Chapter 6: Prophecy
Three days have passed since Marina left for the material world. Many members of the 7th Squad have become worried for her safety, including Lloyd. Suddenly, a messenger from the 12th Squad arrived at the 7th Squad barracks
"I have a message for Captain Akashi" he said as Lloyd walked outside to meet him
"Yes? What is it?" he asked the messenger
"…Sir…Lieutenant Lockheart has been declared missing" said the messenger awkwardly. Lloyd's eyes widened as he processed what the messenger had said
"What is this!" he asked angrily "Where is your evidence!"
"Sir, her Hell Butterfly just returned. It has recorded a message which we believe was taken during an encounter with the enemy" said the messenger "Captain Darwin is currently waiting for you to hear it at the 12th Squad barracks"
Lloyd went with the messenger to meet Kaze Darwin, who had Marina's message.
Upon arriving at the 12th Squad Barracks, the messenger did not enter. Instead, he went to a shed nearby, presumably for storage purposes
"Um…Why exactly are we here?" asked Lloyd
"The Captain can get a little paranoid at times" said the messenger "So his main laboratory is located away from the 12th Squad barracks. This is the only entrance" he said as he slid a wooden panel aside and typed in an immensely long code. When he was finished, the back wall side away to reveal a large set of stairs which spiralled downwards.
The messenger led him down to the bottom, a dimly lit room with a number of computer screens at one end. The room was filled with desks, each one holding a different set of apparatus and chemicals. Some of the beakers and apparatus had massive chunks missing, presumably from failed experiments. At the far end of the room, Kaze sat at the computer screens, with his robotic Lieutenant by his side. He looked up when he heard the door open
"Oh" Captain Akashi! You're just in time" he said "As I'm sure you were told, your Lieutenant's Hell Butterfly just got back. The message is somewhat peculiar, so I'd like you to listen to it" He said as he pressed a button and a program was opened on the massive computer screen, probably for playing sound files. The Hell Butterfly was held in a glass container beside him, and had a number of wires sticking into it.
Kaze pressed another button and the message played
"Hado 33: Shakkahou!" said the voice of Marina, obviously locked in combat. The sounds of clashing steel and small explosions could be heard until an abrupt stop to the fighting. There was a pause before anyone else spoke, this time a man with a deep voice
"…My my…I never thought I'd see you again…And here of all places? Hahaha" said the man
"Who…Who are you?..." said Marina's voice before there was a sound of rushing wind, as if someone was running at high speed, before the sound of flesh colliding with stone. There was a small clicking sound before anyone else spoke.
"You…You're…" croaked Marina, sounding as if she was being choked by someone. There was one final word before the message cut off
"…C-Captain…"
By the end of the message, Lloyd was gripping the table so hard that it might have broken
"…captain…" muttered Lloyd "She…She wants my help…" he said softly "She trusts me and I can't do anything to help her!" he cried. He paused for a while before speaking again "…I'm going…I'm going to help her! Prepare the Senkaimon!" he said as he turned to leave, only to be greeted by the small stature of the 1st Squad's Lieutenant
"You shall do no such thing!" he said "You are to remain here and carry out your duties as Captain. You trusted your subordinate with this task. Going to help her would be an insult."
"But…she…she is asking for my help!" argued Lloyd "I'm sorry, but I have to do this!"
"If you go, then I shall have to inform Central 46 of your secret" said Yuu "I apologise, but we cannot afford to lose more men"
"…Fine…I understand…" muttered Lloyd bitterly as he walked on to return to his Barracks.
It was raining a lot that night. Lloyd got up and prepared himself. He put on a long black overcoat with a hood to hide his face. He still wore his Haori underneath. Even though he was abandoning his post, he was not abandoning his duty and wore it with pride.
Upon arriving at the Senkaimon, Lloyd was met by two men; The 3rd Squad Lieutenant and 5th Squad Captain
"Yo, Lloyd…" said Gerard "…Where do you think you're going?"
"Did Lieutenant Hakimichi ask you to come and stop me?" asked Lloyd, reaching for his Zanpakutou
"No! Nothing like that!" said Zack "We just want you to come and see Captain Harvey"
"Why?" asked Lloyd
"She can read your fortune" said Zack "It might be good to know in this situation. She might even be able to tell you where Lieutenant Lockheart is"
"…Alright then, take me to her" said Lloyd, relaxing his grip as the two led him to the 3rd Squad Barracks.
Before they went in, Zack turned to Lloyd
"She can get a little…weird…when seeing the future, so please don't be alarmed" said Zack, as if warning Lloyd. They then led him to the Captain's Quarters, where Mel was already sitting with a Crystal Ball and Tarot Cards
"Ah! There he is!" she said, looking up and smiling widely "The super cool Captain of Squad 7!"
"What! You don't think that he's cooler than me, do you, Mel?" asked Gerard, almost on the verge of tears.
"So, you want me to read your fortune, right dear?" she asked, completely ignoring Gerard's complaints. "Just come over here and sit down" she asked, motioning for him to sit in front of her. He did as he was told. She took his hands and placed them on the Crystal Ball
"Now then, first things first…" she said, placing her hands on the Crystal Ball "…Will we have a future together…" she said
"Maam! Now is not the time!" complained Zack
"Fine, fine" she sighed
"Can you find Marina!" asked Lloyd, growing impatient
"I've been trying, but all I can tell you is that you will find her" she said. She placed her hands back on the ball and closed her eyes. A few seconds later, she opened them widely, though wasn't looking at him or any of the others. She seemed to look past them all at something they couldn't see. She then spoke in a strange voice, as though someone was speaking through her.
Five Destined Warriors will band together, in order to defeat the Devil
The Destined Shinigami, with a raging Inner Beast
The Eternal Quincy, with the sign of the heavens
The Vengeful, but Chivalrous Human, who wields the detested power
The Disgraced Arrancar, wielding the mightiest lance
The Shackled Sinner, with unbreakable Chains
Suddenly, Mel seemed to come back to normal
"Oof…I hate doing that…" she groaned "…What was I saying?" she asked, obviously unable to remember her own prophecy
"You…You don't remember?" asked Lloyd
"No…I can never remember anything I predict like that…That's why I hate using this crystal ball" she said "I much prefer the cards, but the ball is more accurate"
"I'll say…" said Lloyd "Anyway, you mentioned something about five warriors…A Shinigami, A Quincy, A Human, An Arrancar and a Sinner…"
"Well, perhaps you are that Shinigami?" suggested Mel
"Maybe…" said Lloyd it did say about a 'raging inner beast'…Perhaps it means my other soul" he suggested
"Most likely" said Gerard "…So what now?"
"…it seems like I have to find these other four and band together with them…" said Lloyd "…But I'm going to look for Marina first" he said "If she's in the human world, I suppose I can look for the Quincy and Human as well" he said as he got up to leave "Thank You for all your help, Captain Harvey"
"Oh please, call me Mel" she laughed
Lloyd smiled as he turned to leave, with his mind set on one thing: Saving Marina!
To Be Continued…
