Bleach Fan Fiction ❯ Seeds of Destruction ❯ The Obsidian Queen ( Chapter 9 )

9. Majestic Consort - The Obsidian Queen

Walking footsteps sounded in the snow white room and soon halted a few meters away from the motionless body lying on the center of the immense space.

"On your feet."

Brown eyes wearily blinked open to take in their immediate surroundings. With a questioning look the addressed young man pushed his body off the cold floor and lifted his head to see his father walking up to him in his Shinigami attire. "The hell you've brought me to…?" he growled, sitting now, "What is this place?"

Everything, from the ceiling, the walls and the floor was white and small little windows ran along the border of the ceiling. He understood that he was in a basement of some sort, one of extremely large proportions.

The footsteps sounded again and Isshin approached Ichigo once more without answering, the remains of his captain cloak waving behind him as he did.

Ichigo moved himself on his feet and was about to take a step to turn himself around and look at this surroundings a bit more, when he suddenly felt a wave of dizziness come over him and his breathing become short.

This sensation, even though highly uncomfortable, seemed vaguely familiar to him and he sank to his knees, sweat breaking out from every pore of his body.

"I said on your feet!"

It felt like gravity had increased a hundredfold; moving a muscle proved itself to be excruciatingly agonizing.

"Fuck…! Ichigo gritted his teeth in pain as he fell over on his hands, watching how drops of his sweat fell on the hard floor beneath him. "Why do I feel so weak…?"

The former Captain crossed his arms over his chest and gave Ichigo a disdainful look. "Because you are! Now move yourself on your damned feet!"

"Ngh…" His limbs were trembling as he struggled to move and he found himself gasping for air. "Damn it! Where in Hell are we?!"

A pair of waraji halted right next to the youth's shivering body. Isshin then squatted and smiled goofily, "When Ryuuken brought me here for the first time I spent the first 30 minutes trying to just breathe. That bastard really gave me a run for my money back then, hee-hee…"

"Goddamnit! Dad!" Ichigo spoke through gritted teeth, having reached the limits of his patience, "The fuck is going on?!"

The older man grinned and stood again. "It's time you learned how to control that massive amount of Reiatsu you have."

The younger Kurosaki grunted while he tried to move on his feet once more with more success than the last time. He had managed to bring his right foot flatly on the floor. "Right now I feel like I don't have any…"

Isshin smirked and wiggled his eyebrows wickedly. "Exactly."

"Huh?"

"Your memory seems quite the selective type, boy," he said, eying his son with a smug look on his face.

"Quit with the cryptic talk, old man," Ichigo growled angrily, pushing himself up on his feet now, breathing heavily from the effort. "Where are we?"

"Whoa… Impressive!" the older man exclaimed at his now standing son, "how did you do that?!"

Ichigo's left eye twitched, "I'm so going to kick your ass once I get the hang of this!"

"I'll hold you to that," Isshin said with a chuckle. "Saa," he continued, spreading his arms, "look around you, where have you seen this before?"

Ichigo let his eyes wander over the walls of the room again and then suddenly remembered. "Lethality Stone…"

Isshin smirked, unsheathed his Katana slowly and then slightly bent through his knees. "Seikai desu."

Before Ichigo fully realized it, he saw his father come straight at him, swinging his Zanpakuto in the air.

"The hell…?!" Ichigo jumped out of the way of the Zanpakuto just in time, but received a harsh kick from Isshin's left foot as he twirled around with an impressive demonstration of Captain Level Shunpo.

Isshin watched him hit a wall with a small scowl. "Osoi."

Ichigo fell back to the floor, breathing heavily while blood trickled down in small rivers from his right temple. He slumped down and looked up at his father who was approaching him again. He couldn't move a single muscle and he found it harder and harder to breathe.

"Damn… it…"

"Lethality Stone has the ability to drain one completely of his Reiryoku," Isshin calmly spoke, "even one blessed with an insanely amount like yours. But," he lifted his Zanpakuto in the air while he fixed Ichigo sternly, "that doesn't mean that you're supposed to lie down on the floor like you're doing right now."

A sudden large increase in Spirit Pressure had Ichigo gasp for air and he watched in growing astonishment and slight angst how Isshin's Zanpakuto glowed fiercely in his held up hand.

"Either you figure out how to boost your Reiatsu," Isshin lowered his blade and pointed it at Ichigo.

"Or I may have to kill you… sonny boy."

The damping mug of tea was laid on the low table in front of her and Orihime looked up with an amiable smile.

Tatsuki grinned at her friend, "I need to go freshen up a little, but I'll be right back so we can talk further, alright?" She began to walk out of the living room, "Drink up while it's hot, it's my mother's special blend."

"Okay!" Orihime enthusiastically said, taking the cup in both her hands and bringing it up to her face as Tatsuki left with a content smile.

As soon as the black haired girl was out of sight though, Orihime's smile disappeared and turned into a disgusted scowl. "Tea?" she whispered, "Who the hell in their right mind drinks tea?!" She stood up and walked over to a plant standing in a corner of the room, pouring the content of her cup over it.

"Having fun?"

She twirled around and found her white haired version of Ichigo standing near the window with an amused look on his face.

"You seriously need to get me out of here!" She said to him from between her clenched teeth, "I can't stand doing field work like this!"

Hollow Ichigo grinned at her and reached out to her currently light brown hair. "Whoa there, Hime-sama… we went over this already," he pulled her closer to him and kissed her forehead. "You need to bring Tatsuki into believing that Ichigo is the reason why you allegedly moved away from Karakura so she'll start mistrusting him and even hate him for hurting you."

Hime groaned in annoyance and leant up against him with a slight pout, "Why can't I just kill her?"

He chuckled, "All in due time."

She huffed and turned away from him. "I can't feel him anywhere, you know."

Hollow Ichigo chuckled, stepped up to her and placed his hands on her shoulders to whisper in her right ear. "Just as we planned, ne?"

