Chapter 2: At Death's Door
"The…Court of Eternity?!" Hito stared at the two men before him, one who had just finished wrapping up a black chain with a sharpened end, and the other who had goofily let himself be beaten by the younger and (from what Hito could tell) less experienced one.
"That's what I said!" Tsugemaru smiled happily. "Oh, and, well, you're dead too…." His smile faded as he tried to gauge Hito's reaction with no expression. Hito shrugged. "Oh, you're okay with it!" Tsugemaru smiled again, but was taken aback when Hito stood up, rushed over, and grabbed him by the collar with speed he hadn't been expecting.
"WHY THE HELL ARE YOU SMILING!" Hito yelled. Hattei sighed behind them and rolled his eyes. Tsugemaru's eyes went puppy dog as he looked at Hito.
"I'm sorry sir, I just thought-" he began, but didn't finish because of Hito.
"I'm DEAD! You couldn't have thought it was okay that I was DEAD because that's DEAD stupid you DEAD head!" Hito yelled, shaking Tsugemaru vigorously enough to make him foam at the mouth. "I don't know what kind of insane dream this is but I WANT TO WAKE UP!" Hito yelled again, louder and shaking Tsugemaru but more vigorously.
"That's not going to change things." The quiet voice of Hattei spoke behind Hito. Hito looked around (not noticing him dropping Tsugemaru like a stone) to Hattei with fury in his eyes.
"What do you mean?! Maybe I can wake up, maybe I can-" he stopped, choking back what he realized must be tears. "I-I can't go yet!" he spoke again after a moment. Hattei looked at the boy and closed his eyes.
"Too bad, you have to." He said easily. Hito clenched his fist and growled.
"I don't have to either!" he yelled. He dashed backwards towards his body and shook it. Then he squeezed it in a fashion that made it look like he was bear hugging himself. "Damn it, let me in!" He yelled at the top of his lungs.
"The Chain of Fate is broken." Tsugemaru stood up, his eyes no longer even slightly amused and no hint of a smile ever having been on his face. "For whatever reason, this Hollow targeted you…" Tsugemaru began, he looked incredibly pained because he had to say this. "It…killed you. But, worse than that…" He looked away.
Hito's eyes were covered by his hair. He felt the rain again. It must have stopped then started again. "What's worse than death?" he asked Tsugemaru, or perhaps even the Earth itself by how he was looking at it.
Hattei growled and then stomped over to him. Grabbing him by the arm (which Hito offered no resistance to) he pulled down the sleeve of his school uniform and showed him what looked like a tatoo which Hito hadn't had before. "THIS!" he yelled. Hito looked at it half heartedly before snatching his arm back. Hattei glared and then turned away. "Fine, don't listen to how your soul is going to be obliterated. Geez, usually people just face facts!" Hattei walked a few feet away and began to mumble about how stupid souls were.
"He's not really angry at you, he just wants you to realize…" Tsugemaru sighed and looked a Hito's arm. "Look,.-" Tsugemaru looked at Hito for a name.
"Hitonari. Hitonari Jirai. Any friends I have call me Hito though." The red haired boy spoke as though there wasn't a reason to, mechanically.
"Hito. Hito-san, what you have there on your arm," He pointed to the mark, which resembled a lopsided heart with no coloration (except the pinkish-red outline) and an 'X' across it. The 'X' seemed to be glowing a dark gray. "is the mark of the Hollow. It means soon your soul will be transformed into…well, that," he pointed to the area the Hollow had been in. "thing. Or something like it." Tsugemaru finished.
Hito still looked down, his eyes only flashed in one direction here and there occasionally as reaction to the talk.
Tsugemaru looked at the disconsolate red haired boy. "I truly am sorry, but I suppose that doesn't help in the least." He then reached into his cloak and pulled out a gavel with a pure black color and an odd symbol on it's front hammer end. "Well then, if you have no more will to remain." He placed the gavel near Hito's head, and then raised it at the same instant Hito shot up.
