Chapter 13: Genesis of Lucifer, part 2 (Imprisoned and disillusioned)
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.
"Normal speech"
'Inner speech/thoughts'
'Inner hollow/Zanpakuto speech'
xxx
Still wearing the non-standard clothing, Ichigo received more than a handful of quizzical glances from all the shinigami that passed him while he was walking down the Seireitei. With the Bounts incident fresh in their minds, for them the teen looked suspiciously out of place. Despite that, none of them approached him if only because of the weirdly fluctuating reiatsu that surrounded him, a reiatsu he didn't realize he was excluding. Not only that, Ichigo wasn't even aware of anything that was going on around him. Deep in thoughts, he was simply walking forward, letting the subconscious part of his mind guide his steps.
With a blank stare, he was trying to digest the news as calm as possible and, at first glance, he appeared to be doing that quite well. However, on the inside, he felt like his heartbeat was getting too fast, pumping his blood across his body in such a hurry, it left the palms of his hands cold as ice.
'56 unseated officers are dead…' He thought and swallowed the lump in his throat. It was not the number of deaths that unsettled the teen, though. He had fought against two Bounts and both of them had been difficult opponents. He was already as strong as a high-seated officer yet it had taken him a lot of effort to defeat them. If an unseated officer came across a Bount, he would get slaughtered in a matter of seconds. And since there were a lot more than two thousand unseated officers in Gotei 13, a certain number of deaths was inevitable. He knew that.
But he was unsettled precisely because he knew that. He was unsettled because there was one certain unseated officer he knew so well. Because, despite his best attempts not to think about it, he knew there was a possibility that this certain officer, a woman with short black hair, could have been included in that number. And when such a thought managed to pierce through his mental defense mechanisms, he immediately began to suffer from rapidly increased breathing and heartbeat, increased muscle tension that resulted in goose bumps all over his body, profuse sweating and feeling as if there was a swarm of butterflies in his stomach. He knew what such a thing meant but he refused to acknowledge it.
'She's fine, I'm sure of it.'
Subconsciously, he clenched his fists and tried to think of something else. Anything. He vaguely realized that he was probably sporting the same expression as the Captain of the 10th Division had immediately after he had heard the news of Aizen's death. In that moment he had quickly excused himself with a simple word.
"Momo…"
Ichigo didn't know what or who this 'Momo' was but if it was enough for the young Captain to make such a worried expression, he was sure that this 'Momo' was a person and not just any person at that. Momo must had been to the Captain the same thing Rukia was to him; something he didn't even want to name, very much afraid it wasn't real.
Abruptly coming to a stop, Ichigo closed his eyes, relaxed his fists and sighed heavily.
"…damn it." He quietly cursed and then opened his eyes to determine where in Seireitei he currently was.
"Seems like I can't help it." He muttered in a defeated tone and turned in the direction of the 13th Division barracks. He simply had to find out the answer to the question that was weighing so heavily on his heart.
…
Ichigo had already visited the 13th Division grounds with Rukia so many times that nobody bothered to stop him until he was already halfway to the Captain's office, his signature orange hair serving as an easy identification sign. When he had the place where he first met Captain Ukitake in his sight, an excited voice came from his right side, close enough to actually make him jump in surprise.
"Ah, Kurosaki-san. Hello~!"
He turned his head to the right to see a petite young woman with short dark blond hair staring at him with eyes opened wide. Before he could relax his tense body and react to her greeting, the woman continued to talk.
"Right, my bad. You probably have no idea who I am. I'm Kiyone Kotetsu, the 3rd Seat and the right hand of Captain Ukitake. It's really nice to finally meet you in person, Kurosaki-san. I've heard so much about you. Oh, are you here to visit Captain Ukitake or, by any chance, Rukia-chan?" She fired so many words in such a rapid succession that the only thing Ichigo managed to do was to blink dumbly.
"U-Uhm, hello? Y-Yeah, I just returned to Seireitei and heard about all those deaths and so…" He muttered before Kiyone formed a brilliant smile.
"And so you've been worried about Rukia-chan, right? That's so sweet of you! But don't overdo it, though. The only thing Rukia-chan likes sweet is Chappy the Rabbit. I'd say she likes her man to be more manly and rough. Not that you aren't manly enough! I mean, you're just a student yet you've already saved her so many times. Ah, if I didn't have our Captain I'd probably be jealous of her!"
Listening to her rant like there was no tomorrow, Ichigo just continued to blink and stare at the 3rd seat of the 13th Division while having absolutely no clue how to react. It was his first time meeting a person with this kind of personality.
'…or maybe not.' He corrected himself when a face of a goofy teenager with brown hair briefly appeared in his mind. In that moment he must have had quite the glossy look in his eyes because Kiyone took a step closer to him and waved her hand in front of his face.
"Kurosaki-san~, are you there?"
"Oh, yeah, sorry. You're right, I came to look for Rukia. Do you happen to know where she is?" He asked and took a step backwards. In response, Kiyone scrunched up her chin and thought about the answer but shook her head shortly afterwards.
"Sorry, can't help you but I'm sure she's fine. Captain Ukitake will know for sure but he's in a Captains' meeting right now. Do you want to wait for him?"
"Yes."
…
An hour later, when he felt Captain's Ukitake reiatsu approaching the location of the 13th Division barracks, Ichigo walked out of a small office feeling more than just a small headache. He had been forced to listen to Kiyone's never ending rambling and now, he felt as if he had grown another head. Nevertheless, while he had tuned out most of the things the 3rd seat had said, he had still heard enough. Now, after allowing himself a deep breath, he could divide all the information into three groups. Information that were useful, information that were useless and information he'd like to forget as soon as possible.
Things like how long, with millimeter precision, Captain's Ukitake hair were.
Things like how many times a day Captain's Ukitake took his baths.
Things like how pale every inch of Captain's Ukitake body was.
Ichigo shuddered at the last one. He really, really didn't want to know just how Kiyone found that out. But it instantly helped him realize one thing.
Captain Ukitake was a man with endless patience. To put up with a 3rd seat like that, the man deserved a medal. A gold one at that.
