The Wound Within

Each blade was identical to the next, and each one was identical to the katana he used in his zanpakuto's sealed stated. What was their significance, he wondered. Did one of them hold the key to unlocking his true power? Were there characteristics distinguishable from the next that he could not see? They were everywhere; poking out of the creature's body in practically every location. Which one should he choose?

He began to tread around, examining one blade after the other on the ground, then gazing up at the walls were even more stood out. He didn't try removing a single one out of the paranoia of picking the wrong one, and then having to submit to a heavy consequence; perhaps even death.

'Without my powers I can't sense any spiritual pressure from these swords. But they must be here for a reason, right?'

He paused in front of another group of blades, looking over each one closely to notice any possible distinction from the one he remembered, but all of them looked exactly the same. This was getting irritating. Which one was the real one?!

Then, going against his better judgement, he reached out and grabbed the sword standing up directly in front of him. His fingers tightened around the hilt as he gently began to pull the blade out of the creature's large, slimy belly. A small puddle of royal purple ooze began to leak up as the blade rose out of its nest. When the sword finally came free, Kyousuke held it up and analyzed it. It looked like his sword, but was it?

His eyes scanned along the 4 foot blade as a feeling of anxiousness overwhelmed him. Suddenly, the sword began to move, wriggling about like a worm of living steel. Frozen in both shock and confusion, he watched as it suddenly morphed into a long, white alien with no eyes, no nose, and a mouth of broad, bulky teeth: a Hollow! Kyousuke gasped in terror as the creature emitted a light shrieking howl. A pair of skinny arms suddenly sprouted from it's sides, long, scrawny, pointed fingers lurched out and phased themselves directly into Kyousuke's chest...

"Aaagghhh!" the Shinigami screamed as he felt the monster's prickly digits digging through his body as though trying to tear a hole right through him.

The slender, white parasite clicked and howled repeatedly, wriggling closer toward him as it opened it's mouth and prepared to bite into Kyousuke's flesh. Kyousuke suddenly threw his hand up and closed it around the creature's face, muzzling it's snapping jaws. He fought to push it back, but the little guy was incredibly strong and persistent for it's size. After spending a few moments struggling to force the parasite off of him, Kyousuke suddenly wrapped his other hand around what he assumed to be it's throat, exerting much more strength into his efforts.

"Get the hell off me you damned leech," he growled as the little monster's strength began to wane in comparison to his own and was finally shoved out of his body and cast aside like a diseased serpent.

He heard the creature screech as it spun through the air and slowly reverted back into the form of a katana, striking back into the blubbery, lilac-colored tissue of the Great Hollow.

Kyousuke went to his knees, clutching his chest in momentary relief. Nothing felt damaged; he wasn't bleeding and his insides still felt intact, but that would not be something he would attempt again. However, while it was a risky and terrifying experience, it did answer one question: only one of these swords would be the right one. But among the 100,000 of them strewn about the place, he had no idea which one that was...

Kyousuke ambled through the long, pulpy cavern of flesh, rationalizing the difficulty of his objective. He glanced from one sword to another, and surmised that each one of them was likely the same as the last one he chose: Hollows masquerading as his weapon. Whereas his true blade, the genuine article, was likely hidden away in a more private and secure location; possibly under heavy guard or booby-trapped. Neither option seemed appealing to him.

He suddenly came to a stop and flexed his hand a bit, thinking back on the close encounter he just had with that last little Hollow disguised as one of his swords as well. It startled him to remember how strenuous it was to prevent that thing from burrowing itself into his bodu and devouring his insides. Deep down, he knew it was because he lacked the power that would have been necessary to simply brush the creature off like a common fly; a token reminder of just how weak he was. In a fit of disgust, he squeezed his hanf shut into a trembling fist before resuming his journey through the Hollow's belly.

Kyousuke ventured through for another couple of hours, periodically examining a lone sword standing in its own, secluded location. He refused to take a chance on any of them though; it was simply too risky. He then suddenlt froze as he felt a gentle rumbling in his stomach, and an overwhelming sense of dread crept over him. He was getting hungry.

