Adult-FanFiction.org : Bleach

Prize of Victory 2
By : NovaAlexandria
Category: Bleach > General
Views: 56251 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 5
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach nor make a profit from this story
Chapter List
- 38
- 39
- 40
A Series of Unfortunate Events

Karin walked down the hallway that led to Mushi�s cell while Tatsuki, Rangiku and Soi Fon wrapped up their respective checkups. Part of her hoped that what she was about to attempt would work. They had no guarantee Mushi understood her words any more than an untrained dog might. The other, probably saner part of her, the part that didn�t like trouble or drawing unneeded attention, hoped it didn�t. The bet she was about to make was a dangerous one, but it was a risk she had to take. There was no help for it.

Time was running out on a lot of different fronts. The Realms were going to start destabilizing again, with the vastly reduced number of Shinigami distracted by the Swarm. Unable to perform their duties, the balance of souls was once again out-of-kilter. Then there was Aizen and his efforts to tighten the noose around the Espada and their �pets,� forcing them to jump through the hoops of his choosing in whatever twisted manner he wanted. Szayel had once confessed to her his fear that Aizen was taking an interest in his children, but before this incident it had only been that, a fear. Now Aizen had finally seen fit to raise his hand to Szayel�s son. He had done so with the sole intent of manipulating Szayel into his �playroom,� but Karin had no doubt that had Szayel not fallen into Aizen�s trap, that �Kami-sama� would have punished Abisara.

Aizen had grown impatient as the years passed and Unohana remained barren. There were rumours going around that he had been seen searching the Seireitei�s archive, combing through the histories of the Noble Houses to try and find any hint of Royal Blood that might still be here. That put Hana at risk. Aizen already knew Shunsui was Hana�s father and, like all the great Noble Houses, the Kyoraku line was descended from the Royal line. Just because Szayel had told Aizen there was nothing odd about Hana�s blood when she was still a child didn�t mean that the hidden markers might not activate now that she was older and coming into her abilities. Aizen just might decide to check himself and Karin knew that would not end well.

She made sure to turn the recording equipment off before entering Mushi�s pen. The scarab twittered happily and she couldn�t help but smile as she placed her hand on the insect�s head.

�Mushi, I need you to do something for me, if you can,� she whispered, resting her forehead against the exoskeleton that covered the scarab�s head.

Mushi stopped her twittering, but Karin didn�t know if it was because she was listening or because Karin had brought their heads into contact. She hoped it was for the former reason and continued with the speech she had worked out on her way here.

�There was a General once, who told me who and what I was. I want to speak to him, alone. There is a clearing outside the city, one created by two fighting Espada, which my mate uses as a training ground. I want to speak to that General, just the two of us. Can you relay that information? Does your ability to communicate reach that far?� she asked.

Mushi chattered and chirped softly, but Karin wasn�t certain if it was an affirmation or just a pleased greeting. Still, she had to try.

�I will be there when the sun is at its zenith for a while. If possible, get him to meet me then. If not, ask him to leave a message of some sort and I will try to arrange another time. I am connected to my mate more strongly than even you are to your companions. If he doesn�t come alone or if he tries something, I will fight, and my mate will end his life. This is the only chance I am giving you guys to talk to me, to try and convince me to do what you want.�

She let out a deep breath and took a step back and hoped that if the message did get through, that everything would work out. This was a dangerous path she was about to take and Grimmjow would do more than tan her hide if he found out what she had planned.

Mushi let out a twitter of disappointment and Karin couldn�t help but to pat her head twice before turning and leaving, making sure to turn the recording equipment back on. Soi Fon waited for her in the main entranceway and the two women started on the return journey to Ukitake�s Estate in silence, each lost in their own thoughts.

�It�s such a beautiful day today, wouldn�t you agree?� a smooth voice called out, taking them both by surprise.

Karin and Soi Fon whirled to see a smiling Yumichika flowing towards them, his silks rippling after him like waves in a ship�s wake. She often wondered how anyone, let alone a man, could walk with such grace and yet Yumichika not only did so, but made it look effortless. She almost envied him the ability.

�It is a nice day,� Karin agreed, returning his smile.

Beside her, Soi Fon tensed before giving Yumichika a hopeful look. Barragan had forbidden Ggio from having anything to do with her, so any communications between the two separated lovers had to come from a third party. As Barragan kept Ggio locked in a kennel except when performing his assigned duties, as punishment for a perceived lapse in loyalty towards the Espada he�d once faithfully served, Yumichika was the only person capable of assisting the two.

Soi Fon continued to stare beseechingly at Yumichika, obviously waiting for any news he might have about Ggio. They had all tried to catch sight of him during battles, but Aizen rarely deployed Barragan and his contingent close to her household and since Soi Fon was now part of Starrk�s household, she usually fought with Karin and her squad.

Yumichika�s presence might actually work in her favour today. Karin needed to see if her message to Mushi got through and she doubted Soi Fon and Yumichika would want her about for what ought to remain a private conversation. This was the perfect opportunity to slip away without having to provide a weak excuse.

�I have things I need to take care of in the next few hours. Would you mind escorting Soi Fon home for me, Yumichika-san?� she inquired.

�I would be honoured to,� he replied with a bow and a flourish of his hand.

�Thank you so much. I�ll leave you two to talk. It was good to see you again.�

�You as well, Karin-san.�

She left the two friends behind. Hopefully Yumichika would have something good to tell Soi Fon but Karin wouldn�t have put any money on it, judging by the stress lines around his eyes. It seemed as if everyone was on edge lately, as if some malevolent tension permeated the very air, affecting everyone and everything. Karin compared it to a giant rubber band, stretched too tightly around the whole of the Soul Society, until it was ready to snap. When it did finally break, the results would be ugly.

