Episode 128: Dark Depths of Memory
Pulled upon by gentle strands of comforting light, Sunset felt her soul drift down through a flicker of void before she found herself land upon hard packed, dry earth. Her vision blurred with the grasping claws of vertigo for a moment, but with a steady breath she shook it off and took stock of her surroundings. She stood poised upon a trailing forest path, but one that was left suspended in a field of shadow, as if pained upon a dark canvas. Amid this canvas the trail wound its way past sullen trees, before it joined with a field of familiar, pearl white sand. Sunset recognized the sands of Hueco Mundo itself, although what she saw was only a fragment of that realm, joined with the shadowed forest. Beyond that the paths split, with more forest trail winding out into the ether, while carved stone stairs led up from the sands into a crumbling wall of marble stone.
Sunset flinched at a faint ache of pain from her right hand, and upon looking at it, she gasped in sharp reflex.
She was no longer in her gleaming red and gold armor of Bankai, but rather was wearing a casual outfit she might have chosen to wear any other normal day; practical dark boots, dark blue pants, a maroon colored shirt with a logo from a favorite game franchise on it, and her signature black leather jacket. She also wasn’t holding Hokori no Hikari, neither blade or shield present, yet she could still feel them within her. Was it because she was inside Gaia and Gloriosa's soul that she couldn't fully manifest the Zanpaktou tied to her own? She couldn't be sure, but she knew for a fact she was still able to summon some of her Zanpaktou's power, most evidenced by the fact that her right hand was surrounded by a flicker of black fire. However, what ha made her gasp was the state of her right hand. It was burned badly, as if she’d had a bad encounter with a kitchen stove and hadn’t healed yet. The pain was prevalent, but somehow dulled to the point that she could endure it.
It must be because I didn’t let go of the Kuroihi Moegara technique before Fluttershy and Twilight sent me in here. Even as a projection into someone else’s soul, these black flames still burn. I wonder if my hand is even worse off on the outside? Damnit, Sunset, there’s no time to worry about that! I have to find Gaia and Gloriosa.
Not allowing any further distraction or hesitation, Sunset swiftly set down the path, heading for the stone wall with the stairs attached to it. As she moved she heard the sounds of the forest reach her, but they were dulled, as if hearing them through a wall. Halfway down the trail, she saw movement to her right, and paused, searching the dimness between the darkened trees.
“Glori! Slow down! I can’t keep up!”
Was that Timber’s voice? It was faint, but Sunset was certain that was Timber Spruce. Squinting, she spotted two forms running between the trees, and as they go closer she saw them, a pair of young children who were likely not even into their early teens yet. One was clearly Timber Spruce, as gangly limbed as ever, even as a young boy. The girl who was running ahead of him, laughing, did resemble Gloriosa Daisy, but Sunset could see elements that were off, such as the yellow eyes, and strands of green in her otherwise magenta hair.
“Hahah! C’mon Timber, you’ll never guess what I found out here the other day. It’s so cool, you won’t believe it!”
“But, huff, do we have to, ugh, run all the way out here? Mom and dad will get mad,” Timber said as the pair crossed Sunset’s path. Neither child looked as if they could see her, and continued on through the trees, Gloriosa turning to jog lightly backwards to smile at her brother. Even moving backwards she was nimble across the uneven forest ground, like a sure footed deer.
“I know, that’s why I wanted to show you now, before they get back home. They always take hours whenever they go hiking. We’ve got time. Now hurry up! It’s not far now!”
Once the pair had crossed over to the other side of the path, Sunset kept watching them, and the images of both children faded into puffs of dust. Yet, before Sunset could so much as blink, the images of the forest shifted, revealing a large, overgrown outcrop of rock with a wide, dark cave opening. Before it stood the two children, Timber staring up at the cave in awe, while Gloriosa stood in front of him with a pleased grin on her face and her tiny hands planted proudly on her hips.
“See? Told ya it was cool! And it’s so close to the camp, too! I bet we can use it as a fort to play in! Imagine camping in here!”
“Uh, is it safe?” Timber gulped, peering into the cave’s yawning darkness, “What if a bear is using it or something?”
“Nah, I already checked for tracks when I found it earlier,” Gloriosa said with a child’s supreme confidence, “I didn’t look inside too deep, though. I wanted to do this with you, little bro! It’ll be fun!”
“I dunno,” the young Timber said, his voice as tiny as his body as he gazed forward with unease, “Something smells funny.”
“Probably just cave stuff. C’mon Timber, don’t be a big scaredy wimp! You got your big sis Glori here to look after you, and I promise I won’t ever let anything bad happen to you!”
“We were so innocent back then...”
Sunset nearly jumped, having not felt the presence next to her before the voice spoke. Turning swiftly, she saw Gaia Everfree beside her, although her form was distorted, like looking at an image through hazy water. Elements would shift between Gloriosa’s form and Gaia’s, and Sunset realized whatever shift occurred to the image before her, also occurred to the memory image of young Gloriosa as she led her little brother into the cave.
“Gloriosa?” Sunset asked cautiously, and Gaia turned an expression towards her that was at once sharp and furious, calm and understanding, saddened and confused, all in the span of a second as her form blurred.
“Who else!? Having fun looking at my... no, it’s fine, you might as well see. Sunset Shimmer, Soul Reaper, whatever you see yourself as. Look on, if it pleases you.”
The portion of the forest shifted like sand billowing up in a whirlwind, reforming its many fragments into an image of a wide, dark cave, illuminated only by the eerie brush of light from a few cracks in the ceiling and whatever came in through the cave mouth many meters back. Both Gloriosa and Timber Spruce had reached a circular area of the cave where a stone edifice rose a few feet from the ground, surrounded by a small circle of verdant plant life.
Both children looked on with wonder at the place, and the image shifted to one of them playing around a small campfire.
“Our secret hideout,” Gaia said, “Neither of us knew it was also my altar. A shrine, kept as a place of sacrifice and worship to me.”
