Babylon's Guardian
Chapter 4: Funeral Procession/ZARAKI TIME!
Recap: Ichigo has kept under the radar since the Raider Incident. However, his life is about to get worse thanks to a lot of Minbari and his least favorite captain paying a visit to Babylon 5.
Ichigo tinkered with his new Starfury, as it kept him far from the rest of the station's population. He continued to go on CAP flights with the B5 defense squadrons along with his Hollow killing duties.
It helped him earn an actual living on B5.
He had added 4 hardpoint racks for missiles and other weapons, as well as another twin-barreled energy cannon, taken from a damaged Starfury.
"C&C, I'd like to take my Starfury out on a test flight."
"Sinclair here: go ahead."
Ichigo then put on his helmet and climbed into the cockpit.
"Heading out."
The outer hatch opened, the launch arms tilted down and Ichigo's Fury was launched into the vacuum.
"Ichigo, get your ass back inside the station!"
"What? Why?"
Then the jumpgate activated and spat out a ship: a Minbari Sharlin-Class war cruiser.
"Uh-oh."
Babylon 5: Command and Control
"Son of a bitch! Get him back to the station!"
"It's too late! Get him to join up with Zeta Squadron!"
Ichigo's Starfury
"Oh, shit. Maybe they won't see the roundel."
'Doubt it, King.'
The angle was too perfect for them to not see it.
Ichigo sighed.
"Great."
The ship then launched six Nial-Class fighters: all targeting him.
Babylon 5: Command and Control
"Minbari vessel, recall your fighters! Repeat, Minbari vessel, recall your fighters!"
Sinclair looked at Garibaldi.
"What's the closest Earthforce ship?"
Just as Garibaldi was about to answer, a jump point opened and spat out the Omega-Class Destroyer EAS Agamemnon.
"This is Captain John Sheridan, commanding officer, EAS Agamemnon to war cruiser Ingata: close your gunports and stand down."
In a one-on-one fight, the Sharlin-Class Ingata stood no chance against the Agamemnon, as Minbari stealth technology was useless against the targeting scanners of an Omega-Class Destroyer.
A channel opened from the Ingata.
"Babylon 5 Control, this is the Ingata: we are not hostile. Tell Starkiller to leave: now!"
"Ingata, this is the Agamemnon. Close your gunports, or I WILL open fire. Your actions toward Babylon 5 are extremely aggressive, and we will not tolerate a threat to the station!"
Unlike the Ingata, (or any other non-Earthforce ship, for that matter) the Agamemnon didn't have gunports, as the weapons were exposed at all times.
Faster to shoot that way. Before it could turn into a ship-on-ship shooting war, Delenn arrived in C&C. "There is no threat to Babylon 5. The gunports may be open, but the weapons are not charged. It is a Minbari Warrior Caste tradition, meant to show respect and honor."
Garibaldi decided to jump in.
"A tradition that forced the Prometheus to open fire on your ship and kill your leader 13 years ago. Maybe you should put in a new policy: keep them closed outside Minbari space!"
Sinclair looked at him.
"That's enough, Mr. Garibaldi. Point or not, you don't have to rub it in."
"We still have a problem."
His eyes widened.
"Those Minbari fighters are going to try and kill Ichigo!"
Ichigo's Starfury
Ichigo got as close to Babylon 5 as he could, praying the Minbari pilots put the lives of their people above killing him.
'Screw this.'
"Agamemnon Control, this is Ichigo Shiba: requesting permission to land."
"Agamemnon Control to Shiba: permission granted."
The Aurora turned toward the Omega-Class Destroyer, forcing the fighters to leave Ichigo alone: even Minbari fighter pilots weren't stupid enough to fuck with an Omega-Class Destroyer. It would take another Omega-Class Destroyer with support to kill one. (AN: Two words: Severed Dreams)
"Follow the approach cone. Try not to crash."
Babylon 5: Command and Control
"Well, as much as I hate to say it, the Agamemnon will have to stay as long as the Ingata does. Ichigo's posting is to Babylon 5, after all."
Delenn looked at Sinclair.
"Might I ask a question, Commander?"
Sinclair nodded at her.
"To my knowledge, only members of the Kurosaki family had a black sun insignia on their fighter craft. Why did Mr. Shiba's Starfury have one on it?"
Sinclair tried thinking of a lie, but Garibaldi beat him to it.
"He was a friend of Kaien Kurosaki. The black sun's just Ichigo's way of honoring him."
"Very well, Mr. Garibaldi. I hope you will be able to attend the ceremony later on."
Omega-Class Destroyer EAS Agamemnon
Ichigo made his way to the bridge after getting changed into an Earthforce Navy uniform.
