Loyalty Though the Stomach (Zegram, Guerrero JT PG-13-R)

[Zegram]

(Training for CTP)

It has been some time since Zegram had been in the Menos Forest. His Espada, Sargon, had him going through intensive training which had kept him busy for quite some time. The fraccion walked into the forest wearing a nice two piece suit and a fedora set atop his green haired head. His white dress shirt was perfectly clean, and his suit was wrinkle free. He adjusted his black fedora keeping the brim slightly over one of his golden yellow eyes, Zegram kept his attention to his surroundings. He could not sense things like he once could. He never used any sort of energy sensory, but his normal senses were dulled while he was in his sealed form.

His training with Sargon had some interesting affects on his body as well as his spirit. His training now allowed him to seal most of his strength for when he needed it. This may mean that he was weaker in his sealed form, but the strength during release was worth it. This helped him with one other thing as well. He preferred to not engage in battles if he can avoid it, so when he is sealed, he might just be underestimated to the point where no one would think he is worth fighting. This would in turn allow his acquisition of information a bit easier, and the shock of someone facing his true strength all the more enjoyable. He chuckled slightly at the thought. 

Everything seemed so much bigger than when he had been here as a Gillian and a Adhuchas. Sure he was significantly smaller than when he was in his previous stages, but he thought part of it was the fact that he was walking around weaker than he was used to. He felt a bit more vulnerable. A slightly easier meal since he can't just stay in his released form all the time. He sighed continuing on. He needed to get away from Las Noches for a while, and the endless, white, sandy dunes just doesn't do it for him. His eyes shifted as he heard foot steps coming his way. Judging from the sound of the foot steps it was big. He was guessing either a Gillian, or a very large Adjuchas. His money was on the Gillian though.

The Gillian stepped from behind a large tree looking down at the much smaller arrancar. Zegram craned his neck upward and whisteled to himself putting a hand on his fedora to keep it from falling off his head. "My, my, your a big one aren't you?" He said in an unimpressed tone. The Gillian howled making it's way closer to Zegram. Judging by the shape of the mask, this one was one of the unique ones. The ones that were still capable of evolving into an adjuchas. It was a shame, Zegram thought. That he would have to cut its evolution so short. It might have made a worthy servant, but that was how things worked down here. You kill or be killed.

The Gillian lifted a large foot in an attempt to simply squash the human sized intruder. The Gillian was a towering twenty five feet tall, so it was very much capable of breaking Zegram's body if given the chance. Thankfully for Zegram he was faster than the lumbering giant. He ran out from under the foot as it slammed into the ground kicking up a lot of dust. Zegram used the dust to hide his movements as he made his way closer to the Gillian. Most would instinctively try to get away from some giant thing trying to kill them, but Zegram knew that the advantage was his when he was close to it. The Gillian thrashed at the ground wildly allowing Zegram to slip close.

The dust settled and Zegram appeared to be no where to be found. The Gillian looked from side to side stupidly trying to find its elusive prey. Zegram was busy climbing up the cloak of the Gillian. Zegram was thankful that the cloak didn't act like skin or anything. Otherwise it would have made the climb much more difficult. Putting one hand above the other, Zegram pulled his body up the massive thing stopping every now and then to rest for a second. He made it about shoulder high and there was still quite a climb to go. "Aww, screw it." He said and applied his gravitational pressure against the massive hollow forcing it to the ground. 

Zegram held on tightly to the cloak, so that he wouldn't be throw off of it during the impact. He would keep his pressure applied as he causally walked to the head of the hollow and put a hand on its head. Zegram shook his head looking it straight in the eyes. "Tsk tsk tsk, It was very unwise of you to have chose me as your next meal. But I am still merciful, I will make your death quick." Even in his sealed form, his strength would be more than enough to deal with the beast even if it was free to move around. The Gillian tried to move in vain, as Zegram made a fist and a ball of green energy would form against his knuckles.

Zegram's cero would punch through the mask going through the Gillian. As promised the death was quick. Zegram was tempted to eat part of the hollow himself. Like he would used to do with his mate, but he didn't feel up for it. Still it would be a shame to waste a meal like this. He was sure some weaker hollow would make use of it however. There was always a hollow or two somewhere that was not strong enough to take down others itself and would scavenge for what they can. In the mean time, Zegram sat down leaning against the large corpse to rest. He laced his fingers together and started to relax his head against them wondering how long it would be before something else would come his way. 

[Guerrero Manipuladora]

Guerrero right now was rather famished as the dragon hollow Adjuchas had just returned to the desert sands from the human world. She now realized that there was no point in refraining herself from eating humans. She had to eat to survive and it was natural for her kind to hunt and eat humans. She was hunted constantly by all and there was no mercy and so in return she would return none. She would eat until she was the strongest and then be safe from the prejudice that Shinigami and other races tended to hold to Hollows. However, right now she was in Menos Forest. The land of battle for evolution. She had other things to be worrying about. Now was the time for her to be looking for a meal to devour. If she didn't she might fall into a rampage state again and kill everything. She still liked holding onto her humanity.

