I kept on looking from far. I couldn't help myself in the end. I just had to. It was taboo to even think about trying to work your own stories using someone else's creation, but I have succumbed and admitted it's just too alluring to avoid. Without further ado, I make my foray into fan-fiction.
BLACK GARDEN 1 – EMBERS OF A BLOODWAR
1
Across the world in secret places.
In a deep dense forest in the Amazon.
In numerous small cities in Japan.
In the desert, Egypt.
Bermuda, Antarctica
Serbia, Amsterdam, Johannesburg
Australia
Over oceans of the seven seas…
On the tall buildings of Berlin, people clad in black and people clad in white clashed against one another. Blue arrows of light streaked forth and punctured people and deadly blades cut down the other side. Surprisingly despite their range, the supernatural archers were falling to the blades of the shiningami.
The blade came down and the blood rose up, besting the blue arrows of the Quincy.
This scene was being repeated countless times across the world.
The Quincy were losing. This was the end of a war.
This was the dregs of what had been known as The Thousand Year blood war, four months after the fact. Now it was just a worldwide massacre, extermination. Sometimes the Quincy put up large scale fights. Sometimes it was one on one battles, but whatever the case they were losing.
The few Quincy forces that were fighting were scattering: Their King had fallen. They had nowhere to go.
Somewhere in the skies of London, England, a key battle was taking place. Or the remains of a battle at least.
Two members of 'The Divisions' stood in the air in front of a large white gate.
One was Raito Goriaki, an old man of short stature, with a bald head with a top-knot. He crossed his hands as he watched. A younger comrade with jet black hair stood on the side. His name was Maru. Just Maru.
"Is this really a good idea?" Maru said nervously.
Goriaki huffed, "Who cares? Most of the captains agree anyways. They'd come along themselves if Yamamoto didn't suddenly get old in the head."
Maru scratched the back of his head, "Oy oy oy…. Be careful of when you say those things. Especially if someone like Sasakibe were to hear…" The other said as he eyed the gate. His zanpakutou – his sword – was sheathed as normal. There was no fighting here.
Goriaki snorted, "So what? Everyone agrees, and it's done. We'll hunt down any of those remaining Quincy. Letting them off is foolishness!"
"Yeah." Maru said.
They were discussing a plan to go after The Quincy vanguard fighting force: The Sternritter. What little control and order remained was only due to these elite. A
When Genryuusai Yamamoto let the king go rather than execute him, most of The Sternritter had vanished along with him. The two shiningami talking now both agreed: The mercy of that man had left them in a situation whereby the Quincy could hide and come back for revenge.
For this reason, these two men were standing here. This was all of course unofficial. Only a select few captains supported going against The Commander's directive.
"Will it be useful at all?" asked Maru, "It's Hueco Mundo after all… We may take out one or Sternritter but they're only fundamentally human. They won't be able to last in the first place. They will die regardless of what we will do. Two years from now Quincy will be extinct. At most."
Goriaki smiled, "That's the key. How much do you know about Hueco Mundo? This is a place that barely anyone has investigated. And what if the Sternritter survive for some time and somehow gain power? We need to deal with both problems: It's so many birds with one stone."
"You mean this is some sort of data collection mission as well?"
"Of course. Whether they live, or die, we will reap the benefits. This is exactly why we have backers even from Central supporting this."
Maru was shocked, "Central? Really?"
"Who else do you think would make the assembly of the shiningami's first united task force team? And the wide pardon of those Risk Elements?"
'Risk Elements' are shiningami who are deemed dangerous to Soul Society as a whole, and locked away, whether they have committed a crime or not…
Maru nodded, "I see… "He noticed something and commented, "Oh, it looks like it's finished. They've gone in."
In the distance the last fighting seized. Some Quincy had been left at the Garganta to hold off the pursuing task force.
One last flash, a drawn out scream, ("FOR THE KING!") And it was over. The great white gate closed up and the night sky was free of any obstruction.
"Those Quincy sure love their pride." Maru said.
"Pride doesn't win any wars. Power does." Goriaki replied.
The two shiningami turned and walked through a waiting senkaimon. They never appear in this story ever again.
15 bodies clad in black ran through perpetual darkness on a yellow path made of reishi.
