"Hey, what's your name?"

The small captain asked me while we ran towards the source of power. I didn't expect him to ask me my name since we've been quiet the whole way there. Ichigo told me about him, short white hair, Toshiro Histugaya of squad 10.

"(y/l) (y/n)," I replied, panting slightly under my breath. "I here to help-"

Toshiro suddenly stop as I almost crashed into him, but luckily for my quick reflexes I was able to hold back. He turned around and pointed east. "You're only going to get killed if you join this fight."

"What?! No, I'm not! I'm stronger than you think!"

"I'm only lowering my spirit energy is because you're here." He sounded rather bitter about my refusal. "If I were to unleash it all it would crush your lungs. Because you're weak, power level lesser than a sixth seat."

"Captain," The woman, who is called Rangiku, spoke softly towards him. "Understand she only wants to help."

"I understand Rangiku. But if she fights along with us we'll both die because I can't unleash all of my spirit energy and use my bankai."

Looking at these two now, they looked conflicted. Rangiku seemed to want me to stay and make sure I was safe, but it looks like the captain needs her power alongside the fight with the Quincies.

"Don't worry about me," I smiled, hoping to win them over. "I'll go east and hope no other Quincy is in the area. Kick that Quincy's ass for me would ya?"

"Hey wait I wasn't-"

I dashed east before the tempered head kid could yelled anymore. Seriously that guy needs to take a chill pill at times like these. But... they're right. If I was in the fight I would only get myself killed along with the other two.

'Feeling sorry for yourself?' Hichigo annoying, mocking voice echoed cruelly inside my head.

"Shut up," I growled while jumping onto the roofs. "You're the one to talk. You're just a sword now and can't even defend yourself unless somebody welds you. Oh right! That's me, so shut your damn trap so I can find a way to get stronger."

'Hmp," He sighed loudly, almost making me wince at how loud it was. 'I can't really shut up in here. I mean, there's that other guy inside here too, but he's boring and creepy at the same time. Everything wrapped up in bandages and speaking weirdly too.'

"Are you making fun of him?!" I snapped out loud. "You're an asshole!"

'Well your-"

He was cut off as I jumped aside, an arrow grazing my chest and burning a thin line through it. My heart hammered inside me as I take swift breaths to calm myself. Up in the air and hovering over was Hotaru. Even in the dim light of Soul Society his pale hair gleamed dangerously from the breeze moving slightly.

"It's been a while," He grinned inhumanly. "It almost makes me want to cry from how long it's been."

"H-Hotaru," I glared at him, feeling for the hilt of my zanpakuto. "What are you doing here?"

"Are you dumb?" He asked and glided down to my level. He sat down on a broken roof, leaning his head back to look towards the smoky sky. "This is war between Soul Reapers and Quincies. I'm fighting alongside and, quite frankly, you guys are incredibly weak."

"What do you mean? There are captains around to still take back what's rightfully ours."

"Oh, the captains? Don't make me laugh." He sat up, his rich prideful sapphire eyes gazing endlessly into the depts inside my soul. "They're nothing comparted to our energy. Why, we can even seal their bankai."

Slowly, he took out an object just about the size of Ichigo's badge, only it had the Quincy Cross and seeped with darkness. Terror washed over me as I could sense the energy, the power of a banaki trapped inside.

"HYORINMARU!!!!"

I gasped and realized that was captain Hitsugaya's voice. This couldn't be happening... would he die? Without his bankai...?

Hotaru laughed and shoved his badge inside his pocket. "Looks like the captain's banaki have already been sealed away. Looks like another easy kill too me."

Hichigo warned me not to strike him, but I was too enraged to think. I flashed-stepped and clashed sword to bow between us. "You bastard!" I screamed over the sparks. "Who's banaki did you steal?!"

"Isn't it obvious? Yours."

I froze, which cost me the disadvantaged as he nicked my shoulder. I couldn't feel the pain right now as I stared at him, a memory foggy inside my brain... like it was erased. "What did you do...?" I questioned him, my voice faint and small.

"Ahhh so now you're finally putting the pieces together." Hotaru smile, sickly sweet with his honey voice. "You might have noticed in the beginning your powers you were quite strong, but when during our second battle back in the World of The Living you were weaker. How is that?"

"Don't you remember when we really first met? Out on the streets, the hollow chasing you and almost eating you alive?"

I screamed suddenly and flew my hand up to my neck. It pulsed strongly and burned crazily like fire. I panted and chocked on blood, my vision blurry. But I remembered it all... the crazy asshole putting something inside my neck. The cross chain he wore... the same Quincy Cross with the sealed bankai...

"Y-You stole my power..." I glare up at him, pointing the tip of my sword at him.

"Correction. I didn't steal it, I'm draining it. The more you fight, the more powerful I become. You see, when we Quincies gather resishi around us we can become twice as powerful than before. It's the same with your power when you use it... it gets transferred to me."

He walked toward me as I felt too weak to step back. He grabbed my chin and forced me to make eye contact with him, our nose touching. "If only you could feel how deadly sweet your power is. It's like a drug, I can't get enough of your power. No matter how much you use, you can absorber more of it and make me become power... almost as powerful as the Quicny King."

I found the strength to move and pushed him away, managing to kick him in the knee, too. "You're a coward. Your feeding off energy to become stronger because you're weak."

"Oh," His voice turned ice cold, freezing the air around us. "Is that so?"

Right before my eyes he vanished, but his spirit energy was still around the area. I panicked and gripped the sword harder, blood pooling down on the ground of rumble and possibly more dead bodies.

'Stop panicking and focus on where he's at!' Hichigo roared inside my head, furious at the tides of power.

"But... I'm afraid..." I whispered, absolutely broken. "And I use up all my strength to push him back."

'Stop being a wuss and released my power! Do it before he does any more damage!'

"You don't understand... Hichigo... I'm already his puppet."

The cold metal ringed painfully inside me as Hotaru appeared before me. He smiled so innocently I could be convinced he never stabbed me. "My letter is C, the camouflage. I'm able to disappear around my surroundings and confuse the location of my resishi level."

Blood leaked from my lips, softly and bitterly from the hate burning inside me. Hichigo was silent as he finally understands my position. He retracted the sword from my abdomen and caught my before I could fall.

He threw me over his shoulder as I got a clear view of Soul Society. Everything was broken into pieces, bodies littered everywhere and battles I couldn't tell of who was winning. This world was doomed... we needed a miracle.

I felt the moment when his shadow encountered me as I let the feeling of it wash over me. It wasn't cold nor warm, neither painful. It was sense of feeling light as your soul was transported elsewhere.

My vision was blurry, but I could tell I was in a huge room with other people. The sight of white clothing was the only color I could see clearly, until Hotaru stopped.

"My Lord," he bowed and set me down on the floor. My skin screamed in pain at how cold it was, even frostbite would be scared away by this, but I listen to him continue talking. "I have brought her safely here."

"Very well, Hotaru."

He walked away as another figure walked towards me. I felt them grabbed my arm and pull me up, the pain inside my stomach burned, but when I looked towards his person, my soul burned with hatred.

I could see it was a man... and those eyes... they looked familiar... the same color as my mother's.

When he spoke, my whole world crashed before me. "Welcome home, my granddaughter."