Unfortunately, no answer came. The chained figure did nothing but stare at the woman, its empty eyes seeming to search for something deep within hers. It didn't move, as if it was both present and somewhere else.
"Won't you answer?" The woman in armor spoke to it in a cold voice, her piercing gaze fixed on the motionless figure. She was hoping for at least some reaction, even a small one.
A silence settled, heavy, almost suffocating. A tremor in the chains broke the stillness for a moment, like a slight shiver in the air. But nothing happened. The glow in the figure's eyes seemed to intensify, but its body remained motionless. No movement.
She clenched her fists. "Then you prefer to stay here, chained?" Her voice was full of challenge, but also fatigue. She wasn't really expecting an answer anymore. She had almost given up on it, but a strange feeling prevented her from turning her back on what seemed to be a child trapped in a body that was not his own.
She turned to leave with her group, but a whisper stopped her mid-step.
"Wait." When she turned back, she saw it. The captive was still staring at her, but this time, there was something new in its gaze. It still didn't move, but its eyes seemed clearer, more alive.
"Who am I?" The voice was weak, broken, like a faint breath in an endless desert. It wasn't a question one asked every day, especially not in such a desolate place as Hueco Mundo.
The group stopped, confusion visible on their faces. Such a question came from a being that seemed barely aware of its own existence. What did it want? What was it seeking?
It lowered its head slightly, as if lost in its own thoughts. Its eyes fixed on a distant point, as if searching for answers but never knowing where to find them.
"Who am I…?" it repeated, as if it had just realized it had asked a question. Its voice, almost timid, faded into the desert air.
Harribel paused for a moment, uncertain. This being… it looked like a child, but not in the way one might think. It was there, broken, like a creature that had lost everything that could give it an identity.
"A child…" she murmured, her eyes fixed on the figure. The gaze she gave it mixed confusion, tenderness, and a strange form of compassion. She had never seen a creature like him, and it disturbed her. He wasn't like the others. He seemed… lost, almost desperately so.
She remained silent for a moment, like a lioness observing a fragile prey. But it was different. This creature, this child, was not a threat. And something in her heart told her that she could not simply leave it there without trying to understand.
Slowly, she moved forward, her gaze still fixed on it. Her hands reached for the chains that bound it, lightly brushing the cold links. The chains were heavy, solid, unyielding. But that didn't discourage her. She tried to break the chains with a swift motion, but nothing happened.
The chains trembled for a moment under the impact of her strike but remained intact. Nothing. They weren't even scratched, and a shiver ran through her.
The group looked at Harribel in silence, perplexed. The lioness, the most loyal and courageous of the others, stepped forward. She opened her mouth, hesitant, then asked:
"Lady Harribel, may I ask… why try to free it?"
Harribel slowly turned her head toward them. "It's not a threat. It needs help. And it's under our protection now." Her voice was soft but firm, as though she had made an irrevocable decision, yet didn't have all the answers. "It's like us. Lost."
The serpent, more cautious, examined the chains, scrutinizing the material. "But… these chains seem indestructible, even your attack changed nothing."
Harribel swallowed hard. Her strike hadn't left a scratch on the chains.
The lioness, determined not to be defeated, approached the chains as well. Her claws extended, ready to tear, ready to break the impossible.
She leapt toward the chains, but…
CLING!!!
She was repelled as if she had struck an invisible barrier. Her claws were unscathed, but the chains? They remained as new, without a single mark.
She stood up, a little dazed but undeterred. It was as though these chains were alive, as if they defied everything they tried to do.
Meanwhile, the serpent observed a strange stele near the wall. It was engraved with three masks, Hollow masks, similar to those found on ancient relics. "If we insert three masks here… could it free him?"
Before they could think further, a spiritual roar filled the temple. The pressure was immense, crushing. Even Harribel, the strongest of them all, bent under the force.
The serpent, fear in his eyes, murmured, "Such pressure… it surpasses even Lady Harribel. Is it Lord Barragan?"
But the source of this power wasn't Barragan. It was something else, something that surpassed them all.
…
The chained being, feeling the efforts of those trying to free it, felt a growing pressure around it. Without meaning to, it released its own power. An ancient, primordial energy escaped from it, and the earth trembled.
Under this immense pressure, the chains seemed to crumble, unable to resist.
CLING!!!
The sound of the heavy chains resonated on the ground, causing a cloud of dust that forced the others to close their eyes. Before they could see the figure, the being who had been chained had just freed itself, but it didn't move.
It stayed there, simply staring at them. The only thought in their minds:
"What have we gotten ourselves into?"