The taste of sand was what woke me up, and I shot up from my position lying down to spit it out as I aggressively slapped my hands over my mouth to get it away. I was sputtering and rubbing at my lips for probably a good few seconds before I was able to get all of it off. What a wonderful way to wake up. Trying to ignore the lingering aftertaste, I opened my eyes to look around.
How the fuck did I land in a desert? Especially one with, I picked up a handful to double check that it wasn't some weird way the light bounced off it or whatever, white sand? I couldn't help but watch as I let it slip through my fingers in confusion. I had gone to sleep in my room in the Mages Association Penthouse floor. I couldn't spot the electric haze of a powerful spell or even feel the tingly buzz of someone else's lingering magic on my skin. So there was no magic bullshit involved. But, I didn't know of any supernatural creatures that could teleport people. Not that I was all that informed, but I'm pretty sure that would be something I would be informed of, right? I let go of that train of thought since I wouldn't be able to figure it out anyway.
I threw my upper body forward so that I was crouching before springing up into a stand. How I had gotten here could wait till later. Main priority was figuring out where the hell I was. I took another look around now that the shock was gone. There were trees as white as the sands popping up here and there, but all the leaves on them were nowhere to be found and they were pretty small by tree standards. The tallest I could spot was maybe a foot taller than me. Far out into the distance were huge mountains, couldn't make out anything other than that they were actually grey compared to the white of everything around me. The sky was dark, so it was definitely night, but there was no problem seeing anything since the full moon was fucking huge and lit everything up like it was the middle of the day. I couldn't spot any stars, which was weird, but okay. And then I turned around.
"Well, at least I've got a good idea on where to go to snag some info." I couldn't help but mumble to myself as I stared at the giant white palace. It wasn't as far as the mountains, but it was still a helluva long way. There was a big white dome on top and pillars on the sides, as well as some smaller pillars coming out the top. I did a slow turn to double check and, yup, there was nothing else I could spot outside of the trees and the mountains. I sighed.
If I didn't know where the hell I was, there was a good possibility that whoever, if anyone, was in that palace had no clue who I was. So I would have to go slow enough that they could see me coming and hope that they're nice enough to have a chat. I took a glance at what I was wearing and dropped my head into my hands before letting out a loud, frustrated groan. I was in my combat suit, which, yay I'm prepared of a fight breaks out, but goddammit that ups the odds that they're gonna shoot first and ask later.
Raising my head with a hopeful inhale, I clapped my hands together and let my magic flow. The large, black, almost arrow-looking tattoos that encompassed my forearms glowed a bright, vibrant white.
"Transport Magic: Step Stone." I cast, leaning forward into a comfortable run. The spell acted as per usual, allowing me to teleport with every step and increasing in distance and quickness of teleportation as I built up momentum.
"…I swear to god, if this fucking kid doesn't wake up soon, I'm gonna go out there myself and kill him." An annoyed voice spoke up, breaking the over-hour-long silence in what appeared to be a meeting room. The speaker was an incredibly tall man, with a thin body that was built of tight, powerful cords of muscle. He had light skin and straight black hair, and wore a white top without sleeves, but possessing a large hood of sorts that stuck straight up. His legs were thrown upon the table, one over the other, displaying loose white pants and black shoes that hooked upwards at the toes. His most prominent features were the white eyepatch covering his left eye and the deep glare of irritation erupting from his right, which was a dark grey. His arms were crossed over his chest in clear impatience.
Another man, sitting across from the eyepatch-bearing man, was sitting in much the same position, though his legs were not propped up on the table. He was also tall, though simply of above average height. He possessed a noticeably stockier build compared to the thin man, though his muscle was still more compact than large. Instead of the hooded coat of the other, the shorter man wore an open jacket with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, showcasing the hole in his stomach that pierced through his body. In contrast to the lanky man's rather average straight black hair, the man with the hole in his stomach owned bright blue hair, kept short but wild. His eyes were much the same color, and there were green highlights under his eyes that swept off to the sides. The most prominent feature of this man was the animalistic jawbone that stuck to the right side of his cheek and jaw. In response to the lanky man's comment, he simply grunted in agreement.
"No, you will not. Aizen-sama has ordered that we are to watch this boy. If you attempt to kill him, I will stop you." An emotionless voice stated. The speaker was a man of similar height to the blue haired man. Unlike the previous two, he did not possess a unique top. He simply wore a white coat, the sleeves as normal, and the collar covering his neck. He sat unnaturally straight, his arms at his sides and his head still focused towards the video feed in the middle of the meeting table they all sat around. Like the first man, he possessed black hair, though it was slightly messy. It was from there that the simplicity ended. His skin was as white as the clothes he wore, and teal lines that mimicked tear tracks trailed down from his eyes to the bottom of his face. Covering the left side of his hair was a white helmet of bone, a horn protruding from the top. His upper lip and eyes were green, his pupils were slits, and his face and body were removed of emotion. Those same eyes were locked onto the first man, his first sign of movement since they had been given the instruction.
The first man scoffed, clearly even further irritated, but he did not move.
