Disclaimer: Ben 10 and Bleach do not belong to me. They belong to Man of Action and Tite Kubo respectively.

As always I would like to thank Pyromania101 and Vandenbz for their proofreading

Sorry for taking so long to update my chapter everyone. I'll explain more at the end of the chapter. For now, on with the story:

More Reunions

"I expected better of you, Ben Tennyson."

Ben flinched at Azmuth's reprimanding tone, practically hearing all his swirling emotions come to a crashing stop. The Galvan was looking at him with his usual cross expression. Beside him, Lilynette, along with Harribel's Fraccioné,

immediately glared at the First Thinker. Apacci got ready to retort, no doubt physically, when Azmuth raised his hand.

"However, factors beyond your control did affect your decisions and you have already been through enough." Azmuth then gave a small smile at the hero. "For what it's worth, I'm glad you're alright."

"Thanks, Azmuth," was all Ben could think of to say in response.

"So that's Azmuth?" Apacci looked him over. "I know you told us about him, Ben, but seeing him in person is… underwhelming."

Azmuth shrugged. "Granted, we Galvans might not be the most physically imposing species in our universes, but I would like to think our intellectual prowess more than makes up for it."

"Well I'm certainly interested in meeting the creator of the Ultimatrix." Urahara stepped forward, holding out his hand as he crouched down.

"Kisuke Urahara." Azmuth shook his hand. "Yes, the professor told me about you and I heard about your creation, the Hogyoku. Impressive to say the least."

"That's quite a compliment, coming from the smartest being in Ben's universe."

"Three galaxies, five at the most," Azmuth said automatically. His eyes then landed on the Teen Titans. "So, you're the son of a Ben from an alternate future. Professor Paradox has informed me about you, too."

"You may not be our Azmuth, but it's still great to meet you," Ken said politely before nodding at Paradox. "You too, Professor."

Lilynette narrowed her eyes at the man with the sunglasses, who had stayed behind his two companions and looked uncertain. "So, is that—?"

"Yeah," Ben said, hands in his pockets. "That is the guy who sent me here."

Everyone's attention was on Thorn now. He started to look away but paused, shook his head, and then looked Ben square in the eye. "Hello, Ben."

Azmuth scoffed. "After everything he's been through, Thorn, is that the best you can say?"

Thorn licked his lips a few times but said nothing. This interaction brought a past suspicious zooming to the front of Ben's mind.

"You knew he was going to send me here?"

Both Azmuth and Paradox shared a glance at Thorn, who was now staring at his own feet. Slowly they both returned their gazes to Ben. Azmuth sighed. "Yes, Ben. We knew."

Emotions surged through Ben like an electric current; everything became hazy and his legs became weak. Lilynette was immediately at his side, gently holding him up. Ben gave her a grateful smile as Harribel stepped forward, shifting her gaze across all three of them.

"Did you send him here to stop Aizen?"

"Yes," Thorn said, his tone full of resignation.

"Then why didn't you tell him?" Starrk spoke up as all of Ben's Arrancar friends glared at Thorn. "Why didn't any of you tell him?"

"Okay, in Professor Paradox's defense," Ben spoke up, "He wasn't there at the time."

"But I knew all the same, Ben." Paradox frowned at Thorn, who seemed to be trying to make himself look as pitiful as possible. "Under any other circumstances, I would have warned you, but our friend here would have done something even more impulsive, such as send you to this universe without even revealing himself."

"But why?" Ben asked, trying to keep himself from doing anything rash. "If you wanted me to stop Aizen, why didn't you just tell me?"

"I didn't think I had to," Thorn murmured. Ben's fists shook as his anger bubbled.

"Didn't think you had to?!" Lilynette gripped Ben's jacket. "Listen here, you jackass! All the crap Ben's been put through is your fault!"

"Paradox already read me the riot act but I'm not gonna stop you," Thorn replied quietly.

"If you knew about Aizen and didn't tell Ben, that means it's your fault Tosen died and that Ichigo guy lost his powers!"

Ben gently patted her back. "Calm down, Lilynette."

"What?! Ben-"

"Like I told Tia, I should have tried harder to find out what Aizen's plan was."

"Be that as it may," Azmuth said, walking towards Ben, "There were countless ways Thorn could have approached this situation with you. So, perhaps you could have done better but I will not let you shoulder this blame alone. For the time being though, it would be best to put all questions on hold until your meeting with this Soul Society."

"Wait, how do you know about that?" Apacci questioned.

"We were watching what happened before we arrived," Paradox explained. "That's one of the reasons we're here: to make sure things with Soul Society work out as best they can."

Ulquiorra then stepped forward, looking Paradox in the eye. The professor, rather nonplussed at one of the most powerful Arrancar being in his face, simply smiled and held up a bag. "Gumball, Ulquiorra?"

"Professor Paradox," Ulquiorra said, not even addressing the offered bag. "Judging from your name alone, you must have power over time."

"Not necessarily power over it but rather understanding of both time and space," Paradox said as he pocketed the bag.

"Basically he knows where all the shortcuts are," Ben spoke up, causing the professor to smile at him.

"Interesting," Ulquiorra mused.

"I can imagine you have quite a lot of questions about myself alone," the professor said before addressing the other Arrancar. "I do apologize for having all of you wait after everything you've been through, but Soul Society has just as much right to hear what we have to say. Of course for the sake of context, I suppose we can provide some answers."

"Hey, Professor," Superboy interjected. "Are we going to be there for the meeting? I know this isn't our universe…"

"But we'd like to help," Starfire added.

"Your own universe needs you back," Paradox said, then smiled when most of the Titans became despondent. "But it doesn't need you right away."

"Wait, Professor! What about my universe? Is everything okay? What about Kevin and Gwen? Grandpa Max? My parents…"

Azmuth hopped onto Ben's left shoulder, ignoring the critical look Lilynette was shooting at him.

"Shortly after your little trip courtesy of Thorn, Paradox and I informed your family and friends of the situation. Understandably, they were upset about what happened. I believe your friend Kevin had quite some choice words for Thorn."

"But your Grandpa was quite confident that, no matter how rough things would be for you, you would pull through. Since then they've been preparing themselves for your return."

Ben smiled in relief, though a sudden thought quickly wiped it away. "Wait, so the whole time I was gone, nothing happened?"

"Oh I wouldn't say that." Azmuth stroked his beard-like tendrils. "Needless to say, it soon became apparent that you were gone and many of your enemies figured that without the great Ben 10 to stop them, then nobody else could."

Ben sighed. "I bet Kevin and Gwen had their hands full."

"It was difficult for them at first," Paradox spoke up. "The Plumbers had to pull extra duty since you weren't around to handle your usual cases. But just as it looked like the Plumbers were going to be overwhelmed, they received help from the most unexpected of people."

"Really?" Who?"

"The Highbreed," Azmuth answered. "Reinrassic III himself contacted the Plumbers' headquarters and offered their full support in maintaining law and order in your absence."

"Reiny? He really did that?"

"'We owe Ben, Ben Tennyson an incredible debt that we can never truly repay. Perhaps helping the universe in his place can be a start.'" Azmuth quoted with a smile. Ben returned it.

"I owe Reiny big time when I get home. Wait, what about Mom and Dad?"

"I personally reassured them that you would return to them," Paradox said, a firm look on his face. "It was hard for them, naturally, but the fact that you would come home kept them strong."