It took some time, for she was not as fast as either Grimmjow or Ulquiorra, to reach the clearing she had designated as the meeting spot. Karin noticed the recently added scars all over the surrounding landscape and could still �see� the last lingering traces of Renji and Grimmjow�s reiatsu, proof not only of their collective idiocy, but also that the two had thrown all they had at one another. Despite her displeasure about their most recent attempt at tearing each other limb-from-limb in what ought to have been a simple sparring match, it relieved her to know that they had both found an outlet for their anger that didn�t involve innocents, the wholesale destruction of one of the Districts or deliberately pissing Aizen off.

Leaning against a large tree trunk to protect her back, Karin settled down and entered Jinzen, both to help her to see the Swarm�s miniscule amount of reiatsu if her attempt at contact had been successful and to help her ease her own anger at Aizen�s latest atrocities. At least she knew better than to try to go all-out in some masculine, testosterone-ridden pissing contest to try to work out frustrated aggression.

She wasn�t expecting a response right away. After all, the message had to be received, decoded and pondered over. It might or might not even be acknowledged, depending on whether or not the recipient, if there was one, understood her language. There was also the distance issue. It might take time for the person she wanted to talk to get to the clearing. They were, however, coming up on sixty hours since the last battle so there was a distinct possibility that there might already be another invasion force on the way. If anyone had received her message while the portals were still up, the General might just come through on the hind-end of the latest cloud of insects.

Karin spotted the odd reiatsu signatures around five o�clock in the afternoon, just as she was ready to give up and head home to start on dinner. She peered at them before deciding that they belonged to the Swarm. Judging by the sizes, she guessed at two beetles, two dozen locusts and what she hoped was the specific General she had asked for. At the very least, she wished it wasn�t one that spoke in half-buzzes. Karin stood up, ready to fight and run if need be and reaffirmed her bond with her mate.

The small delegation stopped as soon as she stood up, still some distance away and lurking in the trees, while the General approached without the slightest hint of discomfort or weariness. She didn�t really blame him for coming with an escort; after all this could have easily been a trap to get their hands on him or her.

�Kurosaki Karin, we meet again.�

He greeted her perfectly, without any of the odd inflections tainting the speech of every other General she�d ever heard. That creature stood before her now, at a respectful distance.

She winced at the use of her family name, but didn�t bother to correct him, as she had bigger issues to discuss with him.

�I feel at a disadvantage� I don�t know your name.�

He inclined his head, as if the idea of a personal name was somehow foreign to him.

�A human tongue would have trouble sounding out my individual designation.�

�I would feel more comfortably having a name to address you by. �General� seems so... general.�

She was stalling, not having expected this to happen as quickly as it did. Now that he was in front of her, close enough to grab her, Karin was having second thoughts about the whole thing. She should have talked to Grimmjow and Szayel, probably even Starrk before going forward with something this reckless. She�d worked off of assumptions and done things that might potentially affect them all, behind their backs.

�Still, even knowing the option is there, that the Swarm might be interested, is a step,� she tried to reassure herself. �Perhaps they might even have ideas I never thought of, and it looks like this one is willing to talk, maybe even negotiate. Anything to decrease the number of battles and save lives. Besides, I might be able to learn some things that have been bothering us for some time and I know Szayel will appreciate that.�

�If you must call me something pronounceable in your tongue, you may call me �Zee�, for now. It is straightforward enough for most of the others to understand.�

The name was simple and efficient. While not a moniker meant to strike fear into the hearts of others, it would serve its purpose and the rest of the Swarm would know who she was talking about if it came to it. That was all that mattered.

�You seem to know a lot about my so-called �bloodline.� How do you know about it and what is your mission here?� Karin asked.

�Zee� widened his stance and crossed his arms behind this back, as if standing at attention before he replied.

�We come from a different �heaven� you could say. It is a Realm distinctly different from this one. When this �Aizen� took the Throne and destroyed the Spirit King�s dimension and those who dwelled within, the balance between all of the Realms destabilized. The barrier separating our two �worlds� was damaged. We came through to find the Ruler�s Palace painted with the blood of those that once lived and worked there. Our scholars set out to learn what had taken place. That was how we learned of what this non-Royal upstart �Aizen� had done and the coup he�d staged.�

�We sent our drones to search for any possible surviving members of the Royal Family, so that the balance might be restored while directing the majority of our forces to kill the interloper. As you pointed out to me during our last discussion, putting the proper heir on the Throne will do little good if this Aizen will only kill them. It was in our search through what was left of the Royal Realm�s records that we learned of the King�s youngest son, Isshin, who had left the spirit dimension in favour of a life in what you call �the Living World.�

�By perusing those records we followed the trail to your brother, Kurosaki Ichigo. Unfortunately, his reiatsu is dark and tainted with that of a Hollow. He is no longer pure and that fact takes him out of the line of succession. This is unfortunate, because he has the raw power to stand up to the usurper. We had, at that point, given up hope of finding an heir and prayed that Aizen�s elimination would at least stop the Realms from shifting further. They were set adrift by Aizen�s actions and we surmised that the various dimensions would at least work out some kind of natural balance without an evil hand at the helm.

�Then, one of our drones tasted your blood and we renewed our mission to place a true Royal on the seat of the Spirit King. Regrettably, you were not willing to come with us. I will confess your reasons for eschewing the Throne have merit and I understand your reluctance to co-operate. However, the fact that you have asked to speak to me of your own volition leads me to believe that you may have changed your mind and that you realize that you must assume your bloodline�s obligations.�

Karin listened to Zee�s speech intently. It certainly confirmed that the Swarm came from another dimension and that their sole aim was to kill Aizen and restore the balance, not to destroy the Seireitei or its denizens outright. It also told her how they�d become aware of the Royal Blood in her veins. There was one thing she had to know before she even considered taking the conversation any further.