“You really see your memories as one and the same now,” Sunset said, turning to Gaia, “But that means your memories as Gaia are also in here, too.”
“What of it?” Gaia snapped, “Looking to peer into that life for your own gain, Soul Reaper?”
“No, but doesn’t that mean Gloriosa would know why you wanted her body? That you prepared her as a host from the start? Are you really okay with that, Gloriosa?”
For an instant the image of Gaia flickered to show Gloriosa’s human features, but rather than worried or angry, her eyes held a sorrowful light as she waved a hand towards the scenery of the cave. Sunset looked, and saw the child memory of Gloriosa picking several beautifully bloomed flowers from around the stone altar. Timber was nearby, drawing on the cavern floor with chalk. Abruptly there was the sound of a growl, and the image of a wolf appeared from the cave entrance. The two frighten children were cornered, and Gloriosa put her little brother protectively behind her as the wolf advanced.
However, unseen by both children, some of the unpicked flowers near the altar shivered, and turned towards the wolf, emanating a faint, green glow. The wolf paused, instantly whimpered, and fled the cave.
“It wasn’t the only time,” Gloriosa said, “That she protected me and Timber as we played in the forest. I never knew. Never saw her as she made sure we always found berries to eat, or clear trails to follow, or led predators away from us.”
“If she’s that kind, then why is she trying to kill everyone now?” Sunset asked, not harshly, but plainly, “Gaia, were you protecting Gloriosa and her brother for any reason other than to keep them around to use? I’m not accusing, I honestly want to know the truth. That’s why I came here, to learn who you really are, and what you and Gloriosa both truly want.”
“Oh?” said Gaia, her paler, marble features now becoming prominent as she turned and advanced on Sunset, gripping Sunset by the neck with a swift motion. Sunset, however, didn’t resist. Gaia didn’t squeeze her neck, just held it, anger and pain on her own face as she pointed at the black flame in Sunset’s hand, “Then what do you call that!?”
“A last resort,” Sunset said calmly, reaching up with her left hand to gently touch Gaia’s, “I want to give you a chance to show me everything from your point of view. Both of your points of view. Don’t misunderstand, I’m prepared to do what I have to to keep you from hurting my friends or any more innocent people, but dammit Gaia Everfree, if you’re so set on this path, then at least show me why!”
Those dark eyes narrowed, and Gaia’s voice came out as a pained whisper, “You actually mean that, don’t you? Very well, but I warn you... this will not be pleasant.”
Before Sunset could respond, Gaia all but threw her like a cast stone at the portion of the void that contained the white sands of Hueco Mundo. As soon as Sunset struck the sand in a hard thud, the area around her swirled out, more and more of Hueco Mundo’s vast desert landscape coming into being around her. Yet something about it seemed different. As Sunset stood, brushing sand off her pants, she noticed that the sky wasn’t as dark as she remembered Hueco Mundo’s sky to be, and if she hadn’t known better, she could swear she saw a few stars twinkling in it’s sky.
Even the sand beneath her feet felt different. More vibrant. And, to her shock, as she looked around, she could see patches of grass, a paler shade of green than normal, but grass nonetheless. There were even a few trees, lively and green, and bearing odd looking but plump, purple fruit.
Next to her, the stone wall she’d seen turned out to be part of a tall, marble tower, covered in ivy. Sunset blinked as she heard birds singing, and saw a few odd, white doves, but with Hollow skull masks, flying from the top of the tower. At the tower’s base was a pair of ivy enshrined doors, which swung open as two women strode out.
One was Gaia Everfree, wearing a loose, white gown forged of glittering leaves and flowers. The other woman Sunset didn’t recognize, but she was tall, athletic, with milk white skin and ringlets of hair of purest gold. She wore a white toga, leather sandals, and had a headband of winged gold in her hair. The woman’s features were lean and severe, but not without a motherly quality to them. Her voice matched her features as she said, “I’m warning you Gaia, as a cousin, do not take this matter lightly.”
Gaia laughed, a carefree, silvery sound, “Glory, our kin fighting is as common as the breaking of dawn. Let the boys settle things in their way. Tirek and Ares cannot get enough of swinging their swords at each other, and before you know it, they’ll have the Norse lot in on it, too. Personally I’ll enjoy the show from the sidelines.”
“That is exactly what I’m warning you of!” said the woman named Glory, her voice deepening, “There will be no ‘sidelines’ this time! It will not stop this time! You haven’t been hearing the things I have, because you choose the life of a recluse, dearest cousin, but I have been in the halls of our Mother and the other Divine Courts. This war will not be like the others. All the ill will Mother has ignored for so long is boiling over this time. It is not a mere warrior’s competition between Tirek and Ares, but hate. It is the same for many others. Rivalries are coming to a head. Bitterness is ruling the hearts of the gods, not reason. Neither Mother or Father grasp this. I need more voices of reason in the Soul Palace to make them see the truth of things! I ask one last time, Gaia, please, come with me to help stop this before it’s too late!”
Sunset could see hesitance be born briefly upon Gaia’s features before she shook her head and laughed again, although more nervously this time, “This is Medley talking, isn’t it? Filling your head with nonsense again. The gods war, Glory. It settles our disputes, gives us ways to separate predator from herd. It is natural. Conflicts always resolve themselves, in time. You’re worrying too much.”
She reached out a hand to touch Glory’s shoulder, but the golden haired woman’s eyes flashed to icy gold and she slapped the hand aside, leaving a startled Gaia starring at her.
“Fool. If you do not see it now, perhaps you will after your realm is left in ruins. I have given you fair warning. The rest is on your head. I’ll find someone else to help me stop this madness, then. Goodbye, cousin.”
Glory turned to leave, although as she did so there was a stiff breeze and the sound of a light impact on the sand as someone else arrived, having seemingly just appeared there. He was a young man with light brown skin and a head of rich, darker brown hair that fell around his head like a lion’s mane. His features were strong, but this was in contrast to his awkward demeanor as he gave the two women a shy smile and wave. He wore a set of polished, light armor of silvery metal that conformed to his muscled physique, and a familiar white coat that Sunset recognized as the kind a Soul Reaper Captain might wear, although the design was odd, with a large collar and no visible symbol on it. The man did carry a katana at his side, a Zanpaktou, although something about it seemed off to Sunset, just like with the Captain’s coat.
