I actually spent 2 hours learning about Mid Western Technology, gold, and legends. Oh, and death sentences. I also learned Chinese people, during a funeral, used to throw red papers with holes in them around in belief that the devil had to crawl through each and every hole before he could get to the departed soul before it was buried. Hopefully, by the time he was done, the body was aleady buried so he was too late. Just summing up what the program said. I feel smart XD

Chapter 8: Cut Throat

Gunslingers from Seireitei have become known largely as Soul Reapers, or Shinigami. Soul Reapers performed the tasks of hunting down Arrancar; if they failed the Captains and their lieutenants, also known as "Partners", would take over the chase. The New Central 46 kept track of which Arrancars, sometimes even Espada, were causing problems closest to home and sent the Shinigami after them. At other times a Soul Reaper would be stationed in a town in a part of the Mid-west to protect the folks from the wanted Arrancar. Every other outlaw who was not an Arrancar could be tracked down by anyone outside of Seireitei - fair game.

Ichigo flushed. He wasn't sure what to say or how to say it - Seireitei's troops dismounted their horses, staring at Sheriff Kurosaki expectantly, "Uh... What's all this about? You guys can't just keep coming out of nowhere without telling me!"

"We apologize," Komamura stated passively, "We were assigned to help protect Karakura Town, if that's OK with you."

"I never have a say in the matter!" Ichigo seethed, "Why should it matter if I approve now? Just do what you want!" He noticed Hitsugaya's swelled face. "Damn, Shorty, what happened to your nose?"

"Excuse me?" He hissed, glaring daggers. Ichigo countered by glaring swords.

Rukia and Renji emerged from the office, Rukia rushing up to meet her older brother, Byakuya. "Hey, Nii-san!" Renji merely waved. Abarai had been partnered with Byakuya since he grew up with Rukia, resulting in the strangest relationship triangle Ichigo had ever seen. Ever since he fell into the equation the triangle became an irregular square.

"Hello, Rukia," Kuchiki greeted warmly.

From the steps of the inn nearby, Barragan sat, shaking his head, with his Fraccion. Ggio jumped up and strode over to Soifon like a peacock, smirking from ear to ear. "Why, hello Soifon."

"Don't even think about it," She said with a dark edge to her tone.

"Think about what?" He tipped his hat, smiling innocently.

Ichigo glared at each of the riders, sighing, "I feel so much safer in a town with Vizards, Arrancar, and Soul Reapers." Another distorted love-hate triangle he had become apart of. Sometimes he just wanted to lock himself inside his room and never emerge again. "OK, the inn has plenty of space for everyone. Get settled and do it quickly without destroying anything!"

"Speaking of destroying things," Ulquiorra remarked as he approached, Grimmjow close behind, "Starrk's team has been gone for longer than intended. If they aren't bringing down the whole hideout then I don't know what they're doing. The sun is almost behind the horizon and they were supposed to be back before it even dropped out of the sky."

Ichigo frowned, "It's true..."

"They'll be fine," Grimmjow stated, "They can take care of themselves." As if on cue they all turned to the sound of thundering hooves approaching from the distance. Starrk's group galloped past the Soul Reapers, circling around to a stop. Ichigo noted that they were one member short.

"What happened?" Ulquiorra questioned, also noticing that Mila Rose was missing.

Szayel adjusted his glasses, "We blew the hideout up."

Everyone's jaws dropped. "YOU. DID. WHAT?" but Soifon simply shrugged and said, "I'm not surprised."

Starrk reported, "We entered the canyon and split into two groups. Nnoitra's dead, and so is Mila Rose. Unfortunately Apache couldn't defuse the bomb that had the whole place rigged, so now it's leveled. Szayel was shot in the arm, so he'd better get that tended to. Now, If you don't mind, I'm going to take a nap." Apache turned sharply and trekked off. Sun-Sun followed, dragging Leona with her. Starrk shot Ulquiorra a cold glare, "Hope your happy, Night Wing."

He didn't reply. The group gyrated to face away and stormed off towards the stables.

"That didn't end well," Rukia uttered.

Ichigo shook his head and faced the Soul Reapers, "Just check in already. I swear this job is going to be the death of me!" He stormed back into his office, meeting the scowling Hirako. "Oh, and you're PMSing. Just great!"

"Actually I just got a sliver in my thumb," Shinji shot back, toying with his injury, "It hurts. What's your problem, Princess?"

"Mission epically failed," Ichigo explained, "Not only is Nnoitra dead but now one of the Stars is as well." He collapsed into his chair at his desk, rubbing at the bags forming under his eyes, "I'm going crazy, Hirako. Is it too much to ask for Aizen to just die?"

"Apparently," Shinji uttered, yelping when he finally pulled out the splinter.

They had been through too much to keep putting up with this any longer.

