"Akenooooo..." Rias called out, body slumped as they trekked through the white desert.
"For the last time.. I don't know. I'm just remembering all this Hollow business. Asking me where we are is pointless.. 'Cause I have no idea. I remember Hueco Mundo never really having diverse biomes..... or anything besides quartz trees, sand and.." A thought came to her head as Akeno paused, stopping in place.
Rias groaned and laid her back against the cool white sand, still clutching the plush she insisted on bringing.
"Instead of wandering the endless desert directionlessly, let's take a break and go over what you know, Akeno." Rias suggested, her white plated claws patting the spot next to her.
Akeno had to fight against her urge to continue on, reluctantly agreeing and sitting next to Rias. The Heiress knew how restless Akeno was and indulging in her urges wouldn't get them anywhere. So, as she often did, she made Akeno relax with her until she figured out a plan.
"Now let's start with Hueco Mundo. What do you remember currently? It'll help to get everything out." Rias stated, rubbing her hand up and down the center of Akeno's back.
Akeno looked at the always present moon and took a deep breath.
"Endless dunes.. odd trees.. always night and.. a forest below the desert. It's vague but I think I remember some other place..." Akeno sighed, her body relaxing.
"I see! So, is there anything of note around? Creatures, landmarks, phenomena..?"
Akeno hummed thoughtfully and nodded.
"Hollows, as I remember.. are all over Hueco Mundo. Particularly large ones roam the forest below. Menos, I think they're called." Akeno explained, trying to remember that one other place where the sun shone.
"Okay. Can you explain what Hollows are? I think it'd help to know what we are and what we may be forced to fight." Rias asked, taking Akeno's hand in her own.
Akeno looked up at the moon and sighed before nodding. Her earliest memories as a Hollow were enough to cover the basics.
"Well~ First off, Hollows are.. former human souls. Those who died and remained on Earth due to.. regret, obsession, love. I remember seeing a human transform into one after this chain thing on their chest broke. They grew a white mask and turned into a hulking beast. Totally gone, was their human form." Akeno stated, remembering the ghost of a boy who turned into a Hollow and devoured his Mother.
Looking back, during those early days there were a lot of Hollows and humans fighting. Then, there were the Shinigami. The wars of the past created vengeful Hollows, which in turn would rampage and devour whoever they saw. Which, in turn would draw in humans with strange bows and the Shinigami.
"Hmm.... so why do we look the same as before? Sure, I got this creepy hole in my chest and white armor but.. other than this? I wouldn't say we looked beastly." Rias said while looking over her body.
"Ara ara~ I'm not entirely sure. We may be a special sort of Hollow. Now, back to my explanation. All Hollows possess white masks that.. I've heard are made from the very essence or.. heart of the former human it used to be. The look of the mask and their abilities vary. Pretty much every Hollow is different. Though our hollow abilities sort of just boost our original abilities, I suppose."
Rias nodded, holding up a ball of Destruction above her palm. It was stronger than it had ever been. Though it was more of a raw, untempered power when she thought of how her brother controlled the power of Destruction effortlessly. Hers felt raw, primal.
"Now, there are different levels to Hollows. Sort of like how Devils have Low to Super Devil class. The regular, newly turned Hollows, which are usually pretty big. The Menos Grande, which are massive tower sized Hollows made from multiple low level Hollows. Then there's Gillians, the upper level of Menos, who either devour other Menos or live long enough to become a Gillian. And from the Gillian, a dominant soul may arise, turning into an Adjuchas class Hollow, a very powerful Hollow compressed into a unique form. Lastly, we have the Vasto Lordes.. they're human sized and incredibly powerful."
Rias listened quietly and started making comparisons.
"So are Vasto Lordes Ultimate class?" Rias asked, trying to gauge the threat of a Hollow that strong.
"No. I'd put a Vasto Lorde on your Brother's level, just about. At least in his normal state. Hollows have numerous abilities, like these powerful beams called 'Cero', enhanced regeneration, enhanced speed, enhanced strength and.... Ah damn it! Garganta creation!" Akeno palmed her face.
"Eh? What is it? What's a Garganta?" Rias asked, chuckling at Akeno's embarrassed face.
Akeno stood up and wiped the sand off her legs before explaining, "Gargantas are like.. tears in dimemsions. We can very likely get to Earth by opening one. Though.. not our Earth. I remember the Earth connected to Hueco Mundo was reminiscent of ancient Japan. So.. be ready, I suppose? We may be stumbling into Samurai era Japan."
"YEEES!! Please! I gotta see this! Oh! Do you think we could meet all the historical figures!?" Rias asked while shaking her lover's shoulders.
"O-Okay quit shaking me! I'm trying to remember how to do it!" Akeno protested, curbing Rias' overflowing enthusiasm and thinking back.
*GROAAAAAAAAGH!!!!*
Meanwhile, in the distant dunes, a group of ravenous Hollows had spotted them and were going full speed towards them. Rias felt a chill up her spine, hearing the feral, monstrous roars and screams. There was something so inhuman yet human about the hungry roars they made. They carried a certain pressure with them that made Rias wary.
