"The destiny of man is in his own soul" - Herodotus
Chapter Twelve: Choice
"Bastard!" yelled Renji, lunging at Kazumi. "What the hell are you playing at?" Two strong arms grabbed Renji and tossed him to the floor. He landed hard, hitting his head against one of the many bookcases, and lay still.
Tatsuki, now livid, raised her zanpakuto to attack Raiden, but as she did so, he withdrew the stone from around his neck and pointed it at her. She stopped dead in her tracks as she was overcome by a wave of dizziness and nausea. She was feet away from Raiden, and she struggled desperately to reach him, even as the room continued to spin about her. "I'm stronger than this," she thought, fighting to stay conscious. "I can still fight." But before she could make a move, she felt a large arm encircle her throat, making it difficult for her to breathe. Her zanpakuto dissolved, as it had done before.
"Kazumi," said Raiden, putting away the Stone, "how convenient of you to find them and bring them to me. We wouldn't want them leaving, would we?"
"Of course not, Raiden-sama," said Kazumi.
"And how did you come to find them, Kazumi?" asked Raiden, clearly suspicious.
"They escaped by overpowering the guard that was delivering them food," said Kazumi, unfazed by Raiden's apparent distrust. "Knowing that I could not overpower the woman, I pretended to assist them in escaping."
"I see," said Raiden, stepping towards Tatsuki, and drawing a long dagger from his waist. "Then you will not mind if the woman dies first?" Tatsuki continued to struggle against Kin, who still held her by the throat. He tightened his grip on her neck, and she started to wheeze and gasp for air, unable to breathe.
"Kin," said Raiden, laughing, "that's not precisely what I had in mind for her death." Kin eased up slightly on Tatsuki's throat, and she gulped in air, fighting to stay conscious. Raiden turned to Kazumi. "You will kill her, Kazumi," he said, handing Kazumi the dagger.
"Of course, Raiden-sama," replied Kazumi, taking the dagger in his hand. Kazumi stepped between Raiden and Tatsuki. "I'm sorry," he said to Tatsuki, and her eyes registered shock. "I have no other choice."
He drew the dagger and aimed it at Tatsuki. But, as he moved his hand towards her, Kazumi turned around and aimed the dagger at Raiden's chest. Raiden, anticipating this move, grabbed Kazumi's wrist. "Kazumi," said Raiden, "you are a disappointment. And just when it appeared that your protocol might be the answer. Very unfortunate." Raiden turned to Kin. "Kill her," he said, "I'll take care of this one."
Kin tightened his hold of Tatsuki's neck, and she struggled as the room began to fade. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a blurry figure move quickly from the floor – Renji, limping, but on his feet, holding one of the glass shards in his hand. He stabbed Raiden in his right side. It was not a mortal wound, but it took Raiden by surprise and he dropped the dagger on the ground. Kazumi retrieved the weapon from the floor and, without hesitation, plunged the dagger in Raiden's heart. The older man grasped the hilt of the dagger in his hands and stared in astonishment at Kazumi. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but instead, blood dripped from his lips. Then he swayed slightly and crumpled to the ground, dead. For a split second, the room was quiet, and no one moved. Then, many things happened at once.
"No!" yelled Kin, releasing Tatsuki, unsheathing his weapon and lunging at Kazumi. Tatsuki was knocked backwards several feet as Kin released her, and she struggled to grab Kin's shirt, hoping to slow him down. Kin, now within inches of striking Kazumi with his blade, tripped over something and fell, headfirst, with a growl onto the stone floor. Tatsuki looked down to see Renji lying on the ground; he had thrown himself under the big man, knocking him over. Kazumi pulled the dagger from Raiden's chest and thrust it into Kin's heart.
There was noise from behind them, and Tatsuki turned to see the remaining three guards approaching. She flew into the air and landed a hard kick on the side of the face of one of the men, knocking him unconscious. Kazumi, using Kido, aimed a concentrated burst of energy at the other two, a man and a woman, and they fell alongside their companion and lay, unmoving, on the ground.