"Why the fuck are we watching some kid anyway?" He instead chose to complain, bringing a hand forward to gesture at the video. "He's got some weird clothes, and he popped out of nowhere, so what? Damn brat doesn't even have any reiatsu, he's probably dead."
"Actually, that's likely one of the reasons that we have been assigned to watch this child, Nnoitra." A disturbingly delighted voice almost purred. The speaker was yet another man, this one clearly lacking in muscle and simply possessing a thin body. His coat was much the same as the white skinned man, with minor differences giving it a more scientific appearance. He possessed pink hair that was mostly swept back, a few strands coming forth to sit in front of his pair of glasses. He bore amber colored eyes, and otherwise had a rather standard appearance. "From what I can pick up, while it is most definitely not reiatsu, there is some sort of energy that resides within that child's body."
That garnered the attention of almost everyone in the room.
"You can't identify the energy within the boy's body?" This question was asked by the lone female in the room. Her coat was on the greater side of unique, with elongated sleeves that covered her hands and ended in black fingers, a high collar that covered the bottom half of her face with beige filters over where her cheeks would be, and a very high cut bottom, ending just below where her nipples would be. Her skin was olive colored, and her eyes a mix of blue and green. Her blonde hair was messy, but was drawn back behind her in three braids. A sword was visibly sitting sideways on her back, level with her shoulder blades. It was short, but wide, and the cross-guard possessed three holes on either end.
"No, it's something I have never come across before. It possesses no similarities with any form of reiatsu or electricity! As such, I can't really identify how much the child holds within him, all that I can tell is that it is not an insignificant amount." The pink-haired man answered.
"The boy has awoken." Came a shrill voice. Its speaker was another man, whose coat was embroidered with frills along the edges. Their face was unseen, covered by an oblong white mask with small holes going down either side. Everyone turned their attention back to the feed, catching sight of the boy, now sitting up and spitting out some sand that had gotten into his mouth. Once he finished cleaning out the grime from his mouth, the boy opened his eyes, presumably, to look at his surroundings. When he did, a few of those watching him widened their eyes. The boy's green orbs literally shined with the force of a brilliant light, as if a well of power hid behind them. The pink haired man in particular seemed excited by this. They watched as the child picked up a handful of sand and allowed it to pass through his fingers, his face visibly contorted in speculation. After a moment, he threw himself up to his feet, which allowed the spectators their first proper look at the odd clothes he wore.
It was a mostly black one-piece suit of some sort, with green highlights spread throughout. The only visible ends to the suit were at the boy's elbows and his neck, leaving his forearms and face bare. His forearms were something to note, bearing black markings that encompassed nearly the entirety of his skin. His fingers, palms, and knuckles were covered in the same black cloth, with the rest of his hands, the parts clad in the black markings, free. Atop the black suit was an intricate weave of armor and padding, protecting his body while still permitting complete freedom of movement. A hood was spotted hanging off the back of his neck, a metal faceplate tucked inside. The group finished their analyses as the boy turned around, catching sight of the palace they resided in.
'Well, at least I've got a good idea on where to go to snag some info.' He mumbled. The pink haired man hummed at that.
"It would seem that, just as we know nothing of this child, he, as well, knows nothing of this world. That can certainly work in our favor." He thought aloud. The boy turned slowly, looking over the environment around him once more, before he sighed. He then looked down at his clothes and dropped his face into his hands, letting out a frustrated groan. This, of course, brought confusion to most of the spectators. The brown haired boy then raised his head with a hopeful inhale, and the markings on his arms glowed white. Intrigue could be felt in the air and the pink haired man leaned forward, his eyes wide in clear excitement.
'Transport Magic: Step Stone.' The boy announced, readying into a run.
Then, before their eyes, as he completed the first step, the child disappeared. Stunned silence filled the room for a long moment. Long enough for the camera to switch to a different feed. It was a wider shot, close to the location the boy appeared in. And it displayed the child clearly disappearing at the start of each stride, only to appear much further along his chosen path as he finished each step. After only a couple seconds, he was out of the view of the feed once more, and it automatically switched to a different feed. The cameras set off by the sudden motion, the room was frozen as the boy flickered towards their home at an incredible pace. As it was, not enough to keep up with any of those in the room when using their respective speed techniques, but most definitely enough that they would otherwise be outmatched if faced against it in combat.
"Is...is he…" The blue haired man could barely get out.
"Teleporting!" The pink haired man practically shrieked in excitement. "And not only that, as he continues to run, each jump is both further and completed faster than the previous!" After a moment of contemplation, the man spoke once more, his voice dripping with a crazed fascination. "If he continues to accelerate at this pace, he would reach Las Noches within two minutes!" Everyone in the room save for a brunet who appeared to be asleep with his head lying on the table snapped their eyes to the pink haired man.
"Szayel, with my Gemelos Sonido, it would take me nearly half an hour to cross such a distance. Are you sure your calculations are correct?" A tall, dark skinned man in white clothing similar to a martial artist's asked. The man possessed golden eyes and was bald save for a row of spikes made of bone atop his head. He also wore what looked to be a necklace made of claws, and his face was decorated with black markings. Three black lines were atop each eye, and three downward pointing triangles were below his lip.