Lilynette hastily grabbed Ben as he started to slump, relief spread across his face. "I'm glad everyone's okay."

"Well if we can't be there for the meeting, Professor," Ken looked at Thorn, "Who exactly is this guy?"

"He calls himself an Interloper," Azmuth said, narrowing his eyes at Thorn. "Someone who travels from one universe to another, meddling in their affairs in an attempt to help them. After making a pest of himself in quite a few of those universes, he got the bright idea to take a hero from one universe and have them team up with the heroes of another. He knew about the war between Soul Society and Hueco Mundo and decided to help stop it."

"And he chose me. But then why didn't he send me to Karakura Town or Soul Society?"

"Well, Thorn?" Azmuth put his hands on his hips.

Thorn's head shot up, scowling at Azmuth. After taking a breath, he straightened his back out. "I sent you to Hueco Mundo because I wanted you to befriend the Arrancar."

"What?"

"I knew about the more decent Arrancar like Starrk and Harribel," Thorn went on to the baffled Ben. "And how Aizen would've disposed of them once they outlived their usefulness. I wanted you to prevent that."

"But why didn't you just tell me to help them?" Ben asked.

"Because I thought that Aizen would figure out you were here to intentionally undermine him."

"So you took a chance by sending Ben here without knowing anything?" Ken pieced together.

"And just assumed everything would work out?" Raven concluded.

Sighing, Thorn nodded slowly.

"So your whole "plan" hinged on Ben befriending us and, because of our friendship, we were supposed to tell Ben what Aizen was really up to," Starrk rationed.

"More or less." Thorn rubbed the back of his neck.

"Hence why I brought Ken here when he was accidentally teleported out of his own universe," Paradox interjected. "Thorn didn't mind it because he thought it would make things more interesting."

"Interesting?!" Apacci growled. "Were you really trying to help us or just entertain yourself?"

Thorn held his hands out. "I wanted to help you but I was also so eager to see Aizen's eventual smackdown."

Mila Rose toyed with her sword. "Unbelievable. Your plan was nothing but a bunch of half-assed ideas mixed together. What if Aizen had used Kyoka Suigetsu on Ben? What if one of the other Espada had killed him?"

"I figured Aizen would want to keep Ben alive and probably manipulate him without using Kyoka Suigetsu. Plus I was confident that none of the Arrancar would kill him."

"Probably? Confident?" Sung-Sun repeated venomously. "You really did expect everything to just work itself out because that's what you wanted. Tell me then, did they?"

"No," Thorn admitted. "They didn't."

"Lilynette's right!" Apacci pointed a finger at him, her eyes blazing with fury. "This is all your fault!"

"Apacci," Harribel gently chided, causing her subordinate to flinch at her tone. "We all made mistakes here. Yes, he may have been the one responsible for setting events in motion, but we made our own choices."

Apacci cast her eyes towards the sand. "Yes, Lady Harribel."

"However," Harribel narrowed her eyes at Thorn, "If you're going to helpus any further, I hope you intend to be more thorough in your own actions."

All eyes were on Thorn and he took a moment to look from one side of the assorted crowd to the other. He turned his head back toward Harribel and slowly nodded. "I will. Does anyone else have any questions?"

Ulquiorra closed his eyes as the others looked at each other. All open eyes drifted towards the Titans for any remaining questions.

"Were we of any actual help, Professor?" Ken asked Paradox, earning the Time Walker all the Titans' attention.

Paradox nodded with a smile. "Yes, Ken. You were."

"Good." The rest of the team relaxed as Cyborg, Starfire, and Miss Martian smiled in relief. "I know we barely did anything, but I'm glad we were at least able to help, if just a little." The half-Kryptonian approached Ben. "But I still wish we could have done more for you."

"Any help is appreciated, Ken," Ben told him. "I'm just glad you and your team all came out of this okay."

"It was nice to meet you, Young Ben," Starfire said.

"Will you be okay?" Miss Martian inquired.

"I'll be alright," Ben reassured her. "Before you guys go, mind if I give you a tour of the place? Don't know what's still standing but…"

"How long do you intend to try and stay hidden?" Everyone glanced at Ulquiorra, who was now looking over his shoulder. "All of you."

Following his gaze, the group all turned when they saw Luppi, Menoly, Loly, and a fourth Arrancar, sporting a mask like a bull skull, approaching them. Their clothes were torn, bruises and dried blood on the former three's faces, while the fourth one's mask was cracked with a shattered horn.

"Rudbornn," Starrk said. "Well now we know where you all were."

The aforementioned Rudbornn turned his head towards Ben, who expected an attack. Instead the leader of the Exequias spoke. "The notorious Ben Tennyson; we finally meet."

"How long have you guys been standing there?" Ben wondered.

"Shortly after your three associates arrived," Ulquiorra answered.

"And you didn't think to say something sooner?" Lilynette demanded.

"They weren't doing anything aside from spectating so I didn't see the point in addressing them," Ulquiorra answered.

"I will confess, Lord Ulquiorra," Rudbornn said, bowing respectfully. "It was difficult keeping this one restra-"

"You traitors!" Loly tried to lunge only to be held back by a frantic Menoly. She started to thrash wildly when her eye landed on Ben. "You! This entire time you were against Lord Aizen after everything he's done for you! Die, you bastard!"

"Loly, please!" Menoly cried, eyeing the Espada warily.

"Calm down, Loly." Nelliel stepped forward, frowning at the other Arrancar. "Aizen never cared about any of us, there's no point in getting angry."

"Liar!" Loly screamed. "Stay out of my way, Nelliel, or…"

"Or what?" Nelliel asked, a slight edge in her otherwise calm tone.

"Aww, let her try something," Luppi grumbled, glancing at the still struggling Loly out of the corner of his eye. "After what she's put us through, let her get knocked around some more."

"Hey, you helped of your own free will, Luppi, so don't pin that on me!" Loly snapped.

"Uh, did I miss something here?" Ben inquired as Nelliel frowned at the still struggling Loly.

"When you were brought to Karakura Town, Ichigo, Uryu, and I went to rescue Orihime. When we arrived at the tower, Ichigo engaged Ulquiorra in battle. I wanted to help but Ichigo insisted on fighting him alone. Then those three here," She pointed at Loly, Menoly, and Luppi, "Tried attacking Orihime when we weren't paying attention."

"What?" Ben and Ken both asked coldly, the former suspecting they were responsible for the torn state of Orihime's clothes. Menoly flinched, Loly glared daggers as she glanced around the group, and Luppi simply scowled.

"They had some grudge against her," Nelliel crossed her arms. "What, I can't possibly imagine."

"Oh I'll tell you what it was." Luppi sneered at the two girls. "Those two were jealous over all the attention Aizen was giving that human girl."

"And you were mad at her for giving Grimmjow his arm back!" Loly snapped. "Since you didn't have the balls to fight him, you helped us take it out on her!"

"Wow." Apacci put her hands on her hips. "You three really are pathetic."

"Why you…" Loly snarled.

"That's Aizen for ya," Urahara said, giving Loly a sympathetic glance that only infuriated her. "He really does get a kick out of making people utterly devoted to him. Heard he did a number on his lieutenant Hinamori and it looks like these ladies here were her replacements."

Loly screamed but Menoly gripped her tightly. Luppi sneered at her. "You hear that, Loly? This whole time you were a replacement for some Soul Reaper. You were never special to Aizen after all."

"Shut up, jackass! You're the last one to make fun of me!"

