Thunder, Save Me
Updated Version
Summary: Two years after nearly being executed, Riina Asuka feels the entire world has turned their back on her. Mislead, she keeps making the wrong decisions. Where will she turn when sympathy runs out? Will she be able to stand when the pressure crushes her? Will her life come crashing down after, yet another, shot in the dark?
Sequel to "Rain, Forgive Me" (a book about moving past guilt); "Thunder, Save Me" is about being your own hero and standing up when it all falls down.
Chapter One: Riina, The disobedient
A solitary light glimmers in the midst of despair. Blackness consumes everything except that single dot in the distance. The dusk loved to devour anyone who was in it, and if it could, it would gulp down that light completely.
Unfortunately, there was someone who lived in this darkness that knew first-hand how vicious it could be. A man who knew it better than others due to the years he had spent there.
He walked to the source. His austere face mimicked the monster that craved the light. Over years, the monster had made the man as cold and dark as it was. It stripped away nearly everything and left behind an empty wake. A soulless man. He was so accustomed to the dark's ways that he grew to be apart of it.
Part of him wanted to put out that light. Though the single will he had left, stopped him from doing so. All that he could do was approach the glimmer of hope. At intermediate distance, it was revealed not to be a mere candle; but rather, it was a window that led out to the other world.
The silver rays poured in with images of the night sky. Each star was bright. Every one could be counted in perfect clarity. They shone brighter than any precious metal. The beauty of this light was more intoxicating than it was healing. In a mix of emotion the man felt the need to crush every star and also to plead with them to shine just a little longer. Long enough for him to escape.
It wouldn't be long... he would escape this place. The will he had left was wavering, but he knew it would be enough. He knew this from experience. He had left the darkness before, surprisingly, and had been free.
But that was the trick to the darkness, it always found a way to drag him back into its confinement. Its ever lasting hold was like a tight chain around his throat. It pulled him. It dragged him. It killed him ever so slowly.
He was getting closer. Till finally, he could go no further and placed his hands against the glass that separated him from the other world. It was cold. He could feel the other world's temperature past the thin glass. His warm breath fogged the slick surface.
He knew what he needed to do to get out of this place. A special kido that would unlock him from this darkness and set him into the light. The kido was one he learned from the keeper of the Elder Scrolls. The man would head that way after he was free.
His black eyes rested on the night before him. Such thin glass seemed feeble, but it would take all the spiritual pressure and control that he could muster, in order to break it.
His eyes were motionless, like deep lagoons- having both the sclera and iris irrefutably dim. Tears streamed from both tear-ducts, yet he wasn't sad. They were always there. Ink tears that stained and constantly fell. Constantly bled.
"Gozen-chū ni jōshō san wa, anata no shinjitsu wa yūmei to suru." The man whispered in the silence. His hands glowed softly. "Sun that rises in the morning, let your truth be renowned." The glass in front of him quivered.
"Yūgata ni settei shi, anata no chikara wa suitai shite mimashou." The white spiritual pressure glowed like a weapon against the dark. "Set in the evening and let your power fade."
Now the glass trembled and cracked. Sharp sounds burst from ahead of him every time the glass splintered. The incantation was almost over. "Kore wa anata ga hozon sa rete iru chikaradearu koto o seigyo watashi o ataeru."
The split second halted completely without another noise or movement. Even the ring of light around his hands ceased to glow. And in that moment there was a sense of justice. Justice against the monster that held him.
"Give me control over this being with the powers you have stored." The last words left his lips and instantly, the glass shattered! The sound rang like a bell and shards exploded out.. Air pressure flushed out the man through the open frame.
Wind thrashed by violently as they were sucked into the other world. The man landed on the ground along with the shining shards. His body fell into a heap as he was unable to keep his footing from such a strong push against him.
The shards hit the ground so fast that they were vaporized. Only tiny sparkles were left on the grass in this new world.
The man got to his hands and knees. Blood dripped from his forehead down to his nose. His pale skin clarified by the vivid red. His hands quavered but he couldn't get up yet. It was if gravity itself was too strong to will against.
He heard a sound behind him. In a flash, he was on his feet though it was all a haze to him what he was seeing. There was a boy in front of him. A boy about the age of thirteen. His eyes were wide and there was a deep black hole in the middle of his chest.
He gasped for air, the darkness barely whipping out into the open air before dissolving to nothing. That was the blackness the man was from. This boy was his holder.
The young boy probably had no idea that a life form existed in him. He was one of the many that were unaware of the man's kind. The man was part of a species that the boy wouldn't recognize.
