The scroll had only to be introduced to the nearest gate with three empty node slots in it, it turned out. The Mountain Spirit had pre-entered the right code onto the scroll-case. It was a short hop across a wide flat star-path and through the largest terminus gate I had seen since I had left the Seireitei.
"Ummmm..." she said, crowding closer to me.
Upon entry through the gate we had been surrounded by massive, big-limbed armed lizard men in armor, brandishing naginatta at us. They didn't say anything, but they didn't really have to either... thier looks said louder than words "Who th' hell're you an' why are you here?" It was confirmed a moment later when a tiny, scrawney gekko-man in elaborate court robes carrying a massive book (reminding me a little of Ise Nanao) came running up from down the hall shouting
"Humans! This is highly irregular! All visits to the Court are to be announced and placed in the agenda! Dis-order! Arrest them!"
I put my hand on my sword, assessing my opponents. The wimpy Gekko was goin' down first, the lizard guards were gonna be fun. I smiled a little, preparing to draw my sword. Isana laid a hand on my arm and drew herself up. Suddenly, where there had been an ordinary woman worried about her son and scared at finding herself beset, there was a Lady. She seemed to draw poise and elegance around her like a cloak, her features refined, her posture regal, her bearing and manner every inch that of a young queen with some toady trying to snivel up to her. Even though she was dressed in normal human clothes the seemed to have this aura of wearing the finest silk robes. She looked down her nose at the Gekko and flicked a cool glance at the guards who (probably prompted by habit) backed up respectfully.
:Whoah!: I thought, taken aback.
It was like she was channeling my boss! She was even doing that aristocratic eyebrow-raising thing.
"My name is Isana Rourke from the Mortal realm," she announced softly but with an absolute calm and authority. "I come bearing a message for His Majesty, Emperor Genbu of the Earth Court from his younger cousin Dara of the Tired Mountain. I apologize for the lapse in routine, but I have given my word that I would deliver this to him with my own hand."
The gekko-man, probably some court official, blinked rapidly at her as if he were surprised and a little offended that she spoke back to him.
"See here, Human!" the little critter snapped. "You can't just burst in through the door and demand and audience with his majesty! You have to follow procedure; your names must be placed on the agenda and his majesty will see you at his earliest convenience. That's protocol!"
"An' how long is that?" I demanded, wanting to get this over with, get my binding spell (or at least find out where I could find one) and get back to hunting down that Shadow.
"At his Majesty's earliest convenience," the Gekko said cooly.
Something about his look told me that the little snack was going to make sure that his "earliest convenience" was as far away from now as possible.
"I am afraid," Isana said with polite firmness. "That we are on something of a truncated schedule. I would appreciate it if you would see to sliding in an extra item on today's agenda. Now."
:Yep, she was definitely a Kuchiki in her past life!: I thought in amusement as I watched the little lizard gape at her in shock for her audacity.
"You can't just-" he spluttered. "Highly irregular!"
"Kin I kill 'im yet?" I drawled, loud enough for him to hear me.
I was grinning. This was kinda fun.
The guards tried to close in around me and I again went to place a hand on my Zanpaktou but they were stopped again by little miss former Kuchiki's regal and cool look. This was better in many ways than seeing the boss do it. Sure enough, she did the same thing Byakuya Kuchiki did when he was done wasting his time with fools, which was to sweep coolly by the opposition without a backward flicker, as if there was no way in the world that they were going to pose any sort of hindrance to her.
I fell into place slightly behind her, glaring menace at anyone who came too close. We both walked briskly up the long narrow hallway to the two immense double doors at the end, the gekko man shouting shocked imprecations at our backs while his lizard guardsmen looked at us helplessly for some reason. Something about Mortal's being free of the usual protocols that applied to the spirit realm surfaced in my mind. Maybe mortals could go where angels feared to tread.
The decoration of the palace on all sides of us was something to behold. Where Hueco Mundo had been all stark white and plain with no adornment, the Palace of Genbu was intricately decorated. The pillars lining either side of the hall were patterned in interlocking geometrics, the rounded arches were terra-cotta and cream striped stones with octagonal louvers filling in the inside of the arches with delicate lace-like stone work. Radiating box-roses of octahgons and diamond shapes in warm, earthy-colored stone tiles of terracotta and cream with black accents lined the floors, outlined by rectangular striped tiles. Not a single line went unadorned and the whole pattern taken as an array was dizzying in it complexity. It was impressive and I'd never seen anything like it, except for the few years I'd been assigned to the middle east. The intricate mosaic patterns over there were very similar to the ones before me now.
