Bleach and Ben 10 do not belong to me.
I've finally decided to focus on one story at a time. First, I'm going to stick to Bleach: Ultimate Alien until I get to the Thousand Year Blood War Arc. I heard that the upcoming anime adaptation will expand upon things the manga didn't show, so when I get to that arc, I'll wait until the anime is complete then resume my story.
When I get to that arc and wait for the anime to conclude, I'll work on JoJo's Alien Adventure and then my War of Tales story.
Anyway, onto the next chapter. Hope you all enjoy. As usual, thanks to Vandenbz and Pyromania101 for proofreading my work.
Strike Back
Despite his predicament, Ben made a face at Szayel's words. "Dude, your release command is the Spanish word for fornicate? Seriously?"
Szayel actually paused at that question, blinking in surprise. Uryu and Renji staggered at Ben's words, almost hitting the floor comically.
"That's what you're concerned about right now?" Uryu asked him incredulously after regaining his wits.
"I'm just saying," Ben said, wishing that his bindings could at least allow him to shrug. "Of all the Release commands I've heard so far, which isn't much if I'm being completely honest, that one stands out. It kinda worries me what Szayel's Resurrección looks like."
Szayel smirked. "Then allow me to show you without further delay." He proceeded to plunge his sword directly into his mouth, much to the shock of his "audience".
Rather than appear to be in pain, Szayel adopted a euphoric look on his face, gagging loudly as he pressed his sword to the hilt within his body. It made Ben's own throat hurt just looking at it. The imagined agony faded quickly as Szayel's body began expanding. Throwing back his head, the Eighth Espada began moaning as his body got bigger and bigger. Ben struggled against his bindings, certain he wasn't gonna like where this was going, when a thick mist erupted from Szayel's body as the Arrancar let out an ecstatic cry. Ben would've commented on how that response wasn't what he was expecting, but the words died on the tip of his tongue. Uryu and Renji were more than willing to voice his new thoughts.
"What…" Uryu muttered.
"The hell is this?" Renji finished, completely flabbergasted.
The mist had parted to reveal Szayel's released state and he was a far cry from the released states Ben had seen thus far. Szayel's glasses were gone and in their place was a headband that wrapped around the Arrancar's head, with shell-like features on either side of his face. His left eye now had purple markings that ran down his eye from top to bottom. He was donned in a tight-fitting, segmented, gray shirt-like garment. The sleeves were white from the elbow to his hand, sporting extensions like hanging teardrops. His hands had become chalk-white except for the tips, which were now purple and elongated. Four protrusions stuck out of his back, sporting similar extensions to the ones on his arms that made them look like bizarre wings. The most disturbing part was the lower half of his body, which was now a colossal mass of tentacles that easily outnumbered Luppi's mere eight. Then the tentacles began to recede, revealing Szayel's feet. Ben shook his head to make sense of what was happening. When he looked again the tentacles were completely gone; Szayel's lower half was covered by a layered, dress-like garment.
All this time, Szayel's face had a glazed look of immense pleasure. Once his transformation seemed complete, he collected himself. "Sorry to have kept you waiting. I believe it's time for the second act to begin. Ah, wait, I apologize. Let me rephrase that: it's time for the second act to come to a close."
A geyser of black liquid erupted from his back, spraying against the ceiling and sprinkling down like grotesque rain. Ben felt something wrap around his body and yank him away before any of the liquid could land on him. As Ben was being pulled, he spotted something: Uryu and Renji were not the only ones in the room with them. The first was a skinny individual dressed in purple but with white armor on his chest, white gloves and boots. His face was covered by a white, insectoid mask with a purple cloth covering his right eye. That, combined with the hole in his stomach gave him away as an Arrancar. The second one on the other hand was hard for Ben to figure out. He was a large, roundish fellow in a yellow bodysuit covered in black spots. He wore what reminded Ben of a huge tiki mask with big eyes, teeth, and a nose. He was most likely an Arrancar though.
"Get out of the way!" Uryu yelled at them as he narrowly sidestepped one of the drops. "Something tells me that we really need to dodge these!"
"S-sure!" The Arrancar with the insect mask said fearfully.
"But where can we dodge, you know what I'm talking about?!" The Arrancar with the tiki mask asked. Just then some of the liquid landed on his head. Ben's jaw dropped as the liquid began to shift into an exact duplicate of the Arrancar, who was equally freaked out. "A-another me has appeared, you know what I'm talking about?!"
Uryu stared at this development, which prevented him from dodging as some of the liquid landed on his shoulder. His eyes widened as a clone started to form from the liquid.
"Well," Ben said as the room was suddenly filled with clones of the other four. "That's a useful ability."
"Why thank you, Ben."
Ben flinched when he realized that Szayel's voice was right beside him, as it was he who pulled Ben away from the liquid with one of his "wings". The Espada was now sitting on what appeared to be two large Arrancar, using them as a makeshift throne. "Now that the actors are all in place, they might as well begin."
"Don't suppose it's too late for some concessions first?" Ben asked dryly.
