Step. Step. Step. The sound of feet clunking heavily and lazily down a staircase filled the exceptionally dark room with probably the first sound in years. The pink and flowery kimono bounced slightly with each footstep as the man who was wearing it reached the end and planted booth feet on leveled ground. His hand was on the tip of the straw hat he was wearing, walking slowly up to a darkened figure that was seated in a unique chair just across the room.
"Looks like it's that time again…" The man in the hat muttered in a very carefree and deep sounding tone. He knelt down to one of the many holes that all had lines extending from them up to the chair that the darkened figure was stationed in. "I see your reiatsu hasn't gone down at all from our last visit," he chuckled lightly as put a key in the slot, turning it until a clicking sound was made. Doing so caused a part of the darkened figure to revert back to what it once was, revealing the mouth of the person sitting in the seat. The man in the straw hat stood back up and lifted his hat slightly so that he could look at the person in front of him.
"Shunsui Kyoraku… is it that time already?" The low tone of the person in the chair spoke up, a small smile appearing across his mouth.
"I'm sure ten years passes rather quickly down here, have to say I'm a little envious of your carefree lifestyle," Shunsui responded sarcastically, making his way near the chair, carefully eyeing and examining the restraints that were strapped around the rest of the imprisoned man's body.
"It really is a shame you know. I would have thought that it would have been me to remove that old bag of bones from his throne and take the title of Captain Commander." That comment made Shunsui stop for a second, his eyes shooting daggers at the man he was inspecting.
"Didn't anybody teach you to respect your elders Aizen?" Shunsui added as he finished his examination and took a few steps away from him, crossing his arms as he scanned the chair top to bottom.
"It seems like not that long ago you were here. My sense of time is probably a little off, but could it be that you came down here a few years early?" His voice was a little higher than it had been earlier as he mocked the Commander. Shunsui tilted his hat back downwards slightly as a smile crept across his face.
"Looks like I'm busted." He replied calmly.
"Is the Soul Society about to fall apart again? Or could it be something else that's been bothering you. Perhaps… the nightmares?" Shunsui was taken back a little by his response, his pupils shrinking and narrowing in on Aizen, who's smile had grown larger and cockier across his face. "I can sense by the change in pressure that I'm correct." He chuckled to himself for a moment before falling to silence, waiting to hear the Commander's response. After a few moments had gone by, Shunsui finally spoke up.
"They all have you in them, and they all go the same way. There's a battle between us and I always lose, and end up dying in the process. I played it off as just another bad dream, but others are starting to have the exact same ones. It seems more than just a coincidence." His voice remained carefree, but his tone had mellowed out, a slight hint of concern pushing through.
"And you think I have something to do with it?"
"I'm positive you have something to do with it." The smile across Aizen's face returned to its natural resting position as the sound of swords being pulled from their sheaths echoed softly around them.
"I know you're smarter than that Captain Kyoraku, those blades will do nothing to me."
"They weren't meant to cut you," He replied taking a step forward and placing the tip of his swords into the holes on the ground. He slowly turned his blades, and after a moment Aizen began to clench his mouth, making painful grunts as he did so. "I wonder what would happen if you reversed the flow of reiatsu in those bindings. Instead of restraining it, cause it to overflow in a very small and condensed space." He waited a few more seconds before turning his blades and pulling them free from the slots they were in. Deep breaths were made by Aizen for a moment before the smile returned to his face.
"Torture is unbecoming of you Commander," Aizen chuckled, mocking him once again. Shunsui had a faint smile appear in the corner of his mouth as he made a 'tsk' noise.
"You're right. Why don't we play a game instead?" He said in an unusually serious tone. He held his blades out in a cross formation in front of him and after a second, started to pull them apart, releasing them into their Shikai state. Aizen could feel what little part of his body that was free being tugged by an unusual spiritual pressure. "The game is going to be Truth or Dare, but there's one stipulation. You must always choose Truth, and I must always choose Dare." Aizen scoffed at his statement.
"You expect me to play a child's game with you? Don't insult me with such amateur tactics." Aizen's voice turned angry as he spoke, but was soon silenced by a very uncomfortable feeling from within his body. It felt like his body was a puzzle and a piece of him was removed and thrown away. Shunsui raised his head, a serious and soulless look in his eyes as he did so.
"I wouldn't refuse if I were you. She doesn't like to be told no…I'm fully aware that killing you is out of the question, but if you refuse to play the game, your body will continue to be plucked apart until nothing is left." The cocky smile returned to Aizen's face as he spoke.
"It seems you leave me no choice."
