The Beginner's Guide to a Hollow Existence.

Rio's never been the spiritual sort. Why would he be? Left behind as a baby in the rain in front of an orphanage in JAPAN of all places?! Come on, at least leave him behind in a less fucked up country.

What was he talking about again? Oh right.

That orphanage was a living hell for him, but he managed to endure. He was (somehow, he didn't know how) able to grow up to be a teen, but all that did was make his suffering go from bad to worse.

The problem of teenage hormones is a tale as old as time. And the tale of the first love is a tale even older than time. He knows this doesn't seem relevant to the story as of now, but he'll get there eventually.

Life was— well, it wasn't good necessarily, but it was alright. He's got a girlfriend, recently hired as a nightguard at some weird pizzaria (with minimum wage pay, can't forget that when you live in Japan), and he could put food on the table for himself (and ONLY food and ONLY for himself. The rest of the staff took his leftover earnings.)

And so came young adulthood for him. He arrived early at the orphanage from his shift. He was quite excited, honestly. Just one more day and he'll be the ripe old age of 18.

No longer could those bastards at the orphanage rob him of his possessions! No longer would he have to live in a tiny room meant for infantile children! He could move out with his girlfriend (who would turn 18 just two days after him) and finally live a nice happy life! And—

Life said no. Apparently he was getting just a tad bit too hopeful. As it turned out his girlfriend of almost 3 years, had been cheating on him for almost two years. Something about him being too miserable and poor. Honestly, he didn't listen to a single word. He just felt...

Empty.

No sorrow, no anger. Just expectations being met for his miserable existence. So of course, as anyone who felt their miserable existence was just confirmed to be miserable forever, he went outside to breathe. Just him, the birds, and the early morning sunrise.

And the multi-ton truck heading towards his general direction.

This is precisely why he wasn't a spiritual person. After all, even the cruelest deity would have mercy on his soul.

*CRASH*

...

Rio slowly opened his eyes.

Wait what? He shouldn't be able to open his eyes! Much less think, now that he thinks about it. He should be dead right now! Yet here he is, conscious and left on the street with his body somehow intact, and some sort of hunger for... Something. It wasn't food. He wasn't thirsty, either, but he definitely felt an urge to devour. More importantly however, who just leaves a guy passed out in the middle of the road?

Actually— Who doesn't call an ambulance for a guy who just got ran the hell over?! His forest green pincer facepalms against his boney mask.

...

What.

"AH! What the fuck?!" He couldn't help but scream. His thoughts ran a thousand miles a second. Why is his skin green? Hid right hand is a pincer? He stands up, why was he so damn tall? Why does he have a mask on?

Before he could panic about his newfound monstrous form even more, a saviour came in the form of an odd screen suddenly appearing in front of him, coupled with a 3d model of what is probably himself right now

. It shared a lot of characteristics with his current body, after all.

<Questions have been generalized.>

<Q. What am I?>

<A. <strong>Hollow>

"What? What is this?"

<Q. What is this?>

<A. <strong>The Spirit Wikipedia>

"What... What is the Spirit Wikipedia?"

<Q. What is The Spirit Wikipedia>

<A. <strong>The Spirit Wikipedia is a source of information to all things related to the spiritual world. Only the user may use The Spirit Wikipedia, and only the user can see The Spirit Wikipedia.>

This may be the weirdest situation Rio has ever been in. Hollow? Spirit Wikipedia? Just after getting run over? Yeah, he may be hallucinating. Then again, he was a big, green, scorpion crab thing. Maybe this thing does have some merit?

"Well... What's a hollow, then?"

<Q. What is a Hollow?>

<A. A <strong>Hollow is a spiritual race born of souls who have failed to enter the Soul Society. They are malevolent in nature, devouring any soul that stands in their way in order to absorb their Reiryoku and ascend to the next step of their Evolution.>

Wow! So this hunger he'd been feeling for a while was actually a hunger for souls! How assuring, that's exactly what he needed. Sarcasm aside though, there were more unfamiliar terms. It did bother him though... "Why are some of these terms highlighted?"