Szayel chuckled. "Your witty retorts are all you have left, Ben. Might as well make yourself comfortable for the show."
"Better get the usher then because I have a complaint about my seat."
Still chuckling, Szayel turned to address the others. "As you have no doubt guessed, these enemies have the same exact powers that you do. I suggest you take this fight seriously or else you may die. I do have some good news for you, however: I have disarmed the trap in this room that sealed your powers. Now you, and your fully powered clones, can kill each other to your hearts' content!" Szayel threw back his head and laughed dramatically.
Uryu had a sardonic grin on his face as the clones began shifting into fighting stances. "'Before facing the enemy, you must face yourself'? This feels like a bad joke."
"Dude, you are all kinds of messed up," Ben said as he resumed struggling.
"I simply believe in giving the best performance I can," Szayel said proudly. "You of all people should appreciate theatrics."
A sudden scream drew their attention. The tiki-masked Arrancar had launched himself at Uryu, who stepped out of the way. This caused the Arrancar to slam into the ground with a crash. When he picked himself up, the Arrancar was crying hysterically.
"Uryu! That was mean, you know what I'm talking about? I was trying to cling to you because I'm scared!"
"That looked more like an attack to me!" Uryu yelled back. "How was I supposed to know?"
Just then multiple clones of the tiki Arrancar leaped into the air at Uryu and the original, who hastily ran out of the way as the clones hit the ground.
"You bastard!" the clones yelled as one. "How dare you dodge our 'Dondochakka Press Attack'?!"
"So it was an attack!" Uryu struck the Arrancar right in the face, only to recoil in pain. Despite the attack, the tiki Arrancar began wailing, rubbing his eyes fiercely.
"I can't take it anymore!" he sobbed. "We shouldn't be doing this, you know what I'm talking about?! We have to look for Nel!"
"Nel?" Ben whispered to himself. "Who's Nel?"
"Just as I suspected," Szayel murmured, a smile on his lips. "It was them after all. And they seriously allowed her to return to Las Noches?"
"What are you talking about?" Ben demanded.
Szayel looked down at him, his smile growing. "Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, the Third Espada before Harribel."
Ben's eyes widened as he looked back at the sobbing tiki Arrancar. "That means— "
"Those two Arrancar over there were her Fraccione: Dondochakka Birstanne and Pesche Guatiche. They looked vastly different from when they used to live here but I had a feeling it was them. Did they join this little band of invaders for revenge?"
"Revenge?" Ben asked warily.
Szayel cupped his own cheek and sighed wistfully. "Nnoitra despised Nelliel, possibly more so than Harribel. She felt the need to constantly watch over him, which I'm sure you can imagine infuriated him."
"Sounds about right," Ben said, seeing a chance to buy some time.
"Back then Nnoitra was the holder of the Eighth Espada rank," Szayel reminisced, surprising Ben. "I had been kicked out of the Espada for reasons I won't disclose here. Let's just say we saw the opportunity to benefit each other."
Ben's jaw was set and his eyes narrowed.
"We took her Fraccione and tore off their mask remains," Szayel said pleasantly, as if he was talking about the weather. "Nelliel went after Nnoitra and thanks to my handiwork, he finally managed to best her. Her mask was cracked and therefore her body couldn't handle her own spiritual pressure, reducing her to the form of a mere child. Honestly I thought those three would die when we left them on the outskirts of Las Noches. Some people are just that lucky."
Ben grit his teeth as he watched the others running around the room, trying to dodge the countless clones coming after them, Renji in particular because his clones were wielding what Ben figured was his shikai. The swords were multi-segmented with pick-like protrusions on each one. When the clones swung the swords, the weapons extended with thick threads between each segment, turning the zanpakuto into a sword whip. Despite his situation, Ben did think that ability was kinda cool.
"So, any particular reason you decided to tie me up instead of have me out there? Figured with how much you loved seeing my guys in action, you would have used your ability on them."
"Oh I have something far better in store for you, Ben," Szayel said, though he kept his eyes on the battle in front of them.
"Guess Aizen plans on letting you turn me into your lab rat."
"All in due time, Ben," Szayel said, having the audacity to actually reach over and ruffle the hero's head. The hero glared daggers at him, which the Espada promptly ignored. "I'll have an entire universe to explore first."
"...What?"
Szayel leered at Ben out of the corner of his eye. "Oh, Lord Aizen fully intends to send you back to your universe after he deals with Soul Society and I intend to come along for the trip. As marvelous as the Ultimatrix is, I want to see your universe and all the different species that inhabit it with my own eyes. So many specimens, so much material, so many experiments for me to conduct!" To say Ben was uncomfortable at the sheer bliss on Szayel's face would be like saying water was wet.
"Not gonna happen, Szayel. Even if I didn't do something about it, which of course I will, the Plumbers would never let you get away with what you have planned!"
Szayel finally turned his head to look at Ben face to face. "They will if they want to make sure nothing happens to their precious hero."
Ben reared back, nearly toppling over. "So that's it! I'm your hostage!"
"A bargaining chip, really," Szayel elaborated. "Would the Plumbers really try to go against me when I have the great Ben Tennyson at my mercy?"