"Kurosaki-san. How can I help you?"
Now looking at the man with a newfound respect, Ichigo quickly snapped back to reality and briefly nodded.
"Good afternoon, sir. Yes, I'm looking for Rukia…?"
Ukitake blinked in surprise at the sudden polite approach but, seeing the honest concern in Ichigo's eyes, he got over it fast.
"I see. Don't worry, Kurosaki-san. Rukia is fine. She's currently helping other squads in cleaning up after the Bounts but she should be back in no time."
An incredibly long and deep sigh of relief emerged from Ichigo's throat, robbing him of most of his energy. All of a sudden, that deeply rooted unrest came undone and allowed him to breathe freely again. The change in his demeanor was so noticeable it brought a small smile to the Captain's face.
"Care for a cup of tea, Kurosaki-san?"
"…not at all."
…
The two of them were finishing their third tea already when the conversation between them shifted to a topic that brought a large frown on Ichigo's face.
"…and Captain Unohana is closely examining his body. A death of a Captain is not an everyday occurrence and mustn't be taken lightly. Since the bodies of Bounts disappear shortly after their death we are not even sure it was Jin Kariya who caused Captain Aizen's death."
"If that's the case, how can you even be sure that he's gone? I mean the Kariya guy? Not to mention the Bounts as a whole group?"
"No. We are one hundred percent sure that Jin Kariya is dead. There's no debate. However, the rest is as you said it. There are multiple witnesses for all but one of the Bounts' fights. At the worst case scenario, there is one last Bount but, since it can't be Jin Kariya, we are not worried. One Bount does not pose much of a threat." Ukitake's reply was oddly definitive but Ichigo didn't dwell much on it. Instead, he sighed.
"I can't believe that Captain Aizen is dead."
Ukitake nodded with a pensive expression.
"Yes, Shunsui… I mean Captain Kyoraku said the same thing." The long haired Captain raised his head when he heard a snort.
"That's because he suspected Captain Aizen from some evildoing." Ichigo said and shook his head. By doing that, he missed the surprise that washed over Ukitake's face.
"I'm not sure I follow, Kurosaki-san."
"Yeah, me too…" Ichigo muttered and went silent.
"Is something the matter?"
The teen remained silent for a few more minutes and just sipped the tea from his cup but eventually, he snapped.
"He should've told me about Yoruichi Shihoin and Kisuke Urahara."
*THUD*
Ichigo glanced up to see the Captain picking up his cup and trying to wipe away the tea stain from his sock. Narrowing his eyes at that action, his brow formed a scowl.
"So you knew too, huh? Not that I'm surprised." He muttered quietly. With a panicked look, Ukitake quickly put his cup back on the table and looked Ichigo straight into his eyes.
"Kurosaki-san, listen to me. I apologize very much for not telling you but-"
"I'm not mad at you two, Ukitake-san. Well, not anymore. You probably had your reasons for not telling me. I realize that I'm still a student so it's not surprising that I shouldn't know anything about traitors of such caliber. I'm just… I think that, since Yoruichi Shihoin let Kazumi to die when she easily could have prevented that from happening, I deserved to know that earlier, not only after Captain Aizen told me that…" Ichigo interrupted him. He was so focused on trying to word his thoughts properly he didn't notice the look on the Captain's face while the man was listening to him. The man's expression went from panicky to taken aback and then to confused.
"Kurosaki-san…" He began in a somber tone only to trail off when he felt Rukia's reiatsu closing in. Ichigo felt it only a second later and he quickly stood up.
"Reporting in, Captain. We're done with… Ichigo?" Rukia entered the room after briefly knocking on the door and immediately began her report but abruptly stopped when she noticed the teen. She glanced at her Captain with a question clearly written all over her face.
"Kurosaki-san was worried you may have been one of the Bounts victims and so he came looking for you." Ukitake said and replaced his previous expression with a warm smile. He allowed himself a small chuckle when he saw Rukia's mouth form a capital O. The female Kuchiki turned back to Ichigo only to find him intensely staring at her. He looked like he couldn't decide on how to react but he wasn't the only one. Rukia too, wasn't sure what to do.
"W-well, looks like you're just fine. Good, good." Ichigo finally said with and awkwardly nodded to himself.
"Yeah." Rukia replied nervously.
Both of them were too absorbed looking at each other they missed the mildly amused glint in Ukitake's eyes.
'Well, it looks like Kurosaki-san is different from Kaien after all.'
…
Later that day
Ichigo watched the black hell butterfly leave his room through the window with a blank expression. The message it had carried to him came so suddenly, it left him unsure how to feel. To better absorb the information he sat on the edge of his bed and mentally replayed what he had just heard to himself. After he finished, he felt like his brain finally begun to respond.
"So, finally, after all those long weeks, we are finally getting a hearing in front of Central 46, huh?" He stated quietly. Letting go of everything, he lazily formed a satisfied frown. He felt so fulfilled, he didn't even question the time of the supposed hearing, which was immediately in the morning of the next day.
"This has been a crazy day." He muttered and let himself fall backwards on the bed. Before he could even undress himself, the happenings of the day got to him real fast and caused him to fall asleep in a matter of minutes.
…
Next morning
When the first rays of morning's light filled Ichigo's room with their glow, Ichigo was already returning from the bathroom, freshly showered and ready to start the day. His determination was at its highest peak. Briefly examining his small closet, he took out his academy attire and put in on with a sigh. He wasn't particularly vain, but he was already getting tired of all the white color. He liked the blackness of the shinigami attire better. As soon as he thought that, he heard an innocent cough within his mind but decided to ignore it.
This day was important and he didn't want to make himself irritated by talking with his odd zanpakuto spirit so soon.
'Oi.'
With a grin, he continued to ignore the spirit and grabbed the hilt of his zanpakuto. Safely strapping it to his side, he walked out of his room and calmly closed the door.
Only once he passed the entrance gate of the Shin'ō Academy he realized he didn't actually know where to go. He knew he was supposed to go to the Central 46 compound but nowhere in the message had it been stated where that area was. He vaguely recalled reading something about it in one of the books he got from the Academy but as much as he tried to, he couldn't remember the location.
