Equestria Girls: Friendship Souls

by thatguyvex

Episode 84: A Time For Answers

Episode 84: A Time For Answers

Torch sat upon his throne, ruminating. His hands clasped his axe in a white knuckled grip, and he barely felt the throbbing pain that coursed over his body. His wounds meant little to him, now. He wanted to know where his Ember was!

The butcher’s bill of the battle was an extensive one, but nowhere near as bad as it could have been. His horde had taken a good chunk of losses, but there wasn’t a one of his warriors that wasn’t sporting a freshly collected set of Quincy crosses to show their own kills, so he knew his people had given as good as they gotten and then some. The problem was that, for all those they could confirm had fallen to Quincy arrows, there were plenty more who were simply missing.

And maddeningly, his daughter was among that number. So were Adagio and Garble, who were the last two to have been seen with Ember.

A thick, deep growl built in his chest as his nostrils steamed and his eyes glowed with smoldering rage. He was ready to ignore the pain of his injuries and go scouring the aftermath of the battlefield, but even as he was rising from his throne, he spied a figure approaching through the throngs of his resting, recovering warriors.

At first he didn’t quite believe what he was seeing, and his ire was quenched somewhat by his surprise.

“Adagio Dazzle. Hmph, I see the fires of battle have forged you anew. I’d be more inclined to congratulate you...” his eyes narrowed, darkening with a promise of violence, “...But I don’t see my daughter with you.”

The woman stopped before his throne and offered a courteous bow, although one that Torch noted was almost as shallow as one might give an equal, rather than a superior. There was no doubting her fresh status as an Arrancar, from the now near human appearance she bore. Her form was largely hidden beneath heavy white robes, but Torch wasn’t shocked by that. Probably the only thing the woman could find to wear on such short notice. Usually custom clothes came from Smooze’s textile forges in the Warrens. Still, he couldn’t deny that Adagio, even in mere robes, managed to cut an impressive figure, and she held her new white and ruby tipped trident with an easy confidence.

“My Lord Torch, Ember yet lives, but I regret to bring news that she’s been taken,” Adagio said, not bothering to cast any looks to either side of her, where the less injured of Torch’s warriors were gathering in a large, circular throng to observe the show.

Torch rose from his throne, and ignoring his injuries he leaped down from it and landed before Adagio in an imposing tower of muscle. He glowered down at her.

“Taken?” he said, one fist clenching around his axe.

If Adagio was afraid of him, she wasn’t showing it. In fact there was nothing but a combination of raw confidence, and if anything a hint of honest regret in her eyes as she said, “By Soul Reapers. Specifically one of their Captains. Luna. Are you familiar with her?”

For a moment Torch was taken aback enough by news of Soul Reapers within Las Noches that he forgot any immediate notion of pounding Adagio into the ground like a perturbing railroad spike. As Adagio’s words penetrated his mind, he thought of the Soul Reaper Captains he knew. There’d been a few over the years, but unlike the Quincy Sternritter, which tended to change generation to generation the way humans died and bred, Soul Reapers often held their positions for much longer.

He knew the two sisters, though not particularly well. Had he crossed blades with them before? The elder one, Celestia, once or twice, but he didn’t think he’d had the pleasure of fighting the younger sister. Chrysalis had something of a thing for that one, but that was all he knew.

“I know that one only by name,” he rumbled, leaning over Adagio, smoke boiling out of his nostrils to stir her hair, “Tell me what has happened. Everything. I want to know why it is you stand here before me, an Arrancar, unharmed, while my daughter has been... taken.”

The word left an unsettling and cold feeling in his gut. He’d have been furious with grief if Ember had died in battle, but at least it would have been a clean and proper death as a warrior. To be taken captive, however? To be held prisoner by the Soul Reapers, for who knew what kind of wretched experiments? It was a fate that made his blood boil like freshly spewed magma. He’d burn ALL of Soul Society to the ground if that’s what it took to get his Ember back!

Adagio met his heated gaze and while Torch knew he was no bastion of intellect, he couldn’t tell whether her eyes were hiding any deceit in them. Her words, when she spoke, sounded sincere enough, but Torch wasn’t fool enough to fully trust those, either.

She described the battle herself, Ember, and Garble had undertaken against a Sternritter. Torch was briefly impressed, most so by Garble’s final moments. A worthy death, for a member of Torch’s horde. It also meant he ought to send scouts to keep an eye on that location, in case this Prim Hemline hadn’t escaped the Caja Negacion yet.

The next part of Adagio’s story was... suspect. Apparently they’d seen Guto’s forces struggling with Quincy near the lake and had gone to lend some support. According to Adagio, during that battle they heard one of the Quincy boast about the presence of an assassination team sent to kill Squirk, and both Adagio and Ember had decided to sneak into Las Noches through the waterways beneath the fortress to try and stop the assassination plot. They hadn’t been able to inform Guto about this because the man had been in the thick of a fight with multiple Sternritter, and they didn’t think there was time to waste.

It sounded plausible enough, but Torch couldn’t help but wonder what Quincy would’ve known about such a hit-team, and would have run their mouth about it in the middle of a battle. Yet the fact that Squirk hadn’t been around to use Gargantas to retrieve warriors after the battle suggested that the next part of Adagio’s story was true.

She and Ember had arrived back inside Las Noches just in time to witness Squirk battling not just a Quincy Sternritter, but several Soul Reapers, including this Captain Luna. She and Ember tried to save Squirk, helping him escape through a Garganta back to his palace, but the Soul Reapers managed to follow them, and in a pitched battle Squirk was killed, and Ember taken.

“The only reason I survived, I suspect, was because the Soul Reapers wanted to escape Hueco Mundo as fast as possible and didn’t think they had time to fight a freshly born Arrancar,” Adagio said, running a finger over a wound mark on her cheek, “Although I did give the dear Captain a parting gift matching this one before she fled through their Soul Reaper portal.”

“...With my daughter,” Torch growled, and Adagio didn’t look away, only nodding confirmation.

“Yes, with Ember. You do understand, Lord Torch, that if I could have done more, I would have.”

That sounded true, if nothing else, and Adagio went on to say, “As it stands, I dearly wish to rescue Ember. She’s been a reliable ally and it is not an exaggeration to say I wouldn’t have come this far without her help. I owe her a debt I intend to repay by recovering her as fast as possible. Which is, of course, why I’m here.”

“You think I need your help to save my own blood?” he asked, “If she hadn’t been with you then this wouldn't have happened in the first place!”

The air shimmered around his body as his anger burned within him, and a certain deadly tension filled the immediate area as multiple of his warriors started to put hands on swords, a chorus of growls emanating from their throats. Adagio didn’t show any fear, and only planted her trident’s blunt end in the sand next to her as she kept her eyes fixed solely on Torch, and didn’t give even a brief glance at the dozens of Arrancar surrounding her.

“Battle is always a risk, Lord Torch. I would think you, of all people, would understand that. Ember is a warrior born, is she not? Should she have cowered here inside Las Noches walls? Should she have hidden behind your strong back, out of harm's way?”

Her voice grew louder, carrying itself over the ranks of the horde.

“Warriors fight, and risk death or capture by the enemy! That is war! Ember fought valiantly, but was taken by a foe who’s might surpassed hers and mine combined! A Captain among the Soul Reapers! Would any of you, other than Lord Torch himself, fared any better? Indeed would any of you faced such an enemy and lived to tell of it, as I have?”

Torch could tell her words were having an affect on his people. There was a combination of uncertainty and even respect rippling over the faces of his gathered warriors. Like him they couldn’t be certain she was telling the truth, yet if it was true, and she’d fought both a Sternritter and a Soul Reaper Captain, and survived to tell the tale... then by the standards of the horde then she was a woman worthy of respect. More than that, her words concerning Ember were correct. Even Torch couldn’t deny that. Ember was a warrior. His little girl, yes, but a warrior, and he’d never allowed himself to overly coddle her.

If she’d fallen in battle, or been taken as Adagio said, then he couldn’t rightfully blame Adagio for that. At least if what Adagio was claiming happened was true.

He still sensed something off about all this. There was more to the story that she wasn’t telling, but he couldn’t put his finger on what. If Ember was dead, there’d be no reason to lie about it. No, he suspected that what she was saying about the Soul Reapers, and Ember being taken by them was true. He could even sense the very faint lingering of Soul Reaper reiatsu around the wound on Adagio’s cheek.

The part he suspected was off had to do with the reason Ember and Adagio had returned to Las Noches in the first place. Had it really been to save Squirk? Torch was not interested in Las Noches’ power struggles, but he wasn’t stupid. He knew Catrina was working on an alliance against Chrysalis to try to advance to the rank of Second Espada, and had been building support among the lower ranked.

Had Squirk gotten on the wrong side of that conflict?

Torch liked Adagio. She was ambitious, strong, and not afraid to face tough odds. He’d found her interesting ever since Ember had brought the spunky little Adjuchas Hollow to his horde. But Adagio was also a schemer. He’d sensed that much too. Adagio had a lot of similar traits to Chrysalis, and it wouldn’t surprise Torch at all if the canny Second Espada had found Adagio to be a capable cat’s paw to use.

“Hmph...” he blew more smoke out of his nose with a heavy snort, “You speak truly enough that I suppose it’d be poor form to smash you into pulp here and now. But if you’re going to help me get my Ember back you’d better be ready to storm the very gates of Soul Society, because that’s where I’ll be going as soon as I catch my breath from this little scuffle.”

There was a round of firm nods among his horde and even a few chuckles at Torch referring to the massive battle as a mere ‘scuffle’, but Adagio looked at him flatly and said, “That would be unwise.”

“What?” Torch demanded among the sudden silence of his warriors.

“Lord Torch, I understand the urgency of the situation, but you won’t help your daughter by getting yourself killed in a direct assault upon the Soul Reaper’s capital. Indeed you might only further endanger Ember by doing so."

“And what would you have me do!? Sit here and wait for the Soul Reapers to torture and experiment upon her!? No. Don’t take me for a fool, Adagio, or you’ll fast learn the limits of my patience! I know well enough I can’t storm through Soul Society and face the entire Gotei 13 by myself! But a swift, precise raid on their Twelfth Division headquarters can bust Ember out, sure enough!”

Adagio shook her head, replying sharply, “A swift raid? Were Squirk still alive, such might be possible, but he’s dead. I may not know much about the Soul Reapers, but it stands to reason that they’d have similar protections as the Quincy, and hence you’d need something akin to Squirk’s power over Gargantas to be able to launch a raid into the heart of their territory with any hope of success. Furthermore, you don’t even know for sure where they’re keeping Ember. It could be she's at this Twelfth Division, as you say, but what if she's not?”

Torch let out a frustrated snarl, “Where else would they keep her? It’s their research group, a bunch of little squirrely bastards in lab coats! They must have taken her there, if they plan to toy with her to figure out how she ticks!”

It boiled his blood just to say that, but Adagio just kept looking at him with a firm stare, shoulder’s square, and somehow managing to not make it look as if he was towering over her with his gigantic frame.