�If Aizen was to die, and a proper heir put on the Throne, would you return to your own dimension and leave us in peace?�

Karin asked this in order to know if she was dealing with a force sent to solve a problem or one bent on invasion and colonization once they�d removed Aizen from his seat of power.

�If the balance was restored, yes,� Zee answered without hesitation. �We�ve no desire to be here. The air is far too thin for our liking, the food less than acceptable as well as less plentiful and the temperature inhospitable for long periods of time.�

That was a good start. If they could get Aizen away from the city, which they would need to do for any real battle to occur, they might just be able to count on the Swarm to help. She doubted even Aizen could survive a dip in beetle acid, immortal or not, Hogyoku or not.

�Maybe I can get them to douse Yammy while I am at it,� she couldn�t help but think nastily. Then she met Zee�s gaze directly.

�I am not saying �yes� to your idea of placing me on the Throne, not at this moment in time. There�s been some� chafing under Aizen�s rule and he may find his own Arrancar turning against him if he keeps abusing them and breaking his own laws. If Aizen were to die, I will agree to sit on the Throne.�

The very idea terrified her. She had no desire to rule the Realms, let alone the knowledge to do so, but it was a better option than letting the universe fall apart while standing by and doing nothing.

�Aizen does not know of my lineage and it is best to keep it that way. If he were to find out he would just try to breed an heir from me, raping his way into the Royal line as he�s tried to do for the last fifteen years. If we can get Aizen out of the city and engaged in battle, would you assist in fighting him without attacking us?� she asked.

�Our Queen has ordered us to kill this Aizen. He must die and the Realms must be re-stabilized.�

Karin had a feeling that was the closest thing to a �yes� she was going to get, and that was definitely something to consider. With it came hope that this endless war with the Swarm could end. Coordinating such a difficult ambush would take a great deal of work and time wasn�t on her side. She had to speak to the others and she had to finally swallow her pride and contact the Escapees if the half-baked idea forming in her brain had any chance of succeeding. She would need to either wait until she saw Yoruichi again or until Nel returned to refresh Renji�s Claim, whichever occurred first.

�Look, I think we might be able get Aizen out of the city, but it�s not going to happen tomorrow. There are a lot of things that need to be done beforehand or the Realms will start to slip further out of balance. I also need to coordinate with another group� my brother�s group,� she confessed after a moment.

Thinking about Ichigo was still relatively painful. There was no guarantee her brother would even acknowledge her anymore. She had shot him down every time she had seen him since the War ended and she�d taken up with the man who had almost killed him, putting Grimmjow ahead of her own family.

Karin stopped herself before she could come up with a dozen reasons why Ichigo wouldn�t want to deal with her, as it was irrelevant at this point. In all likelihood, she�d be talking to Yoruichi anyway and the shape-shifter had no qualms about working with Karin.

�I can�t however, coordinate all of this if we keep getting drawn into battles. Is it possible to stop the attacks, or reduce their frequency? You usually leave off attacking around this time of year anyway. Putting a stop to them now wouldn�t be too suspicious.�

Zee seemed to think about it, taking his time to deliberate her proposal. It was either that, or he was relaying her request and the content of their conversation to rest of the Swarm. Karin couldn�t really tell and didn�t have a way to find out, though she suspected the latter.

�Too few battles might put this Aizen on alert. In addition, we have no reason to trust you. Her Majesty has agreed to curtail the attacks to one every four sunrises, but until the usurper is dead, we will not cease in our mission.�

It was a better-than-expected outcome. To get those extra two days of peace made this entire meeting worthwhile. It was the first little glimmer of hope she had seen, the first hint that Aizen�s reign of terror might come to an end. �Zee� gave her an openly appraising look, one that cut into her good mood and reminded her that he was still, technically, her enemy.

�I should take you now, Kurosaki Karin, but I will leave the field today as a show of trust that you will bring Aizen to us,� he said.

�It�s Karin Jaegerjaquez,� she snapped back, annoyed that he�d still seen fit to threaten her, despite her willingness to try to work with him.

He bowed slightly at the waist as she irritably corrected him.

�Very well then, Karin Jaegerjaquez. When next we see one another, I hope it is over Aizen�s corpse and to celebrate your Ascension.�

With those parting words, Zee disappeared. Karin blinked in surprise as he up and vanished on her. She knew he was fast, as he had escaped from a furious Grimmjow during their first encounter, but she still marvelled that he had that kind of speed at his disposal. Then again, the meeting had gone much better than she anticipated, so she focused on that instead.

�Next stop, Grimmjow and Szayel. It�s time to see what they think of this whole, insane idea. After what just happened with Abisara, I�m sure that Szayel will be all for it. We should involve Renji, provided we can pry him away from the children long enough to enlist his help. If I don�t see Yoruichi first, we will have to get him to send her a message via Nel. She should be ready to swing by in a couple of months to refresh his Claim.�

There were a lot of things she needed to do now that she�d decided to stage a full-on assassination. There were people that she needed to approach cautiously, and Szayel would do a much better job of planning this sort of operation than she could. She knew Grimmjow would happily put Aizen in the ground. He had never really been fond of Kami-sama and followed simply because he liked living and Aizen wasn�t the sort that took �no� for an answer. Starrk and Ulquiorra were the ones on the proverbial �fence�. Harribel might join them too, especially if she got wind of Aizen�s plans for Abisara. Karin counted Barragan as a possible ally only because the information she had on him indicated that he despised Aizen for deposing him. She doubted he would make a move unless assured of the rebellion�s victory, however.

