Joint effort: Alright, so there seems to be confusion in the fact that Shiro is slowly able to gain control. Think, the bracelet is only a prototype. There are bound to be glitches, even if it was Mayuri who developed the thing. Also, think of it as something unnoticeable slowly moving into the open. If it is barely moving, no one notices until it is already if front of them. (this is NOT the expression we wished to use, but the one we had flew out of our heads just as we were about to type it. Figures, right? And frankly, it made a whole lot more sense than this one. Ugh! Dammit!)

Greed: I hate to break it to a certain someone that commented, but it wasn't Kenpachi that stabbed Rukia. Heehee. Sorry for not making that a bit clearer. Though, I can kinda see why you would think it was Kenpachi. Brutish thug that he is. We also got some very nice comments! Thanks, people!

Vanity: Well, here is the newest chapter. Sorry if it's confusing.

Greed: There are probably only going to be a few more chapters. We haven't really decided yet. But we'll tell you when the last chapter should come out, when we have it ready. Don't get your panties in a twist over it.

…

Chapter 10… Regret

…

"I've had enough of yer mouth, midget."

Rukia looked down at her stomach to see blood and a black blade stuck within the redness. Her eyes dragged their way up to the face in front of her. A wicked grin was carved upon the face of her friend and she watched as it slowly melted off.

"Rukia?" Ichigo's voice seemed to echo in her ears, but not in that sinister way it had just moments before.

She tried to speak, tell him this wasn't his fault. All she felt, though, was some liquid slide down her chin. And then darkness. So much darkness. What exactly had just happened?

…

I stabbed her. She was just trying to help! And I stabbed her.

It was her fault for getting in the middle of two swords, though.

NO! It's my fault! What am I thinking? I stabbed her.

"No, King. I stabbed her. We stabbed her. It wasn't just ya. I'm always there, King. We are partners," my hollow whispered. And he was so right. So damned fucking right. Those disgusting thoughts that went through my head were not just mine anymore. He had taken over to where we were thinking together. No longer completely separate.

I watched her fall. We watched her fall to the ground so far below our feet. And then I didn't see anymore.

…

Shiro was laughing. Laughing out loud!

It seemed that Ichigo had been through too much. The strawberry's whiter version had been able to push him aside. Hopefully for a while longer than usual.

He looked back up from the fallen midget to the beast of a man in front of him. Kenpachi had a smirk on his face like he didn't even care about what happened. And he didn't. The only thing this mammoth cared about was the blood and the fight. Something the bleached out man could understand.

Insane grins marred both of their faces before they faced off once again.

…

Mayuri watched the fight that began once again after the Kuchiki girl had fallen. He sent one of the men with him to see if she was still alive, even if he didn't care.

He was very interested in the boy, however. Soi Fon was off locating the other Vizards and he had already gotten two of the women. It seemed unfair that Kenpachi got to take his time with the Kurosaki boy while everyone else was working so very hard.

The leader of the Research and Development team fingered the device in his hand. This… this would certainly turn the tides for them. There was a fail-safe in that little bracelet Ichigo still had on. And, oh, it would be spectacular to witness it firsthand. He pushed the button and watched as the red head in front of the 11th Division captain froze.

…

Shiro was having a blast. This bastard just wouldn't fall!

It would be really bad for him if this lug had the same regenerative powers that he had, though.

A quick glance at his mangled shoulder revealed a nice white coating on the wound. The same went for his leg. Even if he didn't have this ability, the big man would still look worse than him as he was dripping from his abdomen, both arms, face, and left leg. The physically imposing man was taking quite the beating, though he seemed to be enjoying their rough housing.

Shiro laughed and put a hand to his newly masked forehead and then pulled his hand through the shaggy orange locks that belonged to his host. Something wet met his hand and he was delighted to find that it was blood when he pulled his hand back into view. "Well," he seemed to moan in pleasure in that crude voice of his, "I'd love to continue, but I have other things to do. I plan on seeing if that midget is still alive so that I can devour her. Maybe even that lovely little Inoue girl." The white man shivered in enjoyment as he didn't even get a rise out of the oranget within his mind. The boy was completely numb after stabbing that annoying bitch.

