My writing is inspired by visual novels, which generally have BGM. Now I won't add it everywhere, and I hadn't planned to, but I wanted to try once. Of course, it's not necessary you play the track I mention or even read with music for that matter, but if you can, do try it! I've only put in 2 in this chapter, and I HIGHLY recommend listening to the 2nd one from The House in Fata Morgana when that part in the chapter comes. Trust me, it'll make this chapter a lot more amazing.
Chapter 9: Release
Her mind was lost once again in her vast sea of dreams. Like with every other time that she found herself here, more memories of her previous life came flooding in to her mind. This time, a lot more so than ever. Perhaps it was due to her ascension to a more human like state. Or perhaps it was the depth of the trauma her mind felt from the entire ordeal. Truly, she could not tell. She saw images of black, masked beings with red markings around their mask and red, glowing eyes. 'Hollows?' She asked herself. But no. That…sounded wrong. 'Menos?' No. What could they be….ah. Grimm. Yes. THAT's what they were. Grimm.
She was fighting the Grimm. But she wasn't alone. There were 3 others, with her. One, she recognized from the yellow blur that zipped past her, her dear sister Yang Xiao Long, pummeling into a Grimm with the body of two snakes, one black and one white. 'Hehe, I wonder if that one is Sung-sun's relative?' She said to herself, chuckling.
Past her, was the girl in black, with long, black hair, golden eyes with slits like a cat, a black bow adorning her hair. She wore a black scarf, black, low heeled boots with full stockings, black buttoned vest, underneath which was a white sleeveless shirt. Everything about this girl was black. Indeed, that was her first impression about this girl, both when looking at her now and when the memory of their first meeting in the library came back to her. Of course, she was witnessing Blake Belladonna, the silent, mysterious girl who was one of her dearest companions.
And finally, to her right was a pale skinned girl, with snow white hair pulled into a long ponytail to her side, piercing blue eyes, wearing a blue sleeved bolero and a white-blue skirt with patterns of ice crystals stitched into the hem. She was fighting a bear-shaped Grimm, with what appeared to be a rapier. She could've sworn she knew the name of that sword, but what she DID know was that she was looking at none other than Weiss Schnee, her best friend and according to the girl, self-proclaimed rival. Somewhere inside her, seeing this girl reminded her a lot of Grimmjow. The same way how the two were polar opposites in personality and the things they liked and disliked, deep down, she knew that Weiss and herself were probably the same. And just like with Grimmjow, deep down, she considered Weiss to be very dear to her. Perhaps their similarity was what drew Ruby to Grimmjow, despite their polar opposite natures. Perhaps deep down, the feelings of closeness and fondness she held for Weiss were imprinted on her soul, and carried over when she died and was revived as a hollow. Perhaps unconsciously, she saw in Grimmjow the same persona as Weiss, which drew her to him. She thought how interesting it would be should Grimmjow and Weiss meet.
The battle was done, patches of ground still dusty and smoking from the collateral damage. She had regrouped with the others. She could hear Weiss's condescending tone, telling her that she shouldn't have taken that long to finish off 2 Beowolves. She could feel herself sheepishly rubbing her head, while at the same time being squished between the comfortable embrace of Yang as the latter snapped back at Weiss. Blake was just watching the scene as usual, with a shrug. The quiet, mysterious type on the outside but as much dear to Ruby as the rest of her team were, she reminded Ruby of her big-sis. Feelings of warmth, comfort, being at home, being with family all invaded her. Why, Yang and Nel had so much in common, they might as well be counterparts of each other. As she gave in to Yang's 'sisterly love', she felt right back at Harribel's lair, back to those times when she would lie down against Nel or her big-sis as she purred in peaceful sleep, with only peaceful thoughts on her sleeping mind.
Even in that dream-like state, she could feel tears drip down her face. How could she have forgotten them? Even if she was no longer back home, even if she was no longer human, she found it hard to forgive herself that she would simply forget them, leading an easy life with her big-sis and the others. But that wasn't all. More memories came flooding in to her, though not as concrete as her current one. Memories of other people, about the same age as Weiss, Yang and Blake. Memories of a tall, blond haired boy with dark blue eyes throwing up, groggy seemingly after having ridden an aircraft of some sort? 'Vomit boy' she thought to herself. Really? That was his name? Nah, couldn't be. Perhaps to her, that was her first impressions of the guy. She also saw a spunky, short orange haired girl with teal eyes excitedly talking and jumping around another boy with short black hair with a pink streak on the left side, lilac colored eyes and an expression that was a stark contrast to the girl. Feelings of comradery, longing and friendship were the ones that welled up inside her. The names 'Hammer girl' and 'Flowery guy' came to her mind. Ok, at this point, she was sure. Those CANT be their names.
Many other flashes of vomit boy popped up, almost always accompanied by a red haired, green eyed girl with golden attire complete with a circular shield and double-edged short sword. Ah….she told herself. Ruby didn't know why, but looking at this girl made her feel miserable. Her chest felt heavy, as if someone had placed many weights on them. Her throat chocked, her eyes leaking tears even more so now. The scene shifted, distorted, and suddenly she was at the top of a tower, with red looking down on gold, a burning, crimson spike going through gold.
.
.
.
.
PYRRHA!
The new vasto lorde awoke with a jolt. She looked around, frantic to make sense of the scene around her. Shelves filled with parchment and paper. Bottles of liquid holding many of her body parts amongst other things. Shelves filled with various tools and equipment. And in front of her, the face of the last being she wanted to see, especially when she just awoke from another nightmare. He was looking at her with a slightly curious and wondering expression. That knocked her senses right back to where they belonged.
"Hmm…? Did my little kitten have a nightmare? No matter, I'm positive this will make you feel right as rain!" he chirped, that annoying smile back on his face. He wiped away her tears, even as she protested. And then he was gone, leaving her to contemplate about a few things. Firstly, it would seem that she had passed out after he injected his blood onto her. And the restraints were back, albeit this time, they were modified to fit her human like vasto lorde body. Two on her hands, two on her legs around the ankles, immobilizing her to the table just as efficiently as when she was an adjuchas. She could see her tail popping out between her legs. He limbs were now more human like, save for the feet, which were like a hybrid between human feet and her cheetah paws. But beyond these changes, she also felt obvious changes in her power. She felt invigorated, her reaitsu much spiking at levels much beyond than they ever were before. She tried forming a cero, a bala, anything. But nothing happened. It would seem that those were still a no-no unless the pink arrancar wished it otherwise. Just the thought that there were microscopic bugs crawling inside her made her cringe in distaste.