Walking on her four legs through the sandy ground, the female Hollow had looked to the twisted and corrupted nature of this location. The trees were made from metal and were large and twisted. The area was full of skirmishes between Hollows of all sizes and types. In this forest it was full of sand rather than the natural soil of the real world. She hated this place to some extent as it held no beauty, only death in her eyes. However, it was the haven for Hollows and the only real areas where they could indulge without consequence. Walking through the area, she soon saw another Hollow walking down the road like her. It then began to sprint as it hungered to the extreme. However, it was far weaker than her in terms of spiritual power she discerned. She was going to kill it to eat. She despised eating Hollows seeing they were horrible in taste, but they would have to do.

Glaring into the eyes of the Hollow, she activated her snake illusion technique. The Hollow was suddenly paralyzed as it stared into her eyes. It could not move from place as it saw twin white snakes hissing and wrapping around the entirety of its body. So long as the two Hollow made eye contact with each other, it would be unable to move. Thus it made the perfect prey for the dragon/snake. Slithering toward the other masked being, she formed spikes along her tail before simply littering the body of the Hollow with holes, ending it's unfortunate life. This was a bottom feeder Hollow as she liked to call them. They were the weakest form of Hollow that fed off of other kills or weaker Hollows to evolve into Gillian. Not really a bad idea. However it tried to kill her, an Adjuchas unfortunately. Bringing the tail to her mouth, she released the spikes before swallowing the bloody mess that was the Hollow and she cringed at the taste.

It tasted horribly silty but she didn't have the right to complain right now, she continued her march to find soon that there was a confrontation between an Arrancar and a Gillian. She knew better than to be antagonizing one of these unmasked beings but knew they were generous at times with leaving food for the Hollows. The Gillian was defeated sooner or later and so Guerrero had began to approach it right as the Arrancar laid down to rest against its corpse. “Bonjour Arrancar. Would you have any problems with me eating that Hollow right there?” The dragon made her presence known as she awaited a response. Assuming he would permit, she would walk forward and begin to devour this large being. This one didn't taste so bad but she was sure there were better tasting things out there. Still, if one could turn down food when starving, they would be pretty foolish.

She was an obvious Adjuchas based off her spiritual pressure and she seemed decently intelligent. She simply ate mouthful after mouthful as her tail swayed back and forth. She upon fully devouring the meal had turned to the Arrancar to allow him to have a greater view of her. Her mask was horned upwards and she had black crystalline scales adorning her body up and down. She had two large fangs however sticking out from her mouth as well as a forked tongue. Finally she has twin sets of wings to match the color of her body. Her blue eyes looked to the Arrancar before she politely bowed her head. “Thank you for the food Arrancar. My name is Guerrero Manipuladora. What is your name may I ask? Also...if it wouldn't be too much to ask, would you please get me some more? Not that I can't feed myself, but I would appreciate having a feast rather than a small meal after my ventures.”

The ground would rumble slightly as she was talking, she could sense the source of it. It was something that was coming from underground. Seemed like it was coming straight for them by the looks of it. The dragon flapped her wings twice and then leapt backwards as the ground burst open to show a giant worm like mask Hollow. It howled loudly as it aimed it's face down on the Arrancar, however. Guerrero took the liberty to fire a Bala and explode a large portion of the worms neck before leaping and pouncing. She was hungry and wanted to eat more four nourishment. Within a short three minutes, that Hollow was devoured and assimilated into Guerrero before she slowly lifted her head upwards to observe Zegram more closely and his features. She noticed that based off his spiritual features alone, he was pretty weak. However, looks could very deceiving and she knew that well. She didn't plan on eating him anyways as that would get her bad reputation with Los Noches.

Guerrero was on the quest of evolution and strength and she wasn't sure she could make it on her own. There were plenty of Hollow that were stronger than she was and even stronger members of other races. She despite evolution has not gained many new powers or properties to aid her quest of becoming more powerful. She has often worried and thought that her battles would lead to death because of her lack of ability and her lack of unique features. However, she wasn't going to give up so easily. The dragon had looked very closely into the eyes of the Arrancar before letting her tongue stick out and sense the surroundings. While she currently looked like a dragon, she behaved very much like a snake. “Excuse my rudeness, I was rather starving. Now I feel a slight bit better and more in a talkative mood.” The dragon gave her best attempt at a smile but looked more like as feral growl face.

Slowly approaching, the dragon laid down against a stone before rolling onto her back. “Why not tell me a little bit about yourself and you Arrancars. I know very little about you and I might be interested in knowing about a man as charming as yourself. It's been awhile since I've had decent company and right now I could use a little bit of that. Everything has been trying to kill me for the past few centuries and I haven't had much fun with that.” She was indeed interested in the Arrancar and what they were all about, and she felt this was the best time to inquire about them seeing there was one standing literally right in front of her. Also, he seemed a bit stronger than the weaker Arrancar that wander around the forest. Perhaps he was special or something like that. Perhaps he came here to grow stronger in training. She didn't know in all honesty.

