Chapter Sixteen: Orders and Agreements

"Despite crime's omnipresence, things work in society, because biology compels it. Order eventually restores itself, by psychic equilibrium."

-Camille Paglia

Her first thought was how barren things were. As Kagome headed down the steps off the plane and onto the end of the runway, walking a small path up toward the building that actually functioned as the airport. It was some city in the middle of Australia, though it seemed more like a place put in the middle of nowhere. Cracked dirt and desert terrain broken with an occasional patch of green for a small tree or bush reached out as far as she could see in the direction opposite the airport building.

Rarely in the distance she could make out small hills or mountains sticking out of the otherwise flat terrain and making them immediately obvious. Though they didn't stay in the building long and were heading in a car out of the small community. She wasn't certain what to expect, only that they had a little while before they'd reach the general area Byakuya planned to re-enter Soul Society.

"What's the void?" She had been so caught up in their physical activities the last few days she'd forgotten to ask him. Remembering as she looked around that it'd been mentioned as a travel alternative.

"The void is an area outside of normal human habitation that is similar to your oceans. It has nothing and the waters are dangerous to tread. I've never seen beneath the surface myself but I know that there are suppose to be all manner of hollow that live there, waiting for anyone unfortunate to wander within." He explained without looking at her, he was watching the road as they drove. Seeing him drive himself was another one of those things she wanted to stare at as she didn't expect to see it often. "Transversing the void requires one to take a ship to the point of their destination. Though unlike your world, there is no sound that comes from the waves, or whatever monsters may lie beneath them. Sounds diminish greatly and even if you scream it comes out as little more than a light whisper."

She frowned a little at that explanation. "Guess I'm glad we flew. That sounds awful."

"I'm told it's a very disagreeable experience, however, normally it is the only acceptable method of delivering messages. What we are doing will be frowned upon." He stated, a frown edging his lips a moment.

"Oh." She said softly, looking back out the window to the terrain here, it seemed so unforgiving and plain but also beautiful in it's own way. There were still a lot of plants for a desert and occasionally they saw a lizard or wallaby near the road. It was definitely different than home, that much she knew for sure.

"When we talk to them, don't speak unless spoken to...and try not to drift off topic." He stated, and she blinked in surprise when the car became less smooth, him pulling it to the side of the road.

Waiting there were a few people in dirty jeans and shirts. Their skin was a very dark brown, with matching eyes and hair, they watched them warily as they exited the vehicle. She wanted to stay inside but considering the serious glance he'd given her at the suggestion she decided to follow him. They were watching them aggressively and she was wondering if they weren't going to attack just for the heck of it.

"Yere kind shouldn't be 'ere." They said with accented japanese, making her raise a brow curiously at the shared language. "Not dis way. Ah doubt ye came fer a vacation. You tryin' ta start a war?"

"I have a message for your Chief, we need to enter the Sepul court." Byakuya had entered business mode. "We don't have time to waste."

"Ye jus' be thinkin to come and talk after breakin' da codes?" The few chuckled amougst themselves. "And de girl, she ain't a warrior...you giving us a priestess to ignore the poor manner?"

"She is not your concern." Byakuya stated, his tone taking on a slightly bored quality, as if speaking to them was tedious. "I will not repeat myself."

"Whoa. Big man 'ere thinks he's gonna walk right in." Another of the three laughed. "Whatcha think o' dat Denka? He dinnae even look up how we do things 'ere."

"If you wish to challenge me. Do so. It would be best to resolve this quickly." Byakuya commented with a shrug, his form shifting to his more spiritual one, his robes replacing the jeans and long sleeved shirt he used to blend into the mortal realm. He'd not needed to separate his spiritual and physical bodies sense Kagome had healed him so long ago. Whatever it was she'd done, it was more convenient than a Gigai and he had yet to have the chance to ask the research squadron to look into it further than mentioning it during one of his visits.

"He's got on a captain's uniform." The one joking around before commented more somberly to his friend.

"Yes, but it's all wrong." The first speaker, apparently named Denka, stood up and popped a pill into his mouth, his spiritual form separating from the physical as he grinned like a Cheshire cat. "He'll overheat in that without much trouble."

The man's uniform was much different. It was still the black and white, but it had a more tribal make, his hair was up in dreads and pulled back from his face. The uniform pants were more shorts and the shirt was instead sleeveless, the belt was still there but it seemed more a formality. Though it did function to hold his Zanpakutou which still looked like the blades she'd seen in soul society. There was a decoration on his chest but she couldn't make out the writing, it had to be some local language but it wasn't English.

She had to admit it was incredibly hot here, she'd been out of the air conditioning for only a minute or so and she was already starting to perspire, they seemed fine though. Byakuya wasn't sweating either though and his uniform was much heavier than the man that seemed ready to face him.