"I am as shocked as the rest of you surely are." The now named Szayel confirmed, appearing as if he was close to salivating. "But it's happening before our very eyes! Look!" They all did, and what a sight it was. The cameras weren't able to keep the boy within view. About one in every three changes could only catch a streak of light, but before their very eyes, that number was increasing. "I can't confirm how without proper testing, but this 'Step Stone' ability must in some way increase in effectiveness as it's used! It could be based on how long its active, how fast he's moving, how much energy he uses with each teleportation, oh the possibilities!" A manic giggle escaped his mouth, which he quickly moved a hand to cover.
"We might soon find out." The white skinned man mentioned. "It appears the boy is about to encounter Runuganga." The eyepatch-wearing man, the blue haired man, and a third man who had so far remained out of the conversation all perked up with interest. The third in question was the largest out of everyone present, looking as if he had to squeeze himself into his seat. His skin was tanned, and he wore the same coat as the blue haired man, though it seemed much smaller on his form, which was bulging with large muscles. The whole in his chest was prominently shown, and a white jawbone covered his lower jaw, complete with teeth. His head was mostly without hair, only possessing a ponytail at the back of his head and sideburns black in color. Ridges were atop his head, and his cheekbones were extremely pronounced, bordering on protrusions. On those cheekbones were red crescent shaped markings, which highlighted his brown eyes.
"Let's see if this kid is able to at least make up for all the boredom he's caused me." The eyepatch wearing man sneered as the cameras changed view to yet another wide shot, this one displaying a sand dune in the boy's path towards the building they resided in. The sand dune in question was rising and shaping itself, large arms pulling themselves out from the ground as a hole appeared in the core of the manifesting being. A head took form, a mask of bone solidifying from the sand. The boy came to a stop instantly upon reaching the sand giant.
'What the fuck?' I had to keep myself from accidentally saying my thoughts out loud as I looked up at the giant creature that came out of the sands. Or was it from? Was this whole desert made of the sand thing? If it wasn't, where did he stop and the rest of this place begin? Was this some sort of familiar, or was it closer to a 'golem' that I've been told about? Was it a glorified security system, or did it have sentience?
"WHO DARES TO INTRUDE UPON LAS NOCHES?!" Well, that confirms it can speak, at least, but doesn't really answer if it can think for itself or not. At least I know that the building is called. Or is it the territory?
"Yo, I'm Andrew Blaqreblu, I don't really mean to intrude, but I kinda woke up, like, really far in that direction," I pointed behind me to show it, "And I don't know where I am or how I got here. So, if you could help me out with figuring any of that out, it would be great." The sand thing looked incredibly confused, which probably means it's sentient. Awesome. But then it's face twisted in rage.
"Is this some ploy to trick me into allowing you into Aizen-sama's territory?" I immediately waved my hands in rejection.
"No! No, not at all! If I'm not allowed into that place, that's fine, I'm not trying to get into a fight! I seriously have no idea where I am, I'm just trying to see if I can answer some questions!" I tried to explain.
"I may not know what manner of creature you are, but I can recognize the armor on your body. You expect me to believe you were rushing towards Las Noches as fast as you were wearing armor with naught but peaceful intentions?" I tilted my head back and groaned into the sky.
"Ah, I understand now. His frustration earlier was because he understood that his armor would betray his intentions to simply clear his confusion." The woman nodded her head in newfound clarity. There was a series of acknowledging grunts throughout the room at her words.
"I just woke up in my armor! I swear, I'm not here to cause trouble! I don't even know how I got here!" It didn't change expression, so I tried a different approach. "Ok, you have no idea what I am, right?" The sand being narrowed its eyes, but nodded. "So, something you've never seen before appears out of nowhere, clearly has no weapons, and stops to talk when you go to confront it. Does that sound like something that wants to start shit?"
"So you claim. However, as you have stated, I have never seen your kind before. How am I to be sure that you possess no means of causing harm?" Well, I couldn't really deny that.
"Fair," I accepted. "But! Like I said, I haven't been acting aggressive or anything like that! I mean, sure, I wasn't exactly taking my time getting here, but I could've just ignored you when trying to get into this… Los Nochas? Instead, I stopped, and I've already mentioned that if you help me out, I've got no reason to go in there!" Okay, it got pissed again. What did I say wrong?
"So you DO intend to enter the sanctity of Las Noches." It growled, its arms moving back in a sweeping position. Fuck.
"I'm not trying to intrude! I've been telling you, I'm just trying-" Its arms flung forward, waves of sand coming up behind its motions in a clear attack. "Oh, to hell with it." I sighed as I stepped forward, my tattoos shining as magic swirled through me. My right arm came up, and fire erupted from my tattoo, excitedly enveloping my hand and crawling up to my bicep to wrap my arm in its heat. The warmth spread through my body, the nearly addictive sensation like sitting in front of a campfire settling deep into my bones.
