Chapter 19: Power From the Pain Side 1
(Here it is folks, the first of the final five chapters of this arc. What lies in store for the Soul Society and their unwilling guest? Well, you'll just have to read on and find out...)
Last night had been hectic in the Seireitei, at least as far as Jidanbo knew. He wasn't told much more than that the mission to capture the man named Jason Voorhees was underway and apparently, from the panicked screams he heard from inside followed by frantic orders being thrown around, they succeeded. The Sun had risen now and Jidanbo was somewhat sleepy. So sleepy in fact that he nearly missed the two figures approaching him, one of which he recognized almost immediately. "Hey, you're that Squad 12 Lady! Have you finished your sweep?"
"Indeed I have," said Pamela who had once again wrapped herself in bandages. She gestured to the uneasy, tired-looking man by her side. "This man was wanted as a Person of Interest by Captain Kurotsuchi. He'll need to come with me."
Jidanbo raised an eyebrow. "Really? Why would Captain Kurotsuchi want with this guy now, especially after he already has what he desires."
"What are you talking about?" Pamela asked.
"Didn't you hear? They've succeeded in capturing Jason Voorhees." Jindabo replied. "From what I've been told, they're experimenting on him in the Squad 12 labs as we speak."
Pamela's rage flared up on the inside. She felt like screaming in agony, a million disturbing thoughts of what that monster Mayuri was doing to her precious child running through her head. But she knew this was going to happen. She counted on it even and knew that in time, provided she and Roy could find what they were looking for, these sinful Shinigami would be made to pay for what they'd done.
Just like those filthy counselors.
Roy could feel the murderous rage rising from her and turned away. He couldn't tell what was worse, that he had been effectively kidnapped by a crazed psycho woman or that he was getting used to her presence.
"I see." Pamela finally replied. "That's quite good to hear. That being said, Captain Kurotsuchi was insistent that I bring this man to him. Even if he has no use for him anymore, I'd have to hear it from his own lips. He is my Captain after all. You understand."
"I suppose." Jindanbo gripped the bottom of the massive gate and lifted it with a heave, allowing the two outsiders to enter the Seireitei. "I wish you luck!"
"And I you." Pamela cooed as Jidanbo vanished behind the gate. Once she and Roy were alone, she undid the bandages covering her mouth and growled. "My poor Jason! I can only imagine the pain you must be going through!"
Roy felt a pang of sympathy for the original Crystal Lake Slasher and felt tempted to place a hand on her shoulder, to comfort her. But he knew better. He knew that whatever sadness Pamela did hold in her heart was but a quickly drying trickle compared to the raging inferno that was her hate. And sure enough, her spiritual pressure began to flare up, a faint yellow energy seeping from her body. "They're going to pay. Every last one of them!" Pamela sighed, forcing her Reiyoku back inside herself. "Come on, we're heading to the Department of Research and Development."
"Right now?" Roy asked. "Won't they notice you dragging some rando from the Rukongai into their barracks?"
"Those monsters will most likely be too busy torturing my boy to notice us," Pamela said as she walked ahead. "Besides." she turned to Roy with a sadistic smile on her face. "I know where the back door is."
The school bell rang throughout Karakura High, urging its student body to march back inside its walls. Most of the hallways became crowded instantly, with students pushing and shoving each other as they headed for class. The hallway that Ichigo was walking through, however, was mostly empty, save for his friends, Keigo, Mizurio, and Tatsuki. Chad, Orihime, and Uyru had yet to show up.
"Those guys," Ichigo thought. "I wonder what they would think of..."
Last night's events replayed in Ichigo's mind. His and Rukia's debauchery never extended beyond making out which, for some reason he couldn't pinpoint, relieved him. But it was such an intense, heavy moment between them that it almost felt as if they had gone all the way. The lieutenant of Squad 13 left soon after it was over, no doubt as excited yet conflicted as Ichigo was. Even though neither of them had said a word to each other indicating as such, it was clear they both intended to keep last night between themselves.
There was something else eating away from Ichigo other than his complex feelings for Rukia. Specifically, what she had said before they ended up locking lips.
"No one could have imagined the outcome. That that innocent child would become such a devastating monster. And yet I can't help but feel sympathy for Jason as well."
