Chapter 2

The sirens outside the door grew louder still. Apparently I had caused quite the fire, because it sounded like at least seven fire trucks were surrounding the place. The flames reached as high as the ceiling, fed by the accelerate I had added earlier, so that would make some sense.

No, no, no, no, no! This wasn't how things were supposed to go! I was supposed to get it right this time! I was supposed to be dead right now! Bathing in the sweet waters of Lethe in an attempt to drown out my sorrows, oh how ignorance is bliss.

No, that wouldn't do either; I owe her so much more than that, and I should never be allowed to forget…

'I'll be waiting for you.'

The shrill of screams coming from beyond the buckling walls of the building brought me out of my reprieve. Above the roar of the flames, I could make out the sounds of random human spectators musing over my work, reporters scrambling around trying to get a story, and the authorities rushing trying to control the madness.

Huh. Madness.

Szayel Aporro Granz must be having a grand ole time out there.

'Oh you know I am', came the mental response from the Aspect. 'Humans are such a mindless bother. We should just wipe them all away, or enslave them and use them as test subjects. At least then, they could be of some use.'

I groaned. I didn't want to deal with his 'I-hate-all-humans' attitude right now. It gets annoying after a couple thousand years. 'Get out of my head!' I screamed at him with my mind. Quickly I wipe away the tears rolling down my face, trying to get a handle on my emotions.

I would not cry in front of an Aspect, or anyone else for that matter, but especially not before a mother fuckin' Aspect. One negative emotion would bring all ten of them here flocking like flies.

'Oh come on!' Szayel continued. I noticed that the amount of chaos outside was starting to increase like the flames inside the warehouse. 'Don't be so grumpy that your little attempt failed again. Honestly I don't even know why you try Shinigami no Kami.'

He sneered the title, stressing the reason why I couldn't die. 'I said shut the fuck up! Why are you even here?'

Outside the fire fighters were readying themselves to bust into the building, too bad for them I safeguarded the door. No mortal would be able to open that door for the next four days.

'Do you think that I would sit around and miss this? This is like most amount of entertainment that I've had in nearly four-hundred years!'

God! Why was he still talking to me? 'Lucky you.' I replied. 'Now get out of my head, this isn't a request Aspect. It's an order!'

'Of course, as you wish, Shinigami no Kami.' Again with the tone! He sounded like he was trying to placate a fussy child, not as if he were addressing his superior.

I'd mop the floor with him later. (Ugh! There was going to be a later!)

When he dropped his mental link to me, I quickly set up a mental block. I didn't need, nor did I want to talk to anyone right now, especially the Aspect of Madness. I already had enough inner chaos to drive the Cosmos insane and still have some left over to fill the other dimensions.

There was a thundering crack against the door, and I shook my head at their efforts. Mortals really could be entertaining at times with thinking that they could best the strength of the supernatural, at other times that foolish pride could be annoying as all hell.

Guess which one of these times I'm referring to now?

I reluctantly broke the mental block in my mind.

'You rang milady?' Another scream could be heard, just evidence of another person losing their mind while watching the scene from the outside. (Huh. I wonder if it's a crack-head realizing that they'd have to get stoned somewhere else? Then again, who cares?)

A sneer crossed my face. 'Don't be a smart ass', I sent back with a cough. These fumes were getting suffocating and the smoke was making me want to claw my eyes out. Then I got an idea: fumes! Maybe this wasn't a lost cause! I could suffocate!

Szayel groaned and I could just picture him rolling his eyes. 'Oh for all of the Cosmos! Just give it up already!'

I opened my mouth and dragged in as much of the thick black smog as I could and held it. The bellows of my lungs, not used to handling this amount of vaporized poison, spasmed in protest, maybe this was the key.

'It's not gonna woorrrk', Madness continued in a sing-song voice.

"Fuck off," I coughed out aloud in reply, knowing that he could easily hear me. Damn, now I'd have to start over.

'Just sayin.'

I, ignored him this time and tried again, only to cough again at the smoke. It seems like the only thing that I've managed to succeed at with my earlier attempt was to weaken the strength of my aura, making me susceptible to these earthly agitations.

Not enough to kill, but enough to piss me off.

'Well what do you expect? You practically blew the goddamn thing off with that bomb. Your aura is so stripped, I'm surprised that you're not writhing in pain right now.'

It sucks to be me.

'Would you shut up for fucking five seconds!', I yelled at the rambling Aspect, completely ignoring the fact that he was right. 'Just because I drop a mental block, it doesn't mean it's an invitation for you to start babbling!

He snorted, probably losing interest at what I had to say already. Outside the burning building, the crowd grew more restless, and the feeling of desperation increased.

He's such an ass.

'So what do you want?'

'Simple' , I replied with a smirk on my face. This smoke was getting on my nerves now, rubbing them raw. Due to my severely damaged aura (which wasn't apart of the equation might I add!) I was more sensitive to things that I should be. 'I want you to leave.'

And I did. I craved his, and everyone else's absence. I wanted everyone to just fucking leave me alone to suffer in this billowy pit of darkness so I could think of a more effective way to take myself out the picture.

Her angelic voice came to me. 'I'll be waiting for you.'

I'm trying, with everything I am, I'm trying. If I could just get to you, if I could just see you one more time.

If I just had a second chance, I would've made a different choice. I've would have made a different choice!