"Oh, Ichigo-kun, you're right on time." A familiar voice called out to him from his left side.
"Captain Kyoraku."
The man in a flowery kimono tipped his hat in greetings and then motioned the teen to follow him.
"I came here because I was sure you wouldn't know where to go and it looks like I was right." He smiled slyly at Ichigo who tried to hide his embarrassment by avoiding his gaze. The teen then cleared his throat.
"So… where is it, exactly?"
They took a turn to the left.
"You've probably passed it many times by now, actually. It's near the center of the Seireitei. It is the circular building in the center of a body of water, which is surrounded by a wall. There is only a single gateway and the access to the main building is via a bridge. It is kind of a noticeable structure." Kyoraku explained casually.
"…you mean the restricted area somewhere below that large undercut hill?"
"Yes."
It took them some time before they arrived to their destination. First, they had to go through a guarded gate after which there was a long but empty corridor which caused Ichigo to shudder. It felt like he was being watched every time he moved a muscle. Finally, they emerged from it only to appear in a large space in which center was the circular construct Kyoraku had mentioned before. At a brisk pace, they got to the large gateway. At that moment, the Captain of the 8th Division stopped.
"I do apologize, Ichigo-kun, but this is as far as I can go."
Ichigo glanced at the gateway and took a deep breath.
"Alright, thanks."
"Just a quick note. After you pass the bridge and get inside, go to the elevator. It should automatically take you to the correct floor. You should find yourself in front of a large octagonal structure. That's the Underground Assembly Hall. Don't get intimidated by its size, though. It's just for a show." Kyoraku said with a smirk but when Ichigo nodded and turned to walk through the gate, he lost his casual expression and grabbed the teen by his left shoulder.
"Huh?"
Ichigo turned his head to look at the Captain only to find his face close to his. The man was staring at him with an extremely serious look.
"Ichigo-kun, few last things. I hope I don't need to remind you but, under no circumstances, do not, I repeat, do not mention the name Yoruichi Shihoin."
In response, Ichigo mirrored his expression with a nod.
"I know."
"And this is really the last thing. Under no circumstances, no matter what they say to you, no matter from what they can accuse you of, do not lose your temper. And no matter what happens, know that I'm on your side."
Now that sounded so ominous, Ichigo had to pause his thoughts and just stare at the Captain's face for a full minute.
"What does that-"
"Take care, Ichigo-kun."
Ichigo narrowed his eyes at him but it was obvious the man had no intentions to further clarify his words. So he turned around, walked through the gateway and along the bridge, until he came face to face with the doors. They opened as soon as he came close enough. With clenched fists, he took a step inside and, after the doors closed after him, tried to shake off the feeling that he was a prey willingly walking into the lion's den.
…
The Central 46.
That was the name of an organization that served as the judiciary authority of the Soul Society. Its influence, however, went well beyond such boundaries and into those of legislative and operative authorities. Structurally, the Central 46 was comprised of forty wise men, gathered from all over the Soul Society, and six judges. All those men were in charge of trying all shinigami crimes, whether they were committed in Soul Society or the Human world. It was also within their jurisdiction to order the use of deadly force by the Gotei 13, the Onmitsukidō or even the Kidō Corps.
That was all Ichigo knew but it was also enough for him to start sweating the more steps he took towards the large octagonal structure once he got out of the elevator. Just as the Captain of the 8th Division had told him, the Underground Assembly Hall truly looked majestic. Even if there wasn't a single person in the whole large area around him, Ichigo knew he was being watched. The shivers running across his spine was enough of an evidence. He couldn't back down, though. Not now, after he got so far. Mentally preparing himself, he grabbed the handle of the entrance to the structure and pushed it open.
'This is it.'
He took a decisive step inside. The first thing he noticed was the lack of light. The whole room was filled with a dimmed light, making it hard to see anything beyond the staircase leading down to the center of the room.
As if somebody turned on a powerful flashlight, the center of the room was suddenly lit up with a beam of bright light, allowing Ichigo to see the one solitary chair that was placed there. Without needing any voice to tell him what to do, the teen understood what he was supposed to do and took the staircase. As he walked down, his eyes slowly became accustomed to the dim illumination and he was able to observe the inside of the Assembly Hall.
There were benches and high-backed chairs, all arranged in two concentric rings, one higher than the other, both of them surrounding the center of the room. He could see 46 plaques with different numbering. It dawned upon him that behind each of those plaques, there was a member of the Central 46 hidden.
'So I can't even see who's making the final judgment, huh?' He thought bitterly.
"Witness number one, Kurosaki Ichigo. Sit down on the chair."
He didn't know from which side the commanding voice came but the teen listened to it anyway and sat down, trying to ignore the beam of light falling on his head. Without his zanpakuto, which he had been forced to relinquish as soon as he entered the building's elevator, he felt unpleasantly vulnerable.
"We have been informed about the case #001579 in detail. Investigation held by the Onmitsukidō has uncovered things that truly shook this body. Testimonies from the accused have been filed and all the evidence have been closely examined." The voice stated loudly while Ichigo nodded at every word.
"Kurosaki Ichigo. We will now listen to your testimony. Begin!" The voice stated and so Ichigo did as ordered. He had been preparing his testimony for weeks now and so he mentioned everything and anything he could remember, every minute detail of what had happened. Suppressing his own emotions, he described his own rape, revealed the misuse of the pills created by the 12th Division, specified the members of the Gotei 13 he had encountered and paraphrased their own words that they had spat on him and finished it all with the scene of Kazumi's death, omitting any and every part in which Yoruichi Shihoin had been involved.
It was a hard task, to hunt down his own memories, the nightmares of the past he had been trying to bury deep down in his mind. But never once he stuttered, never once he tried to slow down. Aside from clenching his fists, he managed to go through everything with a fairly calm expression and a firm voice.
It took him several long minutes to finish his testimony. In fact, it took him more than an hour and, as he was nearing the end, he felt his throat drying up. Finally, after going through the final scene, he stopped talking and took several deep breaths.
