Chapter 26: Sakura and Flame

Byakuya's hands tightened on Renji as the sun began to sink on the horizon and they heard footsteps approach and felt the rending of the seal. They stood, side-by-side, their arms wrapped around each other as the guards approached. The guards bowed respectfully.

"Abarai fukutaichou, Kuchiki taichou, it is time. Regretfully, we must prepare Abarai Renji for his execution."

They waited patiently as Renji bent slightly to kiss Byakuya and gently extracted himself from the noble's trembling arms. As he released Byakuya, he whispered into his ear.

"Don't forget…"

Not quite trusting his voice, Byakuya answered him with a short nod. He watched in silence as the guards led Renji from the room, then stood for a moment with his arms wrapped around his suddenly chilled body. He felt achingly empty again and he remembered lying in bed in the king's palace after losing the king's reiatsu. His heart began to race and a dizzying numbness passed over him, but he breathed in and out slowly and started for the door.

Inexplicably, it closed in front of him…and he felt the setting in place of a seal. And as he stood in shock, wondering how and why, Soutaichou's solemn form appeared in front of him.

"My apologies, Kuchiki Byakuya, but I had to be certain that you would not attempt to interfere with the execution. The doors will open as the Sokyoku begins its release…and you will be able to reach Abarai Renji in time to lay eyes upon each other as he dies."

The captain commander's body slowly faded and disappeared.

Byakuya stood, wide-eyed and disbelieving. His body stopped trembling with fear and began to shake with a deep, burning rage. His reiatsu rose around him until the building shook and the furniture around him toppled.

"Soutaichou!" he cried furiously, "Let me out of here! SOUTAICHOU!"

He gathered his power and sent kido strikes at the doors and windows, pounding them mercilessly with every ounce of spirit energy he could pour into them. He screamed his defiance until his body shook so hard he could barely stand and finally beat his hands against the doors until the skin grew raw and red, and began to bleed, leaving crimson splashes where he struck the door with them. The rage expanded inside him until all of his carefully placed controls fell away and the power exploded out of him in all directions, shattering the room into dust and bursting through the seal. The power tore at his senses, nearly overwhelming him and leaving a burning feeling on his scorched skin.

He rose into the air, heedless of the guards' calls to stop, bent on reaching Renji's side.

But would he be in time?

XXXXXXXXXX

Renji stood quietly as his clothing was removed and he was left in a simple white yukata. His hands were carefully bound for the final time and he was led out of the first division. It was the end of a beautiful day. His heart brightened at the memory of making love with Byakuya and with the knowledge that all was not lost. He and Byakuya would be together at the end…and they would call upon the king to assist them. The hard part, he thought, was the waiting. Because they had been specifically told to wait until their situation seemed hopeless…and that time hadn't come. So all he could do was move quietly along with the guards and walk toward the Sokyoku. He looked straight ahead, barely seeing that the streets were lined with shinigamis, and many were calling out to him in support. Renji felt warmth move through him at the sound. It was comforting to know that he and Byakuya weren't the only ones who felt that his execution was a horrid mistake.

He noticed suddenly that the guards had come to a stop and loud voices rose up ahead of them..

"You can't fucking do this! Abarai fukutaichou doesn't deserve to die just because he wanted to help our taichou! We AREN'T moving, so go the hell around…if you can!"

"Yeah…if you can!" shouted another.

A chorus of yells rose up around them and Renji felt a chill pass through him. And suddenly, the guards were yelling too…and pushing back against him until Renji fell beneath them and enraged hands were tearing at them.

"Stop!" he screamed, "Stop!"

He tore free and somehow managed to rise. The guards were on the ground and their swords had been torn from their hands. Angry fists rained down on them, threatening to become deadly.

"Stop it!" Renji screamed.

Someone loosed his hands and he dove onto the ones who were attacking the guards.

"STOP IT! STOP! STOP! PLEASE STOP BEFORE YOU KILL SOMEONE! I'M NOT FUCKING WORTH THIS!"

He realized all at once that the area had fallen silent around him. The Squad Six shinigami involved in the attack had frozen and were staring at him in surprise.

"But…Abarai fukutaichou! They are going to kill you!" said one shinigami, holding a hand to his bloody nose, "We can't let them…"

Renji spotted the captain commander standing quietly off to the side of them.

"It isn't the guards who are doing this. It's all a mistake…but you can't let that turn all of you into a bunch of animals. Ours is a proud division…Do the right thing…Walk with me…"

There was a long silence.