“Unless of course they have other labs elsewhere to secure her in, given she’s a dangerous and powerful subject. They might not want to risk keeping her in their headquarters. Did you not consider this? Torch, you will not rescue your daughter with foolish, rash action!”

“How dare you question-”

Shockingly, she cut him off. Nobody had risked doing that in... a long time.

“I dare because I care about getting Ember back alive!” she rose into the air, until she was nose to nose with him, leaning in on him, “And I would assume you do as well, so stop acting like a thick-headed, wool-brained idiot and listen to me for a change! Or did you think you were going to go storming off in your condition and batter down Soul Society’s door with half your body in shambles? Can you even lift that axe of yours right now?”

He just stared at her, blinking dumbly.

Then, with a pained grunt, he lifted his axe. It wasn’t as smooth or as high as he would’ve liked, but his pained muscles still lifted it above his head, poised to strike. Yet Adagio didn’t flinch from him, didn’t so much as bat an eyelash as she said, “Good. Now hit me.”

“Uhhhh...” Torch blinked, “Come again?”

“Did I misspeak? I said; hit me. Without holding back.”

Technically impossible without activating his Resurreccion, but he had strength enough to spare, even in this state, and if Adagio wanted to be hit, then Torch didn’t mind obliging. He needed to blow off some steam anyway. He probably wouldn’t kill her. Maybe.

“Suit yourself!” he shouted, and with a feral roar gripped his axe with both hands and smashed it down towards Adagio as hard as he could. Which admittedly wasn’t nearly as hard as normal given his injuries and depleted reiatsu after the battle, but he still knew this was the kind of blow that’d fell any of his regular warriors in one clean strike, and probably wound a fellow Espada of a weaker tier.

Adagio caught it with her hand.

A shockwave of concussive force billowed out across the gathered horde, billowing heads of hair and causing several Arrancar to raise their hands to shield their eyes from the wind.

Torch stood there, staring, rather blown away himself by what he saw. Then he blinked again at what he sensed as Adagio’s body was covered in a thick aura of blue light, her spiritual pressure pouring out of her in an incredible display. Many among Torch’s gathered horde were forced to take steps back, a few even falling to their knees under the massive weight of Adagio’s reiatsu.

Torch himself bore it readily enough, but he could feel it pressing on him. Adagio was easily strong enough to qualify as an Espada. And not a lower ranked one, either. Torch didn’t think she’d be able to defeat him if he were at full power, but weakened and injured as he was, she might very well give him a fight he couldn’t easily win.

Guto probably had a surprise coming in the near future though, if Torch was gauging Adagio’s reiatsu right. Grogar was probably going to be sweating bullets soon, too.

“I see...” he said, slowly removing his axe. Adagio lowered her hand, hiding it somewhat amid her robes. Probably to hide the bit of blood on her palm from where Torch’s axe had managed to cut her. Powerful, but she’d probably not quite realized how much strength Torch still had left. Torch was satisfied enough at that, but was still amazed at Adagio’s power and potential.

He looked her over one more time, then shook his head in wonderment, “I had a feeling you were something different when Ember brought you to me. Don’t go getting cocky. Whoever you’re fixing to replace won’t give up their seat easily, including me.”

“Oh I have no interest in taking your position, Lord Torch. Squirk is gone, and a seat is already vacated. We’ll see soon enough just how this upcoming round of Espada musical chairs will play out, but before that I needed you to understand that when I say I will rescue Ember, I’m not making an idle boast. I also mean it when I say if you try doing anything stupid, I will personally sit your ass down and take care of the matter myself.”

“Heh...Hehehahahaha!” his bellow of laughter echoed like thunder, and he suddenly clapped her on the shoulder, “I figure you might at that, Adagio Dazzle! I take it you have a plan, then, to get my Ember back? Come on then, let’s hear it over some drinks. I’m damned parched and if I’m going to get over these mosquito bites the Sternritter gave me, I’m going to need to be good and plastered while I do it!”

Their leader’s attitude dispelled the tension among the gathered Arrancar horde, and soon multiple voices were raised and cheering agreement at the idea of drinks and feasting. After all, they’d survived a battle, and beaten back the enemy. Losses aside, for most of them this was cause enough for celebration.

As for Adagio, she followed along in Torch’s wake, shouldering her trident and speaking in a low pitched voice meant for his ears alone, “I do have plans, as you say. As long as I can count on you to back me on them, then I swear to you we will get Ember back alive and safe. Can I count on you, Torch?”

He looked at her sidelong as he resumed his throne and grabbed a keg of alcohol sitting along the side of it to crack open and pour some of the drink generously down his gullet. Wiping his mouth he said, “Doesn’t seem like I’ve got much choice, now, does it?”

Adagio’s smile was distinctly cat-like, “That was the general idea.”

----------

Food and coffee did little to settle the exhaustion Twilight felt. Sure, the caffeine helped a bit, but it also made her remaining hand jittery, and the food in her stomach, rather than ease her hunger, just sat there like a lead lump. She wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep and pray she’d wake up to find it had all been a horrible dream.

No such luck. Reality was reality, and the longer she tried to hide from it, the worse it would hit her down the road.

She’d dressed into a clean uniform, a process that took much longer than normal with just one hand, and examined herself in the mirror of the bathroom adjoining Cadence’s living quarters. Everything in the bathroom was entirely too pink, but somehow all very, very Cadence. Even the soap was heart shaped. It almost brought a smile to Twilight’s face, her soon-to-be sister in law’s almost obsessive habits in decoration.

Then she looked at herself again and felt the humor, brief as it had been, flicker away like a dying candle. She looked terrible. Her hair, even while tied back in a neat bun, was sporting numerous stray, split ends. Her eyes were marked by dark circles beneath them. Her skin looked somehow more pallid than usual, less vibrant and colorful. Her shoulders sagged slightly, as if pressed down by a great weight.

Mom... why did you... why couldn’t I save...?

The thoughts themselves were slow, tired, and barely formed in her mind before she was leaning over the sink, eyes pinched close as she tried to fight back the tears. This pain was too new, too raw, and wouldn’t be going away anytime soon. Yet somehow she had to make herself function. She had things that needed doing. No matter how much she wanted to just crawl into a corner, curl up, and cry herself into dreamless oblivion.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up, but saw no one there.

”Over here, numbnuts.”

She looked back at the mirror to see Midnight Sparkle standing beside her reflection in the reflective glass. The other girl, her magic-born mental twin, had a hand on Twilight’s shoulder, her face pensive and unsure, as if Midnight didn’t really know how to offer comfort. Yet even as there was a certain level of derisiveness still in Midnight’s visage, the arrogance that seemed to make her who she was, there was also echoes of regret in her eyes.

”There wasn’t anything we could have done differently. You know that, right?”

“I... know that.” She didn’t.

Midnight let out a hissing sigh, ”This is stupid. Human feelings are stupid. This is why I like magic. Raw power, understanding the cosmos, no wasted time on all these icky feelings like pain. I don’t see how you put up with them.”

“I don’t think I have,” Twilight said, looking down at her hand, still braced on the sink edge, “I think I’ve tried to avoid them a lot, most of my life. Science was easier. Nice clean science. Numbers and laws. It all made sense. People didn’t. This didn’t. The pain...” she held her hand over her heart, a few tears spilling out of her eyes, despite her best efforts.

“Mom just wanted to keep me safe. I wished she’d... that I’d just... talked to her more.”

Midnight looked away from her, clearly uncomfortable, and her hand left Twilight’s shoulder and crossed over her own chest as the magical shade started to pace in the mirror.

”You know, necromancy is an interesting field of study in regards to certain magical-”

“No,” Twilight said, shocked at the hardness in her own voice as she looked up at the mirror, fixing Midnight with a spear-like gaze, “We are not using magic like that.”

Midnight paused, frowned, then shrugged, ”Probably for the best. Zombies aren’t known for their conversational skills anyway.”

Twilight rubbed her head, “How do you even know magic like that exists, anyway?”

”Twilight, when I was at full power I was connected to the very essence of Magic itself. I knew a lot. Fields of magic beyond what even modern unicorns in Equestria might know. Magic is old, Twilight. Old and fundamental. Modern Equestrians have forgotten as much magic as they’ve discovered or invented. Necromancy is a drop in the bucket compared to some of the... darker forms of magic out there. Trust me, if I’d stayed in charge back then, our little portal fit at the Friendship Games would’ve been small potatoes compared to what I could have done once we got to Equestria.”

Well, that was a delightfully disturbing thought. And as firm as her denial had been, it disturbed Twilight even more that a small part of her was intrigued by what Midnight had to say. But no, there was absolutely no way she was allowing Midnight that much control, nor let her use magic to try to defile her mother’s body with magic in some Pet Sematary-style insanity. That was one morality play she’d just as soon avoid, even if she did desperately want to see her mother again.

The conversation with Midnight did at least serve to distract Twilight’s mind from her despair sufficiently enough that she was able to wipe her eyes clear of tears and said, “Fascinating as that all is, Midnight, we’ll have to shelve the conversation for later. I shouldn’t keep Sombra waiting.”

Midnight nodded in agreement, hands going to her hips, ”Good. Weep later. Get answers now. I’m hungry to learn more about what that Eye was.”

“You and me both,” Twilight said, and with a final, heavy breath, steeled herself and went through the door to the bedroom.

Cadence and Shining Armor had already left, along with her father. Spike remained on the bed, and his head raised at her entrance. He frowned a bit, gulping as he tilted his head towards the door.

“He’s still outside. Been waiting out there, like a creepy statue. Twilight, do you seriously trust that guy to tell you the truth after he’s already lied to you?”

Twilight gave the dog a pensive look as she came over to scratch behind his ears, “I don’t really know anymore, Spike, but what choice do I have? He’s the only source of answers available, even if I can’t necessarily trust all those answers to be truthful ones.”

“You could always blow this popsicle stand,” Spike said, “Make a run for it. Get back to Sunset and the others. Maybe that weird Discord guy has answers.”

Twilight paused, then shook her head, “I’m not even sure I’d be allowed to leave, now. As for Mr. Discord, I can’t say for sure he’d know anything about my condition either. And it's not as if he was bursting with trustworthiness either.”

Spike sighed out a little whine, “This is the pits, Twilight. But whatever you decide to do, I’m there for you, one hundred percent.”

She smiled. It was a small, tired thing, but a smile nonetheless. “I know you are, Spike. Be good and I’ll be back soon.”

She gave him one final pat on the head and then walked to the doors that led out into the hallway. Like most hallways in the Silburn it had a tall ceiling and was grandiose, with white walls and fine, dark carpets. Sombra stood by one of the windows along the right side of the hallway, a shadowed statue of obsidian, much as Spike had said.

He stirred as she left Cadence’s room, turning two somber red eyes towards her.

“Are you ready?”

“As much as I can be,” she replied.

There was a certain, heavy finality to the slight nod he gave her as he said, “Follow me.”

