Gregory Beltrané

 (グレゴリーベルトラン, Guregorī Berutoran), formally referred to as Yuurei (幽霊, Phantom) was a natural-borne and a member of  Arrancar Army, serving as one of the. Gregory eventually lost his rank and was demoted to a Privaron Espada after Aizen started to create artificially-created Arrancar, much to his chagrin and annoyance. In accordance to Privaron Espada doctrine, Gregory was assigned a three-digit number, his being #101st.

Following the events of The Collapse, Gregory and several of the other Privaron Espada were mysteriously resurrected through the machinations of Averian to serve as his version of the Espada. In order to subjugate the chaotic realm of after the destruction of the previous generation of Espada and to fulfill the desires of their new master, the majority of Averian's Espada were modified to become quasi-Battle Dolls.

Appearance
Gregory appeared to be a tall and slender male Arrancar who possessed a gruff and mechanized voice. Gregory's actual appearance remained a mystery, even to those amongst the Espada and Privaron Espada. No one had ever managed to catch a glimpse of Gregory's face, nor the appearance of his Hollow Mask. To further hide his identity, Gregory wore a mechanical Skull Mask over his head. It was extensively modified to possess a re-breather apparatus that released pressurized air every thirty seconds. The most notable feature of Gregory's Skull Mask was the two red lights that served as the eyes. It never faded away and was always present, a trait that many considered to be unsettling.

The entirety of Gregory's body was wrapped in bandages, which he layered over with a black combat suit. He wore combat boots to battle and wore a simple yet specially crafted hooded cloak that partially obscured his Skull Mask. The appearance of 's Hollow Hole was hidden underneath his bandages but it was stated to be found on his left forearm. He personally had his Arrancar Number #101st tattooed on his lower backside but it was generally kept hidden underneath his cloak and bandages.

Personality
was a cold and quiet Arrancar who rarely spoke unless spoken to. Gregory seemed to only speak to those who catch his attention, ignoring those he considered weak or uninteresting. He preferred to stay away from direct combat and disliked confrontations until he was forced into battle. Upon entering battle, Gregory showed himself to be a violent and aggressive combatant who actively relished the pain he inflicted on others. Gregory showed no care for either his comrades or subordinates, being relatively uncaring for those who were cut down in battle, even when they were killed right before his eyes. He had no sympathy or remorse for injured Arrancar; he would not hesitate to execute them for failing Sosuke Aizen, whether they were an Espada or Fraccion.

Despite being known as a quiet individual most of the time, Gregory could be quite talkative when the mood to speak hit him and a harsh criticizer at times. Although he was a resident of, Gregory refused to acknowledge as the God-King of Hueco Mundo and the Ruler of , believing that there could be no true ruler to their homeland. He considered Baraggan to be foolish and a liar since if Baraggan was truly the God-King, he would had possessed the necessary strength and power to defeat Sosuke Aizen, a feat he never accomplished. Gregory believed Baraggan to be weak since he used Aizen's power to artificially become an Arrancar, whereas Gregory became one through natural means. Gregory held in high regard, having pride in the fact that Arruruerie was a Gillian-class Arrancar and being the only member of the Original Espada to not be demoted. In a rare bout of emotion, Gregory lamented his death at the hands of a mere Vice-Captain,, yet did not hesitate to call him stupidly foolish when his over reliance on his powers caused his downfall.

Gregory was incredibly prideful, having immense faith in his skills and abilities as an Arrancar. As a result, Gregory often hailed himself as the pinnacle of an Arrancar, despite his status as a Privaron Espada. He believed were superior over, despite his ironic allegiance to , a Shinigami. Unfortunately, it was Gregory's pride that ultimately led to his undoing during the battle with Anika's vanguard, since he refused to acknowledge that a mere Shinigami could be an equal to his "evolved" state.

History
was a Vasto-Lorde-class Hollow that originally resided in the northern region of. Gregory often kept to himself, only killing the Hollows who dared to invade his territory and rouse him from his isolation. Due to his isolation, Gregory rarely made contact with other Vasto-Lordes, sans one that would later become Takeshi Terashima. Although initially wary of each other, Gregory and Takeshi seemingly maintained a form of long-distance rivalry between each other. However, the rivalry abruptly came to an end when the Royal Guard invaded Hueco Mundo for their centennial Hollow Cleansing, forcing the two to hide and part ways. Due to Gregory's isolationist nature, he evaded the Cleansing relatively unscathed and even managed to slay a few of the Royal Guard through stealth.