A malignant grin formed on her rosy lips and her eyes briefly flickered between a brown and dark blue color as she rolled them to her right. "He's so predictable."

He pressed his lips in her neck and slid his hands up her hips. "Don't forget about the invisible shield you've put up. It wavered just now."

Hime smirked and stepped away from him again, "You almost sound as if you care about me, Shirosaki-kun…"

He smirked back, "I'm not going to lie about it; you're an essential asset to me."

She laughed humorlessly and picked up a small figurine out of a showcase to look at it up close. "To you or to Aizen?"

His amber eyes widened a little and he cracked another smile. "You know what his goal is, you know what mine is… and unfortunately you're needed to accomplish both of them."

"Unfortunately?" she echoed with one quirked eyebrow, still not looking at him.

"If it were up to me alone—"

"But it isn't," Hime coldly said, looking at him now with an evil smirk. "Please don't try and woe me like I'm some sort of cheap ho."

Now it was his turn to quirk an eyebrow, a surprised one, yet he soon had his signature grin on his lips again. "You're right." He reached out to her, grabbed her by the nape of her neck and pulled her closer. "You're royalty and equal to me."

Hime lifted her right hand and watched how he lifted his left one. "You made me, we have the same goals." The palms of their hands connected and she looked up at him. "That's the way it's always meant to be. Aizen's plan is just a convenient coincidence. Not the other way around."

He grinned, "Spoken like a true queen."

Hime licked her lips and chuckled. "I can't wait to see our plan become reality."

Hollow Ichigo smirked and his eyes rolled to the corridor behind her. "Remember; always be prepared."

He captured her lips with his briefly before disappearing into a cloud of black smoke just as Tatsuki walked back into the room.

"Were you talking to someone?" she asked, running a hand through her damp hair while she moved herself to the kitchen.

Hime followed her and shook her head, "I was on my cell phone." She placed her empty cup of tea on a nearby counter. "With Ichigo-kun," she then added with a smirk that went unnoticed by the other girl.

"Are you going to meet up with him later on?" Tatsuki asked as she now opened the fridge to find something to make her breakfast with.

"Iye, we are not…" Hime sadly replied, "He says has some things to do. Shinigami related, I think."

Tatsuki frowned slightly at that and looked at her friend. "He didn't want to see you?"

Hime gave her a startled look and quickly shook her head, "No! That's not it, I just think that he can't right now…" Her voice died out and she rolled her eyes to the side, "He's just busy…"

"Orihime…" Tatsuki whispered, standing now, "You've been gone for over a week and he can't spare a few minutes to see you? What kind of a boyfriend who truly loves his girlfriend does that?!"

"Mou ii, Tatsuki-chan!" Hime assured her with an apologizing smile on her face, waving her hands in front of her. "We give each other space like that."

Tatsuki shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest, "Going to the other side of the country is not giving each other space; it's practically putting a relationship on hold!"

"Tatsuki-chan…" Hime sighed with a trembling smile, feeling tears well up in her eyes.

The other girl sighed as she watched her friend's hopeless expression and walked up to her to take her in her arms. "It's not going that well, is it?"

"I don't know what else to do, Tatstuki-chan…" was Hime's teary answer over her shoulder, "I just feel like he's pushing me away."

"Have you guys talked?"

They let go of each other and Hime shook her head, wiping away her tears with the back of her right hand. "I was hoping we could do so in the short time that I'll be here, but I can't find the courage to confront him… it hurts too much."

"I'm going to kill him, I swear I will…" Tatsuki whispered, balling her fists. "Orihime, you don't have to put up with this."

"Arigatou, Tatsuki-chan…" she sniffled and smiled, tucking a strand of her light brown hair behind an ear, "But I shouldn't saddle you with mine and Ichigo-kun's problems like this. It's between the two of us and I know we'll handle it by ourselves."

"Orihime…" Tatsuki whispered with a pained expression. Never did Orihime ask for help, never did she back down from problems, even if they emotionally tore her apart. It was an aspect of her personality that Tatsuki greatly admired, but that she cursed at times as well. She couldn't stand seeing her hurting like she did now, no matter how bravely she underwent her suffering.

"Ne, Tatsuki-chan," Hime then said with a smile, "let's go out to eat, my treat!"

The black haired girl smiled amenably and shook her head slightly, "You don't have to…"

"I want to!" Hime giggled, grabbing her friend by her hand and leading her out of the kitchen again. "I crave for some sweet red bean paste on a bowl of chocolate ice cream with whipped soy bean cream! What do you feel like having, Tatsuki-chan?"

Tatsuki gave a trembling smile while imagining what she had just said and chuckled softly. "I think I'll just have a regular breakfast, heh…"

"Suit yourself," Hime said with a chuckle, putting on her high heels boots now that they were both standing in the income hall. "But you don't know what you'll be missing!"

Tatsuki laughed at that and stepped into her walking shoes before opening the front door. "I think I'll live without knowing, thank you."

They laughed and made their way out of the door, which closed itself behind them, leaving the house empty.

With a small sigh, her body lowered itself into the spring of warm water and she closed her eyes.

"How did the report go?"

Rangiku glanced at Rukia who was sitting on the other side of the pool, running her fingers through a lock of her hair to detangle it. The Vice-Captain placed the palm of her right hand on her forehead and pouted. "The Captain General assigned for the Captain and me to stay put until Captains Ukitake and Kurotsuchi were done analyzing what we came up with so far."

"Did he seem to believe that it could've been Aizen again?"

Rangiku removed the towel she had entered with and threw it on the bank behind her, shaking her head slowly as she sat herself back down in the water. "He didn't tell us anything, but it was clear that this sudden turn of events has greatly shaken him up. Taichou said that if Orihime chose to take Aizen's side, he'd be able to bring all of the Espada back and carry on where he was stopped."

"We'd never be able to stop them a second time," Rukia whispered alarmingly.

Rangiku nodded and stared into the damping water. "We know that… what we don't know is how we're ever supposed to find Orihime."

