Disclaimer: Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo while RWBY belongs to Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth
Chapter 20: Falling Rain
A light rain starts to fall as Ikkaku sat outside on a stump, waiting for the rest of the group. As soon as they found the bodies, they brought Shuhei over so he could help carrying the corpses back. After helping the coachman calm down when he saw the two lighthouse keepers, he agreed to help deliver the corpses so they could be properly analyzed. Rangiku, Shuhei, and Renji went with him. Yumichika is inside the building.
"Ikkaku!" He sees Ichigo, Uryū, Rukia, and a blue bird running towards him. Ichigo said, "We've got your message. What happened?"
"Why didn't you guys answer your comms when we called?" Ikkaku asked.
"I guess we were out of range," Rukia said. "Now, tell us: What happened?"
"We found two of the lighthouse keepers," Ikkaku said. "They're dead."
Lirin gasped and Uryū's jaw dropped. Rukia and Ichigo stare at the bald man in disbelief. "No…" Rukia muttered.
The door to the lighthouse residence opened, revealing a solemn Yumichika. "Come inside. I've made everyone tea."
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They sat in silence in the kitchen, Rukia and Ichigo seating at the table with Ikkaku while Yumichika and Uryū stood by. Lirin is perched on the back of a chair. Uryū places his mug on the counter. "Do you know the cause of death?"
"From the look of things, it was a single gunshot to the head in both of them." Yumichika said. "My guess: Execution-style."
"How long has it been?" Rukia asked.
"Judging from the state of the bodies, they've been dead for two days." Ikkaku said.
Ichigo's hands gripped the porcelain mug. "Angelo Raldo has a wife and two kids. Two kids that will have go on with the rest of their lives without their father. And Kaomaru Kiba…he's alone. He has no living family and he chose this job because his folks died in a mine explosion. But, he died regardless." His grip tightens. "If only we got here sooner…"
Uryū closed his eyes as he senses for something. He opens them back up. "I can't sense them anywhere," Uryū muttered.
Ikkaku gets up from his seat and pats a hand on Ichigo's shoulder. "Shit happens. But right now, we've got other things to worry about."
"He's right. We still have Forrest Tanner to look for and whoever did this is still out there," Rukia said. She remembers something. "Wait. That person we saw in the swamp…"
"Person?"
"We saw someone deep in the marsh," Uryū explained. He turns to Ichigo. "You were able to get a good look at them, right?"
Angry emerald eyes glared in his mind. "N-no. The only thing I knew is that it's a woman." 'LIAR' a voice in his head sneered in a raspy whisper.
"And you let her get away?" Uryū asked incredulously. "For all we know, she's the killer!"
"Lay off! She managed to get away from me, okay?" Ichigo said. 'Liar' the voice in his head sneered again before cackling. What's going on?
Ikkaku sighs. "What happened, happened. Right now, we need to think what we should do next."
"Yumichika, is it possible that there is a log book here somewhere?" Rukia asked.
"I would believe so."
Rukia stands up. "I'll have a look at them, then. They might have an answer to what is going on here. The lighthouse keepers; the killer; the memorial statue; Anything." She leaves the kitchen.
"Well, in the meantime, I've got a project to do," Uryū leaves. Lirin flies up to Yumichika.
"Will someone put the fire on in the fireplace? It's cold in here," She demanded.
Yumichika blinks. "Okay?" Can she feel cold? Ikkaku eventually leaves too to take a nap somewhere.
Ichigo is left alone on the kitchen table to be with his thoughts. 'Pathetic…' the voice echoed and cackles again. His gripped on his mug made it shattered and hot tea covers his hands. He didn't register the sheering heat.
Ichigo's irises glows a sickly yellow color as the cackling continues.