SPOILER: Click to show

1 Class 8 Hollow Eaten
1 Class 5 Gillian Eaten.

Training for SP.

[Zegram]

Zegram could hear the sounds of the hollows around him. His senses were dulled more than usual, but he could still tell they were there. Most hollows were not so stealthy once they hit the Gillian stage. One was getting closer and closer. It seemed that another one had found his location. Zegram sighed as he was just getting comfortable against the corps of the Gillian. He really didn't want to fight right now. He was about to draw his sword before the hollow before him stopped in its tracks and looked from him to the dead hollow beside him. It seemed to be hesitating. This hollow, an Adjuchas level, seemed far more intelligent than the Gillian that preceded her, but he could still sense a feeling of desperation around her. 

“Bonjour Arrancar. Would you have any problems with me eating that Hollow right there?” In all reality he had no issues with her taking the kill, it wasn't like he was going to do anything with it. He nodded and stepped aside allowing her a straight path to it. The way she devoured it seemed to suggest that she had not eaten in a while. He started to question why he did let her at this point. She would grow stronger from the meal sure, but what good was an adjuchas that could not hunt for herself? When he was at her stage he was hunting hollows far larger than himself all by himself. Though at the same time, he did know the feeling of missing a couple meals.

He would watch the dragon like hollow devour the dead body quickly. His yellow eyes making quick notes of her appearance just in case they were ever to run into each other again. She returned her attention to him once the carcass has been picked clean. “Thank you for the food Arrancar. My name is Guerrero Manipuladora. What is your name may I ask? Also...if it wouldn't be too much to ask, would you please get me some more? Not that I can't feed myself, but I would appreciate having a feast rather than a small meal after my ventures.” Zegram would remember the name, Guerrero Manipuladora, but why in the three worlds would he bother feeding a hollow how can't...

His thoughts were interrupted when the ground beneath him started to shake. He didn't waste the time to guess what was happening and leaped out of the way as a giant worm hollow shot out of the ground. Today was just not his day. Some days in the Menos Forest were rather peaceful. Either most creatures in the area knew not to mess with an Arrancar, or have had a large feeding frenzy and weren't around who could say. There was also his weakened state that could be drawing them near. It was impossible to really say for sure, but all he knew was that today was going to be eventful. Once again he was about to draw his sword, but the Guerrero intervened and fired a bala at the larger hollow. After blowing a chunk out of its neck, she proceeded to eat it. At least she did confirm that she could kill her own meals. This got Zegram's mind turning.

Like most Arrancar of Las Noches, he too had his ambitions of becoming a member of the Espada. These beings were counted as some of the strongest Arrancar in all of Huaco Mundo. Though they were all unique, there was one thing that they basically had in common. They all had loyal followers. These Fraccions could be useful to him. Zegram himself was a fraccion to the Tricia Espada, Sargon, a position that he took on opportunity. He watched the hollow before him and smile a fanged smile. Maybe he could use this as an opportunity to cultivate his own follower base for when he does achieve becoming a fraccion. Might as well get ahead of the curve. 

Like the Gillian before it, the worm was eaten and she came closer to Zegram.  “Excuse my rudeness, I was rather starving. Now I feel a slight bit better and more in a talkative mood.” This got a chuckle out of the Arrancar. "Well glad to see that I didn't need to end another seeker of evolution so soon." He finally replied. Guerrero rolled onto her back, and Zegram took a seat drawing one of his knees up, and keeping the other straight. He kept his weight balanced on his raised knee keeping eye contact with the hollow. No matter how civil one seems to be, one must never drop his guard completely when it comes to Hollows and Arrancar alike. 

“Why not tell me a little bit about yourself and you Arrancars. I know very little about you and I might be interested in knowing about a man as charming as yourself. It's been awhile since I've had decent company and right now I could use a little bit of that. Everything has been trying to kill me for the past few centuries and I haven't had much fun with that.” Zegram chuckled again. "I know that far too well. I have been there, and even as an Arrancar, it is not any easier. You can say that it is harder as an Arrancar in Las Noches. Yes there is more order, but there is much more competition." He paused trying to think of the best way to explain it to her. 

"Right now you only have to worry about two things." he said lifting up two fingers. "Hollows that are stronger than yourself," he pulled one of his fingers down. "And other races trying to purge us from existence." He put his hand back on his knee. "As an arrancar, we still have to worry about the latter, but on top of that we have to worry about those among our own. Espada looking out for their own position, fraccion looking to ascend to Espadas, and Privion looking to retake what was taken from them. All of those threats living right next to you at all times. Though I do think being a fraccion is one of the safer positions there, as long as you get along with your Espada."