"She's right," Mila Rose spoke up. "As stupid as it was for them to think Orihime was trying to steal Aizen's attention, you're worse."

"Watch your mouth, Mila Rose," Luppi ordered.

"My, my, that's quite the attitude from a coward. You really are inferior to Grimmjow after all," Sung-Sun said.

"Okay, okay." Ben stepped forward, hands raised. He did shoot Luppi and the two girls a frown though. "I don't like that you tried to hurt Orihime but she's safe now."

"And you're trying to be buddy-buddy with Soul Society." Luppi glanced at Urahara for a brief moment. "Why should we?"

"To create a better future for Hueco Mundo," Harribel said, her arms crossed.

"A better future," the former Espada scoffed. "So if Aizen's gone, who's gonna lead us?"

"Why, King Benjamin of course!" Charlotte cut in.

"What?!" Loly, Luppi, and Menoly all screamed. Rudbornn tensed as Ben ran a hand down his face.

"Oh that's right," Azmuth actually gave a small smirk. "Congratulations on your new kingdom, Ben."

"He defeated Baraggan with aid from Lady Harribel," Charlotte went on proudly.

"Again, she's the one who actually beat him, I just helped," Ben mumbled, inclining his head towards Harribel.

"Which makes them the rightful king and queen of Hueco Mundo!" Charlotte continued, lost in his own little world. Urahara was fanning himself once more as several of the Teen Titans grinned and/or giggled.

Ben slumped. "Okay, I really should have seen that coming. Before you say anything," he raised a hand just as the three gobsmacked Arrancar opened their mouths, "Let me make something clear. I'm not going to be the king."

"But-but your majesty…"

"Charlotte, let's face facts. I have my own universe to get back to. Besides, what do I know about ruling anything? As much as I appreciate you wanting me to be your king, I can't be."

"So she's gonna be our new leader?" Luppi cast a glance at Harribel, shamelessly eyeing her up and down, earning glares from multiple people.

"We're still working out the details," Ben said, aiming his sharp tone at the former Espada. The fact that so many eyes were upon him made it easier for Luppi to back down. "But I was talking to Tia earlier about a council instead of just one ruler."

Luppi snorted. "A council?"

Ben turned to his friends. "What do you guys think?"

"A council, huh?" Starrk scratched his chin. "You're okay with this, Harribel?"

"I have given the idea some thought and I wouldn't mind," Harribel admitted. "A leadership where all the Espada have a say in running Las Noches would be ideal."

"Ideal, she says," Loly scoffed.

"I see nothing wrong with this," Rudbornn interjected. "If Aizen was truly using us, then it is fitting that the Arrancar rule Hueco Mundo."

"You're seriously going along with this, Rudbornn?"

"As I just said, I see nothing wrong with a council of the Espada. Do you have an alternative solution, Luppi?"

Luppi hissed at Rudbornn's logic.

"We won't force you to obey us," Harribel said, glancing over at Luppi and the two girls. "But at the same time, we won't allow you to disturb the peace we're trying to build."

"So what are you going to do? Lock us up? Banish us?"

Ben rubbed his forehead. "Look, Luppi, we don't get along, that's obvious but why are you so against this?"

"Why? Because you want us to be buddies with Soul Reapers! Even if Aizen was just using us, the Soul Reapers killed a lot of Arrancar. After everything they've done to us, you want us to just act as if nothing happened!"

"Don't try to play the moral high ground now, Luppi. You've never cared before." Apacci waved a hand in a lackadaisical manner. "You're probably just mad you can't get back at that captain that kicked your ass."

Luppi looked ready to explode only for Harribel to quickly step in.

"Apacci, please don't antagonize him," she softly chided. "How can we expect peace with Soul Society if we can't even find peace with each other?"

Apacci lowered her head in shame. "Sorry, Lady Harribel."

Loly was biting her lip so hard that Ben was amazed she hadn't drawn blood. The fact she was restraining herself meant Rudbornn's warning to Luppi got through to her too. Hopefully that meant progress.

"Even if Luppi was looking for excuses, I understand his point," Harribel continued. "None of us were particularly close to our slain comrades, especially Baraggan, but they still died to the Soul Reapers."

"We were doing our duty as the Soul Reapers were doing theirs," Charlotte said, arms folded. "If anyone is to be held accountable, present company excepted, then it should be Aizen for bringing us all into conflict."

Thorn sighed when he saw Charlotte briefly eye him.

"Huh, that's actually well thought for you, Charlotte, I'm impressed," Apacci chuckled.

Charlotte huffed. "I may be passionate, Apacci, but I am far from stupid."

Apacci rolled her eyes but didn't retort.

Starrk shoved his hands into his pockets. "The moment you step onto the battlefield, both sides are in the wrong. That's what that one captain said. We can't take back what happened and getting upset about it won't change things either. Everyone's been saying we need to move forward and it's about time we did. I'm not saying we should just act like nothing mattered, I'm just saying that we should accept the cards we've been dealt."

"How about this? Maybe we should take a moment to just relax and worry about all this later?" Ben eyed Luppi sternly. "I want everything to work out for you guys but I'm not gonna let you cause trouble."

Luppi glared at him but fortunately backed down. This was going to be harder than he realized.

"With that out of the way," Nelliel said, walking off, "I'm going to look for some actual clothes to wear. I've worn these rags for far too long."

"Do you think your old room still stands, Lady Nelliel?" Pesche asked.

"Aizen probably renovated it the moment we were out of Las Noches," Nelliel mused. "Still, couldn't hurt to look. Besides, Aizen probably has spare uniforms he kept for potential recruits."

"Wait for us, Lady Nelliel!" With that, Pesche and Dondochakka dashed after their leader.

"While she's doing that, Ben, if you want to show your friends around go ahead," Starrk said, eyeing Loly, Luppi, and Menoly. "I'll keep an eye on these three."

"There's no need for that, Lord Starrk," Rudbornn commented. "I shall keep watch over them for you. Though they should know better than to try and provoke so many of you."

"Eh, not a big fan of this Lord Starrk stuff," Starrk muttered before addressing Rudbornn. "Do you know how many other Arrancar survived?"

Rudbornn shook his head. "I'm afraid not, sir. I had spent most of my time recovering from the injuries Yammy dealt me."

"Yammy attacked you?"

"I was in his way while he was in one of his moods."

"Oh so that's what happened when that four-eyed bastard sent him falling down a hole in the floor," Luppi mused. "So where is he?"

"Dead and buried," Ulquiorra said shortly.

"Serves him right," Loly said with sadistic smugness.

"He showed up while we were fighting Nelliel and that bow guy, then knocked us to the side."

"Knocked us to the side?" Loly hissed as Menoly flinched.

"Then the bow guy made a hole in the ground and sent Yammy falling. I didn't know what happened after that because Nelliel knocked me out," Luppi concluded bitterly.

"Things really got crazy when we left," Mila Rose commented.

Ben ran a hand through his hair. "This is gonna be tougher than I thought."

"Take this time to relax and give the Titans that tour you offered. That should help clear your mind," Harribel suggested before turning to her Fraccioné. "You can accompany them if you wish. Or if you want to rest, whichever you ladies would prefer."

"I'll go!" Lilynette declared loudly, smiling sheepishly as her shout's proximity had made Ben wince.

"If I may place a request," Urahara said. "I would assume that in such a large place as this, with so many powerful Arrancar roaming the halls; it makes sense that Aizen would want to keep tabs on them. Did he possess some kind of control room?"

