Disclaimer: Kubo Tite owns Bleach. Enough said.
1. Ashes
The smoke is heavy in the partially lit room, making the visibility almost reduced to nothing. Ichigo can still feel the flames burning dangerously close to him and his partner, Ishida. He looks around using his flash light, tying to see if there's someone left behind.
The Kuchiki building is an impressive monster of mortar and steel, glass covering its iron skeleton like a new skin. It's not very high, only 15 floors, but it impresses through its colored glass, see-through doors and an incredible view of Karakura's financial center. Or it used to impress, Ichigo muses as he clears yet another office of any human presence and they move to the next one with practiced efficiency.
Now half of the building lies in ruin, while the other half waits for its doom. More than three hours ago, they have been announced that an explosion has taken place inside the building in its west wing. While they have managed to evacuate most of the people safely, those closer to the core of the explosion had died. Estimatively they were only five, but Ichigo can't stop thinking of those five families that will be announced tonight that they lost someone dear. He knows only too well that searing pain. Thankfully though there haven't been too many people in the building at the time of the explosion as it was towards the closing hours. Thank God for small miracles.
He clears the next room as well. He and Ishida were sent to see if there was anyone left behind, after a petite woman announced that her brother was missing. Ichigo thinks for a moment that maybe the man may be their sixth victim. He was in the west wing which was partially collapsed now. The rooms hold more debris than anything else and the blinding smoke makes hard for anyone to survive under this sort of conditions.
Ichigo breathes hard and checks for a moment with Ishida to see if his partner is any better. He is not. For the past three hours they have been fighting against the flames, trying to bring people back to safety while running bacn and forth on the stairs. The protection gear started to feel heavy a while ago and Ichigo fights with the exhaustion that has begun to take a toll on him.
"Are you sure she said ninth, captain?" Ichigo breaks the heavy silence of the crackling flames by speaking to his captain, Urahara Kisuke.
"Yes, Ichigo. She said ninth." Although the voice is full of command, there's a hint of worry in there and Ichigo doesn't like that one bit.
"Well, we checked all the rooms, sir." Ichigo replies looking into Ishida's confirming eyes. "There's no one else here. Should we go to the upper floors?"
"That's a negative. The upper floors have been compromised."
"Then sir, we're requesting permission to return to base." Ishida's solemn expression annoys Ichigo, but his partner continues: "I have only twenty minutes left of oxygen and Kurosaki half an hour."
"Roger that. Return to base. Over and out."
Ichigo feels unsettled as he starts his way back with Ishida. He feels as if he has missed something and he doesn't like that feeling one bit. He has been working for seven years as a firefighter and his instinct hasn't failed him yet. He is just about to follow Ishida across the main lobby and down the stairs when all of a sudden he hears a noise. It's almost like a cough, coming from one of the worst hit offices and also closest to the lobby.
"Did you hear that?" Ichigo asks his partner, suddenly alarmed.
"There's nothing." Ishida replies annoyed. "We double checked. There's no one left."
"Then you don't mind if we triple check." Ichigo scowls and looks towards the direction in which he might have heard that noise.
"Oh, for the love of what's holy, why in the hell's name have I been partnered with you? I must have done something really evil in another life to deserve this, like killing butterflies or experimenting on puppies."
"If you don't shut up, I'll make you. I can't hear a goddamn thing with you constantly yapping like an old woman."
Ishida scowls back but says nothing and follows Ichigo. They have been partnered for three years now and they have saved each other's life more than they could count. In spite of being completely different, they work in perfect harmony and Ishida knows that Ichigo's gut has never told them wrong.
Ichigo looks around what used to be a bigger office. The smoke reduces the visibility, not to mention that half of the office has collapsed. It's not a nice sight of what must have been a pretty impressive room. On the left of the room there's something which must have been shelves with pictures of friends and family. Mostly they got destroyed by the collapse, but a picture of a beautiful woman survived. She has jet black hair and soulful big eyes. She doesn't look extremely happy, but she must have been cherished since there's her picture, kept preciously close.
He doesn't know why, but he takes it and stuffs it into his uniform. Someone might miss this woman and they might want it back. A painful stab in his heart makes him realize how much he would like that too.
Suddenly there's another choked noise, more of a moan and this time Ichigo sees the body of a man trapped under the debris.
"Ishida, there!" He yells as he hurries to reach the man who appears to try gaining consciousness.
"Kurosaki, stop! That's a dangerous zone. Wait for the reinforcements."
"It might be too late!" Ichigo yells back as he crawls towards the man trying not to touch the loose wires in his way or the sharp broken glass. He feels the unstable structure groaning under his added weight.