Speaking of the arrancar, he was back, holding something she would have never imagined seeing here of all places. On his arms, was the familiar shape of a rose red and black scythe blade.
"….where did you get that?!" shed asked, her eyes growing wide.
"Oh? It would appear you are familiar with this weapon. How unexpected" he remarked, caressing his hand over the length of the handle.
"Give it back!" she demanded, visibly angry. "It's mine!" Why him, of all the people in this world, why did he be the one to find it, have it. WHY. HIM?!
"Now now, no need to get all riled up, wouldn't want to spoil the moment you know" he sighed. "And here I was planning to surprise you with a gift, to commemorate your ascension to a vasto lorde" She just glared at him.
"I have no use for something this big and inefficient for a weapon, though I did find some interesting things upon analyzing it. As you can see, I've cleaned it up and repaired its cracks and nicks, you really should be thanking me! After I found it lying in the sand, don't you think it was nice of me to keep it safely? Who knows what would've happened to it otherwise" he announced proudly, showing off the gun scythe. Indeed, it looked as good as new. But she only felt disgust from having her precious weapon being handled by this creep. Somehow, she couldn't tolerate him violating her weapon more so than her own body. He then kept it in her arms.
"Well, I hope you like it!" he said with a wide, creepy smile. "I really wish I could modify it, but I really saw no point in doing so. It's not like a hollow needs to or can use that weapon. But…..seeing as how you claim it to be yours, which I honestly find it hard to believe, seeing as how you were an adjuchas till now" he said, adjusting his 'glasses'. "If you ask me nicely for it, I just might be willing to modify it so that you can use it as you are now!" he said with a wide smile, distressing her all the more. She hugged her weapon closer. For some reason, doing that brought her some comfort.
"It clearly looks like a human weapon, for it doesn't have the reaitsu of a zanpakuto or the reaitsu of an arrancar for that matter. The gun on that thing is another giveaway of course. But intriguingly enough, I did find that it could harm spiritual beings. But, looking into this thing would mean abandoning my current research and starting a new project, one which I'm not even sure would pay off in the long run. Which is why, luckily for you, I don't care about it enough to keep it from you." He added. "Oh and don't even bother trying to attack me with that thing. I've already made sure of course, but it cant cut through my hierro. So don't bother. It barely even worked on some Gillians I tested on earlier so something like an arrancar is out of the question"
Ruby tightened the grip on Crescent Rose, with an irritated sigh. So she cant use it to escape after all. Even with Crescent Rose. But she was atleast glad that the mad scientist hadn't meddled with it more than he already had. She was just glad it was back on her arms. She couldn't wait to show it off to big-sis and the others. But as soon as the thought had crossed her mind, she was reminded of the fact that she had been in this hell for god knows how many days with no sign of anyone coming to rescue her. That just got her all depressed again.
"Well now, before we get sidetracked too much" started Szayel "I believe its time we get back to work, hmm?" He approached her, taking away Crescent Rose away from her even as she frantically tried to keep hold of it.
"Come now, this would only be in the way, literally" he sighed. "But, since you've been such a good girl, I'll leave it here, juuust for you" he said in a sing song voice, hanging the scythe by the wall to her right. And then, it began, all over again, just like before.
He started by taking measurements of her new body, making drawings and measuring her reaitsu, comparing results, talking to himself, the usual stuff. She looked away, disturbed. Since when did all this become 'usual stuff'? But surprisingly, he de-gloved himself without inflicting any injury on her. Well, any injury that hurt that is. The mad scientist had still cut off parts from her body such as her hair, fur, nails to measure how long they took to regenerate.
"Tomorrow is going to be a huge day for the both of us, make sure to get plenty of rest, alright my dear little kitten~~" he said in a voice dripping with sweetness, running his face along her face, sniffing her as he did. He was also softly stroking her belly in a soft manner, utterly sickening her. He was playing with her, and she was his plaything.
And as before, she was back to her solitary cell, this time, chained by her neck, arms and legs, left alone for the night (it was night everywhere in Hueco Mundo, but the cycles of being used for experiments for most of the time and getting to rest for a short while made it feel like days and nights were passing), left alone with her thoughts until the torment started anew the next day. How many more days now? She asked herself. And…..did she even want her big-sis to see her like this? Beaten, defiled and depressed? What if she just gave up on her? What if they all couldn't find this place like Szayel mentioned and she was just left to rot here, being his personal plaything for all eternity? No. She would rather kill herself than let things end that way. Perhaps it was time to start looking for ways to do that, or to see if there was any sliver of a chance to escape from this place.
That night, though sleep didn't escape her, her dreams hadn't been pleasant.
BGM: Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni OST - Tatari
The following day, her expectations hadn't betrayed her as she found herself back at the cold operating table, the same familiar glee on the pink arrancar's face there to rue her for her existence. And at this point, she wasn't even disappointed that her big-sis wasn't there. Perhaps they really will never find this place. Or perhaps, even if they do, they can already never go back to those days of peace ever again, not with her body like this. The only solace she had was the image of Crescent Rose hung by the wall next to her, just imagining it back in her arms gave her strength to endure the pain and misery as the pink arrancar started his tests like before by breaking her bones, claws, teeth, toenails and making cuts, burns and other small lacerations throughout her body. With each test, he made observations, recordings comparing them with the previous results and determining the upgrade to her regenerative abilities.
But even without the obnoxious scientist prancing around her explaining each and every detail of the experiment and the results, she could already tell that her regenerative capabilities had increased to become much more efficient. She barely used any reaitsu to heal the injuries he had inflicted. Comparing the numbers, the scientist's smile grew to a wider and wider grin, his hand on his head in disbelief from what he was seeing.
"Ha….haha….ahahahaH….HAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAAAAAHAHA! THIS IS JUST GODDAMN UNBELIEVABLE! HOW ARE THESE NUMBERS EVEN POSSIBLE?!" he yelled in utter delight, throwing his notepad into the air. "Ahhhh~~" he said in an extremely aroused voice. "You are wonderful~~" he said again, caressing her cheek, running his hand over her hair, sniffing her scent, stroking her belly in a seductive and repulsive manner. "My precious little specimen, my sweet little kitten~~" At this point, she didn't even find it in her will to resist in futility. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction that he was getting to her, and she didn't want to be met with despair knowing that her efforts to resist him were futile.