She did so, as he walked at a brisk pace down the hall. However as he reached the end of the hallway, rather than turn down one of its two branches, the shadows dripped down from his cloak and expanded around him. Twilight paused in momentary fright, but Sombra’s words reached her with an oddly fragile tone.

“Don’t be afraid. Where I’m taking you, we cannot get there by walking. This won’t hurt. It’s merely a manifestation of my Schrift.”

She wanted to trust him, but it was still decidedly unsettling to watch the shadows sweep over the hallway around her, creep beneath her feet, drowning out the fading light from an evening sky outside the windows. Soon there was nothing but darkness around her. Yet before Twilight could feel more than a momentary chill, the darkness receded around her. The shadows washed away under warm, amber lights, and flowed back into Sombra himself.

Abruptly they were elsewhere, standing in a well lit, dry room of stone that looked as if it could have been anywhere from a medieval catacomb to a castle’s enclosed study chamber. The walls had an old, polished look to them. Twilight saw no windows, and the only light came from a set of softly burning lamps hanging from pegs at the room’s four corners. It wasn’t a very large room either, perhaps the size of a normal bedroom, though there was no bed in evidence. In fact as she looked around, this room appeared to be some kind of small library and reading chamber.

Three of the walls were lined with bookshelves, each stacked to near bursting with books of every variety and subject. Twilight saw everything from science texts on biology and astronomy, to more esoteric tomes that looked like they might have been penned centuries ago. To her surprise there was even an entire shelf or two dedicated to what looked like nothing more than fiction novels, all with spines so well worn and bent that they must have been read hundreds of times.

The only wall without bookshelves had a thick oaken desk shoved against one side, piled with papers and an old fashioned inkwell and quill. A plush leather chair of faded, cracked leather sat in front of the desk. Beside that a thick wooden door was set in the wall, but Sombra ignored the door and instead went to the chair, though he didn’t sit in it and instead leaned against the desk, gesturing at the chair.

“Sit, if it pleases you. I don’t have any spares. No one but me comes to these rooms.”

Twilight glanced at the chair with uncertainty, but slowly nodded and went to sit down. Once she was settled she said, “What is this place?”

“My... sanctuary. For when I need to be alone,” Sombra said, taking his cloak off and tossing it almost haphazardly on the desk. He stretched, then seemed to slump in on himself. It was an entirely human gesture, and Twilight realized she hadn’t ever seen the King of the Quincy look even remotely relaxed since she’d met him. He still didn’t, but she could see him trying to pull down the usual walls of regal power and aloof mystique he usually had erected around himself.

For a moment neither of them spoke, then Sombra said, somewhat awkwardly, “I don’t rightly know where to begin with this, so I think it’s best you just start asking questions, and I’ll try to answer them.”

“Has anyone else ever been in here before?”

“...That wasn’t the question I was expecting you to start with.”

Twilight sighed, “I’m trying to ease into this, Sombra. I’m nervous. Scared. I don’t know exactly where this is going to go. Figured I’d start small.”

A ghost of a smile touched his face, “No. You’re the first one I’ve allowed into these chambers. It's not even possible for another to reach them if they lack my Schrift’s power. Aside from some ventilation shafts to keep air flow, there’s no actual entrances to these chambers that can be accessed normally.”

“Gee, so I’m trapped here until you let me out?” Twilight said, raising an eyebrow, and Sombra winced.

“Not exactly how I meant it to seem. I just thought this... this was the best place to have this discussion while ensuring absolutely no one else could interrupt or overhear.”

“That doesn’t really make it sound better, Sombra,” Twilight pointed out.

“I guess it doesn’t. Still, I’d like to think that if I were planning to do something dastardly to you, I’d have the sense of style to do it somewhere a bit less...” he ran a finger over his desk, “...dusty.”

Twilight didn’t exactly laugh. She was too tired for that. It was more just a exhalation of breath that relaxed some of the tightness in her chest. She leaned back in the well worn chair, and closed her eyes for a second, thinking. When she opened them again, Sombra was looking at her expectantly.

“Well, no point in wasting any more time with it. What is that Eye inside of me?”

“The Left Eye of the Soul Queen.”

Twilight looked at him. He seemed completely serious. She gulped and found her hand trembling a bit on the arm of the chair. She was fairly certain her stomach had decided to hop out of her and go on a long, long vacation to the center of the Earth.

“Oh? Is that all? I thought it was going to be something important and terrifying.”

“I suppose I should elaborate,” Sombra said.

“Yes. Elaboration would be nice.”

Sombra rose from leaning on his desk and started to slowly walk the library. He paused near one of the bookshelves, gesturing a hand at a number of texts that, from what Twilight could see, were all drawn from various world religions.

“People have wondered about the nature of ‘God’ since humans could first question the nature of reality. I sometimes wonder if it was meant to be that way, or if the Soul Queen never intended humanity to be left so... ignorant of things.”

He turned from the books, his eyes filled with a troubled glint.

“Keep in mind, Twilight, that even I don’t really know that much. My knowledge is fragmented at best, but I will tell you what I know, as best as I can. In the beginning, there was just... her. She did not create the universe. The universe already existed, and she strode upon its formless mass without knowledge, or understanding. She was the First Soul. Unique. Alone. She could imagine what she desired, and the formless mass of reality would react to her will, taking whatever shape the First Soul wished. However she was without others to share any of her creations with. She was alone, and that loneliness drew her to tear herself in half, and form another. Her Consort. The First Soul and her Consort then discovered that together, they could create children. These were the first ‘gods’, the first beings who would one day form what many mythologies would in time record as the various pantheons of the old world.”

“Wait, like the gods of Greek or Norse mythology?” Twilight asked, and Sombra nodded.

“And Egyptian, and Chinese, Japanese, African. All of it. All of those beings were children of the First Soul and her Consort.”

“Then... how is it nobody hears of them anymore? Why is it that Soul Society, and the Hollows exist, but we’ve heard nothing about a bunch of gods from some random pantheon showing up in this war?” Twilight said with rising interest, but also confusion, and Sombra let out a small, tired chuckle.

“Patience, Twilight. I’m getting to that. Like I said, I don’t have all the answers either. From what I know, I know that for a time, the First Soul, her Consort, and their children existed in a state of balance with one another. Conflict existed, but it was rare, and each group of gods more or less handled their own slice of the reality. But here’s where things get muddled. You see, this was still when ‘reality’ only consisted of the Spirit Realm. The world as you know. Earth. It didn’t exist back then.”

Sombra paused, rubbing his head, “What I think happened, was that this world was discovered.”

“Discovered?”

“Yes. You see, the First Soul and Consort, they weren’t really immortal, and neither were their Children. In the occasional conflicts that occurred, sometimes one god or another would die. The only thing was, they didn’t know where those gods went after ‘death’. In searching for those lost souls, they found this world. With mankind already upon it, developing naturally. My theory is that all of our souls, all human souls, are what happened when the gods that did die fell to this realm and scattered the pieces of themselves across it.”

“How... how do you know any of this?” Twilight asked, trying to soak it all in, and having more than a little trouble with it.

“I’ll get to that part too, just bear with me, Twilight. I haven’t spoken of this to anyone other than yourself, and my closest Sternritter. Besides you, only your father, and two others in my court know any of this,” Sombra said, then seemed to take a second to collect himself.”

“My memory gets even more fragmented after this point, but this is what I think occurred. I believe the First Soul decided to claim the Living World, realizing that it was connected to her Spirit Realm. Remember, the First Soul didn’t create the universe. She didn’t know why there were two Realms in the first place, so it stands to reason she was curious. At this point her children also started claiming territory on Earth, both for their own amusement, and to study the various forms of life that existed here. It didn’t take them long, I imagine, to notice that living creatures, human or otherwise, when they died their souls couldn’t interact with living matter anymore. Some remained whole, others became... hollow. Hollows. Demons. I think the name changed over time. Regardless, the conflicts between the gods only became worse as time went on. Some found Hollows to be better, ideal forms of souls. Others thought Hollows should be destroyed. Some gods thought to claim humans as worshipers, others wished to remain apart from the Living Realm. To compound matters, the gods were having children of their own, each successive generation being closer to ‘mortal’ than the last. Conflicts turned into wars, which only lead to more dead gods fragmenting into hundreds of lesser souls.”

“That sounds like absolute chaos,” Twilight shook her head, “Didn’t the First Soul do anything about it?”

“Of course she did, just not enough. She... valued freedom, Twilight. She didn’t want to quash her children’s choices, only mitigate their damage. So she tried to regulate the fighting, limited the conflicts, and encouraged the factions emerging among her children to seek peaceful solutions with each other. However nothing stopped continuous conflicts from arising over any petty thing the gods wanted to fight about. On top of that, a section of the newer gods were developing their own society. An ideal society that regulated the souls of mortalkind, which were only increasing in number as more gods died, or had children who were just a bit lesser than themselves, leading to more humans being born. This society of gods had no formal name, but they created the means by which souls of dead mortals could be ‘guided’ to the Spirit Realm, and because their tenants were so opposed to that of Hollows, which consumed mortal souls, they also developed weapons to fight Hollows.”

Twilight rose with a start, “You’re talking about Soul Reapers!”

“They didn’t go by that name in those days. The formal creation of Soul Society as it is today didn’t happen until much later, but the foundation for what they’d become started during these... Godwars, I suppose you’d call them. During that time other discoveries were made as well, such as the existence of the Beast Realm, which seemed to be separate from the other realms, almost like a cosmological sister world, but not quite the same.”

Twilight deeply frowned, settling back down in the chair, her mind a mire of thought, “Could that have anything to do with Equestria? Is the Beast Realm like a separate world entirely?”

Sombra shrugged, “Who can say? My memories don’t show much about the Beast Realm, and Equestria was an utterly unknown thing back in those days, although I think the First Soul and her Consort both suspected there were realities beyond this one. After all, if the First Soul didn’t create this universe, it stood to reason someone or something had, and may have created others. Or it could be cosmic coincidence. At any rate, to try to cut to the chase here, the wars between gods continued until there were practically no pantheons left, and only really two major factions; those that favored the Hollows, and those that favored the society that would become the Soul Reapers.”

Sombra paused then, crossing his arms and his expression growing shadowed and worn, “At that point my memory is the most fractured of all. I know that the First Soul and her Consort, finally sick of the endless fighting among their remaining children, and perhaps wanting to finally settle matters moving forward for the now teaming masses of humanity, decided to forge a truce between the remaining two factions. The leaders of both the Hollows and the forebears of Soul Society were called to the Soul Palace for a meeting that would forge this new peace.”

Twilight’s voice was a tense whisper, “And what happened?”

The soft lamplight reflected off Sombra’s eyes like flecks of blood.

“Betrayal.”

In Twilight’s mind she heard a sharp, wailing cry. Nothing really, just a faint memory of the Eye’s anguished, enraged shout, the fury it had felt due to some manner of treachery. She felt her mouth go quite dry as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat as Sombra continued, his voice softening.

“I don’t know who, or how. I just know that the Soul Queen and the Consort were betrayed. What was supposed to be a meeting to discuss peace turned into a bloody revolt of child against parent. The Consort was slain, and the Soul Queen overwhelmed before either could properly fight back.”