"I'm glad you see it her way. So then, I'll start things off. You must choose truth, so why are multiple Soul Reapers experiencing the same nightmare over and over again?" An unnatural force once again came over Aizen and forced his mouth open, and nearly tugging the words out of him.
"It is an unfortunate side effect of the reality around them. It seem that they're slowly starting to realize what's become of them, and what truly awaits them in the end." Shunsui narrowed his eyes towards Aizen, wanting to ask more questions but knowing that his turn is over.
"I guess that means it's my turn, meaning that you must choose dare. Release me from my restraints." Upon speaking the words, Shunsui knelt down at another one of the key holes and unlocked it, revealing the menacing eyes of Aizen as they stared him down. Aizen glanced around him, before looking back to Shunsui. "It doesn't look like you've finished yet," He said with a smile across his face
"You dared me to release you, which I did. I released your eyes, therefor completing my end of the dare. Now it's back to me again," Shunsui returned to his feet once more, locking eyes with Aizen as he did so.
"My turn again, what is your involvement with the nightmares?"
"The nightmares are my creation, as is everything else you see around you. Even I am nothing but a creation." A puzzled and confused look became of Shunsui, narrowing his gaze at Aizen once more.
"Your dare, release all of my bindings." Another strong force came over Shunsui as he knelt down and placed two more keys into slots and turned them, freeing both of Aizen's feet. Looking down though, only one foot was visible, the spot where the other should be was blank.
"I can see the hint of confusion coming from your eyes. I can only release as many seals as I have keys for, and I've just used the last of mine, so I completed the dare to the best of my ability. As for your foot…that's the price of not playing by the rules." Aizen's eyes scanned his body once more before returning to where they once were. "Now… Truth. Explain what you mean by creations." A very wide smile came across Aizen's face and his eyes narrowed slightly.
"That is the full power of my Zanpakuto. Eien no Kyoka Suigetsu, the ultimate technique, and true name of my sword." Shunsui raised his head, a strong look of concern crossing his face. He gripped the hilt of his blades tightly, the total comprehension sinking in. "My turn. Retrieve the other keys for my restraints." There was a moment of silence before a loud ding of a bell filled the room.
"I'm unable to do that, because I don't know where all of the keys are located. Only the members of Central 46 know the location, other than the ones that were given to me." Aizen scoffed again, his face and body tensing up, becoming annoyed. "Truth, what abilities does your bankai possess?"
"Eien no Kyoka Suigetsu, more commonly known as Eternal Kyoka Suigetsu, is a mass hypnosis that affects anybody who's been trapped by the normal Kyoka Suigetsu. It invades the minds of all and puts them into a vegetable like state. Everything they experience beyond that point is all controlled by me. It is the ultimate power in a zanpakuto because the only way to break free is to kill the real me, which is impossible if you're under the control of Kyoka Suigetsu. Should you die while under hypnosis you simply wake up as if emerging from a bad dream, and then relive the day of your death over and over again. There is no escape, there is no changing it. It is absolute, and it is eternal."
Aizen stopped to start a menacing laugh, which was only met by a completely dumbfounded look by Shunsui. "Now then, Captain Commander, I dare you to commit suicide." Shunsui tried to fight against it, but the force of his blades was tugged against his will as they turned and pressed against his torso. Their eyes locked once more, and only for a second as Aizen spoke his final words. "Don't worry, I'll see you soon." As he ended his sentence Shunsui's blades were impaled through his heart, and after a couple seconds he fell to the ground. The room they were in began to shake as the gate started to seal itself forever, the darkness engulfing the both of them, with Aizen's laughter continuing until the very end.
Pop. The sound of a snot bubble bursting from his nostril seemed to awake the Captain Commander from a brief slumber, apparently falling asleep at his desk again. His Lieutenant, Nanao Ise, barging into his office with an angry and annoyed expression on her face.
"Captain! Get you lazy ass in gear, you've got a big meeting today!" She shouted, the force from her voice nearly knocking him over. He quickly stood to his feet and stretched his arms out over his head, slowly walking with her out the door.
"I know… man, this job is stressful. I need a drink," He sighed as they began to make their way to the lower levels of their division building.
"There will be absolutely no drinks until after you've finished your tasks for the day!" She yelled at him again. He put on a pouty face for a moment before stopping and looking towards the large stair case that was next to him.
"I'll probably need a strong drink after this one… do me a favor will you? Don't let Central 46 know I was in there," Those were the parting words he gave his lieutenant as he began to descend down the long stairway.
Step. Step. Step.