In that moment, the beam of light that had been illuminating him throughout his whole testimony died down and darkness engulfed the room.
For a moment, Ichigo was confused and thought that it was over but then he heard quiet murmurs of the faces hidden behind plaques and realized that his testimony was being judged. He didn't like it. Allowed to see only the plaques, he felt like the people judging him were secretly giving him condescending, patronizing glares. It caused him to shudder and goose bumps appeared all over his arms. Then, all of a sudden, the murmurs perished.
"We have come to a conclusion."
Ichigo felt a lump in his throat and tried to calm himself down.
"The two accused are hereby sentenced to forty years in Maggot's Nest!" The voice said.
"We hereby order the creation of a special group which primary mission will be the locating and destructing filthy places all over the Soul Society and bringing any member of Gotei 13 participating in questionable activities in for hearing! This order is hereby to be passed onto Executive Militia!"
With closed eyes, Ichigo took a deep breath and felt a sense of satisfaction growing within his soul and body. Everything was going extremely well.
Then it happened.
"Kurosaki Ichigo. Are you aware of your crimes?"
The teen's eyes snapped open and his breathing instantly got heavy.
"E-Excuse me?"
"Kurosaki Ichigo. You have broken two of the important laws of shinigami. It is against the law to commit a murder. It is also against the law to kill a Human soul that you have not been ordered to kill. I repeat, are you aware of your heinous crimes?"
'No, no, NO!' Ichigo mentally yelled in panic.
"I… I only acted in self-defense!"
But the voice was firm.
"Yes, given this excuse, some of your crimes could be forgiven. However, not all of these crimes happened in self-defense only. You actively hunted down souls and executed them down without any remorse or without giving them a proper chance to defend themselves."
"But… are you kidding me? Did you listen to my words? All the people I have killed were rapists, human traffickers, murderers and just plain sociopaths! I have never harmed an innocent person!" Ichigo raised his voice, quickly growing desperate.
"Every person deserves a trial. No matter who he is. On what evidence did you act, Kurosaki Ichigo?"
"They told me! They told me themselves!"
"Evidence is far more important than any testimony!" The voice roared, causing Ichigo to open his eyes wide. He tried to retort but his voice just wouldn't come out. He was just too shocked, too baffled, too disgusted and too disbelieving of what he just heard.
The voice of the court, though, wasn't nearly finished.
"Even if we would try to overlook these crimes in favor of what you have uncovered, your final crime is the most serious of them all. You have actively collaborated with a known criminal and a traitor, Yoruichi Shihoin!"
'Wha-?' Still unable to find his voice, Ichigo could only stare in front of himself.
"Despite your attempts to disclose this information from this body, we have acquired hard evidence of this crime. With this, you have only made things worse for you, Kurosaki Ichigo. Telling lies in front of this body in inexcusable! Do you have anything to say in your defense before we make the final judgment?"
With stiff jaws, Ichigo let a growl escape his mouth as his anger began to spread out from his heart to his whole being.
"…rotten. All of you! Blind, all of you! You are just clerks, supposedly the wisest men from the whole Soul Society but all you do is sit in safety while others do your dirty job. What do you know about the rest of the Soul Society? Have you ever been to the outer parts of the Rukongai?! Have you seen the poverty and chaos that rules it? Have you seen the extent of the human cruelty? You. Did. Not!"
He was unable to hold himself back. Long forgotten was the promise he had given to the Captain of the 8th Division. He couldn't remain calm anymore. Facing the arrogance, he could only seethe and growl. His energy responded to the emotions swirling inside of him and released its spiritual pressure on Ichigo's surroundings. It quickly spread out and filled the whole room, causing the men hidden behind the plaques to tremble in fear.
"R-Restrain him!"
Two members of Onmitsukidō jumped from darkness and attempted to subdue the teen but he was too wild and too angry to let them do it. Both of them were blasted backwards and the teen took a step forward. In that instant, something hit him in the back of his neck and immediately robbed him of most of his energy. He stumbled. His vison got blurry and only with the sheer force of his will he managed not to topple over.
"Kurosaki Ichigo! You are a dangerous individual and for your crimes of violence along with the collaboration with a known traitor you are hereby sentenced to 150 years in "Kyoukan" the 4th level of the Central Great Underground Prison! Take him away!"
The only thing Ichigo managed to do in response was to growl one more time before he fell face first on the ground. As strength was leaving his body, he heard one last thing before he fainted.
"…as Kuchiki Rukia has collaborated with Kurosaki Ichigo and Yoruichi Shihoin too, she must be punished as well. Summon her!"
…
A hollow silence surrounding Ichigo from every side greeted the teen when he slowly regained his consciousness. His mind felt hazy and his ability to think was thwarted as if he had been drugged with something powerful. Even blinking his eyes felt like a difficult task. But as soon as he did that, he noticed the lack of any illumination in the room he was in. Despite his state, he managed to recall the last thing he had seen and heard before he fell unconscious.
'Rukia…'
He tried to move but found himself unable to. Because of the darkness all around him, he couldn't see what was preventing him from doing so. His sight was useless so he tried to use his other senses. He wriggled and squirmed, tossed and turned but nothing helped. The only thing he could move effectively and freely was his head. With a growl, he strained his muscles to try and overcome his bindings.
"…aaaaaaaAAARGH!" He yelled in frustration but even that didn't help him in the slightest. No sudden influx of strength filled his limbs and so he took several deep breaths.
"Fuck… FUCK!"
He clenched his fists and then stiffened. Under his fingertips he felt something soft and pliable. Since he discovered he could move his fingers, he pushed them against it. It bent a bit but as soon as he stopped exerting any pressure it returned to its original state. An idea stroke him and he moved his head downwards.
'A-ha!'
His chin hit something soft and squishy and it helped him understand his situation. Somehow, his whole body, aside from his head, was immersed in some sort of a gel that was tight and strong enough to bind him. Now that he knew that, the rest of the memories, the words he had heard during his hearing, flashed within his mind and filled his body with rage. His body shook and he tried to use it to release his potent reiatsu…
…only to feel nothing. He felt absolutely nothing at all. Not even a speck of his reiryoku. It made him more scared than he dared to admit. He had no zanpakuto and no spiritual energy, what effectively degraded him to a simple person.