"You are correct," Harribel replied. "In fact, we have multiple, for Aizen usually left the actual surveillance to Tosen and Ichimaru. And in a large structure such as Las Noches, it was convenient to have more than one."

"May I see at least one of them?" Urahara asked. "A control room would be the perfect spot to set up a direct communication system between Las Noches and my store, then hopefully Soul Society itself. Helps to have more than just some Soul Pagers."

"But you don't have any equipment with you," Sung-Sun pointed out.

"True but becoming familiar with Aizen's system will enable me to create something compatible when I return to my shop."

"In that case, I shall accompany you to the control room, Urahara." Azmuth leaped off Ben's shoulder and onto the shopkeeper's. "I'm curious about the technology of this universe among other things."

"'Other things?'" Urahara asked playfully.

"You're all spirits but yet you eat, sleep, and basically function no different than when you were all living. Quite astounding, and I'm no stranger to astounding things."

"Well, having input from someone as brilliant as yourself would be appreciated, Azmuth. How about you, Professor?"

"Oh between the two of you, I'm sure you have the situation well in-hand." Paradox answered. "Once you're done with your business in the control room perhaps it would be best if we discussed further matters in the Espadas' meeting room. I recommend you have some things planned before returning to Karakura Town."

"I'm going to take a look around and see how bad the damage is for you," Thorn added.

"What, are you going to help us with repairs?" Lilynette retorted.

"Actually, yes," Thorn replied, taking Lilynette aback. "One of the perks of traveling the multiverse is managing to earn a few favors."

"You seriously know people who can restore Las Noches?" Mila Rose wondered.

Thorn gave her a half-hearted grin. "The multiverse is a lot bigger than you can imagine."

"If these favors can guarantee the restoration of Las Noches, then I don't object." Sung-Sun turned towards her leader. "Will you be resting, Lady Harribel?"

"I shall escort Kisuke Urahara to the control room and then I'll check for any other potential survivors, like Patros and his two lackeys."

"Oh if that's the case, I could help look for them," Ben said.

"You want us to help too?" Ken offered. "We'd like to be able to do something before we leave."

Harribel shook her head. "You are guests here and do not need to concern yourselves with this."

Ken shook his head. "We might be guests but we're not going to leave you to do all the work if we can help it."

"You truly are Ben's son," Harribel said, her eyes softening as she looked at the young hero. "Continue on with your tour but you can keep an eye out for them just in case."

"Most likely they fled," Ulquiorra told her. "That fool thought he could rule Las Noches, why would he bother after everything's happened?"

"Pettiness?" Superboy suggested.

"It's true," Cyborg added. "A lot of our bad guys couldn't let go of their plans no matter how bad things were falling down around them."

Starfire raised a finger. "Perhaps they did in fact flee Las Noches."

"I'll look around just to be certain. If I encounter Nelliel, I shall inform her of what's going on."

Ben sighed, locking his arms behind his head. "If you're sure, Tia."

"I am, though I am appreciative of your offers." Harribel bowed her head in gratitude. "If I need assistance, you will surely know."

"To be fair," Mila Rose said, "If those three are still there, they wouldn't be a match for her anyway."

"True." A thought occurred to Ben. "Hey, Tia. Could you see if the Privaron Espada are still around?"

Ken frowned after he noticed Rudbornn freeze, raising a brow at the Arrancar.

"They're long gone." Everyone turned at Thorn responding to Ben's request and the sharp tone he used.

"How do you know that?" Raven wondered.

"I kept tabs on some things happening here. Unfortunately the Privaron Espada were the only ones I found out about."

"So all three Privaron Espada are just gone?"

Thorn nodded but Ken shared a frown with the alternate version of his father. Even Paradox and Azmuth were frowning and yet, those frowns weren't directed at Thorn.

"It's quite possible that most of the Arrancar in Las Noches left," The First Thinker mused.

"It is possible," Ulquiorra said. "I was dealing with my own thoughts after my loss to Ichigo Kurosaki. I wouldn't be surprised if nearly all the Arrancar fled."

Apacci crossed her arms. "Cowards."

"You can't blame them, given the circumstances," Ben told her. "Besides, Tia will find out soon enough. Let's just be ready in case she does need help."

"I was wondering if you guys were actually going to leave anytime soon," Luppi verbally jabbed.

"Watch it, Luppi," Starrk warned, catching the former Espada off guard. "Go on ahead, Ben. I've got this. If Harribel does need help, I'll get there first."

"We'll try not to be long, Starrk. Alright, guys. Let's go!"

"Allow me, Ben," Paradox said. "Time is of the essence." He chuckled. "And I should know. Welcome properly to Las Noches, everyone!"

Ben looked around, unable to keep himself from grinning as the Arrancar all gawked at the realization that they were now in Aizen's throne room. He finally gave up when Lilynette and Harribel's Fraccioné scooted away from Paradox warily.

"How did you–?" Lilynette mumbled, staring at Paradox in shock and a small hint of fear. "We didn't even–"

"Like I said, he knows where all the shortcuts are," Ben said, amused at even seeing Mila Rose and Sung-Sun stupefied at their situation.

"Your abilities never cease to amaze me, Professor." Urahara chuckled as he went about examining the throne room.

"Why wasn't he at Karakura Town?" Apacci hissed in Sung-Sun's ear suddenly, earning an agitated look from her teammate.

"Long story short," Ken said to them, "There's some things Paradox can't do."

"So this is Aizen's throne room." Urahara looked up at the throne and nodded. "Kind of what I expected from him."

"Gee," Ben said, noticing that even the throne room was demolished. Holes in the wall, pillars smashed, and… the hero's eyes landed on the colossal hole in the ground. "Guess that's where Yammy fell." Curious, Ben went to the edge of the hole and peered down, whistling as he saw how deep it went. "No wonder he was so mad."

"Okay, seriously?" Cyborg said, staring at the towering platform Aizen's throne was perched on. He grinned at the others. "Are we sure Aizen's not compensating for something?"

Raven and Azmuth were unamused, narrowing their eyes at the Titan. Ben and Ken grinned at each other, Miss Martian giggled into her hand, and Starfire tilted her head at the throne. Lilynette snickered and Sung-Sun looked away while Apacci and Mila Rose openly guffawed.

"Okay, now that I think about it–" Apacci breathed in between laughter.

"Maybe you're onto something," Mila Rose finished as she wiped away a tear, the two actually supporting each other for balance.

"Well now that most of us have gotten a good laugh," said an also grinning Urahara, "Perhaps we can go see the control room now?"

"Of course," Harribel said respectfully. "Follow me."

"Word of advice: unless you have a perfect memory, I highly recommend staying close to Tia," Ben joked, standing beside his Arrancar friends. "Place is a maze, trust me. Wonder what other spots got wrecked while we were gone."

"Given how long you've been here, you should have an excellent sense of direction," Azmuth stated.

"Heh, sort of. Come on, I'll show you where I stayed with Lilynette and Starrk. Oh hey, when should we all meet back?"

"That is an excellent question," Azmuth commented. "From what I understand, none of you have a way of communicating with each other or knowing where each other are."

"That is because we usually kept to our chambers unless Aizen summoned us," Harribel explained. "We never interacted with each other more than necessary."

"Not a lot of teamwork amongst the Espada," Raven couldn't help but note.