The hollowfied shinigami was about to deliver the final blow what he froze. Kenpachi likewise stopped his advance at the confused look that masked man gave him. "What's wrong, berry? Suddenly lost your nerve?"

Far from it, the inner hollow thought. He was being pushed back by pain so intense it was paralyzing him. Soon the body he had possession of started to fall to the ground so far below him.

As he, they, hit the ground, creating a crater within the pavement, a scream escaped their mouth. It was a horrible mix of human and hollow, sometimes switching so that it was one or the other. The combination was soul wrenching. Surely nothing on this earth or within any other realm should make a sound like that.

Soon, Mayuri was there. He was smiling gleefully at his newest experiment. And it was a wonderful thing that he had installed that failsafe. He had a feeling since he had never experimented upon a Vizard, that something could go wrong. It was a good thing he had upgraded the bands that were to go on the other Vizards. It rendered the other Vizards in a comatose state, because the sound they emitted to give the hollows pain was constant. They went off at the slightest trace of hollow power. It was delicious!

Kenpachi landed beside the demented doctor. "You just ruined my fun," he grumbled.

"Yeah!" Yachiru said, suddenly popping up on Kenpachi's shoulder. "Kenny was having fun with Berry-tan!"

The captain for squad 12 sneered at the two inferior shinigami. "You were going to continue damaging my subject if you proceeded. I had to intervene. Besides, our orders were to bring him back as soon as possible. I just did it sooner rather than later."

Kenpachi huffed, wanting nothing more than to slice the man's head off, but he refrained. Contrary to what many thought, he wasn't stupid. He just loved a good fight. The gruff man turned to the red head laying, no, writhing on the ground.

Ichigo was still screaming. "The hell did you do to him?"

The creepy scientist smiled severely and held up a remote device. "It's a failsafe in case the initial repression method didn't work completely." He pressed a button and the Kurosaki boy quieted. However, he was panting heavily and his eyes were rolled back into his head. Unconscious. "Now, Kenpachi, why don't you be so kind as to carry the boy? Soi Fon should be rounding up the rest of the Vizards. We need to prepare the Sekaimon for when they arrive."

Kenpachi grumbled at being ordered around but did just what Mayuri said. It was a shame, though. The boy would probably be killed for being a Vizard, and Kenpachi wouldn't be able to fight with him anymore. He hefted Ichigo over his shoulder and Yachiru proceeded to poke and prod the poor boy while he was insensible. Time to go back to Soul Society.

…

Shinji watched as Love and Hachi were subdued. Rose and he had gotten away along with Kensei, but two of the girls hadn't been able to escape Kurotsuchi. Even the fiery Hayori hadn't made it out of that Hornet's clutches. It made him wonder what the fuck was going on.

Everyone was going down so easily. None of it made any sense. While they were up against captains, it shouldn't have mattered much since there were more of the Vizards. And yet they all fell like flies. Even Ichigo.

The blond had flash stepped over to see the strawberry's fall and then the screaming. He even witnessed the kid getting taken away by that freak scientist and the hulking man. Almost everyone was down for the count, and now they were being hauled to Soul Society for what was presumably their execution.

It wasn't right! It wasn't fair. And they were damned well going to do something about it.

Kensei, Rose, and Shinji needed reinforcements. They couldn't go into Soul Society alone with whatever the shinigami had against the Vizards. It just wasn't practical. It may take a while to find who they were looking for, but, if everything worked out, it would be in time to save everyone.

…

Vanity: Sorry if the back and forth was confusing. It's meant to be, at least a little. It is to portray the confusion of battle. What's happening on all sides. The next chapter should be a bit more… stable in that sense.

Greed: Shut up and get to the close.

Vanity: You could have done it, you know. Anyway, please read and review. We would love to know how we are doing.