In an unknown time in a strange place.
Standing in the middle of the massive room, held by several massive pillars, a round metal table stood in the center, while a majestic chandelier hung from above, and within the room stood the lone Sternritter from the hollow battlefield speaking to Sosuke Aizen over his cell before ending the conversation and placing the device on the table.
The individual then flipped his hood over his head and took off his goggles to reveal himself.
He was an aged man who looked between 40 to 50. He had short light brown hair and a trimmed mustache while wearing a pair of thin-rimmed glasses over his eyes. His uniform consisted of a long white trench coat left open. While wearing a brown vest with a dark blue tie, a black belt buckled to his brown pants, and sporting a pair of white dress shoes underneath.
His name was Robert Accutrone. The Sternritter, who carries the Schrift of the N within Yhwach's holy army and begins to send a message to the rest of the high command of the Holy Kingdom. As he then pressed a button in front of the table that held Quincy's emblemed incrust.
Then a holographic image replica of Tokyo city and other locations appeared above the table and among them were several window screens that appeared and circled in front of the pillars in the room. Each of these revealed the faces of the High Command.
On the left side of the room showed the images of Bazz-B of the Heat who had red spiky messy hair, with both of his ears pierced with twin silver studs while sporting a scowl. Cang Du of the Iron, who wore a pair of shades that covered his eyes while smoking a cigarette, and Äs Nödt the Fear, whose face was bare and stoic while a small cut could be seen on his up lip.
On the right side, there was Liltotto Lamperd the Glutton, who was sucking on a lollipop though instead of wearing a sternritter uniform, she wore casual clothes consisting of a plain black-tie shirt and jeans. James Masculine, the super-star, who had a chiseled muscled face and wore a domino mask over his blue eyes, while a strain of blonde hair was curled on the top of his head and grinning with a heroic yet heartwarming smile, and NaNaNa Najahkoop, the Underbelly whose hair was styled in corn rolls while having dark piercing gray eyes.
Then at the very front of the room and standing above all the Sternritters, was Jugram Haschwalth the Balance. His hair was cut short while wearing a dark crimson cap over his shoulders. Gremmy Thoumeaux the Visionary took the appearance of a young man who wore a white open button shirt that exposed his tone chest and along with wearing black dress pants, and next to him stood Lille Barro, whose white hair was shaven into a buzz-cut while wearing a black trench coat version of his uniform with a white vest underneath.
'My fellow Sternrriters, I have a great deal to discuss with all of you,' Robert said solemnly in his voice.
'During a hollow raid led by the recently promoted 5th Espada Grimmjow and 10th Espada Grandfisher. Bambettia the Explosion was defeated in battle by the 5th, and he was in turn defeated by Ichigo Kurosaki, and at the same time, Grandfisher was slain by Aasno Keigo. Unfortunately, Basterbine herself was left in critical condition with her powers crippled,' Robert reported while Lille Barro rubbed his chin.
'So Bambettia of all people was defeated soundly by an Espada she once regularly dealt with...does this has anything to do with the massive spikes of pressure we detected from the living world?' Lille asked, and Robert let out a breath and sighed.
'It does,' Robert confirmed. He then pulled up a video recording of Ichigo's fight with Grimmjow battling the Espada his Segunda Etapa and later on upon witnessing the Arrancar's second transformation, unleashing a hundred-mile explosion and leaving behind an equally large crater in its wake. Many of the Sternritters look at the scene of destruction in pure shock and terror, like Bazz-B, Chang Du, NaNaNa, and As Nodt, others seemed merely display concern, like Jugram and Lille, while few like Gremmy were impressed.
'So that is the new power the enemies have now?' The Visionary said with awe and wonderment. 'Hmph, with that level of power, he could level the entire Silberstadt itself within just a few minutes, and he is just the Quinto among the Espada'
'Which means that one of their mid-tier fighters is more powerful than any of the Sternritters we have aside from the Schutzstaffel like you, Gremmy ' Bazz-B said bitterly. 'The enemy completely outmatches us, and they now know that. What will we do if the rest of those bastards get second-release forms too? It's bad enough that Barragan is now sending his of Privaron Espada to overwhelm our Soldats and ritterlehrlings who just barely got out of the academy, but now we have to deal with this too!'
Bazz-B then wrapped his arms and closed his eyes in frustration. 'Even the Directors from Xcution will properly not be enough to deal with them
'We should not lose hope yet, dear Bazzard!' James shouted with encouragement. 'Surely we can develop the means of countering the enemy's new power before they overcome us? Isn't that right, As Nodt?
The black-haired man remains silent before answering the question.
'Within the development department involving BJ9 and Peridia, there has been some progress in developing our holy forms another state of evolution...however, it is undetermined how long it would take to finish that process, and I doubt that our enemy will give us the time to prepare
'As Nodt is right,' Cang Du chimed in. The best course of action is attacking Barragan's Las Noches base with everything we have instead of just waiting around. Don't we already have the means to infiltrate the hollow barrier now?