"What's going on?!"
The loud yell was met only with silence. It didn't even make any echo.
"Where's Rukia? What have you done to her?!"
Nothing. He heard nothing but the loud silence. It unnerved him greatly. He thought it would anger him, fuel his rage but instead, he simply felt helpless. He felt wronged and betrayed but mostly, helpless.
'What was the fucking point of all of this if I end up here? Damn it!'
A single growl escaped from his mouth. Then he felt a sudden chill. Something was very wrong. It took him only a brief moment to realize what it was.
'Hey, zanpakuto! You there, bastard?'
But it was the same as when he yelled out loud. There was no answer and the bit of fear he had been feeling for the past few minutes grew larger. Not being able to hear his own zanpakuto truly scared the living soul out of him. He had grown so accustomed to hear the irritating voice of his sword's spirit that now, when he heard nothing but his own breathing, it felt so unnatural it hit him like a shower of ice.
'Fine, I get it. Ha-ha, very funny. Now talk to me!'
He gulped and cold sweat formed on his forehead.
"They couldn't…" He whispered in fear and immediately closed his eyes. Reiryoku or not, there was no way he couldn't enter his own mindscape. He concentrated with his whole soul and felt himself being dragged down.
He blinked.
His mindscape looked exactly the same as usual. On first glance, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. But, when he looked again, he quickly noticed what was wrong.
His zanpakuto spirit was nowhere in sight.
"Hey! Where are you?!" He exclaimed. When no one answered him, he felt his own heartbeat increasing.
"I told you this is not funny!"
He began to breathe rapidly, the adrenaline spreading into his whole body like a poison for his mind's clarity. Turning from side to side, he desperately looked for the spirit but found nothing but his vast mindscape.
"…anyone?!" He yelled anxiously and angrily bit his lip. Alone in a cell and alone in his own mind, he felt like his world was falling apart. He felt like returning to that dark place where he first met Kazumi. In response to his emotions, some of the buildings in the distance began to crack.
"I'm here, Ichigo."
Ichigo's eyes snapped open and he spun around as soon as he heard the calm voice. He came face to face with the other spirit that had been living in his mindscape, the spirit of an older man in a long dark overcoat.
"What's going on here? Why… where is…?" The teen had so many question he was unable to pick just one. For a moment, the spirit calmly closed his eyes and, strangely, Ichigo felt a bit of a soothing aura emanating from him.
"Do not worry, Ichigo. He's here somewhere."
"Somewhere? What do you mean, old man?" He asked, feeling not only angry but confused too. The spirit gave him a long stare.
"You are far away from your sword in the real world, Ichigo, and so it will take time for him to appear here. But fret not, he is still a part of your soul and can't be separated from you forever." The man quietly explained. While his answer managed to slightly calm Ichigo down, it just raised another question by itself.
"Then how come you're here?"
The man formed an almost imperceptible smile.
"The answer is simple, Ichigo. I am not your zanpakuto spirit."
His reply froze the teen with its honest tone and Ichigo rapidly blinked many times, unsure whether he heard him right or not. Although, once he could think again, he realized that this was the answer he had been waiting for. This answer was the only explanation he could have accepted. It didn't make things easier nor any less confusing, though. It only increased suspicions he had had for a long time.
"…so I'm not normal." He muttered in a defeated tone and glanced at his feet. His spirit, however, didn't let him wail in self-deprecation for long.
"What is normal, Ichigo?"
The teen raised his head to look at the man but couldn't form any retort. The spirit continued.
"You're simply looking at it the wrong way, Ichigo. It is not 'you are not normal'. It is 'you are not ordinary'. That is different."
Ichigo closed his eyes. He couldn't help but to snort. It was amazing how much a bunch of words could change a person's mood. He suspected it was because the man was a part of his soul that he knew exactly what to tell Ichigo in order to calm him down or to lift him up.
"Yeah… thanks for that." He said. With a sigh, he sat down. Leaning backwards, he supported himself on his hands and stared at the sky.
"But what should I do now, old man? I'm incarcerated and without any options. Who knows what they did to Rukia, too."
"Believe in her, Ichigo. Other than that, only you can decide what you want to do."
A small chuckle escaped through the teen's lips.
"You're right. I should believe in her. Meanwhile…" He trailed off and tried to forget about his current situation so that his other thoughts, thoughts that had been present in his mind for a long time, became clearer.
"…I think we need to have a serious talk. With you and also with the other one. I want to know who or what am I. I want to know who you are. If you're not my zanpakuto spirit then what are you? You always stand in the background and only appear from time to time. You shouldn't even be here. Why is it that I'm so different from the others? Why is my energy getting darker? Why do my eyes change their color when I'm extremely angry? Why is my zanpakuto spirit so weird? How can I absorb reishi when other shinigami can't?" He listed. Once he was finished, he took a few deep breaths. Even mentioning all those unanswered questions managed to rile him up. He withdrew his hands and let his backside fall. While waiting for the spirit to say anything, he closed his eyes and stretched his limbs.
"In time, you will receive answers to your questions, Ichigo."
"That's exactly what I didn't want to hear, old man." The teen growled and creased his brow in a deep scowl.
"You are simply not ready. Even in school, they teach you the fundamental basics first and only once you grasp those concepts, you move onto something more difficult. This is similar, Ichigo. You won't get answers simply because you wouldn't understand them correctly. For that, you need to know your soul first." The man explained patiently. When Ichigo looked away in frustration, the man's expression fell a little. From that point onwards, neither of them said anything for a long while. Ichigo wanted answers but even if he didn't get them, he had nowhere else to go other than the empty cell his body was in. So he stayed in his mindscape.
It was a lot later when the spirit of the old man sighed heavily, causing Ichigo to turn his head and look at him.
"If you truly want to know everything, Ichigo, you have to be prepared to hear things you may not like, to hear things that will test your heart and to hear things that may very well crush your mind. You will feel betrayed, you will feel disgusted and you may even lose your sanity. Do you think you really are prepared to withstand all of this?"