"Rangiku-san," Rukia spoke, wading towards her, "there might be one possibility."

The blonde woman looked up at her colleague and crossed her arms underneath her chest. "Do you have any leads?"

"Renji and I have one that may lead us to Ichigo, but..." Rukia bit her lower lip and sighed silently, "That's about it."

"Where does it lead to?"

"To Ichigo's allies, the Vaizards."

Rangiku gave her a sceptic stare, "Are you sure they can be trusted?"

"Ichigo trusted them in the past," the younger Shinigami pensively said, "They've helped him a whole lot back then."

"I was not talking about that, Kuchiki-san," Rangiku argued back. "After the battle with Aizen, the Hougyokou was lost and we still haven't figured out who of the two other parties has it."

Rukia shook her head in refute, remembering how much the Vaizards helped and saved not only Ichigo, but both Orihime and the entire physical and metaphysical world as well. "Are you saying they might hold it?"

"I'm only saying that if Aizen still had it, he would've used it by now to create a new army of Arrancars." The Vice-Captain then sighed and leant back against the border of the pool. "And God knows that that would be the end for us all."

Rukia felt a little confused now, there were some things that didn't make any sense. If Aizen still had the Hougyokou, he wouldn't need Orihime, but on the other hand, if he didn't have the Hougyokou, he wouldn't be so stupid to call back his once defeated army with her help. But then, if that was the case—

"Rangiku-san," Rukia said in sudden realisation, "I'm sure Aizen still has the Hougyokou!"
"Eh?" The blonde woman sat herself up again, "How would you know?"

"It all makes sense this way!" She said, "If Aizen asked Orihime to call back his fallen Espada, he wouldn't have the certainty of victory with their previous failure and the fact that Soul Society now knows each one of their specialities and attacks."

Rangiku nodded, now intrigued.

"But," Rukia continued, "If he had the Hougyokou, he would be able to make a new army of unknown Arrancars and still use Orihime to call back the old ones, just so they could wear us out before the true battle begins and he'd be able to create Ou Ken with us out of the way!"

By now Rangiku's eyes were spread wide in shock.

"Plus," Rukia said in a more silent tone, "last time we gained victory with the help of the Vaizard, they were a big force for our side... He could decide to wipe them out first now that he knows of their existence."

"And what if the Vaizards were the ones holding the Hougyokou?" Rangiku asked with renewed scepticism.

"If they had the Hougyokou, wouldn't there be more of them around? Ichigo would've told us if there were, no?" Rukia whispered back, a little uncertain.

Rangiku raised a disbelieving eyebrow.

"Look, Rangiku-san," The black haired girl said with a small sigh, "I personally would prefer the Hougyokou to be in the Vaizard's hands than in Aizen's right now, wouldn't you?"

The other woman nodded now, "I guess you have a point."

Rukia smiled and then turned to go retrieve her towel. "I'll go inform Urahara and Renji about this."

Rangiku nodded consentingly and reached for her own towel behind her, "I'll go speak with the Captain and ask for permission to accompany you and Renji."

"Hai," Rukia then turned after she had clad herself in a loose bathrobe, walking towards the exit of the underground training room.

With a nearly soundless thud the lifeless body of a young woman slumped to the floor in the back of an abandoned, dark alley.

"Innocents and back alleys… when will they ever learn?"

The sound of high heels click-clacking over the wet, concrete ground was then heard as she walked away. Still savouring the taste of her recent meal, she then passed her tongue over her rosy lips and brought her hands up in her long sandy brown hair. She shook it briefly and, as if someone was pouring coloured water on it, her strands turned into the deepest black from the crown of her head all the way to the ends. Also, a straight cut frontal fringe appeared and with an additional shake of her head, loose curls formed in the rest of her hair and her eyes turned from a warm brown to a chilly light blue and grey.

"Finally!" Hime exclaimed with a content sigh as she felt her transparent shield shatter around her.

As soon as she had managed to gobble down her 'breakfast' with Tatsuki, they parted after she had convinced her that she had some personal affairs to attend to and that she'd contact her again later on the day.

"How Orihime ever managed to eat stuff like that is beyond me…" she then whispered with a small shiver and a grimace. She shook her head silently and then disappeared in a cloud of black smoke only to re-appear several meters above the city, overlooking it silently from her sitting position in the sky.

She didn't need to worry about anyone noticing her there as she had already put up a shield to protect herself against the Shinigamis sensing her. Additionally, now that she recovered her true form and given her body its proper nutrition, she could sense the Spiritual Pulses that roamed around the city more clearly and if she concentrated long enough, even could sense his.

She wasn't surprised to find a large concentration of high Reiatsu levels huddled up in one and the same place somewhere in the western part of Karakura. She did notice however a new comer amidst the group, but his Spiritual Pressure level seemed to be negligible and she couldn't recognise to whom it belonged to.

Three little flames appeared to have separated themselves from the group a short while ago and were racing towards the abandoned industrial district.

Hime smirked and jumped onto her feet. "Renji-kun, Rangiku-san and Kuchiki-san… off to see the Vaizards?"

A small door appeared in the invisible shield that surrounded one of the many warehouses in the forlorn district and the three Shinigami walked through, entering the Vaizard's home.

Shinji walked up to them with a small smirk. "We were expecting you."

Renji frowned and cast his colleagues a questioning look. "How so?"

Rukia took a step forward and nodded, "Ichigo's been here?"

"Oh yes, he has," the blonde Vaizard answered, turning away from them and beckoning for the trio to follow him. "He even brought a gift."

"A gift?" Rangiku echoed as they were being led towards a room adjacent to the one they were in.

Shinji nodded, "You'll see what I mean."

They entered a smaller room that was lit up by a yellow glow coming from a rectangular object standing in the centre of it. Hachi was sitting next to it on the floor, apparently concentrating on the shield that he was generating in front of him.

