Hinamori's Apprentice
Chapter 47
"What's going on?" Karin asked, staring at the mirror version of herself with Usagi's eyes, "What are you trying to accomplish, Usagi?"
"I am not Usagi. I am Karin Kurosaki," the faux-Karin said, "Usagi Uzaki was the name of my last host. Now that you will be taking that place, I shall take your name."
"What the hell are you?" Karin asked tensely, but the figure Karin had known as Usagi Uzaki was busy looking around at Karin's inner world. He – no, it, Karin told herself– was grinning with manic glee as it surveyed the place. Karin felt sick seeing that expression on her own face.
"Interesting place," it said, "It's a bit rocky for my tastes, but the weather is nice!" The weather was actually quite nasty in Karin's opinion. It was not storming hard like it had at times in the past, but the clouds in the sky were dark and the water choppy and steely grey.
"Hmm… A little bit of redecorating and this place will be perfectly suited to my liking," it said. With that, it snapped its fingers.
Drops of black slime began falling from the sky. It started slowly, but soon grew in intensity. The ground was soon covered in slimy black sludge. The water surrounding the island appeared to turn into the sludge as well. The thing in front of Karin that had declared itself the new Karin Kurosaki laughed as thick layers of tar-like slime covered the ground.
"Isn't it wonderful? This is the sight of a person being consumed by my power! Do you like it? I hope so, because this is where you will stay for the rest of you days. Meanwhile, I'll be out in the real world living in your body! It's a shame you're not a bit older. When I take over a body, it stops growing, so that body will never reach adulthood. Oh well, it will work well enough. I wonder what I'll do first with your body? Oh I know! I'll use it to kill the people who came to rescue you! I'll wait until they let their guard down and kill them all!"
It let out a sinister laugh in Karin's voice, leaving the real Karin clenching her fists in anger.
"I won't let you," Karin said defiantly. It laughed again.
"Oh please! What will you do about it?"
"I'll beat you just like before!" Karin said.
"You don't seem to understand. Things don't work that way here! You can't just 'beat me' to gain control of your body. I have taken possession of your body. If you were to go back to your body, you wouldn't have any target to attack, because I'm inside of you! When I get back out, I'm hollowing out your organs so that even if you did regain control of your body, you'd die on the spot! You can't win!"
"I've heard that before," Karin said, "And every time I've heard it, it's been complete bullshit."
"So I am to understand that you believe you can wrest control of your body away from me?" it said in amusement.
"Yeah, as a matter of fact I am!" Karin said, "I've come too far to just roll over and let you take my body!"
"Well, I'm waiting to see what you've got planned," it laughed cruelly.
As the thing in front of her laughed, Karin rushed toward it, her fist drawn back. The being did not even move as her fist flew at its face. When she punched it in the nose, however, she found herself reeling backwards with a sharp pain on her face. She saw blood falling down onto the ground, and realized that her nose was bleeding.
"You see now why it's pointless to try fighting? In this world, our bodies are linked to eachother as well as to your body outside. Any damage you do to me will be inflicted on yourself. That's why it's impossible to win against me! There's absolutely no way that you can-"
Karin struck it in the face again, wincing at the feeling of being punched herself but maintaining her stance. It looked at her in surprise and anger.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"If it hurts you, I can deal with a little pain," Karin said. She punched her opponent in the gut and followed with a kick to the side that sent it stumbling away (Karin was also set off balance, but since she was prepared for it, she managed to stay on her feet).
"You little brat… don't you realize that it's pointless? Why do you continue resisting me?"
"You say that winning is impossible here, but I can tell that's a lie," Karin said, "What I see before me is not your physical form, but the form of your consciousness. If I can defeat that, you won't get control of my body."
"Idiot, even if you somehow defeated me, you'd be a goner too!"
"Well, that's just the cost of victory," Karin said grimly, "This is a battle of willpower. The one more determined to win will be the victor." With that, she continued her attack, but this time her opponent made more of an effort to dodge. It was no use however. Karin managed to land several kicks and punches. If these blows hurt her enemy as much as they hurt her, Karin knew that it wouldn't be long before it would be subdued.
"Enough of this foolishness!" the thing said, "I'm going to stop you where you stand."
The slime around Karin's feet suddenly solidified, becoming a rubber-like substance that prevented her from lifting her feet. The fake Karin grinned triumphantly.
"I'm goint leave you here now. I don't have any other business – hey, what are you doing?"
Karin had drawn her sword, a look of grim determination on her face.
"You won't be able to strike me with your feet glued to the spot like that. What are you trying to do? You think you can hit me with it if you throw it?"
"Our bodies are linked," Karin said, "If what happens to you happens to me, then it stands that what happens to me will happen to you." With that, she turned her sword around to point it at her heart. Realizing what she was doing, the fake Karin panicked.
"Wait! Don't!" it yelled, rushing towards her.