Renji turned and picked up a discarded sword and handed it to the guard who was climbing to his feet. He stood calmly as the guards recovered themselves and formed a circle around him. Renji stared in surprise as they started to move forward.

"Aren't you going to bind me?" he asked quietly.

"No, sir," said the guard softly, "No matter what anyone says, it isn't necessary."

They continued on their way, surrounded by a now-silent group of Squad Six shinigamis, past the Squad Six headquarters, up the street and to the beginning of the trail to Sokyoku Hill. Renji scanned the crowd and saw several familiar faces, but no sign of Byakuya. He furrowed his brow worriedly, but continued walking. They made their way slowly up the large incline, past the repentance center and over the narrow bridge onto Sokyoku Hill. Now, Renji began to feel a touch of panic. He searched the crowd carefully, but although the Kuchiki council appeared to be in full attendance, Byakuya was nowhere in sight. Renji was led past the crowd to where the taichous were lined up and watching. Renji blinked in disbelief, realizing that Byakuya was not among them.

"Wait," he said to the guards, "please, something is wrong!"

"I am sorry," said the leader of the guards, "but we cannot defy Soutaichou's order and he said that once we arrived, that the execution must not be delayed. Please forgive us, Abarai fukutaichou. We must follow the orders we were given."

Renji turned and saw Soutaichou staring in his direction. Fury rose up in his heart and overflowed and he pushed the guards aside and stood face to face with the captain commander, his hands balled into fists.

"Where is Byakuya? What did you do to him?" he asked, his voice breaking, "Isn't it enough that you're tearing us apart? You can't even let him be here with me? What are you afraid of, old man? Are you afraid we're too strong to be broken apart by the likes of you? Well, I'll tell you something…WE ARE! So you go right ahead! You lift me up on that fucking stand and you watch it shatter! Because ours is a love that you can't break…not with a million zanpakutous…and not with any stupid orders! Go ahead…Soutaichou…go ahead and try to kill me!"

The crowd had gone silent around them. Renji stared into the captain commander's stern gaze and waited. The rest of the taichous stood quietly waiting and the guards around Renji stood stock-still. For a moment, no one moved. Then Kuchiki Tetsuya stepped forward.

"Soutaichou…do you know where my cousin is?" he asked calmly.

The old man nodded.

"He will be released in time to witness Abarai fukutaichou's death. Do not worry. No harm has come to Kuchiki taichou. He is merely being detained until the proper time."

"The proper time?" Renji said angrily, "When is that? When the damned Sokyoku cuts into my body? When the fire is already eating my flesh away? How long will it be before you feel it is safe for you to let him near me! Do you want me already gone and burned into nothing? You old bastard! We honored your rules! We accepted that this was going to happen! We exchanged our vows and said our good byes, but that wasn't good enough for you. You had to make it hurt more, make the wounds deeper. Damn you! He was barely holding himself together, but he did everything right! You! You can't do a damned thing right! I don't think you have a fucking CLUE what RIGHT is! But you are about to find out. What's right is about to come out…and when it does, it will bring your damned Sokyoku down around your ears!"

He stood, breathing deep and fast, his body still alive with rage. And still, he did not resist when Soutaichou silently nodded to the guards and they approached Renji again.

"Sir…I am sorry…we must go to the Sokyoku."

Renji glared at the captain commander for a moment longer, then turned toward the Sokyoku. They closed the distance and Renji felt his heart flutter nervously in his chest. It would take both of them to invoke the call for the final piece of the Spirit King's gift, and Byakuya had still not appeared. And Renji wasn't inclined to trust the captain perception of what time Byakuya should arrive…but he was out of time. The guards stepped back, and Renji reached the stand and turned to face the captain commander and the solemn faces of the group of taichous.

"Abarai Renji," said Soutaichou sternly, you have been found guilty of disturbing the peace, of interfering with an official investigation, with the abduction and captivity of a senior officer with a special circumstance for that you abducted a taichou ranked shinigami. You defied orders and fled justice. For these crimes, you have been sentenced to death by Sokyoku. Do you have any last words to say?"

Renji glared back at the captain commander with fierce pride and defiance in his fiery brown eyes.

"You bet I do!"

"Then speak them…" Soutaichou said, nodding.

"I want everyone here to know the real reason why I have been given the honor of dying. Yes, Soutaichou, you tried to steal it from my mind, but let me tell you something…I'm stronger than you gave me credit for being…and I think the people gathered here need to know the real reason you want to kill me."