“Hail, Glory. And, um, hail Gaia. It’s good to see you well.”
The man spoke in a formal voice, but one that was filled with youthful inexperience and a barely disguised admiration as he looked at Gaia, reddened, and quickly looked away. Glory crossed her arms and sighed.
“Scorpan. Did Mother send you to fetch me?”
“That she did,” replied Scorpan, which left Sunset near gaping. This man didn’t look much older than twenty! He barely looked old enough to shave. This was the ancient, frighteningly powerful Captain Commander of the Gotei 13!? Just how long ago was this memory? Then again, given that Glory had name dropped a Greek god, Sunset was starting to feel like this whole trip down memory lane was going to leave her feeling well out of her depth.
Scorpan, clearing his throat, said in a more officious tone, albeit still laced with nervousness, “The Soul Queen requests your presence back at the Palace, um... immediately. There’s to be a council.”
“Of course there is,” Glory said with a hiss of breath, “There will be talk, talk, and more talk, while our realms, both mortal and otherwise, bleed. Very well, Scorpan, I’ll come along.”
“Um, yes... very good,” Scorpan looked, if anything, confused as Glory strode past him, and then with a wave of her hand, opened a portal that looked unlike anything Sunset had seen yet. A shining silver gate, like the entrance to a fortress made of mercury, appeared in the air and Glory stepped through without another word.
Once she was through, Scorpan gave Gaia an awkward smile, “I’m sorry I have to go so quickly. I would’ve liked to have heard you sing again.”
Gaia’s response was to smile back, although Sunset could pick up on the more friendly nature of it that showed not actual hint of interest in Scorpan’s plain-as-day crush. “I’m not likely to ever return to the Palace, after my last argument with Medley. Hueco Mundo suits me just fine.”
He gave the area a flat look, then shrugged, “I’ve never understood the appeal, myself, but brother Tirek truly seems at home here.”
“Glory spoke of war.”
“Oh, yes, Tirek has drawn another line in the sand. I’m not even sure what it’s about this time around, but there’s more than a few in the Palace halls talking of teaching him and his loyalists as lesson after they went a bit too far with the ‘living’ souls,” Scorpan said, his face now solemn as cold stone, “I may have to cross blades with him myself this time around, but I’m sure things will simmer down in due time. They always do.”
“But they didn’t.”
This time the voice wasn’t from the Gaia of the memory, but the present Gaia Everfree, who’s image blurred into being next to Sunset Shimmer as the scenery of the memory around her froze in place. Sunset looked to the former Second Espada with troubled eyes, gesturing at the scene.
“What was this?”
“The beginning of everything going wrong,” Gaia said, eyes filled with sorrow and fury, especially as she gazed at the memory of herself, “I should have listened to Glory. She at least knew what was coming. I, in my naïve ignorance, only learned later...”
The image blurred once more, but so abruptly and harshly that it left Sunset stumbling, vertigo filling her head as she was suddenly blasted by the sensation of heat. Smoke filled her nostrils, along with the scent of scorched flesh, blood, and the decay of death.
She stood on a battlefield, but that word alone didn’t do what she saw justice. Hueco Mundo stretched infinitely around her, but the piling of bodies left mounds akin to hills between the dunes. Blood flowed like rivers through the sands, and pillars of flame burned bright amid the heaps of dead. Many were the beastly shapes of Hollows, but many others were people clad in armor and bearing weapons from a dozen different ancient cultures. Amid the bodies there were also creatures, rather than humans or Hollows, many of which looked to Sunset as if they were taken straight from the pages of human mythology, including the hulking remains of what looked like several dragons!
Whole landscapes were blown to craters as large as stadiums, while other areas were frozen over like glaciers. Still other parts of the hellish landscape had been melted away or turned to glass, while others still were left riven with canyons and ravines carved by unmitigated power.
As far as Sunset’s vision stretched, the death and devastation of an incomprehensibly massive war lay around her.
Amid this, Gaia Everfree stood, wounded, battered, but holding a Zanpaktou covered in blood. She held a corpse, one Sunset couldn’t even tell was Hollow, human, Soul Reaper, or something else entirely, but she ate the corpse in big, hungry mouthfuls, consuming the soul with the voraciousness of a Hollow.
“There you are...”
The voice was deep, masculine, and commanding. It dripped with the power and authority of a born ruler, and from the smoke of battle strode a man whose height dwarfed others and whose bright right skin contained a wealth of muscle. Dark hair and eyes gazed out from a face of such strong familial similarity to Scorpan’s, there could be no doubt that this was the Captain Commander’s brother. Tirek. His own golden blade was slick with blood itself, although his body bore far fewer wounds than Gaia’s.
Gaia, finishing her ‘meal’, turned to him with a scornful glare, her lips still red and slick, “You. You have done this to us! Is it worth it Tirek? Hueco Mundo is painted red with our blood as well as the enemy’s! When will you have had your fill!?”
He looked at her, and Sunset could feel the echo of his reiatsu, even through the memory. It was one of the few things she’d encountered in her life that terrified her. That unimaginable corona of pure, destructive spiritual pressure was like trying to stand in front of a tidal wave.
This is what Adagio’s up against? What we’re up against?
She shoved down her fear and watched as Tirek loomed above Gaia, reached out with his ominous hand... and simply laid it upon her shoulder. His voice did not raise, yet it struck like thunder.
“I did not start this war. But I will be it’s victor. They hate us, Gaia. Glory and her ilk. The Soul Queen will not intervene. This is no longer a game, no longer competition, no longer ‘settling disputes’. This is genocide. For us, or them. I know you suffer, but know this... we will make them suffer more. They call us Hollows? They intended that as an insult. I say we take that name upon ourselves and wear it with pride. Yes! We are Hollows!”