Ichigo gulped. The spirit didn't even need to speak in a different tone yet the teen felt shivers running down his spine.
"No… but that's why you're here, right? Because you… are my sanity." He replied nervously.
"Yes, but that doesn't mean I can't vanish, Ichigo. Remember, I'm only as strong as you are."
A short silence fell upon them until Ichigo moved his body and sat in front of the spirit with a resolute expression.
"If it's really that serious then no, I'm probably not prepared to face everything. I've just been thrown into prison, after all, so I'm feeling quite frustrated at the moment. But I still want to hear at least something. I want to understand."
"Good." The spirit said with an unexpected smile and outstretched one of his arms forward. He didn't say anything to Ichigo but the teen felt his sight being dragged to the man's palm. The reason was simple. Above the man's palm, right in front of Ichigo's eyes, spirit particles from all around them began to swirl in a controlled motion and formed a bright blue ball of light. The spirit glanced at Ichigo.
"Do you understand what you're seeing, Ichigo?"
"It's… you're pulling reishi from the very air around you, manipulating and shaping it into a ball of pure energy." Ichigo answered with a brief pause. His mouth were slightly opened in bewilderment but he also seemed confused.
"Yes. It is something you have attempted to do in your last fight with that female Bount. Do you recall it?"
He nodded.
"Sure, I was trying to absorb reishi from a small plant."
The man closed his palm and crushed the ball of energy. The spirit particles gave in to the sudden pressure and dispersed back into the air.
"What you attempted to do is considerably more difficult than what I just did because you weren't trying to just pull reishi from its simple and natural environment. You were actively trying to break down an object on its molecular level and forcibly convert it into pure spiritual matter that is easy to absorb. That is a rare ability. Considering that you tried to do it in your normal state and managed to succeed even a little is even more incredible… even he has to admit that." He explained, saying the last few words in a quiet, defying tone. However, he didn't even need to bother to do that as Ichigo was trying to wrap his mind around the rest of his words.
"Uh… I think I'm even more confused than I was before."
The spirit smiled again.
"Basically, you were calling upon your other set of powers, separate from those of a shinigami. You were calling upon the set of powers I represent."
The whole mindscape fell into silence. Ichigo squeezed his eyes shut and scratched his head. With a frown, he began to shake his head a little.
"…what are you trying to say, old man? I don't understand."
"I think you do, Ichigo. You just don't want to admit the possibility of it being true. Yet I can assure you, it is the truth."
Ichigo stopped scratching his head and let his arm fall on his right thigh. A short sigh escaped his mouth. His eyes were still closed.
"You realize how insane it sounds, do you? How in the hell I can be a shinigami while also a Quincy? Surely you heard it too, Quincy are mostly extinct. The probability of me being one is so low, it's almost hilarious." He said without any hint of humor in his voice. After opening his eyes and raising his head to stare at the spirit, he continued.
"Is it even possible to just awake Quincy powers? How did I even acquire them? Quincy were supposed to be some sort of a clan, right? Moreover, their powers should be completely opposite to those of a shinigami. This just doesn't make any sense!" He exclaimed and threw his hands up in exasperation, demanding an answer from the spirit. However, the man became extremely quiet after that and it took him a few minutes after he opened his mouth again.
"I told you, Ichigo. That some of the answers you are looking for were going to be hard to accept. I can tell you, though, that it is impossible to simply awaken Quincy powers from nothing. They are hereditary."
A sudden adrenaline rush spread to Ichigo's whole body and he stared at the spirit with eyes open as wide as possible.
"What… what are you implying?"
The spirit averted his gaze and looked at the sky.
"I'm implying you should talk to your father sometime in the future. He is the one with all the answers." He said and closed his eyes, hidden behind his sunglasses, expecting an outburst. When seconds passed yet he heard nothing, he opened his eyes and looked the teen again. A ghostly smile formed on his lips when he saw him.
"Yeah… I think I'll do that." Ichigo stated in a rough tone and cracked the joints in his hands. His expression was so full of resolve, he looked positively intimidating.
"So… how can I make use of these Quincy powers, old man?"
"I'll show you some basics. However, before we begin, I think I'd like you to call me by a name." The spirit replied with a nod, causing Ichigo to raise one of his eyebrows.
"Do you even have one?"
"Not exactly. But there is a name I'd prefer. Call me Ywach, Ichigo."
"Sure thing, old man Ywach."
…
Some time later
An expression of incredible concentration on Ichigo's face broke down when the teen weakly groaned in frustration.
"This… is harder than I thought." He said. He was standing with both feet firmly set on the ground while his eyes were closed and his hands, outstretched forward, were slightly moving in all directions as he if he was trying to touch the very air. Very faintly, a small mass of spirit particles glowed above his palms. Gradually, the amount of reishi was growing but only until a certain point, when they dispersed back into the air and he had to start over again.
"Why is it so hard? It was a lot easier when I simply tried to pull reishi out of that plant." He muttered grumpily. Watching him from a side, Ywach took a moment to form a reply.
"Quincy training begins with gathering ambient reishi and then combining it with own reserves of reiryoku, which is mostly a natural thing for them. It is difficult for you because you possess very large reserves of your own spiritual energy. That energy is shrouding you in its aura which is then pushing that ambient reishi away from you. In comparison, an average Quincy possesses a lot smaller reserves of his own reiryoku and even that reiryoku is kept mainly within the center of their bodies. That is why they use mostly an external source of reishi to fight." He explained and took a moment to take a breath and his thoughts.
"Similar to a shinigami's Bankai, a Quincy possesses a sort of a release state. While in it, one's own reiryoku reserves are being inflated and pushed outwards in form of reiatsu. In that state, it is possible for a Quincy to break down objects and their reishi molecules into usable energy. It's called 'Complete Reishi Dominance'. You were able to do a similar thing with that plant without being in such a state because your energy is already inflated and pushed outwards." There, Ichigo interrupted him.
