An eruption of images flooded Silas`s vision. His eyes shone with a white light, nearly blinding Hachigen. Several scenes raced as if watching a montage pieced together. From the time that he was an infant to the moment he arrived in this world, all of it was recalled!

　　The light faded as he lowered his head. Hachigen, thinking the show was over, used his other arm to try and grab him. But the instant he tried, he was stabbed in the chest by a longsword. It was Silas`s Zangetsu.

　　"How pathetic&" he said, retracting the blade.

　　His entire world came to a sudden halt. Slowly, everything began to fade to black. He took one last look at his children`s faces, vowing to see them again.

　　The moment he blinked, he was in a different space. And when he looked around, he found it to be his inner world.

　　It`s felt like a long time since he`s been here. Things didn`t seem any different than what he remembered.

　　There were no clouds in sight, nor did it seem like it was going to rain. Buildings were still stretched across the city, and the world was still perpendicular, as if standing on the side of windows were normal. The only thing that seemed peculiar was that it was nighttime and there was a full moon high in the sky.

　　What was peculiar about this moon was that there was a large ere shadow in the shape of Ichigo staring down upon Silas. It`s figure was terrifying to look upon, as if it had a life of its own, a menacing presence that defied all natural explanation.

　　"You`ve regained your memories," a voice echoed.

　　Silas turned around, only to see the manifestation. Its ragged beard and expressionless face were hardly readable. Not even its tone was distinguishable. How long had it been since he`d seen it?

　　"You," he said, furrowing his brows.

　　The manifestation remained quiet, waiting to hear if Silas had anything to say. But when he locked eyes with it, showing no fear or disbelief, it finally spoke.

　　"Why did you come here?"

　　"I didn`t& Are you saying you didn`t rang?"

　　When the manifestation hadn`t answered, things began to seem clearer. For some time now, Silas hadn`t been able to use Zangetsu. It had become no more than a plain katana. Had it not been for his own spiritual pressure, it would have broken many times over in his relentless battles.

　　Now that he finally gained some clarity as to what became of Zangetsu, he understood this: Kisuke Urahara had used a spell that only worked against his Hollow powers. Because of that, the manifestation had been able to regain control over Ichigo`s powers, preventing Silas from using the weapon.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

　　This also explained why he wasn`t able to enter his inner world until now. The shock he received must have jolted his senses and forced him into a state of survival, allowing him to escape to a part of himself that was still intact.

　　"I`m interested to know," he said. "How did you come back, and how did you take my memories away?"

　　"I was wrong about you," it answered. "I was wrong to believe you would change after I took them away."

　　When Silas asked what it meant by that, it explained that it had been watching Silas from the beginning. From the time that he thought he got rid of it to now, it has been monitoring Silas`s every action. This was made apparent when it had urged it not to go to Kisuke`s shop.

　　After Kisuke sealed Zangetsu, the manifestation gradually began to reshape itself as Silas`s main source of power. Because of that, it refused to let him draw that power out.

　　"I watched you commit all types of cruel acts," it said.

　　"Why does something like that matter to you?"

　　Silas was right to wonder this since the manifestation was neither an enemy nor an ally of Ichigo`s. It`s only purpose for existing was to prevent Ichigo from becoming a Soul Reaper. When it failed to do that in the story, it decided to help him mature.

　　"Why did you try to get rid of me?" it calmly asked.

　　Though it was calm, Silas could sense its wrath. So he answered, "Foolish creature... No matter who you think you are, you have no power over me. But something`s still bothersome. How did you erase my memories?"

　　"I`m more surprised that you got them back."

　　Pushing the manifestation to answer his question, it revealed the day that Silas encountered young Ichigo. At the park, when Silas made contact, some of that Ichigo`s Quincy powers transferred over, allowing the manifestation to knock Silas unconscious.

　　It was trying to kill him at all costs, but Hachigen prevented this during his healing period. Had it not been for that Visored`s ability, Silas would have died. It tried to fight back until all of the Visoreds pooled in their Hollow powers, preventing the manifestation from killing him. The most it could do was tamper with his mind.

　　"Ichigo, your memories were supposed to be permanently lost&"

　　Not even the manifestation understood how he regained them. When Silas got his answer, he pointed his sword at it. In retaliation, the manifestation stretched its arm out to cause an ethereal weapon to form, saying in a cool tone, "What hope do you have going against me, Ichigo?"

　　The spirit couldn`t be more at an advantage. It might not have been Zangetsu, but it did hold its powers, being one with the latter. So long as it had enough willpower, it could always try to defy Silas.

　　"Ichigo, your powers come from me. I am Zangetsu, and I won`t tolerate you after everything you`ve done&"

　　Silas stood his ground, not once flinching. His gaze was fixed on the manifestation with an attitude that wouldn`t back down.

　　"I see," it said. "Defiant even to the end."

　　The manifestation gripped its weapon, unleashing a surge of spiritual pressure that shattered windows like a storm of glass. The entire world trembled, the very sky seeming to shudder under the overwhelming force.

　　"You know," Silas said, unfazed. "I once heard that a certain character only uses his brain to fight. Before, he attempted to defeat his enemies with reason and logic, never tapping into those pure based instincts that existed within himself."

　　"What are you saying?"

　　"What I`m saying is that I`m not Ichigo&"

　　The manifestation marveled at what it was hearing. Yes, it recalled the time in which Silas commanded Zangetsu to call him "Silas", but it never considered what it meant. So in a booming tone, it asked, "What do you think of me?"

　　Silas remained calm. "You`re no more than a lost shadow."