"Fire Magic: Inferno!" I bellowed, my hand coming forward. Gleefully, the flames exploded forward, running along the ground and soaring through the air like a tidal wave. It crashed into the walls of incoming sand with a powerful cheer, blasting them apart and devouring the pieces before continuing with its charge. The sand creature was barely able to let out a shout of surprise before the fire consumed it, rising well over its head before slamming down like an animal pouncing on its prey. I was able to catch its body falling back under the flames, but I didn't hear anything beyond the chittering laughter of the blaze. I wanted to let it do its thing, as I usually wanted, but I wasn't in a place where I could let the flames have its fun. So I pulled my magic in. The inferno died nearly instantly, though I let it linger on my arm for a couple moments more. Everywhere that had been hit by the spell was a murky, smoking, mush that was a mix of black and brown in color. I was a second away from freaking out, since I still didn't know if the sand thing was an independent creature, some sort of manifested guardian, or an object brought to sentience to act as protection. But then a glow manifested deep within the small lake that the being turned into, so I figured it was fine.
Those in the meeting room sat in stunned silence, with the lone exception being Szayel, who looked as if he was about to foam at the mouth. A giggle slipped out of his mouth, then two, before the dam broke and he held his head as he stood in sheer excitement with psychotic laughter erupting from his throat.
"Fascinating! Utterly fascinating! This child can use fire! In such great amounts! Of such high temperatures, to liquidize sand! And he could cut it off so quickly! Absolutely incredible! Oh, how I want nothing more than to learn more about his boy's powers! To discover the intricacies of the energy that resides within him! Aizen-sama!" The scientist's head flipped over to the man that had so far been silent as he watched from his seat at the head of the table. The man had slicked back brown hair, with a single lock hanging down over his forehead. He also possessed brown eyes, and wore a layered white coat with a pink sash around his waist. A soft smirk was upon his face as he leaned forward, his clasped hands supporting his chin with his elbows resting upon the table. "Please, allow me to collect this child so that I may discover more about his power!" For a long moment, the brunet didn't appear to have heard the glasses-wearing man. Instead, he continued to watch the feed as the boy teleported past the muck he had reduced the guardian to towards the building they resided within.
"Sit, Szayel Aporro." The man finally gently ordered. The pink haired scientist did as told, though his giggles still slipped out through his fingers. "As he's made clear, this Andrew Blaqreblu seeks only to understand where he's found himself to be and how he's come to be where he is. As such, I believe it to be possible to recruit this boy." There was an indignant shout from the eyepatch-wearing man.
"You want this kid to join us? Just 'cause he can go really fast and spew some fire?"
"His powers are a complete unknown to us." Aizen reasoned. "His intentions have thus far been to acquire answers and nothing else. I believe it's more than reasonable to assume we've seen only the briefest glimpses of his power. Considering his clear confusion, it's just as likely that the Gotei 13 knows nothing of him either. He could very well be our secret weapon if he joins our side." A man who sat next to a sleeping brunet sneered. His age was prominent, wrinkles all across his body and his dark skin sagging in places. The man possessed a hefty body, but the power in his form shone clearly through the fat. He wore a white leather coat with black fur lining, short sleeves, and with three black fur stripes going across his abdomen. In addition, gold wristbands were upon his wrists and a belt of three layers of gold chains connected to a gold disk with a sun emblem wrapped around his waist. Upon his head, a five pointed crown of bone sat in front of his white hair, and a thick white mustache largely hid his mouth. His left eye was the only one open to reveal an olive green color, his right shut with a long scar atop it. A second scar dropped from the left corner of his lips to his neck and below his collar.
"You would recruit a brat as your 'secret weapon'? Because he can simply knock down an adjuchas? Any arrancar in Las Noches could slay Runuganga, and this brat failed to do even that. He may be fast, but what does that mean if he can do no harm?" The man scoffed.
"The boy desires nothing more than answers. Would you use your strongest abilities to remove an obstacle in the way of such a small goal?" Aizen countered. "I may be wrong, and his power might not go much farther beyond what he just demonstrated. However, I am confident that there is much more to this boy's power than what he just displayed."
"We shall see." The aged man smirked, clearly lacking the faith the brown eyed man had in the newcomer.
It didn't take much longer for me to reach the palace, and I slid to a stop just a few feet in front of the wall that reached so high I couldn't see the top. I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned on my right leg as I looked over the directions the wall spread out in. I couldn't see anything that could hint to a door. If I really wanted to, I could go full tilt and it wouldn't take long regardless of how big this place was for me to circle around the edge of it. The problem was that I wasn't sure what would happen if I did. I can't really think anyone would be comfortable chatting with me if I came at them full speed and practically popped out of nowhere, regardless of what I was wearing. And if this place was huge, I didn't want to spend a long time just trying to get inside, especially since at least one of the guards thought I was a threat. I had no idea if there were other guards or how they communicated if there were. I also really did not like the fact that I didn't know that. That guard I melted was made of sand, or possessed sand, or whatever, so that meant it was possible that other guards could inhabit other elements, like the air. I felt confident that I could out-maneuver something like that if it really came down to it, but I didn't want to end up becoming an actual enemy of the only civilization I could see if I could avoid it. Which left the question: do I try to find a door, do I just get inside?