The name of his species, was called zanpakuto. And there were thousands of them, all trapped inside unknowing and weak bodies like this one. They wanted the same thing he did, freedom to do what he pleased. Freedom to spar to his content. Freedom from this dark captivity.
The man watched as the boy held unto his chest. He gasped for air again. His mouth open wide and his hands clenching at his heart. Both his small hands gripped so hard that they pulsed.
The only way to break free from inside these beings was through that kido spell. And the kido spell demanded one life be taken for the other to be set free. This boy would die, his lungs were blown out of his body so he'd die from suffocation.
It looked to be an uncomfortable death. Painful even. The man knew the boy didn't exactly deserve to die, but the man needed to live and be set free. If it was at the cost of one life than so be it. He was just trying to thrive.
The man watched as the boy hunched over. His struggle finally over. His hands fell limp at his sides with his face in the grass.
The man then turned and walked away with more control over his wobbling body. He was soon able to walk and even flash step like normal. But this was going to be short lived just like the several hundred other times he had to escape from a vessel.
The darkness would be back. And whenever it did capture him again, Dakushika wanted the monster to know one thing.
"I will escape from you; no matter how many tries it takes, no matter how many years this drags on, and no matter how many lives... have to be destroyed in the process."
"Make it fifteen." A figure surrounded by mystery, stood calmly across from the man.
The person adjacent mumbled under his breath. "Come on, I got a family to feed." The man joked with a chuckle and held the back of his head with his hand. His hand scrubbed against the messy brown hair.
"Fifteen, or I leave." The mysterious person stuck out their hand. The hand was small and the skin was tan-ish white in color. It was far from smooth but was so tiny in form that it was hard to picture anyone masculine behind the dark hood.
The much taller man sighed as his eyes slid to the brick wall. Inside this alleyway, no one would see the deal that they were making. Admittedly, the man had no idea why the person wanted to speak in such a shady place. It wasn't as if they were doing anything illegal.
"I don't have all day, Isamu-san." The hand proceeded to wiggle the little stubs known as fingers.
"Fine." The man closed his eyes. He had been defeated. With that knowledge, he shoved his hand into his pocket and brought out the goods. Fifteen tube shaped fireworks. They were the littlest of the category, also known as fire crackers.
The two had bumped into each other at the local fireworks shop. Usually, the firework stands are closed in summer, since there is no occasion in Japan which would call for them. But there was a small stand open in the market place. That was where they had seen each other.
The man was surprised when this mystery person asked him to buy some fire crackers in exchange for a microwave. But the man had actually needed that appliance and since the market didn't carry any he accepted gratefully.
He didn't know why the person would ask him to buy it, maybe this hooded figure was out of money and only had a microwave. It was a strange trade off but he thought it would be worth it.
Though he was still uncertain how this person knew his name... "There. Now the microwave?"
The figure took its free hand and meticulously counted each fire cracker. "Okay, right over here." The person nodded under the black hood. It was a regular hoodie jacket, but it was large enough to conceal any body features from showing. This person was also wearing some baggy shorts. Their legs were thin, and clean shaven. Appearance aside, the man had a hunch that this was a girl. Mainly due to the voice.
"Right behind this dumpster." The person gestured to the large green tin. She... perhaps he, seemed too occupied counting the firecrackers to care.
The man took a peek behind the garbage. "But there isn't-" He quickly turned around. His eyes widened as he failed to see the person anywhere! His head jerked from left to right. How could someone get away that quickly?!
"Looking for someone?"
The voice called from above. The man looked up and saw the person on top of the building's roof. His/her leg leaning against the ledge with confidence.
"How did you-" He decided not to ask, "Where's the microwave?!"
The mystery person drew back the hood to reveal a female face. Her red hair was almost as bright as her grin. She had two long hair strands in the front that waved from the wind and the short ruffles in the back shifted softly. Her dark red eyes gleamed.
The smirk only wavered a second when she said, "Oh?" Her hands went to her jacket pockets and patted them down.
Of course no microwave would be able to fit in there. She continued, "I must have dropped it." Her lips curled a little more. "But it was nice doing business with you."
The man held out his hand, "Wait!"
The young woman saluted, "See ya later," She ran across the roof out of his vision, "SUCKER!" He heard the reminiscence of her corrupted laugh fading away with greater distance.
"NO!" He wailed. Great, he was just robbed.
Riina Asuka jumped off the building's rooftop and landed not so gently on the ground twenty feet below. She tumbled and rolled to try to brace herself against the impact. It wasn't enough as she stood up in a rush only to realize her elbows and knees were scraped. Not enough to make them bleed, which was somewhat lucky, considering she blindly ran off a two story building.