Twilight also keenly remembered the sensation of a blade being shoved through her back as she looked out upon a shining palace engulfed in flames. She resisted the urge to touch the spot where she could almost feel the wound through her heart.

“But who did it? Was it the Hollows, or the Soul Reapers?” she asked.

Sombra just looked at her with a level stare, “Why not both? Certainly to take down the Consort and the Soul Queen it may well have taken cooperation between both factions.” His eyes flashed with momentary anger, “And Tirek was there.”

“H-he was?”

“Oh yes, Tirek was among the strongest Hollows, now and then. He may even had once been among one of the godly pantheons once worshiped by humans. Who can say which? But he was there, the day the Soul Queen and the Consort were betrayed. Whether he took part himself, or merely bore witness, I honestly don’t know. I certainly have never trusted his word on the matter.”

He returned to the desk and grabbed some of the papers there, looking them over, “Most of these memories I’ve tried writing down hundreds of times, trying to piece it all together. What I’ve just told you constitutes the most I’ve been able to recall over the years, and honestly I’m not even sure how much I can trust it.”

“But why do you have this memories in the first place?” she asked.

He glanced at her sidelong, a somewhat self-deprecating and wry grin touching his face, “Isn’t it obvious? Because when the Consort died, he cast his soul into the Living Realm to be reborn, as intact as he could manage. It attached and fused with a human soul. Mine. I’m the Consort of the Soul Queen.”

He laughed at her, and actually reached over to prop up Twilight’s open jaw, closing it. “Don’t drool on my chair.”

“S-sorry, but... WHAT!?”

“Okay that probably came out more dramatic than I intended,” he said, and she actually kicked him in the shin.

“Don’t lie, you very much intended that to sound dramatic!”

“Alright, I did. But what I should probably say is that I’m not so much the Consort himself, so much as I’m a human whose soul has been bound to the remnants of the Consort in the same manner your bound to the Left Eye of the Soul Queen. The major difference is that in my case, the Consort and I are fused evenly into one being. I have my own free will, my own soul, and for the most part only the fragmented memories of the Consort and a large chunk of his power.”

“Oh...Oooooooh, so that’s why you’re so powerful!” Twilight said, her mind working its gears at high speed, “Is that why you can grant Schrifts?”

“Among other things. In fact the Consort’s power is largely the basis for all Quincy abilities. His knowledge allowed me to create all the Quincy techniques and infuse other souls with additional power to control reishi. Because, as you recall, the Soul Queen could reshape the world to her liking. Reshape spirit particles.”

“Just like the Quincy do! So the Consort’s power was the same. To control reishi.”

“Precisely. I passed that knowledge and power on, so at their most basic form, a Quincy is someone who has a fragment of the Consort’s power. Schrifts are just specific extensions of this, larger portions of the power to reshape reishi.”

For a moment Twilight’s apprehension and anxiety were quashed by a giddy wave of enjoyment at learning so much and several pieces of information she’d always wondered about coming into place. However that was quickly overshadowed by the big question still looming in her mind.

“Right, so, all of this is fascinating, but that still doesn’t explain why the Left Eye of the Soul Queen is inside me.”

“Yes, I was just getting to that. You see, the Consort died that day of the Betrayal, but the Soul Queen did not. She was captured. However, before she was imprisoned, I believe she was able to tear a piece of herself off to cast into the Living Realm, not unlike what the Consort did with the whole of his being upon being slain. That piece, the Left Eye, bonded to a human soul.”

“Me?”

“No...” Sombra said, “This was millennia ago. You weren’t born yet. The Left Eye bonded to a particular family line, and remained dormant for a long time. It didn’t have enough power to awaken on its own for some centuries... but eventually it did.”

He looked more tired then than he ever had before, hands propping on the desk as he leaned over it. “It awakened in my wife, Radiant Hope.”

----------

A few steady breaths got Adagio’s heart rate back to something resembling normal. Her left hand still hurt slightly from where it had caught Torch’s axe. That had been far more of a risk than she’d allowed herself to show on the outside. She’d known challenging Torch’s authority so brazenly, in front of the majority of his horde, could only really have one of two results. Fortunately she’d guessed correctly that he’d been both injured enough and desperate enough to rescue his daughter that he wasn’t willing to choose the option where he just bralwed Adagio to the death right then and there, in an attempt to save face in front of his people.

It wouldn't have worked if she hadn’t made enough of an open display of her own power to make it clear that she and Torch were something approximating equals, now, and that she wasn’t just some crazy upstart that needed her head crushed. Adagio hadn’t been certain at all that it would work, but she didn’t have time to play this safely.

Besides, it’d sufficed as a way of testing her new level of strength. Measured against Torch, she still pegged herself as being overall weaker, at least when Torch was at full strength. His wounds and battle exhaustion might have leveled the playing field enough that she could have taken him if it’d come to a fight, but once he recovered she sensed she’d still be a solid step below his level.

...But not by much.

It was both exhilarating and more than a little terrifying. She was solidly on the Espadas level now, but that had as much danger attached to it as potential power and privilege. Chances were Chrysalis suspected Adagio would reach this point, and wouldn’t be done toying with her. Grogar likely had plans of his own, but that was fine. So did Adagio.

She’d spoken with Torch at length, laying out her plans, and he agreed. To most of them, at least. He grumbled to no end, but he seemed willing to let Adagio take the lead on this, but he’d made it clear that the second he thought that her schemes weren’t going to pan out towards successfully restoring Ember to him, he’d go his own way. Fair enough, Adagio didn’t need him to follow her for long, just long enough to secure her position.

Returning to Lament’s tower, she found Gaw resting at the foot of the tower’s entry stairs. Loud snoring, like a damaged billows, blew out of Gaw’s nostrils as she slept off her injuries. Adagio swept past her, briefly giving the Hollow’s snout a quick, affectionate pat.

Inside the tower she found a bustle of activity as the orphaned Arrancar children of Lament worked to remove debris from the ground floor that had fallen there from the battle. Despite the large chunks of stone, the children lifted them in teams rather easily. They were Arrancar, after all, children or not. They had strength to spare, and seemed to be making a race of which team could clear more rubble, faster.

A brief inquiry told Adagio that Roka was upstairs, tending to Adagio’s servants in one of the rooms. Quickly making her way up the stairs, Adagio spotted Di Roy relaxing by the door to where Roka was treating Dumbbell. His own body was covered in more stitch-work from Roka’s needles, almost giving him a mummified appearance as he turned a sharkish face towards her, his shadowed face cracking a small grin.

“Hey boss lady. Still going for the Jedi robes look?”

Adagio rolled her eyes, “I’ll find something appropriate when the time comes, but I’m rather busy at the moment trying to plan for my future empire. How’s Dumbbell?”

“Breathing. Beyond that I’ve got not clue,” Di Roy said with a shrug, “Roka’s pretty good at what she does, but I wouldn’t expect Dumbbell to be doing any pirouettes anytime soon.”

“If all goes according to plan, he won’t have to,” Adagio said, “I’ll have you and Gaw to do my heavy lifting for me.”

Di Roy tilted his masked head at that, “Am I going to have to play twenty questions with that one, or is this one of those things you want to save a big reveal for later?”

A smooth smile flashed across Adagio’s face, “Let’s just say that Dumbbell and his friends acquired something for me that you and Gaw will benefit from greatly. Just be patient for now, and try to remain a courteous guest here. Lament and his family are going to be cornerstone allies for my plans, and I wish for them to remain that way.”

“Yeah, I hear you, boss lady. I’m always on my best behavior...” Di Roy’s voice trailed off for a sec, a moment of hesitation before he added, “And hey, maybe I’ll help out around here with the rebuilding of the tower. You don’t need me for anything immediately, right?”

Adagio’s eyebrow only slightly rose. Not that she objected to the idea Di Roy proposed, only that it seemed a bit odd coming from him. “That sounds like a reasonable way to repay them for the help they’ve given us. I don’t think I’ll be needing you or Gaw’s help in the immediate future. This business coming is mostly going to be on me. If I fail, you’ll probably be in the market for a new boss.”

“No thanks. Most the candidates for that around here are a lot less reasonable, and nowhere near as easy on the eyes,” Di Roy said with a wink, and Adagio snorted and waved a dismissive hand at him as she strode past, heading further up the stairs towards the tower’s roof.

She’d considered asking Roka first, before coming up here, but didn’t want to distract the woman from her medical work. Besides, she knew Lament could sense her approach. If the man was going to be belligerent at this point, Adagio doubted having Roka around would change much.

She approached Lament’s cabin. On the wooden patio out front, next to Lament’s empty rocking chair, Winston wagged his tail and raised his canine Hollow mask towards Adagio. She paused long enough to kneel down and pet the Hollow dog before standing again and giving the cabin door a polite knock.

He knew she was here already, but Adagio would observe the courtesies here. She didn’t need Lament going screwy in the head with her right now.

There was a longer pause than she would have expected, and she almost knocked again before Lament’s voice from inside bid her to enter. When she did so she found him at the kitchen. There was a very strange sense of juxtaposed wrongness in seeing the fourth most powerful Hollow in existence trying to, by all appearances, bake an apple pie.

And from the amount of pie mix strewn about and the smell of burned dough, he was rather failing at it.

“I feel like I used to know how to do this,” Lament muttered as he stared at the partially charred almost-pie. “No, I have done this. I just don’t know how many times. Or if it was here, or somewhere like here.”

Oh boy... Adagio thought sardonically, If he tries to make me eat that, this whole conversation is going to go sideways.

Clearing her throat politely, she said, “Is this a bad time? I can come back later.”

He stood over the bitterly charred apple pie, sighed, then said, “No. I’d prefer to get this over with. Please, sit. I’ll try again with the pie, but you have plans, and I suppose I ought to listen to them. Whether I follow them or not, I still have yet to decide on that.”

“Of course,” Adagio said as she went to take a seat at the table in the middle of the cabin. Lament spent another second or two forlornly looking at his failed pie before striding over to sit opposite her, in essentially the same position he had when they first met.

Their eyes met, and Lament’s left Adagio, as before, feeling distinctly cold and ill at ease. Even now that she was an Arrancar, she wasn’t confident that if at any time Lament decided to kill her that she’d stand much chance. Yet his stance wasn’t overtly aggressive and the staring, forlorn quality of his eyes seemed more focused on thoughts outside of this cabin than on anything Adagio had to say. That could either be good or bad, depending on how this went.

“So let’s have it,” he said.

“No mincing words,” Adagio agreed, crossing her arms in front of her on the table, careful to keep her elbows off it. Politeness, always politeness, when speaking with Lament. “I intend to claim a seat among the Espada. To do that I would like the backing of yourself and Torch. I have Torch’s support already, so that just leaves you.”

“That would mean I’d have to actually appear in front of the other Espada in open support of you,” he said, expression nor voice showing any hint of whether he approved of the notion or not.