Trying to find a door meant I would have to run around the edge of this place, and I had no idea how far that was. The sand guardian clearly wasn't happy with how fast I was going, so it was probably safe to have that as the benchmark. If there were other guardians, or people at the doors, I would have to go slower than I was in reaching this place to try to not seem like a threat. But how fast could I go then? How far would I have to go? It could take me anywhere from minutes to days to do a lap around this place going at the speed I went to reach the building, I really didn't want to think about going even slower.
But if I just went through the wall, that would cause some panic. Assuming there wasn't already. For all I knew, the sand creature was able to notify that Aizen-sama guy as soon as he popped in front of me. For all I knew, everybody inside was still unaware that anything even happened with the sand guardian. They could be waiting for me to come inside with weapons drawn, they could see me running around and attack first, or they could try asking questions. But, that same worry could apply if I found a door. If there was no one at the door, assuming the people inside were confident in the ability of their guardian, or guardians, then me just walking through the gates would probably not be the most pleasant message. Goddamn it, why did shit like this have to be so hard?
You know what? I probably had the same risk of any outcome happening regardless of whether I found a door or went through the wall, so fuck it. If I had to, I had the means to make sure that anyone I encountered had no choice but to listen to me, so there was no point in wasting time running around the edge of this place for who knows how long.
With my decision made, I turned to the wall, my tattoos glowing as I stepped forward.
"Time Magic: Specter." There was no need to bust the wall down though. That definitely would send the wrong message. I slipped into another casual run as I went through the wall, hoping that I didn't end up popping up somewhere embarrassing, like in front of someone taking a shit.
In the meeting room, all jaws were on the ground. With the exception of the still sleeping man.
"Okay, the speed on this kid is weird, and the fire is meh, but what the fuck?!" The blue haired man shouted. Szayel was kicking his legs as he held his clasped hands in front of his mouth, his excited laughter echoing across the room.
"…I admit I am now lost." The white skinned man announced. "Szayel, would you have any idea on how the boy walked through the outer wall of Las Noches?" The pink haired man was lost to his madness for a moment, before the large man with the pony tail reared back his hand and smacked the back of the thin man's chair to jostle him.
"This is…this is like a dream come true!" The glasses wearing man suddenly drooled. "This boy clearly possesses a wide range of abilities, for him to literally appear out of nowhere must be no less than a miracle!"
"Answer the question, 8th." The aged man growled, pounding a fist onto the table, frustration clear in his tone. "What did that brat just do." Another babble of giggles slipped out of the scientist before he held his hand in front of his mouth.
"The boy has specified the type of ability he is about to use before he calls out its name, akin to Shinigami naming the branch of Kido they wish to use before they announce the spell. I did not mishear the boy stating that this ability stems from 'Time Magic', correct?"
"He did say 'Time Magic'." A deep, throaty voice confirmed from the man in the oblong mask.
"Then…" The amber eyed man shifted his hand so that he was gnawing on the nail on his thumb. "Let's see, he must be…then it's possible he…or he could be…but maybe…" The pink haired man's eyes suddenly widened until his eyes looked ready to pop out of his skull. "I can't say the logistics of how he's doing this, but the boy must be manipulating time in some way so that he and the wall do not exist concurrently!"
"In English, you goddamn lab rat!" The lanky man with the eyepatch shouted.
"What Szayel is saying," Aizen spoke up, clear interest swirling in his eyes, "Is that the boy is manipulating time in some way. More evidence is needed to say in what way exactly, but he is in some way making it so that only he or the wall is occupying the space he is in at one time. I'm going to put forward the hypothesis that he is manipulating time so that the wall is not existing in the same moment as himself, allowing him to freely roam across it." The eyepatch wearing man's lone eye twitched. "Allow me to phrase it like this: Let's say there is a door. Sometimes it is open, sometimes it is shut. What the boy is doing is making it so that, to him, the door is open, even if it does not appear that way to others."
"What the fuck is that crap?!" The blue haired man shouted once more. "First he fucking teleports, then he spews fire, and now he's fucking with time?! How the hell?!"
"That unknown is precisely why I believe he might be an important person to secure as an ally over the Shinigami, Grimmjow." Aizen smirked. "I must admit that even I would be caught off guard against such a dramatically wide variety of abilities." The man finished his statement by looking pointedly at the aged man, who narrowed his eye in distaste, but remained silent.
"Lord Aizen, I must ask; Now that the boy has entered Las Noches, what would you have us do?" The white skinned man monotoned.
"Tosen, notify the Privaron Espada. He is closing in on the area in which they reside, they can provide a much better estimate on the boy's power."
"Understood, Aizen-sama." A man standing to Aizen's left shoulder accepted. The man was of average height, with dark skin and with a white visor over his eyes. His black hair was tied in a tight braid that went over his shoulder and he wore a white sleeveless shirt with black elbow length fingerless gloves. An orange sash crossed from his right shoulder to his left hip, a sword tied to the bottom of it.
I couldn't help but wonder how annoying it would be to clean this place as I ran down the hallway I found upon exiting the wall. The only thing that wasn't white so far was the red tiled floor, which was polished so cleanly that my reflection hadn't gotten even slightly blurry once.