She didn't pay it any attention and continued to run. The red head was too focused on the task she must complete, she had to make it to the convenience store. She was only a hundred feet away or so.
Her arms pumped back and forth to make her go faster. And just when she thought she was safe, WHAM!
She was knocked over the head. The girl slid into the asphalt, scraping her elbows worse and making them bleed. She stared down at the black below her in shock as her body was picked up by the back of her hood.
"How did he catch up to me so quickly?!" It seemed impossible!
Her eyes widened as she was spun around. Her quivering legs were barely able to keep her upright. Riina nearly gasped as she saw who was actually there. It wasn't the susceptible man but rather four men.
Four men she should have known would find her eventually.
The tallest of the men, the leader, held unto the girl's black jacket. He gripped the cloth tightly, "Hey, remember us?" He grinned, showing his broken and yellow teeth.
His breath was heavy like a fog. Riina waved the smell away, "Uh, duh. Sure I do." She said casually with a chuckle.
"Does it look like I'm laughin'?" The man's smile dropped. "Look, you don't know who you're messing with! You'll pay for what you did."
Riina remembered what she had done. The four thugs were always patrolling the neighborhood and she was getting sick of their cocky attitudes. So she did what any reasonable teenager would do; paint all their motorcycles pink.
The short red head looked away, "I'm guessing you didn't like that color?"
The next thing she knew her face was met by his fist. The blow would have sent her falling backwards if he wasn't holding unto her so tightly. Her cheek pulsed with pain and her eyes strained closed.
"Each of those bikes are worth more than you are! What you need, is a good beating. It'll teach ya not to mess with our stuff!" He sneered as he hit her again, this time letting her body hit the ground.
With that, each of the guys took a side, and took turns doing blows.
Riina struggled to get up but even when she finally stood, she was knocked back down. All she had left to do was stare at her left wrist as each blow hurt more than the last. On her left wrist was a silver bracelet.
They didn't stop or lighten up for two minutes. They would have gone even longer if it wasn't for a certain someone getting in the way.
One of the thugs face planted into the ground. The other three turned to see who kicked him down.
His foot rested back on the ground and his hands were in his pockets. It was a high school student by the look of the outfit, but more noticeable than that was his bright orange hair. "What do you guys think you're doing?" He asked in a serious voice, his facial expression not changing from stoic.
Riina quickly got to her knees and then unto her legs. She stumbled a little but straightened. Her nose was bleeding and her eye was swollen. She kicked the lead thug from behind as hard as she could. He fell down while the two thugs left tried to get her and the orange haired kid who had butted in.
Riina was hit by one of the thugs but managed to return the favor. She was about to jump on the lead thug and try to beat him senseless but the thug she hit quickly recovered and punched her face.
She lay on the ground defeated as she had done her best and the rest was left to the orange haired guy.
But the thugs were outmatched in power, compared to the high school student. And soon they were running off.
"I'll still get you back, you little brat! Don't think this is over!" The lead thug yelled over his shoulder.
Riina painfully got to her hands and knees. Blood dripped from her open mouth. It had made quite the pool of liquid beneath her. Her red hair was long enough that it reached the pool and its tips were tainted with the liquid.
"Hey."
The girl looked up to see the male holding out his hand. Riina spat out the rest of the metal taste and grabbed unto his hand.
"You know you should probably try avoiding fights." Ichigo warned her.
Riina rubbed her nose with her long sleeve. "They asked for it! Besides, I had it all sorted."
The male sweat dropped.
Riina looked up at him, "It's still the middle of the day, shouldn't you be in school?"
He placed a hand behind his head casually, "I was until a hollow showed up. I was on my way back when I saw you." He paused a second, "Uh, by the way are you alright? I could take you by the clinic or somethin'?"
The girl placed her hands into her pocket. "Nah, I'll be fine." "More or less." She tried to ignore the pain. "I don't wanna hold you up, you should probably head back to school."
"Yeah but... are you sure?"
Riina smiled, "I'll live. Thanks for helping me out."
He nodded with a slight smile, "See ya, then." He turned and headed off in the opposite direction.
The girl watched for a second before she turned as well and walked off to the shop that was nearby.
In some time, she was at the front porch. There were two familiar faces there, both sweeping the dust off of the wood. Well the darker haired one was trying to sweep while the red head was leaning lazily against the shop.
The male was just shy of her height. He had grown a lot during the past two years, almost like a weed. His face turned into a scowl as the girl approached, "Hey, did you get the candy?"
"You didn't give me any money for that. Do you think I'm just going to snatch you a piece?" Riina was now on the porch.
He looked like he was taken back from her appearance. He had probably just now noticed her bruised face. "What happened to your face?"
