An unexpected proposal [Notchimine]

How hard could it be to find a freaking kingdom in the middle of Hueco Mundo? One would think that something like that would tend to stand out against a backdrop of endless white sand, but after hours of searching Notchimine had seen no sign of any such thing. Of course when Yaksha assigned him this task he hadn't expected it to be too easy, the kingdom wouldn't be as big as Las Noches after all, but even so it seemed that he should have at least found some clue by now. He was starting to wonder if the rumors were true at all, or if his master had just sent him on a wild goose chase. He scowled at the thought. Yaksha was a manipulative little snake, that was part of the reason Notchimine had joined him in the first place, they had common ground. He wouldn't put it past the old serpent to pull something like this just to halt his own progress, give him some busy work to keep him from hunting perhaps? Or worse, could he suspect that Notchimine had been pulling his fellow fraccion to his own employ? That seemed unlikely, he would probably be dead by now if that were the case.

Notchimine let out a deep sigh as he stared down at the ocean of sand below him. Thinking bitter thoughts about Yaksha would serve no purpose for him. He still needed the arrancar, still needed his power, his teachings, his standing. Even if he was even remotely ready to make a move against him, Yaksha was still his greatest ally against Las Noches itself. No, for now at least it was best to stay in the man's good graces, and that involved finding this mystery kingdom.

Unfortunately his 7 hours of searching the area where the rumors all pointed to had been completely fruitless. No castles, no settlements, not even any particularly large groups of hollows, or at least there hadn't been the last foury-eight times he had checked. He had found a few snacks though, so that helped keep him going. He sighed again as he opened up his pesquisa for the fourty-ninth time, hoping desperately to feel a group of hollow reiatsu somewhere in the area, and for once he was pleasantly surprised. There, just a few meters away from the dune he was floating directly above, he felt a group of about twenty hollows... bellow the sand? His Jaw dropped as he saw a solid slab of perfectly camouflaged sand-stone slide its way across the floor, real sand falling down onto the staircase below, and the hollows that immediately began clamoring out into the night.

It was so obvious. Of course a ruler who had avoided the detection of Las Noches would have their kingdom hidden somehow. He had spent all of his time looking for some kind of structure out in plain sight, when he should have been thinking of how it would be hidden. Under the sands, it was perfect. So perfect in fact, that it had nearly fooled him. Nearly.

A smile crossed his face when the first hollow noticed him. Ironically it was the smallest one of the group, a small monkey like hollow, with two scythe-like blades replacing his hands.

“Who goes there!?” Notchimine tried hard not to laugh at the outdated quip, but he couldn’t stop himself from chuckling.

“Who goes there? Well, aren’t we regal?” He said in the least mocking tone he could manage. The hollow, and now his nineteen friends, still looked at him with a combination of distrust and hunger. He did not have high hopes for their cooperation.

“My name is Notchimine, and I have come to meet the leader of the rumored kingdom.”

They all seemd to stiffen at that. Apparantly they weren’t used to getting visitors, or perhaps they just weren’t used to getting visitors who didn’t want to eat them.

“I assure you, I mean you no harm.” He said with a warm smile. “I am actually here to seek an alliance.”

They all looked around at each other in confusion. To be fair, most of them were clearly base hollows, they couldn’t be expected to handle things like politics too well, especially not as weak as their souls were.

“No one gets to see queen Lissandra unless she asks for you.” It was the little one who spoke first. As Notchimine examined him closer he realized that this little shrimp was actually one of the few adjuchas in the group, though a relatively weak one. At least he had some spine.

“Now get out of here before we run you out.”

More spine than brains anyway. Notchimine let out a breath which could have been a small laugh as easily as it could have been a sigh, and as he did so unleashed the full depths of his reiatsu on the little band of overconfident hollows. Their response was immediate and predictable. Fear. Though not as much one he would have liked. Apparently they were used to being in the presence of true power, or at least a power that could rival his. Their leader perhaps?

“Allow me to rephrase that. I’m going to talk to your leader. Would you kindly show me the way?”

They were all sweating, a couple even shaking, as they stared at him with uncertainty. He began to pick of a few whispers among the group, mostly varients of “what should we do” and “he’s as strong as the queen” as they tried to figure out whether or not to trust the arrancar.

Seeing their indecision Notchimine just shrugged and walked over to the door from which they had emerged. Of course it had long ago slid closed again, but with his power that wouldn’t be too much of an issue.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll show myself in.”

His lips curled into a smirk as he calmly pointed a single finger at the door. He could have simply blasted it apart, but that probably wouldn’t have made this Lissandra very friendly when he found her, so instead he decided to simply open the door. The hollows all stared in nervous amazement as a small black flame appeared on his fingertip, before slowly making its way into the tiny, almost indistinguishable crack between the moveable stone, and the base it was set in. Then it began to spread. After a single second the entire crack was filled with the dark flames, and then, they began to expand further. As the solid fire grew, the stone was forced to retreat. Notchimine could hear the gears and wheels that were meant to safeguard the entrance creak and groan in protest, and he hoped that they weren’t designed so poorly as to break when being forced into action. After a few tense minutes of this however, the stone was safely pushed back out of the way, leaving only a wall of solid fire between him and this mysterious kingdom.

As he extinguished his fire Notchimine turned to the hollows one last time, and had to stifle another chuckle as a few of them stepped back.

“Well? Aren’t one of you going to show me to the throne room?” He asked as if they were obviously expected to do so. As he stared at the indecisive hollows he was about to lose hope on an easy introduction, when the little one stepped forward again.

“We… We will escort you to her majesty’s throne room.” He said, once again taking charge. Notchimine simply smiled and stepped out of the way, motioning for the little one to take the lead.