With a million thoughts on her mind, Karin returned to the city. She had to stop by her Division and make sure tonight�s patrol schedule was ready. She was on the evening shift. She would have to talk to her mate as well when she got home after midnight. It had been over a week since they�d had sex and she knew he would ambush her when she got home, claiming deprivation. He was, after all, a horny panther.

�There she is,� Ajuga thought, glad her nose was working properly. She�d given up trying to control her temper on the third re-telling of Gin�s story. �I didn�t think she�d be this far out.�

�Ajuga-chan, Diaemus-kun!�

Hana stopped and gave them a cheery greeting as the two hybrids caught up to her.

Ajuga and Diaemus had taken Orihime�s order to �go for a walk� to heart. Before either one of them realized what they were doing, they had unconsciously sought out Hana and joined her on her patrol. Out here in the wild, Ajuga could give her frustrations free rein without needing to worry about anyone overhearing. The Arrancar assigned to parallel Hana on her route didn�t argue when Diaemus informed him they would take over his portion of the patrol. Ajuga had never bothered to learn his name. No one was going to say no to Ulquiorra and Grimmjow�s offspring, lest they upset those Espada, and Grimmjow had a long track record of doing unpleasant things to those that irritated him. Besides, to an Arrancar patrol duty equalled boredom itself. The Hollow took off, seeming a little relieved at the reprieve and casting them a grateful look as he made himself scarce.

�You two look as if someone just danced on your graves. What�s up?� Hana inquired worriedly, once she took in their dark expressions �Is this about Szay? He was fine this morning but if something else happened��

�It�s about Szay,� Ajuga confirmed, her eyes narrow and hostile. ��as well as Abisara and Vindula,� she added. Hana�s jaw dropped and the young Shinigami suddenly looked aghast.

�Ajuga, what happened? Are they hurt? Did Aizen do anything to them?�

Ajuga didn�t blame her for the undercurrent of fear in the other girl�s voice. Little Vindula had wormed her way into their hearts from the moment the other girls met her. All she wanted was to explore the world with her �Ji-ji� and find every pretty thing in it to show Yumi-san. It had taken a little work on their part to figure out the identity of the �Silk Prince� Vindula went on and on about, but once they�d pinned a name on the supposed paragon of virtue, she and Hana had made it a point to track down Barragan�s pet on the days he managed to get away from the Second�s Estate and drop in on him with the winged child in tow. He�d always been delighted to see her. If anyone embodied the concept of �innocence� perfectly, it was Vindula. There wasn�t a vicious bone in her body, and it showed the few times they had tried taking her out for stalking lessons. Vindula was no more a hunter than her tech-savvy brother and the thought of anyone hurting her made Ajuga�s blood boil.

�Nothing, at least, not today. Listen to this...�

The results were� unexpected. Ajuga had barely gotten two paragraphs into her story, already starting another round of pacing when, without warning, Hana took two steps towards her and slapped her.

�BAKA!! You promised me you wouldn�t do something so dangerous again!� Hana shouted, going from �concerned� to �furious� in a matter of seconds. �And here I find out you went ahead and did it anyway! How could you, Ajuga? Do you have any idea what Aizen would do to you if he caught you?�

Ajuga blinked as the force of the blow knocked her face to the side, her rage at Aizen evaporating in the face of Hana�s anger. The hybrid�s Hierro absorbed the blow and the only thing to take any damage was Ajuga�s pride. Diaemus�s jaw dropped and he looked at Hana with no small amount of shock as well as a little confusion. Ajuga cursed to herself. Of course he had no clue as to why Hana would be upset at Ajuga. As far as Ajuga was concerned, the only ones that knew of her past trips to the Palace were her father, Hana and Gin. She could add Diaemus and his family to that list now, which made it less than a secret.

�Umm� how did you know I got the information from Gin-san?� Ajuga asked, running her fingers over her jaw, even if there was no pain. Hana gave her a thin-lipped, irritated look and put her hands on her hips. She added an expression that asked �seriously?�

�Who else would have known about everything you just told us? It wouldn�t take long to figure out who told you those things either! You could get Gin in deep trouble depending on who you tell!�

Hana glowered at Ajuga before she went back to the issue that had truly crawled under her skin.

�You promised me that you would stop sneaking in! Did you even stop to think about that before you decided to go ahead and do what you wanted anyway?�

This time, at least, Ajuga broke eye contact and stared at her feet. The problem with her best friend was that the Shinigami had brought up some things that she, admittedly, hadn�t really considered before she�d gone to Diaemus, so she tried to cobble together a quick defence.

�I did try to limit my visits, and I made sure to be extra careful,� Ajuga sighed. �I wanted to see if Gin was alright or if he was in the same condition as Szay.�

Hana threw her hands up in the air in exasperation and reached down to rub her forehead.

�Diaemus, you try talking to her,� the Shinigami growled, turning to the youngest of their little trio. �She obviously could give two shits about my opinion!�

�Now wait, Hana�� Ajuga began, when Diaemus snorted and looked away as well.

�Why do you believe she would listen to me?� he replied, cutting off Ajuga in mid-protest, though he did a double-take at Hana�s rare use of profanity.

Hana sighed heavily as Ajuga �hmmph�ed� at the other girl, managing to look both apologetic to Hana about the promise and at the same time, unrepentant about her trips to the Palace. It was an expression she�d seen her father use all of the time with her mother and she thought it might work in this situation too. Her friend was well and truly pissed off and Ajuga suspected she�d crossed some invisible line with the whole �promise� thing.

