Chapter 4: A Story for the Ages
A/N: This chapter is a bit shorter than the others, but I couldn't figure a way to make it longer. The next one will more than make up for it I promise! Even during the rewriting process I couldn't work out how to lengthen it without making it ridiculous. All in all, this is more like a filler than a real chapter.
Oh, and for anyone who is wondering, Arius Pelagios does actually mean something. The former name I used was too bland for me, so I took this one, which if put together, means "Immortal of the Sea".
And a big thank you to everyone who has faved, followed and reviewed this story, it really means a lot to me.
Last time on The Unknown Captain:
"Love is not complicated if its with someone who holds your heart." These words of wisdom came from none other than Bill Weasley, who was holding hands with his wife, Fleur Weasley.
Arius looked over at the two with emotionless eyes, "Love is useless, it can't stop the ones you care about from dying, and it doesn't stop you from hurting. And before you go into what I am sure would be a well-rehearsed speech on the wonders of love, Dumbledore, know this, I have no use for something that couldn't keep my parents or Godfather from dying. And Gin, if you're serious about doing this, come find me in the usual place when you get back, I'm sure there will still be plenty for you to do."
And with that he walked into the gate and disappeared.
Now on with the story:
As Arius wandered through Rukongai, he couldn't help but feel like he was missing something, but whenever he thought about it it always felt like it was beyond his reach, just out of sight, and he hated that. He didn't like not knowing something about himself. He had changed a lot since coming to the Seireitei.
He had discovered upon arrival that all traces of his magic had disappeared, and that made him both happy and sad. Happy because the one thing that had brought him more suffering than anything else was finally gone, but sad that the only thing that thing that had brought him joy was gone as well. It was a contradiction, but he couldn't help what he was feeling.
He had long since cast aside all connection to the Living World, first to go being his name. He hated his fame, and he was quite pleased to see that upon dying his hair straightened out and lay flat a lot easier, making hiding his infamous scar a great deal easier. He also found he no longer needed glasses, and later on discovered that his memory had improved as well. He was also taller than he was before, and while he wasn't necessarily stronger, his muscles were more defined.
All in all, he was a prime male specimen and it didn't take long before he realized that he had been played all along. You see, when you die you go on as you were without any baggage beyond clothes, and so suddenly finding himself different from what he was before raised a lot of questions that only had one answer: Albus Dumbledore had intentionally weakened him to make him easy to control. And upon this realization, he figured that it was time to change, and so he quickly went about trading his clothes for less flashy ones, and gave away his glasses to someone who looked like they really needed it.
He had wandered about trying to find something to do, when he spotted a newspaper lying on the ground. But what caught his eye wasn't the headline, it was the date, 1625 A.D.. It seemed that he had gone back in time. It wasn't until he entered Shino Academy that he learned that the more pure a soul, the farther back in time they go upon arrival in the Soul Society, as they have been considered worthy of a chance to change what went wrong in their lives as they have been deemed good enough to not make things bad for those that wronged them.
Of course, none of them expected Harry, now Arius's, rage at finding out that the very man who he had looked up to for nearly 6 years had used and betrayed him far worse than Ron ever could. Or at least, that he knew of. In all honesty he wouldn't be surprised if Dumbledork had started all the way back when he was orphaned at the age of 1.
Arius had sworn then and there that he would do everything in his power to make the old fool pay. It wasn't long after this that he began to train. While he didn't have any magic left, he did have something else. What it was he didn't know, but he knew it was powerful. Several years later, while doing one of his rounds around the Eastern Rukon District, he was spotted by a Shinigami responsible for recruiting for the Shinigami Academy.
Upon noticing how high his Reiryoku was, he was quick to approach him and offer him a place to better hone his natural talents and become a Shinigami himself.
Of course, what no one knew, not even Harry himself, was that there was still a single block active on him that prevented him from understanding things completely, and so he found himself unable to learn any Kido and his swordsmanship sucked. It wasn't until long after he was kicked out, approximately 30 years, that he felt something change inside himself, and, upon looking deep inside himself like his former sensei taught him that he discovered the final remains of the spell used to inhibit him. When he saw it he was furious. He could have become a Shinigami if it hadn't been for that block, and now he had to train on his own if he wanted to get anywhere.
And you know what happened next (A/N: if not, refer to chapter 1).
So, while Arius was brooding over his past life he heard a cry for help that brought him back to the present. Growling, he quickly cast an illusion over his face to hide his features. The Kido in question was one of the only ones he was able to learn back at Shino Academy, seeing as it allowed one to alter one's appearance to allow one to work with a sense of anonymity, not that many bothered with it seeing the percentage of people able to see them.
He shunpoed in the direction of the scream and came to a halt before it. But what he saw wasn't what he was expecting.
"Well well well, what have we here, the Hero of Rukongai. I didn't think we would be graced by your presence for at least another hour. Not that it matters, for I, Kenpachi Zaraki, will finally know who is the strongest fighter."
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Thanks for reading! ^_^