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Rukia scours around the lighthouse tower for a log book, climbing floor to floor in her search. She reaches the lantern room, a surprisingly cozy area with a curved couch, bookshelf and a desk. A desk! Rukia jogs over to look it over, checking under it and through drawers. She finds a locked box. It looked beaten and old. The petite woman almost feels bad about looking through something potentially private. However, two lighthouse keepers have been found dead and one is still missing, probably dead as well. Hopefully, whatever is in this box can help. All she needs to do is unlock it. She looks around for the key but couldn't find it. There's a good chance it's with Forrest, since he's the head lighthouse keeper. If that's the case, then Rukia has to go with Plan B in situations like this.
She goes down the tower to return to the residential building, finding Uryū walking by with a portable burner in hand. "Where did you get that?" She asked him.
"In the kitchen," The Quincy answered, "And a good thing, too. I need this for what I'm going to do."
"Before you do…Please?" Rukia asked sweetly, presenting him the locked case. He raises a brow at her before smiling. He holds out his hand, Rukia gives him the case. In return, Uryū has Rukia hold the burner. Uryū takes out a sewing needle, bends it in an angle and starts his lock picking. He held the case close to his ear so he could hear a click, which he does. He gives the now unlocked case back to Rukia, who returns the burner to him. "Thank you~. You're the beeest~." Uryū gave a silent laugh before walking away. "Now, let's see," Rukia said. She opens the case. Inside are two books. She picks one up and opens it. Bingo. A log book and, after checking the first page, it belonged to a man named Hidetomo Kajomaru.
Rukia plops on a leather armchair. She places the case on a table next to her and starts to read.
[(May 10, 1853 O.R.) I've never done something like this before. But, this is apparently essential in this work, so... This is my first day as a lighthouse keeper, obviously. According to the higher ups, there's going be a shipment coming soon. With the war expanding, everyone is subjected to Grimm attacks. So, to escape, the people of Anima are coming here for safe refuge. I pray to the gods that they get here safely.]
Rukia skims through the days as they were more about the daily grind.
[(May 17, 1853 O.R.) It was worse than I could imagine. The Grimm had destroyed countless of homes and settlements because of the negativity of the war. I have seen so many people, Humans and Faunus, affected by this conflict. I have even seen Quincys. Up to that point, I have thought they went extinct a millennia or so prior. Perhaps that shows how bad the war is getting that even species in hiding are getting affected.]
Purple eyes shimmered in sadness. Rukia could only imagine what people had to go through during the Great War. Perhaps abolishing the arts and repressing self-expression DID help to avoid Grimm-related tragedies, but the oppression that followed made things worse.
[(May 18, 1853 O.R.) I have met an interesting woman. It was as though she appeared out of the blue. She is not native to Anima, that much I'm sure. When I spoke with her, she told me she has always lived here, deep in the swamps. I asked her for her name. She told me it was Erika Llorona.]
Erika Llorona…, Rukia thought. So, Hidetomo was her husband. And she lived in that house in the swamp? I wonder who lives in it now…
[(May 20, 1853 O.R.) Ms. Llorona is an intriguing woman. She has this air of mystique, as though she more about the world than anyone else.]
Rukia skims through the pages.
[(August 20, 1854 O.R.) I am to be wed and to the woman who made my life much brighter. In spite of this wretched war, I couldn't be happier.]
Rukia skimmed through more pages.
[(May 18, 1855 O.R.) We are now a family of three: Me, my wife Erika, and our newborn son Emeraude. We have heard of other parents naming their children after colors as to show their resilience against the banishment of individualism and felt we should do the same. We've named ours after Erika's beautiful eyes that he inherited.]
Rukia smiles at the entry. She could practically hear the joy through Hidetomo's writings. But, she also has a feeling of sadness, knowing full well what would transpire.
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Yumichika finds Uryū seating at a desk in one of the lighthouse's rooms. On the desk is the portable burner with a pot of boiling liquid, an old book with unknown writing, various small shards of Dust on a cloth, and small silver tubes, approximately 5 centimeters in size. Yumichika lightly taps the doorframe to get the Quincy's attention without spooking him.
Uryū stops at mid left with a pair of tweezers in his hand holding a Fire Dust shard, his hands covered with protective gloves. "Oh, Yumichika. Do you need something?"