He took his hat off and fanned himself with it for a bit before putting it back on his green haired head. "As for myself, I am Zegram Hebi. Fraccion to Espada number three. There is nothing too interesting about myself. A humble little snake making due with what power I have, and my own set of skills." He did not want to reveal too much about himself at the moment just in case that his plan doesn't go quite right. "But what about you Guerrero? You seem like a hollow that can take care of herself. Why would you take the risk of approaching an Arrancar? You seem very capable from what I have seen. No doubt you can make it on your own." He would listen to her talk about herself before getting to another matter. "If you were serious about asking me for help, I am willing to help, though you will need to do something for me. You can't get something for nothing you know."

[Guerrero Manipuladora]

The first thing that happened when Guerrero approached the Arrancar was that he seemed ready to attack her in case that she showed a sense of hostility. She wasn’t surprised as she knew that everything in Hueco Mundo was probable to kill you. However, she spoke and asked the Arrancar for the meal in front of her to which the masked being wordlessly moved out of the way. He granted her freedom to the meal and so she had stepped closer and began to consume the corpse of the gillian. It was the first sustenance she’s had in awhile seeing she was chased rather often by stronger Hollows and or other races that want to exterminate her, namely Shinigami. It seemed that the fellow in front of her was rather generous.

Her blue eyes would stare at the Arrancar in front of her whom had allowed her to eat his kill. She was still rather famished even after consuming the dead gillian. So...she wanted to ask the man in front of her if he could get her some more after introducing herself. The rumble of the ground seemed to interrupt his thought process as Guerrero took upon that opportunity to gain more sustenance for herself. Hollows were some of the least delectable meals anywhere and also the least filling in terms of spiritual energy. She normally wasn’t much of a cannibal but sometimes she had to make exceptions, especially when she was starving to death.

She wasn’t aware of the whole Arrancar hierarchy and their goals either. Frankly she was never really so concerned about such things in her life at the moment. She was simply wandering and eating wherever she could so that she could evolve and unlock her human form once again. It seemed that this man though had actually been able to do it. She had heard from some Hollow that the only way to ever achieve a human like form was to reach the fabled level of Vasto Lorde which took incredible amounts of consumption in order to reach. She decided that she would get there someday. Not immediately, but she would eventually. He seemed to be considering her offer before he broke out into a fanged smile.

She felt the need to excuse herself for her sudden need to feed, and the Arrancar in front of her laughed in return. He said that he was simply glad that he didn’t need to end her existence. Guerrero decided to lay down and rest for a moment as the Arrancar had taken a seat. It seemed that they would be able to talk a bit together and get to know each other. She was a low level Adjuchas and he was an Arrancar of...hmm somewhat low strength based on her observation. She wanted to learn more about his race and so she decided to inquire him about it. After all, she might become one someday unless she got killed off earlier.

It seemed that the Arrancar in front her had empathy and could relate with Guerrero about her current situation. Thus he began his explanation of the Arrancar and unfortunately mentioned that the risk of being killed amongst the Arrancar wasn’t really much better seeing that there was a lot of competition amongst their hierarchy. Although that was essentially what the Hollow cycle of evolution was now wasn’t it? Hollows had competitive relationships to eat and evolve to reach the top tier just like Arrancar and their ranks. That is unless of course she was misinterpreting how things worked.

It was then that Zegram the Arrancar in front of her had explained how the Arrancar hierarchy was although she didn’t quite understand what all these ranks and such were and their significance to the order of the Arrancar. She was indeed worried of pretty much only those two things. She was worried of being devoured and or being killed by those that were stronger than she was. “Please do excuse me sir, but this is a bit complicated. Also...I don’t exactly understand what all these ranks are. Would you care to enlighten me on what the Espada, Fraccion, and Privion are?” Guerrero slowly raised her head as she stood on all fours once again. She learned his name within a brief moment as he introduced himself as Fraccion of the third Espada.

After getting an explanation, she had discovered he was a snake although that wasn’t so hard to figure out. However, now he decided to ask Guerrero some questions about herself. He wanted to know why she was willing to approach an Arrancar seeing she seemed capable of taking care of herself. That wasn’t false but she was thinking about how to word it. “I have come for I was seeking food. Lately I have been recovering from wounds inflicted to me by Shinigami and it has impeded my ability to hunt properly. Otherwise, I am being chased often by other Adjuchas that seek to devour me. Also, despite myself being an Adjuchas I lack the raw power most other Hollow possess. How interesting it is that your powers come from snake origin for I too was once a snake although I have evolved into the dragon form you see now.”

She had let him consider the words she said before he spoke. He said that he was willing to help her but for a cost. That made the dragon raise her eyebrow in confusion. What kind of cost was he referring to? Surely Arrancar didn’t have a money currency system did they? If so, she was in trouble seeing she didn’t have any coins or papers to pay. In the sky, she noticed that there was an odd bird like Hollow flying above the two, and she found the opportunity to grasp another meal. Making brief eye contact with the bird, it had tensed and frozen as twin white snakes would seemingly constrict it’s body and bite into it’s neck. It was one of her techniques she was able to utilize before she would leap and pounce upon it...devouring it as it cried. She had brought back the half eaten carcass in her mouth, bending as she wanted to ask the man personally what his price would be.