"Wait, that doesn't make sense. Why does having large reiatsu make breaking reishi down easier? Going by your first explanation, shouldn't it repel it and make it even harder?" He asked with a confused expression.
"Ambient reishi is loose and not bound to any particular object which is why it is easily gathered. At the same time, it is also why a large reiatsu easily repels it. On the other hand, reishi which is already in form of an object is tightly bound together. You need a strong reiatsu to weaken that bond. After that, even if you have a large reiatsu, that reishi is heavy enough not to be repelled by it." Ywach finished his explanation as if the teen never interrupted him.
"I… see… but wait. If that's the case, what am I trying to do here? Shouldn't I try to simply gather reishi from objects?" Ichigo stated and let the spirit particles above his palms to scatter.
"If you can gather ambient reishi, you'll be able to gather the rest so much faster. You'll also be able to do these things almost subconsciously when you'll reach that Quincy's released state. Also, this training will help you to better control your reiatsu…"
"…since I need to learn how to lower it in order to be able to gather ambient reishi in the first place. Right, I get it. It's basically killing two birds with one stone." He finished with a grin.
"Indeed."
…
Even later
"You know, I think I could use this to increase my Kidō skills. I have so much trouble utilizing Kidō because it's hard to take only such small amounts of my reiryoku from my reserves. Logically, Kidō should work even if I use the reishi I gathered from my surroundings, right?" Ichigo suddenly asked during a short break from his new training. Unbeknown to him, a lightly amused smile formed on Ywach's face.
"Why don't you give it a try then, Ichigo?"
Nodding to himself and to the spirit, the teen stood up and focused his attention on his reiatsu output and the air around him. He raised his right arm and opened his palm. Ever so slowly, some amount of reishi began to form above it. He continued gathering it until he decided he had enough. Then he tried to do as he had been taught.
"Hadō #1, Shō!"
"…"
Despite his attempt, nothing happened. The ball of energy just innocently continued to hover above his palm, pulsating and glowing as it did a moment before.
"Well, that's disappointing." Ichigo muttered. With his concentration broken, the reishi once again scattered.
"Do you know why you failed, Ichigo?"
"No."
His snappy response almost caused the manifestation of his Quincy powers to chuckle. Almost.
"Think, Ichigo. Isn't there anything from what you have learned so far that could give you an explanation? What is it that they teach you about Kidō at the Academy?"
Ichigo opened his mouth and took a breath only to close them and sit down. Closing his eyes, he deeply thought about it. Mentally, he calmly went over every bit of information he could recall until one of his eyebrows twitched.
"There is a difference between reishi and reiryoku. What I tried to use as a power source for Kidō is simple reishi, which is basically pure spiritual matter. To utilize a Kidō spell, there has to be an intent behind it, some sort of a will that bends and forms its effects. That is why you need at least a bit of reiryoku, which is a power aligned with the spiritual sensitivity and willpower of the user." He recited with a frown.
"Indeed, Ichigo. You catch on fast."
"Yeah, he's not as stupid as he looks, isn't he?"
The sudden arrival of the familiar voice startled Ichigo and the teen almost reflexively jumped backwards.
"…you almost gave me a heart attack. What took you so long?" He muttered with a hand on his chest.
"Well, seeing you two idiots bond so much caused me to puke for hours. It takes time to get over the feeling of disgust, you know?" The Zanpakuto spirit said while faking throwing up, causing Ywach to sigh quietly.
"Very funny." Ichigo retorted and watched the pale spirit to straighten his back and stare back at him, causing the teen to raise his eyebrows.
"What?"
"I won't stop you if you want to learn Quincy techniques, you know. If that makes you stronger, then fine. But I want you to know something. I hate it. I hate this Quincy part of you. I hated it, hate it and will fucking hate it." The spirit stated with a grimace. His tone was calm and controlled but Ichigo noticed his stiff posture and clenched fists. It made him realize that the spirit was barely controlling himself.
"Sorry." He muttered quietly what prompted the spirit to snort.
"Save it. My hatred isn't something I decided on or something I can control. It's just… natural for me. You'll understand once you get to know my name. Remember though. I am your main source of power, not this old man. As long as you act on that, we're fine." Having said that, the spirit cracked his neck joints and raised his right arm. A sword appeared in it.
"Now, I have this urge to slice you up." He grinned and prepared to jump at Ichigo who quickly backed away.
"Whoa, wait just a minute! If you haven't noticed I don't have my zanpakuto!"
The spirit's grin widened.
"Then what's that in your hand?"
Confused, Ichigo glanced down to look at his hands, only to find his right hand firmly gripping a hilt of his zanpakuto. He blinked.
'When the-?' He couldn't finish his thought as a sound of something cutting the air in front of him caused him to reflexively parry a frontal strike.
"Timeout! I want to talk to you! I want answers!" Ichigo exclaimed but the spirit pushed forward and blasted the teen backwards.
"Ah-ah. You won't get a single thing out of me, Ichigo. It's too soon for you to know answers to your questions! Not yet!"
A very irritated teen pried himself out of the distant wall he had crashed into. His growl was audible even from that distance.
"Old man Ywach said the same thing but in the end, he told me!" Utilizing Shunpo, he appeared right in front of his zanpakuto spirit and feinted a downward slash only to kick him in his abdomen. Hard. The spirit was sent skidding backwards yet his grin widened again.
"Good feint!" He stabilized himself right when Ichigo came onto him again.
"This shitty old man is different. You have already accepted his power back when I gave you the first test! He is the one part of you that you could have accepted the soonest! Or do you think I just chose the order of these tests randomly? Of course fucking not! I won't give you answers because there is a part of me you haven't yet accepted. The part that represents the most terrifying side of you but, at the same time, the part that makes you unique!" The spirit shouted in frustration and made a shallow cut on the teen's torso. Ichigo grit his teeth and instantly retaliated by giving the spirit the same wound.
"Then let me accept it!" As soon as he yelled that, Ichigo saw a bitter expression on the spirit's face.
"If it was that easy, I wouldn't be so hard on you. Ichigo, the more of my power you can access, the bigger the chance it will swallow you whole. You will reach my initial release soon, though. With your progress, it is quite inevitable. You are too damn good for your own well-being!"