"My friends would come to my rescue, Szayel. Though I'm not gonna let you go through with that in the first place!"
"Your bravado is admirable but face it, Ben, there is nothing you can do. Your entire universe will become my personal laboratory. Then I will finally meet the great Azmuth in person. To learn the secrets of the Ultimatrix and the Omnitrix and any other possible creations he's made. Such intelligence for a being that isn't a Hollow."
"Are you kidding me?" Ben asked. "Azmuth is the smartest guy in the entire universe. I doubt even Aizen has that kind of bragging rights here."
Szayel frowned, the battle now completely ignored. "Your sentimentality for the creator of your device is charming but let's be honest, Ben. If Lord Aizen had access to the same resources Azmuth did, he would prove his intelligence is vastly superior. As would I."
"You?" Ben snorted. "You're smart, Szayel, obviously. But I highly doubt you're the smartest person in this entire planet, let alone this entire universe. Same with Aizen."
"You insult my intelligence?" Szayel hissed, showing true anger for the first time Ben remembered.
"Just stating facts, Szayel," Ben grinned. "You're not dumb, Azmuth is just smarter. I honestly bet he could outsmart you using only half a brain cell. Though to be fair, I'm pretty sure he could outsmart anyone using half a brain cell."
Szayel's fists were clenched and Ben could see his body shaking. While it wasn't much, Ben was relatively satisfied at seeing Szayel being agitated for a change. Szayel started to speak when Dondochakka started yelling. Szayel and his captive both turned to see the other Arrancar strike the ground beside Renji, who dodged by just a few inches. The tiki mask Arrancar looked at him nervously. "That was a close one, you know what I'm talking about?"
"What are you talking about?" Renji shouted. "I'm the real one, you moron! I heard your sentence start to become a question; don't just attack if you have no idea!"
"Watch out, Dondochakka!" Pesche cried as he leaped into the air and slammed a three-toed foot on Renji's back, causing the lieutenant to cry out in pain. Picking himself up, Pesche took a moment to inspect who he suddenly attacked. "You bastard, you look— just like Renji."
"You," Renji snarled with a strained smile. "That was on purpose wasn't it?"
"What are you guys doing?!" Uryu shouted. Ben stared when he saw a construct of light in the Quincy's hand. It looked like a cross between an archery bow and a spiderweb. Several of his clones were holding the same construct and firing what seemed to be arrows of light. Uryu nimbly dodged before rounding on his allies. "Listen! I think I found a way to spot the differences between us and our clones. First off, the clones of Renji and myself: the only real difference with them is around the eyes and a slightly different quality in the hair so avoid them for now."
Curious as to what Uryu was talking about, Ben eyed the clones. Soon he noticed that the clones had purple markings on their eyes similar to Szayel. Unlike Szayel's markings, which ran in straight lines, the markings on the clones' eyes stuck out at different angles. The hair part was hard to tell, though.
"Next we have Dondochakka's clones: unlike the real one, the clones don't have black spots on their clothes."
"Hey, they're not spots!" Dondochakka objected. "Call them polka dots, you know what I'm talking about!"
"Now finally: Pesche's clones. I'm sure all of you noticed this already but—they're wearing pants!"
Ben looked at the clones. Sure enough, Dondochakka's clones had absolutely no spots, er, polka dots on them. Pesche's clones were in fact wearing pants compared to the real one who was wearing a loincloth around his clothes. "Huh."
"What?!" Renji, Dondochakka, and Pesche all exclaimed before stepping forward to inspect the clones.
"It's true!"
"It is true, you know what I'm talking about!"
"Such a difference and we didn't even notice."
Uryu gawked at the three. "You seriously didn't notice the difference? What the hell were you guys doing the entire time you were fighting?"
"In my defense," Ben said quietly, "I was kinda busy talking with Szayel."
Renji, however, grinned at this development. "What a huge mistake. Is this guy actually a moron or something?"
"Coming from the guy who needed the difference pointed out to him?" Ben said.
"I am not a moron," Szayel said coolly, causing Renji to flinch.
"Y-you were listening?"
"You weren't exactly whispering!" Ben called out to the lieutenant, making him grimace.
"Regarding the loincloth and spots," Szayel went on, "They don't suit my personal tastes, so I decided to change that."
"Pretty stupid to change their clothes due to personal taste when they're supposed to be clones!"
"Not exactly the most important thing right now!" Ben called as he struggled again. If he could just get to the Ultimatrix, but his hands were stuck to his sides like glue.
One of Renji's clones brought down his sword, but the real Renji hastily blocked it before he got struck in the shoulder. "Ishida! There's too many enemies in this room, we need to get out of here!"
"We can't!" Uryu replied as he dodged some arrows fired by his own clones. "Not only because he'd probably pull the same trick he did when he first tried to escape, we can't leave Tennyson behind."
"I know that but I think I might have an idea!" Renji swung his sword. "Bankai!"