“I am interested Fraccion Zegram. What is this thing that you would have me do in exchange for your services? Depending on what you ask of me, I shall consider it before making the ultimatum. I am a reasonable woman and I am willing to make compromises for my benefit. Other than that, I do not like to leave debts unpaid. I am willing to listen to the offer you have set for me monsieur.” The Dragon had began to gulp and devour the Hollow she had brought back, tasting the rich blood and the meat it had to offer. The feathers weren’t all that great, but she was just enjoying the bit of food she had.

Guerrero wasn't one that was a seeker of violence or gigantic power. She was more of searching for herself and looking to fill the empty void she had in order to gain back her humanity. If she was starving enough she would regress mentally to the state of mindlessness comparable to a Gillian or would lose consciousness if a stronger spiritual pressure were to surface near her. She was looking for potential to be fed to avoid this and get back her humanity at the same time. After all, being in her form was miserable. Not as miserable as being a snake without legs, but it was still pretty bad. She wanted to see what the offer was Zegram had to offer.

SPOILER: Click to show

One Class 8 Hollow Devoured.

[Zegram]

“Please do excuse me sir, but this is a bit complicated. Also...I don’t exactly understand what all these ranks are. Would you care to enlighten me on what the Espada, Fraccion, and Privion are?” Zegram should have known that she wouldn't have really understood what he was talking about. It was understandable seeing that hollows were trying their hardest just to stay alive, and evolve into the next more powerful form. He thought about it for a moment trying to think of a simple way of talk about the three different ranks that Arrancars hold. He would just need to describe them and hope that she was able to follow him. She continued while he was thinking.

“I have come for I was seeking food. Lately I have been recovering from wounds inflicted to me by Shinigami and it has impeded my ability to hunt properly. Otherwise, I am being chased often by other Adjuchas that seek to devour me. Also, despite myself being an Adjuchas I lack the raw power most other Hollow possess. How interesting it is that your powers come from snake origin for I too was once a snake although I have evolved into the dragon form you see now.” So she thought that snakes were lower than dragons? This didn't bother Zegram. The snakes had their own advantages that others did not so to speak. Though her story was a pretty basic one, he did see potential in her. 

Evidently she had spotted yet another hollow. This one in the sky. She brought it down and started to devour the noisy thing. While she did so he started explaining about the ranks of Las Noches. "Espada are the top dogs of Las Noches, the King himself not included. The higher the number of the Espada the stronger they generally are. A fraccion is an arrancar that serves directly under an Espada. We are their bodyguards, their servants. Though we are subserviant to the Espadas, we have some moderate protection from other Espada, as well as other factions that would do us harm. One would not want to trifle with the third strongest arrancar would they? Finally the Privion, Privion are arrancars that used to be Espadas, but were replaced by the current ones for one reason or another, or Privions could be arrancars that are weaker than espadas, but do not wish to be fraccions."

Now they were at the matter at hand. “I am interested Fraccion Zegram. What is this thing that you would have me do in exchange for your services? Depending on what you ask of me, I shall consider it before making the ultimatum. I am a reasonable woman and I am willing to make compromises for my benefit. Other than that, I do not like to leave debts unpaid. I am willing to listen to the offer you have set for me monsieur.” Zegram smiled leaning forward slightly. "I think it is an offer that would help us both. As you can guess I am not content with being a mere fraccion. I intend to become an Espada myself, and once I do, I will need fraccion to aid me. When that happens I would like you to be my fraccion." 

[Guerrero Manipuladora]

The man listened to Guerrero and in the meantime, she had eaten yet again. Afterwards, he had taken the liberty to explain the different rankings of the Arrancar as she had requested. He had explained first of the Arrancar and of how they were essentially the commanders of the king of Los Noches as well as how they are ranked. The higher the number they possess, the stronger and higher up in the hierarchy they were. Guerrero was fascinated by that system, but then logically it must have been highly competitive as a position. “Fascinating. So you serve under one of these Espadas in the hopes of becoming one? Also...you would like me to become your...Fraccion?” That was certainly interesting but...something wasn’t right there. This hierarchy had been simple enough, but the cause was what she did not understand.

“Excuse me...but how does a Hollow go about breaking their mask? I assume that if I eat, I will be able to gain my humanity back as the rumors say. However, I have never heard of another method of becoming human. Enlighten me please.” Guerrero had wanted to know if there was a better way of reaching that level of humanity. She was eating all of these filthy Hollows in an attempt to evolve to become strong enough to safeguard herself from all other predators and also an attempt to gain back her humanity which was the main reason. She had accepted that she was a Hollow, and eating everything was beneficial to reaching her human form. The dragon Hollow had licked her teeth clean as she stared directly at Zegram.

Based on her understanding, the only way to become humanoid again was by becoming a Vasto Lorde, but Zegram seemed to imply that there was indeed another method. She would have to eat for centuries longer surely in order to change into the Vasto Lorde state, and surely he didn’t want to wait centuries. Guerrero would await for an explanation before she would get to her decision. “This is very interesting, however...I can not at this moment. There is a demon chasing me. I can not join you or even properly rest until he is dead. He is an Adjuchas who has made a group of followers. He seeks to eat me for I had shot a Bala at his mask. He moves like wind and slices all those in his path to nothing. If you feed me and rid of him, I shall join you as your subordinate.” She nodded her head up and down as to emphasize this.