�Look, I�m sorry I didn�t keep my word, but I just couldn�t leave Gin-san to suffer so much when something as small as me visiting him and slipping him food makes him happy. It�s the same reason I keep visiting Byakuya-san, even when��

Ajuga trailed off suddenly catching a frightfully familiar scent on the wind. �Swarm!� she hissed, dropping down to all fours and instantly hiding her reiatsu.

Diaemus and Hana quickly went on alert themselves, their budding argument instantly forgotten in the face of a much bigger problem.

�Where and how many?�

Hana whispered the inquiry, since she knew both Diaemus and Ajuga would be able to hear her.

�Four o� clock. Two beetles, maybe a dozen or two locusts.�

Ajuga took another deep sniff of the air and went completely still as the information reached her nose. �I think�� she took another deep breath just to be sure. �A General!� she hissed. �There is a General here!�

Diaemus and Hana froze and shared a look between them.

�This could be our chance to capture one of the Swarm�s leaders for interrogation,� Diaemus said thoughtfully. Hana bit her lip nervously and Ajuga wondered why the other girl appeared to be wrestling with some inner dilemma.

�I don�t think we can take on the beetles, but at the same time, if we sound the alarm the General might escape and we would lose this chance to capture it. Diaemus, you are, by far, the fastest. Do you think you can separate those beetles from the rest, lead them away from the main group and stay out of range of their acid?� Hana asked.

�With ease,� he replied confidently. Hana nodded and outlined the plan as quickly as she could, looking back and forth at Diaemus and Ajuga.

�If we can neutralize the beetles by getting them out of the way, Ajuga can take out a couple of dozen locusts. I can bind up the General with Kido and we can haul him back to Szay. We have to move fast though.�

�Sounds simple enough,� Ajuga chuckled. �Maybe bringing a General in will get Aizen to cool off for a bit. It might even get him to stop being such an asshole and give Szay a break.�

�One can hope,� Hana agreed, though she seemed apprehensive about something.

�Let�s do this,� Ajuga smirked, dropping down to all fours and moving in on their targets.

Ajuga found it hard not to conceal her reiatsu completely; Hana and Diaemus needed to track her as she moved in on their mutual prey. Once there, she could stop thinking about it and let it disappear, but for now she had to put as much focus on keeping her reiatsu visible as she did on trailing the Swarm�s latest incursion. She didn�t think to ask why the Swarm had sent such a small patrol and if she was honest with herself, she didn�t care. Szayel could extract all of that information from the General after they caught it, if she and her friends could take it alive.

They saw the large beetles first, their massive bulks easy to spot. As soon as they were in sight, Ajuga let her reiatsu completely disappear as she stalked towards her prey. This would be a true test of the skills her father had mercilessly drilled into her over the years and which she had tried to hone at every opportunity. In addition, snagging a General would finally prove to her mother that she was ready to participate as a full member of an Arrancar unit.

Diaemus struck first, two green bolts of light striking each beetle. There was a loud call of chittering and the entire Swarm took off after Diaemus, both beetles and all two dozen locusts. Ajuga winced; it wasn�t quite the results they�d wanted, but Ajuga had faith that Diaemus could deal with them. That left her and Hana to deal with the General and Ajuga figured that unintentionally getting the leader alone would work in their favour. She didn�t know how powerful a General could get, the one she had killed with Hana and Diaemus had been nothing special in her eyes, but they had to be capable of putting up a decent fight, if her father�s curses over the one that had gotten away from him all those years ago were any indication of its battle prowess and speed.

The General hadn�t taken off after his troops. Instead, it continued to fly on its own. From Ajuga�s perspective, the thing almost seemed distracted, as if its attention was elsewhere.

That, the hybrid girl thought smugly, was going to be its first and possibly last mistake. Ajuga got ahead of it and quickly picked out a spot to lie in wait along the route that she�d guessed the creature would fly, crouching down in anticipation. Her heart raced as it approached her hiding spot, the adrenaline building in her system.

Diaemus�s mother had told them to �go for a walk.� Wait until Orihime-san found out what they�d managed to drag in, Ajuga thought with an inward grin.

Hana struck first, ropes of Kido wrapping around their target to bind it. Ajuga leaped out of her hiding spot, ready to pin their prey to the ground, and instead choked as the General snapped the chains of energy as if they were nothing. It was too late for Ajuga to veer off either. He caught her around the throat in a move so quick she hadn�t seen it and tossed her violently to the side. Only her natural agility and trained reflexes let her twist in the air and lands all fours against the tree trunk instead of smashing into it spine-first.

�Shit!�

Ajuga heard Hana curse as she fired off another, stronger set of Kido bindings while Ajuga launched herself off of the trunk and back towards her prey. The General was only a yard away and she had her claws extended, ready to grab him the moment the bindings hit him.

Their target up and vanished.

Ajuga had to duck as Hana�s Kido shot passed within inches of her head. They�d both missed him and yet Ajuga knew her timing wasn�t off. He�d just moved faster than either girl could follow with their naked eyes.

Hana let out a startled cry of pain and Ajuga darted around to see her friend fending off two of the locusts. She realized that that two insects had stayed behind, creeping up on the Shinigami girl in an effort to guard the General�s back. The locusts chasing after Diaemus had been a ruse, one they had stupidly fallen for. Hana�s sense of smell wasn�t as strong as hers and the Swarm had little reiatsu to sense. They�d easily taken the young woman, preoccupied with the General, unawares.

�Foolish children, did you think it so easy to assault one such as I?�

Ajuga�s gaze snapped up to where the General was standing higher up in one of the trees. The hybrid hated the condescending tone of �his� voice when he spoke and her lip curled in a snarl.

�I was hoping, but this will make it more fun,� Ajuga smirked up at him before darting over to help Hana, her sharp claws easily ending the life of one insect while Hana wrestled her Zanpakuto free and ran it through the second.

