After spending the better half of a year working in the slave mines of Kōzan, Andie had become accustomed to being escorted every which way in shackles at sword-point. Though everyone at Kōzan received similar treatment, they always awarded her an additional 8 guards. Kōzan was home to the most notorious, violent criminals from all Rukongai districts, sentenced by either the nobles or the Gotei 13; when they chose to get involved. Apparently, today was one of those days.
It was flattering, she supposed, to be considered a big enough threat to attract the Gotei 13. Even if she didn't know what was happening, or why they'd been waiting for her, it was enough change from her usual schedule to peak her interest. She wasn't particularly happy when her overseer separated her from the group. After a full day of cleaving iron ore from the side of the mountain, all she wanted was some of the horrid slop they considered food and to rest. Though once she recognized the concealed black figures of the Onmitsukidō of the Gotei 13, she was suddenly fine with it.
The unit led her down corridors, up flights of stairs, and around and around until she hadn't the slightest chance of mapping an escape route. At least, that was her escort's intention, because she hadn't failed to notice when they went through the same corridor within a matter of minutes. Nor had she missed when they zigzagged between levels, even though the building was a standard grid of hallways and stairwells. As if she'd lose her bearings that easily. She might have been insulted if they weren't trying so hard.
They entered a particularly long hallway, silent save for their footsteps. The soldiers surrounded her on all sides, while a woman in a white and black shihakusho led her from far upfront. Only the long chain attached to the cuffs around her wrists connected them.
She glanced at the concealed faces around her. Likely another tactic meant to confuse and intimidate her. The black clothes were probably a part of it, too. A head shifted in her direction, and Sam flashed him a grin. He looked forward again without a word.
"You're a long way from the Seireitei, Captain," she shouted to the woman ahead. She didn't know much about the workings of the Gotei 13, but she knew enough to tell the differences in uniform meant a difference in rank. "Is there anything left of you guys? Heard an awful lot of thumping up there this last month."
"Since when have the affairs of the Gotei 13 concerned you?" the Captain replied without facing her.
"They don't," she said, shrugging. "Just trying to make small talk."
The Captain's only rely was an annoyed scoff.
Sam assessed the soldiers around her once again. She could disarm two of these guards in a heartbeat, likely 4 more within a second after that. It had been a while since killed someone, once when an overseer pushed her too hard. She still remembered the feeling of embedding the pickax into his gut, and the stickiness of his blood on her hands and face. Could she still get the same effect with this chain? Contemplating the potential maneuvers, she smirked.
"Keep looking at them like that and I'll wipe that smirk off your face," the Captain warned, giving the chain a reassuring jerk. Andie obeyed and tried, albeit poorly, to hide her smirk.
They passed a series of wooden doors that she'd seen a few minutes ago. If she wanted to escape, she simply had to turn left at the next hallway and take the stairs down three flights. The only thing all the intended disorientation had accomplished was to familiarize her with the building. Idiot.
Perhaps it didn't matter, if they were finally going to kill her. She considered it a missed opportunity when the let her live after killing that guard. Not without punishment of course. Though the punishment for her actions in the prior week was far worse. Quite condescending really that they valued preserving prisoner's fear of attempting to escape over the lives of their own workers.
Three months to date will be her one-year anniversary of her arrival at Kōzan; if it could even be called that. Though it could be considered a personal celebration. No one has ever survived more than a year at Kōzan. All who attempted to escape were killed immediately by the guards. A swift, painless death. And that was considered a mercy compared to being murdered by the other prisoners.
The brutality she has witnessed here gave her a profound appreciation to the concept of mercy. She thought she had seen it all-been taught it all-during her years as an assassin. She had undoubtedly crossed the line on her assignments on multiple occasions; but the deaths here made her look like a novice. Needless to say, bunks opened frequently.
At last, they stopped before a set of thick antique doors. The Captain jerked her chin at the two guards standing on either side of the doors, who stomped their spears in confirmation. She subsequently yanked the chain with such force that it pulled Andie immediately behind the Captain, clearing the five-foot distance between them in seconds. She leaned forward and whispered, "Try anything, and you'll die where you stand."
Before Andie had time to react to the threat, the doors groaned open, and she was shoved into the room. Her calloused feet made an unnatural skidding sound as she struggled to find her balance on the strangely smooth floor. She would have been embarrassed had she not been more focused on not landing on her face. Whatever conversations that had been occurring in the room prior to her entranced had ceased; only to be replaced with the skidding of her feet and jingling of chains.
A quick glance around the room revealed more armed guards, presumably more members of the Onmitsukido from their attire. The room itself was ornately decorated, to a point where she wondered if she had in fact been transferred to a different building. Her body had stopped just short of the middle of the room, where a few feet ahead sat a large figure on a dais. Rather, he seemed large given the multiple layers he was wearing: the typical shinigami uniform, adorned with a white haori, and upon this a pink, flowered lady's kimono. There wasn't a soul in existence who did not know his name; whether though appearance or reputation. Though he is frequently described as flamboyant and relaxed, the atmosphere around him spoke otherwise. Suddenly the air felt suffocatingly thick, and her body felt immensely heavy as if she could feel the weight of the air slowly crushing in on her.
"Thank you Suì-Fēng," Kyōraku Shunsui smiled kindly to the other Captain. Andie didn't even have to turn around to know that the smile was not returned. Her assumption was confirmed by the loud slamming of the doors, followed by Shunsui's sigh. He shifted in his chair, watching her as he did so, evaluating her. He then removed the straw hat and placed it on his lap,"Are you sure you grabbed the right one? I think this might be a man" he said to no one in particular. He sniffled loudly, "Smells like one too."