However, she had a final question on her mind. “You said becoming an Arrancar is still very competitive. Does a Fraccion become an Espada by attacking a former Espada and winning? Thus the Espada turns into a Privion?” She had been speculating and assuming whilst making logical assumptions on how this works. She was going to figure out how all of this works and exactly how this all works out before making any rash decisions. The only reason why she was alive was because she was wary of what she chose to do. She wanted to see also that Zegram had the ability to prove that he could feed her well enough to make it worth her while. However, it seemed now there was an opportunity to prove his worth as there was piercing howl through the air.

Guerrero’s ears twitched as she heard them coming. There was not one, but two individuals running from the west. Looking out to that direction, the Hollow had suddenly dug into the sand to seemingly hide and blend under it preparing for ambush. There were two hollows soon that came. There was one that was a large rodent like rat. The second was a monstrous octopus creature that appeared. The rat then spoke. “We sensed you weak Arrancar. We want to devour you. Give me your power.” The octopus had then responded. “That Arrancar is mine to devour you fool! I’ll eat him alive!” It seemed that these Hollows don’t know how to collaborate. Guerrero had slithered through the sand before suddenly shooting upward from the sandy background.

Suddenly, Guerrero was no longer a dragon but a snake. She had seemingly reverted into her previous form and she had shot into the air, biting into the throat of the floating octopus before using her acidic liquid to harm it. There was a piercing scream in the air as the rat had grinned sadistically. “The Arrancar is mine then!” Thus it would rush to him at a fast speed before attempting to dodge his strikes and bite into him. In the meantime, Guerrero had bit harder as to make sure her quarry was dead before attempting to devour. It tasted disgusting...as always. She was attacking it with full strength. Her jaws may not be very strong...but her acid was.

Soon enough, her prey lay on the ground dead as Guerrero would suddenly swallow it whole, moving to the probably deceased rat and swallowing that whole as well. Then...her eyes went glassy as she seemed bloated. She laid on the sandy ground as her arms and legs would sprout out, regrowing as she would seem to wait for her food to digest. If Zegram had spiritual energy sensing, he would sense that Guerrero’s reiatsu reserves were...refilling? Yes, she was gaining her power back from her consumption. She would then look to Zegram slowly before lazily resting her head on the sand again. “So...will you remove my enemies for me?”

Zegram would be now put into a choice making decision. Would he help her and gain a follower as a result of it? Or would he instead deny her and leave thinking it was a waste of time. Whatever the case, Guerrero was going to try her best to survive. Her right wing seemed to be damaged by the looks of it with it being littered by holes, and her chest was lined with scars along her scales. Surely he had quite a few questions about what she just did, and she would answer if he were to ask. However, right now she was enjoying feeling full for the first time in a while.

SPOILER: Click to show

2 Class 6 Hollow Consumed.

[Zegram]

After Zegram was through explaining the fraccion, and different Espadas, Guerrero seemed interested. It seemed that the fish had taken interest in the bait. He watched her mull over what he was said, and it seemed that there was something on her mind. He did not push it knowing that she was comfortable enough around him to ask on her own. When the question did come, it was something that he had heard about for some time. Ever since he was accepted into Las Noches, he had been making connections within Las Noches as well as the Menos Forest. Word around the castle was that the king himself held an item that could break the masks of hollows, but he had no true confirmation.



"I have heard that the king of Las Noches has the power to break the masks of hollows that prove worthy to him. How exactly he does it, I am not sure." He shrugged stretching his back. All this sitting was starting make him a bit restless. His suit wasn't the best thing to sit around in the forest in. “This is very interesting, however...I can not at this moment. There is a demon chasing me. I can not join you or even properly rest until he is dead. He is an Adjuchas who has made a group of followers. He seeks to eat me for I had shot a Bala at his mask. He moves like wind and slices all those in his path to nothing. If you feed me and rid of him, I shall join you as your subordinate.”



Zegram's interest was piqued when she mentioned an Adjuchas that had been gaining significant strength. It seemed that this particular hollow was not only strong itself, but it was going about gaining a following of its own. It seems that this hollow had been giving her quite a bit of grief, so much so that she would not be able to accept his offer. If he wanted to start gaining followers himself, Zegram would need to show his own strength and prove that he was someone worth following. He would need to send a hollow to try and infiltrate his ranks before he goes after him though. Information was the one thing that had kept him alive this long.



She still had one more question for him. The question about achieving the rank of Espada was a simple enough one to answer. "If you decide to take on a Privion Espada, that alone won't get you the rank of espada. It will help set you up for a fight with an actual espada, but only fighting one, and defeating them in combat can you replace them as an Espada." A howl interrupted him further. He was starting to tire of this. Yes what did he expect hanging out in a forest full of nothing but gluttonous hollows, but that still didn't mean that he liked all the interruptions. Out of the forest two more hollows appeared. An octopus like hollow and a rat.