My speed was still a slight concern, but I kept at about half of how fast I went to reach the building. If even that freaked the residents out, then I figured I really didn't need to worry about making them listen to me. I itched to go faster, my magic humming in my veins for me to loosen up a little bit, but I had to at least hold it in until I was sure no one would try to hit me. Well, until I had answers. If the sand guardian had thought I was a threat when I only used Step Stone, then being fast enough to not be hit wasn't really a concern. I saw another divide coming up, and I paused for a moment to see how many ways it split this time. I was going to go the straight path, since that most likely lead to the center of this place, but the past three divides had like seven directions they split off into. This one only had five. I shrugged, hoped that meant something good, and kept going straight.
As I ran, I idly wondered how they powered this place. I didn't see any electricity lines outside, though there was the possibility that there were some from the side I couldn't see. Then again, the place was huge, it probably had some generators. Considering we were in the middle of some sort of desert, it's surprising that I didn't see any solar panels. That seemed like a good idea with how much sun the place undoubtedly got. As much as I wanted to give the people who ran this place the benefit of the doubt and say that the solar panels could have been on the other side, it wouldn't really make sense to have all the panels in one place. The more you had, the more energy you got, right? Might as well shove 'em everywhere, right? The place didn't exactly scream 'tourist attraction' so it wasn't like they were aiming for some sort of aesthetic.
I pulled myself out of my thoughts when I passed through a doorway, and I had to squint my eyes a little as they adjusted to the sunlight. Wait. That wasn't right. It was like the middle of the night, and it couldn't have been more than an hour since I woke up. I didn't get the chance to think on it more before I hurled my body backwards, feeling the air of something moving fast blow over me. I continued to lean back as I tucked my legs in, palming the ground and tilting my head up as far as it could go as my legs passed over me.
The first thing I spotted were red pillars, dozens of them throughout the room, ridiculously tall. My eyes darted around and zeroed in on a wire. The wind had blown to the left so…The wire lead to a giant golden disk half as tall as me that was embedded halfway through a pillar. Good thing I dodged.
"Sharp Instincts. At least you've got that going for you." My eyes snapped to the source, a light skinned woman with purple hair in pigtails and purple eyes with purple teardrop tattoos on either cheek. She wore a white dress with some sort of fairy wings on the back, and some white arm-length fingerless gloves. In said gloves was where the other end of the wire lead, a small handle with a guard. I could just barely spot the edge of her white knee-length boots from her place atop one of the pillars. "Too bad that's all you've got going for you." She smirked. Great, the first actual person I meet is the pretty bitch type.
"And you are?" I was already tempted to tear this bitch a new one, but that really wouldn't help with getting answers. She smirked smugly.
"Privaron Espada 105, Cirucci Sanderwicci. Don't hurt yourself too much begging for mercy." What I presumed was some sort of title meant jack shit to me, so I just stood and filed the Spanish-sounding words in the back of my head. The number I bounced in my head a little, though. The meaning of that was easier to theorize about.
"So we're leading with the official shit?" I rhetorically asked before plowing forward. "Alright then. Captain of the Royal Guard, Andrew Blaqreblu. I'm just-"
"Looking for answers?" I couldn't tell if it was good or not that she already knew. "Lord Aizen told everybody all about you. Pretty impressive for a human to beat Runuganga. I hope you didn't let that get to your head, though, because anyone in Las Noches could kick his ass." I'm gonna assume Runuganga was the name of the sand guardian. At least that confirms that this Aizen guy knows about what happened to it.
"I'm gonna stop you right there and set something straight: I'm not human." I responded. She blinked in surprise before her expression hardened.
"It doesn't matter what you are. Lord Aizen wants to know if you're worth keeping alive, so he told everybody that if we spot you, to test your strength." I stood stunned for a moment, staring at her in shock before I groaned.
"I'm just trying to figure out where the fuck I am, goddamn it, not get into a fight with anything that moves." I caught her disk start to spin in place still halfway through the pillar. "Is that so hard to ask? I really don't give a shit about anything that's going on in here, I'm just trying to get back home." Cirucci grinned.
"Sucks to be you, then. Only way you're leaving this place is either in pieces or with Lord Aizen's permission!" She shouted as she whipped the handle around, the wire following her movements and pulling at the disk. It ripped out of the pillar with a crumble, pieces of stone from the pillar flying out as the weapon flung itself at me. It was fast, screaming against the wind as it soared through the air and even leaving visible trails as it spun towards me. But not fast enough.
My Magic hummed through my body, my heart drumming in anticipation as the energy danced through my veins. Fire flowed through my body, the exhilarating heat of losing yourself to music settling into my bones. I felt the pounding rhythm of an inner song begin to play as the feeling of dancing and singing pulsed through me and a tune known only to myself entered my ears. I felt the Magic coalesce in my tattoos and make my hands shake with unreleased excitement as my feet moved.
"If that's the case," A wide, shining grin played across my face as I reveled in the feeling of my Magic flowing unrestricted through me. I caught the glow of my tattoos at the edge of my vision as the spell I hadn't canceled yet ran full-force. While the lack of any momentum meant it wasn't able to get me moving at full speed, Step Stone firing on all cylinders meant it took three steps before I was in her face, my right fist cocked back. "Then I guess I'm getting his permission!"
