DISCLAIMER: I don't own Bleach.
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In this world there is good and evil. In the beginning, neither of these concepts existed. There was only the Earth and its creators, the Precursors. After the creation of humanity and their emotions, problems arose on Earth. Darkness and despair collected in the hearts of people. Those who gave into their grave feelings were consumed, thus creating the first wave of Hollow known to mankind.
The domain of the Precursors is divided into two regions: Zara Joukai, the common land, and Shou Joukai, home of the Precursors' Council of Elders. The land as a whole is known as Kouten. The Council of Elders decide the punishment given to corrupt Precursors or the circumstances under which a Precursor is allowed into the Council of Elders. The original council consisted of the five eldest precursors in Kouten, which are in turn the ancestors of four (formerly five) noble families of present-day Soul Society.
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Previous to the formation of the first Hollow, there was a great disruption in Kouten. The Council of Elders' newest member, Elder Izanami, tried to introduce concepts unheard of to the Precursors inhabiting Zara Joukai. Izanami spoke of a quest for bigger power, the advantages of darkness, and the uselessness of human beings. With the Zara Joukai being larger in population, she could gather more supporters of her dark ideologies. The day came when Izanami gathered a large enough group of followers to attempt a takeover of the Shou Jokai. The rebellion failed due to the great difference in strength between the elders and the common Precursors. As punishment, the Council created a special domain to imprison Izanami and her followers in. The dark and shadowy hell in which Izanami currently resides is known as Yomi.
Though the Council's actions were intended as a punishment, Izanami found satisfaction in Yomi. She was free to embrace her concept of darkness, and--unlike in Kouten--she was unbounded by the rules of the Council. Yomi was not a hell, but rather a dream come true. Izanami's first use of her dark powers was, as expected, tested on the humans she loathed so much. She knew that the Council of Elders were proud of their creations and would be deeply affected if they did wrong. By taking a select few people and filling their hearts with emotions such as fury and sadness, she was able to infect most of humanity with her evil ideologies. These emotions spread from one person to another, and in some, they grew far too big for their hearts to handle. Some were thrown into despair, never to come back again. It was during this time that the first Hollow were formed.
The Precursors were shocked at the evil spreading rapidly among the humans. They were at a loss as to how they would contain the spread of Izanami's evil. They already had the job of keeping the galaxy in perfect working order. Controlling the outbreak of Hollow was too much. The result was the creation of the first Shinigami, the world's regulators of the traffic between the world of the living and the afterlife. The creation of Shinigami was nicknamed project SOUL. It was intended to cleanse those taken over by darkness and allowing to have a proper transition to the afterlife. Before the time of Shinigami, the dead were taken to Kouten and made into Precursors. After the start of the chaos created by Izanami, the Council of Elders created Chuuten, the next step after life commonly known as Soul Society. They gave the Shinigami minimal powers to keep them from growing more powerful than the Precursors themselves. The Shinigami began to restore peace to Earth, minimizing Izanami's control of mankind.
As I have previously implied, after the creation of Soul Society, souls were sent there rather than to Kouten. When a spiritual being in Soul Society passes on, it can be sent to one of two locations: Yomi or Kouten. Those with a pure, refined soul are easily accepted into Kouten and given a place as a Precursor. Those burdened by sin are put through a test to determine their loyalty to Kouten. The souls which fail the test are sent to Yomi to rot indefinitely, and those that pass are accepted into Kouten. Since the souls are not completely immortal like Izanami and other Precursors, they may suffer through great torture in the shadowy lands. Such is the reason for the creation of Hollow and Shinigami.
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A/N: Any religious views implied in the above are meant solely for fictional purposes and not an impression of my religious beliefs on my readers. A lot of the story is pure fiction mixed with Japanese mythology with a "Paradise Lost" approach, meant only as a basis for the history of Soul Society. Aizen will not appear until the next chapter, which is also the last installment of this short "what if" ficlet. I hope it wasn't too confusing. I tried explaining it carefully. Let me know what you think. =)
Happy reading,
~Kai