Learning that several Adjuchas-class Hollow were becoming Arrancar to become stronger, Gregory found himself in a predicament when these Pseudo-Arrancar invaded his territory. Despite being a Vasto-Lorde-type, Gregory was overwhelmed by their newfound power and was unable to effectively counter them. In a bid for survival, Gregory also removed his Hollow Mask, and successfully became one of the few natural-borne Vasto-Lorde-type Arrancar in existence. After confirming his status as an Arrancar in front of his attackers, Gregory proceeded to annihilate them without mercy despite their pleas for forgiveness.

With his status as a Vasto-Lorde-type Arrancar firmly cemented, Gregory went about testing his newfound powers by ruthlessly hunting other Arrancar within or around his territory. When there was no more Arrancar to hunt, Gregory left his territory and made his way to Takeshi Terashima's territory to demand a duel. But upon arrival, Takeshi was not there. Instead, it was a white-clothed Shinigami named.

Gregory was present during 's confrontation between him and.

Synopsis

 * Main article -- Bleach (Kenji Hiroshi).

Part I

 * Main article -- Bleach: Sun and Moon Chronicles.

Kagamino City arc

 * Prelude to War!

Part IV

 * Main article -- Bleach: Cataclysm.

Braving the Waves arc

 * Clash Upon the Sands

Equipment
Reishi Gun:

Powers and Abilities


Expert Swordsmanship Specialist: Gregory preferred to use his Zanpakuto as a Rapier, focusing on quick and precise jabs and thrusts to overwhelm the opponent. Due to Gregory's Zanpakuto being an Estoc, it was long, straight, and stiff with no amount of cutting edge and just a point. This disadvantage forced Gregory to find alternative means to inflict damage other than slashes, which he didn't mind at all since the Arrancar preferred stabbing.
 * GregoryRapido.gifRápido (速攻 (ラピッド), Rapiddo; Spanish for Rapid; Japanese for Swift Attack):

Master Marksmanship Specialist:

Enhanced Speed & Agility: Despite his small and thin frame, Gregory was deceptively fast for his size.



However, Gregory was also able to use his fingers and hands to fire his Cero as an alternative. Gregory was able to regulate the size of his Cero, either appearing as a large mass of energy or a small beam of energy.
 * : As a former Espada, Gregory possessed the necessary knowledge to create a Gran Rey Cero, which consisted of mixing one's own blood into their Cero. Considered to be far superior in terms of raw strength and speed, the Gran Rey Cero was so strong it could potentially disturb the very fabric of space and time. Gregory preferred to use his Gran Rey Cero instead of his normal Cero, citing the obvious advantages in power. He was widely known to use his Gran Rey Cero as a makeshift whip.

The expelled energy was noted to be deceptively fast and could often catch an unaware opponent completely by surprise. In lieu with his Cero, Gregory also used Bala to serve as makeshift bullets for his Reishi Gun and Reishi Rifle. When needed to conserve his reiryoku, Gregory preferred Bala over Cero.

This also allows them to fight some of the sword-wielding Shinigami and Arrancar barehanded.

He also used it to pinpoint the locations of all the members in Anika's vanguard and ranked them based on their visible power levels.

Keen Intellect: Gregory was a highly perceptive individual, as he was able to discern whether or not someone was lying to him. Gregory appeared to be aware of common tactical strategies and could easily work around attack plans given enough time to prepare. In addition, Gregory was privy of using traps and feints to catch his opponents off-guard, relishing the idea of seeing their surprised faces once he cut them down. According to Gregory, he was able to sense the fear of his opponents, using it to his advantage by building off of it in order to intuitively determine their next course of action. Additionally, Gregory also paid significant amount of attention to his opponent's eyes, as it often told him where they would be aiming, allowing him to plan accordingly.

Garganta (黒腔（ガルガンタ）Spanish for Throat, Japanese for Black Cavity): Garganta is how Arrancar move to and from Hueco Mundo. It literally tears open the dimensional fabric separating the worlds, revealing a tunnel of whirling, torrential energy that must be focused and solidified to create a discernible pathway.
 * Descorrer (解空(デスコレール), Desukorēru, Japanese for "Loosed Void", Spanish for Drawing Back/Opening): A technique used by Espada-level Arrancar and sometimes others, to open a Garganta between the living world and Hueco Mundo.
 * Garganta Broadcast: Similar to the several other Espadas, Gregory demonstrated the ability to create a visual broadcast, similar to a television screen, using individual Garganta portals. He uses the technique for a myriad of uses, including the observation of various areas within and outside of Hueco Mundo. He can manipulate the size of the broadcast and can even make it small enough to go unnoticed.