They argued among themselves on who would eat him. He looked at them boredom etched on his face. These hollows were beneath him. He doubted that he even needed to release to fight the two of them. He got to his feet anticipating them both to attack him. His dragon friend however had another idea. She would attack the octopus hollow, who seemed to be the one most intent on eating Zegram. She quickly took it down seeming to revert back to a more snake like form. Zegram watched with a bit of a smirk on his face. He had to ask though. How much of his help did she really need, and how much was she possibly using him like he would no doubt use her?

The rat would charge him mouth open to try and take a bite out of him. Zegram would extend his arm out seemingly in a feeble attempt to defend himself. In fact he was using his own arm as a lure. Like a fisherman using a worm to get the fish to bite. The rat took the bait hook, line, and sinker. Its teeth would surround his arm and bite down on it with all its might. The rat hollow would not be able to pierce his heirro. The hollow would stupidly continue to try and chew off his arm to no avail. "You are not even worth being my cannon fodder." Zegram said darkly. He would fire balla after balla into the body of the hollow which flinched violently with each hit. 

The hollow finally let go of his arm, as it slid to the ground. Guerrero would devour both of the hollows. It was then that Zegram really managed to take notice of the injuries that she had been carrying. Her right wing had a bunch of holes in it, and her chest was covered in many scars from the battles that she had been through. Maybe she needed more help than he thought. He knelt down putting a hand on her arm. "I think I can handle a couple of hollows for you." he said with a small smile. It seemed that his plans were indeed coming to fruition. Yes he would need to take an extra step, but helping her would in the end help him, so it might be worth it. 

[Guerrero Manipuladora]

Zegram had taken his time to explain that it seemed that the King of Las Noches had the power to break the masks of Hollows, although Guerrero did wonder how that effected them as compared to a Hollow that had broken off their mask naturally. Zegram seemed rather interested in her mention of the “Demon” that she proclaimed was strong and gathering a following. She could see the interest in his eyes as she was quite possibly leading him to his death. Although, she had a curious inquiry herself of how one was to ever rise to the expectation and rank of what is known as an Espada. It interested her, this position of power but not because she sought to ever reach such a title.

She was interested seeing she wanted to know the hardship and hierarchy of how the Arrancar functioned and worked. It seemed not so different from the Hollow lifestyle in some ways, but she tried to fathom the power of the unmasked beings in general. The roar of two hollows had sent her into hiding as she would be able to find out hopefully his hidden power. She hid and watched as the two Hollow argued over who would consume the Arrancar and the whole time it seemed Zegram was calm, cool, collected, and ready for them at any time as if they were just pests.

She watched Zegram face the rat as Guerrero herself engaged the rat in a struggle to devour and consume. She watched as the rat seemed to be stuck as if gnawing on steel or perhaps a barrier as it could not simply pierce through the defense of Zegram’s Hierro...whatever that was. Within a moment, the Hollow was pelted with Bala, after Bala, after Bala as it was soon dealt with as a bloody mess along the sand. As Guerrero ate, her eyes went glassy as she was temporarily filled. It was now time to digest her meal and gain the most energy from it.

She laid down lazily as she asked for help from the Fraccion and soon she felt an arm touch her newly sprouted limb. He said that he would agree to deal with a couple of Hollows for her, and so she slowly raised her head and brought her face closer to his before brushing her mask against his face in a sign of affection. “Then I thank you Zegram of the Fraccion. I believe I am within your service. Allow me to tell you my real name instead of the Hollow Alias that I hold. My name...my name is…” She seemed to struggle for a bit as she closed her eyes and thought back to the past as she grasped the name.

“My name is Renee Serpe a former woman from France. I lay before you in this form of ugliness, but I look to gain back the humanity and form that I have lost from my Hollowfication. I was once as beautiful as you are handsome. I was once kind and cheerful instead of the serpent of depression you see before you. I tell you my name to show that I believe in you and that you will be able to help me reach the next level of success. Now I have something else to ask of you Zegram.” The dragon would slowly rise as she stood on all fours as a quadrupedal creature but with a human intelligence. She tilted her head as she looked into Zegram’s eyes deeply.

“I require a place to rest and recuperate for a few days...perhaps a week. Do you have asylum for me Zegram?” Guerrero could use some more rest than what she had as her wounds were rather extensive as he may have noticed. Yes, she also needed to eat and so she hunted regularly resting whenever she could. However, to be able to fully rest and be fed would be something unheard of for a Hollow, and would allow her to reach full strength for her upcoming meeting with her enemies if they are to ever find her. She would wait for a response from Zegram before slowly standing on her legs. "Well, shall we go Monsieur? Away we go I suppose to wherever you can take me."