"Goddamn it, Kurosaki! I must be cursed." Ichigo ignores Ishida's whining while approaching the man on the other side of the office. There are remains of furniture everywhere and the partially disembodied pieces of what must have been once chairs lay everywhere around. Broken glass and twisted metal mix with the remains making the advancement quite difficult. A desk has fallen on top of the man at a 45 degree angle which probably saved his life but also trapped him down there, while plaster and other remains cover his upper part of the body.
"Sir, can you hear me?" Ichigo shouts. They don't have much time. He has little oxygen left and he can barely breathe once he takes the helmet off. "Sir, please, sir, can you hear me?" The unconscious man moans again and that at least it's a great sign, because it means he's alive and that's more than what he thought he might find.
Ichigo gently pries long black hair from a face covered in scratches and blood. There's a gushing wound on the man's temple, probably from being hit by the debris. Other than that, there's no visible wound around the upper side of the body. He takes his mask of oxygen and puts it gently on the man's face. He's a little surprised to see that the man is quite handsome, with strong jaw and high cheeks, but at the moment he doesn't care about that. Ichigo checks the arms and winces when he sees the weird angle of the left wrist. Definitely broken.
He looks around and picks what once must have been the legs of a chair. He needs to immobilize that wrist before moving the man. He's already afraid of what he might find at a closer inspection. Almost tenderly he takes the man's tie and uses it to pin down the wooden splints to the wrist. The man groans again in pain.
"Kurosaki, what's your status?" He hears his captain's voice in the communication device and by the sound of it, he doesn't sound happy at all. Well, he'll just have to deal with that later.
"I found him, captain. Male, early thirties. Unconscious, possible concussion and a broken wrist. Caught under a heavy desk, but hopefully it can be moved."
"Ok, you listen to me carefully, Kurosaki. I want you and Ishida to get out of there. I have just sent Chad and Tessai after you. They will arrive there shortly and they will take over the rescue mission."
"That's a negative, sir."
"What?"
"Sir, we are in one of the worst hit offices. It is highly unstable and it can barely keep me, but under two heavy guys like Chad and Tessai, it most certainly will collapse."
"Kurosaki, stop being stubborn and listen to me: you barely have oxygen left. You put both yours and Ishida's life at risk. Get out of there now! That's an order."
"With all due respect, sir, I will ignore your order and we can argue about that later, although if he wants, Ishida can leave. Just send the guys up but tell them to stay clear of the room."
"When this is over, Kurosaki, I will have your ass on a silver platter."
"I didn't know you're a fan of such kinky shit, captain."
"Yeah, yeah." Crackling static. "Be careful, Ichigo."
"Yes, sir."
Ichigo looks back at his victim.
"Sir, can you hear me?" He gently pats him over the cheek. The man moans again and this time his eyes flutter. "Yeah, that's it: open your eyes for me. Come on." The eyes flutter open at last and even in the dim light, Ichigo is startled to meet steely grey eyes. By the looks of it, the man is also surprised at Ichigo's appearance. He tries to take the mask off, but Ichigo stops him gently.
"Sir, my name is Kurosaki Ichigo. I promise I will get you out of here, but first answer these questions and then we will think about removing the mask, ok?" Ichigo goes on by asking some standard questions to which the victim answers by nodding or shaking his head. His grey eyes though never leave Ichigo. "Ok, you seem all right. We will remove the mask and try to buy ourselves some time before I get you out of here." He tenderly takes the mask away. "What's your name, sir?"
"Kuchiki Byakuya." The man replies in a hoarse voice.
"Well, Byakuya, firstly we have got to take you out of here." Ichigo speaks with definite precision while he measures what would take to remove the desk. "I'm afraid that the structure isn't safe anymore and this side might cave in soon."
"Did my men...did my men get out safely?"
"Yes." Ichigo moves a little the debris to check what's going on with the lower part of Byakuya's body.
"What", the man coughs, "what happened?"
"We don't know yet, Byakuya." Ichigo's hands work fast by pulling the remains away, trying to free as much of Byakuya's body as he can. "All we know is that an explosion took place around this area. After we put the fire out, we will figure out what has gone wrong. By the way, if you feel you can't breathe anymore, make sure to put the mask back on."
"What about you?"
"I will survive." He gives a small smile before going back to work.
He analyzes the situation. He doesn't like this one bit. The desk seems heavy and it will be difficult to remove it all by himself., but getting another man in is out of the question. The added weight might kill them all.
"Can you move your legs?" Ichigo asks softly although he already knows the answer.
"No," the man answers blankly. It impresses Ichigo the fact that the man can be so calm in such a terrible situation, but it doesn't make him feel better. At the rate they are going he doesn't think that there are big chances to get Byakuya out of there.
Just as Ichigo is about to say something comforting though, the whole building shakes like a monster which was asleep and suddenly is awoken by annoying ants. Everything moves around them and remains and parts of the plaster start falling again. Ichigo throws himself over Byakuya just as piles of wood and glass crash over them with enough power to hurt them bad. His body covers almost all of Byakuya and Ichigo would find their position quite funny if it weren't so damn frustrating.