This group of shiningami didn't look like a seamless single unit: Not one person was quite like the other. The only similarities were their uniform, and yet even one or two had something over their black shihakusho.
This was the covert shiningami team, Black Garden. Their mission: Pursue and destroy the fleeing Sternritter.
Noticeable at the tail end of this battalion was a giant of a man who stomped along the path, and it was a wonder that his weight didn't crash right through the flimsy looking reishi bridge. His name was Jimizu "Rashoumon" Ikkanzaka.
Creating this sturdy spiritual bridge was the kidou officer Benjamin Kuramada, and he was sweating heavily at the strain of holding up everyone including this giant. Still, his skill was undeniable to be making such a clear and wide structure in such a place.
They were crossing through the void world to Hueco Mundo, and apart from them and this light bridge, there was nothingness, a pitch black.
Kuramada sighed, "Rashoumon of all people crossing this place… He's so damn heavy… how the hell did he get like that? Was he actually a whale in his past life?"
"Sorry about this Kuramada." A beautiful dark skinned lady with black hair spoke. She seemed to have no issues running along with the others. Her name: Yuko Yoriko, a medical officer.
Benjamin Kuramada smiled sheepishly, openly overwhelmed at her beauty, "Ahaha it's nothing I'm just complaining for fun." He winced when at the back of the line Rashoumon made a heavier step than usual.
"Don't push yourself…" A concerned boy whispered next to him.
This person was bespectacled and almost as tired looking as Kuramada. He didn't have much stamina to be running like this. However, he seemed to want to keep up with Yuko.
His white lab over coat identified him as either a high ranking officer or one of the 'Field Geeks'. The few times when their intelligence was needed on the battle field people like him were called on upon by Division leaders to analyze reiatsu within an area.
No shiningami leader would admit to the fact that such scientific officers were useful however. Hence their nickname of Field Geeks. The name of this particular Geek was Ming-Rui Yamato.
Benjamin managed a smile. "Heh. If a weakling like you takes pity on me, then my reputation as a genius kidou-master is over!" With one final shout he added more power and the bridge finished to its final stretch to break out of the void world.
At the end of the bridge the blackness opened into segments of uneven squares, revealing a bleached desert at night time.
Collectively they all vaulted out of the black void world into Hueco Mundo, landing on the sand one by one. Rashoumon landed with a heavy boom, before silence descended on the group as they looked around.
Ming-Rui forgot his fatigue for a moment as excitement rushed through his veins. He looked out in interest.
"Ah…" He had no words as he looked up at the moon.
So this… This was the eternal twilight of Hueco Mundo.
"Look sinister." Yuko said. But to Ming-Rui it looked something other than that… Beautiful
"Hueco Mundo" Ming-Rui spoke with awe. The other shiningami held solemn expressions, each with their own thoughts.
Hueco Mundo was just a name to many shiningami, just as Hell or The Spirit Palace usually was. This was truly a privilege.
"We're here-"Kuramada was cut off by someone hissing at him, "And we're on a mission. Silent."
"Okay everybody." A voice called out in a voice that wasn't too loud but commanding enough to get everyone to listen.
It belonged to a benevolent looking man with a golden necklace and small tattoo on his left cheek. The handsome man was clearly a noble of sorts. Name: Shiga Ukitake.
"While Kuro scouts out be quiet and alert." Smelling the air, he breathed in deeply, "Hmm…" He shrugged, "Well, anything is better than the stench of Rukongai…"
"What… Did you say?" Rashoumon growled.
Shiga only laughed and ignored the giant.
As the shiningami got used to their general bearings, Kuramada held the portal open. This was considerably less strenuous than ferrying the whole team across the void.
"Are you okay?" Ming-Rui asked, finally able to pay attention to his surroundings.
Kuramada nodded, "Hm, a little tired but I'll manage."
"Here, have this." Ming Rui handed him a pill, "It's new, but I'm sure it'll help. I got it from a trustworthy source…"
Kuramada paled, "You made this yourself didn't you."
Ming-Rui did not comment.
Kuramada promptly pocketed the pill, "No, I don't want to die just yet."
Ming-Rui was just about to reply when a flash of light streaked past them. It nearly hit Kuramada.