The three Shinigamis approached further, noticing with growing wonder the bed of white flowers the rectangle was resting upon.

"Someone is lying in there," Renji whispered as the glow of the shield lessened the closer they got to it.

"Iya…" Rukia whispered, bringing her hands up to her mouth as she recognised the silhouette of the young woman lying peacefully with her hands clasped together on her chest.

"Orihime-chan…" Rangiku whispered softly. "Why did he bring her here?"

"Ano boke…" Renji spoke with a shake of his head before resting his eyes on Rukia who now kneeled next to her friend's inert body.

Rukia took a shaky breath and closed her eyes. "He must've had a good reason…"

"She needs to be taken to Urahara," Shinji softly said, catching their attention.

"She's already gone…" Rukia softly spoke with her eyes still closed. "Her chain link is completely gone."

Renji kneeled next to her. "That guy is right, though Rukia. She'd be safer with Urahara than here."

"There's nothing Urahara can do!" The younger Shinigami suddenly cried before taking a calming breath and sniffling a little. "There's nothing more we can do about her body," she then added softly as she noticed the pained silence that she had created.

Rangiku placed a hand on the younger woman's right shoulder. "I know this is hard, but it's no time to mix personal affairs with what is going on right now."

Rukia remained silent and averted her eyes from Orihime.

"Did Ichigo say where he was going?" Renji asked Shinji as he now stood again.

Shinji merely shook his head and walked over to Hachi. "There's another reason why we would prefer for you to take her back to Urahara. Hachi?"

The pink haired man nodded, "Ichigo-kun may not have noticed it directly, but her body hadn't reached the rigor mortis phase when he brought her in."

"It hadn't?" Rukia echoed in disbelieve.

"Rigor mortis usually occurs 2 to 4 hours after death, leaving all the muscles of the body rigid and nearly inflexible," Hachi continued, moving to stand now, "In some cases, when death occurred during sleep, for example, rigor mortis can stay out for a day or two."

The blonde Shinigami frowned, "We don't know exactly when she could've died—"

"2 to 3 days ago at the very least," Hachi answered with a small nod.

"Then what prevented her to enter rigor mortis so far?" Renji asked.

Hachi didn't answer but simply raised his right hand and snapped his fingers.

The shield burst apart into a thousand pieces and for a few moments they all looked at the young woman lying there, looking as if she was merely sleeping.

"What did you do?" Rukia asked, approaching Orihime cautiously. "Why—?"

She was silenced by Renji who was fixing Orihime and urged her to look more closely.

Small bubbles of yellow light suddenly began to emerge from Orihime's body until they all floated right above her.

Rukia blinked,"W-what?!"

The small lights then began to disperse, forming the contours of the previous coffin again before filling the holes and enclosing Orihime in a new rectangular shield.

"Be sure, Hachi didn't do anything," Shinji said in response to all the varying expressions of disbelieve and utter astonishment the Shinigamis showed. He then looked at Orihime again. "She's the one carrying the next generation of Kurosakis."

"Nani…?!" All three of them exclaimed.

"I'll leave the technicalities for Hachi to explain," Shinji walked over to the door and was ready to exit, but Rukia suddenly leapt up and ran after him, calling him back.

"It's about Aizen," she said, standing in front of him now. "We think we figured out what his next move will be—"

"So did we," he replied back with a small smirk. "We know that he'll try and come after us this time. We're prepared." He walked off again with that.

"How can I be sure that you're not the one holding the Sphere of Distortion?" Rukia asked after him.

"Because," the blond Vaizard answered, still walking, "you know it all makes sense if we don't!"

"It makes sense if you have it, too!" she replied, "It's a motive for Aizen!"

"Kuchiki-san," he halted in his steps and turned to her a last time, "No matter what Aizen's motive to attack us is doesn't matter, because he has one and he'll come after us whether we have the Hougyokou or not."

"But do you?" Rukia insisted, "Because if you don't, then Aizen has it."

"We don't." Shinji said, "And Aizen doesn't have it either."

Rukia stood there in shock, "H-how would you—?"

"I just do and now you do too," he said and there was a slight tone of irritation in his voice. "I bid you a good afternoon, Kuchiki-san."

With her mind filled with more answerless questions Rukia returned to the room Orihime was lying in and took place next to Renji on the floor. "He says Aizen doesn't have the Hougyokou."

"Oushikuso ne!" Renji exclaimed, "He must be hiding it himself!"

Rukia shook her head, "I don't think he'd be lying."

"Then who has it?" Rangiku wondered. "Maybe it was destroyed?"

"Then why would Aizen have resurfaced?" Rukia said to her, "It all wouldn't make any sense…"

"Most of it doesn't make any sense to me right now," Renji quietly said, turning his head to look at Hachi who silently stood on the other side of the coffin.

"Hachi-san, please explain to us how all of this is possible?" Rangiku asked bringing her attention back on Orihime. "Her body is dead."

"The child was conceived before her death, obviously." He kneeled next to Orihime and passed his right hand through the barrier to brush back a stray strand of hair off her face. "It may be a week or perhaps two old, I'm not sure."

Renji shook his head, "It's only a few days old and it can do all of this already?"

"If Ichigo didn't know she was pregnant, how did you figure?" Rukia wondered.

"The minute Ichigo-kun stepped through my barrier with her lifeless body in his arms; I knew that Orihime wasn't there. We all felt she was gone, but we also noticed a feint Spiritual Pulse emanating from her. That's when we realised that even though her body was deceased, there was still a part of her clinging to a thread of life. We silently agreed to not tell him, partly in the supposition that he knew and partly because we couldn't have him lose control if he didn't.

The first thing I noticed was that her body was well conserved and nowhere near a decomposing status. I immediately placed her in a 3 layer- shield to keep the unborn child alive at whatever the cost and to limit the damages it could've had to endure.

I stayed up most of the night, registering the growing strength of the Spiritual Pulse until I deemed the danger of death passed. And then, this morning, I found out to my surprise that a small hole had been created in the base layer of the shield. The spell I had cast had been weakened increasingly on that spot, as if absorbed progressively."