"Shit!" She screamed as realization filled her eyes. Her body tensed to move and she got far enough to raise her crossed arm up in front of her face. I took the opportunity, twisting my arm as it flew so that it slammed into her stomach. Which lead to a not-so-favorable reaction. She hunched over and her feet lifted off the top of the pillar as she was sent soaring back, but angry lightning bolts of pain shot up my arm from my hand and wrist. My heel caught the edge of the platform and I kicked backwards, twisting to look behind me and locking onto the top of a pillar that I then appeared on top of. I kneeled down and hunched over, holding my arm while turning forward so I could keep my eyes on the purple haired woman. She was too dazed to catch herself on the first pillar her feet connected with, but she stumbled back enough that she was able to land on her ass on the second. I could hear her wheezing, so I took a moment to analyze my hand. It was definitely fractured in a few places. Nothing too bad, it should heal in about an hour or so. But she wasn't wearing armor. That much was obvious when I hit her. So what happened?
"Little brat get a boo-boo?" Cirucci sassed, cradling her stomach. "Serves you right! We arrancar have Hierro to toughen our skin, if that's the best you've got, you should just take a seat and die!" Arrancar? Is that what she was?
"Big talk for a bitch still on her ass." I shot back before standing, paying close attention to where her wire lead. The disk was embedded in another pillar, from the height and angle, it would have taken my head off if I hadn't moved. Her face turned red at my words, and she quickly scrambled to her feet.
"I was just waiting on you!" She tried to excuse.
"To what, sock you again? You seemed pretty slow when I got in your face a few seconds ago." I grinned. She snarled.
"So what if you threw me off?! I know how fast you are now, jackass, and you still aren't gonna be able to get through my Hierro!" I raised an eyebrow, eagerness pounding within me as my tattoos glowed again. I remained silent to draw out the spells and her reaction as light manifested in my palms, shooting out and forming the shape of swords. Her eyes widened and shock fell over her face as she stared at the forming constructs. The light melted into color and detail, the blade in my right hand solidifying into a glowing golden straight sword with a blue cross guard and hilt. The sword in my left hand turned into a blade of chipped black stone that rippled with black energy, the crudely made handle wrapped in white cloth as a grip.
"You wanna try that again?" I grinned. She blinked before her eyes narrowed, her arm pulling back to retract the disk. It sling shotted back to the handle in her hand, spinning in place aggressively and causing smoke to rise from where the edge met the hilt.
"You've got no idea if those toothpicks of yours can get through my Hierro, and I still know how fast you are." I raised the point of my golden blade, Excalibur, until it was aimed at her.
"You're right about one of those. Let's see if you can figure it out." My smile was wide as I darted to the right, skipping along the tops of the pillars to build up speed. I was halfway around the room by the time she reacted.
"SHIT!" Her immediate scream echoed through the air as she twirled atop her pillar, her disk flying out and spinning in a circle around her. That was a funny attempt at a shield. I shot from pillar to pillar, slipping down so that I could kick off the sides and build up more speed. I kept an eye on her as I flew around the room. She kept her disk close, she probably realized that if it was far away, it would not come back to her in time when I attacked. I smirked. She definitely didn't realize how far too far was. I didn't really want to hurt her, just get her to a point where she would stop fighting back, so I snapped forward. Two steps and I was in front of her again, easily having slipped past her disk 'shield'. She didn't even have time to blink, my right leg swinging around to slam into her stomach again. She ragdolled in the air, a cry of pain tearing from her throat. But I hadn't felt anything shift when I kicked. That bruised her, at most. Thankfully, the graphium armor on my leg hadn't taken any damage either. I used the momentum from my kick to flip in the air and crouch as her disk flew after her, level with me. The heels of my boots connected with the edge of the disk and I kicked off of it, catching up to her in an instant and spinning in the air to get that extra 'umph' before I slapped her with the side my other blade, Kusanagi no Tsurugi. The edges were uneven and jagged enough that I would be able to prove right here if sufficient speed could overpower her toughened skin. She crashed into the side of a pillar, with her disk tumbling through the air and slamming into a different pillar a few meters away. I smoothly landed on the top of a pillar half a dozen meters away from the pillar she slammed into, driving the tip of Excalibur into the stone to ensure my momentum stopped.
The dust that erupted from her hitting the pillar blocked my vision of her, but I could easily see her disk unmoving in the stone that thing dug itself into. At the very least, keeping track of that thing would make sure it wouldn't catch me off guard, though not knowing whatever Arrancars were kept me tense. I had no way of knowing if she had other means of attacking me than her Yoyo of Death. She screamed, and a chunk of stone flew out of the hole she had created with a pretty hefty amount of force. Well, the at least confirms she's got some strength to her. Her hand grabbed the edge of the hole and she pulled herself up out of it, pissed as shit. I grinned as I saw the twin marks on her cheek that leaked thin trails of blood. She didn't have some bullshit defense that I would have to figure out and try to work around. Speed was enough, and I had speed.
"Would you look at that, I can cut through your shit." I smirked.
