Chapter 8 of the Hell on Earth extended edition. Enjoy and review!
8: Lost and found
Ichigo woke up with a yawn. His muscles ached as he stretched and he lay back resignedly. After a quick look around Ichigo concluded he was in Inoue's flat, in fact Orihime was sitting right beside him with a gentle smile ever present on her face.
"Yay!" You're fully healed and awake!" Orihime chirped, bouncing up and down.
Ichigo smiled back at her but it soon faded. "Rukia! Where is she?"
Orihime's smile faltered and she bunched a fist behind her back. "Dunno, never saw her."
Ichigo's eyes narrowed. "She was badly hurt! She was going to die! Where is she?"
Orihime tried to keep her false smile going, squeezing her fists ever tighter until her nails dug into her flesh, making her wince. She glimpsed the distress in Ichigo's face. He had never looked so terrified in his entire life. Guilt began to gnaw away at her conscience so she tried to preoccupy herself.
She switched on the television and sat back.
Onscreen, a reporter with a stern face stared gravely into the camera.
"OUR TOP STORY IS THE MYSTERIOUS MASSACRE AT A LOCAL HOSPITAL AND THE CHILDRENS PARK OUTSIDE. ACCORDING TO FORENSICS, AN UNIDENTIFIED ASSAILANT ENTERED THEHOSPITAL THROUGH A SIDE WINDOW. THEY WERE ARMED WITH A SWORD OR OTHER SHARP IMPLEMENT AND PROCEEDED TO MURDER EVERY SINGLE PERSON IN THE EMERGENNCY ROOMS."
"What? Ichigo gasped. "Turn it up!"
"THE ONLY SURVIVORS WHERE THREE LADIES WHO WORKED AT RECEPTION. THEY ALL REPORTED SEEING A TEENAGE GIRL RUNNING FROM THE HOSPITAL AFTER THE ATTACK. ACCORDING TO THE WITNESSES SHE LOOKS AROUND 15 YEARS OF AGE WITH BLACK HAIR. SHE IS COVERED IN BRUISES AND SCRATCHED. WE ADVISE IF YOU SEE THIS GIRL, ASSUME SHE IS ARMED AND EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. PLEASE STAY IN YOUR HOMES. CALL THE POLICE IMMEDIATELY AND STAY CALM..."
Orihime switched off the TV. "That's pretty scary, isn't it Ichi...go?" Orihime gazed at Ichigo. Floods of tears rained down his cheeks, something she hadn't seen before or ever expected to.
Ichigo's never acted like this before. He's so scared! What have I done?
As she dwelt on her actions she was distracted by a knock on the door...
TWENTY MINUTES EARLIER
Rukia pushed herself. She ran full tilt, her heart about to explode. She panted heavily as she raced down the roar. Her legs were numb. Every muscle was experiencing an agonising cramp. The pain was excruciating and the resulting tears were now stinging her face and seeping into the unhealed cuts from her past battle with Shrieker.
Shrieker's surprise attack had shocked her so much her only thoughts had been of escape. The unrelenting fear that drove her made her overlook the fact that the hospital gown had no back, exposing her body to passers by. Thankfully no-one took notice of the bloodied girl in a hospital gown.
Rukia struggled through the pain and arrived outside a small family run clinic. The doormat was course and hurt her feet so she moved it aside. She took a deep breath and knocked on the door. She looked down at her feet, unsure of what to say.
The door was answered by a small brown-haired girl who wore a brightly coloured apron. Her eyes almost pooped out of her head and her jaw dropped.
"Yuzu...Is Ichigo here?" Rukia had to pause several times to catch her breath which had been lost in her mad flight from the hospital.
"Rukia? Y-y-you k-k-killed them..." The girl whimpered.
"What?"
The door was slammed in Rukia's face and a hushed conversation could be heard. Rukia listened in and realised it was a call to the police. Confused, Rukia just waited patiently for a few minutes until the door was opened again, this time only a small crack.
Yuzu stared at her through the gap and sniffed. "Why?" She cried. "They were women and children and old people. Nice people! They didn't deserve it! Why did you do it?"
Rukia took a step back. "I...I don't unders-"
The sound of blaring sirens caught her attention and she spun on her heels to face a blockade of fully armed police officers. Patrol cars and vans surrounded the clinic and an array of weapons were trained on their surprised target.
One of the officers put a megaphone to his lips. "KUCHIKI RUKIA, TURN AROUND SLOWLY WITH YOUR HANDS UP AND PROCEED CALMLY TOWARDS US. IF YOU DO AS ASKED WE WON'T SHOOT. ANY OTHER ACTIONS WILL BE TREATED AS THREATS AND WE WILL OPEN FIRE! YOU ARE SUSPECTED OF THE MURDER OF 113 CITIZENS. DONT MAKE US CHARGE YOU WITH RESISTING ARREST AS WELL!"
Rukia's eyes widened.
113...Shrieker killed that many? Shit! I need to find Ichigo and warn him!
She submissively raised her hands and walked slowly towards an armoured vehicle. When she was only ten steps away she gave herself a brief run-up and jumped onto the bonnet. The movement incidentally flashed several officers, but that was the least of her worries now.