Her sensitive ears could hear most of the locusts coming back, but at least they were ready for them. Hana took a step back and started chanting the phrases her Kido spells required, shortly before balls of fire and shots of lightning flew from her hands.

The girl hadn�t aimed the spells at the locusts. Instead, she�d pointed them directly at the General. Ajuga ignored the explosions as they splintered the tree limb on which he�d been balanced. She focused on shredding the damn locusts, her claws tearing through their carapaces as if they were made of rice paper. Ajuga could see the odd flash of green light in the distance as Diaemus kept the two beetles busy. In fact, it looked like one was even down for the count. She would never admit it, but she was impressed.

A cry of pain from Hana pulled Ajuga�s attention back to the General. Hana lay crumpled at the base of a tree, blood running from several cuts and breathing heavily as she struggled to rise. Ajuga swore as she raced to intercept him, leaping onto the General�s back and digging her claws in deep. She bit down on what she hoped was the back of his neck, but her fangs weren�t quite long enough to puncture the General�s armour.

�Foul beast!� he cried, reaching up and grabbing her by the scruff of her neck. He yanked her, head over heels, off of his back. Doing so opened up several long rents in his carapace, but it didn�t appear as if he cared all that much. Ajuga�s world went sideways as he threw her with all of his might.

Ajuga let out an �UUGH!� as she collided with the trunk of the tree, a few feet above the spot where Hana fell, the distance far too short and the momentum too strong to try and twist to lessen the impact. For a terrible second all she could see were bright lights as the impact knocked the wind out of her. She landed in a heap on top of Hana and her friend let out a scream, the extra weight exacerbating whatever injuries the other girl already had.

They�d made a mistake this time, Ajuga suddenly understood as she tried to fill her lungs with some needed air, wheezing and coughing. This General was different from the ones they had fought in the Defence Net Tower. Not only did it speak their language, but it was also much faster and stronger than the others they had faced. He even looked different. His armour was tougher, thicker and he was taller and broader than the three they had taken out.

It was also far too disdainful for Ajuga�s liking. She pulled herself off of Hana and the two girls staggered to their feet. They both needed a moment to catch their breaths, and nothing worked better for getting a breather during a battle than engaging in pointless, idle banter. It was a time honoured delay tactic. Who knew, maybe she could even get him to monologue their evil plans, that would really give them time to breathe and plan.

�I guess I forgot my manners,� Ajuga spat, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. She forced herself to stand up straight even though several muscles in her back hurt, refusing to be cowed by the likes of him. �I am Ajuga Jaegerjaquez,� she introduced herself.

�Kyoraku Hana,� Hana added. The girl�s voice was tinged with pain and she had to lean against the trunk of the tree for support, favouring her left side and holding her arm against her chest, as if something had happened to her shoulder.

She swore she saw the thing�s eyes blink and he froze for a moment. Then the General looked at her intently, almost curiously and Ajuga suddenly didn�t want to be there. Idle Banter suddenly seemed like a bad idea.

�Jaegerjaquez? As in Karin Jaegerjaquez?�

Beside her, Hana let out a surprised gasp.

�She�s my mother,� Ajuga growled and readied herself for another round with the bug.

�Ajuga, NO!� Hana shouted, leaping at her to try and cover her mouth, but it was far too late. The General moved and, tangled up with Hana, Ajuga couldn�t hope to dodge him.

Hana yelped as the creature materialized next to them, fisted the front of Hana�s uniform and flung the Shinigami into the underbrush. To her horror, Ajuga saw Hana�s head strike the side of a fallen log out of the corner of her eye. Then, before Ajuga had a chance to move, the General had that same hand around her neck and the other beneath one arm, lifting her and slamming her against the tree trunk he�d lobbed her at a few minutes earlier.

�Hana!� Ajuga managed to choke out.

Hana didn�t stir from where she had landed, but Ajuga could still hear her breathing, even if it was faint and seemed strained. Then the hand beneath her chin shook her and forced her to look at her captor.

�Answer me creature. Is Karin Jaegerjaquez, formerly Kurosaki Karin, your mother? Can those wretched Hollows actually breed?� he demanded, jarring her again.

�No shit dumb ass, you think Diaemus and I just �poofed� into existence? And how the hell do you know my mother?� she snarled, lashing out with the claws on her feet.

They raked across the chitinous covering of his legs and his chest and he roared as he jumped back, ichor running from the five slash marks going across his body. Ajuga stumbled a bit as he dropped her. She regained her feet, shocked at how powerful this creature actually was. It was like he was the Swarm�s version of the Espada, while the locusts were merely the equivalent of newly-made Hollows or newly graduated Shinigami. The difference in strength was astonishing.

She barely had time to find her balance before she had to block an attack. Her Heirro absorbed most of the damage, but the force behind it sent her right back against the tree trunk. This time Ajuga�s body pivoted to the side. Unfortunately, her torso hit it wrong, and a sharp pain raced through her left arm accompanied by the sound of a sickening crunch.

Ajuga screamed as her limb broke. She hit the ground, her teeth slamming together and she fought to clear her eyes of the tears caused by an insane level of pain. She had been hurt before during training, but never this badly. Her vision abruptly went green as an explosion rocked the ground nearby.

The General let out a string of hisses and buzzes that some detached part of Ajuga�s brain guessed would translate into curses. Then he turned his attention towards the winged boy.

�Diaemus,� Ajuga groaned, recognizing the attack as being one of his green lances, an ability he�d supposedly inherited from his father. For now, unfortunately, Diaemus�s lances didn�t quite match his father�s for power.

