Nel with Grimmjow. He called my name, he tried to hold onto me, but he didn't call for Nel or seem to have any trouble keeping her close. Then here I am with you. The two soul reapers together, and the two hollows. And Uryu gone. I think I understand."

"What?"

But her attention turned from him to their surroundings. Things were coming back into focus faster now and she stood, inspecting the low-lit space they were in. She walked a few paces and held out her hand. The air cracked with energy and she cried out withdrawing, but for an instant a network of blue lines was visible. They disappeared again once the contact was gone.

"What was that, are you okay?"

She shook her hand out but nodded. "Fine. But it is as I expected. We must assume the Vandenreich have been here for quite some time and they have taken precautions. We were split up when we got here. The soul reapers sent here, in a cage made for soul reapers. The quincy is with neither of us, so Uryu has no doubt passed safely through the gate. And the espada are very likely also in a cage designed specifically for them. We may have made it to the Vandenreich home world Ichigo, but we are trapped."

"No, no way." Ichigo looked around. They were in a pit of sorts, the ground dry and dusty but the walls a high grey stone but nothing he couldn't easily jump out of with his soul reaper powers. However, when he raised his hand like Rukia had, the air cracked and an electric current shocked him before he withdrew.

"Damn."

Rukia was right. They were trapped.

"Shit."

"GRIMMJOW!"

"Nel don't touch me." He warned, unable to see her but waiting for her to pounce on him. He swallowed hard as he sat with his back against the perfectly straight, smooth stone wall behind him. All he could see was grey blurs at the moment. He had no idea where he was but by the feel of things he would be here for a while.

"It's seki seki or something." he tried to swallow again, mouth dry and his voice kept catching in his throat. "Oh shit, Nel."

"Grimmjow?" she whispered out. He felt her now, down by his feet, and raised his left hand.

"Here, come over here."

She made her way to him and he put his arm around her.

"I feel funny." she whimpered into his side.

"It's these st-stones...they are suppressing our spiritual p-pressure." His voice was shaky, everything in him was trying to contain this pain.

Lothure had destroyed his shoulder. That hammer had come down square on the joint, crushing it so horribly he couldn't even look at it. His collar bone was broken, his shoulder blade out of place at his back, his whole arm hung dead. It had been one of the most painful, shocking injuries of Grimmjow's life, but he had suffered it with all of his spiritual power in tact. He had been able to push through with the strength of Pantera. But now he was alone. He was naked and weak and there was nothing to dampen the reality of that or any of his other wounds and he found himself struggling to hold back tears and not faint.

The world came into focus finally and he could see they were in a long corridor, the walls a dark grey stone, possibly seki seki, though it was usually white, but still, something was definitely taking his strength. The perfectly squared stone ran in a long narrow hall that turned at a perfect ninety degree angle to the right at one end and to the left at the other.

"Where are we?"

"Must be a cage or something. N-nel, could you look and see what's down there?"

He didn't really want to send her on her own but he was not ready to move. She pulled away from him and took a few tentative steps in that direction. She kept moving until she could see.

"Another hallway." She said, running back. He rolled his head to the other turn and she looked there as well. "Same thing."

"Odd." he tried to make sense of it but nothing came to him. Why make a cage of hallways?

"Can Grimmjow move?"

"I really don't know."

"If Grimmjow gets away from these rocks will he be okay?"

"Maybe." He looked skyward. Without his powers these wall were far too high to scale. Beyond them, the heavens were a tumble of opaque clouds, just as charcoal grey as everything else in the landscape. Somewhere, thunder boomed and there was a weak flash of light that must have been a distant bolt of lightening.

"Then Grimmjow should try." Nel said. He turned back to her, remembering how much pain he had been in that day in the menos forest, that day when he realized that he actually didn't want her to leave him alone, that he wanted her to stay close so he could keep her safe. He had been prepared to let go, to close his eyes and wait for it to end until he felt her tiny fingers in his calf. Only when he'd seen her face had he found the strength to get up, fight past the pain and keep moving.