Ulquiorra sat up high on the roof of the Sheriff's office, finger playing with the unsealed cap of the liquor bottle. He popped off the top again, calculated green orbs scanning the town below him.

"What're you doin' up 'ere?" Grimmjow's voice drifted on the wind, along with the wisps of his cigarette smoke.

Night Wing shrugged, barely. "Thinking."

"I was thinking too, y'know. And I came up with an idea." He pulled up a crate laying abandoned nearby and plopped down beside the other Espada, "See... we have an even bigger army then we thought. If Aizen wants to control the entire mid-west"-he made a grand gesture with his arm-"then he'll also have to deal with the Natives!"

Ulquiorra snorted, "For once you might actually have a point." In the distance the railroad tracks that split Karakura in half racked as the train roared by. They felt the deep rumble, like a throaty growl, send vibrations into their boots. His gaze landed on Apache wandering the street alone, impassively storming by Ukitake and Kyoraku. She kicked aside a can and stomped off into the outskirts of town.

"I almost feel bad for her," Grimmjow admonished, crushing his cigarette against the ledge, "She finally knows what it's like to loose something so damn precious."

"Not that you've lost anything," Ulquiorra avowed.

Grimmjow scoffed, "Never had anything to loose."

"Fraccion?"

"Expendable," Came the abrupt response, "Sure, they were friends... but I make sure to never get attached. That's why where I succeed, everyone else falls short of the mark." His pale blue glare fell upon Barragan seated with his Fraccion Nirgge and Poww on the Inn's porch. "Ulquiorra, I'm going to ask you a question but I don't want you thinking that I actually care."

"Mm..."

"Did you know that Barragan is sick?"

Ulquiorra arched an eyebrow, "Sick, how? As in, he caught a cold?"

"Don't you know how old his ass is?" Grimmjow exclaimed, taken aback, "I'm surprised he didn't drop last month. But he's still very ill, Ulquiorra. He may not have much time left, and if worse comes to worst we'll be another man short."

Night Wing inclined his head, burying his face in his hands. They remained in silence for several moments. "Who knows?"

"Just the Espada. He knows I can keep a secret, but since it interferes with your plans..."

Ulquiorra glanced up to peer across the street. Barragan broke into a brief coughing fit - harsh as if to prove Grimmjow's point- making the Fraccion cringe. "Then we'd better move fast. Where'd you say that hideout was again?"

It's all my fault it's all my fault it's all my fault...

Just outside of town where she had ended up, Apache emptied her revolver of its six bullets, replacing merely one. She spun its barrel quickly with her eyes squeezed shut and snapped it closed, bringing the cool metal to her temple. One shot. If it had the bullet in its cradle she would get what she deserved, but if not... then she wouldn't know what to do.

It's all my fault it's all my fault it's all my fault... Her finger found the trigger, hesitant to apply any pressure. You deserve this she's dead because of you! It's all my fault! It's all my fault!

"What are you doing, Apache?"

She yelped and dropped the gun, whirling around to face Starrk. "I-I uh... was just uh..."

"Save it," He coerced and bent down to pick up her weapon. With a grim expression he examined it, "One bullet, huh? Taking your chances?" Apache didn't respond. "It's not your fault that she's dead. Harribel isn't blaming you, I'm not blaming you... You're just blaming yourself."

"No I'm not," She hissed, "It was my fault, Starrk. Mila's dead because I couldn't save her!" Her fist smashed against the boulder beside her, her hand cracking under the pressure. She winced, but didn't react.

"Apache, you can feel guilty about all the things in the world," he touched her shoulder. She shrugged it off, which had become a sub-conscious habit, "Killing yourself won't make a difference. One person dies in front of you and suddenly the weight of the world is on your shoulders? I don't think so. It's not your problem, and this isn't the answer."

She turned to him, cradling her broken knuckles, "I... I hope your right." She strode off, and once she was out of earshot Starrk pulled the revolver's trigger. The bullet pierced the cactus nearby, causing him to flinch.

"Yeah, me too."

Apache felt her gut flip at the echo of the gunshot, aware that it had been meant for her. Dammit, Starrk! She teared up at the pain igniting her whole hand on fire, but bit her lip and stalked back into the Inn. Sun-Sun and Harribel weren't around, thankfully. Apache went for Inoue in the corner socializing with Lisa of the Vizards. "I-Inoue?"

"Oh, yes Apache?" The girl chimed.

Apache held out her injury like a kicked puppy, "Uhm... I broke my hand. Think you can fix it? I know you're inspiring to be a doctor..."

Orihime forced a sad smile, "Uh, y-yes. I'll get you a bandage." She lead Apache into the back room behind the bar where she dug through the drawers, hesitating briefly to ask, "I'm sorry... do you want me to heal you with my-?"