He took his hand off Gaia and touched the empty hole in his chest, then pointed at the one mirrored upon her own body, “These holes, these places where our souls lack the soft feelings that torment our brethren, these will be our badges! We will no longer shackle our natures, Gaia. We shall indulge them fully. Consume souls, become stronger, and in time, we shall be the ones to claim all realms and create a world where this mindless destruction is not repeated.”
“Hmph, you truly believe that, don’t you? Even after all this? What are our numbers after this battle Tirek?”
“We’ve lost much, but so have our foes. They’ll need to lick their wounds. In the meantime, we will cultivate more Hollows, and seek out the strongest of our kind. Vasto Lordes, Arrancar, I shall assemble the remaining warlords of Hueco Mundo. We’ve fought in too many separate war bands. That changes after today. Ten... yes, the ten mightiest of us shall be banded together as one.”
Gaia’s eyes narrowed, “Under you?”
“Under me,” Tirek said, his voice absolute, and he smiled down at Gaia, “Unless you think you can challenge me?”
She stared hard at him, then, after a moment, bowed her head, and kneeled. Tirek’s smile deepened.
“Good. Then let us go, Gaia, and gather our surviving comrades. This battle is done, but this war, I promise you, is far from over.”
The scenery around Sunset blurred away, leaving her with a sensation of falling amid darkness until a second later she felt solid ground beneath her feet. She took a moment to shake the disorientation from her head, blinking to see that she was standing in a unfamiliar place. White stand indicated Hueco Mundo still, but the unusually bright, blue sky above wasn’t at all what she would have expected. She stood in front of what looked like an impossibly vast wall that stretched up in white magnificence to an unseen point, and ran left and right in a wide, curved arc that disappeared from view. It was almost incomprehensible how large the wall was, and when she looked behind her she could see odd, circular towers, or squat, square buildings of stone dotting a desert landscape, all leading up towards an insanely huge central tower.
Gaia was there, her blurred form still switching between Gaia and Gloriosa’s features, and when she spoke, it sounded more like Gloriosa, her voice soft, “We’ve tried so hard to protect what we cared for, but it never worked, Sunset. I, she, Gaia never wanted war. She wanted to be left alone.”
“What are you children doing here?”
The voice wasn’t directed at Sunset, and came from the direction of the wall. She hadn’t really noticed it earlier, but while most of the expansive, marble edifice was bare, there was a section nearby that was overgrown with ivy, flowers, and a number of small trees and plants near its base. There, Gaia, or rather the Gaia of the past, stood with her arms folded as she gave a glare towards three young girls, perhaps in their early teens, who were wearing tattered white rags. One had a hair of rose red locks, with crème white skin, while the second was a pale pink in color with equally pale green hair, and the last was similarly pink but with a shock of sharp blonde hair. All three girls looked frightened, and one of them still held a bundle of flowers, apparently just taken from the garden.
“We didn’t mean anything!” said the one with the flowers, the rose headed one, “We just thought the colorful things were pretty.”
“Don’t eat us, p-please!” stammered the green haired girl.
As Sunset looked at them closer, she realized they all had Hollow holes at various parts of their bodies, along with bone-like fragments around their eyes, all in floral patterns. Arrancar. She started to put together that this place was that Las Noches place that Twilight had mentioned, where the Quincy had attacked. So this was the fortress where Tirek led the Hollows from? This must have still been fairly far in the past, however, if Gaia was still here, presumably as an Espada.
“You don’t even know what flowers are?” Gaia asked, sighing deeply, “You poor things haven’t been to the world of the living yet, have you? But your mask fragments certainly have the look of flowers. Is that part of why you decided to pick a few from my garden?”
“I told you we shouldn’t have, Rose!” said the blonde girl, causing the other sister to puff up her lips in a pout.
“Be quiet, Lily, or you might make the Espada even more mad at us!”
“We are so, sooo dead,” cried the third, green haired sister.
Gaia made a sharp gesture, a small gust of reiatsu flowing out of her that instantly caused the three young Arrancar to go quiet. After a moment, Gaia’s features softened somewhat and her voice became inquiring, although still sharp edged, “There’s too many like you, these days. Orphans from irresponsible parents who indulge in Tirek’s encouragement to... produce more soldiers. I suppose he’s bothered me long enough about finding some Fraccion, and if nothing else you appreciate nature’s beauty. I shall spare your lives-”
Before the girls could cry out in excitement or relief, she held up a finger and narrowed her eyes, “On the condition that you assist me to tending to my garden and run any other errands I might require. I do not accept freeloaders, am I understood?”
“Y-yes ma’am!” cried the one called Lily happily, while the other two sisters looked at each other and shared a smile.
“Does that mean we’ll get to eat?” asked the green haired one, and she was soon elbowed by Lily.
"Daisy, don’t be rude! She’s sparing us! That’s enough, I’d say!”
With a quiet laugh, Gaia shook her head and turned towards where a narrow opening between the ivy led into the wall, and she gestured over her shoulder to the girls, “The three of you won’t do me much good if you don’t grow up strong, so yes, you’ll get to eat. But do not consider it a handout. You will work for your meals, understand?”
“Yes, Mistress Gaia!” all three girls chimed, following her into the wall.
In a wash like wind blowing wet paint across a canvas, the scene changed again, showing a much larger, well tended garden, with three grown women Arrancar happily standing beside their mistress as Gaia helped a new set of rose bushes grow.
“I found a moment of the happiness I’d lost in the war,” the real Gaia said, standing next to Sunset and looking at the scene with a face of raw pain, “Lily, Daisy, and Rose. Three young flowers who I took into my care on a whim, but they brought me... a sense of contentment. I'd always enjoyed helping things grow, even in harsh environments. It's what drew me to Hueco Mundo in the first place, in the time before 'Hollow' became a term for what our kind became. I taught those three how to tend to my garden, and act as my Fraccion, but I never let them enter into battle. I feared losing them. It was a mistake, not letting them learn to fight, but I thought my position as Second Espada was such that no one would ever dare lay a finger on them for fear of my wrath. I was such a fool...”