<Q. Why are certain terms highlighted?>

<A. They are hyperlinks the user can click for easy access to information they choose.>

Rio puts his left hand on his chin. "Interesting..." That left him with a few choices. The information he needs is just the absolute essentials of his situation right now. He can learn about the other stuff later. Soul Society doesn't seem too important right now. Besides, he could probably guess well enough what that is. Reiryoku and Evolution, though... Those could be important. He presses on Reiryoku.

<Q. What is Reiryoku?>

<A. <strong >Reiryoku is the amount of spiritual energy a being has in their body. Everything has a certain amount of Reiryoku, but Humans with Reiryoku above a certain threshold have the ability to see spiritual beings such as Shinigami, Wholes, and Hollow.>

So in layman's terms, Reiryoku is essentially energy. Next is Evolution.

<Q. What is Evolution?>

<A. When <strong>Hollows devour enough souls (or even other Hollows) to absorb their Reiryoku, they get the chance to Evolve to a Greater Form.>

So to get stronger, he has to... eat people? Jeez, now he feels down. Well, he doesn't HAVE to get stronger, does he? He can just hide out and live out the rest of his days as a Hollow. He doesn't have to kill anyone. He doesn't... He...

But the hunger...

No! He can't. He may no longer be human, but he still—

Feed.

He can't!

FEED.

But—

FEED!

He could control himself no longer, but somehow, someway, he didn't care. His instincts (or what he assumed was his instincts.) told him it was right. That to feed on souls was natural. The bottomless hunger demanded fulfillment. It just so happens that it's a nice, bright day today. A good day for prey to hang about. The reiryoku in the air... Oh, how lovely.

*SLAM*

He smashes his fist down on the unsuspecting civilian, killing him instantly.

Shrieks erupted around the scene. The remaining civilians scatter as Rio picks up the very dead salary man, holds him up to his mouth. Then...

*CRUNCH*

Yes, this is exactly what he was looking for! The reiryoku, the power, the hunger is being sated. Yes... he could get used to th-

"Wh-What did I just do..." Did he really just do that? Kill a man in cold blood, just to sate this... this hunger?! No, he can't have just done that. He can't-

Just then, he sensed something. "What's that?"

<Q. What is that feeling?>

<A. <strong>Reiatsu>

"And that is?"

<Q. What is Reiatsu?>

<A. <strong>Reiatsu is the physical manifestation of Reiryoku. It is the spiritual pressure that individuals emit when they release or exert their Reiryoku.>

Challenge.

His instincts commanded him. Demanded he stood his ground. "Shut up! Not now!" His instincts couldn't control him this time. Partly due to the fear, partly because his hunger has been sated already. He was much more in control of himself now. It only took him murdering a man in cold blood and eating him whole!

Anyway, it's time for him to run. Where? Anywhere, really. As long as he gets away from that huge power signature! But how? He could feel that it was fast approaching. He couldn't outrun it either. It was speeding over to his direction. Is he just dead?

... Garganta...

His instincts sounded more hesitant and aggressive. He swore he heard it click its tongue! How did it even do that?! "Garganta?"

<Q. What is Garganta?>

<A. The ability that <strong>Hollows possess to travel to Hueco Mundo is known as "Garganta." Garganta is a dimensional travel technique used by Hollows to navigate between Hueco Mundo and the World of the Living.>

"And I do that h-"

Claw... Reiatsu... Slash the Fabric...

"Wh-" Despite his lack of knowledge about anything spiritual, somehow someway, he knew. Was it part of his now hollow existence? 

<Q. How do I know all th->

"Not now, damn it!" Rio channeled what little reiatsu he had in his body to his pincer claw. With one quick motion, he slashes the fabric of space wide open! It was... Foreboding. But he could feel how much reishi was emanating from the portal. Reishi that he needs. How does he know? God only knows how. Without hesitation, he enters the Garganta and enters.

Hueco Mundo.

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Sup fellas. This is my first ever story so PLEASE do not hesitate to tell me what I got wrong. I don't really got anything else to say. Thanks for reading I guess?