“Yes, it would. I could hint at your support all day and it’d garner me nothing. But you appearing alongside me in the throne room, voicing your support, well that would lend a lot of weight to my claim.”

“Tirek doesn’t care about politics. Only power. If you can’t demonstrate that, he’ll eat you alive,” Lament said, “Literally.”

Not the most pleasant thought, but Adagio had expected as much, and nodded agreement, “Power I have, and can demonstrate. I just need to be able to do it without any other Espada thinking that I’m a lone upstart.”

“Why not? I was.”

“Lament, you and I both know you’re something of a special case. You fought Tirek directly, and I suspect it wasn’t because you were seeking a spot among the Espada.”

Lament’s voice grew chilling, “Damned straight I wasn’t. I was just doing what I thought was right. The bastard could have killed me, and the children I wanted to protect. He offered me a deal instead. Work for him, and I get to look after any children discarded by other Arrancar I want. That was the whole point of my position among the Espada. Tirek could use me as a weapon, and in exchange he’d allow me my sanctuary here.”

“But Tirek doesn’t control all the Espada’s actions, and eventually, one way or another, as long as you stand alone, your family would be targeted,” Adagio pointed out, and Lament’s eyes narrowed.

“They were anyway.”

She frowned at that, but conceded the point with a nod, “Yes, but our alliance proved fruitful in helping protect your home and family.”

“True...” he conceded, “I already acknowledged as much, and said I was willing to support you. Most of what I want to know is what your actual play is, and what your long term goal happens to be.”

His eyes took on a drilling stare as he looked upon her intently, “What’s your endgame, Adagio Dazzle?”

She considered him carefully. Lament held no love for Hollows, or rather the way Hollow society was in its current state. His tower, his ‘children’, this cabin, it all seemed like an attempt to grab for something closer to the life he’d likely left behind and only dimly remembered in the broken corners of his mind. Adagio wasn’t sure she pined for the past anymore. She loved her sisters, and hoped fervently they were well, wherever they were now. But she’d chosen to embrace her new existence as a Hollow and had no delusions about reclaiming an old, lost life.

That didn’t mean, however, she wanted to just play second fiddle to Tirek and his war. Quite frankly Adagio found the whole war quite foolish, if necessary as long as Quincy treated Hollows as objects solely of extermination. But in time? Well... Lament liked honesty, so no reason to hide the truth of her ambitions form him.

“I intend one of two things, Lament. Either to take over Las Noches in its entirety, or to gain enough power and followers that I can break away from it and make a place for myself and other Hollows like me that are quite and thoroughly tired of the status quo.”

There was little reaction on Lament’s face, but she saw him lean forward slightly, “For power’s sake?”

“For freedom’s,” Adagio replied, “I’ve been used time and again, and seen others being used, or forced into positions where their only choice was to fight to stay alive. I don’t intend to allow that to continue. I won’t lie, I intend to keep gaining in power, until I can be strong enough to be free of all of this. However I don’t mind freeing as many other people as I can along the way, anyone who wishes to follow me.”

“And those that don’t follow you? Will you be as much of a tyrant as Tirek is to those who don’t want to follow a Queen of Hueco Mundo?”

Adagio leaned back in her chair and held up a hand as if to hold up the question itself, “I’m not planning to conscript slaves. I’m also not an altruist. I want to live my new life as freely as I can. That’s it. If that means fighting, then I fight. If that means negotiating peace with the Quincy and Soul Reapers, then I negotiate. Either way, I need power to do any of that. And I have it now, more than I ever have. I don’t intend to miss the opportunity it presents.”

“And if you happen to be able to visit a painful, humiliating death unto the likes of Grogar, all the better, right?” Lament said, again showing no sign in his stony expression to indicate approval or disapproval, merely the statement of fact.

“I won’t deny it, his death is on the docket. Not today, nor tomorrow, not yet... but soon, and growing closer,” Adagio said with a cold, edged promise in her voice.

Lament merely nodded, as if he’d expected as much.

“Then the only other thing I remain curious about is how you got Torch to agree to follow you. I’ve never noticed him to be a follower of anyone who couldn’t prove themselves stronger than he, and as strong as you are now Adagio Dazzle, you’re not above Torch...” he left out the ‘yet’ that seemed to hang in the air after that, and just watched Adagio with his usual intent stare.

Again, Adagio couldn’t imagine a reason not to be honest about this. It was starting to get to be a sickening habit. Perhaps she needed another conversation with Chrysalis, just to get her daily dose of pointed innuendo, double-talk, and outright lying. Then again, even honest conversation with Lament had its dangers.

“His daughter was taken by Soul Reapers during the battle. He needs my help to retrieve her. I had to remind him of the fact, yes, but now that he understands it, he’s also understanding of my other plans. It's an arrangement of mutual benefit.”

Lament’s marble still face finally showed some expression, a open look of genuine surprise. “Soul Reapers took his family...?”

There was something off about the way he spoke those words, like he’d seen or heard something that drawn his attention away from the conversation. Adagio frowned, but nodded, saying, “Yes, although I’m not certain for what purpose. Experimentation of some kind.”

Whatever was going through Lament’s mind, she could see the visible tension in his hands now, the darkening glower in his eyes. He didn’t draw his Zanpaktou, but she could sense the imminent violence rising in him.

“Did you intend for that to happen, Adagio? Did you let the Soul Reapers take Torch’s kin so you could use that as leverage to gain his cooperation?”

For a rare instance, Adagio was so utterly taken aback by a question that she was actually rendered speechless. She hadn’t even thought of such a manner of looking at the situation! She wasn’t sure if it was a sign she was slipping as a scheming manipulator or what, but the notion of her intentionally getting Ember captured to use as a lever on Torch hadn’t even entered her mental radar. The fact that Lament had considered it a possibility was a tad disturbing. It also meant others might think that too. She sure hoped Torch never got that notion into his head, or she might not survive the day.

Her look alone must have been answer enough for Lament, because the sense of killing intent fled the room almost as fast as it had risen and he took a deep breath, “I see. I keep misjudging you. I think...” he raised a hand to his head, “I think recent events have done little to enhance my mood. Especially talk of Soul Reapers.”

That got Adagio curious, and she risked asking, “Have you ever met a Soul Reaper?”

Lament’s response was slow in coming, his eyes distant, “I don’t know.”

He didn’t elaborate further than that, so Adagio said, “Well, that aside then, you will help me?”

“I will. Roka has grown fond of you and your companions, and I believe Fenice has even become a bit more lighthearted, in her way. I think you’re overly ambitious, and underestimate the likes of Tirek and Chrysalis, and even Grogar... but I think you are also the best chance I and my family have of finding something better than this continued existence of isolation and fear. As long as you don’t abuse my trust, and don’t succumb to the temptations of power, I shall support you.”

Adagio sat back and a small laugh escaped her, “Good, because if you didn’t, I wasn’t sure this was going to work.”

----------

Twilight needed a moment to process what Sombra had said. This was becoming a habit during this conversation. A part of her whispered in her mind that she ought to have been prepared for anything while talking with Sombra, but thus far it’d proven to thwart her expectations. Still, Twilight was nothing if not intelligent and rational, so it was with great astuteness that she calmly adjusted her glasses, starred at Sombra frankly, and said, “...Huh?”

Sombra blinked at her softly, “Should we take a break? Give you time to mull?”

A vigorous shake of Twilight’s head managed to jostle lose a few stuttering thoughts, “No, it’s fine. I was just temporarily brain-locked there. Happens sometimes when there’s too much information, too fast. Just had to process it. I’m okay now.”

She sat there for a moment longer, collecting her thoughts. “So, you were married, and your wife was part of the Quincy bloodline the Eye became attached to. How, precisely does that work? The Eye is passed through hereditary lines?”

“Not exactly,” Sombra said, and she could see a visible tremble of nerves crawl up his spine as he stiffened. Whatever he was about to talk about next, it clearly made him exceedingly uncomfortable. There was also an old, faded but still clear pain in his eyes. Twilight could readily enough guess that talking about what happened to his wife wasn’t a topic involving fond memories.

“You see, Twilight, because the power Quincy possess is tied to the power of the Consort, all of it is tied directly to me. The power is cultivated within a human’s soul and grows, so the power of the Quincy is not a finite thing, with myself being a limited well, but rather much closer to being a garden that I tend to, growing ever stronger crops of Quincy. However, have you noticed something... peculiar about the battles in which you’ve seen Quincy die?”

The question made her wince, but she thought about it and couldn’t quite think of anything out of the ordinary. You know, other than the horrible maiming, screams, blood, and death. She shook her head silently. Sombra just gave her a nod, like a teacher who understood the student missing a detail in the lesson.

“I’m not that surprised. You didn’t spend enough time with your Soul Reaper friend for it to become a rote thing, something you’d actively look for. But since you are a Quincy now, and can see souls, what has always been missing from a Quincy battlefield?”

The wording of his question prodded Twilight’s thoughts, galvanizing her to a string of logical questions, leading to equally rational answers. Particularly one answer that sprang into her mind with a whole host of unsettling implications.

“The souls! I’ve never seen a Quincy’s soul!”

When people died, their souls left their bodies, wandering the world as ‘Wholes’. If not sent to the Spirit Realm by a Soul Reaper, they’d eventually become Hollows. That was the doctrine set down by the Soul Reapers, and Twilight could recall Clover teaching Sunset about the process of ‘Soul Burial’, aka ‘Konso’. Yet every time she’d witness Quincy dying, or come across their bodies... she’d never seen a single wandering soul.

With so many people dying on that battlefield, there should have been dozens, no, hundreds of lost souls of Quincy who’d just lost their lives. But there’d been none. Not even a hint of them.

“Where, um, do the souls go, if they’re not to be seen anywhere?” she asked.

Sombra, his face filled with a grave and weary weight, tapped his chest.

“Into me.”

“That’s...but... how? Why?” Twilight said in a breathless tone, her mind back-flipping in trying to comprehend this. There was a distinct, rising fear in her as well, along with a sense of confusion at what she was learning. Sombra consumed the souls of the Quincy? Or was she misinterpreting things? She wanted to let loose a flurry of panicked questions. That or run away and find somewhere to hide. Instead she barely managed to control herself, clutching the arms of the chair she was sitting in, and starred at Sombra while waiting to hear his response.

He didn’t look proud or satisfied with his revelation. Only tired. Infinitely tired.

“It was a side effect of tying Quincy powers to human souls. That tie allows me a certain... command over the souls that bear Quincy abilities. Taking their souls into myself upon their deaths is one way that manifests. It doesn’t add to my own power, and the souls are not harmed by this process. They sleep, Twilight. Peacefully. More so than if they were taken anywhere else, chased and eaten by Hollows, or pressed into the Soul Society’s bureaucratic structure.”

“Does everyone know about this!?” Twilight asked, perhaps more forcefully and fearfully than she’d intended. Sombra flinched at the question, but didn’t look away from her.

“Only the Sternritter. The majority of the Quincy are unaware.”

“But surely they noticed that their souls aren’t just leaving their bodies like normal? Surely somebody asks questions.”