"No, I just want to be somewhere quieter, away from Ikkaku's snoring," Yumichika said. "If you don't mind the company, I'll stay here."
Uryū shakes his. "No, not at all." He returns to what he was doing. He places the Dust shard in one of the silver tubes. He takes a ladle and scoops out some of the boiling liquid and pours it in the tube. Uryū screws the lead to it shut and shakes the tube. A faint, red glow illuminates from the object. He puts it with the other finished products.
"What exactly are you doing?" Yumichika asked.
"Something that my older brother found in Grandfather's old study back in Fors," Uryū answered. "He thought I would be interested in trying it out."
"I see…" Yumichika said. "So, what are they?"
"Silberzylinder or Silver Tubes, however you want to call them," Uryū answered as he repeated the process with a Wind Dust shard. "Just as it looks, they contain Dust so that way the Dust could be used for various techniques."
"Oooh," Yumichika drawled. He makes himself comfortable on an armchair with a book in hand. Before he becomes lost in the book, he asks Uryū, "Aren't you able to see the dead?"
Uryū paused whatever he was doing. "…I can. So can Kurosaki, somehow. However, I cannot sense their spirits anywhere. So, either they are in hiding or they have moved on."
"That's a shame. I thought we could ask them what happened," Yumichika said. "It would make things a whole easier."
"Unfortunately, things doesn't turn out that way," Uryū said.
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Rukia skimmed some more, eventually coming across a few days gap after a two month time.
[(July 12, 1855 O.R.) Apologies for not writing lately. Emeraude have died four days ago. I and my wife are still grieving.]
Rukia could see faint tear stains on the page. She turns more pages.
[(July 21, 1855 O.R.) The people of the village have been acting strange lately. What is going on?]
[(August 17, 1855 O.R.) Apparently, infants are dying in the village. They've accused the Quincys as the culprits, but they have left some time ago. Now, they are blaming Erika, accusing her of being a witch. How could they say that? She is still mourning over the death of our own child. Yes, she's not like the rest of us, but does that mean she is a threat? She has done nothing except be a loving person to everyone. How could they betray her like that?]
Rukia's grip on the book tightens. Even today, if people see someone as abnormal or not like everyone else, then they're freaks in their eyes. Like racism with how Humans treat Faunus and even Quincys, as well as sexual orientation. Rukia remembered some hushed words back at school about Uryū's and Tatsuki's preferences and their words sickened the woman.
[(August 28, 1855 O.R.) What have I done? Oh gods', what have I done? How could I have done such a thing to Erika, my wife and the mother of our child? I am no different than those who ridiculed Erika. I can still hear her melodic voice now.]
The next entries were of Hidetomo growing guilt over what happened.
[(September 19, 1855 O.R.) I can still see her image everywhere I go. Am I going insane? Is this my punishment for what I've done?]
She turns the page. The few dozen more entries sounded more and more like a madman wrecked with guilt. Then, the pages are blank. She turns the pages, more blanks. She starts to flip through the blank papers until she reached the final entry.
[(January 17, 0052 U.T.I.) I know that I have not been updating for so many years and you would probably have some questions. I can't tell you everything, but I will say that our world is much larger than we could ever imagine. There are hidden secrets and mysteries that perhaps should have remained as secrets. It is beyond our comprehension. I advise you not to look for those answers. It would only make matters worse. My time is drawing near and now I pass the torch to you. In my place, please take care of the memorial for my beloved Erika. It is in the forest near the lighthouse, I've made a map for you. Stay out of the swamps, it's too dangerous. Please, keep this a secret from everyone else, even from your own men. Good luck, Forrest Tanner.]
Rukia's widened. She closes the log book and picks up the other one, Forrest's, and promptly reads it.