"Excuse me." Ururu, the dark haired female, swept around Riina's feet.
Riina jumped to the left to allow her to sweep. Her maroon eyes catching Jinta's while he was waiting for her response. "I uh... it's none of your business!" Riina frowned as she walked past him to get to the door.
The male scoffed. "It's not like I care. I was just going to say it looks uglier than before." Jinta crossed his arms.
Riina glowered but stayed quiet. She entered the little shop. "Hey, Urahara-san!" She cuffed her hands around her mouth like a speaker phone. She then felt inside her pocket to make sure the firecrackers were still there. She was glad to find out they hadn't fallen out.
"Ah, Asuka-san!" Urahara appeared from behind a corner. His usual attire on and a cane in his hand. He walked into the open greeting room, passing by book shelves full of inventory. He had a smile across his lips, "Did you get the groceries yet?"
"Oh... that. Uh not yet." She bit the inside of her cheek. Then she cleared her throat. She trotted over to the tall blonde and stuck out her wrist. "I'll do it later. I was just going to ask if you could take this thing off. There's some things I want to do tonight." The silver link around her wrist shone as she held it out in front of her.
Now that she was closer, Urahara's eyes widened slightly. He didn't answer her question as he asked one of his own. "What happened to your face?"
Riina shook her head, "I'm fine, now about the bracelet."
"Do you mind if I ask what happened?"
Riina huffed. "I got into a little scruff but it's all okay now- the bracelet!" Her arm was starting to get tired from holding it out.
The man walked over to his coffee table and sat down on a blue cushion. "We should get Tessai to look at that, it looks pretty bad."
"Ugh, he just won't listen. I should have guessed." The girl turned to walk away, "I'll be fine."
"So about the bracelet, why do you want it taken off?" He set down his cane and instead took out his fan. It was a rather warm day so fanning himself off actually made sense.
"I uh..." Riina's eyes darted around to try to help her think of something. "Just want some freedom!" She turned with determination in her eyes.
"I wasn't born yesterday, Asuka-san. You want to use the firecrackers in your pocket, don't you?"
Riina flinched a little.
"Where did you get those? Did you pay for them?" Urahara tilted his green hat up to look into the girl's eyes. "I don't recall giving you any money."
Riina twisted around in a fit, her arms crossing snugly against her chest. "Fine you caught me."
"Last time you caused a panic in the market place and the police showed up." Urahara sighed a little. He seemed annoyed that she would forget a lesson so quickly.
"They were over reacting!" Riina turned back around with her arms extended at her sides. "It was just a little boom!" She defended herself, using her hand gestures as wild and dramatic as possible. As if the thought of her being in the 'wrong' was outrageous.
"Hand over the firecrackers." The man coaxed, his hand opened in front of him.
The red headed teen looked left and right. Then she mumbled something. Her tongue itching to say something but she contained the urge. She took out all of the firecrackers and placed them in his hand. "Fine, here."
Her feet dragged along the wooden flooring as soon as she began to walk away. The clock inside the room made each step sound louder. For some reason there was a heavy feeling in the air. A sort of strange and suspicious feeling. The red head ignored this feeling and made her way to the door.
The sliding door was within her hand's range. She stuck out her arm and felt a bead of sweat accumulate on her forehead and nearly slide down. Her heart beat faster as her hand hit the handle to the door. The room was empty besides the two and the silence was uncomfortable.
"Don't say anything..." Riina bit her lip as her hand tightened around the handle of the door. All she needed to do was open it...
"All of the firecrackers." Came an overly cheery voice.
Riina drooped as she stomped over to the man and handed over the one firecracker she planned to hide. How did he know? She slapped the flammable item into his hand and stormed out. Her hands immediately slid into her now empty pockets.
"Leaving already?" Jinta called after the girl in a taunting way.
Riina did her best to ignore the boy. It took all of her strength not to turn around and give that boy a good lesson on how to be polite. Then again she wasn't in such a position to give a lesson about something like that.
"All of the firecrackers." Riina mocked in a higher pitched tone. She was moving further from the shop that she had the privilege to call home for the past two years. Urahara was a gracious man but that didn't mean he expected nothing in return for his hospitality. She had chores to do and times to be back in the shop.
It was stupid to her. What was she? A child? Always being told what to do; it was a complete drag. Everyday, constant nagging! On and on! Riina kicked the dirt as she passed by the road that led to this establishment.
She was now out of plans for the day. She was going to set off those firecrackers as a prank but she couldn't do that anymore. She needed a new plan... something fun.
She hadn't found anything fun to do. It was a bummer since she had been looking for some form of entertainment for hours now. It was time to head back home. By home she meant the little shop she had been occupying.