Ajuga crawled over to Hana, mindful of her broken arm while the sound of Diaemus clashing with the General echoed loudly in her ears. She reached Hana�s side, relieved to see she was just unconscious and surprisingly, in better physical shape than Ajuga. The sound of something big crashing through the trees made turn her pain-glazed eyes back towards the fray, hoping it wasn�t what she thought it was.

Diaemus sported several cuts, but so far it appeared that his speed allowed him to keep up with the General, matching blow for blow. Unfortunately, one of the beetles had returned and as things stood now, she and Hana were sitting ducks with clipped wings and broken feet. In her case, it was a broken arm.

The beetle paid no attention to them though and instead, turned towards Diaemus. The youth was so engrossed in fighting the General that he didn�t notice the hulking insect behind him rearing back in a familiar pose, one that always accompanied a spray of acid.

�DIAEMUS!� Ajuga screamed out the warning, hoping he could hear it.

It was just in time. Diaemus dove out of the way of the main acid arc. However, the end of it caught the clawed tip of his left wing. Ajuga had to give him credit for not crying out in pain as the acid began to eat at the edge of his wing. To her shock, Diaemus charged a small cero and aimed it at himself, using it to burn the acid-eaten portion of his wing off before it could destroy the whole thing. His action cauterized the wound and probably save his life, but at a terrible cost.

Now he shrieked and with only one working wing, he plummeted. Since he could fly, Diaemus had never bothered learning to walk in the air, an oversight he was probably berating himself for, if Ajuga was any judge. The General took the opportunity to intercept him. The Swarm�s leader collided solidly with Diaemus�s back, breaking the hybrid�s fall. The two crashed a mere twenty feet away from where Ajuga crouched next to Hana. The General wasted no time and Ajuga watched him reach down with both hands and smash several of the bones in Diaemus� wings. The girl heard Diaemus�s anguished screams as the creature rendered his wings useless with a series of sickening crunches.

To hell with handing over a live General, Ajuga seethed inwardly. She would tear this one apart. She forced herself to her feet, fury radiating off of her as she tried to reach her friend before the General killed him. The General turned to face her and easily caught the punch she had thrown at him with her good arm.

�You bastard!!� she screeched and raked his lower leg with the sharp claws on her foot.

The General�s answer was to backhand her, hard, striking her across the mouth not once, but twice. Ajuga tasted blood and her head spun with the power beneath the blows. With her fist caught in his hand, he suddenly pulled her forward and she felt a sharp pain in the back of her neck, before he dropped her to lie on top of a gasping, moaning Diaemus. The General had probably meant to knock her unconscious, and her world did blur with all three strikes to her head. Her ability to see was shot, but she managed to hold onto consciousness by the tips of her claws.

The ground vibrated beneath her, the trembling getting stronger as the seconds flew by. Then she heard the ground give way and someone or something picked her up. The air grew colder and the smell of freshly turned earth and rock filled her nostrils. Judging by the strength of the scent, she�d been dragged underground. It would be impossible for anyone to follow her scent now, she realized with alarm.

The Swarm was taking her, just as they�d tried to make off with her mother and she had no idea why. How did they know her mother? What about Hana? Was she alright? Were they going to kill her friend? What about Diaemus? His wings had been horribly broken. And who was that General? He had spoken their language perfectly and had been far more powerful than any member of the Swarm she had ever encountered.

The sound of frantic chittering and clacking surrounded her and when she opened her eyes, she knew that the darkness around her was because she�d been pulled into one of the Swarm�s tunnels, not because there was anything wrong with her eyes. She tried to move, to will her limbs to obey her, to try to escape. Someone moved in next to her, on the side of her body with the broken arm.

Then she felt it, a short, sharp sting to the side of her neck and a brief, burning sensation after it. A moment later, the sound of the Swarm, the ground and the pain in her jaw and her arm faded and she drifted helplessly off into the surrounding blackness.

Her skull felt as if someone had kicked it but Hana wasn�t as worried about that as she was about what she�d just witnessed.

She got her body into a crouch, then crawled to the nearest tree and used it to brace herself as she scrambled upright using her hands and one useable foot. Hana was dizzy from striking her head when the General had cast her aside like so much refuse. Out of habit, the analytical part of her brain worked to stuff down the rising panic she could feel growing in her chest long enough to take an inventory of her injuries. She was, for the most part, intact but her head hurt, her body ached, her shoulder was one big bruise and dizziness and nausea warred with one another as to which one would get control of her gut. That told her she most likely had a concussion; the General hadn�t been particularly gentle when he�d bounced her off of the log. Her first tentative step forward indicated her ankle was sprained. When she put her full weight on it she collapsed with a small sob.

It would be hours before the next person, either Shinigami or Arrancar, would think to come looking for her. They might not even realize what happened until the next shift and she was in no shape to go anywhere quickly.

�We screwed up.�

�Kami, we screwed up and grossly underestimated him. He took us apart as if we were an annoyance, like swatting flies. The only one of us who managed to hurt him was Ajuga and she didn�t even slow him down!�

Once she was satisfied that none of her injuries were life-threatening, her logical half stepped aside and finally let fear have its way with her. It clutched at her heart as she recalled, through pain-slitted eyes, the Swarm making off with both Ajuga and Diaemus. She�d come around just as the General dropped one of her friends on top of the other. A minute later, the earth shook then erupted in a spray of soil and rock. Several pill bugs emerged from the ground, standing before the General as if receiving instructions. The Swarm�s tall leader placed Ajuga and Diaemus�s limp forms, Diaemus�s wings bent at painful-looking, unnatural angles, upon their backs before they dove below the surface and were gone. The General went with them and the lone beetle lumbered off.