Liltotto then gave the Sternrriter of iron a soured look. 'And even if we did. Do you think that will accomplish anything?' she harshly criticized. 'As Bazz-B said, Grimmijow the 5th Espada has power that completely outmatches all but our most powerful fighters with that second form of his, and since we can assume that the people ranked above him would have the same power as well...we would be sending ourselves to the slaughter' She then wrapped both of her arms around herself. 'As much as I hate to admit it. Our best option is to prepare ourselves to the best of our ability and pray that the enemy doesn't attack us just yet.'
Najahkoop then growled at Litotto's argument. 'And what makes you think the enemy would be civil enough to give us that?' He bluntly questioned. 'Even now, that old fossil could be planning to launch an invasion to wipe us and all of soul society, before we even get the chance to defend ourselves!'
NaNaNa then narrowed their eyes and then looked up to Haschwalth. 'Unless you have a better idea, Grandmaster?'
Jurgram at first stood silent as if deciding on whether or he should say anything or nothing at all. But then stood himself up and spoke his degree.
'We are all overlooking the most obvious answer to our problem, and it is none other than the plan his majesty himself decided to save us all... As everyone one of you should be aware
The rest of the Sternritters then keep quiet for a long moment as doubt and uncertainty creep through them.
'Hashwalth...' Robert began to say though he was speaking for everyone else within the room. 'We know...of his Majesty's plan and the great potential this Kurosaki Ichigo possesses, but...I am sorry it is far too early to place that level of faith in him.'
The grandmaster then remains silent, his eyes almost lowering into a frown. 'And you would question his majesty's wishes?' he asked, but Bazz-B just rolled his eyes in annoyance.
'Look, Hashwalf Yhwach may have the power to see into every future and can even miniplate it to an extent. But that doesn't apply to the rest of us. This Ichigo may be willing to risk his life to save his world. But what makes you think he is willing to save our world, considering we kidnapped him from his friends and family and expected him to fight in a war he has no part in?'
As Nodt then lowered his eyes. 'We...didn't have much of a choice Bazz-B given the limits of technology and how we are already running out of options
The Heat then narrowed his eyes at As Nodt. '...that still doesn't change the fact that what I said is true,' Bazz-B responded. Making the Sternritter of Fear go silent.
'I believe we should give the kid a chance,' James heartfeltly said. 'Yes, he may be a Kurosaki, but that doesn't mean he is our Kurosaki; maybe instead of all the cloak and dagger we keep doing to him and his friends, we tell him the truth and see how he reacts that way. Surly if sees how much of a dire state we are in. He would understand our plight and help us!'
Liltotto stared at James with an unreadable look. Biting down on her lollipop until she crushed it entirely to pieces within her mouth before tossing away the stick. 'It's not of a matter of understanding that is the problem...it is the matter of whether it is guaranteed that he will want to help us or not.'
The rest of the room remained silent, with even James unable to answer...until a booming voice then filled the room.
'If you all have little doubt about my plan. Then perhaps you all should meet Kurosaki Ichigo himself?' the voice echoed throughout the room, and every one of the Sternritter's eyes lit up in shock upon realizing where the voice came from. Soon after, another hologram image more significant than any other appeared next to the chandelier. However, his face was obscured by the light of the figure's lamps.
'...Your majesty? Hashwalf spoke in a tone that held relevance.
'Regardless of your grievances with the Kurosaki of this world, the one from the alternate one is not the same as our own. His desire to protect goes far beyond what any of you could imagine, and by his choice alone will the ties of fate change in our favor. But only if we are willing to abandon our fears and move forward can our future is saved from destruction Yhwach spoke with such authority, strength, and assurance that none of the Sternritters dared object to him.
'Very well your Majesty, we give our trust in your design, vision, and faith,' Robert proclaimed while bowing to the Quincy king's holographic image. 'So, the only question remains is...how will carry on from here?'
Meanwhile, back in Kakaura Town.
Ichigo laid himself in bed while staring out at the ceiling. He has changed out of his Quincy uniform and into more of his casual clothing. Which consisted of a white shirt with black sweatpants. With his alternate mother doing chores around the house and his alternate sisters doing who knows what.
Within only spending one day in this different world and reality. He was constantly assaulted with one revelation after another. To the point, he thought he would suffer a heart attack from dealing with all of them at once and he hasn't even hit the prime of his youth yet!
From the whiny Keigo being a badass soldier who could take down freaking Espada, the world of the living and the soul society being ruled over by the Quincy while being besieged by hollow raids and the shinigami being reduced to medical caretakers while being punished by what their great noble families have done in the past. Which is now common knowledge to everyone, including what happened to his father.
Ichigo himself had to keep up his cover as the black prince of the Quincy. Who turns out wasn't nearly as a good person as he assumed that he was despite...in a way being still technically him.
It was too much for the hybrid to take anymore, and right now, he just wanted to lay in bed, go to sleep, and pray when he woke up. All of this alternate reality stuff would just fade away into a dream...or at the very least give him at least enough time to calm his nerves and decide what to do next.
However, things only became even more complicated when he heard a knock on his door.
