Warning this chap of the story is rated M for violence.
Haunted
By
Mojo-licious
Chapter Seven
The Captain
A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she placed the leather bound book on the side-table and turned off the light. She hated being confined to these whitewashed walls. Dull violet eyes trailed down towards her bandaged hand. A frown spread across her lips as fragments of her past came fleeting through her mind, bombarding her with accusations and reminders of the acts she had committed. It was in these moments that the walls she had painstakingly erected, fell, leaving her, an emotional mess.
Painted lips, powdered faces, fashionable dresses and ballroom dances; those were things that a normal seventeen year old noble should be doing. Such was not the case for Rukia Malvin, while her sisters partook in such activities, she abhorred them and made sure to fill her schedule with work. Despite her sisters sorrowful expressions, she plastered on a smile urging them ahead while she hid behind the walls of the military. The mere thought of socializing with such ignorant people annoyed her; to them suffering meant having a bad hair day or not getting the best of something. While they ate and preached their supposed pitiful states to sympathetic ears, there were those on the streets dying of starvation. Only the families of nobles enlisted in the army or the emperor's courts understood the dire situation the country was in, while others paraded their wealth and prided themselves on the luxuries they could afford.
Besides obvious reasons, there were more personal ones which fed on her insecurities. When she was a child, parties had always excited her. It meant getting a new dress and performing in front of an audience. In those days she had meticulously prepared for such events with her mother, by selecting the perfect piece to play or sing and shopping for the right dress. Back then she had been protected from the world beyond the gates of her home. It wasn't until the age of seven, that her world fell apart. She hadn't realized how much she had changed until a year later when she attended a social gathering and found herself unable to share in joys of the elite. When other girls her age showed off their dresses to one another claiming it to be the latest fashion and spoke of the exotic places they had visited, Rukia suddenly found them to be vain and conceited. The way they tried to outdo each other claiming more lineage and wealth over the other, annoyed her. Worse was when she saw the same trend in the adults. Though her sisters wanted her to mingle with other children and gain some semblance of her old self, the affects were quite the opposite as she became more isolated and withdrawn realizing more than ever that she no longer belonged to their world. Her inability to feign ignorance would lead her down a different path. Her father seemed to understand this when she approached him at the age of fourteen to enlist in the army. Despite her sisters vehement protests, he had consented, stating that she had inherited their family's legendary stubborn streak and that irrelevant of his response she would still enlist. Back then she hadn't realized how well her father knew her. He had been right, the call of the army was too strong for her to ignore. She enlisted and graduated the Academy at the age of 15 and had been sent to the front lines. The naivety and innocence left in her battered soul vanished as she witnessed the destructive power of war and the inhumane acts that followed. The frontlines were chaotic; men became beasts and in the struggle for survival all traces of humanity were lost.
Violet eyes closed wanting to forget such horrific events. There were times when she could remember the stench of rotting corpses or hear the cries of those who perished. Leaning against the headboard of her hospital bed she looked outside needing a distraction. The pitter, patter of heavy rainfall beating against the windows thrummed in her ears. She gazed at the blurred scenery while her mind churned with memories of the war. The scenery seemed to melt changing to the battlefield.
The rains pelted her metal helmet as she ran through the muddied fields with an oversized backpack and a large rifle in her hand. Bloodstains and dirt covered her dull green uniform; the few splatters of blood on her face were washed by the torrents of rain. Despite reminding herself about the jarring differences of textbook material to real life experience, nothing could have prepared her for the hell she faced. The rains continued their assault, slowing her pace as the icy pellets numbed her body. Her breaths came out in pants as she rushed for cover alongside her comrades. With every step she could hear the whiz of bullets from riffles and hear the cries of men behind her. Bombs exploded all around her, taking lives and limbs in the process. Fear and the sudden will to live had forced her to sprint faster and pray that she wouldn't step on any landmines. In those moments she wished desperately that she was home with her family. The dull mundane things she had taken for granted were things she missed sorely, a warm shower, the warmth of her bed, clean clothes, proper food. The grounds shook as she ran. Those who were beside her disappeared in an instant; screams filled the air as more bombs hit the ground. An explosion close by sent her body flying off to the side. Bits of shrapnel and rocks in the surrounding area flew at her as she hit the muddied grounds. Her left shoulder and side burned; the hot pain lancing up and down her body as her lungs constricted making it difficult to breathe. Momentarily paralyzed, she struggled for breath and turned on her side. Her lungs expanded and she was finally able to inhale properly. Blurry violet eyes looked to the side and watched as a soldier fell to his knees several feet away. The familiar face of her captain stared back at her, his eyes wide with shock. A wave of bullets punctured his body causing his blood to spurt out with each shot; his body shook from the impact and the top half of his head jolted up before bursting open from several more bullets. He fell forward onto the muddied grounds, his brain dislodged and lying several feet away from his gaping skull.