"I would stop for today, but with such numbers, I just cant be bothered to wait until tomorrow. I simply must start the next experiment right away!" he said with delight, immediately organizing his current test results, clearing and sanitizing his tools and preparing new test documents. "Though you still almost have your full spirit energy, it simply wouldn't do until you're at full capacity. I feel bad about wasting this, but soon I'll get something even better, so the tradeoff isn't too bad" He went back to one of the storage containers this time, bringing out another glowing orb. This time however, it was glowing with a dull magenta hue and was only about as big as a pill.
"This is a very special one" he said, showing it to her. "An improved version of the spirit capsule if you will, one that is even more effective in healing reishi and wounds, which means you only need a smaller sized capsule compared to before to heal the same amount of injuries. One that came to fruition thanks to our combined efforts" he said, his smile growing. Ruby didn't like where this was going. "Why, this was made because of you. Made….from you" he said, pointing at a glass jar to her left. Slowly and apprehensively, she turned her head to look. The jar was…..empty. But that's what scared her the most. Because earlier, that was where her eyeballs were stored, from one of the trials of the experiments on her as an adjuchas. Her face twisted in horror and in utter distaste.
"Well, this one actually contains your adjuchas eyes and my reishi" he explained. "The regenerative capabilities of an adjuchas of your level combined with an arrancar's reishi, that is the main principle behind these. Truly magnificent isn't it?!" he said with a deranged grin, forcing the pill into her mouth. She gagged, coughed violently, but the pill was already inside her, restoring that little reishi she had lost from his experiments earlier. She wanted to throw up, she felt as if something vile and putrid pile up in her mouth. Tears welled up in her eyes, with her will giving in to the helplessness and utter absurdity of the situation.
"Now now, don't be like that, my cute little kitten" he said, wiping away her tears. "Now is a time for celebration, for this is when we reach a breakthrough in my research!" He picked up the familiar looking surgical saw, cleaned and ready to be used on her.
End BGM
Flashback end
And her mind snapped back into consciousness, snapped back to the present. Her vision was back, her eyes healed as if nothing had happened. Her limbs had healed completely as well, though with the number of tests and amputations the scientist had done this time, her reaitsu had taken a huge hit. Her new body was also more sensitive to pain and other stimuli, making this entire ordeal much worse than the tests on her as an adjuchas. The anger, bitterness, longing, fear were back. The mad scientist however, was feeling the complete opposite. After comparing and documenting his results, prancing around in delight from how well his 'cute little kitten' exceeded his expectations. This time, he hadn't given her any rest whatsoever, simply continuing to amputate her body parts, store them or sometimes make 'spirit capsules' of them and stowing them. When her reaitsu ran low, she would be force fed a spirit capsule made from other menos or sometimes the ones made from her adjuchas form before repeating the entire cycle all over again.
"I think we'll wrap up for today" he said, putting away his equipment as usual. "I'm particularly excited for tomorrow and I'm sure you'd like what I have planned for tomorrow as well" he said adjusting his glasses.
"You're just gonna cut me up and make medicine out of my body parts again, what's new there" she spat.
"Oh no. No no no. Not at all. I have already performed those experiments on you, and have the data I need. What's the point of repeating something the results of which I already know?" he replied. "Tomorrow, you'll be taking part in a very special experiment. You see, I finally managed to build a prototype garganta portal device. I'm still yet to come up with a good name for it of course, as you can already see" he said, as he was sterilizing his instruments and rearranging his documents and test results. "I presume you do know what a garganta is?"
"…"
"I'll take that as a 'yes'. Normally, only Gillians and arrancars can create gargantas but with my device, just about any menos or hollow or entity can use it to travel in between Hueco Mundo, The World of the Living and even the Soul Society. Imagine being able to move an army of hollows instantly, without any warning into enemy territory. Truly, sometimes my genius surprises even me. It's got that old fool bothering me for some time now, and I thought I might as well work on it, now that I have such an amazing test subject" he said, stroking her. He then proceeded to take her back to her cell, applying the restraints on her arms, legs and neck as usual. Before he could secure the ones on her left leg and right arm, a loud beeping noise interrupted them.
"Tch, summons from Barragan? What does that old fool want now?" he remarked to himself irritated. He put aside what he was doing, going to attend to the beeping noise. The door closed with a click.
She lay there, thinking about the sudden interruption. 'Barragan? As in the king of Hueco Mundo? Right, he did mention that he was in cahoots with the god king' she thought to herself. 'Of course, the god king was the one providing him with hollows for his sick experiments, not to mention the garganta' If he was being summoned, was it for new test subjects to be delivered? Maybe, maybe not. Perhaps it was nothing at all. Regardless, if he WAS going away, this might be her chance to get out of here. She also noticed that there were two lose restraints on her. She could break her confinement, hide and then return to her big-sis. 'But how?' she asked herself. Then it struck her. 'Ah, the garganta! Of course! I could use that!' He did mention he had already set it up for tomorrow. He didn't mention where it led to, but it would either be the world of the living or the soul society. But she didn't care. Anywhere was better than here. She would think about how to get back to Hueco Mundo once she escaped this place. Perhaps she could just wait until a Gillian opened one into the world of the living and then hitch a ride back to Hueco Mundo. But if she landed in the Soul Society, it would be serious trouble. She could get killed or….
Her thoughts were interrupted when the pink arrancar was back, this time his face visibly annoyed. The first she'd seen him with that expression in a long time since she was here. And that, by itself, gave her some satisfaction, some solace that she need not be the only one to suffer in solitude. But he quickly changed his expression to one sporting his usual smile.
"My apologies, but it would seem I have some urgent business to attend to. But worry not! I'll be back before you know it, and we can get back to doing some passionate research together just like always!" he said, closing the door. She waited until the footsteps faded completely and then a good while to ensure that he had left the place. Then, she looked around. In that interruption, he had forgotten to completely restrain her. She began to get to work immediately. The restraints on her left leg and right arm were not secure, but weren't completely lose either. She could wiggle them a bit, but not slip out. Even so, she had endured too much pain for something like this to stop her.
She began pushing and pulling, rotating and wiggling, whatever actions her limbs were capable of doing to loosen herself even just a little bit. The cuffs cut into her deeply, blood dripping below. Time seemed to pass for an eternity but finally, the cuffs had cut into her flesh so much that her right arm and left leg were thin enough for her to slip out. She allowed them to heal, before she used her free hand to sever her other limbs free. She knew she would heal up anyways, so there was no permanent damage. Now, she was free save for the collar on her neck. Once again, now that her arms were free, this was a simple task. Using her claws, biting into the chain and slashing them multiple times, repeatedly, wore them down bit by bit, until they broke. Ruby was finally free.