Refusing to let fear consume him this time, Kyousuke gently closed his eyes and took a few breaths to relax.

'It's all right. Just stay calm,' he coached himself. 'You've got time.'

While the self-assurance helped, it also encouraged him to hasten his search. His spiritual powers had to be there somewhere! He continued through the seemingly endless purple chasm until he started to get the feeling of being watched. But each time he turned around, he found nothing but the lengthy field of sunken swords. His brows drew together as he scanned the upper reaches of the beast's insides. When the feeling weakened, the Shinigami proceeded onward.

After traveling what must have been at least 15 miles of the Hollow's cavernous, greasy, odius-smelling gut, Kyousuke stopped and let out an irritated grunt. "Damn it all! Just what the hell am I supposed to look for?!" he growled to the foul winds sweeping through the place. Suddenly, he felt a chilling wind press over the back of his neck...

As he turned to look over his shoulder, Kyousuke's eyes fell upon a tall, brawny figure of ghost-white skin, and a rather ominous, white mask over his face. A long, narrow, black slit cut along the eyes in the shape of a "V" with dark purple markings drawn over and around the skull, which curled back around under the eyes on both sides, and along the jaw, ending at a point. There were no slots cut for a nose or a mouth, making the figure seem all the more menacing to him. Kyousuke also noticed a cascade of dark brown locks similar to his own reaching down behind the ghostly figure's head. A thick, thorny, black tattoo decorated his shoulders and pectorals, and Kyousuke also noticed a group of long, white, tentacle-like appendages poking out of it's back, which extended down to his ankles.

But the most significant thing he noticed about him, was the gaping hole positioned directly in the center of his chest...

"What the hell?" Kyousuke muttered in a whisper.

Suddenly, the figure presented a long, white katana at his side, making a quick, upward slash at the dumbfounded Shingami. A sea of red passed through the air...

Drops of blood splattered against the bulbous, rancid flesh of the giant Hollow which had devoured him in a single gulp. With a mild gash sliced across his chest, Kyousuke skid to a halt away from the masked figure that attacked him. What the hell was that for? He wondered. He began to perspire, feeling a rush of anxiety.

'Why does everything here seem to want to kill me?!' he thought, agitated. 'I still don't have my powers, so how does it expect me to fight back?!'

The humanoid Hollow standing across from him held it's position. His stance was strong and firm, and his attack fluid and unrelenting. Had Kyousuke been just a blink slower, he would have likely been sliced in two. The Hollow stared back at him through the thin, black channel carved along his mask, but Kyousuke couldn't make out any set of eyes within; they were completely concealed in darkness; although, now that he thought about it, he probably wouldn't want to see this thing's eyes anyway.

The Shinigami stood nervously, trying to think of some way to either escape or fight against this Hollow that had likely been stalking him all of this time.

He couldn't think of anything. He had virtually no way to defend himself. Even standing near the creature was proving to be difficult; it felt as though a pair of powerful forces had him by the arms and legs, and were trying to pull him apart.

'Could this be the intensity of his spiritual pressure?' he pondered for a moment.

The Hollow stranger finally relaxed his sword arm, examining the blood dripping off his blade. That was when Kyousuke noticed it; that blade, it was also the same model as his zanpakuto, but more than that, there was an energy surrounding it which he could feel pulling at him. Was that it? Was that the one? If so, how was he supposed to get it away from this beast who wielded it against him?

There seemed to be little choice in the matter anymore; he was going to have to find a way to get that sword away from him and reclaim what was rightfully his. How he was going to do that was another matter though...

For some reason, there seemed to be something oddly familiar about this new Hollow. Like every other Hollow he had encountered, this one appeared to have a ravenous hunger for blood and death, but there was something pronounced about him. Kyousuke couldn't understand what it was exactly, but somehow he felt as though he were connected to it. The feeling made him feel rather uncomfortable...

"Who are you?" he finally asked the masked stranger.

He received no answer as the muscular figure continued to study his sword, ignoring him. Finally, it lowered the blade down near it's side before it suddenly vanished with a rather static-like sound and reappeared in front of the Shinigami with it's left hand pulled back and balled into a fist.