Karin took a deep breath. This was it. It was the only way. She'd rather be dead than let this sicko use her body.
Karin plunched the sword through her chest, gasping as the cold metal pierced her ribs and went through her heart and lungs. The fake Karin screamed, clutching its chest and falling to the ground just as Karin did the same. Her eyes only half open, Karin watched as the fake version of herself screamed on the ground before suddenly exploding in a burst of light. The last thing she saw before closing her eyes was the sludge disappearing from the ground.
"Karin… Karin…"
Where was she? Everything was dark for Karin. Was she dead? Was this what death was like for Shinigami? She had already died in the living world, so if she died here, did that mean she would just disappear? But in that case, she couldn't be dead, because she was still able to think and maintain awareness.
"Karin… Karin…"
But how could she not be dead? She had stabbed herself through the heart to defeat Usagi (or the entity that she referred to as Usagi, as the case may be). There was no way she could have survived that. But if she hadn't survived it, how could she be thinking about it now?
"Karin… Karin…"
And what was that voice? She couldn't identify its source, but found herself trying to go in the direction that she thought it was coming from. She had the unshakable feeling that it was there that she belonged. She went through the darkness, not knowing what to expect.
"Karin… Karin…"
Karin opened her eyes to see several faces looking down at her. Her vision was blurry, and she couldn't make out who it was at first. It was only after squinting carefully for several seconds that she was able to recognize the nearest face.
"Ichi-nii…" she whispered. Ichigo's face lit up upon hearing her voice.
"Karin… You've woken up…" he said in relief.
"Thank God you're alright…"
"I'm glad you're finally up."
"Welcome back, Karin!"
Karin squinted at the other faces, and saw that Momo, Toushiro, Rangiku, and Rukia were there too. Momo and Rukia were busy using Kido to heal her, but they along with the others were all looking at Karin with relief.
"Oh… hello…" she said groggily, her mind a bit hazy, "What're you all doing here…?"
"Isn't it obvious? We came to rescue you!" Rangiku said cheerily.
"You were great on your own though, managing to escape and all," Momo added, "I'm proud of you Karin. You handled yourself well."
"It's a good thing we found you when we did, though," Rukia said, focusing on her healing Kido, "You were seriously wounded. I guess it's a testament to your strength that you managed to survive such a wound."
"Let's not talk about that," Toushiro said, "We should just be glad that Karin is alright."
"Yeah, that's true," Momo agreed.
They were silent for the remainder of the time that Momo and Rukia healed Karin. Karin was content with this. Just being in the presence of her friends and brother again was enough for her. When Momo and Rukia had finished healing her, they helped Karin to her feet.
"Are you okay walking on your own?" Rukia asked.
"Oh yeah, I'm fine," Karin said, though the others noticed that she was wobbling a bit.
"Don't pretend. Your wounds are healed, but you're still exhausted and worn out," Ichigo said, "Come on, I'll carry you out."
Karin would have ordinarily protested, but in truth was indeed quite tired, and gratefully accepted Ichigo's offer, climbing onto his back so he could carry her.
The group began walking at a brisk pace, eager to leave this place for good. While they walked, Momo and Toushiro shared their experience, which seemed to surprise Ichigo greatly. When asked, Karin told them about what had happened to her, which served to impress them quite a bit.
"Wow Karin, that's simply amazing," Rangiku said.
"You've truly become a strong Shinigami," Momo said.
"It's thanks to you guys," Karin replied, "I wouldn't have survived if not for the help that all of you gave me. I'm not just talking about the training Momo and Rangiku gave me. The support and encouragement I received from all of you really helped me."
"Don't forget to credit yourself," Toushiro said, "The progress you've made really is amazing."
The others spoke up in agreement, to which Karin could only smile at. Stifling a yawn, she gently rested her head on Ichigo's shoulder. It had been a long and difficult ordeal, but now, at least, it was finally over…
"Wait…" Toushiro said, putting a hand out to stop them as they were about to walk through a metal door, "Something is wrong…"
"What do you mean?" Ichigo asked. Momo and Rangiku suddenly shiverred.
"What's going on?" Rukia asked. She did not receive an answer.
Toushiro and Momo exchanged a glance, with Momo nodding and getting down on her knees. She whispered a Kido spell, and a thin line of light crept from her palm across the floor and under the door. She took a quick intake of breath and dispelled the Kido.
"It's him," she whispered, fear evident in her voice.
"Who?" Ichigo asked.
The thing that attacked me, Matsumoto, and Soi Fon on that expedition to the living world," Toushiro said, "The thing that Kyr was talking about. The thing that abducted Karin."
"I see," Ichigo said, his eyes narrowing, "So the bastard who took Karin is through there?" Karin gripped Ichigo tightly.
"Don't even think about it," she whispered, "That thing… It's not like anything else."
