Las Noches

Silas moved with quiet grace, his figure making no sound. Sneaking around Las Noches was no different than the Seireitei. Only things were bigger.

He was surrounded by massive buildings that stretched far and wide. A map alone wouldn't be enough for him to navigate this fortress.

He had spent the past few hours exploring the labyrinthine corridors of Las Noches. Any time he felt the presence of an unknown Hollow, he moved right past it without being spotted.

Aizen's operation here was already apparent, seeing that Arrancars were already formed. From the fragments of spiritual pressures Silas has been detecting, it was also clear that the Espada were already assembled—a fortuitous circumstance for his plans.

He needed more information and had to fill in the blanks in his knowledge of this timeline.

Aizen, a man of meticulous planning, would undoubtedly have records and data stored somewhere within this sprawling complex. What Silas needed to do was find out if those records still existed and if any of those experiments were salvaged or not.

The corridors stretched out before him, branching and twisting like a petrified tree. Silas chose his path with care, using his heightened instincts to avoid any unnecessary encounters. Although he was the most dominant force here, not every situation needed to be solved with combat.

As he moved deeper into the fortress, a strange sensation began to tug at his awareness. It was a subtle, rhythmic pulse emanating from somewhere close.

At first, he had nearly dismissed it as his own heartbeat. But the pulse felt separate from himself, a faint echo reverberating through the spiritual fabric of Las Noches.

Curious and unable to ignore the insistent throb, he paused in a wide, shadowed alcove. The pulse intensified, guiding him deeper into the unexplored wings of the fortress. It originated somewhere ahead.

Without meaning to, he drew upon the inherent power of the Hōgyoku, allowing it to amplify his senses. The world around him sharpened, the faint spiritual signatures of distant beings coming into view like a dissonant chorus.

The pulse, however, cut through the noise like a beacon, leading him unerringly onward.

It wasn't long before he reached his destination: a towering set of double doors set with a single, intricate lock. There were no guards or visible security measures.

Silas finally understood why he was led here.

With a silent flick of his wrist, the lock came apart, and the doors swung open. He stepped into the chamber beyond and found himself in a dimly lit area.

The room was immense—a circular hall with stands as if he were in a museum. The walls were paneled in the same pristine white stone as the rest of the fortress, but the floor was a purple, polished surface that reflected the dim light like a dark mirror.

Silas had previously encountered this room in the story. It was the same place where Aizen had created Arrancar. A single object stood in the very center of the room, resting on a raised pedestal.

A Hōgyoku!

In the world of Bleach, there were two Hōgyokus. One was fashioned by Aizen and the other by Kisuke. Both Soul Reapers had different ideas on how to use their power. The former desired to garner power, while the latter deemed it too dangerous.

What was never revealed in the story was where Aizen kept his own Hōgyoku. Some speculated that it was always with him. Others believed that it was well hidden in Las Noches. Regardless of which fan was correct, Silas had found his answer.

This Hōgyoku was larger than Silas's, bigger than his clenched fist. It didn't at all look like it did in the television series. Its surface swirled with an iridescent, milky luminescence, like a nebula trapped within a crystal. The mere sight of it made him feel uneasy, as if he had to devour it.

Over the years, Aizen has been feeding this Hōgyoku with Souls and Hollows. This could explain why it looked so different.

'Not now," Silas thought to himself.

With a lingering gaze at the artifact, he made a decision. When so much was at stake, he would not risk disrupting the flow of events here. Too much depended on Aizen's choices and the events he set in motion.

Seizing this Hōgyoku now would throw everything into chaos, potentially shattering the fragile threads of causality that he needed intact. So he left things undisturbed for now.

But the knowledge of this other Hōgyoku and the potential it held. That was power worth possessing.

The pulse of his own Hōgyoku reverberated within him, a persistent drumbeat that underscored the significance of his discovery. But he forced his focus away from it, pushing back the greedy tendrils of his Hōgyoku's desires.

Now was not the time for avarice. He had more pressing matters to attend to.

He committed the room's location to memory, etching it into his mind with laser-sharp precision. Then, with one last glance at the artifact, he turned and retreated.

Silas still had a mission to complete. And once the time was right—once Aizen's machinations had played out—only then would he return for it.

Silas emerged from the hidden chamber.

As he retraced his steps through the labyrinthine corridors of Las Noches, his mind whirled with new possibilities. The whereabouts of the second Hōgyoku demanded consideration, forcing him to reassess his understanding of the situation.

What he currently had was an incomplete Hōgyoku merged within him. For him to sustain his current form, he needed to consistently be fed at least one Soul or Hollow ever so often.

This wasn't a problem, but it also meant that Silas wasn't at one hundred percent of his full power. Of course, he wouldn't do what Aizen did and transform himself into a new creature. Ichigo's power, though not immortal, was more than enough to prove that it was greater.

But with a complete Hōgyoku, not only would Silas not need to feed anymore, he could amplify his spiritual pressure so that not even members of squad zero could stand against him!