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Ichigo sits on a window seat in the parlor room, watching raindrops on the glass run down, fusion with other droplets. Lirin is not too far away, reading a magazine on the sofa. The rain had stopped not too long ago, a light mist hovering low to the ground, but the fog in Ichigo's mind remained. He feels…drained? Suffocated? One or the other. Either way, Ichigo doesn't feel right at the moment. At least the voices have stopped…
Among the thoughts, droplets and mist, Ichigo sees someone familiar. It was that cloaked woman from before, her hood covering her head. She stood at the edge of the forest, looking straight at him. And he knew she was when she motioned at him to come over. A part of him said stay put, but this could be his chance at getting some answers. He gets up from his spot and grabs his coat that was hanging on the back of a chair.
"Where are you going?" Lirin asked.
"To check something out," Was Ichigo's answer as he put on his coat. "Stay here in case something happens." He leaves a slightly confused Lirin in the parlor and heads outside. He goes around the building to where he saw the cloaked woman, only to see her gone. Almost on pure instinct, he enters the woods. Unknown to him, he is being followed. Ichigo finds the woman not too far away, seating on a rock as she waited for him. Ichigo wasted no time. "All right, no bullshitting around."
The woman pulls her hood down, revealing her bespectacled face. "I'm sure you have some questions for me."
"Damn straight." Ichigo said. "Who are you? Are you…Erika Llorona?"
The woman shakes her head. "My name is Heather. I am…a relative of hers."
"So, like a descendant?" Ichigo asked.
"You could say that."
"I thought her kid died in infancy. How can there be descendants?"
"Did it ever occur to you that maybe she had a family beforehand?" What she said could be true. After all, there was no mention of Erika having parents or siblings. Heather could easily be Erika's great-great grandniece. Still…
"Do you live in that house in Morikai swamp?" Ichigo asked.
"Yes."
"Why? It's dangerous there. Can't you live in the village nearby?"
"I've never been in the village. It's for the best that I stay away from there." Her cryptic answer made Ichigo more suspicious.
"Did you kill the two lighthouse keepers?" He finally asked.
"No." He studied her, to see if she was telling the truth. He had a gut feeling that she is.
"Do you know who did?" He asked her.
Heather was about to answer when a callous hand clasped over her mouth. The owner of the hand is a man nearing 50, his graying hair combed back and sports a beard and moustache. Ichigo recognized him. "Forest Tanner." He reaches inside his coat pocket.
"Don't even think about it," Tanner said, brandishing a caliber handgun and points it at Heather's temple. Ichigo raises his hands up. "Good. Now, follow me."
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Rukia barges into the room. "Uryū!" Her shout startled the Quincy that he dropped a silver tube he just finished and leaped on to the chair he is seating on. Yumichika, who was still in the room with Uryū, dropped his book in alarm.
"Was that necessary?!" Uryū asked angrily as he sat normally, making sure the back of his long cheongsam hung loose behind him.
"Never mind that! Take a look at this!" Rukia said, thrusting a piece of paper in his face. Uryū takes it.
"What is it?" He asked.
"Entries from the logbooks," Rukia answered. "I wrote down ones that are more important." Uryū reads through the entries, as did Yumichika from over the Quincy's shoulder. Their eyes widened in shock. Rukia looks serious. "We need to go into the woods, now!" She stops. "Wait, where's Ichigo?"
"I think I saw him in the parlor room earlier," Yumichika said.
"He's not there anymore. He left," Lirin said, flying to them when she heard the commotion and lands on Rukia's shoulder.
"What? Where did he go?" Uryū asked.
"I don't know. He told me to stay until something happens," The bird A.I. said, growing concerned.
"Oh, no…" Rukia muttered. It was this moment Ikkaku enters.
"You guys are gonna want to hear this," The bald man said, holding his red communicator earpiece.
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Forrest leads them through the trees, having Ichigo in front so he could watch him. The old man's grip on Heather never let up and his gun is still pointed at her. They soon come across Erika's memorial garden
"So that's Erika's statue," Ichigo commented out loud.