"Sounds like fun." Denka nodded. His spiritual form walking away from the side and more onto the road while he drew his blade, Byakuya following onto the road but not drawing Senbonzakura. "You defeat me and we'll take you to the courts."

"Kick him good Denka." The second fellow called, laughing again.

They stood there a few moments and finally Denka sighed. "Come on man, you don't know how to dual? Draw your blade so we can begin."

"You assume I need to draw my blade first." Byakuya commented, his perfect heir completely in place and Kagome had to smile some, she'd heard rumors before from people that he didn't like to be bothered to draw his sword unless he had too.

"Confident little outsider eh?" The man shrugged and then leapt forward, flashstepping behind him and then finding himself stabbing at air.

The man's eyes widened as a blade settled on his shoulder lightly, Byakuya had already moved behind him. "Are we finished yet?"

The man ducked forward and turned around, while Byakuya seemed to be patiently waiting. "I haven't all day to show you how to properly execute a flash step. We should be on to your Chief now."

Denku's eyes narrowed dangerously before he nodded, his sword returning to it's place at his side. "You are impressive outsider. Chief Nantaku, that was very unkind of you."

"Best to learn early there are people well beyond you young Denku." The third man commented, he had appeared older than the other two, but Kagome was staring at him in surprise at announcing himself. "What is it you need Noble Kuchiki from the Seiretei courts? What does your grand court want of our humble one?"

Byakuya offered a proper bow after returning from the small skirmish, pulling the letter free of his robes and holding it to the older man. Kagome continued to watch with fascination, she'd seen her fiance' willing to bow to only two men, so a third made her curious.

"No need for the formality." The older fellow took the letter and waved for him to rise before opening it and reading.

Denku recollected his body, spitting back out the green pill with a disgusted expression and then shoving it into a jean pocket like it was his wallet. "Though I don't think it twas fair, if ye want to return to our court, the woman has ta fight as well."

"I champion her." Byakuya stated cooly, charcoal eyes on the younger opponent he'd bested so easily.

"Actually Denku is right in that." The Chief answered. "If you both are to be welcome here you both must fight. It shouldn't be difficult for a priestess. Though if you wish to refuse you are welcome to wait outside, women are lesser after all."

Kagome only stopped herself from saying something because Byakuya glanced back at her. She was red in the face and huffed though, crossing her arms and looking away. Though she had to admit she liked Byakuya's reply.

"If she is not going to attend, then I will not be either. Though as you are here, the point is moot. Have you had any problems like those explained?" Byakuya pressed, his demeanor cold and Kagome wasn't sure how good of a diplomatic choice he was.

"We have had more attacks than usual." The man nodded. "The empty ones are more active than usual...but nothing of dead priests or priestess'. We've never had a witch of considerable power though."

"So it's not what the Prince thought." Kagome decided with a frown. "They must only be targeting Soul Society then? Or at least they haven't attacked here yet..."

"We'll help you though." The elder nodded. "The lines of communication between the courts have been too quiet though. I'll send some of our reapers, though it will be a bit of time. We don't have the mortal wealth to return in their world, and wouldn't want to if we did. We may be young, but we follow the laws we've agreed to."

Kagome bit back a comment, glancing to Byakuya and figuring despite his indifferent expression he was doing the same.

"We thank you for your assistance and will be on our way then." Byakuya commented, another short bow before he motioned Kagome toward the car.

"Don't cause trouble here outsider. There are many young ones that would love a chance to test their blades on your flesh." The elder stated. "Don't kill any of them for it."

ooooo ooooo ooooo ooooo ooooo ooooo ooooo

"This is some horrible form of punishment." Renji decided as he looked over the desk still covered in papers. Rukia was in the next room still posing as Kagome and drunk to the point she'd passed out. "I don't even know what I did, but I'm very sorry to whatever gods are out there and listening...please take it away."

He spent most of his days posing as Byakuya doing most of the captain's work and shuffling through it with all the speed he could muster. He thought he'd been doing much of it before the captain left, but this time it was particularly bad. With everything that had been happening a lot of other captains had to take up the duties of other squadron's without a leading figure and just before he left he'd volunteered himself (read: Renji) for the work of two other squadrons as well as the sixth.

"It was cause I didn't knock." He sighed to himself in frustration, he hadn't even told anyone he'd walked in on the captain like that. "If I did there probably wouldn't be pieces left to find."