Somehow poison eating him from the inside out seemed like a pleasant dream compared to this. But she was still there before him, waiting for him to get up. He took hold of Pantera, powerless now except for its steal, and pushed the tip against the ground, also made of the smooth stone. Bracing his back against the wall, he pushed up with his legs and his left hand on the handle of his sword and stood feet stepped out to brace him against the wall.

Never had gravity felt so heavy. But he was standing, Nel watching him worriedly. He rolled to his left side so he could lean against the wall as he walked. He didn't even bother debating which way he should go, he was already facing this way so he marched on, one foot ahead of the other and Nel knotting her hand in his pant leg.

"Let's get out of here, kid."

"Uryu?"

He blinked but found the world was a blur until he felt something pressed into his hands. When he felt it was his glasses he put them on and found himself staring up at a familiar face.

"Orihime." She was pale, very pale, her eyes edged with something he couldn't quite distinguish, but when he saw the first fleck of crimson he became more alarmed. His memories seemed garbled, confused, he wasn't quite sure where he was but now he was more concerned about the healer before him as his eyes worked down her slender face to her white blouse not just speck but dashed with crimson, running in long swathes as if the blood had splattered on her thickly from some great force. She did not look to be hurt herself, but her whole body was trembling and he reached his hands out to her shoulders.

"What happened?"

"Uryu." she repeated his name, her slender fingers rose up to touch his face and he felt how much they were shaking. "I killed them."

"Who? Orihime, where are we, what happened?" He couldn't pull himself from her but he glanced beyond her to try and see. Foot-packed earth spread out in a field big enough for an army, low grey walls marking it off and rising up behind them to form a pair of symbolic doors where the real ones would appear when activated.

The gateway to the quincy home base. They were in Eden's Vale.

And then he began to remember. The day he was taken, the cell, the darkness, the shadows that seeped even into his mind. The things they'd fed him, spiritual foods, hollow meat- he had eaten other souls, he had almost lost his own. He saw Ichigo squaring off against him. He saw himself try with everything he had to kill him. And then he felt his body rip open and Ichigo cry while he held him in his arms.

"Orihime, you saved me." He said, shaking his head trying to slow the memories into a manageable stream. "You healed me didn't you? I was nearly dead."

"Yes, I found you after."

"After what?"

"After I killed them."

Her voice was so hollow, so void of everything that was Orihime. He felt fear. "Who? Orihime, what are you doing here?"

"Your father took me, Uryu. He nearly killed Isshin and then he brought us back. Soldiers met us. Isshin tried to fight but I just stood there. The moment I came through it was-like I could breath for the first time."

Her eyes were unfocussed and her voice was mixed between horror and wonder, amazement.

"It was like I could hear and see and feel for the first time. Like every day until today was a dream."

"Orihime-"

"I felt powerful."

The spirit energy. His quick mind came to the conclusion. He knew how much power he himself could glean from this environment, much more than Hueco Mundo or even Soul Society. Orihime must be feeding off that power too, but she did not know how to control it. It must be confusing her.

"It's okay, Orihime, I think I understand."

"But you don't, or you wouldn't be holding me."

"Why?"

"I think I might have killed him too."

"Who?"

"Your father."

His face tightened, but he didn't let her go.

"You said Isshin was fighting." He prompted.

"Yes. And they knocked him down. They kicked him, he was already so hurt and all I did was cry out for them to stop. I had my hand reached out, but I never even touched them. And then...he just exploded."

"My father?"

"No. The man who was hurting Isshin. There was light, I think it was my shun shun rikka, and then his body just...was everywhere. And everyone was screaming, other people were hurt. Isshin was still alive, he was yelling at me to run. I didn't see your father, I don't know what happened. I don't remember running but I must have, because I'm back here, where we came through."

"Orihime, it's not your fault, you were only trying to defend yourself. You'll be okay, just try not to take in so much energy."

"But I can't help it, it's everything, it's the air I'm breathing."

"You're just overwhelmed. Come on." he stood up. "Soldiers will probably be coming."

"Uryu..."

She didn't rise when he held out his hand to her and seeing the utter trembling of her body he immediately knelt before her again.