When the shaking and roaring finally subside, the dust and smoke mix in a terrible combination and he almost immediately starts to cough while he almost forcefully puts the mask over Byakuya's face again. He groans as he gets up. Something must have hit him pretty hard because every cough brings a nasty pain between his shoulders.
"Ichigo! Ichigo, are you all right?" He hears Ishida's desperate yells.
He coughs a little more before finally answering:
"Yeah, we are all right." He looks down at Byakuya who has an indecipherable look on his face. "Yo, Byakuya, still among us?"
The man nods as he doesn't seem thrilled to be pinned down in an office about to collapse. Ichigo understands completely his feelings, although he also wonders if the man is annoyed at being addressed so familiarly. Well, tough luck. He is saving the jackass's ass so the least he could do would be to accept the familiarity between the two of them.
Ichigo looks back at the desk trying to see the damage that the moving might have made, but the sight makes him yell "Hell, yeah!" as it moved just a little, just enough for Byakuya to move from underneath it.
"The desk has moved." He says again, gasping a little for air as it becomes harder and harder to breathe in there. "I can get you out: on the count to three, I am going to pull you out of there, all right?" The man nods seriously again and Ichigo gets up and takes Byakuya by the armpits. Not very dignifying but well worth for when he is rescued.
The pain in his back is getting stronger, making him breathe harder and harder.
"Ichigo!" Ishida's horror sets him on alert but he ignores it and wants to act before the ground moves again, so he counts to three and he manages to pull the man from under there. He collapses on his back due to the sudden freedom and screams in pain as his entire back feels aflame.
"Goddamn it!" He shouts and feels like his whole world narrows down to his back.
"Ichigo, Ichigo!" Byakuya's voice is adamant in being heard as there's worry buried in that gravely voice. Ichigo lets it wash over him, closing his eyes for a little bit. He would like to argue that taking off the mask isn't a very good decision but he doesn't have the necessary power at the moment.
"Yeah," he groans as he opens his eyes again and tries to get up, "yeah, I'm ok." Grey eyes look worriedly at him. "Really, I'm all right. Can you get up?"
"Yes." Nothing seems broken so the man gets up on his own legs with little help from Ichigo. He's taller than him, has broader shoulders too. Even covered in plaster and bloodied, this Byakuya guy looks like an important man, there's something naturally graceful about him.
"Now let's get out of here." He says and helps Byakuya crawl towards the exit showing what to do and silently praying the floor won't collapse on them before they reach for safety. The man moves sluggishly but with determination and Ichigo can't help but admire that. Even the broken wrist doesn't seem to stop him. That burst of adrenaline must do them some good right now. As they finally get out of that hell of debris, Ichigo sees Tessai and Chad around Ishida. They look incredible weary as well. The difficult day has taken a toll on all of them.
"Took you long enough," Ichigo grunts as the pain in his back becomes searing.
"Ichigo!" Ishida exclaims, this time the terror in his voice alerting the other men as well. They all look at him like he has a death wound or something because Chad almost reaches for him but Ichigo bats away his arms.
"For crying out loud, what?"
"Your back-"
"There's no time for this kind of shit." Ichigo cuts him off while the others looks at him with new worry. "Let's get the hell out of here and we will analyze my goddamn back later."
No one says anything else but the worry floats around them just as heavy as the smoke. Byakuya puts his mask on again as they start to climb down the stairs and Ichigo is again surprised by his iron will as didn't complain at all and just let them do their jobs without panicking or anything. There would be some gruging admiration in his head if he wouldn't be feeling so bad. Still, Ichigo fights against the pain and the dizziness; he could barely breathe before but now it's like acid has been burned into his suit. It makes him gasp for air and more than enough times Chad stops and silently shares with him his oxygen mask.
When they finally make it out of the building, there are relieved sounds all around them, but Ichigo hardly hears them. He sees the medics approach Byakuya as the most visibly wounded among them. There's a roaring sound in his ears and Ichigo feels like Atlas, the burden of the world collapsing over his back, making him weak in the knees.
He crashes on his knees, trying to find support on his hands. The cold pavement feels rough under his palms. The noise gets muffled except for his harsh breathing. His vision starts to blacken as gentle arms try to help him. Still there's an imprint of a gravely voice saying his name as if he's also cherished. His thoughts don't make sense anymore because suddenly he would like to be like that woman from that picture which he should have given to Byakuya but didn't. Cherished again. Wouldn't that be nice? He could sigh contently but he finally lets himself fall prey to unconsciousness and thinks that at least for a while he deserves some rest. Just for now.
oOo
A/N: I respect and admire firefighters very much and think they are really brave men and women. Nonetheless I must confess that I know nothing of their equipment or standard procedures other than the Hollywood clichees, so bare with me if this might sound far fetched to you.