A/N So, yes its been a very long time, but exams are over and we are finally back. throughout the summer there should be no obstacles and we should get a healthy chunk of this fic done.

look out for the * in the story and read the end note to get more insight on abilities. enjoy.... i had fun writing this one.

Chapter 26

Pain

Shoguu pushed the wood rubble off of his legs, fatigued and wounded; he barely managed to get to his feet. The ground was littered with pieces of broken wood, pools of water from the melted ice collected blood drops and fallen leaves from shaken trees. The scene was desolate, all life within a 15 kilometer radius was blasted away, not even stumps remained; the land was barren, save for the scraps of wood. Realization hit Shoguu like a brick, he scanned the scene for the others but instead felt a cold sensation in the back of his neck.

"It seems you left one of them"

Takada coughed while grunting away the pain from his wounds, he looked over to Meimyaku; his head swung low in shame and grief and his blade tainted and impossible red.

"So here's the deal…"

Takada said as he sauntered away from a shell shocked Shoguu.

"You say you want to come with us, right?..."

Takada rest his hand on Meimyaku's shoulder circled him and turned to face Shoguu.

"Take him out and we're outta here"

Meimyaku raised his head slowly, revealing ominously piercing blue eyes. He turned to face Takada with hesitation but shook it off quickly and walked forward to Shoguu. Shoguu drew his sword and steadied himself, but he knew his death was imminent. Meimyaku's determination wavered as he approached. The conviction left his eyes and his hand shook in rebellion.

Meimyaku stopped.

"Takitsukeru…… moukinrui no ketsueki.*"

Butterfly blades materialized in fire in each of Meimyaku's hands. The fire around the blades extinguished to reveal the lustrous steel. Shoguu's posture relaxed, staring defeat in the eyes, fighting was pointless, he dropped his sword and looked to Meimyaku expectantly.

"I at least deserve a quick death"

"You deserve it?"

Meimyaku's face contorted as if he were just insulted.

"You don't deserve anything; my brother was right, this fight is pointless. All you people see is the wispy dream in your mind, restoring balance. What balance! Soul Society, Hecuo Mundo, Earth, its all gone to hell. Do you mean to tell me, that when you three defeated the Machiavelli three of you will govern, maintain and secure three realms."

Shoguu looked on in shock, these weren't the words of a mad man, actions driving by anger and grief.

"The battles that you fight are nothing in the grand scheme of things."

Meimyaku turned to face the bodies of Sai, Iroha and Rukia.

"All they bring is bloodshed and death, over and over again; grasping for a goal with no logical foundation…… And because of that… I pity you"

A now somber Shoguu watched as Meimyaku raised his sword and pointed it towards him.

"Kurai… ootorihime"**

Meimyaku was some 10 feet away from Shoguu; he turned his sword pointed at Shoguu like a key.

An explosion of pain knocked him off of his feet. Shoguu fell to the ground screaming in agony, clutching his chest and gasping for air. His skin burnt, and itched, every nerve in his body was overloaded with pain like razors raking on his spinal cord.

Meimyaku turned away from the tortured Shoguu and walk towards Takada who was grinning ear to ear at the sight before him.

"He will die there….slowly"

Meimyaku looked over his shoulder to Shoguu's pathetic state.

"Takada let's go, I'm ready "

"*sigh*" Takada took Meimyaku's shoulder and shook his head.

"All this fanfare, you should have just gashed the man."

Meimyaku brushed Takada's arm off of him and met his eyes with a blank stare.

"No… He needs to see if the friends he care about so much are worth the torture he's going through now

Takada shrugged and looked to the east. The two men vanished in shunpo.

Shoguu's cries intensified as the pain was reaching a fever pitch and his energy was being drained.

The air was still, save for his moans but just then, millions of tiny embers began to dance over the Bodies of Rukia, Sai and Iroha; they moved to the barren wasteland the broken trees and all traces of dead or dying life.

Shoguu's groans still intensified.

The embers now blanketed the 15 mile radius in a beautiful blue red glow; all but Shoguu.

He clawed at his face in pain.

The embers dissolved into everything they touched, being absorbed in to the ground, the leaves, even Rukia and the others.

He rolled on his back clenching his fist and groaning like a dog.

As the embers vanished into their mediums, life sprung back, massive tress grew around Shoguu in an instant, and grass carpeted the ground. Birds and frogs whistled and chirped in the now restored forest.

His screams eased, the pain seemed to be overpowered by his fatigue and he was now on the verge of death.

Iroha was first to rise, his body without a wound and he jumped to his feet looking around for the source of the faint moaning.

Shoguu clawed at the ground weakly.

Rukia and Sai followed they both got to their feet to se a scene contradictory to their painful memories. Everyone was without a scratch and full of energy.

"This is madness" Rukia was the first to speak out.

Sai was thumbing the back of Kola-kun's neck before standing and resting him on his shoulder.

"Why complain Kuchiki Taicho."

"Because something is wrong here, this is the same area we were in" Iroha looked around slowly. "Yet it seems like nothing has happened at all."

Rukia looked down at her body.

"besides that, it seems like our wounds have healed completely " She looked over to Sai you still seemed to be ignoring there pandering.

"Any explanation for this?" She screamed at Sai

"Yes" Sai squared with them decided to get serious. "Meimyaku has this ability. The phoenix form of his zanpaktuo has remarkable powers of healing and reanimation, but…"

Iroha stepped closer to pay more attention… "but….."

"but in order for him to heal or regenerate something he needs to sacrifice his reaitsu," Sai continued "also I suspected it puts him through some pain, much like a phoenix's immolation."

"that's ridiculous" Rukia chirped in. "For him to do this, revive this much life, he should be dead"

"Yes I agree, but he's not…." Sai's eyes shot open "SHOGUU"

Shoguu lay on the forest floor alive but motionless, in his head trying desperately to process what just happened to him.

A/N well then this chapter is more or less the begining of a major plot twist in our fic lol.

* Takitsukeru…… moukinrui no ketsueki..... This is Meimyaku's release command and sword it translates to "Kindle..... Blood Raptor" Meimyaku it self translates to "bearer of the thread of life" of he who controls life.

**Kurai… ootorihime..... this is the first attack Meimyaku uses in the fic, it is an extension to the natural ability of his phoenix. to heal and regenerate at the cost of his life. the move translates to "cry phoenix princess" and transfer the pain that Meimyaku will feel while healing to another.