Power filled the room as a whirlwind formed around the Soul Reaper. As quickly as it came, the wind dispersed to reveal a gigantic skeletal snake, its tail being held in Renji's arm almost like a club. Renji himself was now wearing a red fur cowl on his shoulder. A skull lay on his left shoulder while the fur covered his right arm and hand.
"Hihiō Zabimaru!"
"Okay, that's definitely cool," Ben said in awe. Uryu on the other hand looked panicked.
"You idiot! If you do that here— "
"Bankai!" Came the collective cry of the Renji clones.
Ben paled when he realized the implications. "Uh-oh." Suddenly his vision went dark as something blotted out all light. Or rather, he was encased in something else that had blotted out the light. He barely had time to think of what happened when the entire room shook, a force striking whatever it was that had been shielding him. What was going on out there?
"I think they're finally done with that idiotic move of theirs," Ben winced when he heard Szayel's voice right beside him. Slowly light filled Ben's vision and he realized that Szayel had somehow enlarged his wings to protect them. Once he could see clearly, Ben saw that they were in the fake exterior of Las Noches, surrounded by piles of debris. The room they had been in was completely obliterated. Renji and Uryu were looking at Szayel uneasily, surrounded by the clones. Pesche and Dondochakka were nowhere to be seen.
"My, my," Szayel said as he surveyed the destruction, using one of his wings to lightly prop Ben up against what he guessed to be a chunk of the ceiling. "Look at what you've done to my palace. What am I going to tell Lord Aizen? He's going to be so displeased." He snapped his fingers and together the clones burst into nothingness, much to the shock of Uryu, Renji, and Ben as Szayel started to rise from his makeshift throne. "Oh well. Let's put an end to this, shall we? Not doing anything myself was a rather boring way to fight anyway. So I shall fight you myself and show you the true power of Fornicaras."
"Sure that's a good idea, Szayel?" Ben asked with a cocky grin. "If you show me what you can do, I'll know how to stop it once I get out of here."
"Perhaps that would be of some concern if you could escape," Szayel said nonplussed. "But I am not worried. You won't be getting out of there anytime soon. Hmm?" Szayel's eyes landed on a still remaining clone of Renji. "Ah, sorry. It seems you didn't hear me."
Instantly the clone exploded, bursting without any blood, as if it was a mere balloon.
The real Renji scowled at the sight. "I know it's just a clone but seeing myself blown up like that doesn't make me feel good."
Szayel turned to face them once. "Now then, I apologize for making you wait. I'll now show you the true power of Fornicaras."
Renji's Bankai began coiling around him as Uryu summoned his energy bow, making the Eighth Espada frown.
"Sorry to disappoint you; I'm sure you've gone through a lot of trouble to set this up but I'm not interested," Uryu said as he aimed at Szayel. "So I'm afraid I'm going to have to interrupt."
"Sounds good to me!" Renji shouted, launching his Bankai at Szayel the same time Uryu fired an arrow.
But before the attacks could reach him, the two Arrancar that made up Szayel's throne got to their feet and stood before him, blocking the attacks without any noticeable damage. Both Uryu and Renji froze upon seeing their assault so easily stopped.
"I'm afraid that I'm the one who's going to be disappointing you, as you have no choice in the matter. For this display—attendance is not optional."
Hearing something behind him, Uryu turned around, only having enough time for his eyes to widen as one of Szayel's wings rose out of the ground and encased him.
"Ishida!" Renji cried.
Ben looked at the Arrancar and saw that one of his wings had in fact gone underground without anyone noticing.
Renji raised the tail of his Bankai when the wing suddenly released Uryu, who collapsed in a heap onto the desert sand. Both Renji and Ben were confused by this outcome when Szayel started chuckling again.
"I'm going to enjoy this."
Ben's jaw dropped as one of the teardrops on Szayel's top right wing grew bigger and bigger. Then the bottom burst open, dispensing some sort of unknown liquid and… a tiny doll roughly in the likeness of Uryu.
"A—a doll?" Ben stammered as Renji rushed to Uryu's side.
"Ishida! Are you okay?"
Weakly Uryu picked himself up, resting on his knees. "I'm fine. Don't shout so close to my ear."
"Yoohoo!~" Szayell called to them in a high-pitched voice, holding the doll in his right hand. "I'm over here~"
Uryu's eyes narrowed at the doll. "What sort of mimicry is that?"
"Hmm? What, you ask? Why, it's you. Thank you, Uryu Ishida. Your role as "Uryu Ishida" is over. From now on," Szayel held up the doll. "He is 'Uryu Ishida'."
Uryu summoned his bow again, eyeing the doll with uncertainty. Szayel brushed a finger against the doll's right cheek. Uryu himself flinched at the contact as if…
"Did you feel that?" Szayel said with a smirk. "I suppose my explanation wasn't quite adequate enough for you. So, to put it simply, this is a controller for all your senses." Szayel then flicked the left side of Uryu's head. Uryu himself was suddenly knocked off his feet, stunned.
Ben's jaw dropped. "No way; you have voodoo doll powers?"
Szayel's breath caught in his throat and he staggered, nearly dropping the doll. He looked over his shoulder, giving Ben an annoyed look. "It is called Teatro De Titere. At least call it that instead of something crude like 'Voodoo doll power'."