"Looks like they left some small fry here!" Shiga shouted merrily as he cut down a masked Quincy. Another tried to escape but was matter-of-factly flattened by a small footstep by Rashoumon.
The distance the Quincy had travelled was notable, but the foot had simply reduced that distance to nothing.
Seemingly unconcerned about the person under his foot, Rashoumon stretched himself loudly. Horrendous cracks pealed out across the landscape like gunshots, and the shadow he cast was long and deep. The shiningami generally stayed out of the shadow of this giant.
"So unclassy." Shiga said disapprovingly up at Rashoumon, "How are we even supposed to maintain an element of surprise with you standing around here?
It wasn't his fault that he was that large, but in such a flat landscape it indeed posed a problem. Rashoumon did not seem apologetic at all.
"What can weak twigs like them do? Let's deal with them and get out of here." He rumbled.
Shiga rubbed his chin, "Hm… I don't disagree, but we haven't met our prey yet. They can't have gone anywhere in such a flat landscape so fast. They bought some time yes but we've gone after them fast. Kuramada, don't tell me you messed up on transportation?"
Kuramada struggled to keep his face straight, annoyed, "No chance of that. Besides I was not the only one who sensed their reiatsu."
A tall and thin man with small spectacles walked up to Shiga,
"Shiga, you aren't the leader of this squad so please refrain from acting as such."
Shiga looked at the man, "Well, toothpick, I didn't see you doing anything.
'Toothpick' just stared at Shiga and nodded at a nearby crest of the hill, "Contrary to the general landscape that hill is wide and tall enough to hide whatever's on the other side. Hueco Mundo is also known for having deep underground caverns. As a leader I know this. Kuro is already out tracking their scent, for now, we wait."
Shiga said nothing and looked away.
The man adjusted his glasses and looked up at Rashoumon, "I repeat: There are underground caverns, so please be wary of stepping around so happily."
Rashoumon grunted as a reply. It seemed good enough for the man.
Without losing a beat he turned and addressed the other shiningami present, "Everyone else be alert! Benjamin, keep that Garganta open. I recommend you take what Yuko prepared when you begin to feel fatigue. In the next half hour, we'll see if we're here for the long run or it's a quick mission. I want you and you to protect him."
Other than Yuko and Ming-Rui, two other shiningami gathered around Benjamin Kuramada.
The other shiningami were taking positions as well.
Some set down large packs that they had carried with them. However, even if they were staying here for 'long' the supplies they had were for no more than 2 weeks.
Technically there was no rank and file in this team, but 'Toothpick', was the one who issued general commands by common agreement.
Satisfied that his orders were being followed, 'Toothpick' murmured, "Shiga. On the day that your false sense of nobility compromises the team I will cut you down and go along with my own business. I'd like to be able to ignore you but our kind of situation demands that we be careful."
Shiga brought his hand to his hilt, "Oh really?"
'Toothpick' seemed unperturbed by this gesture, only looking silently at Shiga.
"I have a report." The bald shiningami arrived with a discreet flash step amongst the two, ignoring the tense atmosphere.
"Kuro." Toothpick acknowledged him, "Speak please."
"Thirty Quincy. They're splitting in two groups. The lead Sternritter has mobilized to attack us with four others. They will be on us in the minute."
Shiga whistled, "Must be confident in their abilities huh?" He unsheathed his blade smoothly.
"Or they're buying time for a greater cause. What is the other group doing?" Toothpick unsheathed his sword as well.
"I had no time to confirm." Kuro said. As an attack was coming right then he only had time to announce that fact. Still, it was commendable that he was doing this all with absolute calm.
Toothpick nodded, "It may be a last ditch effort to let the smaller members survive. Or it could be a calculated action to win. I did not expect The Sternritter to face us so quickly; it seems this mission may be short after all."
Toothpick shouted the order, "Everyone! They're coming! 3 pronged attack formation, now!" Toothpick ordered. The shiningami all unsheathed their blades in preparation for battle.
They looked at the hill from whence Kuro had come. Nothing seemed to indicate anything of the sort.
Until they crested on the hill, five of them riding platforms of spirit particles, with their bows already drawn.
Before any of the shiningami could say anything goats of blue arrows flashed down towards them. The battle began.