Preamble

He stood on the sand, the ragged shoreline that had lived through so many storms. He watched the ocean, the vast body of water, stretching to an unbroken horizon. As the sunlight splashed the skies with the vibrant hues of the coming twilight, his silhouette faded from dark blue to black, barely distinguishable against the ink-black sky. A slight sea-breeze blew across his face, cooling him and momentarily releasing the strain and tension of that day. He relaxed his stance, then tensed again. A stray memory flitted through his head, reminding him of the time he had first met the Lord of the Sea.

--

It was a dark and stormy night; a young boy had been drawn to the water's edge by a voice, a psychic calling. Though he knew he could trust the one who had called him in the first place, he still was on his guard. He faced the sea, and it was then that a slight flicker of movement caught his sharp and sensitive eyes. It was a girl, her damp obsidian locks blowing across her face. She sat calmly on the sand, her face, like his, was void of emotion. Her reiatsu was strange. Too strong. Was she a shinigami as well? But pushing the thought aside, he asked her, though he already knew.

"What are you doing here alone?"

It hadn't seemed appropriate to stay silent. She shrugged his question off. "The same as what you came here to do." He looked away. He'd known.

She whispered: "To witness once more the creation of the oceans; to see the one whose power over water will never know bounds.."

As if in answer to what she had said, a dark figure rose from the angry waves. Its eyes were red as ruby, as garnet, as allamandine. Its body was white, bearing a slight pearly sheen. Parts of what seemed to be its wings were a very dark violet, their colour nearly lost in the black of the night sky. It spoke in their minds. I will meet both of you at sunset every night on this very shore. It suddenly started and turned seaward. Ask questions later.There is irregularity in the waves. I must go now. Farewell. And with that, it disappeared into the sea. The boy's eyes widened. "That was..." he trailed off. He'd seen it. He'd known all along. The girl continued softly, "The Psychic and Flying type Pokemon; the Guardian of Water."

--

She sat on the same silken sands of that beach, and she too watched the waters. Every few minutes her eyes would stray to the boy standing a short distance away, swaying ever slightly, then back to the never tiring waters. She checked her watch. Wasn't it time? But she kept her questions from departing her lips; she did not want to worry the boy. He'd had enough stress for that day already. She decided to wait awhile more.

He looked back to the girl behind him, then turned his gaze once more to the restless waters. "He's late." The girl heard him mutter.

Letting her eyes rest once more on his tense, yet laid back posture, she sifted her memories for the day they met.

--

Something drew me, like steel to a magnet. A voice. It bade me to wait on the shoreline of the beach; the beach of Storms. I went unarmed, and brought nothing. It was a gesture of peace.

Halfway there it rained hard. I sat on the damp beach, not caring if my jeans got soaked or sandy. I could always dry them, dust them.

So I sat there, staring at the angry black waters, boiling with all the fury of the storm.

Not far away, I heard the sound of footsteps approaching. I tensed, but did not get to my feet. Then I relaxed. It was a boy, no older than I was. I knew I could trust him. And somehow, at that moment I set my eyes on him, I knew, we were associated, in a way.

Then he spoke, asking me why I was right there, at the beach. Why? I asked myself, then it hit me.

"The same as what you came to do." was my answer.

At that moment, a great being rose from the angry, boiling waves. Its skin was like pearl, and its eyes blazed a beautiful crimson. It spoke to us, telling us that it would meet us at sunset every day. Then it left, as abruptly as it had come.

It was then that I noticed the boy's reiatsu was odd. He was a trainee Shinigami, just like I was. My own kind. I felt a rush of joy. Then we parted ways.

--

The girl looked up again, this time from her reverie, and the boy turned to face her. He noticed that her usual smile was missing from her features. "Something's happened." She murmured apprehensively. The boy gave an affirmative nod.

Sousuke Aizen gazed at the glinting ball capsule in his hand. It contained the Legendary Psychic/Flying type Pokemon said to control the seas. Now, finally, it was his.

"Didn't realise you'd e so easy to snag. Just a flick of my zanpakutou and you were out." He said, and a sinister smile flicked across his features. "It wasn't fun, but yet, I get to use you. Watch your disciples fall, and submit themselves to me..."

The boy fidgeted slightly, and the girl sensed his unease. Foreboding was already spreading through her system. But she did not know the source, the cause, or what exactly had happened. She spoke up.

"Hitsugaya-kun, what has happened?"

He turned.

"Hinamori.." He whispered. "It's Rugia.."

Hinamori knew. She looked up. "Rugia.. Never showed up tonight." she paused, then added quietly, apprehensively, "He... It's Aizen, is it not? He's the cause.. Of this disappearance.."

--

His mind flicked back to his second meeting with Rugia.

"Who are you?" he had asked. The reply came instantly.

You ask me for my identity, yet in your heart you already know. But I will tell you once more. I am Rugia, the Lord of the Sea...

--

"Yes," Hitsugaya Toshiro answered. "Aizen.. Aizen has captured Rugia."

note: I use the Japanese names of Pokemon here, so Lugia is written as Rugia