Ichigo began to think back to his thoughts on the matter from last night, the comparison he made between himself and Jason. "Could I have really turned out like that?" He thought. "Someone who takes lives instead of-
"GOOOOOD MOOORRRIINNNG IIICCCHHIIIGGGOOO!" Keigo tackled his friend to the ground, much to the shock of the other two. Even Keigo himself was surprised as he was sure Ichigo, with his lightning-fast reflexes, would be able to block his attack greeting. "Hey, Ichigo?" He asked as he sat on top of the dazed carrot top. "Are you alright?"
"Get...off of me!" Ichigo barked as he launched Keigo down the hall. The screaming young man spun in the air quite a few times before crashing into a nearby trash can.
"T-That's...more like...it...Ichigo..." He rasped.
"What's wrong Ichigo?" Tatsuki asked. "You're kinda out of it today."
"Yeah," Mizurio agreed. "Usually, you're able to counter Keigo's weak attacks rather easily."
"Hey!" Keigo whined from the floor.
"It's nothing," Ichigo reassured them, acutely aware of how unconvincing he sounded. "Just didn't sleep much last night."
"Why? Were you busy with some of your Shinigami business?" Tatsuki asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Not really," Ichigo replied. Of course, he wasn't about to tell his friends that he and Rukia spent the better part of last night locking lips. Despite them now knowing of the Soul Society and the Shinigami living there, Ichigo's other circle of friends never really got involved in Ichigo's afterlife affairs. He wondered how he would even begin to explain the entire Freddy and Jason scenario.
"Hey," Tatsuki placed a hand on Ichigo's shoulder. "I won't try to pry into your private life but you should know that we're here for you if you need us." She said. "We may not have any special powers like Orihime and the others but that doesn't mean you can't let us in from time to time."
Ichigo met Tatsuki's gaze and found himself smiling. "I guess you're right. You see...
But at that moment, as Ichigo was about to explain the current situation with Jason Voorhees and D.A.C.U, a Senkaimon opened behind him. From its doors jumped out one Nemu Kurotsuchi. The stunned gazes of Tatsuki, Mizurio, and Keigo all gravitated toward the bare-legged girl as she descended toward Ichigo who was only now becoming aware of the shadow encompassing him.
"I apologize for the inconvenience, Ichigo Kurosaki," Nemu said in her usual stoic voice. "But Master Mayuri has requested your participation in his next experiment regarding Voorhees."
"Huh?" Was all Ichigo was given time to say before Nemo clasped her hands onto his shoulders and threw his soul out of his body. Ichigo, now clad in his Shinigami garb, hit the ceiling with a painful thud and fell onto Nemu's left shoulder before going limp. Upon noticing the flabbergasted students standing before her, Nemu offered a small bow and then sped back through the Senkaimon which quickly vanished afterward, leaving all three of Ichigo's friends alone in the hallway and his empty body lying at their feet.
"Who...was that girl?" Tatsuki asked.
"I don't know but judging by her black clothes, I'd wager she's one of Ichigo's Shinigami buddies." Mizurio mused.
"It's not fair!" Kiego cried. "If it's not Mizurio having all the luck with the ladies, it's Ichigo! Why can't I be carried off by a black-haired beauty in a short dress?"
"I'm not sure envy is the correct emotion you should be feeling right now." Mizurio suggested.
"What do you mean?"
As the two boys began to argue, Tatsuki could only think of one thing to say.
"Oh Ichigo, just what are those Shinigami roping you into now?"
Meanwhile, in the Dangai, Nemu ran back to the Soul Society with Ichigo still draped over her shoulder. The constant movement as well as his head hitting her back a couple of times, stirred him back into consciousness. "What the hell Nemu!?" He asked. "What the hell are you doing?"
"As I have already stated, Master Mayuri requests your participation in his next experiment with Jason Voorhees," Nemu explained calmly.
"What are you talking about? What does he need me for?"
"According to Master Mayuri, he's gathered about as much data from Jason physically as he can. Now, he wishes to test Jason's reaction to different stimuli and the first test will be combat. He wants you to spar with Jason and collect the resulting data."
"But why me?" Ichigo asked. "Why not ask someone like Kenpachi?"