“Gaia, wait, I- '' Sunset began, wanting to ask questions, but the vertigo returned, thrice as strong as the scene shifted in a hurricane whirlwind of stand and dust to reform into a start white hallway with cool blue floor tiles. Gaia stood in front of a set of large, red stone doors, and knocked upon them with a distinct look of pensiveness pinching her features.
“Tirek!” Gaia said, “Tirek I need to speak with you!”
The tall red doors of stone, each one certainly weighting dozens if not hundreds of tons, moved as someone pushed them open. Who stood on the other side.
Sunset’s face heated up scarlet, even as her spine also tingled with an absolute chill.
She’d seen Chrysalis once before, during the incident in Soul Society, up on the Sokyoku Hill. She hadn’t really gotten a close look at the Arrancar, but she certainly had an eyeful now.
Chrysalis stood as naked as a jaybird, her ebony glory on full display as she moved with a panther’s grace to step out of the doorway and made a show of stretching her hands over her head and yawning as if having just awoken. Every curve of her jet black flesh oozed a sensual allure, the dark skin reflecting the cold light of the hallway and somehow transforming it into a heated flare that only drew the eye to every enticing part.
Even Sunset, who didn’t really see herself as swinging that way, felt a flush that was hard to deny. However, that feeling was accompanied by a chilling sense of danger and fear, the kind of feeling Sunset imagined the fly must feel as the spider descended towards it while caught in the web.
“Oh, Gaia,” Chrysalis said, her voice lustful silk and wolfish playfulness, all wrapped up into one, “Good morning. Looking for Tirek? He’ll be up soon, I imagine. I just can never seem to tire him out for long.”
“...Chrysalis,” Gaia said under her breath, “I didn’t know you and Tirek had become so... well acquainted.”
“Didn’t you? It’s been a year, at least. Then again, you so rarely leave your garden, don’t you? Really, my friend, you need to get out more. I know, why don’t we take a little excursion sometime to the human world? A girls night out, just the two of us,” Chrysalis slide forward so fast that Sunset hadn’t seen it happen as the woman traced onyx fingers over Gaia’s jaw, “I know of all sorts of things we could do that would just be delightful.”
Gaia stiffened, and slowly raised a pale hand to push Chrysalis’ aside, her voice schooled to iron firm neutrality, “Another time, maybe. There’s an urgent matter I need to talk to Tirek about concerning the sightings of Soul Reapers in the deep southern regions. There’s reason to believe it’s the Eleventh-”
Suddenly Chrysalis’ finger touched Gaia’s lips, “Shhh, he already knows.”
With a halting step back away from Chrysalis, Gaia snapped out, “How? I only just heard from our scouts and came straight here!”
“The scouts from Torch’s horde, yes?” Chrysalis yawned again, turning to lean against the doorframe in a casual manner as she crossed her arms beneath her considerable chest, her green eyes flashing with pleasure, “They’re so slow, compared to my children. I’ve had eyes on the Soul Reaper’s operations since they began shuffling through their little portals a few days ago. Lord Tirek is well aware.”
“But... but why would he have not have told the rest of us!?” Gaia said, eyeing Chrysalis sharply, “Why haven’t you told the rest of us, if you had this knowledge, Sixth Espada?”
The way Gaia said the number, it was meant to be a clear reminder of Chrysalis’ lower position. Sunset finally did notice that there was a stark white six tattooed upon Chrysalis’s upper right breast. If being reminded of her relatively weaker standing compared to Gaia meant anything to Chrysalis, she didn’t show it. She merely smiled that thin smile that straddled hints of amusement, seduction, and murder all in one.
“Because why bother? Tirek has entrusted me to deal with the matter, for now. No reason to get the other Espada involved. At least not yet. But if you’re just so eager, Gaia... instead of the human world, perhaps you’d like to come help me pay the Soul Reapers a visit? Bring your little flowers with you, and I’ll bring my newest born. It’ll be a family outing. Oh! Like a picnic!”
“Newest born...?” Gaia’s eyes narrowed, “Just how many so-called ‘children’ can you possibly have? I don’t care how much you’re laying with Lord Tirek, no Arrancar can produce offspring like that. Is this just a pet name for more of those clone-like drones of yours? I’d hardly call those children.”
Something changed in Chrysalis’ eyes at Gaia’s words. Sunset had a hard time recognizing it at first, but soon she recalled that glass-like, frozen hint of fury. Captain Platinum had looked at Sunset with such eyes, once, only Platinum had worn her rage freely on her wrist, whereas with Chrysalis... it wasn’t hidden, per se, so much as it was intermixed with something else. Some other emotion that twisted the hate into a different emotion altogether.
“Envy doesn’t become you, my friend. I’m merely blessed with abilities beyond normal Arrancar. And I’d thank you not to insult my children, no matter how much or little power I’ve invested in them. Also, don’t speak like that again in front of them, especially my precious Thorax.”
Gaia frowned, but said, slowly, “So you’ve named one, now? This is the first time I’ve heard you refer to one by name.”
That frightening look vanished from Chrysalis eyes and was replaced with an almost insane amount of sugary warmth, so much it felt even more terrifying, in it’s way, “Oh yes! My Thorax is such an adorable little one right now, but he’ll grow up big and strong, as long as he’s well fed. That’s why I’ll bring him with me to say hello to the Soul Reapers. Soul Reaper flesh is so much more nourishing than normal souls. And I’d best eat my fill too, so I can ensure he has a few siblings. Can’t have him growing up as a spoiled only child.”
The unease in Gaia was palpable, but so too was the forcefulness of her dismissal of it as she waved a hand and said, “I don’t need to know the details of your... reproductive ambitions, Chrysalis. If you’ve been assigned by Lord Tirek to deal with the Soul Reapers and require the assistance of the Second Espada, I’ll be generous and accompany you. But you’ll have to succeed on your own merits. Don’t expect me to step in if you get in over your head.”