The massive double doors with scenes of mountaintops and forests filled with beasts carved and painted on it in between strips of octagonal patterns done in golds and precious gems opened before us to reveal a wide, open cavern of a room with a massive throne of gold raised up on a huge dais that was one, solid carved green piece of jade with smaller solid gemstones acting as steps leading up to the throne. An entire Court composed of... creatures, and beings that I couldn't even begin to put a name to, kneeled, rested, sat, haunched (whatevered) on cushions on the intricately patterned tiled floor of the court, all facing the dais. Many of them were some of the strangest and most impossible combination of foreign parts put together that any mad man had ever dreamed of.
I'll admit that when I thought of an Emperor of a Court, I had envisioned something a little different than what awaited me. I had thought automatically, that Genbu would be man-shaped. He was not. He was a cross between a turtle and a snake, well several snakes. He had a tortoise shell that was the size of a small hill seated on a throne of solid green jade inlaid with gold and other precious stones that was large enough to support him. The turtle shell was silver and gleamed in the soft light light that permeated the air of the court. The shell pattern on his back with opalescent white, like a silver jewel-box inlaid with turtle-shell patterns in abalone-shell. Instead of a turtle-head stretching out from the shell there were instead the triangular head and long undulating necks of not one, but several snakes. However these were snakes of a type that I had never seen before in nature. No ordinary snake would have scales that gleamed with a metalic sheen on them, like the irridecence from the wing-casings of beetles. The colors along the necks and spines of the snakes bled from one gleaming irridecent tone to another, all of them were brighter than the finest jewels. One snake head had emerald green on its triangular head that bled to azure that graduated to deep amythyst at its tail. Another snake head had crimson fading to violet fading to pewter-grey. Another had amber-gold fading through brandy and back up through to sunset-orange. it should have looked strange to see snake-tails coming out of the tail of a turtle shell but taken as a whole, Genbu looked nothing short of majestic. Even though he was so otherworldly to me, he exuded this aura or power and authority that, even though I couldn't read him, could feel radiating off from him like heat fromt he sun. I was startled by his form, but Miss former Kuchiki wasn't waiting up for me, she strode right down that center aisle like a reigning queen and dropped neatly to her knees and bowed her head, fingers placed with perfect elegance before her. As her nominal escort, I knelt, but kept my hand near my hilt. I'd seen pictures like this in story books. Never thought I'd ever live one.
"Your Imperial Majesty," she said in a soft but strangely carrying voice.
It didn't need to be loud anyway, everyone was so frozen in shock that you could have heard a pin drop in that room.
"Please forgive my impertinence in arriving so suddenly and without announcement," she continued. "But my guardian and I must travel on a matter of utmost urgency but have previously given our word that we would deliver this scroll into your hands."
She delicately placed the scroll on the ground before her with a deep cow-tow and then raised her head, awaiting acknowledgement.
I've been in a lot of tense situations beforehand, but never one like that. Never one where the silence is so thick and looming that it is it's own presence in the room. A good half of the room was composed of creatures and spirits that looked like they could easily swallow us whole without needing to chew. Hoo boy. Had I ever asked fer it.
I never wanted so badly to sigh in relief as I had when Genbu (or maybe one of his multitudinous heads) started to chuckle. The tension in the room faded and the other Earth Spirits turned to their neighbors to mutter quietly amongst themselves, probably about the nature of humans. The scroll, case and all, levitated up from the ground and floated smoothly toward the throne where it unwrapped itself and unrolled itself. Huh, magic.
When Genbu spoke it was as if the earth had suddenly been given a voice, the ground beneath me seemed to resonate with his deep rumbling basso, like a roll of thunder trembling all around me.
"You Humans Are Ever in a Hurry," Genbu said.
He sounded amused but my mind was caught on the trick of how he seemed to make every word he spoke, no matter how inconsequntial, weighted with significance.
"My Dear Cousin Has Seen Fit to Provide Entertainment To Our Court and It's Subjects," he continued. "Namely, That The Entertainment Shall Be You."
Wha-?
"He Writes To Say That He Sends Us a Warrior Of Above Common Ability That I may Test Against Our Strongest Subject in Open Combat," Genbu said, sounding most pleased with it.
Well at least one of us was. I had never agreed to that!
"Hey!" I snapped, rising to my feet. "I didn't agree ta fight nobody! Yer cousin c'n just take his message an'-"
I was suddenly brought to my knees and silenced by that spell that I'd had laid on me rearing up and momentarily taking away my will. It had probably just saved my life. The aura of the Court went from jovially amused to faintly irritated to match its ruler.
"Do You Call Our Cousin A Liar, Mortal?" Genbu inquired.
Well yeah! He was tryin' ta pull a fast one.