"You think it fed upon it?" Rukia asked softly.

"Masaka…" Renji whispered in silent awe, "It can sublimate spirit particles and convert them into useable energy?!"

"Shinigamis use the spirit particles that linger in the air in the same way, but I'll admit, in a much slower pace than this…It must be a survival instinct, one passed down from its father, no doubt…" Hachi whispered, putting up a pensive expression. "At this stage of its development, the foetus greatly consists out of Reiryoku. Since its host died, it needed another source to tap energy from in order to survive…"

Rangiku laid her eyes on Orihime again, "So you're saying that it put up a shield around itself the minute it sensed Orihime-chan's death?"

Hachi nodded, "It probably managed to conserve her body for a short while before Ichigo-kun brought it here and I could give the foetus a new source of energy to tap from. However, it won't be able to grow properly if kept in a lifeless environment for too long."

Rukia nodded in understanding. "I see… We need to take her to Urahara in order to save her unborn child."

"Hai desu," Hachi confirmed with another nod.

"What I still don't get," Rangiku whispered as they now stood, "is when."

Renji turned his head to her. "When what?"

"When they conceived it," Rukia answered, watching how Hachi destroyed the barrier and invoked a new protective orb around the area of Orihime's lower belly. "I think I know."

"You do?" the redheaded Shinigami asked, raising one suspicious eyebrow.

Rukia nodded, "He said he dreamt of her a few days ago."

"It wasn't a dream?" Rangiku asked.

"I think she really came to him," the young Shinigami whispered with a loving smile as Renji bent over and scooped Orihime up from her bed of flowers and into his arms. "To say goodbye."

"That's where I recognise her," the blonde woman spoke with a soft smile.

They bid Hachi goodbye and left the Vaizard's lair to return to the Urahara Shoten to report this new turn of events.

Soon, after the three Shinigami left, Shinji walked out of the hangar. He had told his companions that he needed some fresh air to think.

The reality, however, was that he had sensed a familiar presence earlier on when he had been talking to Rukia in the large entrance room. It had been faint, but it had been there without a doubt.

He now walked up until the outer barrier and halted, hands dug deeply into his pockets.

"I know you're there."

The wind blew softly and no movement could be witnessed from behind the shield, everything seemed to be completely calm. There was no sign of anybody being out there.

"You've been here ever since they arrived; don't you think it's time you showed yourself?"

A soft chuckle carried onto the passing breeze and Shinji now fixed his eyes up to the roofs of the surrounding buildings. Her silhouette was clearly recognisable from afar as she sat comfortably on top of a hangar's façade.

"Ohisashiburi ja ne, Hirako-kun," she whispered, crossing her arms underneath her large bosom and smirking wickedly. "Ogenki?"

"Just fine, thank you for asking," he replied with a slight nod of his head. "I like your new hair style."

Hime jumped off the roof and landed gracefully on her high heeled feet. "Ah well, it comes with the new post." She stood up right again and threw her long locks back so she could begin to walk in his direction.

"As the Queen of Arrancars?" Shinji said with a slightly derisive tone of voice. "Come on, you can do better than that."

The smile she had been wearing faded away a little, "You sure do talk big for a guy who's about to witness the extinction of his race."

Shinji chuckled her comment away, "What is it you came here for exactly, little Arrancar Queen?"

Hime now stood right in front of the barrier and lifted her right hand to touch it with her index, finding that the second she touched it a small electric discharge kept her from having any further contact with it. "What's this?" She asked with a small smile, eying him mockingly. "The security seems to have tightened around here, ne? Have the mighty Vaizards run scared?"

The blonde Vaizard didn't react and only stared at her, waiting for his previous question to be answered.

She pursed her lips and turned away from him with an amused giggle. "I figured that, since I was headed this way, I could pass by and greet you peeps, see your faces a last time."

"So you have chosen to become Aizen's puppet after all…" Shinji turned away from her as well and was ready to walk back inside the hangar. "But don't worry, Orihime-chan," he looked at her a last time, "there are many forces working to get you free."

She gritted her teeth at that and growled, "You're going to let me go after them?"

"What do you want me to do?" Shinji spoke calmly, hauling his shoulders. He did not plan to go into her forms of provocation. "I'm not your conscience and I'm not planning on telling a queen what to do or not. No matter how indecisive she is."

"What are you saying?" Hime spoke from between her teeth, eying him with cool anger.

Shinji grinned his teeth bare. "I'm saying that there's still hope."

She blinked at that, her scowl suddenly disappearing. Words and images suddenly filled her head.

"You just forgot about it."

"Nani…?"

Shinji only smirked as she took hold of her head.

"What are you doing?!" she cried, taking shaky steps back and whining in the process. "Stop it! Stay out of my mind!"

She then disappeared in black smoke, her tormented cries echoing on.

The blond Vaizard looked up at the sky and sighed silently. "You must remember, Orihime, you're our only hope right now."

A scream resounded in the darkness and she fell on her knees. Her eyes then opened and she whimpered silently at the biting cold.

"Orihime…I hope you can hear me."

Orihime twirled around at the sound of the voice, not knowing from where it was coming from. She recognised it, but the proprietor was no where to be found. Why was everything so dark?

"Please help me!" She cried, clasping her hands over her ears as her own voice echoed back loudly.

"Remember Orihime, remember what you forgot."

"I forgot?" she whispered, taking an unsure step forwards, "Forgot what…?"

"That you, Orihime-chan, hold the world in your hands…"

She now stood in a large, white room with a sole, barred window high up against the ceiling. A comfy looking couch with plush pillows stood next to her on her left and a tray with untouched food waited right from her. Her body was clad in a white Arrancar outfit and her hair was brown again. She turned away from the wall and gasped as she recognised the room Aizen had used to keep her imprisoned in, before Ichigo came and saved her.