“Aww, that’s so sweet, you’re worried about my prospects of promotion. You’re such a true friend, Gaia. Whatever would I do without you?”
The scene playing out froze in place, then, and Sunset was left to give a questioning look towards the real Gaia Everfree, who’s distorted form hovered nearby, staring at the image of Chrysalis with naked hate in her eyes.
“So, uh... you two were close?” Sunset asked, jabbing a thumb towards Chrysalis.
“No,” Gaia said in a frozen hiss, “I don’t think anyone or anything can get ‘close’ to that creature. I felt from the start that she was dangerous, but had no idea just how dangerous until it was too late to do anything about it. She wriggled her way into Lord Tirek’s bed, and while I doubt she was ever truly in control of him, he still listened to her council more and more as the years passed. She overtook rival after rival, dethroning the likes of Torch and Catrina, until that Six she wore became a Three.”
“What’s with that whole thing about the Soul Reapers?” Sunset asked, and Gaia waved a hand.
“Just another battle in a long line of battles, but it was the first time I realized how far Chrysalis had extended her network of spies and scouts, using her ‘children’ to gain information that she only dolled out at her own pleasure rather than for the good of Las Noches. The Eleventh Divisions attempt at establishing a permanent outpost was routed, although Tirek himself came out to deal with that matter when the Eleventh’s Captain at the time proved... troublesome. It’s no matter, now. There’s more to show you.”
“But hold on, why show me these particular images? I get that you hate Chrysalis, but-”
“You. Know. Nothing,” Gaia said, her voice dropping an octave, “Not the depths of my hate. Not yet. But if you demand to enter my soul, demean what I’ve had to do, to merge with Gloriosa, then you will watch, until the end. Then you can tell me if my, our, hate is something you think you can assuage with mere words!”
The transition this time was swifter and harsher, like getting caught up in a whirlpool. Sunset had to close her eyes against the swirl of dark, heated colors that swam past her vision. The vertigo clawed at her head, but as much as it was intensifying, she was getting used to it, and needed less time to clear her head before she opened her eyes upon the next vision.
She stood in a wide, long chamber, with similar white stone to the hallways she’d already seen, along with the dark tiled floor. Raised stone steps lined either side of her, upon which distinct thrones of marble stood, four on either side, and a final two seated upon the far end. One of the thrones at the end was erected far higher and larger than the rest, set to preside over the others in a place of obvious dominance, with its partner throne set just a little lower and to the left.
Sunset guessed she was still in Las Noches, and that this had to be the meeting hall of the Espada.
So this is where Adagio sits, now. Looks like a cold, uninviting kind of place. Hope she finds a way to spruce it up.
Putting that idle thought aside, she looked around for anyone present, but saw that the room was empty. At least, until the massive doors at the opposite side of the First Espada’s throne swung wide and Gaia stormed in, dragging another woman Arrancar in behind her by the literal hair before throwing the other Arracnar forward with such force that they struck the base of the far step hard enough to crack the stone.
“Where is she!?” Gaia’s voice rose in a lioness’ roar, “Where is my Rose!? I swear upon my throne as an Espada I’ll leave your corpse strung up here for the others to gaze at if you don’t tell me what you know, Catrina!”
The other female Arrancar picked herself back up while rubbing the back of her head. Sunset saw that she was a rather beautiful woman herself, in the same league as Gaia, if not quite up to Chrysalis’ uncanny looks. Dark brown skin and a head of elegant red hair combined with chiseled Roman features, and Sunset noticed that Catrina wore her white clothing in a toga style that was reminiscent of what Glory had been wearing, in the vision of the distant past.’
Catrina’s jade eyes glared with a defiant light at Gaia, her voice an attempt at imitating Chrysalis’ honeyed tone, “If you don’t want to lose your things you ought to keep a closer eye on them, Gaia. But before you throw me around some more, know that I have no idea where your precious Rose is.”
“You lie,” Gaia spat, stepping closer as her body became wreathed in a dangerous aura of dark purple and green reiatsu, one that Sunsest was now all too familiar with, “Lily and Daisy saw you with her yesterday, descending into the Warrens! What was she doing down there with you! Answer me now, and I’ll be gentle...”
Her aura solidified into a series of wickedly thorn imbued vines of purple energy that pointed towards Catrina like cobras, and Gaia’s hands flexed into blackened claws.
Cantrina broke out into a sweat, but kept her defiant look, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Why would I even talk to one of your Fraccion? I don’t have any care for lesser Arrancar, let alone have a reason to take one down into the Warrens. Perhaps you’re finally going mad, you old shrub.”
Gaia’s aura writhed like an angry animal’s, and the portions of it that appeared as thorn covered vines shot forward faster than bullets, smashing into where Catrina was. However Catrina vanished at the last second and appeared a few steps away, her gorgeous features twisting into a sneer as her hand went to the hilt of the blade at her hip.
“I already told you I don’t know what happened to your Fraccion! If it’s a fight you’re so keen on, however, I’ll give you one!”
Before Gaia could respond, a new voice spoke from the doorway, low and sweet.
“Now what do I spy here? Is the former Fourth Espada about to fight our current Second? Quite the ambitious challenge, Catrina. I’m almost impressed.”
Catrina and Gaia both looked to see Chrysalis striding into the room with smooth, gliding steps, the smooth and form fitting white dress she wore seeming to breeze across the stone like a mist. Sunset noted that her Espada number was now ‘4’ instead of ‘6’, and from the way Catrina gazed at Chrysalis with naked hatred, it wasn’t hard to imagine it hadn’t been long ago from this memory that Catrina had been unseated.
“What is the meaning of this?” Catrina said, lips still parted in a sneer, “Trying to rub salt in my wounds? This mad woman is going ballistic about her Fraccion missing, and insists I was last with this ‘Rose’. But let me guess, you know more about this than I do, don’t you Chrysalis?”
Gaia’s eyes had fixated on Chrysalis with a challenging stare, but tension was apparent in every rigid inch of her body, with an undercurrent hinting at fear. “What do you know of this?”