"Stop right there, Abarai Renji!" the captain commander said, his zanpakutou rising and flaring hotly, "One more word and I will burn your body to the ground where you stand."

"So that's the freedom I'm given to speak here at the end of my days, huh? I thought that even a dying man had the right to speak his mind."

Soutaichou's eyes suddenly flashed with power and Renji felt a strange wrenching that sent him tumbling to the ground.

"What the hell?" he yelled, rolling to his feet, "What was that?"

He noticed belatedly how quiet his surroundings had gotten and realized that Soutaichou and the other taichous were the only ones left standing by the Sokyoku. His eyes widened in surprise.

"What did you do, Soutaichou?" he asked, his shoulders slumping in defeat, "What happened to everyone?"

The captain commander slipped his zanpakutou back into the sheath at his waist.

"We have shifted to a different dimension. It was necessary to protect the secrets that you are aware are not meant to be spoken aloud. It is far too dangerous. Our enemies are powerful and they could use the information against our king."

Renji felt an odd sensation. There was something unsettling about looking into Soutaichou's eyes. He had always been somewhat nervous in the man's presence, but the way Soutaichou was looking at him…the oddity in those old eyes!

Something doesn't feel right…

"Abarai Renji, do not be concerned," the old shinigami said off handedly, "Kuchiki Byakuya will arrive here in time to lock eyes with you and to let you know he is with you as you die. Now…it is time to continue the execution. Do you have a final request?"

"Yes, Soutaichou!" Renji said firmly, "I want my life partner here with me now. I want Byakuya!"

"And I have given you reassurances that Byakuya will be here with you when you die. I will offer this one last time. Do you have a final request?"

"Hai," he said softly, "I want the Kuchiki elders present to ensure a humane passing."

"As you wish," said Soutaichou, lowering his eyes.

Renji felt another wrenching motion and suddenly the twelve Kuchiki nobles stood near the line of taichous, looking around in surprise.

"Now…prepare…"

XXXXXXXXXX

Byakuya flash stepped toward the Sokyoku at speeds he knew he had never reached before. The loosing of the controls on his spiritual pressure gave him the ability to move at incredible speed…and he had only loosed himself this way one time before…the day of Rukia's execution…and it was for a shorter duration…because Kuchiki Byakuya knew that by releasing the power within his body from the careful grip of his control, he was, for a short duration of time, capable of reaching blinding speeds, attacking with incredible power…power that would shatter the one trying to take Renji from him…hopefully before the burn of his own raging power…

Consumed him…

For that was the tradeoff…

Immense speed…

Unstoppable power…

Power enough to stop Soutaichou…

Power enough to block the Sokyoku…

But at the expense of his own body…because even though he had the power at his fingertips, Kuchiki Byakuya's own power was enough to destroy him…if not controlled in the way it usually was. But this was not the time for control…or restraint. His time had run out…and Renji's life was on the line…

He ignored the burning of his flesh, and the pain in his bones…and Kuchiki Byakuya ran…faster than he had ever moved before. He reached the Sokyoku and pulled back on the power, fighting his own reiatsu, struggling to regain control. His heart was in his throat, his flesh screamed in pain, but he only paused long enough to notice that, although the Sokyoku was surrounded by shinigami, Abarai Renji was not there.

"I cannot be too late!" his strained mind howled, "I'm not too late?"

His breath froze his lungs and he struggled for breath.

"Sir?" said a soft, trembling voice.

Byakuya forced his eyes to lift.

"R-rikichi? Rikichi…wh-where is…Renji?" he gasped, choking on the words.

Rikichi stared in dismay at the slender body dressed only in a light yukata, the bare feet, wild eyes and tumbled hair, the frightening, haunted expression…the torn and burned skin, the hungry licking of his reiatsu as it danced around him, threatening to break loose again. It took everything in him to look that terrifying creature in the eyes and give an answer.

"S-soutaichou opened…a dimension door."

Byakuya's heart sank. He had already used so much power! But to open a dimension door…to hone in on Renji's life force and to be certain of reaching it…

"Step back…Rikichi," he said, reaching down inside himself again.

The young shinigami practically fell over himself, backing away.

The spirit energy seethed furiously beneath the noble's skin. Already feeling his body beginning to break under the force of it, Kuchiki Byakuya centered on Renji's life force and once again, set his power loose. Pink light exploded around him, throwing everyone nearby to the ground and raking their bodies with errant energy. When the energy slowly faded and died away, Rikichi looked up and gasped softly.

Kuchiki Byakuya was gone, leaving only scorched ground where he had been.