"Nicely done," said Tatsuki, beaming. "Looks like you learned something from all that practicing years ago."
Kazumi smiled at her and walked back over to where Raiden and Kin lay. He pulled the dagger out of Kin's chest and wiped the blood off the blade. He then walked over to Raiden's body and put his hand inside the man's bloody shirt, pulling out the Sealing Stone, still attached to its leather cord. Kazumi yanked on the cord, breaking it, and placed the stone in his pocket.
Renji got to his feet, holding onto one of the tables for support. "You're not going to restore her powers?" he asked Kazumi, surprised.
"I don't think so," replied Kazumi, no longer smiling. He walked towards Tatsuki, still holding the dagger in his hand. "Arisawa," said Kazumi, "I owe you a great deal. You saved my life. You gave me a home. Still, there are things more important than gratitude. Greater things."
"I don't understand, Kazumi," said Tatsuki. "Raiden's dead. You can leave this place. This is what you wanted, isn't it?"
"To leave? Yes. I told you the truth," replied Kazumi, his face unreadable.
"Then let's leave," she said.
"He never had any intention of leaving here with us, Tatsuki," said Renji. "He did all of this so he could steal the stone."
"No," said Tatsuki, uncomprehending. "He told me the truth."
"I told you only what you needed to hear, Arisawa," said Kazumi. "I never explained my motives for leaving."
"You're leaving with us, Kazumi," said Tatsuki, stubbornly, putting her hands on his shoulders. She fought the urge to shake him, hard.
"I'm sorry, Arisawa," replied Kazumi, his face now cold. "But if you do not let me leave, I will have to kill you."
"You won't do that," she said, standing her ground. The thought that he might actually try to harm her was so foreign that she did not even think to move. Kazumi shook his head and fingered the dagger.
"Tatsuki, get away from him!" yelled Renji, as Kazumi brought the dagger down towards Tatsuki's chest. With all the strength he had remaining, Renji launched himself between the two of them. There was a thud, as Renji hit the ground.
"Renji!" yelled Tatsuki, coming back to her senses. She ran over to where he lay on his side, his body bent at the waist. She rolled him over and saw it - the dagger - lodged in the upper right quadrant of his chest.
"Tatsuki," said Renji, from between clenched teeth, "don't let him escape with the Stone."
Kazumi laughed and turned to leave. "Stay with him, Arisawa," he said. "You love him. Stay with him like you didn't stay with me. If you stay, you might save his life." And, in a flash, he was gone, leaving her there, kneeling over Renji.
"Listen to me, Tatsuki," said Renji, as loud as he could. "Go after him. I'll be alright." She nodded and, without thinking, headed out the door through which Kazumi had disappeared.
Tatsuki ran, full speed, through the large room with the stalactites, and on out through the passageway that led to the surface. "I will find him," she thought. "I'll bring him back." She could hear Kazumi's footsteps on the stone steps ahead of her; she was gaining ground.
"Renji," she thought, her pace slowing down slightly without her even realizing it. She could see him, lying there. She could hear Kazumi's voice in her head, 'You love him. If you stay, you might save his life.'
"I need to bring Kazumi back," she said out loud, trying to push the image of Renji from her mind. "That's what matters now." She began to run faster up the steps.
'Stay with him like you didn't stay with me,' Kazumi had said. "But I couldn't have stayed with him forever," she thought. "He would have left on his own eventually. Aren't separation and loss a part of life?" She ran faster now, her thighs burning from the effort. The physical pain did nothing to mask the pain she felt at Kazumi's betrayal, nor did it dull her fear of losing Renji.
And still she ran faster. "You are always running, aren't you, Tatsuki?" she thought, as she ran. "You think you're running towards something, but you're really not. You're afraid. What will you do if you catch Kazumi? He's already lost to you. You gave him a home, and he chose to leave. And do you really think it will hurt less if Renji dies and you're not there?"
"No," she said, stopping abruptly as her voice reverberated throughout the narrow passage. "Enough running. Time to choose."