"And I'm gonna turn you into a shit stain." There was a bit of mania in her voice, and she suddenly began to glow with pink energy. That's never good. The disk zipped back to her handle as I crouched low, ready to move. "Rip Off, Golondrina!" There was an eruption of energy and I couldn't help but tense up. I could feel it in the air, but instead of the warm tingle of Magic, there was this weird pressure. It wasn't that extreme, hell, the suit I was wearing was more constricting. Something was off about it though. A dissonance, I think the word was. It was like hearing something through a wall. Muted, distorted, something I shouldn't be able to feel, but was anyway. From what I could tell, it didn't connect to anything Cirucci was actually doing, so I put it on the backburner.
When the dust cloud faded away, I found that she transformed. She had a headdress on, that looked like a beak, except with a ridiculously huge mane that looked like it'd fit better on that Runuganga thing. Her disk had duplicated, though I wouldn't really call them disks anymore since she wore them on her arms like awkward bracers. Giant, thin, white arms came out from the disks, the hands ending in pointed claws. But my attention was mostly on the wings coming out from her back that had huge, crescent-shaped blades instead of feathers. I could also spot a long white tail poking out from her back.
"You can tell you're fucked now, can't you, ya brat!" She seemed to notice my staring. She seemed to also severely misunderstand why I was staring. "You're as good as dead, so you might as well give up!" I couldn't help but continued to stare in disbelief as I rested Kusanagi on my shoulder.
"God, you're fucking stupid." I breathed. That caught her off guard, but shock turned to rage in record time. Her wings lifted threateningly, the 'feathers' visibly vibrating.
"Care to say that again, jackass?!" I blinked in incredulity.
"You, Dumb Bird Bitch, are fucking stupid." I emphasized before leaning forward, aiming the point of Excalibur at her. "You're fighting someone who can get in your face faster than you can react, and your first instinct is to get into a form that makes close combat awkward and close to impossible?" She stuttered at that, before regaining some confidence.
"Don't worry about that, kid, soon enough you'll be too busy dying to do much of anything else!" Her wings whipped forward, the blades upon them flying out and humming dangerously. They sheared through all the pillars in their path with ease, and I was left internally laughing at how much of a bad matchup this is.
I was in her face an instant later, my boot crashing into her jaw. She was sent completely through the pillar she had been standing in, and I was atop another column of stone before it even began to fall.
"Just laying this out here one more time," I began loudly, "I just want to get some questions answered and go home. I don't want to fight. This is only happening because you're keeping it going."
"FUCK OFF!" She shrieked as the blades changed directions to go after me again. I just sighed and teleported in front of her again, the top of my foot connecting with her face. With a sharp twist of my hips, I slammed the back of her head into the ground. A pulse of Magic and my swords disappeared in a flash of light.
"Unless you change tactics, this is not going to go better for you." I explained. Her tail whipped around to strike me, but I just stepped out of the way. I grabbed it on the backswing, and to dig the hole deeper, discovered I was indeed strong enough to hold it in place. "Come on." I urged for her to stop. Her muffled screaming under my boot was her response as she brought her hands inward. A hop, and her fists instead landed full-force onto herself. Before she was able to pull them back, gravity did its job, and I landed on her fingers. I heard a couple crunches, a scream of pain, and a buzz from behind me. Excalibur was immediately in my hand as I turned in the direction of the sound, my left hand coming up with my tattoo glowing.
I saw a tall, dark skinned man in white monk-looking clothes, his hands behind his back and generally looking non-threatening.
"Hello, Andrew Blaqreblu. I am Zommari Rureaux, the 7th Espada. Aizen-sama extends an invitation to join him in a meeting." I was unmoving for a couple seconds, waiting for something else to happen, and finally sighed in relief when nothing did. Excalibur once again disappeared in light as I allowed my Magic to settle down.
"Oh, thank fuck." I stepped off Cirucci, who slowly curled into her side with a low groan of pain. "…I'd say you have no idea how long I've been trying to find someone who will actually talk with me, but I have a feeling that's wrong." The man nodded silently. "You're the one that knows where we're going, so lead the way."
"It would be faster if you grabbed my arm." He announced as he held out his right arm.
"You've got your own way of moving around? Sweet." I looped my arm around his and then reached out with my other hand to grab my elbow just in case. "Uh, she's gonna be fine, yeah?"
"Aizen-sama requested for a nurse at this location as soon as you two began. He is truly generous." I chose to ignore the mild cultish vibes in that second sentence and gave a light smile.
"Great. Ready whenever you are." I could distinctly tell that the buzz was more of a boom as we shot forward.
Hello, Everyone! For those that originally read this story, I rewrote it as it was an outdated version of my OC. I also have dramatically improved my writing, so I saw fit to raise it to my own personal standard. This will not be updated as frequently as To Undo it All or Welcome to Wonderland, but I will be working on this. Currently, I plan to alternate between posting To Undo it All and Welcome to Wonderland. Those two are my highest priorities, and my secondary priorities are this and the upcoming My Grand Order Academia. There are other, tertiary stories I will be writing, but I expect it will be some time before I am in a position where I am comfortable dedicating focus to them.