"Surprisingly, it looks good on you."

She directed her herself towards the entrance of the room and found to her grand surprise Ulquiorra standing there.

What? Wait, but this happened already! How is this possible?!

"When did you get here?!"

The fourth Espada only fixed her with a closed expression on his face. "Just now. Please cease your idle banter. There is news."

No! Why is this happening all over again?! Why am I here?!

Although she knew she had lived this scene before, it was as if she was trapped in her own body, listening to that conversation again that had silently given her hope when she had felt like the shadows of Hueco Mundo had already swallowed her whole.

"Your nakama have invaded Hueco Mundo."

Orihime remembered how she hadn't wanted to believe it; how she hadn't dared to even imagine it then. There was nothing that had given her a reason to believe that she would mean that much to any of them.

"Why…?" She was beyond surprised to hear her guardian imply the word 'nakama' in his sentence, not understanding why he would even think that the bond she and the others had was that solid. Surely, Ichigo and the others probably received orders from Soul Society to bring her back as a traitor.

Why else?

"Why, you ask?" Ulquiorra calmly questioned, eying her intently. "To rescue you."

To rescue me…

For some reason, after he had said that, an ardent shame took hold of her and she only had been able of repeating his words in disbelieve. They were coming to save her; they were willing to die to bring her back… and she willingly turned her back away from them.

Despite feeling that bad…I remember… how grounded I felt then… How I felt like I could endure anything knowing that they cared that much…

"To them no other reason is necessary."

No other reason… Ichigo had no other reason… He gave his life for mine… His power of compassion and his trust lay entirely in my hands.

The scene around her faded and she found herself in standing in a glowing green field. The sky above her was of the clearest blue without a single cloud in sight. She twirled around as she recognised the place as her interior world and was about to call out for her brother Sora when she suddenly stood face to face with an entirely black version of herself.

She cried out in horror and surprise and fell backwards, staring with angst up to this creature that looked down on her with amber eyes.

An abnormally long arm then shot out to her and clasped itself around her throat, lifting her up and holding her suspended in the air. Orihime gasped for air as she looked at her attacker, closing her trembling hands around the wrist that held her. She couldn't seem to look away from her cold eyes, whimpering in pain as she felt the grip on her throat tighten itself.

"Give it to me," the creature said, its voice sounding like a mixture of different ones smashed together.

Orihime gasped, "Where is Sora-nii?"

The grip on her throat intensified itself a little more and she cried out in pain.

"Don't play these games with me, stupid bitch, where is it?!"

Orihime gritted her teeth and rested her one opened eye on her defiantly. "I… don't know what you're talking about."

The creature chuckled and threw her onto the grass harshly. "Fine, then we'll do it this way."

Orihime watched, while coughing her lungs free, how the Hollow lifted her hands and how her nails began to grow. She began to back away from her, even though she knew she'd never get away this way.

"The Hougyokou, if you please, princess."

Orihime crawled backwards away from her, shaking her head. "I don't have it!"

Hollow Orihime smirked and threw her right hand towards her as if handling a whip. Her nails elongated and Orihime managed to roll away from them in time.

She scowled at her assailer and began to stand on her feet. "Why would you think that I have it?! I don't!"

A malignant chuckle was then heard and the Hollow drew her nails back. "Then I guess they made you forget."

"Forget?" Orihime echoed, taking a cautious step back.

Hime took a step closer and threw her hair back. "Come on... remember it... Aizen-sama showed you the Hougyokou solely in that purpose. He knew you'd try and deny its existence the moment you had the chance."

"What are you talking about...?" the other young woman whispered, shaking her head. "He showed me the Hougyokou out of good faith—"

Hime broke out in laughter at that. "My, my... so naive. Aizen-sama knew that if you managed to erase the Hougyokou, you'd be able bring it back in its original state, fully awakened, that is."

Orihime blinked now, realisation dawning upon her.

"Demo, that last part of his plan failed to be accomplished. You erased the Hougyokou, but were never able to bring it back because Soul Society managed to destroy Aizen-sama's Espada and overthrow Hueco Mundo, causing you to get saved during your friends' second rescue mission. Honestly said, I must say that that was a miscalculation from Aizen-sama's part, but somehow the hazard brought you back into the palms of his hands.

I suspect that it was the Commander General who modified your memory when you spoke with him about erasing the Hougyokou. I guess that by doing so, the old fart hoped to have the Hougyokou forgotten for eternity.

If Shirosaki never infected you with his hollow essence, I don't think we'd be having this conversation, let alone be talking about Aizen-sama."

Orihime sank through her knees now, understanding all that was at stake. "Sou na... Minna... it was all in vain...?"

Hime chuckled, "Of course not, princess. Everything you and your friends fought for led to this! And you should be proud, Orihime! Aizen-sama couldn't have risen from the ashes without you!"

"No!" Orihime whimpered, looking up at her alter ego. "I won't let him...! I can't!"

"Oh..." Hime whispered with played concern. "I'm afraid you won't have a choice, as it is now, I'm the one who controls your Reitai, remember? How did you like my little acting with Tatsuki-chan earlier?"

The brunette gritted her teeth and shot her an angry stare. "I won't let you have control over my soul any longer!"

Ichigo's life and the sake of the world lie entirely in my hands…!

Hime laughed openly now. "Dame da yo! You're no match for me, little princess! I was created from Ichigo Kurosaki's Hollow and I possess all of your abilities."

A black projectile then suddenly appeared next to her and she grinned. "All I need to do now is keep you busy long enough so I'm not bothered by you."

Orihime gasped and called her Santen Kesshun as the projectile was launched at her. The impact was heavy and she had a hard time keeping herself grounded, her knees shaking.

The Hollow giggled at this and spread her arms. "Tsubaki, Hanshoku!"

With growing horror Orihime witnessed how the projectile suddenly began to multiply over and over. She gulped and ordered for her shield to form a protective bubble all around her, ready to withstand the upcoming assault.