He didn't have too many spare clothes laying around, and he was technically a reservist now.
"You must be Ichigo Shiba."
He turned to face a man a bit taller then himself, who stuck out his hand.
"Captain John Sheridan."
Ichigo took the hand.
"Nice to meet you. Thanks for letting me on board."
"Well, the black sun pissed off the Minbari during the war and I'm happy to see it back in use, even though the Kurosaki family's long gone now."
'Too bad he doesn't know.'
'I get the feeling we'll be seeing more of him in the future, Ichigo.' "Captain, there's a shuttle inbound from Babylon 5."
Sheridan smirked.
"Looks like we're popular today."
'I think that's Rukia.'
'King, you are as dense as a fucking brick.'
Meanwhile
A jump point opened and spat out the Soul Society Destroyer Gin Ichimaru.
Named for the captain who betrayed the Gotai 13 so he could get close Sosuke Aizen and kill him, the Gin Ichimaru was the black sheep of the fleet, used for missions no other ship wouldn't dare try.
In this case, she was going to the rescue of the flagship Ichigo Kurosaki, which disappeared during a routine mission. Commanding her was Ferdinand Rommel, a former Quincy who was killed during the Thousand Year War.
While he hated shinigami, he was dead and they could have lorded that over him by crushing him to death with their spiritual pressure.
They chose not to, and gave him command of the Gin Ichimaru as soon as she left the yards.
"Where the hell is the Ichigo Kurosaki?!"
"Captain, we're picking up her beacon, so we know she's in this sector."
The former Quincy (stressing the former) growled in irritation.
"Where's the beacon? I want to get this over with."
"50000 kilometers away, but we're not getting much else."
"Launch out Alpha Squadron and contact the Yuzu Kurosaki. We might need their support."
"Aye, sir."
Omega-Class Destroyer SSD Ichigo Kurosaki
"Whoa, sir, don't get up. You've been out for a while."
Anton Stark opened his eyes and groaned.
"Define 'a while'."
The ship's doctor, a member of the 4th Division, chuckled.
"Three days. It was touch and go there for a while. Good thing that ship didn't hit the rotational section."
He remembered the firefight.
While the Shadow Attack Vessel beat the shit out of the Omega-Class Destroyer, the IK finally killed the damned thing, but it had the last laugh by ramming into the massive destroyer.
If it weren't for the fact that it missed anything that could blow up the IK, the Soul Society's Fleet Division would be needing a new flagship.
"I could use a damage report."
"Weapons are shot, jump drive is down, the only comm system we have online is the fucking beacon and scanners are useless."
He turned to face his XO.
"We're working on it."
"Your definition of 'working on it' translates into 'we're fucked'."
His link beeped.
"Looks like THAT works, at least. Stark, go."
"Sigma 1 here: the Gin Ichimaru is closing on our position."
He chuckled.
"At least it's one of ours, right?"
He got blank looks in return.
"Right?"
Everyone looked away.
"Come on! At least it's not the Centauri!"
"Please shut up."
Near Babylon 5
The jumpgate spat out a shuttle with the emblem of a Division Ichigo had come to hate, but no one knew about.
Piloting this shuttle was Ikkaku Madarame, and in the co-pilot's seat (but definitely in charge) was the infamous Kenpachi Zaraki, his mouth stuck in its' shark-like grin.
"Shuttle 487 to Babylon Control: requesting permission to land."
"Permission granted."
Famous last words, Ivanova.
Omega-Class Destroyer EAS Agamemnon
Rukia had only been on one Omega-Class Destroyer before: the Karin Kurosaki, just as she was nearing completion.
She wore a copy of Ichigo's uniform tailored to her sizes, (memory modification devices came in handy) so she fit right in.
"Ichigo!"
She walked toward him.
"Why the hell haven't you gone back to Babylon 5?!"
Ichigo's scowl deepened.
"A ton of Minbari waiting to kill me, that's why!"
"Excuse me."
Both turned to look at Sheridan.
"Am I interrupting something?"
Rukia smiled at him in her schoolgirl voice.
"No, sir!"
"Drop the act, Ensign."
'He's good.'
He smiled and stuck out his hand.
"Captain John Sheridan."
"Rukia Kuchiki."
Sheridan's eyes widened slightly.
"Really? I've read General Karin Kurosaki's autobiography. She mentions someone with your name a lot when she was 11 or 12. Any relation?"
'Oh, FUCK.'
She should have KNOWN Karin would mention her at least once.
"Her great-great grandaunt."
Sheridan looked at Ichigo, who saved Rukia's ass.
"Rukia and I have known each other since birth. I've seen her family tree."
He gave Rukia a 'you're welcome' look, which Sheridan did not see, as he was reaching for a datapad and he had his back turned to them.