"Correct, though Aizen never expected us to work as a team. All that mattered was that we were strong enough."

"Considering what some of the Espada are like," Ben said, cringing, "Yeah I can't really see you guys working together."

"That bad?" Miss Martian asked, blinking curiously.

Nnoitra, Grimmjow, Szayel, and Baraggan all flashed through Ben's mind, making him grimace. "You have no idea."

"Well technically I could, but I respect your privacy,"

"Oh right, telepathic."

"You haven't been secretly reading our minds, right?" Apacci asked abruptly.

Miss Martian was affronted. "Of course not! I wouldn't violate your privacy like that. Bad guys like Aizen, sure, but never a friend. I mean, if you want to be our friends that is."

Harribel's Fraccioné looked amongst each other, then towards Lilynette.

"Well," Lilynette scratched her head, "Sure, I guess."

Suddenly Starfire lunged, scooping all four girls up in a big group hug before they could gather their wits, a large smile on her face. "Oh, glorious! A pleasure, new friends!"

"Geez!" Lilynette winced as Starfire tightened her embrace. "Yep, we got a hugger!"

"Pfft! Sung-Sun, get your hair out of my face!" Apacci snapped as she squirmed.

"I'm afraid I'm not in much of a position to do anything, Apacci!"

"Ouch! Mila Rose, your zanpakuto is jabbing my side!"

Lilynette flung her leg out, kicking in vain.

"Well it's not like I'm doing it on purpose, Lilynette!" Mila Rose shot back.

Ken chuckled at his teammate. "Alright, Starfire, take it down a notch." The Arrancar girls all fell to the ground when Starfire released them, that bright smile still on her face. "Sorry, she gets like that whenever she makes new friends."

"So I noticed. Good grip though," Apacci complimented as she dusted herself off.

"Well as heartwarming as this all is, we have business to attend to," Azmuth reminded everyone. "Considering that you're all showing the Titans around, Starfire here will have plenty of time to get to know you."

"Once we're finished, I'll use Tenteikura to notify you," Urahara said as he, Harribel, and Azmuth made their way out of the throne room. Starfire was already bombarding the other Arrancar girls with questions like what their favorite colors were.

"I'm starting to regret this," Apacci mumbled to her teammates.

"Starfire is a nice young lady," Paradox said as the other group disappeared from view. "And very excited when it comes to making new friends."

"I can tell. Hopefully those four won't get too annoyed with her," Ben said.

"Oh it will be fine; you've been quite the positive influence on them. Now then, how about that tour?"

"Good idea."

/*/

So as Ben led the group around Las Noches, he and the Titans continued exchanging stories. Ben talked about his battles with several of the Arrancar while the Titans told him about their battles with various supervillains. Even the Arrancar were absorbed by Ken's storytelling.

"So the Ben of your universe beat an actual god?!"

"And those Six Demon guys… man your universe is nuts! Oh, here we are," Ben said, opening the door to Starrk's chambers.

"This is where you stayed, huh?" Cyborg looked around once the Titans entered. "Could use a little more decor."

Lilynette waved a hand. "Eh, we never cared that much about decorations. We had what we needed."

"A bed and a bunch of pillows?" Miss Martian asked.

"You have no idea how much Starrk sleeps."

"Isn't he supposed to be the top Espada? He really just sleeps all the time?" Superboy asked.

"Hey, when you're the top Espada you can afford to," Ben said. "I guess next will be Tia's room. If that's alright with you three?"

"That's fine with us, Ben," Sung-Sun assured him. "We wanted to check in on Lady Harribel anyway. Besides, you can show them the pool you made."

"You made a pool?" Ken chuckled.

"Hey, we needed something to entertain ourselves," Ben said. "Now if only there was a way to get this place some television."

"Let's take this one step a time, Ben," Azmuth said.

"Oh, alright. By the way, Ken, you talked a lot about the other me and your mother but you never mentioned Gwen, Kevin, or Grandpa Max. What have they been doing in this other timeline?"

All the Titans froze, flat-footed by Ben's question. Said hero did not like the way they were looking at each other before all eyes were on Ken. Ben's alternate son hung his head, hands on hips and breathing through his nostrils.

"What's wrong?" Ben asked quietly as Ken rubbed the back of his head.

"I should have known you might ask about them but I never prepared for it,"

"What?" the anxiety began to rise in Ben's stomach. "What happened?"

Paradox put a gentle hand on Ken's shoulder. "Would you like me to tell him?"

"Tell me what?" Ben practically whispered.

"In my timeline," Ken licked his lips a few times, "I'm sorry, Ben, but in my timeline, they died when Dad was still a teenager."

Ben's eyes widened, his arms fell to his side, and something was caught in his throat. It wasn't until Lilynette worriedly grabbed his shoulder that he found his voice. "Died?"

Ken slowly nodded. "Them, my grandparents, Julie…"

"Julie too?!" Lilynette jumped back at Ben's sudden scream. "How? Why? What could have—"

Ken's eyes narrowed and his fists clenched tightly. "Vilgax."

Ice clutched Ben's heart. "No."

"I'm afraid so, Ben," Paradox said glumly. "Your alternate self's family, Kevin, and Julie, were killed by the Vilgax of that timeline. The pain of loss was so great that I sent him to the world of the Justice League to help him recover."

Ben's head dropped, his throat dry as he gazed at the floor. Alternate timeline or not, to know that there was one where his loved ones were not only dead but murdered, especially by him of all people…

"Vilgax has been taken care of," Ken said quietly. "And though it's been hard, the Justice League, especially Mom, helped Dad recover."

Ben nodded slowly, taking a moment to find his voice again. "Good. I'm glad the other me was okay in the end. Still, I can't believe–I never thought that could ever happen."

"I'm sorry, Ben."

Ben shook his head. "I'm the one who asked, Ken. I should've known there was a reason you weren't mentioning them."

"Would you like us to give you a moment?" Cyborg asked sympathetically.

"N-no we can keep going. Um, Apacci? Is it okay if you three take the lead? Right now I need to think about this."

"Sure," Apacci said meekly, sharing a look of concern amongst her teammates. She hastily made her way to the front of the group, who in turn followed her without any prompting. Ben walked sluggishly behind them, Lilynette and Paradox lingering by his side.

"I'd say I can't even imagine what the other me was going through," Ben muttered. "But I think I have a pretty good idea."

"It was a long, hard road indeed, Ben," Paradox said. "But the other you has been able to find happiness and he always remembered his loved ones."

Ben nodded as he ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah that's good. It's just…"

"We understand, Ben. You don't need to say anymore if you don't want to."

"Thanks, Ken."

Lilynette scooted a little closer as Harribel's Fraccioné all shared a glance.

/*/

The rest of the tour had been a blur to Ben, though he vaguely recalled stopping by Harribel's chambers, the girls ushering everyone except for Paradox.

"Are there others, Paradox?" He finally asked. "Other timelines where my family died?"

"Yes, Ben," Paradox replied quietly. "Sometimes all of them, sometimes only some of them but yes, there are other timelines besides Ken's."

"I'm glad that the other me is doing okay but knowing there are other versions of me who will never get to see Mom, Dad, Grandpa Max, even Kevin or-or Julie ever again," Ben slumped against the wall, "I know you and Azmuth said mine were doing okay but—I really miss my family."

"I understand, Ben," Paradox patted his shoulder. "Don't worry. You'll see them again soon."

Ben smiled. "Thanks, Professor."