Chrysalis paused, placing a hand over her chest, just above her heart, her smile brightening in a manner that only seemed to make her eyes all the darker for it, “Why Gaia, I’m surprised you didn’t come to me immediately. We’re friends, aren’t we? Rose, right? The lovely one with red hair? Yes, I’ve seen her recently. Who said she was with Catrina?”
“Lily and Daisy, who aren’t likely to make a mistake like confusing Catrina for someone else,” Gaia replied, “Just when did you see Rose. Where is she?”
Chrysalis’s smile deepened, “I believe she’s with my Thorax. The dear has been... practicing his skills. There’s nothing to be worried about, he wouldn’t hurt a hair on anyone’s head, least of all a delicate flower like one of your Fraccion.”
Confusion was plain to see on Gaia’s face, but she simply strode towards Chrysalis until she was just a pace away, doing her best to loom over the other Arrancar, although the attempt didn’t have any notable affect on Chrysalis.
“Take me to her. Now.”
“Of course. I came to do that very thing,” Chrysalis said, and waved a dismissive hand towards Catrina, “Hey you, be useful and let Lord Tirek know that Gaia and I will be indisposed for a little while. Girl talk.”
“H...hey you? Hey you!? I’m not your messenger-” Catrina began, but Chrysalis just tilted a look her way, and Catrina’s voice halted. Her jaw clenched like she was chewing rocks, but she silently prowled her way out of the room, leaving Chrysalis and Gaia to follow soona after.
Sunset guessed the next memory wasn’t far removed from this one, since the transition didn’t even change Chrysalis or Gaia themselves, the pair walking from the throne room and the room around them swirling in a blaze of gray dust to reform into an intensely dark area, where only a small filter of light descended from somewhere above. Sunset could make out what looked to be the crevice of some deep canyon that they were at the bottom of, and all around her she sensed shadows moving in flitting motions.
She couldn’t make them out beyond dark, shadow clad humanoid bodies and gleaming gem eyes in the dark, but Chrysalis led Gaia to the depths of a canyon, followed by these shadows which Gaia seemed to pointedly ignore. Up ahead was a inverted pyramidal structure, suspended in the air by strands of what looked like thick, pale green and white web or resin.
At the entrance to this structure, Chrysalis paused and turned to Gaia, “It occurs to me I haven’t had a chance to thank you, yet.”
“For what?” Gaia replied.
“Since I first arrived, you’ve been quite fair to me, despite the fact that I know you don’t like me.”
“Whether I like you has no bearing on your standing. Under Lord Tirek’s rule, strength and ability is all that matters,” Gaia said simply, “I find you... unsettling, Chrysalis. But even I wouldn’t deny you’re capable.”
“See, that wasn’t hard to admit, was it? Poor Catrina, so much pride, so little cause. She’ll hold a grudge against me for eternity just because I have a higher number than her, now. She doesn’t understand. I don’t like playing with boring food. It’s so much more fun to play with friends, Gaia. That’s why I like you.”
“Friends. I’m sorry, Chrysalis, but for all your attempts, I confess I’ve never understood why you see me as a friend. You even just admitted to knowing I’m not that fond of you.”
By now they’d entered the depths of the structure, which led down strangely carved corridors until they reached a chamber with a short, domed ceiling. Light stemmed from a few glowing pieces of green resin, illuminating little save for an indistinct shadow, hanging from some manner of chain or rope from the ceiling in the chamber’s center. There was no sound save for a steady patter of something wet. Sunset, following along with the memory, caught the immediate stench of copper.
Chrysalis’ voice echoed in the chamber like a knife’s scrape across ice.
“I know. I’ve never required others to view me the same way I view them. That takes the fun out of it.”
“Chrysalis, what is...” Gaia’s breath hitched in her throat as she stepped closer to the center of the chamber, and saw what was hanging there.
“Didn’t I tell you I’d take you to Rose? Thorax brought her here, but he simply wanted to play with a new friend. He’s such an innocent boy. I’ll have a lot to work on where his education is concerned. He should know better than to bring new people to our home when I'm... indisposed. Sadly, Rose saw something she really wasn’t supposed to see, and well, what’s a mother like me to do to keep her secrets? I made it quick, if that helps. I preserved this much, since I knew you’d want to see her, but I ate the rest. It was the proper Hollow thing to do, among other reasons.”
Sunset didn’t want to remember what she saw of Rose in that memory, although it would still haunt her dreams for some time to come after that day. The remains were preserved in some kind of resin structure that ran from ceiling to floor, with blood pooling beneath. Body aside, Rose’s face, at least, had been left unblemished, almost as if Chrysalis had wanted to ensure the body could be identified by Gaia.
The memory was torn apart by Gaia’s scream, and Sunset saw both the anguish and naked fury on Gaia’s face.
“I hated her,” the real Gaia said, “But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t kill her.”
Those words echoed amid the void as the scene before Sunset melded into a sea of blood, only to reform into an image of Gaia standing in front of Daisy and Lily, kneeling in front of the two with her hands on their shoulders. They were in what Sunset assumed was the world of the living, deep in some thick, remote jungle area.
“We can’t just stay here,” Lily was saying, “Not while you go back to face that monster!”
“Please let us fight with you, mistress!” Daisy implored, “Let us help avenge Rose!”
“No!” Gaia said, standing up, but keeping her hands tight on the girls shoulders as she looked at both of the in turn with eyes fighting to contain tears, “I don’t even know if I can kill her. She came back from every wound I delt and just... just laughed... no, if I’m going to finish this, I need know you’re both safe. The temple in this basin used to belong to humans that worshiped me. It is remote, hidden. Stay here until I return. That is an order from your Espada.”
“We...” Lily’s voice lowered as she glanced at Daisy, then finally both of them nodded, “We will, mistress.”