“They do. And what most believe when they can’t find answers is that a Quincy’s soul is just different than a normal one, and passes to the Spirit Realm on its own, without Soul Reaper assistance, where they are quickly reborn. Which isn’t entirely untrue. They are reborn, rather rapidly usually.”

At Twilight’s questioning look, he was fast to explain, “At any given time I don’t actually have that many Quincy souls inside me, Twilight. Most of them get reborn swiftly. As you may have heard, I encourage... a certain amount of fecundity among Quincy families. Large families. More soldiers. More bodies for Quincy to be reincarnated into. That’s how the power of the Quincy grows gradually over time. Each soul, reborn, gains a little bit more power. That’s why we could manage to create a stable Letzt Stil transformation in the shape of the Vollstandig. This generation finally produced Quincy strong enough to withstand the release of energy without burning out their powers.”

Taking this in context with what she already knew, Twilight put more of the pieces together herself, her voice growing distant even to her own ears as she spoke.

“So that would mean that your wife, Radiant Hope, is a reborn Quincy, and that the Eye, being attached to that particular soul, was reborn with her over and over again. When your wife passed on...”

Twilight fidgeted, drawing the only conclusion she could, “She was reborn as me.”

Sombra was quiet for a second, then raised a finger, “Almost. There’s one point that you’re unaware of. When Radiant Hope-” a shadow crossed his face, his eyes briefly wet for a second before the shimmer of those tears passed, “-died, her circumstances were different. The Eye acts as an anchor of sorts, preventing her soul from entering me naturally as other Quincy souls do. I have to claim her soul actively with my power. I’d always kept an eye on the soul with the Eye attached to it, but I’d only ever fallen in love with that soul when she was Radiant Hope. It was just... bad luck that the Eye woke up during that time.”

“What happened?”

“I...don’t wish to recount the details, if that’s alright, Twilight. Suffice to say that while I could suppress the Eye, things still went awry that day. Due in no small part to Soul Reaper and Hollow interference alike, Radiant Hope died. However when she did, a Soul Reaper tried to perform Soul Burial upon her before I got to her. I activated my... well the name of the power doesn’t matter right now, but it's one way I can more actively claim Quincy powers and souls. When I did so, my power and the power of the Soul Reaper performing the Soul Burial got into a state of tug-o-war with Radiant Hope. The result was that her soul was split.”

“That doesn’t sound good. I mean, souls operate a lot like mortal bodies, don’t they? Being split couldn’t have done anything pleasant to her,” Twilight said, grimacing as she said it.

Sombra just shook his head, “It wasn’t as bad as you think, but it was bad enough. Her Quincy powers, and the Eye, came to me, but the rest of her... that went to the Soul Reapers. As far as I know that part of her soul remains with them, and is even a part of the Gotei 13. But she’s not the Radiant Hope I was married to, and wouldn’t have any memory of me. As for the part of her that stayed with me, well the same rules that governed souls I absorb still applied. That part of her was reincarnated, eventually. Usually Quincy souls tend to follow the bloodlines of their families, dead ancestors being reborn in their descendants. In Radiant Hope’s case, well... we had no children, so the part of her soul inside me waited for a suitably powerful host. That was you, the child prodigy of the Sparkle line.”

“So... what exactly does that mean? Am I just a partial soul?”

“Oh no, you’re a whole soul, Twilight. You’re own soul, likely from one of your distant ancestors. I don’t actually control which souls get reborn where, and can never be sure who decided to get reincarnated. I just know that when you were born, I felt the Eye specifically go, along with that fragment of Radiant Hope and her Quincy powers. Not only are you a prodigy of your family, but part of your power stems from having Radiant Hope’s Quincy powers layered atop your own. Then of course there’s the unwanted passenger that came with it. I ensured the seals on the Eye were intact once I could confirm it was inside you. Your parents were never the wiser.”

“Until now...” Twilight said, the hurt in her voice still there as she felt a surge of anger that came from not only having the truth withheld from her, but knowing her family had been lied to as well by the man they’d sworn loyalty to for so long.

Sombra, for his part, closed his eyes with a pained look and said, “Yes. Night Light will likely never fully trust me again, and I can hardly blame him for that. I also doubt Shining Armor or Cadence will look upon me the same way anymore either, but that’s not something I’m in a position to complain about. I did what I did because I thought it was the best way to protect you and them both. Knowledge of the Eye would have brought nothing but painful burdens onto you during your most important years of development. If you were ever going to be able to shoulder what was to come, I thought I had to wait until the time was right to let the truth be known.”

“And when was that going to be, precisely?” Twilight asked, voice a little sharper now.

“Radiant Hope was in her twenties when I told her, the night after we’d married. She was... less than pleased with me as well,” Sombra said, then let out a breath that might have been a laugh or a sigh in equal measure, “She forgave me eventually, but she certainly had her ways of getting back at me, too.”

The pain in his own voice softened Twilight's anger a bit, cooling her head, “You... miss her, don’t you?”

“Every single day,” he whispered, then shook himself, shaking his head, “But to actually answer your question, I was going to tell you after you officially graduated from the Academy, which would have been just after this last battle. I wanted to wait longer, but could tell there wasn’t time. I just didn’t expect the Eye to awaken quite that soon. If your mother hadn’t...”

He trailed off, not that he really needed to finish the sentence. Its meaning was plain enough. If her mother hadn’t died, then likely the Eye would have remained dormant. Sombra hadn’t calculated that risk. Twilight wrestled with a rise of her own mixed emotions, fighting back sadness and anger in equal tides until she could control her voice again.

“My mother, is she inside you now, too? Her soul?”

Sombra just nodded silently.

Twilight gulped, “Can I... see her? Is that possible?”

The shake of his head was barely perceptible, “No. I can’t summon or control the souls at will. It doesn’t work that way. She’s... sleeping, now, Twilight. As safe within me as I can make her and every other Quincy that’s passed in my service. One day, she’ll be reborn again. Probably to either a child or grandchild of your line.”

For a moment the shear surreal nature of that thought lingered in Twilight’s mind. Would she even know it, if one of her own children or grandchildren was actually her reincarnated mother? Not that Twilight precisely had plans for children anytime soon, but it was an odd thought nonetheless.

“I know this a lot to take in,” Sombra said, “We can stop here, if you like, and you can take some time to rest more-”

She held up her hand to forestall him, taking a second to breathing deeply as she got her mind back on track, “Yes, this is a lot, Sombra. In the span of one conversation I’ve learned you’re a reincarnation of what basically equates to the second soul that ever existed, that you absorb the souls of any Quincy who dies, including my mother, while I’m the reborn partial soul of your dead wife, and oh by the way I have a semi-sentient Eye locked inside me that once was part of the closest thing this world has so far to a God. Have I forgotten anything?”

“You still have assassins trying to kill you?” Sombra offered in what he might have intended to be a helpful tone. Twilight just gave him a look and he coughed sheepishly and looked away. “Sorry, but you asked.”

Twilight took off her glasses for a second, just to rub at her eyes before putting them back on, “I think I’m so far beyond the shock of all this that there’s no much else you could add to it that would put me in any more of a reeling mental state than I already am. Part of me wants to find the nearest available dark hole and vanish into it in a curled up, bawling mess, and stay there for the next year or so. Another part of me realizes I can’t afford to do that and that I have to somehow keep myself together. Right now I don’t know which part is winning...”

“Well, you’re not trying to run away, or screaming incoherently, or bawling, so I’d say you’re doing better than could be reasonably expected of you,” Sombra said, meeting her eyes once more, this time with a fresh tension in them, “Which brings us to an impasse. Now that you know all that I have to tell you, you must decide what to do with that information.”

“What do you mean?” Twilight asked apprehensively.

Sombra made a gesture at the room around him, although Twilight imagined the gesture was more about encompassing all of the Silburn, or perhaps even the Quincy themselves, “I mean only this; what will you do now, Twilight Sparkle? You know the truth now, so what shall your course be from here? Will you remain with the Quincy, or will you leave to return to the life you once had, or seek something else entirely?”

“I’d... be allowed to do that?” Twilight’s voice carried a hint if disbelief, but Sombra just waved it off and shrugged.

“If you think about it, I don’t have much recourse if you did. Oh, I could certainly kill you, if I so choose.” He paused, a sour look passing like a brief billow of fog before it passed, “I won’t, but I could. I suppose I could also keep you prisoner, against your will, but that wouldn’t work out well for me either. To say nothing of the fact that I don’t want to do either option, on what little moral principles I still manage to hold onto these days, the fact is that if I tried to keep you here or sought to harm you that would absolutely sever the already damaged loyalty your family has to me. I’ve already lost enough Quincy for one day, I don’t plan on setting at least three of my best Sternritter against me.”

“That’s a rather coldly pragmatic way to look at it,” Twilight said, gulping.

“It is, but it’s the truth,” Sombra said, and Twilight heard a rusty, strained note enter his voice, “I’ve hurt you, given you reason not to trust me, so I don’t sincerely believe that I have much right to stop you if you choose to depart. I think your father would support such a move as well, although he might have his own reasons for wishing you to stay. I certainly believe there would be more benefit to you staying than not, but I recognize this isn’t a choice I can make for you. You have to decide for yourself what it is you want, Twilight.”

She’d have been lying if she said the idea hadn’t already crossed her mind to leave the Quincy and return to Canterlot City. She missed her friends from Canterlot High. She could still remember the warmth and acceptance she’d found among the girls back home, and sorely missed that sense of belonging that had eluded her for so long. For a second she could practically hear them, Pinkie Pie’s bubbly laughter, Rarity’s swift wit, Applejack’s frank tone, Fluttershy’s gentle whisper, Rainbow Dash’s brash bragging, and Sunset’s steady, caring voice.

She missed them so much... to see them again...

But the image of them in her mind was washed away by a trickle of blood. She saw Indigo Zap’s legs cut out from under her. Hacksaw consumed by crimson light. Sugarcoat’s eyes torn away. Her mother’s blood spraying across her face.

If I leave, my new friends here, my family who still lives... they’ll still be here. Still be fighting. Still dying...

It was a hard, shuddering breath the left her as she closed her eyes tight and clutched a hand to her chest. Pushing all her fears, all her pain, deep down inside her, she took one more breath to steady herself and stood up from her chair, facing Sombra directly with eyes shimmering from unshed tears.

“I can’t afford to leave.”

Sombra opened his mouth to speak, but Twilight cut him off, “Don’t. Don’t say anything yet. I have to get this out, first.”

Her eyes hardened as she looked at him, “First off, I still don’t trust you. I understand why you did what you did. A part of me even accepts it, on a rational level. But you lied to me, and that doesn’t go away, even if you had your reasons for it. If you want my trust again, this time you’re going to have to earn it. As for my staying here, as a Quincy, I have conditions, otherwise I’ll be packing my bags tonight.”