'Ichigo, can I come in?' Masaki asked from behind the door, and Ichigo thought he wanted some peace. But at the same time, the teen didn't want to turn her down regardless of whether or not she is his actual mother.
'Come on in,' The youth said quietly, and soon the door opened, and Masaki sat down next to her supposed son on his bed.
'I have heard that you are feeling bum out by what happened to Bambettia yesterday. Is there something that you wanted to tell me?' She asked innocently, yet Ichigo, even calling it an underestimate, wouldn't come close to how much he wanted to tell her. Yet he also knew that asking even more questions would cause more suspension towards him to the people of this world and he, for the life of him, couldn't do that to his mother—an alternate version of her or not.
Yet when Masaki placed her hand over his and looked at him with those warm, welcoming eyes...Ichigo for all of his inhibitions. They couldn't help but open themselves up to the kind woman before him.
If only for a little bit.
'Mom...' Ichigo spoke. Not even sure if he meant it or should mean the words in his mouth.
'Was...dad and I good people?' Ichigo asked almost pleadingly and unsure if he wanted even to hear the answer. However, his mother did raise an eyebrow in confusion. She nonetheless smiled warmly at her son.
'Your father was always a good person. Ichigo, sure, he acted silly, and he wasn't the most handsome individual. But he was also kind, caring about others, and was more than willing to place his life on the line to save them too. Even when my family disproved of me being with Isshin due to him being a Shinigami and me being a pure Quincy, he still decided to marry me and live a happy life together,' Masaki reminisces longingly. While Ichigo couldn't help but smile.
'And... the whole thing about him being a descendent of the great noble families and the sin they committed in the past?' Ichigo question. Which made his mother snort dismissively
'Nothing more than bigotry nonsense that many people these days are still somehow hooked on to. Even when it happen over a million years ago...' Masaki's face then lowered. 'Unfortunately, many of those same people would rather commit murder and violence to let such ancient history go. Sometimes, they will sink as low as blaming others for circumstances beyond their control despite the goodwill they bring...' Masaki then went teary eye. 'He knew that too well...and was still willing to go out of his way to protect those that needed it.'
Ichigo could tell right then and there that something horrible happened to his father when he used his powers as a Shinigami even when his alternate mother didn't directly speak of it...but that didn't matter for as long as he knew was still a good man regardless.
Which then left to his own more personal question.
'And...I'm I a good person...like my father?' Ichigo asked once again pleadingly, and Masaki, for once hesitant to speak.
'Well...In the beginning, you were...I would rather say you still are...but' She lowered her head away from Ichigo. But then closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and then stared back at him. '...You weren't as good as your father'
Ichigo's heart felt like it turn into lead upon hearing his mother's harsh truth, but she continued.
'Ever since the...incident with your father. You turn cold, indifferent to the people around you, even to those that wanted to be your friend...but then after you meant Keigo, your group of friends grew'
Ichigo's eyes then let up as he listens in more on the story of his alternate half.
'Tastaki, Mizuiro, Chad, Uryu, Orihime all of them become dear friends to you' Masaski then laugh. '...and as for his majesty Yhwach...he became a second father to you.'
Ichigo then lit his eyes upon hearing that and then remembered his training with all the times with his Quincy half.
'Yhwach...He and I are pretty close, huh?' Ichigo mused pleasantly, and his mother nodded.
'Of course, after all, he did teach you everything you know. Like on how to use your bow and arrows, helped train you with the Schrift he gave you and instilled a resolve in you to stand up and be vital for your ideals and ambitions' Masaki chirped, and Ichigo smiled.
'Yeah, he did...' the youth said with a warming voice, and immediately, his heavy heart felt at ease. 'Thank you...mom.'
Masuki then paused and stared at her son and smiled happily at him.
'Any time Ichigo, my big boy son, and if there is anything else, I want to say to you is that is that...you are looking more like your father than ever before,' she complimented as she got up from Ichigo's bed.
'Well, I am glad that we have this talk but think it is getting late...unless there is anything more you want to talk about?' Masaki questioned, and Ichigo felt included to answer for the slightest moment.
But recently kept his mouth shut.
'No... I think that is it,' Ichigo said calmly yet dejectedly. However, his mother didn't...or chose not to notice the reluctance in his voice.
'Alright, I will see you tomorrow...Kurosaki' and Masuki left her son's room and closed the door, and when she did, Ichigo laid himself down in bed to drown in his thoughts.
'It's amazing, really...' He spoke in his head as he slowly began to drift into sleep.
'With everything so different in this reality, there are also so many things that remain the same in mind...and I don't know whenever I should be happy, sad, or even confused,' he thought as then remembered interactions with these versions of Keigo, Aizen, and of his mother, Masaki.
'But even if I may never be able to return to my reality again, this one is still as worth protecting as my own' Ichigo then let out a deep breath. Hopefully, there will be no more lies, no more deceptions, and no more doubts one day and hopefully, when that day comes, he can finally tell the truth to everyone and pray and hope that they would still allow him to be treated as their friend and family even if he is not part of their world.
And with that lingering hope the young soul reaper finally allowed himself to rest and slumber.