"ATTENTION, EVERYONE! THIS IS KISUKE URAHARA!"

Ben nearly fell over at the booming voice of the Soul Reaper shop owner.

"Yes, one thing you'll find out about dear Kisuke is that he has a flair for theatrics and a rather unconventional sense of humor," Paradox mentioned.

"I noticed," Ben muttered as the others started pouring out of Harribel's chambers.

"I THINK I'VE SEEN ALL I NEED REGARDING THE SYSTEMS FOR LAS NOCHES! I BELIEVE IT WOULD BE BEST FOR EVERYONE TO START MAKING THEIR WAY TO THE ESPADAS' MEETING ROOM."

"He's done already?" Apacci wondered.

"Well, this is Urahara we're talking about. Come on, everyone."

"Aww, but we barely got to see anything," Miss Martian whined.

"And I haven't even shared the Poems of Gratitude with my new friends!" Starfire pouted.

"Poems of Gratitude?" Lilynette repeated.

Starfire clasped her hands together with a wide smile. "Oh yes! All six thousand verses!"

Ben snorted into his fist at the sheer terror on all the Arrancar girls' faces; jaws had been dropped, arms were limp like noodles and eyes widened to dinner plates. He quickly turned his head as their terror turned into venomous glares directed at him, hiding his snickers under a coughing fit. Starfire seemed blissfully oblivious but the rest of the Titans were giving the girls a collective look of sympathy and amusement.

"Considering how big this place is, it would probably take days for us to see everything," Raven stated to get things back on track. "Probably longer."

"To be fair, the only real interesting parts of Las Noches will be the other Espadas' chambers," Sung-Sun said. "But even they are a good distance away from each other."

"From the way you guys have been talking about them, the distance was probably to keep the Espada from fighting each other," Ken mused.

Paradox smiled. "I can provide the Titans with the rest of your tour so you can attend Urahara's meeting. Unless the Titans wish to attend it as well."

"Thanks, Professor but I think we're good," Ken said. "No offense, girls, but your places are…"

"Kinda lacking?" Miss Martian suggested. "Seriously, what did you guys do for fun before Ben got here?"

"Nothing." Mila Rose replied bluntly. "Aizen was more interested in us being ready to fight Soul Society."

"You guys seriously didn't have any way of entertaining yourself?" Cyborg asked

"Entertaining ourselves wasn't a priority," Sung-Sun said quietly.

"Nice work, Cyborg," Raven quipped at her ashamed companion.

"It's not his fault," Mila Rose said. "That's just the way Las Noches was."

"I don't see anything wrong with you guys trying to liven the place up now that Aizen's gone," Superboy said.

"We'll… think about it," Apacci scratched her head.

"Well, if we're all good, guess it's time to head out!"

At Ben's declaration, Lilynette turned towards him. "Um, Ben, are you sure you're okay?"

"I'll be honest, Lilynette, I might not be completely okay but standing around moping won't help anybody."

"But…" A hand on her shoulder cut off Lilynette's objections.

"Thanks, Lilynette but I'll be alright."

"Okay," Lilynette reluctantly conceded.

"Come on, everyone!" Apacci declared. "We'll lead the way!"

/*/

One by one, the wielder of the Ultimatrix and the group of Arrancar entered the meeting room.

"Welcome," Sung-Sun told the others, sweeping a hand across the room.

"So this is where the Espada gather for their meetings huh?" Ken said as he looked around. "Not bad."

"From the way you've talked about the others, I'm surprised they can even sit at the same table without attacking each other. Have they?" Raven inquired.

"Lady Harribel's never mentioned any time," Apacci answered.

"Neither has Starrk," Lilynette threw in.

"Wait, you guys don't go in here too?" Superboy looked around, noticing the lack of other chairs. "Then again, where would you sit?"

"We stuck to our chambers while the Espada conversed," Sung-Sun explained. "Lady Harribel would tell us what happened and what Aizen wanted."

"Same with Starrk," Lilynette added.

Miss Martian and Starfire looked at them sadly but just as the latter opened her mouth, Apacci raised a hand.

"Yeah, yeah, we get it, our lives weren't the best here but like you guys said, things are different now and we can make some changes."

"So are just the remaining Espada gonna sit there now?" Superboy asked to change the subject.

"Now that you mention it…" Sung-Sun, Mila Rose, and Apacci proceeded to sit down so fast that Ben couldn't resist grinning.

"Think the others are on their way soon?" He asked Paradox.

As if on cue, the doors to the meeting room opened once more. Everyone turned to see Nelliel enter, now wearing long white gloves that ran down to her elbows, white stockings that went up to her thighs, and a skintight outfit that resembled a leotard that left her upper arms and upper thighs bare. Pesche, Dondochakka, and Charlotte were right behind her. Ben expected the latter to start up more of his "Your Majesty" speeches but instead Baraggan's former Fraccion simply smiled and bowed his head respectfully. Ben bowed back in gratitude.

Ben smiled. "Well, that answers that question. Good to see you all. Say, Nelliel, you wouldn't happen to have run into any survivors, would you?"

Nelliel shook her head as her Fraccioné shared a glance. "I think it's safe to assume that everyone we've encountered is all that's left of the Arrancar army."

"Could be that Harribel and Urahara saw something in the control room," Ken pointed out. "Still possible that everyone else left though."

"Stands to reason," Paradox said. "After all, the most powerful Arrancar in Las Noches were either dead or no longer opposing them in Ulquiorra's case while there were no losses on the Soul Reapers' part. The other warriors realized they would not stand a chance and chose to flee."

"I still say they're cowards!" Apacci grumbled.

Ben raised a brow, remembering how she and her teammates were perfectly willing to divebomb the Captain-Commander. Courage was one thing, but recklessness? Not that he had any room to talk of course.

"So how was the tour?"

Starrk entered now, with Loly, Luppi, and Menoly right behind him. Following them was Ulquiorra who glanced at everyone in the room before standing off in a corner near the doors.

"Eh, we didn't get too far," Ben admitted. "All we did was visit your room and Harribel's."

"And as much as we'd like to see the rest of Las Noches, we understand that this is a little more important," Ken added.

"Not gonna lie," Starrk said as he sat down in one of the middle chairs. "It feels weird having meetings again after all that's happened."

Luppi had not hesitated in plopping himself at the table, Ben wondering if he might have sought out Grimmjow's seat. Or not, none of them had labels as far as he could tell.

"Would you like a seat, Lady Nelliel?" Pesche asked his leader.

"Starrk was right, this does feel a little strange. Not bad though," Nelliel assured everyone as she sat down at one of the far end chairs. "Just weird."

Ben noticed Ulquiorra was still standing by the doorway. "What's wrong? Don't want to sit?"

"I haven't made up my mind just yet," the Fourth Espada answered.

"About what? You don't want to help?"

"I said I have not made up my mind," Ulquiorra retorted, earning disapproving glares from Starrk, Nelliel and Harribel's Fraccioné. "My experiences with Ichigo Kurosaki and that girl have… intrigued me, but I have not decided what I will do from here."

"Well, maybe helping everyone can open your mind to new experiences you never thought possible," Paradox said amicably. "And show you a vast world beyond what you see now."

"You seem confident that will certainly happen."

"My dear Ulquiorra, I am over a hundred thousand years old. I have gone to places that other life forms only dream of going and have saved so many worlds countless amounts of times. But do you know what started it all? A desire to explore and discover, think outside the box, and open my mind to the possibilities."