Kyousuke had been too stunned by it's speed to react in time, receiving the full-force of the blow that was delivered straight into his jaw, sending his body careening through the field of fake zanpakuto. The blow nearly broke his jaw as the young warrior rolled into the far wall of lilac flesh.

His head was spinning. He had never been hit like that before.

'Guess he isn't too fond of this feeling between us either,' Kyousuke guessed jokingly, trying to re-establish himself.

He managed to get back to his feet, staggering to maintain his balance. Through his vision, he could see up to 3 of the Hollows now weaving back and forth as blood began to leak out over his bottom lip. This was looking very grim to him. He was amazed he was even standing up right now.

"Boy, you really mean business don't you?" he muttered lightly at the psychotic creature, spitting out a tooth which had been knocked loose. He was thankful he had swallowed an entire mouthful after that.

He watched next as the Hollow figure aimed his sword at him and a tiny orb of red light began to form around the tip, collecting multiple streams that seemed to appear out of nowhere. Kyousuke had never witnessed this attack before - a Cero; one of an Arrancar's most lethal attacks. His knees trembled, threatening to give out. After just one punch, Kyousuke's body felt like it had been turned to jelly, and he wasn't sure he even had the strength necessary to get out of the way of the attack about to be launched at him.

'This doesn't look good.'

The red orb grew larger and larger around the tip of the Arrancar's blade. It seemed to give a rather electric charge to the air itself, echoing out a soft hum. Suddenly, the orb exploded, stretching out into a long, tall beam headed right for him...

With barely a second left to react, Kyousuke threw himself just out of the path of the monstrous, red blast. While still in mid-air, he felt the impact of the explosion shaking the entirety of the Giant Hollow both he and his adversary were trapped in. A vicious wind caught him from behind, casting the young Shinigami well over 100 feet into the air, and nearly 2 miles away from his previous location.

Kyousuke beat his arms and legs against the thick, putrid air, trying to right himself as his body flipped and rolled recklessly across the cavern of fatty, bulbous tissue. But the force of the blast had been much too strong as he came crashing down on his back amongst another acreage of swords.

Luckily, the monster's flesh were pulpy enough to provide a rather soft landing to an otherwise hard fall. While he suffered no broken bones from the collision, he did receive a few scrapes and bruises as his body plowed through the debris of blades.

When he finally came to rest, Kyousuke just laid there, struggling to breathe and fumbling for a plan that he could use to fight this incredibly powerful Hollow.

Once again, Kyousuke rose to his feet and found the Arrancar slowly stalking towards him, his sword dripping with blood.

"Tell me something," Kyousuke spoke to him. "Why are you doing this? What's the point of you trying to kill me?"

The creature didn't reply and kept advancing toward him.

"You're just a part of me, aren't you? A memory which I had forgotten long ago?" Kyousuke continued, trying to reason with the silent psycho. "Are you looking for a way out too? Am I what's keeping you here?"

Still, the pale, menacing monstrosity wouldn't answer him as he got closer and closer to his adversary.

"Talk, damn it!" Kyousuke finally snapped. "What the hell do you want from me?!"

Suddenly, the Arrancar launched himself at Kyousuke, moving at a blurring speed, and snatching him by the throat. Kyousuke gasped against the grip of his long, sharp fingers as he was carried back and slammed into a pillar of flesh, suspended above the ground.

"You ask the dumbest of questions, fool," the Arrancar finally spoke with a deep, rumbling voice; almost as though he were talking to Kyousuke from across another dimension. It sent a chill up Kyousuke's spine. "Is it not painfully obvious to you what I want?"

Kyousuke dangled there in his grasp, fighting for each breath he managed to get. Peeking one eye open, he stared down into the darkness of the Hollow's masked visor.

"Why should two beings that are enemies have to understand anything about one another? We are here to kill each other, aren't we? So what need is there for an explanation?"

"You believe I'm here to reveal some kind of deep, inner secret about yourself, so that you can all of a sudden rediscover your powers?" the Arrancar mocked him. "Tch! Don't make me sick. Your powers will never return to you; they belong to me now."