"You create a doll where anything that happens to it happens to the person it looks like. That's a voodoo doll."
"It is similar to the fictionalized concept of voodoo, I suppose, but it is also far more than that. For example— " Szayel held the doll between both hands and started to twist.
A bead of sweat ran down Renji's brow. "Hey; what the hell are you doing?"
"Szayel, no!"
Szayel pulled the doll in two, leaving the upper half in his right hand and the lower half in his left. Renji and Ben both turned to see if Uryu was okay… only to find that he was completely unharmed. Both stared in confusion at the Quincy, who also seemed baffled that nothing had happened.
"Why are you so confused, you two? At its core, this is nothing more than a construct. Did you honestly believe that splitting the body would split the original?"
"Like we were supposed to know it wouldn't," Ben shot back.
"It's just as well. Look inside," Szayel held up the lower half of the doll. "There's lots of little parts inside."
Straining to get in a more upright position, Ben squinted at the doll. Indeed the inside was filled with various objects and small writing that he couldn't quite make out. The hair on the back of his neck stood up, already figuring they were in for a nasty surprise.
Uryu seemed to feel the same way as he tensed. "What of it?"
Szayel picked one out that looked vaguely like a jelly bean. "Aren't they so colorful and pretty? They're like children's toys."
"Well it is a doll so go figure," Ben commented. Szayel ignored him.
"This is the fun part of the doll, but perhaps for all of you, it would be better if I just demonstrated." Szayel studied the jelly bean-like object. On it was written "Estomago". "Hmm. The stomach, eh?" He shattered it between his thumb and his forefinger.
Blood burst out of Uryu's mouth, the Quincy clutching his stomach in pain as he doubled over. The truth hit Ben like a blow to the head. The inside was filled with copies of the person's organs! Any damage done to the fake organs hurt the actual ones. If the Eighth Espada had an ability like this, what were Yammy, Aaroniero, and Zommari actually capable of?
"Uryu!" Renji rounded on Szayel. "You bastard."
"Don't make a fuss," Szayel chided him as if Renji was a kid throwing a tantrum. "I just crushed his stomach."
Just as Renji moved to attack, another one of Szayel's wings rose up behind him.
"Look out!" Ben cried but it was too late and Renji was completely engulfed by the wing. His cries were muffled by the appendage as he struggled in vain.
Szayel sighed, rubbing his forehead. "So rough and such an overreaction, and yet you couldn't see something unless it was right behind you. Everyone's the same; you're all just a bunch of children. Humans, Soul Reapers, Quincy, and everything else… are all equally inferior. If there should be a reason for Lord Aizen to wipe you all out, it is because such inferiority is a crime."
"Get over yourself, Szayel!" Ben said angrily. "If we were so inferior, I never would've been able to beat Nnoitra, Luppi, and those three Arrancar you sicked on me during your little 'game'."
In the distance, amongst the rubble, two inaudible gasps were made at this.
Slowly Szayel turned towards Ben, who kept glaring at him even as Szayel took a step closer and closer to him.
"As interesting as you are, Ben Tennyson," Szayel said in a tone lower than Ben had ever heard him say. "The most important thing to remember is that you accomplished those feats with the help of your alien forms. You— as yourself— as a human— are— nothing!"
Szayel struck Ben across the face, the hero shook his head in pain before resuming his glare against his captor.
"Look at you. I doubt Four Arms would've felt that, or Humungousaur, and certainly not Diamondhead. But you— I bet I could kill you with a single punch the way you are now. Or I could simply cover your mouth and nose, letting you suffocate to death. You are still far more valuable to me alive than dead but if you continue to try my patience, hero, I will make sure you cannot be a nuisance to me."
Ben snorted, starting to laugh despite the pain in his cheek. "Better guys than you have tried, Szayel, and I beat them. Just like I'll beat you."
"You cannot move and your only allies are at my mercy," Szayel said. "No one is coming to save you, Ben Tennyson. I won. Now if you'll excuse me…"
His wing had deposited Renji on the ground, just as another wing was already forming a doll in his likeness. Szayel effortlessly caught the doll the moment the teardrop protrusion burst. "I'll deal with them first."
Amidst the rubble, two figures stealthily moved along, hoping against hope they wouldn't be spotted.
"Did you hear that?"
"Yeah. He said he defeated Nnoitra and who knows how much stronger he's gotten after all these years, you know what I'm talking about."
"I know we trained hard to protect her but…"
"I know, there's a chance we still might not be strong enough to keep her safe.
"So if he's telling the truth…"
"Then our best chance of helping Lady Nelliel…"
"Is to help him!"
Ben struggled harder than ever. Poor Renji was doing everything he could to stand up. Szayel had already opened his doll and took his time crushing the various contents within. Ben could feel his muscles straining but the substance holding him just wouldn't give. It was like Spidermonkey's webbing mixed with rubber cement.
"Quite the stubborn fellow, aren't you?" Szayel said as Renji hacked up blood. "I've crushed so many things already, I'd say it's time for you to pass out."