Something cold and wet jostled her thoughts, forcing her back to reality where she found herself standing at the hospital window. Her arm felt cold and looking down she realized that her black pyjamas sleeve was wet. Confused, she looked around for the source and stared at the large hole in the window. It took several moments for her mind to register what had occurred.
'When did I' her thoughts were interrupted as the door flew open and the lights came on. She winced, blinking several times before adjusting to the lights.
"RUKIA!!" "TAICHO!" "MALVIN-SAN!"
The chorus of voices had her turning to the door as two women stood wearing a worried expression while the third, a short blonde, looked dumbfounded at the broken window.
"Malvin-san your hand?" the worried nurse swiftly flew into action and ran into the bathroom grabbing a towel.
"Rukia-no-baka, were you trying to escape?" the blonde asked throwing an accusing finger at the short captain. Rukia looked at her vice captain dully; Ririn Langarde often jumped to the worst conclusions.
"Malvin-san what happened?" the nurse asked as she inspected the wounds. It didn't look too deep, maybe there wouldn't be a need for stitches. Rukia placed her uninjured hand behind her head and chuckled.
"Sorry I was a bit clumsy. I kinda tripped and fell."
Ririn was unconvinced, she felt that her captain broke open the window to escape and flee on her motorbike which was probably stashed somewhere close by. From there a high speed chase would ensue.
First lieutenant, Kishuu Arashi sighed upon seeing the gleam in her vice captains eyes, it was obvious the nineteen year old noble was lost in her own world plotting god knows what. While Ririn plotted away Arashi observed her captain in silence. The sight of her in good health raised a lot of concerns, it had been a few days since she and Sorata had witnessed her almost on her deathbed. To see her walking about after sustaining such serious injuries was nothing short of a miracle. She paused realizing that it hadn't been a miracle, more like the act of the Science, Magic and Research division at the military. A beeping sound shifted her attention and she watched as her vice captain pulled out a small phone. She could see her captain frown as her vice captain's voice became serious.
Rukia watched as Ririn ended the call and nodded to Arashi. Her violet eyes narrowed, something serious was going on. The nurse sensing Rukia's unease spoke swiftly as she continued disinfecting her hand.
"Malvin-san your wounds are still healing. It would be a huge risk if you left now." The woman looked up noting that none of her words seemed to affect the short captain, who continued watching her subordinates.
"Burjezz-sama told me to mention something about pink feathers. I'm not sure what that means but," the woman paused noticing how pale her patient had gone.
Even Ririn who had been listening intently raised her eyebrow along with Arashi. It wasn't everyday that their captain reacted in such a way.
"Ririn, Arashi.. do your best," Rukia stated with an overly sweet smile and a thumbs up.
"H-hai," the two replied wondering just what the hell their general had done to their captain
As the two left the special wing of the hospital, Ririn was still pondering the meaning behind the pink feather.
"Pink feather?" she whispered, causing Arashi to look at her. She too had been wondering what the whole thing had meant.
"Could it be something perverted?" the shorter of the two whispered, while Arashi shook her head and sighed. Their general, Kanoe Burjezz, was normally a level headed person, but when it came to anything involving their captain, the general's level headedness was somewhat questionable. Arashi shook herself from her musings, such thoughts were not important at the moment. Judging from her vice captains response, she had received orders from their general and she wanted to know what those orders were. Ririn as though sensing her question, spoke.