As Kyousuke managed to swallow another breath, he gazed down upon his adversary. "Wh-what?!"

"Can't you feel it, Kyousuke? I am your true self," the creature snarled. "You never had the strength of will necessary to do what must be done. Always, you've just been a weakling wanting everything to just drop right into your lap!"

Kyousuke suddenly held his breath as the monster's words captured his full attention. They were as though a blade had just been driven deep into his chest.

"That's not going to happen here," the Arrancar continued. "You know what you are, Kyousuke -- a wound. Your very existence is like a disease which spreads to every, single person you touch. To those that can sense it, you are neither living nor dead; rather, you are like a parasite feeding off others to sustain himself. But you will never be satisfied. You felt it within you a moment ago, didn't you? The hunger?"

The Shinigami didn't know how to answer. In truth, he was afraid to respond to that, fearing what it might mean.

"I am the satiation of that hunger; the pinnacle of power itself, and your only hope of ever healing yourself," the beast explained to him. "Your powers are here. They are within me. Embrace them. Gorge yourself on their energy and let your true nature be restored to the world. It is the only way..."

"Gck! What are you talking about?" Kyousuke groaned in rasping breath, still struggling in the creature's iron grip.

"Is the situation still not clear to you, Kyousuke? The only way for you to gain possession of your spiritual powers, and your only hope of escaping here alive is to kill me," the beast growled.

'How the hell do I do that?! I don't even have a zanpakuto!' Kyousuke argued with himself. 'What am I supposed to do?!?'

The airways in his throat were further constricted as the Arrancar squeezed his cold, white hand tighter around his neck; making it harder for him to draw a breath.

"I can taste your fear, Kyousuke. You know as well as I do that you stand no chance in defeating me. After all, what are you without this," the Arrancar asked holding up his sword in front of him.

"D-damn...you..."

"Now that you are no longer connected to him, I am able to claim what was always rightfully mine." In that moment, Kyousuke watched as the Arrancar's masked slowly began to melt away; dispersing into tiny white dust particles. The young Shinigami's heart leaped into his throat as he gazed down upon his own face; pale white with dark lavender eyes looking back at him. A demented grin stretched along the creature's lips..

"Wh-what the hell are you?" asked a stunned Kyousuke.

"I already told you, didn't I? I am your true self," answered the Arrancar. "You are nothing but a wound. And what is it that all wounds do, Kyousuke?" Slowly, the long-haired Hollow pulled his sword back, aiming the tip directly at the helpless Shinigami's chest, "They bleed."

The blade was driven forward with a swift thrust...

The sound of cleaved flesh tore throughout the bulbous cavern, then silence...

Falling down before the Arrancar's feet, blood splashed into a small pool. He gazed at it; studied it; it wasn't near the amount the pale, crazed creature had been expecting. He lifted his cold, mauve eyes back up to Kyousuke and his face scrunched with agitation. Kyousuke held his sword tightly in his hand, dripping with blood, and preventing him from plunging his sword directly into his heart.

"Why?" he asked him. "What's the point? You know you can't win. You know you're only avoiding the inevitable -- why stop me?"

"I guess you could call it instinct," said Kyousuke as he struggled with nearly all of his strength to hold the Arrancar's sword in place; feeling the cool, gentle flow of his blood coasting down his hand and wrist.

"Instinct?! Ha!" The Arrancar exclaimed derisively. "We both know if there's one thing you've never had, Kyousuke Junichiro, it's instinct. You've spent your entire existence being waited on; refusing to take action; afraid to accept any responsibility. You've never wanted to do anything but watch the world turn!"

Kyousuke didn't try to argue with him; he was right. He hung his head, hiding himself beneath the long, brown bangs of his hair.

"You never had what it takes to be a Shingami, Kyousuke. The only reason you became anything at all was because of him, and you even managed to make that a complete waste of his effort!"

Kyousuke gave no immediate response. Instead, he chose to let the words of his Hollow self sink in deep - very deep. And from their truths, he found something which he had never felt before -- hope.