"Why are you so invested in me? What do you gain from all this?"

"I see potential in you, Ulquiorra, and it is a shame to see such potential squandered by uncertainty."

Ulquiorra studied the professor, who never once dropped his warm smile. The Fourth Espada looked around the room. The other Espada, current and former, were awaiting his response with curiosity and some amazement at Paradox's words. He looked over at Ben, then back at Paradox.

"Very well, I shall remain and protect Las Noches."

Nelliel let out a breath as everyone else visibly relaxed. Ulquiorra approached the table and sat to Starrk's right, across from Luppi.

"We won't have everyone else stand around, please take a seat," Nelliel said to the other Arrancar.

Nelliel's Fraccioné rushed to the table, Pesche sitting to his leader's right and Donochakka to her left. Bowing respectfully, Charlotte sat in between Pesche and Luppi. Apacci, Mila Rose, and Sung-Sun took three empty chairs lined between Pesche and Starrk. Ben looked at the sole remaining chair at the other end of the table.

"Aizen's, right?"

"Surprised Luppi didn't try to take it," Mila Rose taunted.

"I knew you all would get on my case if I tried," Luppi retorted with a scowl.

"How come you didn't want a seat, Lilynette?" Ben wondered.

Said Arrancar shrugged. "Eh, Starrk's seat counts as mine technically, I'm good."

"You sure?"

Lilynette smiled at him. "Yeah."

"Well, since it is the only one left, I guess it's Harribel's seat now," Nelliel said.

"What's mine?"

"Good timing," Starrk said as Harribel, Urahara and Azmuth entered the room, the latter still on the Soul Reaper's shoulder.

"Where's Rudbornn?" Harribel asked as she glanced around the room.

"Still outside with that Thorn guy," Starrk answered. "He's decided to keep guard while we have this gathering. I told him to try and locate Runoganga. If he's still alive at least."

"What about Thorn?" Ben inquired.

"Still surveying the damage. Says he's confident this favor of his can fix Las Noches but he wants to examine everything thoroughly."

"And whoever he's calling will be fine with coming to another universe?"

"As he said before, the multiverse is a vast place," Paradox replied.

"That doesn't really answer the question," Sung-Sun pointed out. "But if you're certain he can help then there's nothing else we can do about it. What do you think, Lady Harribel?"

"The best we can do for now is wait and see, Sung-Sun," Harribel said. "We have more pressing matters."

"If that's the case, have a seat, Harribel," Nelliel said.

Harribel spotted the last available seat but made no attempt to claim it.

"What's wrong, Tia?" Ben asked, tilting his head.

Harribel crossed her arms. "Even though it is just a seat, I feel uncertain about sitting in the same chair Aizen did."

"Oooh." Ben looked at the chair and then grinned as he suddenly activated the Ultimatrix. "If you want, I can go Water Hazard and give it a good spray down."

Harribel paused, one brow raised. "What?"

"Or if you want, I can toss it out and get you a new one. Pretty sure Diamondhead could whip up a nice crystal chair for you no problem. Don't know if it will be comfy though."

Harribel lowered her arms as the other Arrancar started looking at the hero quizzically. "Ben, what are you talking about?"

"Well, you obviously don't want to touch something Aizen had his butt on, not that I blame you."

Lilynette's hands flew to her mouth, snorting loudly. Apacci and Mila Rose snickered while Sung-Sun smiled behind her sleeve. Charlotte chuckled as Nelliel shared a laugh with her Fraccioné. Starrk rolled his eyes but there was a faint trace of a smile on his lips. Ulquiorra closed his eyes while Luppi looked at Ben incredulously. Loly looked ready to lunge again but Menoly quickly grabbed her shoulders, shaking her head. Raven just gave him a look with half-closed eyes, the rest of the Titans grinning at him. Azmuth sighed, his tendrils fluttering at the waving of Urahara's fan, where the shop owner hid his face.

"I was referring more to the significance of Aizen's seat," Harribel said. "If I must sit there I want to make it clear that I am not trying to establish leadership over any of you. I find a council to be the best option as long as we are all willing to cooperate."

Luppi, Loly, and Menoly all flinched as her eyes drifted to them as she said this. It got worse when they realized that everyone else's attention was on them. Loly and Menoly looked at each other while Luppi kept shifting his eyes from Ben to the Espada. He threw his head back with a groan.

"I won't cause any trouble. Besides, that means I'll have access to those Spirit Fruits, right? If Grimmjow ever does show his face around here again, I'll be ready."

"Seems one of our priorities will be organizing the distribution of the Spirit Fruits," Harribel said, earning a scowl from Luppi and a pair of snickers from Loly and Menoly.

The former's amusement died the moment she realized the spotlight was back on her. Menoly was looking at her hopefully, Luppi and Uquiorra were unconcerned, while Ben, Harribbel, and Starrk were simply waiting for her response.

Finally Loly slumped. "You win."

Menoly bowed respectfully to Harribel. "I have no intention of causing trouble for you or the remaining Espada, Lady Harribel."

"Good. Now then, during my time in the control room, Kisuke Urahara was insistent that I be the first of the Arrancar to accompany Ben to Karakura Town."

"Out of all of you, she was the biggest advocate for peace in Hueco Mundo," Urahara announced, waving his arms in a grandiose manner. "As such, I believe that she should be the one to go first and meet with the representative for Soul Society."

"Makes sense to me," Starrk said.

"And they'll be willing to believe her?" Ulquiorra questioned.

"I'm sure actually talking with her will show Soul Society how sincere she is," Nelliel said.

"Plus most of the captains heard Ben talking to her about a better life for Hueco Mundo back at that fake town," Starrk pointed out. "So she's already got a head start."

"Any idea who the representative is gonna be?" Ben asked Urahara.

"That I don't know of yet. They might notify us just before the representative leaves or I won't know until they actually show up at my shop."

"Hopefully they'll send someone who's willing to listen," Ben said. "Think it will be one of the captains?"

"Given the situation, I'd say at least one captain and a lieutenant," Urahara rationed.

Ben wondered which captain might get sent when a cold shiver ran down his spine as three faces flashed through his memories.

"Is something wrong?" Urahara asked,

Ben raised a shaky hand. "Can I make a request? I would gladly take any captain other than Zaraki, Kurotsuchi, or the lady that shot me in the face."

"Wait, what?" Ken looked at the alternate version of his father incredulously.

"One of the captains actually attacked me. Shot a rocket at me when I was Way Big."

"And scared us half to death!" Apacci grumbled.

Urahara chuckled again. "I can see Captain Sui-Feng wanting to keep an eye on you, Captains Zaraki and Kurotsuchi have obvious reasons for wanting to see you again. Don't worry, I'm sure the Captain-Commander will send one of the more reasonable Captains to meet with you."

"Whew, that's a relief."

"While those are all important factors to consider," Azmuth cut in, "I do believe you've all rudely interrupted Miss Harribel here."

"Oooh." Ben gazed at his shoes. "Sorry, Tia."

"As Azmuth said, the topic of Soul Society's representative was important. Something else that's important is the safety of Las Noches. While I have absolute confidence in all your power as well as Rudbornn's, we have but a fraction of our original forces. So I would like for us to focus on our defenses before we leave. Is that alright, Ben?"

Ben smiled reassuringly at her. "Sure thing, Tia. I want to make sure everyone is safe too."