"Burjezz-sama requested backup. They found 'It' close by." Arashi nodded her head and clenched her fists, they had quite a fight ahead of them.
Late evening in the hospital room..
Rukia slowly awoke to a nagging feeling at the back of her mind. Something was screaming at her to move. Violet eyes opened and stared into a pair of bright red that gleamed in the darkness. Her senses awakened and she sprang to the side in time to avoid a lethal blow. Three sharp claws grazed her side causing her to hiss in pain. With no time to waste she tried to go for the door but was immediately blocked and thrown back against the wall near the window. Part of her back hit the broken window causing shards of glass to fall onto the ground. The thing charged at her and she dived off to the side managing to grab a piece of broken glass in the process. As her attacker lunged forward she rammed the glass into its chest and kicked its head. Momentarily dazed, the thing fell to the side blocking her route to the door. With no other exit, she turned towards the broken window and ran. Her attacker was already up chasing her, its claws slashing at her back leaving a trail of blood in its wake.
On the military roads...
'Nice,' Yoruichi thought as she relaxed in the back of the open jeep enjoying the feel of the wind against her skin and the scent of freshly showered grounds. She cracked an eye open and looked to the side, Soi Fong sat stiffly with her arms folded across her chest and a frown marring her features. Yoruichi grinned watching as the younger woman tugged at the sleeves of her green uniform every now and then. It was obvious she detested the clothing.
"Relax," Yoruichi stated, flashing Soi Fong a huge grin, the latter sighed and nodded as though receiving an order. The man in the front passenger side of the jeep caught their exchange and smiled.
"You two will like it in the Pumpkin Scissors division," he stated while the driver of the jeep scoffed.
"Yeah those guys hardly do anything. They just go around giving aid to people."
The other man frowned disapprovingly at his partner.
"Shutup Mickey. They do great work."
"Oye, oye aren't you just saying that because of a certain blonde haired noble taicho. Ehhh Ralph?" the man named Mickey teased.
"Shutup you idiot!" Ralph shot out tersely as his cheeks flushed. His blue eyes narrowed.
"Besides who has a crush on a certain raven haired Malvin-sama?"
The jeep swayed slightly as a flustered Mickey glanced at his partner and growled, muttering several curse words under his breath.
Yoruichi and Soi Fong exchanged glances as they wondered about their new captain and division. One of Yoruichi's contacts had created false identities, which for simplicity's sake were their real names. After completing the necessary tests they had been assigned to the Pumpkin Scissors division of the S.S. III, as it had been one of the few divisions in dire need of assistance. Currently they were being given a tour of the base, their duties starting early the next day.
As the two men in front fought with each other, Yoruichi's senses perked up. Even Soi Fong was on the alert feeling something foreboding as they approached a large white building enclosed by white walls and hidden behind surrounding trees that obscured their view. As they drove beside the walls, the two women tried to scan the area for any danger.
"Ah, that's the hospital," Ralph stated seeing their interest in it.
The sound of glass breaking was heard, followed by the rustle of leaves and the breaking of branches, seconds later a body hit the hood of the jeep, bouncing off. It had taken all of Yoruichi's training to catch the rolling body without losing her own balance. Soi Fong held onto her, pulling her back into her seat as the jeep swerved and came to a skidding halt.
"What the hell just happened?" Mickey shouted as he tried to calm his raging nerves. His hands shook from the shock of it all and Ralph was trying to calm him down. Meanwhile, Yoruichi and Soi Fong gazed down into a pair of familiar violet eyes.
"Rukia?" Yoruichi whispered ever so softly as her gold eyes widened.
To be Continued...
Next chapter: Beast
The thing is revealed. Meanwhile a thousand year old tradition occurs and Soul society prepares for their new guests, while Ichigo plans on escaping to earth for a few days.
Phew.. sorry it took so long to update. Sorry I was tooo busy with exams and stuff. This chapter was the hardest for me to write as I was really struggling with how to portray Rukia. Hope I did good, and hopefully this loooong chappie kinda makes up for long wait. Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a happy new year.
Thanks for all your reviews and support.