Disjointedly, the scene fell apart, like falling tears. Sunset’s senses spiraled for a second, but soon she found herself standing back in Las Noches, in the wide desert area between the walls. An explosion of power filled the area, billowing sand up in tall clouds. Gaia, her wrathful aura on full display, faced off against Chrysalis, while a procession of other Arrancar stood around the area to spectate, including Catrina, Grogar, Tirek, and several others that Sunset didn’t recognize but was certain were Espada by the numbers on their bodies.
“I’m ending this today, Chrysalis!” Gaia bellowed, “Lord Tirek, I trust you have no objections?”
Tirek’s massive red shoulders shrugged, but his eyes watched the pair of Arrancar women with keen interest, “You know well that any Espada may challenge another whenever they see fit. If you find Chrysalis’ actions offensive, then show your power, your dominance, by punishing her in whatever way you can enforce. Of course, if she wins, then you’ll have no room to complain about what happens. This is the law of Las Noches, Gaia.”
“It isn’t too late for us to make amends, my friend,” Chrysalis said, holding out her hands, “But then again, maybe it is. Rose was an unfortunate bystander, but I suppose I can’t claim the same of the other two.”
Gaia’s eyes widened, “Other two... no! You’re lying! They’re safe, I made sure of it!”
Chrysalis smiled like a satisfied shark, “I lie a lot, but never to a friend. See for yourself.”
With a wave of her hand, a small Garganta opened up, and from it stepped one of her drone Arrancar, who in his grasp carried a pair of bloodied sets of clothes wrapped around two broken Zanpaktou, one with a pink wrapped hilt, the other yellow. Gaia clearly recognized who they belonged to, because she instantly screamed and unleashed a powerful Cero blast that flashed across the sands and incinerated Chrysalis’ drone in an instant.
Chrysalis’ smile turned sour, yet her eyes still sparkled, “I don’t appreciate seeing my children being slaughtered, but turnabout is fair play, so I won’t fault you for that, especially given my score is still higher in that regard.”
“I'm going to kill you. I swear it on their names!” Gaia cried, and drew her Zanpaktou. Chrysalis did the same, that smile never faltering from her face as she unleashed a deep, emerald green aura of spirit energy to match Gaia’s. The ground shook between the pair, and all the watching Arrancar either leaned forward with intense interest, or stepped back out of cautious fear, depending on their respective powers. Tirek’s eyes in particular gleamed like gold gems as a small smile cracked his stoic features.
Then everything vanished in a searing flash of light, and Sunset found herself surrounded by a deep, pervading darkness.
Gaia’s voice, the real one, Sunset thought, echoed around her.
“I couldn’t do it. Despite all my power, all my hate, all my sorrow and pain driving me forward, I failed to kill her. I lost, utterly and completely... I lost everything. But even that wasn’t enough to satisfy Chrysalis.”
When Sunset could finally seeing something again, it was of a familiar area. She was surrounded by the damp darkness of the underground area beneath the Everfree Forest. Here, Gaia’s body was being laid down upon a raised mound by Chrysalis. Gaia’s body was hard to recognize as it was either in the present or in her prime. It was an emaciated thing, the skin shriveled and withered, her hair missing in clumps while the pieces that were left were dull and without luster. Wounds covered her, gangerous and rotted, with ugly bruises over her limbs suggesting countless harsh breaks in the bones. Chrysalis was placing a set of bone-like spikes into Gaia’s limbs, pinning her to the ground, although there was a very bizarre gentleness to the way she moved, as if she was a mother trying not to wake a sleeping child.
Gaia stirred, a pained moan on her lips, her bleary eyes fluttering open. Chrysalis finished implanting the last spike and made a cooing noise, “Shh, we’re almost done here, Gaia.”
“Ch...rys...lis...ha..te...you...” Gaia struggled to rasp, “Kill...me...just...kill...”
Chrysalis shook her head, eyes mad in the darkness with a light of emotion that Sunset couldn’t begin to fathom, “Kill you? My best friend? No, never. I truly did mean it when I thanked you that day I showed you Rose. You’ve made life in Las Noches so much more fun than it would’ve been otherwise.”
Finishing her work, she stood and brushed some stray hair from her charcoal features, a contemplative smile on her face as she gazed down at the ruin of Gaia Everfree. “Can I confess something? The reason I killed Rose, that day. You never found out, despite all your snooping. I'll admit it was fun watching you wonder, but since this will likely be the last time we see each other, I'll give you this parting gift.”
Chrysalis reached down and touched her stomach, just above where her womb would be. There was an odd sensation then, that Sunset felt in her bones. Some kind of odd pressure that wasn’t quite reiatsu or magic, but something else that pushed at her senses like an ocean. For a moment she thought the light around Chrysalis dimmed even more, like being lined in ink.
Chrysalis leaned down and whispered to Gaia, “It belonged to the Soul Queen, but now it's mine. Rose saw while I was... exposed. Maybe she didn't know what she was looking at, but I couldn't take that chance. Tirek doesn't know, and if he did he might realize just how much of a threat I and my children are to him, so I... silenced your precious Rose. Heheh, of course, the rest was just fun and games to me, but it didn't start personal, Gaia. You were just in the way, but I had fun. I’ll climb up to heaven itself, and seek out the other parts of Her. I won't let my children be bound by the world Zero is trying to make. Instead I'll make a world of my own, for my children to play in, free of limitations. And you know what, Gaia Everfree, I want you to live to see it, withered and unable to die, pinned in this cold place surrounded by the nature you hold so dear. Watch me, my desert friend, as I ascend to the top of this wretched world and remake it however I like. Cheer me on with your hatred. It will give me joy, to know you’ll be here. Perhaps one day you'll escape, who knows? On that day, come find me, and we'll play once more. I'd like that.”
With that, Chrysalis pressed her lips to Gaia’s in an embrace that was a twisted parody of passion, and Gaia struggled with the last embers of strength she had, screaming into that kiss that drained her of the last scraps of conscious power she had. She was left a husk, alive, but barely aware of her surroundings. Chrysalis rose and with a final smile, turned away and left Gaia there, alone in the depths.