"What do you mean?!" Hito glared. Tsugemaru's now wide eyes blinked. "I have plenty of will to live, but if there isn't a way….Dad…." he looked away from Tsugemaru at the last part. Thoughts about how lonely his father would be were all that occupied his mind at the moment.
"So you have a reason to live?" Tsugemaru frowned in thought.
"It doesn't matter!" Hattei walked back over to join the duo with a glare in his eyes. "Save him the trouble of hoping he can survive, he's been infected, and by a Progressed Hollow at that!" Hattei yelled. Tsugemaru frowned, but didn't do or say anything else but put his hammer away.
"Hope?! What do you mean, if I'm dead how can I hope to live…You can't come back from the dead, can you?" Hito asked, his eyes wide with hope he himself didn't think he'd have.
"No, you CAN'T come back to life." Hattei said flatly. Tsugemaru cocked his head to the side and examined the mark on Hito's arm which began to glow a reddish color.
'Is that…?"' he thought. Then, biting his lips, he walked into the street. Hattei and Hito glared daggers at each other.
"Then why even make it sound like you can, you bastard?!" Hito stood up, fire burning his eyes. Hattei growled and glared as hard, if not harder, at Hito. "You made me think that I could live, be with my father when there isn't a way at all!" Hito yelled, getting angrier. Hattei's eyes narrowed.
"Shut up, if you'd have just let us Konso your ass then you wouldn't have-" he was cut off as Hito's voice rose out, though not in anger at all anymore.
"Konso?" he asked. Tsugemaru was still in the street, pondering. Hattei's right eye twitched and he looked to Hito.
"Yeah, Soul Burial. We'd have freed your soul from this world and cleansed it at the same time!" he glowered. "But you went on talking and then got yourself riled up. Now you want to take it out on me!" Hattei said, dangerously angry.
"You were planning on burying my soul?! I didn't even get to say goodbye!" Hito yelled, he rushed towards Hattei. Maybe Hattei thought Hito was going to do the same thing to him as he did to Tsugemaru, or maybe he was just too fed up with him at this point. Either way, Hito was almost within physical contact range when a leg swiftly leapt from its place on the ground and kicked him full in the stomach with enough force to knock him backwards about twenty feet. The red haired boy hit a telephone pole and it shuddered him to a stop. "AGH!" Hito uttered, his body now more than worn. Tsugemaru's eyes went wide. He was suddenly over at Hito's side.
"Hito, are you okay!" the blond man asked, concern evident on his face. Hito began to stand up shakily, a hand over his stomach where Hattei had kicked him. Hattei put his foot back to the ground without looking even slightly apologetic.
"I-I'm fine." Hito squeezed out. He stood up fully and looked at Hattei with a glare. Then he turned to Tsugemaru with a look of defiance. "Is there a way…A way I can live again?!" Hito asked him, seriousness etching out his features. Hattei rolled his eyes and threw his hands up in exasperation at the conversation.
Tsugemaru's light green eyes seemed to darken as he looked at Hito. "There is a way, but just one, and it wouldn't be so much coming back to life as embracing death more." He stated. Hito didn't flinch or blink.
"I'll do it. I can't leave my dad." The red haired boy stated simply. Hattei watched and seemed to be mildly interested as Tsugemaru sighed with what appeared to be weariness.
"If you're sure, after I tell you this, you won't have much of a choice." He said. Hito didn't waver. Tsugemaru sighed and stepped back. "Well, no point in staying out in this cold street," the taller man turned to Hattei. "do you mind opening a portal?" he asked the blue haired boy. Hattei shrugged and spun his spiked chain whip around, then abruptly stopped it, placed his right hand on the tip of the last chain link (where the blade was) and stabbed the foot long blade into the air before them.