She went for the door, but was surprised to see that it wasn't locked. Did he forget to, or did he assume that she couldn't escape? In either case, she thanked the gods for her luck. Now she only needed to find the garganta. But she stopped in her tracks and thought about it. Why was she looking for the garganta in the first place? She could just escape from here, and try to find her way back. But that option was too risky. She wasn't sure when he would return. If she ran into him, then she might as well forget about getting any other chances of escaping again. And two, if he had somehow factored the possibility that she would escape, then the garganta was the last place he would look. With her reishi sealed, she really couldn't afford to run into any enemies. But if the garganta landed her in the world of the living, then she could hide for a while till the dust settled and then make her way back. So, the garganta it is. But before she made her way out, she stopped in her tracks once more, returning to the room of her nightmares for one last time. There was something important that she almost forgot. Still hung at the wall, was the comforting sight of her trusty gun-scythe.
"You're never leaving my sight ever again" she said, softly stroking it. But the scythe was too bulky and heavy to carry around like this. As if by some unconscious reflex, her hands worked automatically, neatly folding the scythe into a much smaller, portable form.
"Huh, neat" she smirked to herself.
Giving one last look at the place, her mind was screaming at her to tear down this place, down to its last brick. To somehow wash away the horrors, the nightmares of this place that she would no doubt have. But she restrained herself. If she caused any mayhem here, she would lose more time when Szayel returned. It would immediately give away that something was wrong. She needed all the time she could get, for she knew this place was a labyrinth and she had no idea where the garganta was. Right, time to start looking, she told herself.
Meanwhile, with Tier and her group
Though they knew the way to the god king's place, it still was a long trip. The entire ordeal did nothing but to increase tension in everyone's minds. But now, finally there were here. They could put their minds to ease. Nobody wanted to even remotely think about the possibility that Ruby might not be with the God King. No, things were dim enough already. "Let me handle things", Tier had told the rest of them.
"Halt! Who intrudes upon the territory of King Barragan?!" called out one hammerhead adjuchas. "Wait, isn't that Tier Harribel?!" he exclaimed, causing the other menos in the vicinity to have similar reactions.
"And that's the King of the Menos Forest!" said another.
"That green haired one is bad news too!" said yet another.
"Move" demanded Tier once more. Having no choice, the guards succumbed to the spiritual pressure, letting them all pass.
Many servants and subjects of the god king witnessed as the odd group of the most powerful adjuchas and vasto lorde made their unquestioned way to the God King still sitting in a regal manner atop a flight of stairs upon which sat a bone white throne, his left hand resting on his chin.
"Which fool dares to challenge the King of Hueco Mundo" he demanded, almost bored.
"Enough with the nonsense, Barragan. I'm looking for a red cheetah adjuchas called Ruby Rose. What have you done with her?" demanded Harribel with piercing eyes.
"Tier Harribel eh? I see you're still as insolent as always. What gives you the right to demand anything of me? Your defiance knows no bounds" he thundered.
"Yeah! Show your respects to-"
*cero blast to the face!*
The crimson cero blast emanating from the blue jaguar completely blasted away the upper half of the subject of Barragan who dared provoke Grimmjow, along with a good sizeable portion of the roof. Audible gasps and snarls came from every direction. Sung-sun and Mila-rose sighed.
"Sign, didn't Harribel-sama just say to leave things to her you ass?" cussed Apacci.
"They had it coming, and I'm tired of all this talking out bullshit" he snapped back. "I'm still not sure why we aren't just blasting these weaklings"
"Shush now Grimmjow" chided Nel. "Remember, we don't want any unnecessary conflicts!"
"To be fair, that guy was the one who provoked us first" pointed out Lily.
Barragan was done watching. Not only did these rag-tag group of imbeciles have the audacity to barge into his territory paying him no respect, but they dared to kill one of his subjects right as he was watching. He stood up, ready to respond in kind.
"I shall tolerate your insolence no more, Harribel!" he roared, releasing his spiritual pressure. "Your life and the life of those under you ends today. I have no need of those in my kingdom who refuse to bend to my will!"
Harribel sighed. She had really hoped things wouldn't come to this. She felt a hand on her shoulder.
"Let me handle this, Harri" said Starrk. "I really didn't want to get involved, but things wouldn't have gotten this sticky if I had just done this from the very beginning"
*BZZT!*
Harribel felt a breeze as Starrk whizzed past her, right in front of Barragan, his sword drawn out, pointing at his face.
"What's this?!" exclaimed Barragan, surprised.
"I'll make this simple and quick, old man" he said simply. "Tell us what happened to the red cheetah adjuchas and we can come to a peaceful resolution. Otherwise, you can live with the shame of having your entire kingdom come crashing down" he said, releasing some of his reaitsu.
"Ghhh!" Barragan couldn't believe it, and neither could the surrounding hollows. This reaitsu dwarfed Barragan's spiritual pressure many times over, forcing them to their knees, including the god king.
"Wh…you….dare…!" he growled, still unwilling to give in.
"What'll it be, old man?" asked Starrk again. "Just tell us what we need to know, and we'll be on our way, leaving your precious little kingdom intact"
"Damn….you!" snapped the god king, adamant. Starrk narrowed his eyes, raising his sword.
"Feh, he should've just done that from the beginning" said Lily.
Just as he was about to slice into Barragan's skull, he spoke out. Starrk stopped his sword just a few centimeters away from his skull.
"Fine, if its one lousy adjuchas you want, you can have her" he said, giving in.
"Wasn't that easy?" said Starrk, sheathing his sword. "Well? Spit it out" said Lily.
"She is with an arrancar called Szayalaporro Granz. He is an arrancar scientist who works under me. He mentioned capturing a red cheetah adjuchas a few days back as a test subject for his experiments" replied Barragan.
"A what?!" snapped Lily. "Experiments?! Arrancar?!"
"Well, take us to him old man" demanded Starrk, still maintaining his spiritual pressure on Barragan.
"Euargh..! I cannot! For I know not where he conducts his experiments. But I can summon him here" he replied.
"Then do it already!" demanded Starrk, visibly getting irritate now. Barragan reached for a small device inside his robes, and pressed a button.
"He should be arriving anytime now. You have what you came for, begone!" he said.