None of them had thought to see about dealing with Hana. The General hadn�t even given her a second glance. Maybe they�d assumed she was dead. Hana, with growing dread, guessed that the General had much more important things on his mind than worrying about one small, half-conscious Shinigami in the undergrowth.

How had they gotten past Szayel�s depth sounders? The sensors should have detected tunnelling.

�Unless the tunnels were already there,� she realized hazily and groaned.

She had to report this, had to get help before the Swarm could get too far away. The Swarm had been actively looking for Karin and it was just their luck to run across a General that not only knew their language, but now knew, thanks to Ajuga�s inability to keep her damned mouth shut, that she was Karin�s daughter.

�It isn�t a matter of �if� they toss her on the Throne, it�s a matter of �when,�� Hana thought and called herself all kinds of names for thinking that taking on the small patrol would be a good idea. She�d assumed the General would be unable to speak their language and even if they had dragged him, alive, to Szayel, without the ability to translate clicks and murmurs, Karin and Ajuga�s secret would have been safe.

Now everything she and Diaemus had done to try to cover up the truth about their friend lay in ruins and unless they could get Ajuga and Diaemus back, Aizen would find out about the Royal Blood that flowed through Karin and Ajuga�s veins.

Once Aizen learned the truth... Kami, she couldn�t let that happen.

Hana gritted her teeth and tried to hobble back to the city. At some point, she found a forked branch long enough to use as a makeshift crutch, but it didn�t speed up her progress by much. Worse, it was getting dark, making it difficult to navigate. In fact, she swore she was going in circles and for the first time ever, she regretted the fact that she wasn�t Claimed. At least, if she�d been Claimed, her �owner� would have known something was up and would have come to her rescue by now, drawn to her by both pain and panic.

Her strength waned as the sun vanished and the moon rose to the east. She had no idea how long she had been limping and she�d reached the point where the adrenaline from the fight had worn off, making it harder to ignore her injuries. By the time the moon had climbed to its zenith, it had been hours since the Swarm absconded with her friends and Hana was truly starting to think she was lost. It was much harder to find one�s way home on the ground in a dark forest with one eye swollen shut and the other furiously blinking back tears of pain and frustration.

She wanted to move faster, she knew she had to get help, but her ankle made it difficult. Each step she took caused it to throb and sent a jolt of agony up her spine. Hana considered that she might have made an error in thinking she�d sprained it during the fight. Instead, she now feared she�d broken it. In any case, the joint wouldn�t allow her to put any more weight on it and when she did try to use it, it gave way beneath her.

A chill breeze whistled past, stirring the leaves of the forest around her as well as her hair and her clothing and Hana became aware of something cold and wet on her cheeks. To her shame, she grasped that at some point during her long trek back, she�d started crying.

Hana was so wrapped up in her misery, her physical pain and her fear for Ajuga and Diaemus that she almost didn�t hear the sharp female voice that called out to her.

�Hana! What the hell happened?�

That was it. Hana�s strength was gone and she felt herself falling forward. However, her body never hit the ground. Someone with warm, deceptively strong arms and a pair of shocked, mismatched blue and brown eyes caught her and quickly picked her up �bridal-style�� hoisting her as if she weighed nothing. The breeze became a wind as it rushed around her. The �static� vibration of Sonido buzzed in her ears along with the sound of a woman�s voice peppering Hana with hurried questions. The exhausted girl couldn�t quite make out the words. Despite her rescuer�s worried tone, Hana could tell the other was making a valiant attempt at reassuring her as they sped towards some kind of help.

�Huh. I never knew Apache was such a caring person,� the young Shinigami reflected shortly before she finally lost her fight to stay awake.

Dear lord, I haven�t seen that many reviews for POV2 in a long time. I should be evil more often and leave things on gaping cliff-hangers.

Thank you Lily�s Mama

Darkstar: It was a hard chapter to write. Ulquiorra is so loyal to Aizen that, in all honesty, a slow decent into displeasure had to be built. He is not the type of person to just betray Aizen on a whim as so many writers have written him all because Orihime bats her lashes at him. I wanted to keep as true to the characters as I could, and Ulquiorra�s change had to be slow one.

Pendiumlumdeath: You can put the Katana away, no one has died�. Yet. The summery warnings are there for a reason.

Kain: Yes, people were kidnapped. I do enjoy your rants, they look at things from a different angle, one I often never thought of before. Orihime�s kindness and ability to forgive is indeed one of her strengths, and one of her weaknesses. She is the only one in all of Bleach Cannon that really could, and would, fall in love and forgive her rapist and kidnapper. It is just so HER. I really wanted to do something different with Ulquiorra and Orihime, as opposed to the hundreds of ficts of him randomly falling in love with her and turning into her loyal, faithful, lap dog. To me Ulquiorra seemed kind of lost, confused, and set in his hollow like ways. He did what he did to Orihime because in his mind, that was just how things worked. She understood that he simply didn�t know better, that he didn�t understand that what he was doing was wrong anymore than a cat understands why we get upset that it has brought home a mouse or bird. He didn�t do what he did to her out of any sick enjoyment, nor did he deliberately treat her bad to �teach her her place beneath him.� If I had put Orihime with Nnoitra, things definitely would not have turned out the same and she probably would have ended up more like Byakuya since she doesn�t have the spine to handle him the way Rangiku does.

Stay tuned for the next chapter entitled: Despair: the Domino Starts to Fall.

This Weeks Question: So, how goes everyone�s holiday shopping? I pretty much got everything done on my end, just a few gift certificates left, and I can grab those at anytime.
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Prize of Victory 2	By : NovaAlexandria Category: Bleach > General Views: 56251 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 5
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach nor make a profit from this story

Prize of Victory 2