Blood spurted from a deep gash on his thigh, causing Ichigo to groan. Creating a small distance between them, he poured his reiryoku into his blade and slashed the air in front of him. A large energy blast shot out from his swing that, for a moment, looked just like an image of a crescent moon.
The attack hit the spirit dead-on and immediately exploded.
"Well…that's not my fault, now, is it?" He retorted quietly.
"Your control over this technique is getting good. Looks like the time for the third and final test is even closer than I thought." The spirit stated with a hint of pride in his voice as he came out of the smokescreen, barely injured at all. As soon as he noticed that, Ichigo sighed in disbelief.
"…you've got to be kidding me."
"Ichigo." Ywach's voice came from unexpectedly close distance. Since his zanpakuto spirit lowered his sword for the moment, the teen allowed himself to glance at the old man.
"You want too many difficult answers at the same time. I understand your frustration and your anxiety. We both do. However, as I said, there is no need to rush. Learn how to accept things step by step. You already know about your Quincy powers that are highly undeveloped and yet you want to know more. Trust us a little bit, Ichigo. We will never try to hide things from you. We will share every last secret with you. In return, get strong enough, physically and mentally, so you can handle them when we tell them to you." The man said in a fatherly tone. The zanpakuto spirit, walking towards them, nodded.
"I hate to admit it, but he's right. We are not ordinary, but so are you, Ichigo." He stated seriously. Then he grinned.
"With your power, you will live for centuries, millennia even and you want to learn everything in your first year? Where's the fun in that?"
...
It was while Ichigo was locked in yet another training battle with his zanpakuto spirit that his other spirit, Ywach, appeared between them and forced them to stop fighting with a concerned expression.
"What is it, old man Ywach?" Ichigo asked and lowered his sword.
"Yeah, what is your problem?"
Ywach pointed one finger of his right hand at the sky above them.
"Something is happening in the real world." He said and looked meaningfully at Ichigo. The teen's reaction was instantaneous and he sheathed his zanpakuto. After giving his zanpakuto spirit an apologetic glance, he looked back at Ywach.
"Just to be sure, it's not possible that 150 years has already passed while I was here, right?"
"No. Time on the outside actually moves slower while you're here. I was sure you've already noticed that, Ichigo. We've been here for barely two, maybe three, days."
"…dang it. I feel it too. Fine, get the fuck out Ichigo. You're getting really close to my name but this seems to be more important." The zanpakuto spirit muttered and let his own sword vanish.
"Right. I'll be back." Ichigo retorted and closed his eyes. Tuning out everything around him, he concentrated and, in a few seconds, felt his surroundings change.
He opened his eyes. A quiet groan escaped his lips.
'Old man Ywach was right. Considering how stiff my shoulders are, it's been just a few days.' He thought. With a glance, he noticed his body was still encompassed within that weird gel-like substance.
Then something swooshed down. The cell he was in was dark so he wasn't sure whether he just imagined it but it felt like somebody swung down a sword.
"!" The feeling of being tightly embraced from all directions suddenly vanished and Ichigo fell on the ground.
"…what?"
With his face close to the ground, he noticed a foot right in front of him. Whoever it belonged to took a step closer so that the teen could recognize him.
Ichigo felt like his mind was playing tricks on him.
"It can't be… Captain Aizen?"
The supposedly dead Captain of the 5th Division formed a pleasant smile as he offered the teen a helping hand.
"Hello, Kurosaki-san. Looks like you could use some help."
End of Chapter 13.
As I promised, an early chapter. I finished writing it several days ago but there are things in it I wanted to be sure that are written properly.
Sooo...surprise development? Maybe. I did say as early as in chapter 5 that Ichigo would come to regret looking forward to the hearing in front of Central 46. I don't think i have more to say... or wait. I do. I think that in canon, Yoruichi was simply labled as missing and was just relieved of her status. I took liberty with that and made them label her as a traitor. I think it's only logical Aizen would provide some 'evidence' on her treachery.
Oh yeah, I promised to explain the name of this two-chapter.
Genesis of Lucifer : It has two meanings. Lucifer as in a biblical character, is the oppressor who tests the fate of man. Lucifer, as in literal translation, means 'bringer of the light'.
Now, which meaning points to which character?
To reviews:
*Friaku - thanks man, I tried to do it as smoothly as possible.
*chouritsushi - oh, you think we're done with manipulations? There's more! :D
*Takei_Daloui - thanks and yeah, I tried to explain it in this chapter. I hope it makes sense!
*Mr_Crimson_Fucker - Juha Bach (I call him Ywach) has another name reserved for himself. I actually have been researching quite a lot of mythology just for this story so there will be parts of it. I want to implement some symbolism of buddhism for shinigami and christianity+some judaism for Quincy. Ichigo will reach shikai in the next chapter or the one after that.
*NieveDrop - thanks, I try. Ichigo will make bad decisions from time to time. Yup, winning too many fight in a row can make a person overconfident, huh?
*Furudere - yeaaah, I tried to do something new but it seems it feels a bit awkward.
*bleachfan456 - I'm not forgetting Isshin. He's keeping Ichigo's friends safe in case something happens. He possibly could have taken Bounts down, but it would have taken him a lot of effort and in the process, he would need to release his reiatsu. That would alert 12th Division of a presence of something powerful in Karakura Town and he didn't want that for now. It was a Quincy power. For a certain reason, Ichigo has to develop all of his powers equally. I'll explain in future chapters. Blut will come in time.
*Dinner - so much trust... uf, I'll try not to disappoint.
*Harbinger_of_Kaos - as you can see, Aizen came to help Ichigo, which points to the fact that he had been in the compound for a few days. What for? Research. I really don't want to spoil things so... sorry, but not telling :D. It was mostly Kenpachi thing. Since his zanpakuto is partly hollow, he has something like a passive Hierro. Yes, I do plan on using Rangiku to help Ichigo.
That's all. Look forward to next chapter. Aizen's manipulations reach their peak! Will he persuade Ichigo to go with him? What are his plans?
See ya!