Zanpakutō
Fantasma (幽霊 (ファントム), Fantomu; Spanish for "Phantom"; Japanese for Spectre): The name of 's Zanpakuto was Fantasma. Unlike the majority of Arrancar, Gregory's Zanpakuto did not appear as a standard katana or wakizashi, instead it appeared as an Estoc-like Long Dagger. Fantasma's guard was cylindrical and it did not possess any form of guard. It was generally kept within a strange metal sheathe.

Gregory raised his Zanpakuto over his head as the Skull Mask's re-breather released a smokescreen of pressurized air that obscured his entire body. In addition, the red dots in the Gregory's Skull Mask would significantly brighten and flash, signaling the beginning of Gregory's Resurrección. It was unknown if Gregory's Resurrección altered his physical appearance due to his clothing hiding any changes that occurred.

Resurrección Special Ability: 's Resurrección provided a boost to his physical and spiritual abilities and granted him new ones as well. It allowed him to truly adopt the true nature of his epithet, Phantom (幽霊, Yuurei) which was that of an invisible presence or a translucent or barely visible wispy shape.
 * Enhanced Hierro: Gregory was able to survive attacks that would normally kill a Shinigami or Arrancar with just a scratch and could easily stand up despite being thrown through several buildings at breakneck speed. Depending on the strength of the attack, Gregory could potentially deflect Bankai-level attacks from Captain-class opponents with just his arms, showcasing his true power as an Arrancar.
 * Miedo Gula (虞飽食 (フェアーブッフェ), Feaa Buffe; Spanish for Fear Gluttony; Japanese for Fear Buffet): A passive ability, Miedo Gula empowered Gregory by feeding off the fear of others. The ability was incredibly useful on the battlefield, since it allowed Gregory to gorge himself on the combatants' fear of dying. Miedo Gula synchronized well with his Resurrección's ability to sow confusion and fear amongst his opponents.
 * Cero Fantasma(虚閃幽霊 (セロスペクター), Sero Supekutaa; Spanish for Zero Spectre; Japanese for Phantom Hollow Flash): Gregory either used his Reishi Gun or Reishi Rifle to fire a seemingly invisible Cero with incredible speed, force, and power at an opponent. Gregory used his spiritual energy to grant Cero Fantasma the ability to refract light, making it appear invisible to the naked eye. In order to further confuse his opponents, Gregory often fired multiple Cero Fantasmas in different places using Sonido.
 * Desaparecer (蒸発, Jouhatsu; Spanish for Vanishing; Japanese for Disappearance):
 * La Reforma (更改, Koukai; Spanish for "Reformation"; Japanese for Renewal): Gregory can reform any part of his body that was dismembered. If Gregory happened to be bisected in battle, he can seemingly recreate the lost portion to its previous state. In addition, Gregory can cause the other bisected half to create an exact clone of himself, which he could control remotely. In order to fully defeat Gregory, La Reforma must be bypassed to such an extent where he could not recreate himself.

Resurrección: Segunda Etapa (刀剣解放第二階層 (レスレクシオン・セグンダ・エターパ), resurekushion segunda etāpa; Spanish for "Resurrection Second Stage", Japanese for "Sword's Release: Second Level"): After his revival, Gregory apparently gained the ability to access the Segunda Etapa of his Resurrección, calling it the ultimate evolution of an Arrancar. Gregory preferred to call his Segunda Etapa, Phantom Reaper.

Trivia

 * 's Rank within the was generally unknown, but it was widely assumed to be within the 1 - 4 range.
 * According to Gregory, the sole cause for his demotion to Privaron Espada was his status as a Natural-borne Arrancar. Despite possessing power rivaling that Aizen's Top 4 Espada, Gregory was demoted regardless. This fate would presumably befall the rest of his kinsmen sans.
 * Gregory's Arrancar number #101 implied he was the first Espada to be demoted.


 * No one had ever seen Gregory outside his bandages or his true face.
 * was often considered to be a Gun Otaku.

Behind the Scenes

 * Following the naming conventions and themes undertaken by Another Poetic Spartan, was named after Famous Individuals and/or Puns. In this case,  was taken from a word and two individuals: Gregory, Saint Gregory the Great, and Saint Louis Bertrand.
 * The name, "Gregory" is derived from the Latin name "Gregorius," which was from the late Greek name "Γρηγόριος" (Grēgorios) meaning "watchful, alert".
 * Subsequently, Gregory could be a reference to Saint Gregory the Great, a Pope was widely known as “the Father of Christian Worship” in the Middle Ages because of his exceptional efforts in revising the Roman worship of his day.
 * Saint Louis Bertrand was a Spanish Dominican who preached in South America during the 16th century, and is known as the "Apostle to the Americas".