Hito's eyes went wide as he saw the air before him swirl. It was a very odd thing to see as a long and dark road formed directly before them, completely different from the long dark road they were on at the present moment. "Wh-what the-" Hito began, but Tsugemaru cut him off.
"This is the way to the Court of Eternity: Hell's White Road. It leads to the place where you'll hopefully be able to return to the world of the living." Tsugemaru said. He placed a hand on Hito's shoulder and gently guided him towards the road. Hito gulped and then looked determined as he headed towards the road to the Court of Eternity. Hattei frowned as though mildly impressed by Hito's daring, then stepped in after him and Tsugemaru which made the rip in the dimension close. Hito's body remained lying in the rain, its face becoming pale.
Hito's eyes were wide with amazement after he stepped into the odd space distorting area. He blinked as he realized he was on the road he'd just seen. "H-hell's White Road?" he asked shakily, voicing one of the thousands of questions coming into his head.
Tsugemaru looked at him with a small smile. "Yes. So deemed such because it leads into the 1st 'Level' of Hell, well, technically the Underworld." He stated plainly, as though discussing the weather.
"You guys gonna talk or are we going to get moving?!" Hattei asked, his violet eyes narrowed in annoyance. "We don't have all day you know, I'd like to get assigned to a division, seeing as how I definitely passed my test." He stated the last part with a smirk of overconfidence.
Hito rolled his eyes and turned to the taller, older man. "Tsugemaru-san, what exactly is the Court of Eternity? And what is a Hollow? What's ALL of this stuff you're talking about?!" Hito asked, his eyes were now bright with curiosity. Tsugemaru smiled to this and then they began to walk (after a swaggering Hattei).
"Well, really, it's easier to begin with the enemy. Hollows. Hollows are creatures that are created from the souls of normal humans after death. A Hollow is only created, however, when a soul is eaten by another Hollow, or their broken chain of fate disintegrates and leaves a hole in the center of their chest." Tsugemaru stated.
"What is this mark then, didn't you say it had something to do with them?" Hito questioned, trying to grasp as much information as he could before they arrived at their destination, as he had no idea when that would be.
"Ah, well, you see, most of the time Hollows hunt only beings, living or dead, with the highest of spiritual energies-Reiki. That is, the energy your soul creates and manages to maintain. The more Reiki they absorb, the more the pain of their fate, is eased." Tsugemaru continued. Then he bumped into Hattei, who had stopped suddenly. Hito blinked as Hattei turned around with his own curious look (though a harsher tone was on his features).
"What do you mean, Reiki, why don't you tell him about BOTH sides of the Soul?!" the blue haired boy growled to his apparent mentor. Tsugemaru sweat dropped and raised his hand defensively.
"Now, now Hattei-kun, don't be so hasty, I'll tell him about Shiki soon enough!" Tsugemaru stated nervously. Hito blinked, confused as to why the older and probably more experienced of the two was being pushed around all the time.
"Er, well, I guess…What's Shiki? And what does he mean BOTH sides of the soul?" Hito asked. The terms used seemed to ring a bell without explanation, but he was beginning to doubt whether his knowledge of the living world could apply the same in the world after death.
Tsugemaru cleared his throat, regaining his composure and Hattei rolled his eyes and walked forward again, signaling the other two guys to follow. "First off, with your initial questions: The Court of Eternity is the parallel to the Soul Society, per say." He began. Hito blinked and Tsugemaru must have realized he needed to explain more in depth.
"Soul Society itself is made up of many souls that have passed on after being cleansed either as a Hollow (minus), or a normal (plus) spirit. However, the governing force of the Soul Society is the Court of Pure Souls. This is where Shinigami preside over all the normal or 'good' spirits." Tsugemaru continued.
"Wait a minute! Are you telling me DEATH GODS exist?!" Hito questioned his eyes wide in disbelief. Although he could honestly say he felt they did, just from hearing about the monstrous Hollows and how he remembered the attack earlier that night that killed him made him ready to believe any nonsense these men were spouting off.