I'm the one who knows how to bring the Hougyokou back… I remember now…

Hime sneered at that and simply gave a small movement of hand as an attacking command.

Sweat trickled down the side of Orihime's face as she looked at the large, black swarm headed her way. She steadied herself and closed her eyes, letting the darkness swallow her whole.

Ichigo... onegai, wait for me.

The clouds had quickly drawn together in a compact grey mass again, the clear sky of earlier now gone.

Rukia had her eyes on Orihime who was still lying in Renji's arms as they sped their way towards Urahara's Shoten. It still felt like a surrealistic dream to see her like that. Her mind continuously needed to be reminded that her friend was gone and not just sleeping.

Rangiku silently watched Rukia from the corner of her eyes and sighed softly. She remembered how, five months ago, she and Orihime had celebrated the fact that Ichigo had finally made his move towards her. They had eaten so many sweets then, that they both had had stomach aches for two consecutive days. The young woman had reminded her of herself in a way. Her unwavering optimism and her sweet naïveté had brought her back to the days when she last felt like she truly mattered to someone. She had wished for her friend to have nothing but happiness with Ichigo and had silently prayed for her to never experience the pain and loneliness a broken heart could procure... No one deserved suffering of that kind. No valuable reason justified it either.

Realising that her mind drifted towards one particular person again, Rangiku shook her head and grunted, bringing her focus back on synchronising her flash steps with Renji and Rukia.

"There you guys are! I was looking for you all over!"

The trio suddenly stopped in mid-air, having felt a hostile presence looming around them.

"I wonder where you're headed in such a hurry..."

Rangiku took a sharp intake of breath and began looking around frantically. "It's her!" she whispered to her companions.

Rukia looked around alarmingly. "Orihime?"

"Iya," Renji whispered, tightening his hold on Orihime's body. "Much worse."

A soft giggle could then be heard and Hime appeared, descending from a black cloud that had materialized itself in front of them. "Hi everybody, ogenki?"

"What do you want, Orihime?" Rangiku spoke, taking a step forwards with one hand on her Haineko.

"Please, I've rejected that name already," she chuckled, waving her hand in front of her, "Call me Hime, it sounds more majestic."

Rukia stepped up next to Rangiku. "We have no business with you."

Hime chuckled and sat herself in the air, crossing her legs one over the other. "So? That doesn't mean I can't have fun with you guys." She tilted her head to side to look behind the two female Shinigami. "Ne, Renji-kun? Watcha hiding back there?"

Rukia unsheathed her Zanpakuto and pointed it at her. "That's none of your business."

"Oh?" Hime grinned, "Would you really attack me, Rukia-san? I thought we were friends?"

"I was friends with Orihime, not with you!" Rukia whispered back, squinting her eyes in growing anger. "You stole her away from us!"

"Hmm..." Hime pouted slightly and crossed her arms over her chest unhappily. "It was to be expected; even Ichigo-kun didn't hesitate to attack me last time." She then hauled her shoulders, "he was lucky I wasn't allowed to kill him then no matter how much he pissed me off. But I can't say the same about you guys, I'm allowed to kill you if I feel like it."

Rukia growled and took in a defensive battle pose, "You bitch..."

A grin cracked on Hime's lips and suddenly she disappeared, only to appear behind them again. "Whoa, you guys found my body!"

All three of them jumped away from her, Renji still holding Orihime's body protectively in his arms. "Yeah, so what of it?" he defiantly asked.

She only shrugged, "Nothing, it's but a corpse now anyway, right? But then again," she continued, putting up a pensive expression, "why go through so much trouble to just retrieve a corpse? Hmm..."

"Why go through so much trouble to just kill Ichigo?" Rangiku retorted, remembering her last encounter with Orihime the day before.

Hime grinned, "Because its fun!"

Rukia sneered at that, "Oh really? Isn't it just because Shirosaki and Aizen are playing you in the palm of their hands?"

"Watch your words, Rukia-chan..." she threateningly said, her smile now gone.

"Don't tell me you think that you matter to them?" Renji added with a disdainful chuckle. "You're nothing but a tool to them so they can get what they want."

"I mean seriously," Rangiku said in turn, "You look nice with your black hair and all, but let's be honest: What are the chances you'll be kept in their team with a commanding position? All you can do is heal and reverse time."

By now Hime had an infuriated look in her cold eyes and her Spiritual Pressure began to rise, electric sparks now revolving around her. "You guys will regret your words... Tsubaki!"

The black projectile appeared next to her and immediately launched itself in their direction.

"Now!" Rangiku cried and she and Rukia jumped behind Renji just in time.

"What...?" Hime watched how a large shield suddenly appeared in front of the redheaded Shinigami and Tsubaki bounced off against it. "How?!"

Rangiku took out Haineko and disappeared from behind Renji to appear right in front of the still baffled Hime with her sword raised high above her. "Are you sure you want to know?" she then brought her Zanpakuto down with swift strike, but didn't count on her to disappear again; consequently making her hit nothing but air.

Hime had appeared behind an unsuspecting Rukia now and chuckled, "Not really, but I guess that this," with her right hand she stabbed Rukia in the back, laughing at the shocked expressions of all the bystanders as her sharp nails came out of the Shinigami's stomach before withdrawing them quickly, "should be a good enough answer."

"RUKIA!" Renji hollered as he watched her fall to the ground ten meters below. He wanted to go after her, but suddenly found himself face to face with Hime's grinning face. A surprisingly strong hand then closed around his throat.

"Renji!" Rangiku cried and wanted to go to his aide, but suddenly found herself trapped in an orb-formed shield, unable to approach any further. "No!"

Hime grinned at her and lowered her left hand she had raised in her direction before looking at the male in front of her once more. "Please send Ichigo this message," she loudly spoke for Rangiku to hear as well, "and if you can't find him, just ask Uryuu about his father's secret training spot."

"What's the message...?" Renji hoarsely whispered, not wanting to let go of the body he still held in his arms.