"Oh I don't think so Barragan" retorted Tier. "Not until we make sure the little one is with us safe and sound"
"You…..damn….!"
"And there you have it. We'll be right here, waiting however long it takes" said Starrk, going to a nearby pillar, leaning against it.
Meanwhile, nobody present in the throne room were aware that their entire debacle was being observed by a few spectators.
"Well, this is an unexpected turn of events" remarked Gin.
"I never imagined I would see the day where hollows would lead a revolt against the King of Hueco Mundo for the sake of their comrades" remarked Tosen.
"I never expected to find an arrancar that wasn't made with the Hogyouku to be this strong. Not only has he not unleased his zanpakuto, but even in his sealed state, he appears to be holding back" observed Aizen. "And all for the sake of rescuing a single adjuchas. Even at this level, his reaitsu already surpasses many of the captains of the Soul Society. What an interesting turn of events!"
"So what do we do, Captain Aizen?" asked Gin "Should we interfere and take control of the situation? From what I can see, each and every one of the arrancar's companions are exceptionally powerful, even for an adjuchas"
"No, let's wait and see what happens" he replied. And so, the 3 defected captains cloaked in robes that concealed their presence watched from afar, like watching actors on a stage play out a tale.
"While we're waiting, why don't you be so kind as to fill us in on some things" asked Starrk, narrowing her eyes at the God King. "You mentioned an arrancar scientist and him conducting experiments on hollows. What's this about?"
"I care not for such details. All I know is that he approached me one day, offering to provide me with an army with the condition that I provide him with the materials he needed for his work. Those being hollows for his experiments. He swore loyalty to his king like a true subject would unlike some defiant fools"
"Heh, I'll bet he's just using you for his own goals" retorted Lily "If he's an arrancar like us, he could easily take you out at any time"
"Don't tell me you captured Ruby for the sake of being used as a 'test subject'" asked Nel with venom in her voice.
"I know not of the details of his works, and I never needed to. What do I care if he uses some lowly adjuchas if it means I can expand my kingdom and my army?"
"Well, for your case, you better hope she returns safe and sound, old man" threatened Starrk.
Time passed by painfully, with nobody saying anything during the entire time. After what seemed like hours, a certain pink haired arrancar could be seen arriving. All eyes were immediately upon this new arrival, with each one having different thoughts.
"So, this is the bastard who took her" cursed Lily to herself.
"Though he is an arrancar, the difference in strength between him and Starrk is night and day" noticed Nel. She was glad the arrancar accompanied them.
"I am here at your summons, your majesty but I kindly implore you to-" he stopped midway, noticing the tense atmosphere and some new arrivals he had never seen in Barragan's court before, including the pressing reaitsu in the air that felt similar to his own.
"My, what's this? 2 Arrancars, judging from your look, the vasto lorde Tier Harribel, one whom I presume is the king of the menos forest and 4 other adjucha. Might I ask to what do we owe the pleasure, King Barragan" he asked, clearly unaware of the situation. But then he remembered what his cute little kitten had mentioned when he first started experimenting on her. About her rag-tag group of comrades who so very closely matched her description.
"I see, so you're the bunch that the cute little kitten spoke so dearly off" he said with a nasty smile. That was all that was needed. The reaction was instant.
"You bastard, so it was you that took Ruby!" screamed Lily.
"Where is she?!" demanded Nel.
"Oy, can we start blasting him now, huh?!" asked Grimmjow with a voice seeping with impatience.
"I see. So, you're the arrancar scientist. Seems you weren't lying, old man" said Starrk.
*BZZZT!*
Starrk appeared right next to Szayel, sword held to his throat.
"Well, pal? Why don't you be so kind as to take us to her? What do you say?" he demanded.
"And just what makes you think- urgh!"
"Listen bud, you take us to her or we can make sure you never live to abduct another hollow for your games" said Starrk, increasing the pressure on Szayel. His face twisted into a nasty snarl, in humiliation and defeat. Somehow, he managed to regain a bit of his cool.
"Come now, no need to be so tense, I yield. I'm not one for settling things with conflicts" he said, making an effort to smile a bit "Of course, it wouldn't do me any good to die here and one test subject isn't worth the risk of loosing my research. If you'll give me one hour to make preparations, I give my word I'll return her safe and unharmed. How's that sou-"
"Starrk" said Tier, nodding at him and the arrancar once more raised his sword to strike.
"Alright fine! I'll take you to her!" he said, finally giving up in defeat. "If you'll follow me" he said. Blast, this has proven to be quite the annoyance. I'll just have to think of something at the lab. It's preposterous, why are such powerful hollows after one single adjuchas?! That makes no sense! Still, I have the things I need from her. I had hoped to use her for a bit longer, but if its come to this, I have no choice but to go back to looking for more test subjects. Better that than loosing everything I worked so hard to acquire.
Unbeknownst to the lot, the group were also being tailed by 3 hidden Shinigami captains.
Ruby spent several minutes walking around in the huge labyrinth of a complex that the arrancar's base was. She remembered passing by many dimly lit twisting paths, many of which were lined with doors that were mostly locked. The ones that she had come across that weren't locked were empty cells waiting to be filled, or empty storage areas. Just once, she came across a library filled with shelves of books and documents. But now, she was standing in a large underground cavern like area, with two black cylindrical poles stationed a certain distance from each other, with two black spheres hovering over each cylinder. Purple reishi was connecting the cylinder and the sphere. A lot of different equipment, tools, blueprints and other such things were scattered about. Between the who setup, was an almond shaped tear in space, the ends of which were connected to the glowing spheres. Inside the tear, she could see wisps of white reishi swirling in a wild torrent within a pitch-black void. Just gazing at the opening sent shivers down her spine.
This was the garganta? She asked herself doubtfully. But then again, garganta did mean 'throat' which seemed apt in a weird sort of way. There was a platform rising up to the height of the opening of the void, such that one could step inside the void from the top of the platform. This was it then. There was no turning back. Just finding this place had taken her so long during which she hadn't come across anything else resembling an exit or an entrance. This…..was the only way out for her. Her heart sank. In the end, this was how she parted ways with her family. Be right back! was the last thing she had spoken to her big-sis and Tier. She couldn't even remember her last conversation with Grimmjow, Starrk, Lily, Pacci, Sung-sun and Mila-rose. Probably something mundane. Would they have talked about something more memorable, had she known this would happen?