"Turn around," Forrest instructed. When Ichigo didn't move, the head keeper shoots his gun at the ground. Heather yelped. "I said turn around!" This time, Ichigo complies. "Now chuck your weapons over there." He nods his head to a direction ways from Ichigo. "And don't get any bright ideas." He nudges the gun closer to Heather's head. The amber-haired male reaches down to Tensa and takes it out of its holster. He gathers the chains connected to it before tossing Tensa aside. He then takes Zangetsu and does the same. "Good boy. Now get on the ground. Keep your arms up high." Ichigo lowers himself onto his knees. Forrest shoves Heather forward, aim his gun at her. "You go next to him and do the same." With no hesitation, Heather moves to Ichigo's side. Forrest still aimed his gun at them. Ichigo takes the moment to assess the situation. He looks over to where he figured the bodies of Angelo and Kaomaru were found. He started to connect the dots.
"You're gonna kill us, are ya? Like how you killed the other keepers," Ichigo asked. Heather gasped. Forrest didn't say anything. "Why are you doing this? What is it that you—"
"I didn't want to do it," Forrest said, interrupting Ichigo. "I didn't want to, but I had to. She would have done it anyway."
She? "But why did you kill Angelo and Kaomaru?" Ichigo asked. "Why did you do it? Angelo has a family back at home an—"
"They were close, so close at discovering the truth," Forrest said. His gun hand starts to shake. "If I hadn't ended them, then they would have become Her slaves."
"Who is her?" Ichigo asked.
The shaking continues. "No matter what I do, Her words still echo through my head." He takes a quick glance at Erika's statue. He looks at Heather. "She warned me what would happen if Her words were not heed."
"Who is her?!" Ichigo questioned, trying to get some answers.
"But it won't matter anymore, now that you know."
"Know what?!" Ichigo had never been so lost.
"The end will come for us all." Forrest aims the gun at Heather. He pulls the trigger. In the blink of an eye, Ichigo grabs Heather and they hit the ground. The bullet misses, hitting at the ground near the statue. Heather looks at Ichigo in awe. Ichigo, however, glares at Forrest and his smoking gun.
"That was not a bright idea." A ball of light was thrown in their direction and a flash of light shines, blinding Forrest. Ichigo takes the opportune moment to grab Tensa's chain and runs at Forrest. He knocks the gun out of his grasp and ties him up with the chain. From the forest Uryū, Rukia, Ikkaku, and Yumichika emerge. At the sight of them, Heather runs. Uryū sees this and moves to give chase, but was stopped by Ichigo saying, "Let her go, she has nothing to do with this. We've got our man."
Some distance away, the blue wisp swirled around before forming into a Wolf Faunus youth. "ThAnK yOu…" he whispered before vanishing.
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The law enforcers from the Mistral Police Bureau arrived at Yudaki the next day to take Tanner away. "You people don't understand. You are all underestimating Her will! The end is coming. The END is COMING!" Tanner exclaimed, sounding like a madman.
"Keep moving!" The Senior Commissioner, Chojiro Sasakibe, demanded, taking Tanner to the Mistralian Sailship. There is a crowd surrounding on the side, watching the spectacle. Teams IURR and IRYS are some ways away with the mayor.
"Thank you all so much for the help," Azul said.
"I'm sorry, but I don't think we deserve the thanks," Rukia said. "Two of the lighthouse keepers were killed by one of their own and said person is now heading to prison."
"Still, you helped to recover the men's bodies," Azul reassured. "I'll make sure that are sent to their families so they may rest in peace."
"Sir, Kaomaru has no family," Ichigo said. He braced for a negative comment, but the mayor only smiled.
"Not to worry. I'll make sure the young lad gets a proper burial." He then looks sad. "When his parents died in the Dust mining accident in the Schnee quarry over in Anima six years ago, no one wanted to take him in. But Forrest did. Forrest treated Kaomaru like he was his own son. I can't help but wonder what caused him to do such a thing." He straightens himself. "Well, it's our problem to deal with now. I'll inform your headmasters about the payment. And again, thank you." He takes his leave.
"It kinda feels like a hollow victory." Renji said.
"It's not like it's the first mission we have that involved a death or two." Ikkaku said. A heavy silence fell onto IURR.