"Adjuchas.. A group of them? That's rare. Try to slow them down! I'll focus on the Garganta" Akeno ordered, focusing inward.
*VRRRR!*
"Got it! Just hurry up, please?" Rias asked as she called the power of Destruction to her fingers and unleashed a Cero at the horde.
*VRRRRR-BOOOOOOOM!!!*
The Hollows scattered avoid it, not expecting the nature of this Cero to be different than the usual Hollow attack. Upon hitting a Dune, the Cero detonated as usual, though it also created a spherical radius of crimson power that quickly annihilated two Adjuchas unlucky enough to be closest. It was quick, like cotton candy dissolving in water. The Hollows disintegrated as the red energy of Destruction washed over them, consuming their entire being.
"ARRANCAR! IF WE EAT THEM, WE'LL TURN INTO VASTO LORDEEEEES!!" A particularly fervent serpent Adjuchas screamed as the scattered group fired Balas and Ceros at the two as they continued their charge.
"Rias! Make a thin, spherical barrier out of Destruction!" Akeno ordered, pulling on instincts as she started to tear a hole in the barrier between Hueco Mundo and Earth.
"Mn!" Rias replied, putting her training to the test and making a bubble out of Destruction as the Bala and Ceros bombarded them like heavy artillery, scattering white sand everywhere in a violent flurry.
The Adjuchas closed in, careful yet hungry as they approached the sand cloud concealing the two. After five seconds, the barrier was revealed, still holding up after the attacks. The Destruction energy hadn't completely diminished the attacks, but it was enough to make them relatively harmless after passing through.
"Got it! Get inside, Rias!" Akeno shouted, having opened up a small, two meter by two meter Garganta for them to enter.
"NOOOO!!! VASTO LOOOORDEEE!!" The desperate snake Hollow charged the barrier as Rias and Akeno quickly made their way into the tear in space.
Rias watched in horror as it desperately clawed and reached for them. It wasn't the desperation of a hunter losing its prey, though. There was fear there. True terror in its eyes as it reached out for them while its body disintegrated. Akeno looked at it with pity, knowing the reason why it was so insanely desperate to become a Vasto Lorde.
Vasto Lordes didn't need to worry about devolving. They didn't need to worry about losing their sense of self and becoming a Gillian. Adjuchas needed to feed on other Hollows to retain their sense of self, lest they be lost. It was very likely that snake Hollow was on the verge of becoming a Gillian and sinking back into the forest below, never to rise again.
"Haaah... haah.. What.. what kind of place.. could create something like that? No regard for its own life.." Rias muttered, accepting Akeno's hand as she was pulled up.
"Hollows are tragic creatures, Rias. I just remembered recently but they're.. complicated. A lot are bad, yes. But not all of them.." Akeno assured, though she could tell Rias had the image of that desperate Hollow stuck in her mind.
Akeno rubbed her back and gave her a reassuring smile.
"I'll tell you about them later. We should find somewhere to hide, quick. I don't know if those Shinigami or strange humans are around but I'd rather not set fire to a hornet's nest and stick around." Akeno semi-joked, getting Rias' mind off the previous events.
The Heiress nodded and composed herself. She was about to get excited again, thinking they were in ancient Japan. But looking down from an office rooftop, she was mildly disappointed. As it turns out, they ended up in modern day Japan. A town by the look of it.
"Aww man.. this barely looks different than Kuoh! Ah well.. anything's better than that desert. Now, where do we go? Now that we're not in immediate danger we should think about our next moves." Rias quickly regained her energy and turned to Akeno with a determined gleam in her eyes.
Akeno smirked and nodded, taking her hand and hopping off the building with her. Both spreading their wings and taking flight.
"Hey.. nobody can see us right? Or do I need to use magic to make us unseen?" Rias asked, flying beside Akeno.
"No, Hollows and Shinigami are pretty much invisible to ordinary humans. But it never hurts to be careful. Go ahead." Akeno replied as they flew off while Rias cast a spell to alter the perception of those around them, effectively making them invisible.
Unknown to them though, the brief period before the spell took affect, they were noticed. A teenage boy with black hair, glasses and a serious face had noticed them take off after his first day back from school. And then, there were those who were monitoring the town. The Garganta itself had already tipped off the Shinigami, though the most notable reaction came from none other than..
"Well that felt unusual~" A man stated, seated inside his candy shop as he waved his fan to cool his face while a black cat sat next to him.
"What? The Hollow presence? Felt a bit strange but their power doesn't feel too dangerous. Feels.. subdued, actually. Odd." The black cat answered beside him.
"That's one reason I find it strange. Your average Hollow feels different. This one gives me a distinct feeling and is that..?" He smiffed the air and closed his hand fan.
"What? You actually smell something?" The black cat asked incredulously.
He hummed, the faint scent fading faster than it came.
"Hmm.. maybe just my imagination or just the weather but I swear.. I could actually smell something.. like.. ozone..?"