"No," Apache almost blurted, "I... uh, I don't want to trouble you. Just bandage it up."

"Whatever you want, sweetheart," She wrapped Apache's hand up tightly, then sent the girl on her way.

Apache trekked upstairs where she found Harribel's room door locked, so she instead went to Sun-Sun. The Star sat on the edge of the bed, playing with her knife. The hilt was decorated with a snake coiled firmly around it, the head extending up into the blade. "I was wondering where you went, Apache." Sun-Sun quirked an eyebrow, "What happened to your hand?"

"Broke it takin' my frustration out on a rock."

"Should've been your head, it's harder."

"..."

"Sorry, not the right time for sarcastic jokes." She pocketed her weapon, studying Apache as she strode over and sat down beside her. "Remember when we got these knives from that black smith? He said they were the only ones of their kind."

"We stole 'em," Apache uttered, "You took the one with the snake, I took the one with the deer's head," She flipped out her knife from its hiding in her boot, the buck's head carved into the hilt, antlers stretching up into the blade. "And Mila took the one with the lion. Speaking of which, I kinda stole from her before the whole mission went to shit." She retrieved the knife from her other boot and handed it to Sun-Sun.

Sun-Sun admired the lion reared up on its front legs, tail lifted so it also met the side of the blade. "Yeah. This was just before we met Harribel-sama, wasn't it?"

Apache nodded, returning her weapon to its place in her boot, "We... we became known as the Stars then, disguises always corrupted and covers constantly blown whenever someone saw our knives. We were the only ones who owned them... but now... I'm sorry, Sun-Sun."

The other Star shrugged, "What's done is done. You have to move on Apache. I have, because if I didn't I would probably jeopardize the next missions. If anything, blame Aizen."

"Oh, trust me, I do."

They sat in silence for a while, Sun-Sun's head on Apache's shoulder, until Harribel stopped by to escort them to dinner.

Where am I? Apache glanced around. She was poised on the center of a plateau, staring out into the canyon. This place... was it? She turned sharply to face the hideout behind her, but that wasn't all she saw. Mila Rose was perched on the edge of the platform, smirking from ear to ear.

"Hello, Apache." Her voice echoed like she had two instead of one, her movements didn't seem quite right. The sky was white, cloudless, bright, blinding Apache as Mila took multiple steps forward. "It's not all that bad being dead... but I am rather lonely."

"I'm sorry," Apache apologized, rushing up to meet her, "Mila!" She wrapped her arms around Mila's slim figure, but her body exploded into evaporating mist, sliding out of Apache's touch.

Mila reformed back in her starting position, still smirking, "You know, Apache... you should join me here. It's quite nice, but I could sure use your companionship, don't you agree?" Blood erupted from the bullet holes in her stomach and thigh, spilling out like a crimson waterfall. "If only you hadn't left me behind."

"But you told me to go!" Apache snapped. Suddenly the hideout exploded and fire raced in their direction. "LOOK OUT MILA!" She tried running for the Star but it was no use. The harder she tried the more distance would separate them. She reached out, "No! Mila! Please!"

The fire engulfed Mila Rose, and then with a roar it washed around Apache. She felt the heat dancing across her flesh, tormenting her. "No! NO! NONONONONO!" She slapped at the flames across her body, feeling her clothes starting to fall away. "NO! It hurts! It hurts! PLEASE MAKE IT STOP!"

"Apache?" That voice? It sounded almost like Mila, but then it...

"MAKE IT STOP!"

"Apache, wake up!"

"IT HURTS PLEASE MAKE IT STOP! OH GOD PLEASE!"

"APACHE!"

She sat upright with a start, her cries muffled by Harribel's shoulder. "Ssh, Emilou... It's alright. It's alright now..." Apache sobbed into her shirt, shaking violently. "It's OK, no one's going to hurt you."

Sun-Sun was across the room with Lilynette fast asleep in her arms - Heaven only knows why that girl can sleep through an atomic bomb - tucking her under the covers. She would wake up, unaware of what had actually taken place that night.

Apache gently pushed Harribel away, tears streaking her face, "I'm-I'm sorry! It was just..."

"A nightmare?" Harribel supplied.

"Y-Yeah... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake anyone," she wiped her eyes dry with the back of her hand, "Please, go back to sleep."

"Sun-Sun," Harribel muttered on her way out, "Watch her." and silently closed the door in her wake. The room seemed emptier again, forcing Apache to curl under her blanket.

It came as no surprise to Sun-Sun when she refused to get up in the morning.

END OF CHAPTER. Next chapter preview: Apache didn't know which was worse: the fact that Harribel was going with Soul Reapers, "You're staying here and that's final, Apache! You'll just slow us down!" or the fact that Harribel had lost all faith in her.