A few minutes later they had managed to navigate what Notchimine considered to be a maze of hallways and corridors. He was genuinely thankful for the little hollow and his companions showing him the way. It would have taken him hours to navigate this place, especially with all the suspicious guards who kept asking the group questions, before joining it for security purposes. Honestly, he suspected he had half of her military walking in behind him when he finally set foot in the throne room, and gazed upon the unmistakable image of the queen.

Lissandra was very tall and very thin, covered in a white armor that was beautiful in its simplicity, and regal blue robes. Overall she looked very human, and Nothcimine might have mistaken her for an arrancar if not for her complete mask, or perhaps a vasto lorde, but she was nowhere near that powerful.

“Queen Lissandra, I presume?” Notchimine said as he took a respectful bow.

“My name is Notchimine. My master, Yaksha Dokuja, has heard rumors of a powerful kingdom of hollows arising in this area, and sent me to discuss the possibility of an alliance. But first, I simply must compliment you. I had expected the rumors to be exaggerated, and to find some settlement, or cave, or at most some tiny castle in the desert above. For anyone outside of Las Noches to acquire a place as intricate and expansive as this, not to mention this many servants, is quite the feet.” Every word he said was true, but he was not without an ulterior motive. The one weakness in the woman’s kingdom was her subordinates, specifically the ones that didn’t know how to keep their mouths shut. A few of them had been whispering non-stop throughout his travels, and had dropped more than enough hints that the queen was a very vane person. Notcimine liked vanity, it was quite easy to exploit, as long as one didn't overdo it.

WC:1602

GP:32

Having ruled these tunnels for years now Lissandra had become accustomed to the small tells of approaching trouble. All of the kingdoms entrances were hidden, made of the same stone as the surrounding area as to not draw attention to the hideaway, but when opened it became clear that they were both entrances and signals. The groan of the mechanisms used to open the gate echoed down the corridors as though the very tunnels were etched away for that purpose. The rush of wind, the draft entering the catacombs, allowed Lissandra to pinpoint which tunnel leading to her throne room had been opened. The doors only opened when one was leaving or entering and for one group to leave then enter so quickly afterwards was unusual. It would have been hours before the group returned, therefore there must have been trouble.

No matter, now they are trapped in here with me

It was not long before one of the smaller hollows found it’s way to her throne room and informed her of the situation. An Arrancar was looking to speak to her. Even more unusual, most she had met had wanted her head. Knowing that someone she had never met before had heard of her and her kingdom excited Lissandra. It meant her immediate goal was working. First step, become known. Second step, gain the power that meets your reputation. A simple power hungry goal of Lissandra’s but one that drove her life.

Her face remained passive, her motives unknown, as the hollow explained both what the man looked like and his general demeanour. He didn’t pick a fight on his way here, though his goal of meeting her no matter what could have ended in one. Smart enough to know that picking a fight would do nothing but hinder whatever relationship the two would be forming at this meeting. Smart, very smart. Definitely an Arrancar who knows his boundaries and limits. Perhaps even one stronger than Lissandra herself? A possibility, but with any luck that would not be tested this meeting.

By the time the Arrancar had been lead to the main hall, the largest space within the catacombs that all tunnels eventually linked to, he had more than just the squad who had met him above ground in tow. No, almost half of her kingdom had followed the man down to Lissandra’s throne room wondering what she had in store for him. The kingdom didn’t get visitors, and the appearance of one was startling to the younger hollows.

She sat upon her throne of stone, legs crossed and arms laid out across the armrests, as the man bowed in front of her.

How very formal, just the treatment I expect…

He was a bulky man. Taller and built of more muscle then Arrancar he had previously met, and definitely more imposing than them. Whether this meant the man was incredibly powerful Lissandra had no clue, even the smallest could appear strong, however he certainly looked like a man who could take care of himself. The confidence he had to enter this kingdom alone, standing up to all her guards, was impressive indeed.

She remained silent and her expression as passive as ever as the man explained why he had come to see her. She recognised the name, Yaksha Dokuja, as one of Las Noches’ strongest. It was hard to not know of the fabled Espada even this far out in the desert. Lissandra had not expected one of them to seek her out. She had an army of hollows numbering at one hundred and twenty seven at it’s last count, but they were all base level hollows at best. An Arrancar at half the strength of an Espada could wipe this settlement from the face of the desert. So this all begged the question, what did he want from her?

“You may stand” She spoke soon after his introduction.

“I thank you for the compliments.” A simple acknowledgement as her first line of speech, “Though I’m sure it doesn’t compare to Las Noches’ vast halls.” The compliments had worked to lighten her own mood. She had met many out in the desert but all had insulting her work as though it were futile. To see someone compliment the work she put into hiding such a large kingdom quickly scattered any pessimism Lissandra had about the intruder.

“And you are correct. I am the Queen Lissandra, known by many out in the wastes as the Tyrant.”

She waved her hand soon after her own introduction and spoke out to the crowd of hollows who had gathered in the large hall.

“And why have you all gathered? Did I send for you? No, I didn’t.” The hollows in the hall soon gained an understanding that if they did not leave to go about their duties something awful would befall them. These hollows who clung to Lissandra for protection quickly fled the hall for fear of Lissandra’s strength turning on them. The only ones who remained in the hall were the group who met this Notchimine and the man himself.

“Notchimine was it? We have little but manpower, yet your master sounds like he has much to offer. What does he propose?” What Yaksha wanted was little of Lissandra’s concern, she had little to bring to the table and so any Alliance would be one that required her army. What she could get in return though, that was the truly important part of this meeting. She didn’t mind offering her army if Lissandra could gain whatever she wanted in return.

WC: 929

GP: 18

Total: 29