Szayel walked through the winding paths of the labyrinth of a complex that he knew by heart. He'd made it a point that only he could enter and leave as he pleases, and everything else was free to try. Heck, the whole complex itself had been optically camouflaged, surprising the group that now held him under duress when they were staring into thin air when all of a sudden, a huge doorway appeared. And now, they were walking and walking, following non-linear paths consisting of backtracking, taking secret passages and so on.
"Tch, this is where the bastard's been keeping her?" asked Apacci, looking around.
"Why, do you have a problem with that? I've treated my dear little kitten really well you know" he said in a sweet voice., only to be met with a sword to his neck, apart from the one that Starrk was pointing to his back.
"Ooh scary" said the pink arrancar, paying no heed. "But who would've thought that she had such a cute little name like Ruby Rose. Wish I had known that earlier when the two of us were passionately walking the path of science! Aah~~my cute little Ruby~~"
"Fucking Asshole!" growled Grimmjow, taking a swipe a Szayel but stopped by Tier.
"You better have a good reason for stopping me Tier!" he growled.
"We still need him to show us the way!" she said, anger lathered in her words.
"I understand how you feel, Grimmjow" said Nel by his side, her voice shaking. "Just hold it in, for I am too" said Nel with a deathly whisper. He just growled in frustration. Despite his feelings on the matter, they were right. Without this guy to show them around, they would've never even found the place.
As they were passing by a corridor, for some inexplicable reason, Lily felt a chill coming from the dimly lit hallway. Why this particular one, she thought to herself. As if something was calling her, as if she absolutely needed to go there. While the rest tried to move on, she stopped in her tracks. Since she was in the front, the rest saw this and stopped as well, looking at where she was looking.
"What's wrong?" asked Starrk.
"No…I just felt a sudden chill when I looked here" she said. "Like something was calling me, calling us. My instincts are screaming at me to go this way"
"There? There's nothing of interest there for you lot. The adjuchas you're looking for isn't there, but this way. We aren't far off" said Szayel, pointing straight ahead. But Lily was stubborn. She felt like she would really regret it if she didn't heed her instinct.
"No. Starrk. I feel like I'd really regret it if I ignore the chills I'm feeling. Let's go this way" she insisted. Starrk thought for a bit. What were they supposed to do?
"Alright, let's go this way" said Nel, following along with Lily. "I trust in your instincts. Somehow, I feel we should do what you say, for some unexplained reason"
"You too, huh?" remarked Grimmjow. So, it wasn't just her. She felt surer about it now.
"Tch, you just don't believe me, do you? Fine go there if you must. But I'm going this way to where she actually is" said Szayel. He'd hoped that this sudden shift might give him the time to come up with a plan but Starrk's sword pointed at him, urging him to accompany him told otherwise.
She climbed up the platform, gazing directly into the abyss that was the garganta. Guess I just jump in? Was that how it even worked? But if it was a portal, usually one just needed to pass through the portal or enter the portal right? So in this case, jumping in should be fine….right? She hugged crescent rose tight to herself. Even now, as she was looking at the gaping void, her thoughts wavered for just a bit. Perhaps she should wait right here. She looked back at the corridor she came from, the dimly lit hallway calling to her to enter its mound. She felt a shiver, her body telling her to heed the pull she was feeling as she looked back. She kept a step down from the platform, and then another. Her instincts were screaming at her, saying that was the way she should be going. And so, she kept another step towards away from the garganta and towards the hallway.
BGM: The House in Fata Morgana OST - Acherontia Styx
As Starrk, Szayel and the rest made their way through the eerily silent hallway, they could feel the air becoming cooler and cooler. A draft, here? Lily kept walking on, ignoring the many doors and other smaller paths she came across, continuing to go straight ahead. She could practically hear her heartbeat, thump, thump, thump. The feeling in her mind becoming stronger and stronger. The narrow pathway finally opened into a large, open area, a large cavern to be specific. Two cylindrical towers on two sides, with two black spheres hovering over them connected by purple reishi. Many pieces of equipment, blueprints and tools scattered about. There was a platform going up. And at the top of that platform was….
.
.
.
.
.
.
An almond shaped tear in space, its ends connected to the two glowing spheres. Inside the tear, was a pitch black void, with wisps of white smoke like reishi swirling in a mad torrential current. The group stood awestruck at the sight.
"What….is…that..?" asked Lily, shivering. Her breathing became very tense and heavy. Her heart was beating wildly. Something was wrong, very wrong.
"Well, satisfied now? I told you so, there was nothing of interest here. This is just a personal project I was working on, a device to open a garganta that only gillians and arrancars can open. With this anyone can use it" he explained "I know where I left Ruby Rose and it certainly wasn't here. Besides, this device is incomplete and unstable"
"Starrk…" said Lily, shaking. Tears were falling off her face in a constant stream.
"Lilynette..! What's wrong?!" he asked her, surprised. The mood was becoming more and more tense, and dire.
"I don't know why, but something feels really wrong, Starrk! Like we made a huge mistake!" she said, still sobbing and crying. Meanwhile, Grimmjow caught whiff of a very familiar scent. He gasped in utter shock, his eyes wide with shock.
"Grimmjow, what's wrong?!" asked Nel.
"It's….her scent!" he said, gaining their attention "Ruby…she was here!" Grimmjow followed the scent, all the to the platform, climbing it, and finally getting to the top. The rest followed him there. Utter shock and silence followed, with all their eyes as big as tennis balls from the realization.
"Don't tell me….!" Began Nel.
"That's impossible, she couldn't have!" protested Szayel. "I left her chained in her cell! There's no way she could've made her way here! Follow me, and I'll show you!" he insisted
Having no choice, and not wanting to believe what their hearts were telling them, they went along. After just a short ways from their original deviation, they arrived at a cell door, no different than the rest around it. Except…..this one was slightly open.
"It cant be…!" muttered the pink arrancar to himself, opening the door slight.
"!"
Inside, they witnessed the sight of broken restraints and cuffs stained with blood, including the ground around the cuffs.
"No..!" exclaimed Szayel "This is where I kept her!" he insisted.
"WELL WHERE IS SHE THEN?!" roared Mila-rose. Starrk tightened the grip on his sword, slicing into the pink arrancar's neck.