"Captain, we've got a problem on Babylon 5. Some guy with a sword is attacking the Minbari."
Ichigo blinked.
"What's he look like?"
"He's huge, black hair and he's got an eyepatch."
Rukia and Ichigo shared the same look of 'not him'.
"You know the guy?"
"He's my half-crazy uncle. His name's Kenpachi Zaraki."
Babylon 5: Central Corridor
The mystery of how Zaraki got his weapon past the scanners would never be solved by Babylon 5 Security.
But it WAS entertaining to watch the Minbari warriors get their asses handed to them by a crazy man with a sword.
And from the sound of him laughing, Kenpachi was enjoying fighting them.
"Should we stop them?"
Garibaldi looked at Ivanova.
"And get stabbed by that sword? SCREW THAT."
10 Minbari were wounded, and while they had gotten a few hits in on Zaraki, they didn't even faze him.
"Come on! Try to CUT me, damn it!"
And he was clearly insane.
And it wasn't the good kind of insane, either!
Omega-Class Destroyer EAS Agamemnon
"Your UNCLE? Seriously, Rukia!"
"Best answer I could think of on short notice, berry."
Ichigo sighed.
"I am not staying on Babylon 5 as long as Zaraki is here!" "Ichigo, that shuttle was from the Gin Ichimaru, one of our Omega-Class Destroyers-"
"You named a ship after him?!"
"We named one after you, too! Captain Zaraki will need to take the shuttle back to the GI before it leaves the area. Otherwise, he'll have to deal with Captain-General Yamamoto."
Her pager rang again and she checked it.
"Looks like I was right: they were looking for the Ichigo Kurosaki."
Ichigo blinked.
"Yes, you have a ship named after you: Omega-Class, and it's the flagship. She got the shit kicked out of her, though, according to the reports, so she lives up to her name."
Ichigo gently bopped her on the head for that.
Babylon 5: Medlab 1
Franklin was tempted to join the Pak'ma'ra in puking, but his fortitude came in handy.
The body of Bremmer, the Minbari general who died on a diplomatic tour, was missing, and the Pak'ma'ra were the prime suspects, as they were carrion eaters.
No Minbari remains were found in any of the Pak'ma'ra stomachs, though, so that was out.
Now, though, he had to deal with 51 wounded Minbari, all of whom got their asses kicked by a huge guy with a sword.
He was tempted to take a a stim shot just to deal with it.
"Alright, try to stabilize them and send them back to the Ingata. They're better suited to help them then we are."
The orderlies started getting them out of the Medlab when two men walked in.
One looked rather odd, while the other one was bald.
"Doctor Franklin?"
He looked at the pair closely.
"Yes?"
"I'm Ikkaku Madarame. This is my friend, Yumichika Ayasegawa. We're the adopted sons of the man responsible for this...incident."
Franklin chuckled.
"He's damn good at his job."
"Well, when you're trained in hand-to-hand combat by Kallen Kurosaki, you've got to be good at it."
Kallen Kurosaki was the deadliest Marine in Earthforce during the Earth-Minbari War.
10 engagements, and all of them ended with at least 20 dead Minbari.
She was killed, along with her squad, a month before the Battle of The Line when her transport was shot down.
"Did he serve?"
"He was on Earth during the Battle of The Line, making sure people got offworld."
"Must've knocked a few heads in the process."
Omega-Class Destroyer SSD Gin Ichimaru
"Status on repairs to the Ichigo Kurosaki?"
"She can get home under her own power now. She's in a poor state of affairs, but she'll be ready to fight in about 3 months, Captain. Admiral Stark is pissed off about that."
Rommel scoffed.
"Stark can go fuck himself."
He wanted command of the Ichigo Kurosaki and the rank Stark was given.
Instead, he was given the Gin Ichimaru, which was basically the posting for the Fleet Division's rejects.
He was getting tired of being used as a errand boy.
He would be in charge one day, and he would make DAMN sure Stark was ground into dust when he took command.
Babylon 5: Cobra Bays
Ichigo and Rukia finally got back to Babylon 5 after the Ingata (and Zaraki) left.
They used his Starfury to get back, but she had to sit in his lap all the way back as it was a single-seater.
"Do you get warnings when a Soul Society ship shows up?"
"The Fleet Division's part of the Gotai 13, so yes, we do."
"If they show up near Babylon 5, I'm hiding. I'm not dealing with Zaraki."
Rukia simply agreed with him: Captain Zaraki was insane.
"Excuse me?"
Both turned to face a Minbari.
"You can hear me! Thank Valen!"
Ichigo rolled his eyes.
"Follow us."