"Ikkaku…" Yumichika said, his voice chastising.
"What?"
"Learn to read the atmosphere."
Rangiku stretches her arms up. "Well, another job done. Let's go to the pub to drink in celebration!" She drags Renji and Shuhei along.
"Don't we have a flight in an hour?" Renji asked. Ikkaku only grumbles as Yumichika chuckled. They follow to the pub. Ichigo and Uryū, along with Lirin, stayed behind.
"I've got to say. It was smart of you to turn on your communicator at the moment you confronted Forrest," Uryū complimented.
"A compliment from you, huh? I wonder if Hell has frozen over," Ichigo quipped. "Any ideas about that 'Her' business the guy was spouting?"
"It's hard to say. There are hundreds of beliefs, religions, and mythologies," Uryū said. He turns to have a walk. "He could be referring to any sort of divine figure."
"Any chances it may be the Wandenreich cult group?" Ichigo asked as he followed.
"It is possible, but highly unlikely," Uryū said. "Their faith is a corruption of sorts to the Order of the Allfather, a religion based around a single god. Of course, there is always a chance they added a goddess to their theism." Ichigo stops and adopts a thoughtful expression. "Let's go get something to eat. We've got time until we go back to Mistral and return to Vale."
Ichigo opens his mouth to say something, but stopped when he felt a presence. He looks over at the trees and sees Heather within the foliage. "You guys go on ahead. I need to go check something. I'll catch up." He walks away.
Lirin looked like she wanted to follow Ichigo, but Uryū prevents her. "Don't worry about him. He'll be fine." His blue eyes stare interestingly at his partner before turning around.
Ichigo enters the forest and sees Heather waiting for him, seating on a fallen log. Ichigo sits next to her. "Thank you," Heather said.
"For what?"
"Saving me. Even though you didn't have to."
"What kind of Huntsman would I be if I had let you get killed?" Ichigo questioned. Heather gave a small giggle. "What are you gonna do now?"
"I'll be leaving," Heather answered.
"Leaving?"
"There are plans that they're going to leave the lighthouse to Mother Nature. There are too many rumors and stories around that lighthouse that people would prefer to avoid it and leave it. Now, couple that with the dangers of Morikai swamp and what happened yesterday, no one is going to take the jobs. I've been living like this thanks to Forrest."
"Really?"
"Mm-hm."
"Do you have any idea what happened to him, then?" Ichigo asked.
"Honestly, I don't know," Heather said. "He was fairly normal until about a month ago. Usually, he would talk to the statue about his day, like how you would talk to someone's grave. But then, he started talking about some goddess he heard about. And then, he talks about 'the end of our way of life as we know it'. I was starting to get scared, so I avoided him. Then,"
"I'm sorry you had to go through that," Ichigo said.
Heather shakes her head. "Don't be. Sometime later, I started having dreams where one of the other keepers, Angelo I think, was warning me about him. So, I started to investigate. That's when I came across you."
"You can see spirits too?"
Heather nodded. "I guess that's means you can."
Ichigo nodded. "Yeah, ever since…well ever."
"Well, that's cool. Me too," Heather smiled. She gets up. "I need to get packing."
Ichigo gets up too. "Can I ask you one more thing?" Heather looks him, waiting for him to speak. "I just want to know why were you stalking me yesterday in town and then again in the swamps."
Heather looks at like he has grown a second head. "What are you talking about? Remember what I've told you: I've never stepped foot into Yudaki. The first time I saw you, you were at my hut." Ichigo looks at her in disbelief. "I need to get going. I hope to see you again, one day." And with that being said, she walks away. So, the masked woman from before wasn't Heather? Then, who/what was she?
The cackling returned. It sounded clearer and to his horror, it sounded just like Ichigo himself.
You guys probably don't remember Hidetomo Kajomaru. He was introduced in the final arc in Bleach as a member of the 13th Division. He lasted like six chapters before he was killed.
O.R. stands for Ortum Regum. U.T.I. stands for Unity through Individuality.
Next Chapter: Lingering Doubts