"What have I done?" her eyes were cast down on her blouse, the blood on her hands. He swallowed, taking those hands in his own and bowing his head.

"You defended yourself, Orihime, from the enemy, from evil. The question is, what have I done? I turned on my friends, I fought Ichigo, I wanted to kill him."

Neither looked at the other, but she leaned forward ever so slightly so their foreheads touched. They stared down at their interlaced fingers, faint droplets falling down on them as each human tried to steady their breaths in this unsteady world.

"It wasn't your fault." Orihime sniffed back but the tears still fell. "So many weeks they had you. I could feel it, when I healed you, the things they did. Oh Uryu-"

"I'll be alright now, thanks to you and your power. I know it's hard, but we do have to move, Orihime, we have to get out of here and help our friends."

"Our friends?"

"Yes," He leaned back now and, seeing her calmed down a bit and her eyes more focused, he stood and this time she followed. He never let go of her hands as he explained. "Ichigo came through too, and Rukia. They would have been redirected to the soul reaper prison. I can get them out but Grimmjow and Nel are also here and they-" he swallowed, "Oh no, the hollows go to the Labyrinth."

"What is that?"

"It's some horrible thing the king created when he first invaded Hueco Mundo and stray hollows kept coming through to here. He believes they deserve punishment or something. They go to the maze. It has no exit and there is this thing that lives inside-"
"Like the Minotaur." She interrupted.

"What?"

"Theseus defeated the Minotaur in King Minos's maze, remember in Ancient History class?"

"Mythology...yeah I guess you're right, but it's not a Minotaur, it's a hideous failure, one of the King's first hybrids, a monster, very dangerous. We'll get Ichigo and Rukia first, then we will go there together. Come on." But his hand pulled taught and he found her pulling against him.

"Orhime, you have to come with me."

"No."

"What?"

"No, Uryu. Go save Ichigo and Rukia. There might not be time. There are two of us, and two directions to go. I will go find Grimmjow and Nel."

"Orihme, this is the Vandenreich base of operations, it's too dangerous."

"Yes, for them." Her free hand clenched in the soaked red fabric of her shirt. "Uryu, this is it, isn't it? This is our last stand. It's different than before, than with Aizen. There were so many people fighting, so many plans and powers, but this is just us, the six of us left. This is our last stand and we might not make it. So you can't protect me. I have to do it for myself, and I have to do everything I can to help win. So tell me where the Labyrinth is and then you have to let me go."

He faced her straight on, registering every word, and a very large part of him feeling overwhelmingly sad that this girl that he loved- maybe not like Ichigo loved her, but a deep abiding affection- had been just as battle-hardened as the rest of them in this war. And every word she spoke was true. Gently, he let her hand slide free of his own.

"It will take you some time to get there, but with your powers, I think you will be alright." He pointed into the distance. "For most people leaving the sanctuary of the high stones is difficult due to the wind but use your shield and you should be able to cross the plain easily. It is a straight shot in this direction, keep going until the ground gives out, the maze is cut right into the bedrock. They won't be able to get out because the maze is designed to suppress hollow power, however, you should still have your own. Break some of the wall and they will be able to escape, just do not go down there or you too will get lost and the beast could attack you. Stay above, find them that way, and don't get caught by the king's men. They will leave the beast to kill Grimmjow and Nel, but once they feel the maze break, they will come for you."

"Alright, I understand. And you? Will you be able to free Ichigo and Rukia?"

"I believe so, yes."

"Will we meet back here?"

Uryu thought this over for a moment. "It is a dangerous location, they will no doubt keep it guarded once they return. But at the same time, there is no where safe for us to meet again. We'll just have to fight them off. With Ichigo and Grimmjow we should be fine. Wait."

He paused in thought, "No, I take that back. Hide where you can see the gate. Wait for me to return and make my move."

"Your move?"

"You healed me, undid their brainwashing, but they don't know that. To them, I am still the new commander of the Dawn. I can use that to walk straight up to the king and stab a knife through his heart."

"Uryu!"

"But not until after our plan. When you get back, I will emerge and send the guards away, then we'll go from there."

"Okay, got it. Good luck, Uryu."

"You too, Orihime."