"TIER! NELLIEL! STARRK! GRIMMJOW! EVERYONE, COME HERE AND LOOK, THIS IS….!" Screamed Lilynette from a nearby room. They all rushed into the dreaded room that would haunt both their nightmares as well as Ruby's. In there, they saw a solitary cold, table with equipment, tools, shelves filled with more tools, documents and other sinister looking things. But what caught their eyes more, were the drawings that were throughout the walls and on the shelves. Detailed drawings of the cheetah adjuchas they so frantically searched for till now. But more importantly, the heavy and thick smell of blood didn't escape their noses, not to mention the heavy scent of Ruby that still lingered in the room.
Starrk grabbed the pink arrancar by the neck, sword by his throat.
"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't lop it off right now" he said with a deathly voice.
"BASTARD! WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO TO HER?!" roared Grimmjow.
"Oy…look at this…oh god…..!" trembled Sung-sun. Glass jars and containers, filled with body parts. Eyeballs, paws, parts of limbs, ears. Some were more human looking, while some of them instantly triggered images of Ruby.
"He harvested her…..for body parts…." Said Lilynette in utter horror, covering her mouth. "Over and over…..using her healing as a means to..!"
"Bastard!" snapped Starrk, mercilessly punching into the arrancar's face. Sending him flying into the shelf behind him. Harribel slowly went over the table, over to the containers, running one hand over them in disbelief. She had always considered herself strong. No matter what happened, nothing would shake her. Nothing, not one thing. But even she couldn't imagine the look on her little one's face as she was being carved up, her body parts harvested and stored right in front of her as she healed up.
"This is…..just too much….." whispered Harribel in defeat, kneeling down. Nel simply approached the downed pink arrancar, pointing her spear at his throat. Grimmjow did the same.
"Nelliel, if you aren't planning to finish that fucker off, then piss off and let me do it" growled Grimmjow.
"No. I'll do it myself" proclaimed Nel, thrusting her spear with a death glare on her face.
"That's far enough" said a commanding voice, the entire room hit with a titanic spiritual pressure, forcing them all to their knees. Even Starrk and Lilynette staggered a bit. In came 3 human looking figures, clothed in a dark black cloak.
"Soul reapers….?" Said Starrk surprised. How did they get this close without them noticing?! "What's the meaning of this?"
"Ex-soul reapers. We are the ex-captains of the 3rd, 5th and 9th divisions, currently in a war against the soul society. I'm terribly sorry, but I can't have you killing that arrancar just yet. I so sympathize but his research is much too useful for me to allow you to kill him just yet" said Aizen, taking off his hood, revealing his face.
"Stay out of this, soul reaper! This is our business" snapped Starrk.
"Oh, but it is! As I mentioned, and I hate repeating myself, we are in a war against the soul society, and warring factions need soldiers. I can see that you are all exceptional in that regard. It would be a waste to kill you all here and look elsewhere." He said, adjusting his glasses.
"In….your…dreams…!" growled Grimmjow, barely able to move. Aizen's smile shrunk a bit.
"If this is about your adjuchas companion, it is quite clear what happened here. It doesn't take a bright mind to piece together what happened. After being experimented on, she found an opportunity to escape and unable to tolerate the mental ordeal of being dissected and experimented on, took her own life by leaping into the garganta. That IS what this is for, right?" he asked the pink haired arrancar, holding a small circular device with a display of sorts.
Szayel picked himself up with some effort, still staggering under Aizen's spiritual pressure. "Indeed, I see you have a keen eye. That device was something I used to monitor the adjuchas and her reishi levels through the bugs inside her. They also regulated and restricted her reiatsu. The last spot where the bugs in her were active are in the same coordinates as the garganta I left opened. And they just disappeared 10 minutes ago. If she jumped into the garganta with no reishi to use, regrettably, she is likely dead. I do honestly regret it; she was a wonderful specimen" he said with a weak smile.
"And there you have it" said Aizen calmly. Tier was still in shock, along with Sung-sun, Mila-rose and Apacci. Grimmjow grit his teeth in bitter anger and frustration. Nel defiantly looked at Aizen. Starrk looked away, hurt and Lilynette's tears just continued to flow even more. She had been right there, right in front of them. They missed her by a mere 10 minutes. Had been left earlier, had they made haste, had they know to look for Barragan from the beginning, had they done. ANYTHING...they could have been with her, for her. None of them could even imagine the amount of trauma and torture she went through for her to go to this extreme. Her, of all people. The ever spunky and cheerful member of their family, reduced to such a state.
"That matters not one bit" said Nel, still staring at Aizen. "It doesn't change the fact that we want nothing to do with you or him" she spat.
"You misunderstand me" he replied calmly. "I am not here to force you to do anything. In fact, I have a proposition, one I believe will greatly suit you, especially considering the tragedy and heartache you feel from the loss of your comrade" he continued. "I plan to make Hueco Mundo my base for my war against the soul society, the natural enemies of hollows. With my power, I can make many things possible that you could not foresee on your own. This happened because of the lack of a system, one that guarantees the survival of those under your wing. Allow me to give you a chance, and I promise I shall grant you the power needed so that you will never have to sacrifice another" he said looking at Tier. "never have to lament the loss of your comrade" he said looking at Nel. "never have to be stricken with loneliness because you couldnt protect the one that kept it away" he said, looking at Starrk and Lilynette. "Never have to hold back the will to destroy those that have wronged you" he said, looking at Grimmjow. "Join me, and all this and more will be possible. For exceptional beings such as yourself, I will even guarantee that those under you will be safe and protected from all harm. I have the power to do so, and the ability to grant you that power. Otherwise..." he said, increasing his pressure even more than before. "I can just kill you all right here, when I'm barely exerting myself. It would be too quick, too easy but more importantly, too much of a waste. In fact, I ask not for a pledge of loyalty or an oath, only a chance for me to help you and for you to do the same. If your wish is to take my life at any given point in exchange, I will gladly allow you to do so."
Nobody said anything. It was so unfair, not even given the chance to come to terms with Ruby's fate and now a soul reaper captain appears out of nowhere, forcing them to obey or die.
"Then.." started Nel. "We want his life" she said, looking at Szayel.
"I'm terribly sorry but I can't do that. My life is my own, but the life of another is not mine to grant. Instead, what I can offer is that none who are affiliated with you or the rest of your comrades, shall ever come to harm because of him or because of anything such as what happened with her. And besides…." He said. "Your adjuchas comrade might possibly be still alive"
"What…?!" gasped Lily. "Can she really..?"