"Yes, and they are VERY powerful men and women. Men and women with incredibly large levels of Reiki harnessed over time or given to them from birth. Either way, they come together and ruled the souls of Soul Society many a millennia ago. And their three main jobs are: 1. To balance the amount of souls in this world and the next; 2. To destroy or, more precisely 'cleanse' all Hollows and; 3. To send normal spirits to Soul Society." Tsugemaru explained further.
"I always thought there was one Shinigami and he killed for fun or something…" Hito said, a bit of red coloring his cheeks from embarrassment. Hattei rolled his eyes again, making Hito snap his eyes up for a death glare. Tsugemaru cleared his throat and Hito turned back to him.
"Anyway, the Court of Eternity parallels some of these purposes. Our main purposes are 1. To balance the number of souls between the three divisions, that is Soul Society, Hell, and the Earthly realm 2. We help in the destruction of normal Hollows occasionally, but we mostly have to kill the 'Progressed' ones and 3. To destroy demonic creatures that find their way into the Human realm." The blond haired man ended another explanation. Hito blinked.
"Why would you want more souls in Hell, isn't it a bad place?" Hito asked.
"No, you idiot, the Underworld is the part of Hell we're discussing, it's where a number of all souls go, haven't you ever read Greek Mythology? You know how everybody went to the Underworld? That's basic- Ah screw it, Tsugemaru-sama can explain it to you." Hattei stated all this easily and made Hito and Tsugemaru glare. Although Tsugemaru's smile returned a split second later and he opened his mouth to continue.
"Anyway, that's the purpose of the Courts, we belong to the Court of Eternity so, naturally, it was us who went after that 'Progressed Hollow'. Oh, and a Progressed Hollow is a Hollow that has a heart made of pure darkness because it has been dead and gone for so long all its 'Light' energy decayed. Or Hollows that have been hurt greatly before passing over and after passing over couldn't let go or cope with those feelings of pain." Tsugemaru said. He then looked at the red haired boy to his left side, seeming to focus on the slightly glowing mark on his arm. "They are the only ones who can use the Mark of the Hollow." He finished.
Hito looked at his arm, and then shut his eyes. "So eventually, I'll turn into…." Hito squeezed his eyes shut and shuddered. Then he opened his eyes and looked at Tsugemaru. "What about the other side of the Soul?" the red haired boy asked.
Tsugemaru hesitated, then sighed and began to explain. "This is the confusing part. You see, there are 2 energies that make up the Soul, one of Light/Normality-Reiki, and one of Darkness/Oddity- Shiki. Usually the former energy is the one manipulated best without….the trial." Tsugemaru gulped. He then looked at Hito with utter seriousness. Hattei slowed his pace and turned to watch.
"W-what is it?!" Hito asked, getting unnerved by the looks of these odd people.
"Hito, you must understand, you can still be cleansed, you'll lose an arm because of the mark but it won't spread through your body for several more days. You can still abandon this dream of coming back to life and live as a Spirit in the Underworld or Soul Society!" Tsugemaru spoke with a quickness and nervousness. Hito got the feeling he was trying to rush him into saying 'I'll drop it'. Hito couldn't even consider letting his father live on his own, however, and it was evident in his face.
Closing his eyes and re opening them with a look of defiance glowing in their very depths, he opened his mouth to reply. "I can't do that. There's still someone…I'll do whatever it takes." He declared boldly. Tsugemaru closed his eyes and sighed.
"The Trial is a test of your Soul. Your very being, the thing that makes you, YOU! If you fail it, then you will be destroyed. But if you pass, then you'll be eligible to become a Judge of the Court of Eternity. A Sanbankan no Kyuuen." Tsugemaru stated. Hito blinked.