Renji, panting for breath and not even trying to wipe the blood running down his chin, simply yelled and started running toward the Espada.
With a sigh, Szayel reached into the doll. "Like I said, stubborn." He pulled out a long, thin piece and snapped it in two. Ben heard a cracking sound from Renji's left leg as he fell onto the ground.
"I broke the left Achilles tendon," Szayel explained as Renji weakly propped himself onto his elbows. "I've decided that from here on out, I'm going to sever your tendons one by one, since your internal organs are too closely tied to your life."
"Damn… you…" Renji wheezed as he tried to push himself up.
"Now, now," Szayel scolded him mockingly as he held up another miniature tendon. "Don't move around."
He snapped the tendon in two and Ben winced as he heard a cracking sound from Renji's right arm, the Soul Reaper howling in pain as he collapsed again.
"I already said, didn't I?" Szayel commented, smirking at Renji's pain. "I don't intend to hurt you too much. So you should at least behave yourselves."
"Come on," Ben hissed through clenched teeth, his entire body felt like it was shaking as he strained. There had to be some way out of this!
A stream of strange, semi-transparent liquid struck Szayel's back and wings, though he seemed more confused than anything. "What is the meaning of this?"
The liquid hit the hand that was clutching Renji and Uryu's dolls, causing them to slip right out. Before he could even attempt to grab them, Pesche slid past him, catching the dolls.
"Alriiiiiiiight!" Pesche cheered as he got to his feet. "I've got them! Now Dondochakka! Send out Bawabawa!"
Some of the rubble shifted, revealing Dondochakka who, aside from being a little dirty, wasn't all that worse for wear.
"On it, you know what I'm talking about!" Dondochakka opened his mouth… and out came a gigantic creature that looked like an eel with a big-lipped mouth, and horned mask remains on its head. Once the creature was fully out of Dondochakka's mouth, it slithered along the ground, using its head to scoop up Pesche and flip him onto his back.
"…Is it wrong that that's not the weirdest thing I've seen since I got here?" Ben asked no one in particular.
"W-why did that come out of Dondochakka's mouth?" Uryu asked in amazement.
"Bawabawa is one of the Spiritual Combat Insects that Dondochakka keeps inside of him," Pesche answered as he held onto Bawabawa's thick body. "However, we didn't want to tell Lady Nelliel about it, since we were afraid that information related to us, like that, would jog her memory."
"Wait, she not only got turned into a kid but she lost her memory too?"
"Lady Nelliel," Uryu muttered. "Wait, are you talking about Nel?"
"That's right," Dondochakka said in a surprisingly serious tone. "Lady Nelliel didn't like fighting, and she had been finally removed from the endless cycle of fighting here."
"So we didn't want to make Lady Nelliel regain her memories of battle, so we thought of just quietly protecting her as our last mission," Pesche said.
"But earlier we sensed her Spiritual Pressure," Dondochakka spoke up. "Everyone else may have been distracted in the fight with those clones but we weren't."
"Lady Nelliel has regained her true form."
"And she has shown her willingness to fight again."
Bawabawa raised himself up, towering over Szayel. From atop him, Pesche glared down at the Espada.
"So it's now our mission to be by her side wherever she is!" He declared. "We can't let ourselves be bogged down by the likes of you, Szayelaporro Granz! Let's go!"
Bawabawa lunged at Szayel, who held out his top left wing in front of him. Despite being thin compared to the huge eel-like creature, it blocked him from advancing any further.
Szayel crossed his arms with a smirk. "'The likes of me', eh? That's some awfully big talk… from a lowly Fraccion."
Pesche leaped high into the air… and proceeded to shove his right hand into his loincloth. Even Szayel was flabbergasted by Pesche's actions. As Pesche withdrew his hand, both Szayel and Ben gawked as… something was being pulled out. Neither could make it out due to the distance but…
"H-hey! Hold on a minute!" Ben cried, reeling back.
Szayel's pupils shrank and sweat dripped down his brow. "W-what are you trying to pull out?!"
When Pesche finally produced whatever he was grabbing, Ben relaxed when he realized it was a sword of light with a guard consisting of crescent moons that faced outward. The blade itself looked like a katana with a slightly more curved blade compared to regular ones. With a cry, Pesche brought his blade down on Szayel, who raised his arm to block. Much to everyone else's surprise, the blade struck true, cutting Szayel's arm.
"He-he actually landed a blow on that bastard!" Renji exclaimed.
Szayel scowled, eyeing the cut as Pesche landed with an over the top pose. "Did you see that? This is my sword: Ultima! This beautifully shining blade is one that is formed from overflowing spirit particles."
"Ultima, huh? I'll admit it's a sweet name," Ben couldn't help but say.
"How's that, Uryu?" Pesche called out to the Quincy. "Feel a sense of kinship? It's an awful lot like your thingy!"
Ben snorted at Pesche's choice of words while Uryu shot the Arrancar a flat look. "No it's not and don't use the word 'thingy'."
"That's a weak comeback, you gutless coward!" Pesche barked.