Hime let go of him and before he even realised, blood was gushing out of a horizontal cut in his throat. She watched with a cold expression how his eyes went blank and he began to fall backwards towards the surface of the earth. She then turned to Rangiku who was hitting the barrier she was in with everything she had.

"Tell him," Hime emotionlessly said, face covered in little specks of blood, "that Orihime's time is running out and that by the end of the day another one of his friends will be dead."

She then disappeared and the orb burst apart, releasing Rangiku.

"Kuchiki-san, Renji!" She cried, taking out the emitter she kept hidden in the left fowl of her kimono. "Taichou! Please send Urahara-san over to my current position, we've been attacked and there are some serious injuries!"

Nothing but static came out of the small device and she tried again, but no answer whatsoever reached her.

"No! That barrier interfered with the frequency of the emitter?!"

She descended to the ground to where Rukia and Renji had fallen, now confronted with a cruel choice.

Who would she take back first?

"Looks like you could use some help, Matsumoto?"

She noticed a Jigokuchou fluttering by her and she twirled around only to be blinded by a bright light coming from a Senkaimon that had materialized itself behind her. The light lost in brightness a little as the gate began closed itself and she gasped.

"Ikakku?! Shuhei?!"

-Ano Boke: That idiot

-Arigatou: Thank you

-Dame da: Stop it

-Demo: But

-Hai: Yes

-Iya/Iye: No

-Jigokuchou: Hell Butterfly

-Masaka: Impossible

-Minna: Everyone

-Mou ii: It's alright

-Nani: What?

-Ne: an Interjection that can be loosely translated in English as `So', `Well', `And?', `Hey' or `No?', depending on its position in the phrase

-Ogenki: How are you?

-Ohisashiburi (ja ne): Long time no see

-Onegai: Please

-Osoi: (Too) Slow

-Oushikuso: Bullshit

-Saa: In informal speech, it can be translated as 'come now'

-Sekai desu: That's correct

-Senkaimon: World Piercing Gates

-Sou nai: No way

Fun Facts

facts.

I never really realised it before, but in both the anime and the manga, they speak about something that is called Reiryoku (Spiritual Energy). Up until a few days ago I simply thought it was the same thing as Reiatsu (Spiritual Pressure), boy was I wrong.

I searched for the difference between the two and my quest surprisingly proved itself to be longsome and difficult, because I could not find a satisfying answer to my question. I finally managed to find a forum post on a site and it gave me this response:

Reiatsu ("Spirit pressure"): The energy in a soul that can be used to attack. The amount of reiatsu a soul has is linked with the soul's spiritual awareness, and the strength of its resolve. As long as the reiatsu and reiryoku of a soul remain strong, the soul will have a constant wave of strength. Reiatsu can become a shield to deflect attacks from the enemy if the defender's reiatsu is much larger than the attacker's.

Reiryoku ("Spirit Power"): The power obtained when you become a spirit. It is possible to be born with reiryoku.

Excerpts taken from Bleach Ban Forums - Bleach Terms

At first glance, the Reiryoku explanation did not give me a satiable answer, but when I analysed the Reiatsu explanation, I realised that Reiryoku can also be translated as Spiritual Awareness and/or Energy and/or Strength. And yet, I still found it difficult to understand the difference and that's when I suddenly remembered episode 117, where I recalled hearing Rukia say that due to her stay in the Tower of Repentance, she lost her Reiryoku and therefore couldn't sense Spiritual Pressure (Reiatsu) from afar.

It then made sense to me, after having read the (underlined) explanation for Reiatsu again, why she lost her battle strength.

Do you remember the explanation I gave for the Saketsu and the Hakusui? I wonder, if the Saketsu is the boost for Spiritual Strength, then the Hakusui is where Reiryoku comes from, right?

Does that make any sense?

Does anything from the above make sense?

I just hope I didn't mess you guys up with my use of those terms in this chapter!

(story) facts.

Orihime/Hime?

You guys may have noticed that I use both 'Orihime' and 'Hime' to depict that fair-chested beauty we all know and love. Just so everyone gets it for once and for all; when I use 'Hime' in narrating speech, it refers to the Hollow. 'Orihime' refers to the perky and fun-loving girl. I hope everyone gets it now…

About Shinji

Do you guys remember episode 123, in which Shinji forced Ichigo into his interior world to battle his Hollow? Well, I kind of did the same thing here with Orihime and added my personal touch to it. Also, the anime inspired me to give Shinji a little bit of precognitive abilities, explaining why he knew about Orihime and the Hougyokou.

About the title: Obsidian Queen

Hollow Orihime's appearance in the interior world scene gave me the inspiration for that. I wanted her true self to be a completely black creature, like you sometimes see those sculptures in dark marble with light eyes. No need to explain why I wanted her in black, ne?

Also, I kinda liked to explore her sense of insecurity a little in this chapter; it foreshadows the things to come…

It's been exactly 1 month and 6 days that I updated, I know, but honestly, I don't want to keep apologising for being so late, I would like to have a life next to writing too, without implying that I don't care about you guys out there! I prefer to take my time and deliver a product of good quality than to do things quickly and with poor results.

The story has many, MANY sub-plots and I need to take care of each one of them with extreme care or the final result won't be what I have in mind (I know exactly how this story will end).

So, thank you for being patient and wonderful readers and reviewers, it's an author's pleasure to write for an audience like you!

And oh yeah… I almost forgot. I was pleasantly surprised to find another Belgian out there who likes Bleach and Ichi/Hime as much as I do. A shout-out to you, dear compatriot, let me flaunt with my Dutch. (LOL)

Ik hoop dat je ervan genoten hebt, hé? Ik zal proberen om nog een Ichi/Hime te schrijven, waarschijnlijk een one-shot of zoiets. Laat maar iets weten, ok?

Upcoming Chapter:10. Genesis - Return to Innocence (Rebirth)

To be continued...

BDP