In the endless dessert of Hueco Mundo, a massive fortress was ablaze, smoke blotting out the sky as it billowed from the broken stone walls of Las Noches. Many arrancar patrolled the breaches to make sure no enemies infiltrated the palace.

In the meeting room, Aizen sat in his throne, head resting on his folded hands

Beside him was Gin Ichimari, his face still set in that eternal squint and smile. He had his arms folded inside his excessively baggy sleeves.

"So whatcha gonna do Aizen, this Crisis fellow is really messing things up, your plans can't start till the hogyoku wakes up." Gin said

Aizen was silent, even when he was a captain he had gained no knowledge of this arrancar, there had been none, or so he thought. Crisis had just been a fairy tale, but now he was at war with that very tale!

"Call the espada, it is time to counterattack" Aizen said

Gin went to send out the message, and soon ten arrancar filed in.

"Thank you all for coming" Aizen said, as if they had a choice "I'm sure you all know why I have called you"

"Is it finally time for us to smash those puny insects?" Yammy said "they've been so annoying"

"Not as annoying as your brute attitude" Szayel commented

"Why you!" Yammy said as he started to stand

"Enough, both of you" Ulquiorra "trash like you do not have the right to disrespect lord Aizen with your quarreling"

"Shut yer trap Ulquiorra" Yammy said "I'll kill you too"

Aizen looked at Yammy and Szayel, and they both felt Aizen's reiatsu. He didn't so much exert it on them as he simply stopped suppressing it for their sake.

"I do not have time for you squabbles" Aizen said "this threat endagers my plans, it must be eliminated"

Aizen stopped crushing the two espada, allowing them to breathe again. "All ten of you are to take your fraccion and assault the enemy fortress. Raze it to the ground, and leave no survivors" Aizen said "Depart within the hour"

The espada obediently left to prepare and depart, Aizen looked over at Gin "go with them, Gin, and free Tousen if he's at the fortress" he said

Gin nodded and left the room. Aizen left shortly afterwards and entered his throne room, a large spacious place with a white marble throne at the top of a large flight of stairs

Aizen sat down in his throne and continued planning. This development needed to be accounted for, at this rate his plans could be set back by months.

Suddenly a dark prescence entered the room, and Aizen looked up to see Crisis himself at the foot of the stairs. The arrancar radiated darkness, his reiatsu swirled around him like smoke, covering the ground and making it look like he literally rose from the shadows. He wore night-black armor, and his zanpakto, a wicked blade with jagged edges, rested in his hand.

"Thank you for sending your espada away, Souske Aizen" Crisis said "it made getting in here easy"

"And thank you for revealing yourself, now the source of these problems can be eliminated" Aizen said as he stood and drew his zanpakto.

Crisis laughed "you shinigami are always so confident in your powers, what makes you think that you'll be the one eliminating me? I came here to take care of you, and finally free up my attention for the Soul Society."

Aizen's expression remained neutral "A mere arrancar like yourself, not even created by my hogyoku, can never hope to defeat me" he said "shatter, Kyoka Suigetsu"

Crisis didn't wait to act, instead he appeared behind Aizen, moving so fast it was almost as if he teleported instead of using sonido. Crisis casually slashed, cutting Aizen's body in two.

Crisis then turned and slashed behind him, cutting the shoulder of the real Aizen, blood spurted from the deep cut, and Aizen's normally aloof attitude was overcome by shock.

"The captain we captured, of squad 2, after our interrogation she told me all about you and your zanpakto" Crisis said bluntly "I know all about your 'complete hypnosis,' a terrifying ability to be sure, denying me use of my 5 senses. However, I have an advantage that you do not yet have…"

Aizen's eyes widened as Crisis unclasped his breastplate and let it drop, reavealing a glowing sphere in his chest that seemed to contain a miniature galaxy inside of it. "A hogyoku? But how?" he asked

"Mine isn't quite as strong as yours" Crisis said "It occurred naturally, when a truly massive number of hollows fused into one. Under normal circumstances this forms a Gillian, but in this scenario we actually sucked in a few shinigami, and a human soul to boot. Something about that, and the exceedingly large number of hollows present, made the process form a natural hogyoku. Then my personality became dominant amongst the others in the hogyoku, and I made it form the body you see today for me to travel in. As such, my power far exceeds what any shinigami or hollow can attain"

Crisis slashed again, and Aizen had to block the strike with his sword, Crisis put the pressure on, coming close to overpowering Aizen.

"You're probably wondering, with such power, how could the gotei have possibly repelled me all those years ago? Simply put, back then my hogyoku was incomplete" Crisis said "It still didn't have the power of a true hogyoku, but over the years of rest I've absorbed and merged a truly massive amount of pure reishi with it, and now its ALMOST perfect."

Crisis pushed Aizen away, sending him crashing into the wall with enough force to make it collapse on him

"Now I'll kill you, and complete my hogyoku with yours, and then I ill achieve perfection" Crisis cackled, but then he stopped and slashed behind him, parrying Aizen's blade.

"Your hogyoku may let you detect me" Aizen said "but Kyoka Suigetsu still deceives your senses, you are not invincible, and I shall not lose to you, hogyoku or no"

Crisis smiled "at last, a challenging foe" he laughed as his reiatsu began to rise.

"Hado 90, Kurohitsugi" Aizen said. A black box promptly formed around Crisis, and spears of black energy moved to pierce the box and lacerate anything inside, but before they did a crack appeared in the box. The crack grew in size, and then it the whole box exploded outwards.

As the smoke cleared, Crisis walked forward, surrounded by fire. Everything around him had been melted and then cooked back solid several times very quickly, turning the marble floor black, and now the stones burned with white hot flames.

"Now, let's begin" Crisis said

-Several hours later-

Crisis stood amidst the ruins of Aizen's palace, the battle had raged for longer than he had anticipated, and it had taxed him greatly, but Aizen's unconscious body now lay at his feet.

"A worthy foe, and devoid of fear, even in the face of death" Crisis said "but it's over"

Crisis grabbed Aizen by the neck and picked him up, thrusting his hand into the man's chest and ripping out another hogyoku. "Had this awakened fully we would've fought for years and never decided the victor. As it stands though, it does seem to be bound to you, it seems I won't perfect my hogyoku after all, nor can I kill you without risking awakening your hogyoku and granting you its power" he said

Crisis pulled out a black cube "All I can do is imprison you and draw upon your power through a medium, so inefficient, but at the very least you will be unable to meddle further in my affairs." He said as he pressed the cube to Aizen's forehead.

There was a sucking sound, and Aizen seemed to be vaccumed into the cub. Then the cube sank beneath Crisis's skin

Crisis turned away "It would be bad if I had to fight your espada now, normally I could defeat them all myself, but after fighting you I don't have the energy left. What's more they're probably almost back from having sensed our battle, time for me to leave" he said, obviously still referring to Aizen as if he were still in the room.

Crisis pulled out a tattered haori and dropped it on the ground, then scoured his reiatsu from the area. "It'd be a shame to waste their strength though, they'll soften up the gotei for my forces."

And with that, Crisis left.