Corroded Spirits

Corroded Spirits: 45

(I don't own Bleach)

Chapter 45: Abnormal Anomalies

    Once it was confirmed that their Spiritual Imprint had completely vanished, all search parties were immediately called away. Ulquiorra and Orihime had left Soul Society. Of course, that didn't mean the mess they made came along with them.

    All squads were given orders to help cleaning up the mass chaos that the two had once again created. It was easier to do now. They'd gotten used to it after many months of bloody repetition. At the coming of dawn, Soul Society was once again in its state of repair and healing after a horrible blow. The same could not be said about Ichigo and the others, though.

   The Onmitsikudo were quick to seize them once thet had gotten to their area. And although Orihime and Ulquiorra were the primary suspects, the group were locked away after seeing them in a wreckage with Aizen. For of course, what else has changed in their narrow viewpoint of anything.

    "Are they going to execute us?" Ichigo asked. He was in the Detention House of the 2nd Division. They weren't treated like Uryu and his friends from when they infiltrated the realm to save Rukia. They were imprisoned in separate cells, with Special Omnitsikudo offcers guarding them in the next room.

    Kisuke, who was quietly sitting on his bed beside Ichigos cell, heeded the question. "Not likely. However it's probable that we won't be able to enter Soul Society any time soon." He said, keeping his eyes closed since they were now unguarded. "Doesn't sound like news for you." Toshiro piped up from his cell. Kisuke doesn't respond to this. It was the truth after all.

    Retsu, Byakuya and Chad remain quiet, and Ukitake was fast asleep to regain the strength he had last throughout the entire ordeal. In the quiet, Ichigo asked another question. "Did they go back to Hueco Mundo?" Kisuke hummed to himself. "I'm hoping they will. Besides.. Anywhere else is too dangerous for them and for anyone they'll encounter." "They're in Hueco Mundo." Chad said all the sudden.

    Ichigo glanced at him. "How can you be so sure?" He asked. "It was Orihime speaking, before it left... All of you saw it too, didn't you? The look on their face..." He trailed off and casted his eyes to the floor. "What, Chad?" Ichigo further asked, even though he knew it himself.

    "They wanted to go home..."

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    It was hard to adjust their steps once they arrived to their destination. The terrain went from Sekki and cement, to grain and sand. The grotesquely mangled creature stood atop a dune, looking into the vacuum of silence and infinite emptiness in the distance."We're back." Orihime said. "We're finally back." She said, almost in joy careless as she started walking again. But her companion stopped her. Ulquiorra was standing in front of her, with his arms seizing her shoulders, but to any by-stander, it equaled to the winged creature suddenly stopping in place. "How could you do it?! How could you?! We had him!!"

    He could've went on, but Orihime's face remained tenderly the same. "He could never be ours..." She said, eyes on him but sight was far adrift. "Besides... It wasn't what we really wanted anyway.." Her words made him let go of her and he felt lost. It was just as when he was being ripped to pieces in front of her.

    Though angered, he wouldn't be able to remain as such to her. Not when the blood puddle around her feet kept increasing by the second. "Are you sure that this is what you want?" He asked, uncertain whether he wanted to know either. The girl didn't reply. She was walking unsteadily across the sand, horribly disoriented and direction, senseless.

    Ulquiorra caught up with her in time before she fell on her knees. Blood seemed to spurtle out of her like she was a broken water bottle. She was shivering in his hold, but the smile on her lips was adamant. "We should rest here." He whispered, carefully keeping her upright.

    Orihime, bloodied and exhausted, gently rocked her body back and forth, humming something that could've been a lullaby in her memory. "Okay." She said at last, almost breathing out a final breath as she did.

    Her body slipped down to the ground unconsciously, and Ulquiorra allowed her the luxury of staying there on the fine, white grains of dust. And when the wind blew, there was only a desecrated girl, on the brink of death, lying in the midst of the World of Hollow's meager existence.

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    The amount of time past was not recorded, nor was it given much worth either. Time didn't matter in Hueco Mundo, and it was further treated as such by its residents. Even by those who were supposed to be alien to it. Or, for the lack of a better word, 'trespasser'.

    A white-clothed figure was walking along the sands, thoughts and words all to himself. His face was delicate and the long, golden locks that flowed behind him were a blinding sight in the darkness' wake.

    He was reciting a poem of of sorts, in a language that would've been foreign to any home-creature that could've heard it. But his time of leisure was cut short when he noticed a black mess, not far ahead of him. Only slightly curious, the stranger walked towards the unknown element before his eyes. Upon reaching it, he looked down at its mangled body, wondering both in disgust and awe, who could've inflicted such harm.

    "How unfortunate for you, creature.." He said in his language. Upon further inspection, he saw that it was still breathing. And he supposed that whatever decision he would make within the next few seconds will determine whether the creature will continue breathing or not.

    Wrapping the cloak he had been wearing around to it, the stranger picked up the creature and proceeded to carry it back to his place. If anything, he would've cared not for the Hollow (if that was what it was), but he was positive that his master would want to see it.