"Judge of Eternity eh, sounds like it might be f-" Hito began, a smile lighting up his face, but he was cut off as Hattei yelled something he didn't make out and turned to Hito and Tsugemaru to tell them they had arrived. Hito looked forward from Tsugemaru and his eyes went wide as he saw, directly in front of them, a large black gate with intricate symbols on it and one huge skull in the center. glowing a blood red. Suddenly, a pain hit him from his arm. "Agh!" he placed a hand on the Mark of the Hollow and Tsugemaru looked at him concerned.
"Are you-"
"He'll be fine." Hattei cut the older man off as the gate began to open. It was true (even though neither Hito nor Tsugemaru wanted it to be). Hito was able to walk again in only a few seconds. He moved forward through the opening gates and looked around. The area was that of any other city, only most of the houses were rather old fashioned. He also noticed the few people walking around (apparently it was late here too) were wearing black robes and pretty much nothing else.
"Well, I can't say much more," Tsugemaru began as the three of them moved completely into the area. "but: Welcome to the Court of Eternity!" Tsugemaru smiled pleasantly and looked at Hito, who stared blankly.
"Wow, what's with the old fashion look?" Hito questioned. Hattei rolled his eyes and raised a hand to point to somewhere in the distance.
"Come on you two, let's get to the Central Court before it gets any later; I want to be appointed to a division immediately as I utterly wasted that Hollow!" Hattei swelled up again with pride and, as a result, didn't notice his companions move along without him towards the direction he had been pointing. At least not immediately. "HEY! Where are you guys going so fast?!" Hattei asked after he realized he was standing alone on the street. He ran to catch up with them and, upon his arrival, saw that they were deep in conversation again.
"The trial, as it were, is very risky." Tsugemaru had started another explanation. "It forcibly breaks down your soul and reconfigures it with the ability to become a Judge of Eternity. Although you won't really realize that's what its doing, as your objective is to stay alive more-so than worry about what's happening to your soul." He made a small smile but Hito didn't return it. "Well, as soon as we get in we can take you to the trial room an-" he was cut off as Hattei yelled in protest.
"WHAT?! Are you saying you're not going to get clearance for this?!" Hattei asked with shock and anger in his voice. Tsugemaru blinked, looked up as though deep in thought, then placed a hand behind his head and laughed hysterically, earning him a punch from Hattei.
"OW! Hattei!" the blond man's eyes suddenly welled up with tears. "You didn't have to hit me!" he stated. Hito sweat dropped again and Hattei growled low in his throat. Tsugemaru then cleared his throat (and his tears) and stood up. "Honestly, no, I'm not going to receive clearance for this. Partially because it's too late and partially because, well…" he looked at Hattei knowingly and Hattei gulped, and then sighed.
"Fine, but I don't want to get into trouble for your mistake, so instead of letting you watch him alone I'll make sure myself his trial isn't walked in on." Hattei declared. Tsugemaru smiled happily and Hattei rolled his eyes. "Let's get going then." With that said, the three began to walk once more, heading for the eerie center of the Court of Eternity.
It had taken about an hour to get to the 'Central Court' as Hattei had called it. But when they arrived (after passing another gate which wasn't adorned with a symbol) the darkness seemed to have subsided and Hito could clearly see the area they were in didn't have any of the relaxed looking homes. Instead it was fitted with dozens of skyscrapers and larger, slightly more modern housing facilities. He also saw that there was a fountain spilling out a black liquid.
"Whoa, this place is huge, what did you call it again?!" Hito asked, taking in the full view. Hattei rolled his eyes and opened his mouth, but Tsugemaru beat him to it.
"It's called the Central Court. You see, there are essentially 4 areas to the Court of Eternity. The Outer Court, which is where you enter and where we just came from," Tsugemaru started, he motioned behind him upon saying 'Outer Court'. "There's also the Central court, where we are now, this is where most everyone except Supreme Judges and High Judges sleep," he was about to continue but Hito broke in.
"Um, what in the world are Supreme Judges?!" Hito asked.