"Guess that means it's up to me, huh?" Starrk spoke up as he rubbed his head. '"Creating a bunch of wolves to help defend this place?"

"But with how big Las Noches is," Ben said, "How many wolves would you have to make?"

"This would be so much easier if we knew Runogonga was still alive," Sung-Sun said.

"Well, we don't, so we should assume he's dead until further notice," Ulquiorra told her.

Ben rubbed the back of his head. "I guess the only thing we can do is, if things get bad, come to Karakura Town and get me."

"If things are that bad will you make it in time?" Luppi asked skeptically.

"You have no idea how fast some of my guys are, Luppi."

"In any case, someone should man the control room to observe the surrounding area," Urahara said. "Perhaps that would be best suited for our friend Ulquiorra here."

Ulquiorra gave the Soul Reaper a blank look at the 'friend' comment. "Why me?"

"Well, from what little I saw of you back in Karakura Town, you were quite observant while we fought your buddy Yammy. In fact, you were the one who told Aizen about Orihime, right?"

"What does that have to do with our current situation?" Ulquiorra pressed.

"A sharp and observant eye like yours can keep an eye on things on Las Noches for any potential danger and alert Starrk here to it."

Superboy shoved his hands in his pockets. "Are you sure that's a good idea? What about his…?"

"It would also be more effective if any remaining Arrancar saw the Primera Espada defending Las Noches anyway," Urahara went on, waving his fan rapidly as his eyes darted back and forth.

At first Ben thought the reasoning was more of his typical humor until the shop owner locked eyes with him for just a brief second. As he darted his eyes again, Ben followed the trajectory. Urahara was shooting glances at a now frowning Luppi.

After giving a curt nod, Ben stepped forward. "Are you guys okay with this? Like I said, come get me if you really need help."

"Come get us," Harribel corrected. "We will work together to protect Las Noches, no matter how important peace with Soul Society is."

Ben chuckled. "Should have seen that coming. Alright, us."

"Shouldn't really come to that, though," Starrk admitted. "Once the Hollows realize that the remaining Espada are among the strongest, they should flee."

"Is there anything else to discuss?" Harribel asked the gathering.

There were many turns of heads and shared glances but nobody spoke up.

"If something else comes up, we'll let you know, Harribel," Starrk said finally.

"Fortunately when I set up communications between my shop and here, you won't have to constantly travel back and forth," Urahara. "Now, with that out of the way shall we be off?"

"We better go get Thorn first," Azmuth finally spoke up. "Wherever he is."

"Ask and he shall appear!" Thorn strode into the room. "So yeah, while the overall structure of Las Noches is relatively intact, there's so much damage all over the place."

"Can your favors fix it?" Azmuth questioned.

"Fixing it is no problem, it's when they'll be able to that's the issue."

"Are these… whoever they are, busy?" Sung-sun asked. "Can you tell us anything about them?"

"They like their privacy, and no, but they have a habit of doing things when they're in the mood," Thorn answered. "Just gotta keep on them, they'll do it."

"Are they trustworthy?" Harribel inquired.

"Not particularly, but they aren't the type to go around causing trouble. More like they just want to have fun."

"Reminds me of Grandma Verdona," Ben muttered to himself.

"Meanwhile," Ken said, turning towards Paradox, "I guess there's nothing else for us to do, is there?"

"I'm afraid not, Ken," Paradox said with a sad smile. "Your part here is over."

The Titans looked at each other, concerned and slightly disappointed.

"Can we at least stick around to make sure things work with Soul Society's representative?" Miss Martian asked hopefully.

"Why certainly," Paradox assured her warmly. "Considering your own efforts in protecting Karakura Town, you can easily help put in a good word for Ben."

"Well that's something at least," Raven said. "Still, sorry we couldn't do more."

Ben smiled at the Titans. "Hey, you guys did great. Thank you for all your help."

"Well then, I guess all that's left is to head back." Ken smiled as he put his hands on his hips, looking around at the Arrancar. "It was nice meeting you all. Well, most of you anyway. Sorry we couldn't have hung out longer."

"Goodbye new friends!"

Lilynette and Harribel's Fraccioné only had enough time to start raising their hands before Starfire shot towards them, scooping up each one into her arms before they could react and hugging them once again.

"I'll never forget you!" The Tamaranean's lip quivered as she shut her eyes tightly.

"Neither will we," Apacci grumbled, coughing as Mila Rose's elbow jabbed her side. Whether it was intentional or not was hard to tell.

"Take care of yourself, Starfire," Sung-Sun said softly before grunting as her teammates continued squirming.

They let out a combined sigh of relief as Starfire released them to join her team, Miss Martian putting a comforting hand on her teammate's shoulder.

"Well if everyone's ready…" Ben nodded at Paradox.

"Good luck, Ben!" Nelliel called.

"I pray everything works out with Soul Society's representative!" Charlotte declared.

"We'll keep an eye on Las Noches," Stark promised.

Lilynette nodded. "We won't let you down!"

Ben, Harribel, the Titans, Urahara, Azmuth, Thorn, and Paradox were bathed in a burst of white light. Once the sudden flare had passed, the spot they had been standing in was completely bare.

"Good luck," Starrk said, still staring at the vacant space. With a sigh he rose from his seat. "Alright, time to go to work."

End of Chapter

-Well, things certainly didn't go the way I had planned. Honestly, this chapter was supposed to focus on both Hueco Mundo AND Ben's time in Karakura Town. Unfortunately, probably due to my wide cast of characters, chapter was getting long enough as is. Luckily the cast of characters will be thinned out soon so future chapters should not drag out like this one did. The next chapter will be where we say goodbye to the Teen Titans.

-All the same, sorry for taking so long to update my chapter. First off, my job had it's ups and downs again. We gained so many workers these past months but started losing them too. Some moved away at the last minute, others were let go due being unreliable, and some people quit after barely working a week.

-Aside from my job, I let myself get caught up in other franchises. Not only was I absorbed in Kamen Rider, Super Sentai, and Ultraman but I also got caught up in the RWBY franchise. I highly recommend the Ben 10/RWBY crossovers byThe Omni-Remnant. And for my fellow Kamen Rider fans, I recommend the Kamen Rider/RWBY crossover known as Rider Time: Zi-O: Roze from Remnant by ZeroEnchilladas.

-BTW, anyone else hear that Rooster Teeth is shutting down. I wonder what the future of RWBY is going to be. I want to see the series actually conclude instead of no ending like many other shows.

-That aside, I've also been focusing more on my original stories. For all my talk about becoming a non-fanfiction writer, I have nothing to show for it. It was time to start making something of myself.

-Being the Tokusatsu fan that I am, I wanted to make my own story about a Kamen Rider-esque super hero. Main issue I'm having is how to make my character be a tribute and homage to the Kamen Riders, especially my favorite V3, without plagiarizing them.

-Also, internet trolls really astound me. I'm sure you all know about how the ones on this site create dummy accounts where they spam flames and tell writers to kill themselves. Even if you blocked one of their accounts, they would create another one and do the whole thing over again. Some of them are even too lazy to do that. For example, some whackjob has been keeping their eye on me and everytime I post a story, they send an anonymous review telling me to kill myself immediately after I post a new chapter or story. Despite the contents of their "reviews" I'm flattered that they devote themselves into giving me so much attention.

-Well that's all I have. I am so sorry this chapter took as long as it did but the newer chapters should not take anywhere near as long. I'll see you all then and take care.