"I'm not gonna try and argue that what you say about me isn't true," he spoke with a relaxed voice.

"Hm?"

"In fact, it's because I know you're absolutely right that I have no choice...but to stop you," Kyousuke added as he raised his head and flashed a fiery glare at the Hollow.

The Arrancar was taken aback by the light he saw blazing in Kyousuke's honey-golden eyes; as if they had been set on fire. Even more disturbing, was the fact that energy seemed to spread throughout the young mortal's entire being. He could feel him starting to overpower him, shoving his blade farther away from his chest.

'D-Damn it! What is this?!' the Arrancar wondered - his eyes swelling with fear and confusion. 'I...I can't hold him!'

Kyousuke gradually pulled the monstrous Arrancar's blade away from his heart. His body felt warm, despite the frigid temperatures exuding from the Hollow's skin, and a second feeling he wasn't very familiar with filled within him -- will.

Pulling his legs into his chest, Kyousuke kicked out at the Arrancar's stone-hard body, knocking him back several feet away and finally breaking the grip he held around his throat. Kyousuke dropped to his knees, quickly inhaling a large intake of oxygen before spitting a fit of hard coughs.

The Arrancar stared at him with intense focus. Somehow, Kyousuke had summoned both the strength and will to shove him off.

'Did I imagine it, or did that little pipsqueak actually manage to steal my power?' He looked at his hand, flexing his clawed fingers back and forth. For an instant, it felt to him like their situations had completely reversed; that he was the powerless one -- weak. But that was impossible; he could still feel his power coursing through his veins. 'Maybe I just lost concentration,' he decided.

He looked back up to the Shinigami and saw him still sitting there on his knees with his hand around his neck, breathing heavily. He began to approach him, but not as swiftly this time as he had before. "That was quite a little speech you just gave. Very inspirational," he accredited the young warrior. "But there's no point in trying to deceive yourself into thinking you can actually win."

Kyousuke glanced up at the Arrancar with that same look of defiance and uncertainty.

"Your words may have granted you a moment of strength just now, but they lacked any sort of real substance. I can sense that, deep down, you're still the same as you always were: a frightened little soul that has absolutely no idea what he's talking about."

Kyousuke refused to believe that and held his gaze strong against his foe. He would not turn away this time. Not anymore.

"I already said that I'm not going to argue with you," Kyousuke mumbled, gathering his feet beneath him to stand. "There's no point."

"If there is no point in denying who you are, why continue to resist?" asked his Arrancar doppleganger. "What do you hope to gain?"

The Shinigami just stood there, glaring at him in silence and heaving a few gasping breaths as sweat slid down his face.

"I already told you before, Kyousuke, your powers are mine now! You will never get them back so long as I still stand!" It was apparent to Kyousuke that his new demeanor was starting to irritate and confuse the Hollow, yet it still didn't change the fact he did still retain possession of his spiritual powers.

"I want to admit that I know you're right, but I can't," he said to the Hollow creature.

"And why not?!"

"Because...we both know that that's not true," Kyousuke answered. "Because neither one of us has actually seen me try."

The Arrancar sneered and snarled at him, perturbed by his new found insight.

"The fact of the matter remains that neither one of us will ever know what I'm actually capable of - until I start trying!" Kyousuke continued. His voice and words became like a sword to the Hollow, easily slicing through his rock-hard armor, and infuriating him all at once.

"I know you're probably a million times stronger than me, but I've decided that that no longer matters! I know that it hasn't been my power you've been after this whole time," Kyousuke declared as his voice pronounced his determination. "It's me, isn't it?! It's my soul you want, right?!?"

The Arrancar's deep, lavender pools swirled with quiet rage, pondering if perhaps he had toyed with him long enough.

Kyousuke then took a step toward him, their eyes meeting like two bolts of lightning trying to overpower the other. "Well I'm right here, Hollow! So if you want me, then come and get me," he exclaimed. "I'm not running from you anymore. And if I'm really going to die here, then I promise I'm gonna make you work your ass off for the kill!" He clenched his hand into a fist and raised it up before the Arrancar. His breath becoming like fire that warmed every bone in his body.