She had followed Zegram before eventually noticing a dead Hollow lying in the middle of the road. That was excellent, just excellent. She had stopped by before sniffing it to make sure it was fine before biting into its soft meaty flesh and then leaving nothing but the mask behind as she would continue to follow with her long tail swaying behind her. She was growing tired after all of the events of today and she needed rest. Sleep was calling her after all of this eating, and traveling, and conversation. She would take some time off, rest, and then head off into the sands once again on the quest to get stronger and evolve if at all possible.

The feminine snake had trudged along the sand, as she thought deeply about her past and also her current ambitions. She had two at the moment. Either become a Vasto Lorde and break her own mask, or request for an audience with the King of Las Noches and request for him to break her mask with this mysterious item of his and make her whole. However, before that she had to get rid of her enemies and become strong enough to do either of her two goals. Likely the king wasn't going to be breaking masks for any lowly Hollow that requested of it. She needed to stand out and join the Arrancar hierarchy if she wanted a chance to become humanoid once again. Now...to plan.

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One Class 6 Hollow Devoured

(Last Post On My Part)

[Zegram]

Zegram felt her mask touch his skin. It reminded him of another that had shown him affection, though he would hope that she didn't smell the other hollow on him. She was rather temperamental in that regard. She was the reason that he had decided to become a fraccion for the Trecera Espada, rather than becoming one for one of the lower ranking Espada, then to one day assassinate them in order to gain their position as an Espada himself. Still, Zegram wondered if it was really love that brought him coming back to Aurora. Was it possible for an Arrancar to love again, or was it merely his instincts telling him to stick my her in order to gain more power. Either way the end was all the same.

“Then I thank you Zegram of the Fraccion. I believe I am within your service. Allow me to tell you my real name instead of the Hollow Alias that I hold. My name...my name is…” He listened intently. Everything seemed to be falling into place. His smile couldn't help but widen as listened to her story. “My name is Renee Serpe a former woman from France. I lay before you in this form of ugliness, but I look to gain back the humanity and form that I have lost from my Hollowfication. I was once as beautiful as you are handsome. I was once kind and cheerful instead of the serpent of depression you see before you. I tell you my name to show that I believe in you and that you will be able to help me reach the next level of success. Now I have something else to ask of you Zegram.”

Zegram took his hat off and placed it over his heart bowing slightly. "Of course my dear Renee, As long as it is within my power, I will do anything I can for you." When sealed at least, he was quite the ladies man. He was always a charmer, even when he was living as a human. Though he did prefer to keep this side of him out when dealing with people, he couldn't help but let the other side of his personality come out to play during a battle. He often wondered which one was his true personality. The charming young man thinking of the next cunning plan, or the sadistic psychopath that he can become just living for the moment of battle.

“I require a place to rest and recuperate for a few days...perhaps a week. Do you have asylum for me Zegram?” Zegram though about it for a moment. There were very few places like that in the kill or be killed world of Huaco Mundo. Hollows were built to hunt and kill, there were very few places that a hollow would not dare tread. He rubbed his chin feeling like he knew of such a place, but where? He closed his bright yellow eyes in contemplation. Then the answer struck him like the flat of a sword to the temple. Of course, why didn't he think of it sooner. He opened his eyes again and smiled motioned with his right arm for her go to the west.

"I do remember a place. Follow me." He would take her to the old Escudo base of operations. High in the trees of the Menos Forest, was a collection of buildings built within the trees themselves. Escudo was once a faction that Zegram was a part of. He planned on using them to fight the Espada playing both sides against each other for his own ends. Sadly though, many of the leaders of the sorry band of rogue Arrancars and hollows fell apart like most coalitions of hollows do. Infighting and missing leaders lead to the demise of the group before Zegram was in a position to manipulate them let alone be able to manipulate Las Noches as well. 

Now the place was in shambles. The buildings were damaged and neglect had taken their toll, but the structures were safe enough. He knew that no hollow would really come to this area to hunt. A few might come to find shelter like Renee, but they would just provide further food for her if they do, while she was around of course. The place was empty at the moment. Zegram left Renee's side for only a moment to be sure of that. He would return to his side allowing her to take up residence wherever she desired to. He would bow again once she got settled. "I apologize, but I must leave you now. Rest assured that this place is very safe. I have some things to attend to in order to fulfill my end of our bargain." 

He turned making his way down to the forest floor again. This day of training ended up turning out to be more bountiful than he had first thought. He had summoned one of his hollow minions to his side has he walked. A small, impish creature one that still barley had enough strength to hunt on his own. What this creature lacked in strength, he made up for in other aspects that made him useful in gathering information on other hollows. He slunked into view keeping to the low branches of the trees. He kept most of his body hidden looking like a snake hanging upside down with a wide toothy grin as he followed the Arrancar. "Yes master Zegram, How can I serve you?" Zegram gave him the information on the hollow Renee described. It seemed that it rang a couple bells to the lesser hollow. He would slink back into the darkness to gather what he knew and return to him with the details on his target. 

[Kyomei Kuchiki]

70 Paragraphs

+350 CTP to Zegram
+175 SP to Guerrero

+300 CTP to Guerrero