The only break he'd had was earlier in the day when Matsumoto had snuck by and brought them both some liquor. Of which Rukia had partaken a bit too much of and eventually ended up passed out on the floor after lamenting the loss of her brother in the dating department. He and Matsumoto both had decided not to say anything, but then Matsumoto had a lot of liquor as well so he wasn't even sure if she remembered. She was still jabbering on the bed about how strange it was that they had tried to get Zaraki to attack Sesshomaru.

The court was still in disarray. She'd not only been there to offer drink of course, she was sniffing around for information and bodies. The threats of a civil war were growing all the time, apparently after the captain commander's threat of bringing in the Prince he hadn't been seen and there hadn't been any explosions of Reaitsu that he could feel so he had to assume the old man was still looking. Not exactly a promising aspect as it'd been a couple of hours. For the Prince to evade the strong senses of the captain of squad one there was something serious happening.

Of course, for all he knew, the Prince had already been returned without a fuss and he simply hadn't received another report...but he doubted that with the talkative well endowed lieutenant getting way too comfortable on Byakuya's bed behind him. This entire farce of pretending to be Byakuya and Kagome wasn't really doing anything, he doubted the people after them were falling for it a moment.

"Hell I thought I might get to enjoy a bit of the noble life...but we can't leave our rooms cause the magic making us look like them are already not the most stable. So instead it's more like the office job you can't escape from." He sat back to rub his hand. "A Civil war? Against the king? I don't even know the king, more or less really agree with the heavy handed tactics of trying to force the Prince away when there are already so many other things we should be concerned with instead of in-fighting."

He sighed and rubbed his hair, frowning as he hit the kensaiken, the things made him itch like mad, how Byakuya put up with them gave the lieutenant newfound respect for his captain. "Damn, the timing is just too perfect."

"Yeah I know." Matsumoto nodded, sobering some as Renji took a break long enough to talk to her again. "We were thinking that too. I wonder if they aren't somehow pulling some strings."

"But whose?" Renji asked with a frown, glancing back from the desk to the woman that was offering the information. "The Prince has been around us, and while that by itself is strange, I've been wondering if he hasn't been getting personally involved to avoid dear ole dad."

"Yeah." She nodded more emphatically than she needed too, showing she'd had too much of her own sake. "Well, Isane heard the old man saying that the King could be going a bit mad to the Prince the other day. She nearly walked in on them. That doesn't bode well. And what with the old man having to listen to the king, you know...yeah...not good."

"Well put." Renji commented, frowning at her. "Could you get off of the bed before you spill the sake, Captain Kuchiki will have my head."

For good measure he reached back and snatched it from her as she tilted it a little further than he was comfortable with.

"Oh relax Renji, they're in another court!" Matsumoto laughed. "What do you think he's gonna teleport here and stab you. I think I'd have more to worry about at the moment."

She lounged back as if giving it as an example, curling her arms into the bedding and rubbing it against her face. "I need to live like a noble, best bed I've ever been in."

"Just don't go telling people you were there." Renji could remember clearly enough Senbonzakura coming for him and shuddered, not wanting a repeat experience. "Why are you still here anyway Matsumoto, you delivered the information. What do you want from me?"

"We want you to pick the side with the Prince." She was watching her wine bottle with a half-pout on her lips. "We figure if the King's going bonkers and possibly being controlled by this new enemy it's only logical. Besides, he's several thousand years old...the Prince is the future, it would be stupid to go against him."

"But then we have to go against Captain Yamamoto?" Renji frowned. "What could we even do? You've seen him in battle Matsumoto, we're like flies next to him. His spiritual pressure alone would make us sluggish."

"Yeah but thats why we have Captain's Renji." She rolled her eyes at him like he was stupid. "We just take care of things on other levels to give the rest time to do something about it. As it is we need to find the Prince and talk to him before we can even move forward. He's still apparently hiding."

"Well doesn't that say something as well?" Renji asked with a sigh. "Maybe he doesn't want us to go off and start a war. Hell, it kinda makes me glad I'm here stuck with the stacks of paperwork. Though only a little."

"At least there are some troops a bit loyal to the correct parties." The voice immediately stole the eyes of both of the lieutenants and they moved to bow, albeit it involved falling out of the bed in Matsumoto's case.

The stormy eyed Prince nodded a little. "I cannot linger long...we must speak quickly, do not forget what I'm about to tell you. These are all orders."

End Chapter

This has been entirely too long in the coming. And I apologize for the delay, after several drafts and re drafts and entirely new tries, things are shifting a little to fit better into my storyline as some of the things I was considering did not.

-Aura

To my reviewers:

Sugar0o - :) You sort of guessed part of it.

- Yes, I was glad when she finally punched him and am glad you are enjoying the fiction.

Selenay of Antioch - Yes I fail often with sense and since...and a lot of people tell me but I just have a nasty habit of it :(