She hopped down from the car and burst into a sprint again, heading away from the blockade as fast as her legs would allow.
Damn it! When can I stop sprinting!
Unsure where to go next, Rukia juggled with several ideas. She eventually decided to seek Orihime's help.
The guilt had brought Orihime to tears. It was only now, when the damage had been done that she realised the error in her ways. The grave mistake she had made was readily apparent and it struck her like a ton of bricks.
Ichigo crawled closer to her and extended a hand. "Inoue...Are you alright?"
Orihime cupped her hands over her mouth. "It's all my fault!"
"Huh?"
Orihime gazed deep into Ichigo's eyes and placed a hand on his lap. She smiled thinly. "I did it. I...I just wanted you for myself." Her shoulders trembled but Ichigo held them steady as he gripped them hard.
"Inoue, what did you do?" His voice was surprisingly calm and it soothed Orihime's frayed nerves.
She took a deep sigh and then confessed. "I didn't like how you were always with Rukia. I got jealous and..." She trailed off.
"And what? Tell me!"
"Well...I kinda...Threw her out."
Ichigo's voice deepened and his expression faltered. "What?"
"I'm sorry Ichigo...I didn't know what I was doing! I-I-I just didn't want to lose you!"
Ichigo got up on his feet and gazed out the window. He noticed the dried red patch on the pavement. His shoulders stiffened and he fell deathly silent.
"Um...Ichigo?" Orihime approached him warily.
In a fit of rage Ichigo struck out with his fist, hitting Orihime full in the face with such force that it sent her hurtling across the room where she banged her head against the wall.
"I'm sorry Ichi-" She began, but Ichigo cut her off mid-sentence.
"What the fuck is wrong with you? You could have killed her!"
"Please forgive me?" Orihime begged,
"Shut up! The Orihime I knew wouldn't hurt a fly! She wouldn't even step on an ant! You changed. It's like I don't even know you anymore!"
"No! Please don't-"
"I said shut up!" Ichigo growled, storming over to the door. He wrenched it open and left.
Desperate for his forgiveness, Orihime crawled after him, still reeling from the pain of the punch.
Ichigo approached the door where the knocking was becoming more erratic. He reached out to open it but was taken aback when the guest started to bash the door desperately. Ichigo yanked the door open and the visitor stumbled through the doorway.
Ichigo caught the person and helped them back on their feet. He then stepped back to see who it was.
It was Rukia. She was gasping for breath and her skin was pale, but her being alive was enough for Ichigo who was so overjoyed he could barely contain it.
"Rukia?"
He wrapped his arms around her and drew her in closer to him. Rukia seemed reluctant to return the gesture.
"Ichigo, we need to get inside now!"
Ichigo silenced her with a passionate kiss. Rukia fell silent and her eyes drifted shut. She stopped her resistance and joined him in the embrace.
Orihime had reached the doorway only to see her beloved Ichigo in the arms of Rukia, their tongues uniting. She shed a tear for her hopeless infatuation and gritted her teeth.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Ichigo stroked Rukia's back and felt bare flesh. The urge became uncontrollable and his hand wandered down further.
The deafening cacophony of the approaching police became audible. The cavalcade of vehicles came to a stop when an invisible obstacle blocked their path. One of the armoured vehicles rammed into seemingly empty space only to have the front of the car crumple.
"What the hell?" One of the officers approached the source of the blockage, only to have his head detach from his shoulders. As it rolled back to his comrades a terrified shriek erupted from the stunned officers.
"What just happened?"
"There's something there! Fire!"
"Open fire!"
"Kill it!"
The sound of gunfire drowned out the dying screams of the officers as Shrieker and his Hellhound slaughtered the blind fools. The police men were mercilessly slain by their unseen enemy, trying in vain to stop it.
Bullets flew threw the air, but they were aimed at nothing and went wide of their targets. A rain of blood showered the two cruel assailants.
Shrieker laughed insanely as he cut down a trio of white-knuckled officers.
"Damn! This girl is the best bait ever! She just keeps drawing them in! HAHAHAHAHA!" Someone shot Shrieker in the cheek and he whirled angrily on the man who followed the moving bloodstain.
"Cerberus, its dinner time!"
The man trained his gun on Shrieker, unaware of the giant hellhound that was right behind him. The massive jaws clamped down on him, ending his life before he could even comprehend it.
The last of the officers held up a brave last stand, hiding behind a ring of armoured cars. Cerberus set his attention on them while Shrieker turned his attention to the couple standing in a doorway across the road. His lips curled up in a sadistic smile.
"Aww, how sweet. Their last memory will be when their hearts come together...Literally! Hahaha!"
Unaware of the nightmare unfolding nearby, Ichigo and Rukia lost themselves in the wonderful moment they had longed to share. Their worries disappeared in the comforting hold of the other. They had been waiting for this and nothing would take it away from them.
Defeated and heart broken, Orihime sat by the stairs crying.
Ichigo and Rukia were so absorbed in the pleasure of their embrace that they hadn't even noticed the sword pass straight through them...
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