"Captain Zaraki is currently at the Squad 4 barracks receiving treatment for the injuries he sustained during the mission to capture Jason," Nemu replied. "Besides, Master Mayuri is displeased with him for nearly destroying Jason before he could be captured and doesn't want him anywhere near the subject." Nemu turned her gaze toward Ichigo. "He said you'd be a much more suitable candidate because he could trust you not to go overboard."
"So...Kenpachi really did end up fighting Jason?" Ichigo asked, his frustration and indignation now replaced with surprised curiosity. "How did that turn out?"
"No one besides Lieutenant Kusajishi witnessed the actual fight before Master Mayuri and the others interrupted to capture Jason. From what she says, it was leaning toward a draw."
"Really? Ichigo felt a chill down his spine. "Jason's that strong?"
"Apparently, he learned to access his latent spiritual energy during his battle with Captain Zaraki. It's for this reason that Master Mayuri wants you to spar with him. To see if you can bring anything else out of him."
"So he can use spiritual energy now, huh?" Ichigo sighed. "He'll definitely be tough to defeat, that's for sure." Still, Ichigo couldn't help but think back to what Rukia said last night as well as his own thoughts concerning Jason and his mother. "There's no point in trying to reason with him now. But still..."
"Ichigo Kurosaki," Nemu asked. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Ichigo answered. "Listen, do you think you could put me down now? I can run the rest of the way."
Nemu suddenly ground to a halt. "As you wish," She dropped Ichigo onto the floor of the Dangai like a sack of potatoes.
"Gah!" He sat up, rubbing his head while staring daggers at the Squad 12 lieutenant. "Why you!"
"Come Ichigo Kurosaki. We do not have time to waste." With this, Nemu continued on her way, nearly leaving Ichigo behind.
"Hey! Wait up!" Ichigo quickly scrambled to his feet and ran after Nemu. Although he was able to keep up, she remained ahead of him for the rest of their journey through the Dangai. As they ran, Ichigo thought back to Jason again and again.
"There's no point in trying to reason with him anymore," Ichigo repeated in his mind. "But still, I have to try!"
"Ow!" Kenpachi winced. "What the hell is that stuff? It fucking stings!"
"Really?" Retsu asked in an innocuous voice. She removed the cotton swab from Kenpachi's chest wound which just a few hours ago had been nothing but a gaping hole in his abdomen and inspected it closely. "It just looks like regular old medicine to me." She closed her eyes and smiled.
"Smartass," Kenpachi muttered under his breath.
Retsu sighed as she went to dispose of the cotton swab. "I'll never understand how men like you can take the pain of being sliced into literal pieces with ease, glee even, but wince when even the tiniest medicine is applied."
"Whatever." Kenpachi hopped off of the table he was sitting on and slowly cracked the bones in his arms and shoulders. The sharp popping that resulted from this echoed through the nearly empty medical room. From the single window in this room, both Captains could see Yachiru happily giggling to herself as she played among some fallen leaves. Retsu made up her mind at that moment that she would have Hantaro rake them up afterward.
But as for right now, her mind was somewhere else.
"Still, I will admit it was quite a hassle to seal up that giant hole in your chest." She sighed. "You really stood a chance of dying last night."
"So?" Kenpachi scoffed. "As long as the fight leading up towards it is fun, I don't give a rat's ass about my death."
"And I assume the same can be said about whatever penalty the Head Captain has in store for you once he returns from his meeting?" Retsu asked with one eye open and judgemental.
"Heh. Let the old man do what he wants. It was worth it!" Kenpachi flashed another one of his signature smiles. "You should have seen it! The sheer brutality of his swings! The force behind his lunges. And when he finally learned how to use his Reiatsu, everything got tens times better!" He giggled madly to himself, the battle at Crystal Lake replying in his mind over and over again! In a demented sense, he was like a child in a sweets shop, filled with unbridled excitement and ready to burst. "I mean it! The look in his eyes. It reminded me of..." And then he trailed off, his grin fading into a stoic line of lamentation.
"Kenpachi?" Retsu opened both of her eyes.
"You." He finished in an almost emotionless voice. "It reminded me of you."
Retsu's eyes widened completely for but a moment. Then the lids slowly slide down until they covered half her pupils. "Is that a fact?"