I sat crouched there broken in the sea of flames with my knees hilled under my chin. Without thought, onyx feathers surrounded me- a cocoon of sorrow. Szayel could probably hear me, but right now I didn't care. I'd failed her again.

What was I, who was I, if I couldn't even kill myself?

'It's what makes you who you are, what makes you what you are. As us all.'

I snorted. Whatever. I hated both who and what I was. Now more than ever.

Above me, the roof exploded flinging sheets of metal in every direction. Windows started to shatter out and glass rained down around me. Outside more spectators screamed in horror and I could make out the sounds of pain as well as the call for the authorities to fall back from the building.

Sounded like someone got hurt, bad. With a sigh, I pulled on my Second Sight causing the golden rings of my eyes to tinge sapphire, and scan all the mortals' life spans. Numbers raced by me, a spinning vortex of counting timer winding down. All were heading backwards in different variations of speed, all from different starting points.

It only took me a second to find the fatally wounded firefighter. A male at the age of thirty-one, blond, blue-eyed.

James Willson. That's Willson with two L's. It was his clock that was spinning back faster than nobody's business. He wouldn't die today, but that blast would take three years off his life. His comrades rushed him into a nearby ambulance.

Oops. My bad.

A fierce laugh rang out in the air, so strong that I could feel the smoke shift to the other side of the room. Outside, a nearby car exploded.

Damn it all. I couldn't catch a break today could I?

Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez swooped down through the hole in the roof he just made, laughing like a stupid maniac. Lightning blue eyes took in the scene like a rabied dog itching to bite. I can tell the destructive feature of the fire was getting him off.

Weirdo.

"Aww, someone's grumpy 'cause they didn't wake up in Hell," he chuckled.

"Funny", I spat back, my eyes were just ready to jump out of my skull. " I thought I was already there."

He laughed again and Szayel joined in. "You got close", Grimmjow said gesturing to our current setting. "But this place is nowhere near as exciting though."

I groaned. "Why are you all showing up, I didn't summon you."

"You might as well", they replied at the same time.

Before I could bite back a response, the red glow of my aura reappeared and my wings began to itch.

" Oh, what's this?", Grimmjow mocked as another beam fell to the ground.

The glowing grew in intensity until I was shining like the freaking sun. As I got brighter, a new sensation took over leaving my limbs heavy. The light began to die down leaving my body covered in blood red shackle and chains. Two were wrapped around each of my wrists and ankles and two more reached up to ensnare my calves and biceps. "Shit!", I yelled upon seeing my comfindments.

But to make matters worse, the final chain appeared and wrapped itself around my neck. Once secure, the slack opposite ends of the chains tightened and lifted skyward, shooting upward through the hole in the roof.

Then came the pull.

Too bad for those bastards I was ready for it. I braced myself, so when the chain yanked again, I was only dragged fifteen feet across the floor instead of being pulled into the air.

Grimmjow laughed again Szayel snickered. "It looks like you're the one being summoned Shinigami no Kami!" the former taunted.

I knew what this was. Yeah, I was being summoned alright. It was more like being called to an audience though.

Against my will.

I was getting summoned to the Mediator's Door.

Completely ticked, I wrapped my arm around its lifted chain and pulled back, automatically stopping my movement. How dare they! How fucking dare they think they can drag me in? I may be suicidal, but I'm nobody's slave! You don't drag me into anywhere!

In response to my behavior, the endings of the chains lifted higher and pulled harder. I was getting under their skin.

Good. Welcome to my existence.

"Why don't you just go?", asked the Aspect of Maddness , his voice was just dripping with boredom. I haven't heard anyone scream in a while, so I know he was growing tired screwing with the mortals.

Just because he said something, I put more effort into my resistance. "No one drags me anywhere. I'm nobody's bitch."

"Ha! I wouldn't say that!", the Aspect of Destruction scoffed. True to his name, he was currently busy working on dismantling the last few beams that held up the other half of the roof, causing it to crash to the floor.

Note to self: Kick all the Aspect's asses once I get home, even if they weren't here. (I'm sure they'd earn it later anyways.)

Maddness sighed as his eyes roamed the room for the umpteenth time. "Just go, this place is way beyond dead."

'Yeah, but I'm not with it.'

"Oh get over it already!" Destruction yelled, turning to leave. "I'm outta here, this is lame!" He turned to give me a vindictive smile and a mock salute. "See ya after ya get ass handed back to ya!" Then he faded from existence.

"I'm leaving too. I'm tired of being in the same place as mortals." Szayel said with a disgusted shiver, and then he too disappeared.

I sighed in relief. I was finally alone. Now to readjust my calculations…

The chains jerked harder in response, and I growled. Throwing my hand, I cut the chains causing the chains to break and red aura petals to rain all around me. "I'm coming! Keep your goddamned panties on old man!"

With a sigh I stood. 'Soon' I made the promise more than myself. 'I'll get it right soon. Just wait for me Shoalin.'

Standing, I finally spread my wings, the color almost blending in with the smoke. With one thrust, I was shooting into the air quicker than the natural eye could make out. I was depressed, pissed, and aching.

Just the perfect mood for a date with the Mediator.

AN: Yeah, I just realized that this is going to have a slow start. So this will be more of a Yoruichi thing for a while, but we'll get to Soi… uhh eventually? I'm enjoying myself, and this pace so I think I'll keep it. But I will have action in the next chappie.

BTW, has anyone guessed what Yoruichi is yet?? LOL!