"My warrior would never dream of such impertinence, your majesty," Isana said smoothly as I tried to work around the guard she'd put on my tongue.
I glared at her and she looked helplessly back at me, clearly caught flatfooted and trying her damndest to salvage the mess we'd strode in and caused, then had handed to us.
"We are however, as I said, in something of a hurry. Perhaps his Majesty will allow a timed event?"
"Are you crazy?" I hissed at her, looking around me.
Some of the Spirits here looked like they'd eat me whole. I was pretty hot stuff when it came to a battlefeild but it looked like a lot of them were way out of my league.
"It's the best I could do," she hissed back. "All you have to do is last a few minutes against them, just run around and dodge or something."
Genbu seemed to notice something that had perked his interest. He was staring at my Zanpaktou. Instictively, I turned my body to protect him.
"Zabimaru? Is That You?" Genbu inquired, sounding faintly surprised.
They knew each other?
"Ah, the Prodigal Son Returns," Genbu said, sounding very pleased. "Come Out So That We May Look At You."
My zanpaktou hummed for a moment and then Zabimaru appeared beside me in his full glory, a great white baboon with black tiger-stripes down his side and a snake tail swiveling up over his shoulder. He was, uncustomarily, haunched over and kneeling. Snaketail glared at me from behind his back. What did I do? It's not like I knew they were friends or anything.
"Your Majesty," Zabimaru said gravely, kneeling even lower.
"Zabimaru, We Have Not Seen You in Centuries," Genbu said.
I couldn't even begin to read snake-turtle body language, but Genbu sounded happy so I guess it was okay.
"This Court Has Missed It's Favorite Nue. How Came You to Be Bound Into That Sword?"
"I chose this bond of my own free will, Majesty," he replied with solemnity.
"Did You?" Genbu said with Mildly interested surprise.
My eyes flicked back and forth between the two of them, trying to guess at all the secret history that seemed to be conveyed without words between them.
"And So What Of Your Former Quest?" he inquired. "Surely That Human King Could Not have Posed So Great a Threat to Earth Court's Finest Warrior-Chimera."
"I was mistaken in my assumption of the Human's, majesty," Zabimaru said. "Many of them hold great courage and a vast potential. In atonement for my misdeeds towards them I have decided to take up service with them, helping to guide the Souls I would once have let remain lost."
This was a surprise! I had never once given thought to the idea that my zanpaktou would have his own story. I hadn't even thought it was possible. Zanpaktou were zanpaktou. I felt the sudden need to sit down and recover from the day.
"Hm," Genbu said shortly, he sounded either unconvinced, or displeased. Maybe both.
"To Each His Own We Suppose," Genbu said, with a sinuous move from his own snake that mirrored a shrug. "Still..."
"You Chose to Serve The Reapers of the Soul Cort, Zabimaru? That Is An Unusual Direction From A Warrior Who Pides Himself On His Strength And Independence. Your Human Weilder Does Not Look So Impressive... I Wonder That Your Standards Are Not Slipping."
I bristled at that while the rest of the court laughed.
"He is young yet Majesty," Zabimaru said. "But there is a vast potential in him. Our ways suit one another well."
"I Am Unsatisfied With Your Decision," Genbu said. "I Would See Proof Of Your Weilders Worthiness."
I had a sinking feeling. Surely not...
"In Accordance With Our Dear Cousin's Letter," Genbu said decisively. "We Shall See Our Great Nue, Baboon King Zabimaru, Fight Against His Human Weilder... Your Name Boy."
"Sixth Squad Lieutnant Renji Abarai!" I snapped, more than a little pissed off about all of this.
Sure I had asked for it, but I was quickly discovering that I didn't like surprises. Still, if this was what it took to get that damned seal-spell...
"Ready ta go," I demanded turneing to him.
I'd beat him once to acheive bankai, I could do it again. Zabimaru looked wryly amused and rolled his eyes at me.
"Always ready to fight, aren't you?" he said to me.
"Damn straight! Prepare fer yer ass beatin'!" I said.
"You do realize that while I am in my released form, you cannot summon my shikai," he pointed out as all the creatures in Genbu's court cleared a ring for us.
"Don't need it," I assured him. "I'll whup yer ass barehanded."
The Court laughed again. And that ticked me off too. I had to do this and do it quickly, I had a quest to get back onto and I didn't really have time to waste here playing ring around the rosies with my zanpaktou. We faced each other.
"Begin," Genbu commanded.
A short chapter, more of a segue really, but writing Genbu was fun. I sort of had in mind a romantic backstory about what happened between Zabimaru and Sode No Shiraiyuki back when they were both spirits of their respective Elemental Courts, but I couldn't fit it in. Maybe I'll write it as a side story. What do you all think?