"Yeah." He smiled again, this time with a much smaller curl of his lips as if he were recalling a happy memory. "It was almost like that time."
Retsu said nothing.
"I haven't felt that thrilled in years." Kenpachi clenched his fist. "If only that bastard Mayuri didn't hog Jason all to himself. Then we could go all out! The both of us! I know all I saw last night was just a taste of his true potential! His true power!" Kenpachi paused to exhale as if even the mere act of talking about his adversary was exciting enough to exhaust him. "And I want more!"
Retsu continued to stare at Kenpachi for a moment, memories of her own filling her mind. "I see," She finally responded with a small smile as she turned to get new bandages for Kenpachi's wounds. Her gaze turned from gentle and nurturing to dead and predatory. "It would seem, you've found yourself quite the playmate, Zaraki."
Within the Central Underground Assembly Hall, stood five individuals. Dead center of the hall was Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto with his lieutenant, Chojiro Sasakibe behind him. Both had stoic looks on their faces. To his left stood the Captain of the second squad of his division as well as the head of the Onmitsukido, Soifon. Behind her was her lieutenant and commander of the Patrol Corps within her organization, Marechiyo Omeada. Soifon's face was also stoic while Marechiyo's was sweaty and full of fear. To Genryusai's right was a single man, the cloth of the Kido Corps covering his head. He had his arms crossed but otherwise gave no clues as to what his emotions were.
"Captain-Commander of the Gotei 13, Genryusai Yamamoto." The man sitting before them shouted. A plaque with the kanji for 22 concealed his true face as was the same with all of his comrades. "Captain-in-Chief of the Onmitsukido, Soifon." He paused for a moment as if carefully studying the man from the Kido Corps. "And Commander of the Kido Corps, Kiba Senzen!"
"What!?" Soifon whispered under her breath as she frantically turned toward the masked man. As if waiting for the judge to speak his name or perhaps simply deciding that concealing his face did no good now that his fellow accused knew his name, the man grabbed the loose end of his face covering and yanked it. The cloth fell away from his head, revealing the slightly rugged face of the Kido Corps Commander. "Well, well, well." He spoke in a surprisingly cheerful voice. "It's about time I met the guys in charge of the other two groups." His eyes matched Soifon's and he put his thumb to his chin. "Never realized the Stealth Force was being led by such a cutie! How about we go out somewhere nice once this whole mess is sorted out, huh?"
"Is that guy crazy!" Marechiyo thought. "He's just asking to be killed!"
And had Kiba made the mistake of asking her out in any other location or situation besides right here and now, she most likely would have. Instead, Soifon simply narrowed her gaze before scoffing and turning away from him. Kiba remained frozen for a second before nervously scratching the back of his head. "I'll take that as an undecided?"
"Enough of your petty banter!" Number 22 commanded. "You three are here because you have committed a grave injustice against the Central 46!"
"You've deliberately gone behind our backs and brought back a rouge entity to Soul Society!" The woman behind the 44 plaque cried.
"Not to mention hacking into forbidden knowledge you had no right to!" A male voice bellowed from the 36 plaque.
"We are also to understand that you have created a separate fraction of your 12th Squad without our knowledge or permission and gave them control over your operations and the entity known as Jason, Head Captain." A calm yet stern voice spoke from behind the plaque numbered 18. "Explain yourself."
"Ever since Krueger's attack on the Seireitei, we of the Gotei 13 have theorized that other entities such as him might yet lurk the World of the Living. Dark, forsaken souls that have escaped Hell's clutches and become something far worse than a mere Hollow or Arrancar. I gave Captain Kurotsuichi permission to establish the Death Anomaly Correction Unit in order to combat these new threats so that we will never have a repeat of that horrific day!" Genryusai spoke with the exact same dominating tone he used during his meetings. But this was the first time he had ever taken this tone to the Central 46.
Suffice to say, they were not pleased.
"You say you wish to prevent another disaster like Krueger, yet you bring this foreign entity into our world?"
"Captain Kurotsuchi has given me his word that Jason Voorhees will be disposed of as soon as he has learned all he can from him. If we wish to prevent monsters like Krueger or Voorhees from disrupting the Balance of Souls, we must uncover what connection they have with each other and how to annihilate them!"