"We should go back another way," Rangiku said.
"No, this is the only way out," Momo said.
"Aurion is dead, as is the rest of the leadership of the Fourth Rising," Toushiro said, "Maybe if we tell him that, he'll let us pass."
"I doubt it," Momo said, "Remember what Kyr told us? When that thing sets its eyes on a target, it will follow it to the ends of the Earth. Since you, Rangiku, and Karin have all been targeted…"
"There's no avoiding a confrontation," Ichigo said grimly. He let Karin down and faced the door. "I'll handle this. The rest of you, get out."
"It won't just let us escape past it," Toushiro said, "Unless it's beaten, trying to get past it is pointless. I'll fight it too. It's already targeted me after all."
"I'll also fight," Momo said, "I don't know how much use I'll be, but I can at least provide support."
"I want to fight too," Karin said.
"No!" Ichigo, Toushiro, and Rangiku said together.
"But-"
"Karin, you saw what that thing is capable of," Rangiku said, "Leave it to Momo, Ichigo, and Captain Hitsugaya."
"She's right Karin," Ichigo said, "I know you've gotten stronger, but this is way beyond anything you're capable of dealing with."
"And you are capable?" Karin asked, "You know what that thing has done, don't you? It's nearly indestructable! My help is as good as any against an enemy like that!"
"Karin…" Toushiro began to speak, but Momo interrupted him.
"No wait, I have an idea," she said, "I know something Karin can do. What's more, I know how we can beat that guy."
A hiss came from behind the skull-like mask. The one with no name, Master of the Karekol people, waited for his prey inside a large domed room. His enemy was just beyond those doors. There were three targeted ones, plus one that had gotten in the way of one of his targets. Those would be the first to go, but he would eliminate all six of them. Twin scimitars were gripped in his clawed hands, ready for combat.
He knew they were there, behind that door. They would come out soon, he was sure of it. It was only through this room that they could reach the exit of the fortress. He knew that and they knew that. If they were smart, they would also know that they couldn't escape confrontation. This would be the final confrontation. As soon as Aurion had been defeated, he had sent the Karekol away. There was no need to involve them in this matter. It was his personal desire to finish them off, not part of his duties as Master and Protector of the Karekol.
There was a large explosion at the door way, throwing up smoke and obscuring the view. From the smoke, two figures rushed towards him, one the ice winged boy he had fought before, the other a man with a black cape and sword. He raised his swords to block their blows, and saw that the four women were standing behind them to the back. Two of them, an orange-blonde haired woman and a shorter black haired girl with a white Zanpakuto, were standing as if on guard, while the other two were in the center. He recognized one of them as the girl he abducted, and the other as the winged girl who had fought him before.
"Momo!" the white haired ice boy yelled as he crossed blades.
"Right!" the winged girl said. She raised her hand, releasing a massive energy blast towards the ceiling. The explosive blast sent chunks of stone falling down on them. Both sides were forced to retreat to avoid being crushed by the falling rubble. The blast was so powerful that it had penetrated the roof, and daylight now filtered down into the room.
"Okay, now trap him for a moment and be prepared to flee!" the winged girl said, wrapping her wings around herself and the other girl.
The black sword man and the ice boy clashed with the Master of the Karekol. They were strong, but they were neither skilled enough to land any blows nor powerful enough to damage him if they did. There was little for him to fear.
The two Shinigami fighting him suddenly got back, however, and the ice boy swung his sword, conjuring a massive ice dragon. The dragon of ice flew straight at him, and froze the bottom half of his skeletal body to the ground. It was of no concern, of course. He had broken out of ice before; it would not be difficult to do it again.
At that moment however, the wings of the girl had unfolded, and both she and the other one had fierce looks on their faces.
"Tenra!" the winged girl said.
"Antei Tensei!" said the other girl.
A strange bubble formed at the end of the abducted girl's Zanpakuto. With a swing of her sword, the thing detached and flew straight at the Master of the Karekol. It didn't hit him, but instead flew over his shoulder before stopping in mid-air just behind him. At that moment, all of the enemies before him began to flee. The winged girl grabbed the abducted girl, the ice boy grabbed the blonde woman, and the black sword man grabbed the girl with the white sword. All of them immediately flew toward the hole in the ceiling. Hissing in anger at their cowardice, the Master of the Karekol broke free from the ice and charged toward them.
At that moment, something strange happened. The bubble that now hovered in mid-air behind him began to twist and distort the air around it. A single black dot emerged, no more than the size of a pinhead. Time itself stopped for a moment. Then, with a loud roar, everything in the room was pulled toward the void. Air rushed into it. Pieces of rubble from the ceiling were pulled into the spot as if it were a tiny black hole. The floor was ripped apart, and the ceiling began caving in. The master of the Karekol could only look up at the outlines of his enemies against the sky before he too was sucked into the void.