"The chances are high. But that wont matter if you deny my generous offer here and die. But should you chose to accept, with my resources, intellect and abilities, even searching for someone lost in the garganta will be made possible. But the same cant be said if you tried looking for her by yourself. So…what will it be?" he asked. Silence followed, with no one saying anything. The answer, though obvious, was not an easy one. What good would it do for all of them to die and allow him, the pink haired arrancar who was the cause of this all to live? If they chose to take the captain's hand, then, they would live another day to settle the score, whenever the opportunity presented itself. If Ruby truly was alive, they would not give up hope, and do whatever it took to look for her, even if it meant aligning themselves with a Shinigami. Nel looked at her comrades, and while they had different reactions, their end decision was the same.
"Alright Shinigami" said Nel. "We accept"
BGM End
Ruby felt nothing but black, black and blacker. She could not even see the hole that she jumped in from anymore. She still didn't know why she changed her mind in the last second, practically leaping into the garganta. All she felt was the torrent of reishi carrying her in the direction it wanted to go, allowing her no leeway to make any movements. She thought she would see something resembling an opening, a crevice, anything by now. Instead, all she felt was the torrential current carrying her, pushing her. She was anxious, scared. She wondered if she made the wrong decision. After what felt like hours, floating and pushed around in the dark, dull, empty void, she could see a faint light, a dim red glow. The closer she approached it, the clearer it became. The light was seeping out of what seemed like cracks in the air. She dove towards it, making a sweeping motion towards the cracks. The air shattered, revealing an opening through which she found herself falling.
Immediately, she felt the pressure on her entire being. The reaitsu of this place felt nothing like Hueco Mundo. It clutched at her chest, her brain, her gut, her heart. She felt nauseated, sick. It was as if she was breathing in some foul, poisonous smog. And yet…she felt something invigorating, something primal rise inside her body. As if the very air in this place was calling to her most primal instincts. As she fell, she could see a sky lit with a dull red hue, rocky, mountainous structures and pools of blood here and there. In some of these rocky structures were what appeared to be blocks, or more specifically, architecture made up of dull green or gray stone. Where was she? She looked below her, and saw solid ground beneath her. I need to slow down..! she thought to herself frantically. She knew it would be pointless to use her reaitsu, seeing as how the arrancar had sealed it off, but she had to try or risk dying. She tried charging a bala in her 'hands' and to her surprise, not only could she make one, but its size and power were much beyond what she was expecting. When she fired it off towards the ground, it slowed her down significantly, much more than she'd expected. The miscalculation caused her to tumble, unable to correct her posture midair.
*Crash!*
She landed with a sick crunch at the solid, rocky ground. Her vision was wavering, her head protesting against her body. She tried to get up, look around to get an idea of where she was.
*stab*
She felt a piercing pain through her chest, seeing a sword run through her heart. And then another, and then another.
*stab* *Schjik* *stab* *shin* *squelch*
One by one, the sounds continued, more and more weapons running though her. She coughed out blood, the ground a bloody puddle and her body made into a pin cushion. She made a weak attempt to look around to see what just happened, but blacked out before she could get her answers.
Ruby gasped, breathing heavily, chocked and put her 'hands' all over her body. There was no trace of any of the injuries. Except…a chain was now dangling from the center of her hollow hole. The starting link of the chain was just connected to the empty space in the center of the hole. The other end of the chain just disappeared into thin air. She tried to pull it, and then, as if disturbed by her pulling motion, the chain rippled, revealing that it actually was much longer than it looked, going all the way to the skies with no end in sight. And just as quickly as it had come, it disappeared again.
"Wh….what is this….?!" She asked herself, shaking the chain. Come to think of it, where was she?
"It's no use" said a deep male voice. Instantly, she turned around to see a large towering well-built middle-aged man with crop cut hair black hair, a rough goatee beard, deep brown eyes and a scar in the shape of slash mark from the top of his forehead to just above his left eyebrow. He was wearing a black hakama with a white coat with a black sheathed katana hung by his belt. From his chest too, was the same chain that she had on her. "Once chained, there is no escape from the torment that awaits you"
"Wh…who are you" she asked, clutching Crescent rose closer to her. "Don't come near me!"
"I have no interest in doing anything to you. If anything, you should thank me for bringing you here after those demons gutted you"
"Demons?!" she exclaimed, confused. She then looked around. She was in an alcove by the side of a cliff of sorts, offering her a view of the scene in front of her in much more precise detail than what she had seen as she was falling. Mountainous, rocky terrain. Dim red sky. Dull green or grey architecture or blocks rising from the ground here and there with pools and rivers of blood. Fires burning here and there. Throughout the landscape, she could see many slouched over humanoid shapes, chained the same way she was, some crawling, some walking with a weak pace, some being eaten, some being rasted and burnt alive, some being chained to nearby walls, some being skewered by what appear to be androgynous featureless shapes holding pitchforks, swords, hatchets, hammers, whips, spiked maces, clubs and all other assortment of weapons. And apart from those, she could make out huge towering beings walking on all fours with elongate skulls and a large piece of armor on one side.
"Well, I'm not sure they're actually called that, but considering where we are, it's an appropriate term" said the man.
"What is this place…..?" she asked slowly.
"Haven't you figured it out? This is Hell of course"
"!"
Didn't see that coming, did you? Hope you like it! Told you didn't I? Things would get dark soon enough. And yes, I plan on changing the entire concept of what 'Hell' in the bleach verse is. I feel the one they show in that movie is 1) Not cannon 2) Too weak to be called Hell. I mean, to me, Hell is something like what Doom or Berserk shows it to be, so obviously those are going to be my references, with my own touch. Also, hope you liked the music cues I threw in this chapter. If you like it, I can keep them for the upcoming chapters.
Response to reviews:
Greer123: Hoh boy, what an understatement that is. This chapter is even worse and possibly not even the worst.
D'nnome: That was kinda the point. To show him as someone you dont just blindly hate, but hate because you can understand him and still hate him.
Momentei: Thanks! Shit's just started. This chapter will certainly prove that. And yeah, that is the REAL way to become a vasto lorde ;)
ultima-owner: As you saw in this chapter, that wasnt even his worst, and he got off easy.
Cyan-snake: Sadly, that didnt mean a thing now to her
The-Killer40513: High speed, yes. But she wont be able to regenerate as much as Ulquiorra. That's not her trait.
fightingchampion: Well, as you saw, she absolutely needs the VL transformation for what's in store for her.
Firewyrm2: Yeah I totally get you man. Even I want to get to that part soon, But worry not. Its coming in a couple of chapters at most. I promise.
TooBad69: It's more human like with only the toes and hands like a hybrid human-cheetah type.