"All we're hearing is an excuse to allow your men to do as they please." Number 18 spoke. "That still doesn't answer for the fact that you broke into hidden archives to steal guarded information on Voorhees." Other judges murmured and gruntled in agreement.
"If I may be so bold," Kiba spoke up. "Why were those records hidden away in the first place? Lest we forget, four good soldiers lost their lives that night! I was there! I was the one who prevented Akane Watanbe from ending up on the body count! You really have so little respect for the lives that protect you that you would sooner sweep them under the rug than admit you failed!?"
"What was that!?"
"You insolent little fool!"
"Do you have any idea what kind of situation you're in?" One by one, the angered voices of the Central 46 clamored over each other, filling the Assembly Hall with venom and malice.
"What does that idiot think he's doing?" Soifon thought. "Doesn't he realize we could all go down for this?" She sighed heavily. "I spent my entire life upholding the law of Soul Society without question. And now here I am, awaiting sentencing by the Central 46 like a rogue criminal!" She turned miserably to Genryusai who simply continued to stare forward at the judge sitting before him, his expression impossible to decipher from underneath his great beard and eyebrows. "I sure hope you know what you're doing Head Captain."
"You simply must be kidding me!" Mayuri shouted. His outburst startled Akon and Rin as they were both walking into the control room carrying a large metal object. Both of them let go of it as they jumped with Akon quickly grabbing it again upon realizing what had happened. Rin was not so lucky and cried in pain as the object slammed on top of his foot.
"Shit!" Akon heaved as he lifted the object up and placed it back down on his right. Rin fell to the floor, whimpering with tears streaming down his face as he cradled his foot.
"Would you please cease that ridiculous whining!?" Mayuri screeched. "Some of us are currently going through an actual crisis!"
"Um...what's wrong, Captain?" Akon asked uneasily.
"What's wrong? What's wrong!?" Mayuri gritted his teeth in anger. "Just look at this!" He pointed to the giant screen before him. Rotating endlessly on the right side of the screen was a 3-D model of Jason Within a smaller box on the other side of the screen was a picture of what looked to be lighting with constantly changing text next to it. "Don't you see it?"
"Uhh...sure." Akon replied nervously. "How terrible. It's really a damn shame."
He froze as Mayuri's face grew hateful and annoyed. "You bumbling idiot! It's so painfully obvious!" He turned back to the screen. "We already know full well how Jason cheated death the first time around so I performed a skin scraping and subsequent dissection on our dear old guest and processed the data onto this computer in the hopes of discovering what brought him back the second time." He tapped the box with lighting inside of it, causing it to balloon until it took up half the screen. "But according to this reading, there's nothing swirling around Jason's body or soul that would indicate a second resurrection! Nothing except for a current of the type of electricity normally found in Human World thunderstorms!"
"So...what you're saying is, Jason, was brought back...by mere lightning?" Akon asked.
"What kind of lazy explanation is that?" Rin asked, still nursing his foot.
"Can you believe it!?" For a brief moment, both Akon and Rin could swear Mayuri sounded as if he were on the verge of tears. "Hours upon hours of careful study only to make such a pathetic discovery!? Oh, Reality can be so disappointing!"
Akon and Rin looked at each, neither of them sure what to make about the situation. Before the awkwardness could escalate further, the door to the room opened again and Nemu and Ichigo stormed out of it, the latter stopping in the middle of the room to catch his breath. "I have brought Ichigo Kurosaki as you have requested, Master Mayuri," Nemu spoke.
A wicked grin formed on Mayuri's lips. "Ah! Just the pick-me-up I was looking for!" Mayuri turned back to his computer and typed away on its keyboard. The two images on the screen vanished, only to be replaced by a single image of a hockey mask with more text underneath it. "The last experiment may have ended in disappointment but I am certain this next one will yield more interesting results!" He capped off his crescendo of typing with the push of a large button, producing a loud beeping noise.
As the noise continued, the wall making up the back of the room slowly rose up from the floor and vanished into the ceiling. The resulting steam concealed the view from behind the wall as it ascended but once it had vanished into the vents lying in the corners of the room, Ichigo could make out another room separated from the one he was in by a sheet of glass. This room was barren and mechanical, only sporting a giant object like a tree or a pole resting against the wall.