"Was that supposed to be a pun because I got my stomach crushed?!" Uryu yelled. "That wasn't clever at all!"
"Speaking of which, I'm no doctor but I'm pretty sure you should be in a lot more pain right now," Ben called to him.
With an exasperated groan, Szayel lowered his head. "Go." The two large Arrancar charged forward.
"Somehow I keep forgetting they're there," Ben said.
"Kill that unsightly eel monster in the back," Szayel commanded. "I'll take care of the other two in the meantime."
As the two brutes rushed at Bawabawa, Dondochakka stepped forward. Opening his mouth, he produced a colossal mace that made the two behemoths pause in their charge.
"This," Dondochakka said as he raised his weapon. "Is my 'sword', you know what I'm talking about."
With one great swing, he sent both of his opponents over Szayel's head who crashed behind him, much to his shock.
"Szayelaporro Granz," Pesche said, serious again. "You lost this fight for one reason only. That is because you dismissed us as the weaklings you once defeated!"
Pesche, Dondochakka, and Bawabawa all rushed at Szayel together. Bawabawa's mouth opened wide as if to swallow the enemy Arrancar whole. Pesche and Dondochakka had their respective weapons raised.
Szayel was unimpressed. "Again?" Two of his wings reached out to Bawabawa, quickly closing his jaw and holding him in place. Dondochakka brought down his mace but Szayel effortlessly caught it in one hand. With a cry from behind him, Szayel quickly sidestepped Pesche, who had tried to impale him, and grabbed his arms. The three all struggled but nothing they did could free them.
"Hmm. Was this truly the best you could do?" Szayel asked in boredom. "I honestly thought after all these years you two could do at least a little better." When the other two Arrancar flinched, Szayel smirked at them. "Or did you really think I wouldn't recognize the two of you regardless of your new appearances? Perhaps if you had actually worked with those two over there, you might have stood a better chance."
"Maybe you're right," Pesche said, hanging his head. "Maybe if we had worked properly with those two, we could've definitely beat you."
"One of our biggest fears was that no matter how hard we trained, we wouldn't be able to protect Lady Nelliel."
"We did have something special planned, but we can't risk wasting it on the likes of you."
"…What did you say?" Szayel asked coldly.
"So we decided, instead of taking our chances fighting you and possibly failing to protect Nelliel…"
"We'll just get someone who can beat you."
Szayel's body became stiff, his breath was caught in his throat, and a shiver ran down his spine. "No— "
"Hey, Szayel~"
Slowly, Szayel looked over his shoulder. His countenance paled when he saw a grinning Ben Tennyson, completely free from his prison.
"Guess what time it is?"
Earlier:
When Bawabawa and Dondochakka went to attack Szayel, Pesche actually ran past them and up to Ben. The hero was confused by Pesche's actions, only to start panicking when the Arrancar seemed to raise his blade at him! Pesche brought Ultima down… and cut through the substance that had been holding him prisoner like a hot knife through butter.
"Please help us save Lady Nelliel," Pesche asked before turning around to charge at Szayel.
Grunting, Ben picked himself off the ground, brushing himself off and wincing at how sore his limbs felt after being stuck in that thing. Taking a quick look at the Ultimatrix, he grinned when he saw it was fully charged. Now for some serious payback.
"It's Hero Time!" Ben yelled as he activated the Ultimatrix. "And I've got a special alien just for you!"
"No!" Szayel screamed as Ben slammed the dial down.
In a flash of green light, Ben was now a muscular, nine foot tall bipedal tiger with green eyes and a large black claw coming out of either wrist. The Ultimatrix symbol was located on his chest.
"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATH!" The new alien roared before snarling at Szayel. "Let me tell you something, Szayelaporro Granz, Eighth Espada! Rath is about to give you a one way ticket to Pain Town! Heh, hope you packed your bags!"
Szayel, Renji, and Uryu all stared blankly at the sudden transformation. Dondochakka and Pesche gaped in awe at the sight.
"He really does turn into aliens," Pesche muttered.
"And he's got his own catchphrase, you know what I'm talking about? Lady Nelliel would love this guy!"
"Interesting," Szayel cupped his chin. "I don't recall you ever being so boisterous. Does this alien somehow affect your mentality? I didn't realize your aliens could do that. I was hoping to avoid doing any damage to you but it seems you have forced my hand. Oh well, perhaps some injuries will assure the people of your universe that I can back up my threats."
"Ben! Watch out!" Uryu cried as Szayel's wing/tentacle once again erupted from the ground. As it reached for him, Rath leaped back, avoiding it.
Szayel paled as Rath then grabbed the wing and yanked. Szayel was flung towards the tiger alien. With a growl, Rath cocked his fist and struck Szayel upside the head. Szayel went sprawling to the ground. Grinning, Rath grabbed Szayel by the leg. The Espada let out an audible gulp as Rath swung him overhead and slammed him into the ground. Not even the sand could cushion the sheer might of Rath. Szayel wheezed as his back struck the ground before Rath swung him over again, making him smack the ground with such force that even Uryu and Renji winced at their former tormentor. Rath then spun Szayel around like a lasso, even letting out a "Yippee Ki-Yay!" for good measure before chucking him at a pile of debris. Wheezing, Szayel's hands flailed around for support when he froze, feeling something latch onto his wing again. Szayel's lip actually quivered when he saw that Rath had grabbed him again. Szayel cried out as he was once again pulled back towards the tiger alien–and collided face-first with his knee. A loud crack was heard.