She raised her hand and held up her fingers, one by one, “One, I need your guarantee that you will help me get the Left Eye under control. You may have sealed it up again, but that’s a temporary solution at best. Eventually it will wake up again, and even if it doesn’t I’ll only end up passing it on to my next reincarnation when I die. That’s not good enough. I won’t let this thing take over me or anyone else, so we’re going to find a way to control it, and if possible, remove it.”

The next finger came up, “Second, the original plan for me to research magic with my own team goes forward, with no interference in how I set my team up or how I go about that research. I need your full backing on that, and any and all resources I might need to be made available to me.”

Sombra looked like he wanted to say something, but kept his peace as Twilight went on.

“Third, I have something I want you to hear me out on concerning an arrangement with one of the Arrancar,” at his surprised and disapproving grunt she was fast to add, “I know you hate them, Sombra, but I just want you to hear what I have to say. It’s an proposal made by... well, not someone that’s a friend, exactly, but she’s shown herself to be more reasonable than most Hollows I’ve met, and I agreed to bring her idea to someone I thought might be able to make it happen. That’s you. So all I ask is you hear me out on it.”

Sombra broke his silence with a low, grumbling, “I’ll listen, but that’s all I can promise on that one. The other two conditions are fine, since I was going to suggest the same myself. Anything else?”

“Just one more,” Twilight said, taking a deep breath and meeting his eyes directly, her voice dead serious, “I want you to make me a Sternritter.”

Twilight had been unsure about this one, but she'd considered it from every angle. Becoming a Sternritter would have a host of complications, putting her in a difficult position in which she might have more authority among the Quincy, but also more responsibilities. It'd tie her more completely to the Quincy than ever, and in some ways it'd expose her to further danger as she'd be in a more exposed position. However Twilight knew she needed more power. She needed to be able to protect her friends and family. She wasn't going to let happen to Shining Armor or her father what happened to her mother. So she'd become a Sternritter, and gain the power of a Schrift. It was a frightening prospect in more than one way, but from a pragmatic perspective, it only made sense.

She’d expected Sombra to balk at the condition, but was surprised to see him grin.

“What a coincidence, I’d been planning to do that anyway.”

“Wait, really?”

He nodded firmly, still smiling, “Of course. Twilight, you must understand by now that among Quincy, you’re something of a prodigy. In a short span of time you’ve gone from a barely trained girl, to a young warrior capable of taking on not only an Arrancar who was near the level of an Espada, but you did that after fighting off and placing a tracer on an assassin who was at the very least the same level as a first-class soldat. You’ve literally built, nearly overnight, a gauntlet that channels your unique magic into your Quincy powers, and as a side project you made a device that gave back partial sight to your wounded comrade. You’re Sternritter material, plain and simple. And given our losses in the battle, replacements need to be found.”

“Who did we lose, exactly?” Twilight asked, curious, in a morbid sense, as to what letters might be available. She knew the one she wanted, but she didn’t know how the process of becoming a Sternritter worked, so she wasn’t sure if she’d even have a choice.”

Sombra seemed to pick up on why she was curious, and said, “Aside from the Vengeance, your mother, we also lost Jet Set, the Kraken. And while Lightning Dust survived her battle with the Tenth Espada, being exposed to the core of that creature has riddled her with such disease that even our best medical techniques are only enough to allow her to keep her life. It’s unlikely she’ll ever be able to fight properly again, and so I’ll have to remove her Schrift, the Daredevil, and find another to bear it. We nearly lost Prim Hemline, too, but luckily she was able to sneak her way to safety. So that leaves V, K, and D to find new Sternritter for. And before you ask, I choose which Schrift is bestowed during the ritual to create a new Sternritter. Can I assume the one you want is...?”

Twilight silently nodded, a lump suddenly developing in her throat. After a few tries she managed to say, “...V, if that’s alright. Will my power be the same as hers was?”

“No, the power changes each time it’s passed to another. Your Schrift will take its own shape, Twilight, but I suspect you’ll carry it with pride, regardless of the form it takes.”

Those words were enough to almost made her sit back down again, feeling the sudden weight of all that was happening, so quickly. She still felt like she could easily break at any second, but those feelings were for the child she’d been. Twilight Sparkle wasn’t that child any longer. She had too much to do and too many people counting on her to be anything other than a woman grown, now. So instead of sitting down, she straightened her back and nodded to Sombra.

“I will. How soon can we do this?”

He held up a finger of his own, “One week. Use that time to rest, spend time with your surviving squad, mourn your mother, and let everything settle. I need to make arrangements, at any rate. That’s my condition. You rest, and do what you can to recover. Once you’ve been made Sternritter, there will be little to not time for it, so I hope you’re prepared.”

She’d better be, because she wasn’t turning back now.

Author's Note:

This chapter is an exceedingly talky one, but there was a lot of points that needed to be covered, especially between Sombra and Twilight. Poor girl's brain is getting some serious information overload here. At any rate, next chapter will be the final bits of this arc, and likely the second half or third of it will actually be transitioning back to Sunset and the girls. For those who were wondering if we'll get a glimpse of Ember's POV, I'm kinda holding off on that for now.

Hope you folks enjoyed the chapter, and as always thanks for reading. Feel free to leave any and all comments, questions, or critiques you may have, as I appreciate all of the feedback I get. 'Till next time.

Edit: And one last thing, our good friend FeatherBook has been drawing again, this time bringing us a fine sketch of Adagio's shiny new Arrancar form.

Comments

[Arkonfleight]

Gonna make a guess at V for Vision.

[Breakfateschain]

Adagio’s sections are always my favorite parts

[Moonlight_Mist]

9400071
I was imagining the Valkyrie, manifesting in a way that borrows aspects from Midnight, or maybe even superimposing Midnight’s appearance over Twilight’s in a blend of both form and ability.

[DDDDDDDDD23]

It kind of shows what kind of person twilights mom was when her schidt became vengeance.
Also twilight is being stupid she does know that sombra just said that he makes every quincy fight for him even after death.

[DDDDDDDDD23]

So which shinigami has the right eye.

[lrc_languish]

9400071
Why not V for Vendetta

[force200]

I‘m predicting Lament tagging along when Adagio sneaks into the Soul Society, both of then running into Sweet Cider and things getting rather awkward.

[Adser]

Adagio is best hollow, go get them girl.

Well, the Quincy are MUCH more interesting than in Bleach. Now they are a complex faction of hypocrites instead of just a laughably evil group of psychopaths. Congrats on your take on Bleach mythology.

Soo, does Twilight got her arm attached back or something? You kept talking the entire chapter as if she had both arms.

[thatguyvex]

9400302
Nah, that's just me being dumb and forgetting that she's missing one. I'll make corrections as soon as I get time to do so.

[sailing101]

Why am I picturing Adiago bursting down the door of Ember's cell only to find her and captain Starswirl calmly discussing the mechanics of garganta over tea?

9400071
Oh just IMAGINE the possibilities.
66.media.tumblr.com/6f130115c17c0cbab7aa571c3f3bb56b/tumblr_inline_pae2493gqv1ry5peb_540.png

[Follower of Chaos]

9400229
None seeing as how the Soul Queen still has it, considering she was only able to tear her left eye out before she was imprisoned.
9400227
Setting aside the fact Sombra himself doesn't have much control over any of this, what do you suppose would happen if those Quincy souls actually went to the Soul Society? They'd either have to endure the abysmal living conditions of the far away Rukongai or they'd be inevitably coerced into joining the Soul Reapers (see Radient Hope and Sweet Cider, not a Quincy but it's the same idea).

If they became Hollows, worst case scenario is they get fucking eaten and forced to wait inside the beast until some Soul Reaper kills it. Best case scenario they end up becoming what they spent their life fighting against, a literal fate worse than death. They'd also end up in Las Noches or serving some Privaron Espada anyway.

If every option leads to them being forced to fight for someone, why not take the option that leads to you not fighting against your own people? Sombra explains this shit to every Sternritter (it's only the Soul Queen/Consort stuff that only Elites know) and they still serve him LOYALLY (he isn't forcing them to do anything, no more than the Soul Reapers or Hollows would do anyway).

EVERY choice here sucks but me personally, I'd rather a peaceful sleep into reincarnation over the Soul Society, Hueco Mundo or Hell. Especially if I'm guaranteed to come back even stronger in the next life.

[Sunset shimmer417]

So I’ve had this throry for a while now and I think I know what’s going to happen in the near future.
So first I gonna start of with what we know for sure.
We know Adagio is powerful enough to challenge a spot to be an Espada.
We know that Ember was taken to the soul society and that a frontal assault is suiside.
We know that the soul society now know about voltstanding thanks to Luna.
We also know that Flur was captured be Guto.

So to break this down
Adagio is an Aranncar as well as a Vasto lord before she evolved so she is more powerful than the lower tiers. I think that she is going to take Gutos spot as the sixth Espada as well as anything that is of value that Guto has including Flur, because of this Adagio can use Flur as a bargaining chip to get Ember back from the soul reapers.
Luna will undoubtably report about the new Quincy power and I think that the soul society will want to know more about it, therefor Adagio can trade Flur for Ember.
So this is the theory that I have tell me what you think.

[Aki_Iokua]

I’ll admit that after I finished reading the last chapter of Bleach, I was done, and haven’t really looked into info/exposition that’s been released since, so I have no idea what’s repurposed Bleach cannon and what’s your original ideas.

That being said, d**n you do good work. I’m really enjoying this story. Can’t wait to see how things play out.

So right now, the plot points connected to the Soul Friends are everyone sans Rainbow and Sunset fully upgrading, and going on the (unnecessary) Adiago Rescue Mission, yes?

Not sure how that’s all going to play out, especially with Pri Twi’s group going on that Odyessy for Adiago’s soul fragment. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I think the diaries are still linked? If so, surely Twi’s informed Sunset about her quest, yeah?

Anyway, just wanted to thank you again for the great chapter, and I’m looking forward to the next.

[Thought Prism]

9400321
Also, I just noticed the chapter isn't called an Episode like all the others. But yeah, minor typos aside, keep up the engrossing work.

[AdverseFlower95]

Well the explanation for the Shrifts makes sense because if they didn't change between generations, the Soul Reapers and the Hollows would have cataloged that information by now and would have some idea on each Shrift. And in regards to continuity, this is perfectly fine. The two possible sticking points Wind Rider and Cinch are not a problem. Both of them have only been introduced as formerly being Sternritter 'I' and 'J' respectively with no references to the names of their Shrifts.

Although when I was checking this, I stumbled upon something that might contradict another piece of information that was provided in this chapter.

Chapter 35

“Immensely.” Torch said, hefting his axe, “When I kill you, I think I may just take your soul back home with me to add you to my horde.”

Wouldn't Torch be old enough to know that's not how Quincy souls work? If this was your run of the mill hollow I would understand them not knowing this, but Torch is much older and much more experienced. Just thought I'd bring this up.

[lordelliott]

For those who were wondering if we'll get a glimpse of Ember's POV, I'm kinda holding off on that for now.

That or a related Soul Reaper PoV would be cool, but I'm personally a lot more eager to see Equestria's and or Starlight Glimmer's angle.