"There are three classes of judges, normal judges, just Judges of Eternity, High Judges, who assist the Supreme Judges and act as second in command on one of the 13 divisions, and the Supreme Judges, leaders of their division and together the whole of the High court, the next area Tsugemaru-sama would be explaining." Hattei declared easily. Hito nodded, and, for once, didn't glare or get angry at Hattei, Hattei didn't seem to be bothered by Hito for once either.
"Oh, thank you Hattei!" Tsugemaru smiled. He began to explain again as they steered into a large black and white building (the only white was the Japanese symbol for 'Eternity' on the top of the door in white) with several people walking around inside, despite the lateness of the hour.
"Anyway, the High Court has the sleeping and meeting quarters for High and Supreme Judges, and also some other areas I can't disclose. Finally, the Supreme Court is the area where special events take place and where the governors of the Underworld reside." Tsugemaru waved to some people who looked quizzically at him and his companions, but, for the most part, waved back.
"Oh." Hito said plainly, distracted by everything going on around him. He didn't even notice as he was lead through a maze of doorways and halls, too many to count. The area seemed to get less and less populated as they proceeded and, finally, both Hattei and Tsugemaru stopped. Hito almost bumped into the two and shook himself, then absorbed his surroundings.
The room the group had stopped in was a large one with black and red drapes covering windows (Hito thought they were covering windows, anyway). The main asset, however, was a pool filled with the same kind of black liquid as he'd seen the fountain spitting earlier. It was large and circular, but had no swimming equipment and Hito figured it must not be that deep as he looked around for even a ladder.
'Maybe it's just so they can soak their feet after a long day at work."' The red haired boy thought to himself. He surveyed the rest of the room and then his companions. Tsugemaru had taken on that seriously solemn look again and Hattei had an odd smirk on his face. Hito looked from one to the other, then, before he could question Tsugemaru stepped forward.
"Here's the trial Hito." He stated. Hito looked at the pool.
"Am I supposed to-" he began, but was cut off as Tsugemaru (moving with incredible speed) took out a talisman and slapped it onto Hito's chest, directly over the chain of fate. Hito felt an immense pain, and the chain broke into thousands of tiny pieces, then the thing it was attached to fell off. He didn't really feel himself being pushed as Tsugemaru placed a hand on his shoulder and forced him back into the pool, he only felt that incredible pain, a pain so familiar feeling, a pain that reminded him of, oddly enough, hunger.
"Good luck, Hitonari Jirai, may god be with you!" Tsugemaru said, his voice in eternal sadness as Hito fell into the dark abyss of the unknown. "Because no one else is."
To Be Continued
Next time: "This is SO not my day! I thought dying was bad, but facing this…whatever is even worse. Basically, I wake up to find myself face to face with an insanely creepy thing that says he's here to release my Shiki- if I can survive his insanely huge scythe-like…thingy from slicing me in half. But I feel that I may have something, some kind of power inside me, and if it allows me to live, I'll find that power, and kick this guy's ass! Next time onBleach: The Court of Eternity: Hell's Trial"
A/N: Ah, another chapter done. Once more, the length was more than expected but I suppose most people won't mind (just means it takes longer). Please review and don't be afraid to ask questions as I've plenty of stuff I can and (unless it'd ruin the story) will explain about the Court of Eternity or anything else, I'm not sure if I really got everything out there, but all the important stuff about the Court should have been said.. Oh, and a small note, I used "Shiki" as "Death Energy". I know that "Shi" in Japanese is death, and I was pretty sure that "Ki" means just energy, but I've also seen it translated as life energy, so I'll just clear up and say it's not "Death Life Energy" but merely Death Energy. I'm not an expert in Japanese, it's just a fun language to me (hence the reason I use "sensei" "san" and all that- and to make it sound more like it's actually taking place in Japan)… French, on the other hand… Ah forget it. Au revoir, be sure to review!