She entered the store which gave a nice cool breeze compared to the hot summer outside of the shop. Inside it was also dimmer and took her eyes a moment to adjust. There, sitting at the large round table, were the people she had gotten to know. Tessai, Urahara, Jinta, and Ururu. Each one sat at a designated cushion for the meal.
There was one open cushion between Jinta and Ururu. She stared at that spot for a second, her maroon eyes almost freezing at the site. It was nothing special, just dinner. And yet she paused ten feet away with a distant gaze.
This caused the people sitting to turn toward her. Most of them still with food in their hands.
Jinta was the first to speak, as such was his usual nature. "Are you just going to stand there, carrot head?"
Riina felt a strange light sensation in her mid section. She placed her hand over her stomach and turned pale. "I... think I'll eat later." The teen quickly jogged past the group and into the back of the shop. The living quarters. Each person had their own little room and Riina occupied the guest room.
She went into the empty room and closed the sliding door behind her. Inside was a bed made up of a mat and some sheets on the ground. Along with a small dresser and a window in the center of the wall. It was a quaint room. It wasn't big or fancy but it held her small amount of clothes and her most important object of all.
Her zanpakuto. So it wasn't any more than she needed and it wasn't any less. She huffed though, as she took a step deeper into the room. The sunlight from the setting sun was barely coming in from the window. Her room faced west, if it wasn't for the huge buildings blocking the light, it would have been very bright in the room.
The red head leaned on the dresser, looking out the window. She didn't know why she felt this sudden sickness overwhelm her... The girl collapsed to her knees to stare out and rest her arms against the dresser. It was a comfortable position.
Her hair was spread over part of her arm. The long red strand laid on top, lightly tickling her skin.
Riina saw the red head in front of her view in the reflection on the clean dresser. The gigai Urahara made for her two years ago, was prettier than her old one. She looked 16, which was her age, and she had the curves to accompany that special age. Snake bites and gauges were the two types of piercings she had, making her look even more like a rebellious teenager.
This gal looked so different that at first it was hard to believe her reflection was real...
"Asuka-san?" There was a knock on her door.
The girl didn't bother to look. "Come in." She said in a lazy voice.
The door slid open. She glanced just barely over her shoulder to see it was none other than Urahara himself. The blonde man had a plate of food in his hand. He closed the door behind him and approached the girl. He set the plate on the dresser in front of her. "In case you get hungry." He smiled a little.
That man. He was truly kind. He let a near complete stranger live in his shop with his friends. He trusted her not to harm them. He let her eat and be treated like a member of the group... he was a great guy.
Riina nodded and looked back out the window.
"What's wrong? You looked sick a minute ago." His voice rang in the silent room.
"Nothing. I'm just tired." Riina closed her eyes.
"Maybe it's because you got into that little skirmish."
Riina sighed lightly, "Maybe."
"Well Tessai is out there if you need him to heal you."
"Thanks."
She heard him shuffle around for a second, "I guess I'll leave you then..."
Riina heard the man shift. His footsteps getting further away. When she was sure he was almost out of the room she murmured, "Thanks."
"For the food? I didn't cook it." Urahara's voice wavered a bit in confusion.
"Thanks for bringing it." Riina tapped the bracelet on her wrist.
There was a long pause. "No need to thank me." His voice was soft and kind. Then she heard the door open and then close.
Such a kind man... it was a shame really- she almost felt guilty.
Night came two hours later. Riina had a bar of butter in her hand and was rubbing it against her wrist. She had been working at this for the past half hour. She kept up the work though and soon her wrist was covered in the light yellow substance.
"Come on..." She whispered herself some encouragement as she pulled the silver bracelet. She pulled harder and harder but it wouldn't go past the thickness of her hand. Now that she thought about it, that was a good thing! How had she not thought of the repercussions!
She couldn't take off the spiritual restriction here! She really was surprised by her dumbness. She nodded a little as if accepting she was an idiot. Half an hour, wasted.
She went to the corner of the room and grabbed her black and white hilt. She carried it with her, along with the butter, then she creaked open her window. The brown frame moved up with a little squeak and she only hoped that no one heard it.
Carefully, she limbo-ed out the tiny window. She held in her breath, afraid someone might hear the raspy tone of it. Then she glided out unto the concrete beneath. Her flat skater looking shoes tapping against the hard surface.
Yes it was nearly a shame sneaking out like this. A trustful person such as Urahara didn't deserve to be disobeyed so blatantly. Escaping out at night and bringing her zanpakuto with her, wasn't at all accepted. Again, she almost felt guilty. But just almost.