9400401
I think Adagio would be far more likely to use Fleur-de-lis in trade with the Quincy, if that's even an option (Tirek might give give her to Grogar for study instead). Also, Sombra didn't list her among the lost, so maybe they're planning to get Fleur back soon?

9400641
That sounds like the kind of thing that he would say just to toy with them.

9400321
I was going to mention that too. I saw what I guess was one of the first corrections, but there were plenty more to go. Luckily it doesn't really affect the plot.

[thatguyvex]

9400682
I should probably clarify on the Fluer part. Granted she still counts as "lost", but because shes captured, Sombra can't reclaim her Schrift, and yes, he does plan to try to enact some kind of rescue, so he hasn't counted her as gone yet. Still something I should probably make clear in the dialogue somewhere, though.

[lordelliott]

9400692
I was hoping you might pick up on that, and I guess that means he needs her closer to draw the power back? Interesting.

[thatguyvex]

9400702
Yeah, Sombra's ability to retake Quincy powers has a pretty decently long range, but not so much that he could do it without getting fairly close to Las Noches. The character he's based on from Bleach had a similar power, and did have an stupidly insane range and could possibly cross dimensions, but I'm toning it down a bit here.

[Sygh Draconis]

I like the exposition and politics of this chapter. Adagio an Espada, Twilight a Sternritter, Sunset a Substitute Soul Reaper, oh my.

[Follower of Chaos]

Sombra truly is the complete opposite of Yhwach in every single way. They are both Quincy Kings and that is about the only in which they are similar. Yhwach treated the Quincies like batteries, disposable tools that existed to make HIM stronger. Whereas Sombra cultivates the power of the Quincies, making each new generation more powerful than the last, not to mention just giving a shit about the lives of his own men.

Funny how I got into an argument with someone who thought the origins of the Soul King and Yhwach didn't need explaining (because lol ambiguity) and then here this chapter comes along, with a fantastic explanation for it. Bravo Vex, bravo.

Hot damn Adagio is strong as fuck now. Nonetheless, I do believe it would be a risk to challenge Guto for his spot (he's too cunning and battle savvy), better she simply smack Gilda down when Guto nominates her for the vacant Espada spot. No doubt Sombra's condition for accepting Adagio's deal will involve her trying to save Fleur, though I still wonder how they're meant to make contact without blowing her cover?

So we know more about the origin of the spirit worlds, but the question that was asked right at the beginning of the story and that has had hints of an explanation throughout. How exactly are the spirit worlds and Equestria connected? Why are their mythologies so similar and how does Equestrian magic work so well with spiritual powers? Perhaps our upcoming time in Equestria will bring us closer to answering those questions?

[Feather Book]

When Sombra said answers, that's a lot more then I was expecting. Still finally great to get them!

And Adagio really is going for the power struggle. Let's just hope she can achieve her somewhat noble goal, get revenge and get Ember back. Going to Sunset and friends may help with that last one, but she's the kind of person who would like to do it her own way (and it would make things complicated with Fenice).

And I wonder if Twilight will ever see her friends again? Her magic is tied with them, after all. Either way, she's changed the most out of all of them in their time apart.

Great chapter. I enjoyed the much needed sit-down-and-tall stuff after the constant action of the last chapters. And I'm looking forward to seeing what Sunset and co have been up too.

[Seeking Dusk]

Yeah, I love your Sombra now. I've been waffling on what he's like, whether what we've seen has been an act, since we've only seen him from the perspective at others, but it feels like he's genuine. Out to rule for sure, but he does seem like he really is the mostly kindly king he presents himself as. And your backstory for him, and the story for this reality is amazingly done. I particularly love how Sombra makes it clear that the conflict wasn't between Soul Society and Hueco Mundo, but that both those came after. It's just a nice touch in my eyes.

Adagio has grown. Not that long ago she was all for manipulating people and controlling them. She's learned to take the step away from the control part. She's still a manipulating little sneak, but it's no longer solely self interest and self-power. Nothing shows that more than the fact that using Ember and setting her up to be kidnapped didn't even occur to her. All while setting up things to have others killed and her own position look good. She's learned what friendship actually is now.

Twilight continues to impress too. I notice she didn't mention Midnight to Sombra, and I'm not sure how that split personality affects the soul issues she had. As for taking on the V, would it still be Vengeance, or would it be different word? I mean, Sombra did say it would take a different form, but that could just be manifestation.

[sailing101]

I have found a list of words that start with the letter V.

http://phrontistery.info/v.html

Some Favorites of mine:
vacuity: emptiness
vambrace: armour for the forearm
varia: miscellany
venator: huntsman; hunter
vila: Eastern European fairy or nymph
vulnerary: healing wounds

vesper: evening; the evening star
Like that one would have anything to do with our favorite Quincy, Right?

[jardex22]

9400983
I'm still thinking that Twilight will request Sunset be part of her research team, since she's an expert on the field. The fact that she's a Soul Reaper (part time), may complicate things. She could also reasonably ask for the rest of her friends to join, since they've had access to magic, and could carry out experiments.

[GIGA-XISBASS]

9400922
Agreed, Yhwach was a complete monster. At least Sombra is a better man than Yhwach will ever be. While he doesn't like the Arrancar and is begrudgingly willing to hear Twilight out on the proposal Adagio has, I can definitely see him having a truce with them once things get fixed up in Hueco Mundo, assuming Tirek and the other outright pure evil ones are dealt with. That more than Yhwach would do, his plan was full on genocide on a universal scale, no different from guys like Zamasu and if possible he'd have been Hakaied by a God of Destruction for his actions or Lord Zeno even if universes collided.

It'll be fun to see where this goes and here's hoping Twilight's plan for a 3 way truce will happen.

[GIGA-XISBASS]

9400692
It's a pity that Twilight won't be able to see her mom again given the circumstances as we know it right now. Do you think it's possible she and Sombra could find a way to bring her back fully with her memories intact? Like an advanced divine spell or something? I could see it happening under the right circumstances as well as getting Radiant Hope to remember who she is to Sombra, after all if Sweet Cider can remember and Lament slowly remembering as well, I can see something jogging her memories.

[Noctis Prism]

Totally epic!

[Garuda IV]

Quite appropriate that Twilight would become the new Sternritter V, both because it was her mother's, and from having witnessed seeing her die in front of her.

Also hoping that Sombra will agree to speak with Adagio. He may not like hollows, but surely he could see how her plan would be beneficial to him and his Quincy. Besides, Adagio's condition for the information sounds quite reasonable.

[PrincessColumbia]

I mean this comment in a much more positive light than it will sound:

This chapter finally pushed my "Bullshit" meter for this story down from "so far in the red it's slapping the glass" to comfortably between 2 and 3.

Let me explain: You've read my comments on my dislike of the power escalation that happens in anime, so I won't bore you with a rehash of that; but I was willing to give the Soul Society a pass because, hey, they ded. Similarly with the Hollows. The Quincy, however, were ostensibly human, but somehow able to pull of super-human crap? Even the HuMane 7 got a pass because they have Equestrian magic.

This chapter introduces a mechanic that makes the Quincy abilities make sense in the context of the story. It could have been a hand-wave, but you worked it into a competent part of the story that helps to explain so very much.

Very good work, keep going.

[sailing101]

9405787
Well, canon Bleach had it where the king was able to give more power the more souls he ate.

[RanmaChaos]

Another amazing chapter. You really are quite brilliant Vex, well done.

[sailing101]

I was just browsing youtube today and...

Apparently the Sirens could already fire Ceros to begin with.

[fanboy543]

Vex you have genuinely surprised me with this chapter, and I am not easily surprised, especially with stories like this.
Great work dude keep it up!

[DJMEGAMOUTH]

Sombra truly is what Yhwach should have been. He’s better than him in every way there no doubt about that.

[Lord Seth]

The chapter managed to be surprisingly interesting despite being mostly exposition... although I wasn't really fond of the cut from Sombra/Twilight to Adagio, because it happens right after Sombra drops an incredibly interesting line and since the reader (or at least me) wants to see that followed up on, it has the unfortunate effect of making the intervening portion about Adagio feel tedious because of desire to see it continue. Granted, that's a relatively minor nitpick. I'm glad we finally got the scoop on Sombra and Radiant Hope. Sombra's a far better character here than Yhwach was in Bleach. Then again, all of the "leaders"--Sombra, Tirek, and Scorpan--have been more interesting than their Bleach counterparts.

I do think a very good balance was struck between the origin of world being vaguely described and being described concretely; too vague and it loses any meaning, too concrete and it can far too easily lead to holes in the story.

Although, the story still hasn't really confronted the whole "Quincies destroy Hollows when they kill them" thing (i.e. actual destruction of souls, not purification); it seems to not have gone with Bleach's explanation of the Quincies being potentially world-ending with that, but the annihilation of the souls, some of which were innocent and only turned bad from the Hollowfication process, does seem to be a moral issue that's been glossed over since being mentioned. This chapter seems like it would have been a good opportunity for that... but then again there was already a whole lot of exposition and perhaps that would have brought it into too much.

[the other sans]

inform Guto about this because they man had been in the thick of a fight
but the Soul Reapers managed to follow the, and in a pitched battle
Indeed you might only further endanger Ember by doing so.’
“I dare because I care about getting Ember back alive[/]!” she rose into the air, until she was nose to nose with him, leaning in on him,
Torch stood there, starring, rather blown away himself by what he saw
Reality was reality, and the longer she tried to hide form it
Some gods through to claim humans as worshipers
Winston wagged his tail and raised his canone Hollow mask towards Adagio
wasn’t overtly aggressive and the starring, forlorn quality of his eyes seemed
Well... Lament liked honestly, so no reason to hide the truth of her ambitions form him
that she calmly adjusted her classes, starred at Sombra frankly, an said, “...Huh?”
It’s meaning was plain enough
but you did that after fighting off an placing a tracer on an assassin
You’re Schrift will take its own shape

1. The.
2. Them.
3. Meant to be a closing quotation mark.
4. Broken italic.
5. Staring.
6. From.
7. Thought.
8. Canine.
9. Staring.
10. Honesty.
11. Glasses, Stared, And.
12. Its.
13. And.
14. Your.

[RDDash]

I don't want to say anything bad, but I was never the fan of the idea of raincarnated lovebirds. Otherwise I find that I do enjoy Sombra more and more, unless he isn't lying.

[Yutah123]

Wow, so many revelations about the Quincy this chapter. Like, Left Eye of the Soul Queen? Whoo, that's one big burden.

---

He looked more tired then than he ever had before, hands propping on the desk as he leaned over it. “It awakened in my wife, Radiant Hope.”

Wait, isn't she... a Soul Reaper?

*reads explanation*

Oh well, that sucks.

[lilflamewars]

Hell yeah that is some dope lore, pour it straight into my brain.

[MightyAlpaca]

9856403
Re-reading this now, I wonder how many other bits and pieces of the Soul Queen got scattered about, and who possess them

[Spellflame]

11397726
at least 6 total pieces
4 with the zero devision
1 with chrysalis
1 with twilight
Although I think Eon might have 1