"Ichigo-"
He pointed at the Minbari's chest.
He had a Chain of Fate hanging from it.
This was the dead Minbari war leader, Bremmer.
"It helps to look."
Omega-Class Destroyer SSD OMGD-06, over secret shipyard facility near Centauri/Drazi border
The Gotai 13 couldn't build their Omega-Class Destroyers in the Soul Society, so they took over a planet that was of no use to either the Centauri or the Drazi Freehold and built their shipyard there.
At this moment, the only two ships in the yard were the OMGD-06, which was complete and simply missing her name, and the OMGD-07, which was missing her rotational section and weapons systems. A jump point appeared and spat out the Ichigo Kurosaki, registry OMGD-01, and the Gin Ichimaru, registry OMGD-05. Until the IK was repaired, the OMGD-06 would be acting flagship.
In fact, today was the commissioning ceremony for her, and Stark needed to attend.
The yardmaster helped guide the ship in, and the Gin Ichimaru went on her way.
"See you in a few weeks, Captain Rommel."
The fifth ship built by the Soul Society didn't reply, but opened a jump point instead and left.
"Fucking asshole."
Babylon 5: Green 1, Level 5
Ichigo was tempted to let Shiro loose on the dead man, as he led the Minbari on The Line.
But that would make him a killer, and he was NOT a killer.
So, instead, he would have a little payback on the Soul Society.
He told Bremmer about Rukongai.
Sure, he only visited once or twice, but it was shitty, even for the Soul Society.
Rukia tried stopping him, but the look in his eyes told her to shut the hell up.
He never did that to her, but she'd seen it before, and it scared her every time it was used on someone else.
"The afterlife seems to be a horrible place."
"As much as I hate to say it, it's a lot better then the alternative."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Ichigo materialized Shiro.
"What the hell, King?"
Ichigo pointed at Shiro.
"THAT'S why. He's my 'dark half', so to speak. He's what's called a Hollow, but he's a special case, being my Inner Hollow. If you stay here, you'll lose your mind and go after anyone on the station: loved ones, friends, at first."
Rukia got the basic idea of what Ichigo was doing.
He was getting payback on both Bremmer and the Soul Society, as Bremmer's sense of duty would force him to do something about Rukongai, and it would prove that the Gotai 13 and the Central 46 were incompetent in dealing with Rukongai.
She came up with a simple rule thanks to this.
'Never earn Ichigo's true fury, because his revenge is long in the making and extremely satisfying.'
"I can send you to the Soul Society, you know. It's part of my job."
Bremmer looked at him.
"Job?"
Rukia tapped the Substitute Badge and left her gigai.
"We're shinigami. The word literally translates into death god, but it can mean soul reaper or soul hunter. Our job is to guide the dead to the Soul Society and purify Hollows."
Ichigo saw the horror in Bremmer's eyes.
"We're not THOSE Soul Hunters. You'll get reincarnated sooner or later."
He didn't mention that it would take God knows how long, but that was just another part of his revenge.
Rukia was thankful she was Ichigo's friend now.
'You don't WANT to be just his friend, Rukia! You love him!'
'Shirayuki, stop.'
'No. You're getting depressed again, and I will NOT tolerate it! Hell, Zangetsu is getting tired of this!'
'Zangetsu? Ichigo's zanpakutÅ?'
'How many times have you two been impaled in life, Rukia? You gave Ichigo his powers the first time and he got Homura and Shizuku out of your body the second time! You can give and take power from one another! It is how you gained Bankai: using his reiatsu! In fact, I used to talk with Zangetsu every day when Ichigo was with you.'
Rukia blinked just as Ichigo Konso'ed Bremmer.
'Do I have an Inner Hollow like Ichigo?'
'If you do, I have not seen it. Unlike Zangetsu, however, I would beat it into submission.'
"I didn't know you could be so vengeful."
"I'm pissed off, but I don't like killing people. It's also a way to help everyone in Rukongai."
Rukia was confused. "How?"
"He was a Minbari, and they live to serve their people. Even as a soul, he'll still have that trait."
'It's a good thing he isn't like Aizen. Otherwise, we'd be screwed.'
We got to see Zaraki, and we got to see Sheridan, although he never visited Babylon 5.
On a more IchiRuki note, in the next chapter, we'll get a kiss, but a certain someone ruins the moment.
Why? The next episode is 'A Voice in the Wilderness', parts one and two.
That's right: DRAAL!
I LOVE that Minbari! He makes me laugh!
Next Time on Babylon's Guardian: Ichigo and Rukia discover that Epsilon Eridani 3 isn't so safe, Delenn finally discovers Ichigo's identity, and they meet a Minbari that no man can hate: Draal!
Ja Ne!