The air around her abruptly became manageable once more, as if the captain has already dismissed her in the short moments he assessed her. Andie shifted her weight and snickered, "So sorry captain. If I had known that I would be meeting with you I would've freshened beforehand. I do think I remember seeing a puddle or two on the way here… missed opportunity I guess."
He laughed and placed a hand behind his head, a big smile still plastered on his face as he spoke. "Good to see you still haven't lost your spirit." Her previous interactions with the man had been slim. The only time she had ever met him was during her trial, at which he was one of the two captains to advocate for her service in Kōzan instead of execution. It was likely due to his relationship with Rein. Whenever tensions were high between the Gotei 13 and the guild, Rein would meet ask to meet with the Shunsui to negotiate. Though it did not often work too well, the two had maintained a mutual understanding and respect. Rein always spoke very highly of him, which spoke volumes about his character. Rein never spoke highly of anyone but himself.
Andie shrugged. It was in her nature to be a cocky, mouthy brat. She'd likely act the same on her deathbed. Which could still be now, she had yet to figure that out. "So are you going to kill me or not. Cause I'm going to put in a complaint that I don't at least get a final meal." Or shower for that matter, but they'd already addressed that.
He cocked his head to the side and scratched the stubble on his chin, "Kill you?" He chuckled and shook his hands, "No no no, it's the opposite actually. I have a proposition for you~!" The captain cooed his last words, and Andie wondered if this really was the Gotei's new head captain. He was awfully eccentric.
Andie released a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She couldn't explain why she wanted to live so badly. Her quality of life was rather pathetic; she has no living friends or family that she knows of, she's practically forgotten what it feels like to eat a half decent meal, or relax in a hot bath, or breathe fresh air. She's taken more lives than she can count, and has yet to feel remorse for any of them. A part of her wants to die and be reunited with him again. And her family. Undoubtedly, that would be most equitable solution for everyone. And yet, she is still relieved that death is prolonged yet again.
When she didn't answer, he continued. "I'm sure you've heard about the war that occurred recently." Truthfully, she didn't. But she nodded in hopes that he would continue. The specifics of the war didn't currently concern her.
"We've suffered a considerable number of casualties; of which has not occurred in quite some time." He looked away as he spoke and again scratched at his chin. Must be a nervous habit of his. Speaking about the war obviously still disturbed him; some wounds that had yet to heal. "To be frank, we are in desperate need for soldiers. We have accelerated graduation for students at the academy and altered the entrance exam, but the numbers are still not where they need to be." His voice trailed off for a moment while he picked at the straw on his hat, "I would like to extend an offer." He leaned forward in his chair, "In exchange for your freedom, you join the Gotei 13."
Andie raised an eyebrow. "You're that desperate, huh?" She sneered in disbelief, "A year ago your people begged for my death, and now you want me to join you? You're insane captain. Did you lose your wits and your eye in that war too?"
He grinned slyly and leaned back in his chair, "You could be correct that I have lost my wits, though I could argue the same for you." He motioned for one of the men to walk forward. The soldier approached with a bundled stack of paperwork and handed it to him with a bow. Shunsui wasted no time flipping pages, "For a prison, Kōzan keeps rather detailed records of their inmates. It's impressive really. Some of them are better than the reports I have completed for the Seireitei." He stopped flipping for a moment and dragged his eyes down the page. "The records they keep for attempted escapes, though few, are even more detailed than the prisoner's biographies."
Andie restrained her desire to tap her foot in impatience. She looked around the room again while he spoke, uninterested in his mumbling. "Is there a point to-"
"Ah! Here we go~," he exclaimed, paying no mind to the curses she subsequently grumbled out. As his eyes fell down to the pages his tone followed, and the climate in the room turned bleak. "'On June 20th prisoner bludgeoned overseer Ito in the gut and Matsuda in the left temple with a pickaxe issued for work detail. Both overseers died immediately from the blunt force trauma to the abdomen and skull respectively. Prisoner then removed the blades from the corpses and proceeded to the first level where she decapitated officers Uchida and Fujimoto and severed the throats of officers Imai, Ueno, Sagawara, Makuda, Shimizu, Yoshida, Kimura, and Tanaka."
"If you're trying to get me to admit remorse for what I did-"
"Total casualties: 17 officers, 7 overseers. Punishment rendered: 12 lashings and one week in the hot box." His voice carried over hers with the authority and energy reflective of a captain. The weight in his gaze when he finally looked up from the paperwork mirrored that of Rein.
The thought of him made her blood boil. Sure, she had him to thank for her abilities and admittedly lavish lifestyle before Kōzan; she'd undoubtedly be dead at age eight without him. Though when framed that way, she also had to thank him for the scars garnishing her body, the bones that never healed correctly, the caps on her teeth, the agonizing screams she cannot forget…the list goes on. But she could live with those; she's learned to manage. She's killed enough to know that the consequences aren't undeserved. But living without Tohru, that's something she's still not sure she can endure. And she will never forgive Rein for that. That insufferable bastard still walked unscathed while Tohru rotted away in a grave and she rotted away in this prison.
He handed the paperwork back to the soldier and stood on the dais, turning his back to her. "You decline my offer and you stay here in this prison. It's your choice." His steps down filled the silence in the room. Andie continued to stare at him mindlessly. "Says that you've only got three months left until your 1-year anniversary…congratulations."
She scoffed and stretched as far as her chains allowed. There was no excusing how that report made her sound: desperate. That day she had snapped. She's not sure if she has the energy left to constantly be on guard. Another outbreak would get her killed for sure. So with no other option, she responded, "When can you get me outta here?"