"Gaaaaaaah!" Szayel clutched his face. "My nose! My nose!"
"Ah, I'm sorry," Rath said mockingly. "Here, allow me." Rath grabbed him by his nose and started twisting. The Arrancar howled in pain.
"Everything you've put me through, threatening poor Orihime, torturing these guys…NOT COOL!"
Szayel flailed, screaming in pain as Rath twisted harder. "Y-you'll tear my nose off!"
"Nah, I'm just gonna turn it upside down so that your forehead gets covered in snot every time you sneeze. I'll start calling you Snot Man, Snot Man!"
"Wha-what am I looking at here?" Renji asked Uryu.
"I'm just as confused as you are but I think Szayel might have been onto something when he said this form, Rath, affects Ben's personality."
"Let go of me!" Szayel yelled, trying to capture Rath with all of his wings at once. Rath leaped back again, freeing Szayel in the process. The Eighth Espada rubbed his nose furiously, glaring at Rath before realizing that Rath had leaped into the air… and was coming down on him.
"Sheer Cosmic Drop!"
Szayel wrapped his wings around himself like he had when Renji destroyed his palace. Snorting, Rath raised his fist, aiming the claw directly at the pseudo-shield. When the claw made contact it created a shockwave that flung Szayel's wings open and caused them to fall to the ground in a mangled heap. Szayel's face was one of sheer terror as Rath came down on him like a meteorite, kicking him square in the face. Szayel flew back, slamming into one of the larger chunks of debris, cracking it from the impact. Szayel's body limply peeled off before hitting the ground.
Rath snorted. "Let me tell you something, Szayelaporro Granz, Eighth Espada! You're not so tough without some cheap trick up your sleeve."
"That was awesome, Ben!" Pesche cheered as Dondochakka clapped.
"That's how it's done, you know what I'm talking about!"
"Is he— finished?" Renji asked.
"I highly doubt it," Uryu said. "But hopefully that bought us some time."
"That's right! As much as I want to finish Szayel off now, we need to go help Lady Nelliel!" Pesche exclaimed, slamming a fist into his open hand.
"Yeah, yeah, let's go!" Rath said, starting to run off in a random direction, causing the other four to stare at him. After a moment, Rath skidded to a halt. "…I have no idea where I'm going."
"We do!" Pesche said excitedly. "We can guide you to her!"
As if on cue, Bawabawa slithered over to them as Pesche and Donochakka leapt onto the Combat Insect.
"Heh, works for me," Rath grinned before going over to Renji and Uryu, picking them up with surprising gentleness. "Look, I know you guys are hurt and all but I don't like leaving you guys here. After we help this Nelliel lady, we'll get you to Orihime."
"Are you sure you want to stay in that form?" Uryu asked. "Ichigo and Chad said you were supposed to be able to turn into all kinds of aliens."
Rath grinned. "Let me tell you something, Uryu Ishida. Rath is really angry with Aizen right now and he wants to blow off some steam!"
"Fine by me," Renji said. "Though this feels embarrassing, being carried like this."
He and Uryu were being cradled in Rath's arms on opposite sides.
"Best way to carry you for now," Rath said nonchalantly before smirking. "What? Worried someone's gonna see ya and mistake you for a giant baby, Pineapple Man?"
Renji stammered, his cheeks as red as his hair before he started hacking up blood.
Rath cringed. "Yeah—we'd better go help this Nelliel lady out now." He leaped into the air and landed perfectly on Bawabawa's back.
"Let's go, Bawabawa!" Pesche called out, arms in the air. "Full speed ahead!"
Rearing up, Bawabawa took off like an express train across the desert sand, Rath holding onto Renji and Uryu as tightly as he could without hurting them.
Back at the ruins of Szayel's palace, Szayel's finger twitched. Shakily, he put a hand on the ground and started pushing himself up.
"You," he rasped. "think you've won, Ben Tennyson? You thought— a couple of blows from that meathead alien of yours— would be enough to beat me? The sole reason you lost is for dismissing me as unworthy of finishing off! I," He wobbled to his feet. "I had a feeling you might escape but I didn't expect those bumbling idiots to be the ones who'd help you. Now, it's time for me to unveil—
"My contingency plan."
To Be Continued…
Hope you all enjoyed Rath's long overdue debut into Bleach: Ultimate Alien.
My friend Pyromania101 pointed out to me that I use the "..." a lot in my sentences. This is true because it's the only thing I could think of for whenever characters pause and then resume speaking. I was recommended using the long dash instead, I hope I did alright with it. If not, I do apologize, it's not something I'm used to.
Nothing I can really say besides that. See you all in the next chapter