The two continued to stare the other down. The Arrancar couldn't help but notice the resolve in Kyousuke's bright, golden eyes. It was more than unnerving as he suddenly sent all 6 of the tentacles forward at his mortal adversary.

Kyousuke was caught by surprise at this maneuver as each tentacle speared into his body, missing his vital organs, but inflicting a world of hurt just the same. A gasp of agony held in his throat as he was slowly hoisted off of his feet.

"Enough of your rambling," said the Hollow, expressing his distaste towards his opponent. "As I said before, your words lack substance, Kyousuke. You have no action to back-up your claims, no matter how stimulating they seem."

Kyousuke felt his blood spilling out of his body in large quantities; he was really in a fix now. He never expected this Arrancar could use his tentacles in such a way. Looking down at him, he could tell that each appendage had extended nearly 20 feet across to impale his body.

'Damn! I should've known,' Kyousuke berated himself as he fought to keep his vision from blurring. He was losing blood fast. He didn't have much time left. 'I have to think of something quick!'

"While your words may have given him some hope for you, it is already too late to ever earn back his trust," the Arrancar continued, poking at the Shinigami's resolve. "He's done with you, Kyousuke Junichiro, as am I."

Kyousuke watched as the Hollow approached him, his lavender gaze almost piercing his very soul. This was it.

With blood leaking from his mouth, shoulders and stomach, he attempted to pry himself loose from long, white spears of Hollow flesh. He wouldn't go out this easily. He couldn't! But no matter how much he tried, he couldn't manage to dislodge one of the tentacles; he was simply too weak.

'My body doesn't have any strength left,' he admitted ruefully as his vision started to blur and his breaths fell shorter. 'Is this really it? Is this how I pass on? No! I can't let it...end like this. Have to...think of something! I...have to win!'

"It's useless," the Hollow's voice echoed, clubbing down his thoughts once again. "Struggle as long as you like - your fate is sealed. Now surrender, Kyousuke. Surrender your soul to me!" The Arrancar slowly raised his blade into the air, ready to cut him down...

Kyousuke was helpless; staked upon the Arrancar's limbs; unable to move; barely able to breathe, yet the burning light in his eyes still would not fade - much to the Hollow's displeasure, who glared back at him.

"Farewell, Kyousuke Junichiro."

But as he attempted to strike him down, a horrifying affair overwhelmed the Arrancar.

'What...what's happening? My arm...why won't it move?!'

Noticing the sudden look of shock in the Hollow's midnight pools, Kyousuke began to ponder what was happening. The murderous monster's arm trembled, yet the blade of his sword remained pointed toward the ceiling of the foul-smelling cavern they were in.

'D-damn it! What's going on?! Why can't I kill him?!?' No matter how much strength he poured into his arm, the pale psycho couldn't administer the final blow; it was as though his own sword had paralyzed him. 'Dammit move. I command you, body, move! I must kill him! He must die!'

Just then, Kyousuke noticed a light begin to glow from within the Arrancar's body. An effulgent, violaceous light...

Kyousuke stared at it, mesmerized by both it's beauty and warmth. All pain in his body began to diminish, and he could feel the bones in his fingers tingling, aching to touch it.

'That light...what is it?'

Stretching his arm out, he reached to try and touch it - as though he had been bewitched by it's violet aura. As his hand grew nearer, the warmth intensified; he could feel an energy burrowing through his skin and into his veins. Noticing this, the Arrancar suddenly spun around and flung his impaled prisoner from his body, tossing Kyousuke across the the fleshy cavern.

The Shingami crashed hard against a far wall of condensed, slimy tissue, knocking the breath out of him.

"I'm done playing games," exclaimed the Arrancar as his tentacles curled around in front of him and began to charge an orb of magenta-colored light. "Only one of us is leaving here alive, Kyousuke! And I refuse to let a weak-willed sycophant like you usurp this power from me!"

Kyousuke sat up straight against the wall, glaring at the vicious monster and the ball of condensed reishi forming around the pointed tips of all 6 tentacles.

"Cero."

With that word, the blast lunged forward toward it's injured target...