Impaled to this object by blue spears of light that reminded Ichigo of Uryu's arrows, was a hulking man in a hockey mask.
"Is that...Jason?" Ichigo asked
"But of course!" Mayuri confirmed. "We brought him here just a few hours ago and we've already performed so many experiments!" The Squad 12 Captain cackled. "I must admit, in all my years in the Department of Research and Development, I've never encountered a subject like him. Even when we cut him open, the only sound he would make was an annoyed grunt!"
As Mayuri continued to laugh madly, Ichigo walked up to the glass for a better look. Despite everything he had heard about the Crystal Lake Slasher, the only word Ichigo could think to describe Jason as of this very moment was pitiful. The masked brute was suspended above the ground by these spears of energy and his head hung low. Ichigo could see all sorts of gashes and scrapes along his body as well as a huge stitch across his chest. "Kinda hard to tell who the real monster is in this situation," Ichigo thought glumly. As he continued to observe Jason, he noticed something else about the man. Namely, the blackened hair strands growing from his head and the somewhat...warmer glow of what was supposed to be undead skin. "Hey, correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't Jason supposed to be...you know..."
"Undead?" Mayuri finished Ichigo's sentence. "That was most certainly the case when we first apprehended him from the World of the Living. But as we were performing the experiments on him, something miraculous happened. I'm sure Nemu already told you about how that fool Zaraki fought Jason without permission and forced him to unlock his Reiryoku right?"
"Yeah?"
"It would seem Jason's Reiryoku has reacted to the spiritually rich nature of the Soul Society's atmosphere, kicking his already impressive healing factor into high gear. Effectively, Jason is slowly becoming human again!" Mayuri walked up to the glass as well, his eyes fixed on his latest prize. "Or at least, he's taking back a more human form."
"Becoming human?" Ichigo studied Jason closely. "Does that mean...there's a chance?"
"Well, enough lolly-gagging!" Mayuri declared as he sharply turned to Ichigo. "Are you ready to begin the experiment?" He asked.
Ichigo hesitated to answer as he stared at Mayuri and looked back at Jason one final time. Then, his face fixing into an expression of determination, he turned back to the Squad 12 Captain and said. "Yeah! I am!"
Unbeknownst to Mayuri, Ichigo, or anyone in that room for that matter, Pamela and Roy were walking through a dark corridor underneath the Squad 12 barracks. This corridor as well as the room it would eventually lead to was one of Mayuri's most closely guarded secrets. Only he, Nemu, and a few other select members of Squad 12 knew of its existence, and the only reason Pamela had discovered it was through years of careful, concise hacking. There was no light within this corridor save for the green dots that lined the angles and corners. Roy felt as if he had wandered into an endless tunnel belonging to some sort of carnival.
"We should be getting close," Pamela spoke in a hushed whisper, breaking the tense silence Roy had become accustomed to. He jumped a bit as a result but quickly calmed himself.
"Close to what?" He asked in a similar hushed voice.
"The key to saving Jason," Pamela answered. "Both of them!" She looked back ahead and suddenly stopped, holding an arm out to Roy to stop him. "We're here!"
Roy stopped and looked beyond Pamela. Indeed, they had reached the end of the corridor, a giant door with the Squad 12 symbol painted on it marking the dead end. Besides the door was a small keyboard which Pamela began typing into aggressively. Roy wasn't one for keeping count but he imagined that the mother of Jason Voorhees must have typed in at least 36 characters. A small screen lit up above the keyboard, displaying a single eye. Pamela reached into her robes and pulled out a small glass tube. Floating around the green liquid inside was an orange eyeball.
"Gah!" Roy gagged. "What the hell is that thing?"
"One of the captain's spare eyeballs," Pamela answered calmly.
"His...spare eyeball? H-How'd you even get that?"
"Long story," Pamela plucked the eyeball out of the vile and held it in front of the screen. The machine scanned it, hummed for a couple of seconds, and dinged, resulting in the door suddenly sinking into the floor and revealing a room filled to the brim with strange trinkets and gadgets. "This is where the captain stashes all the prototypes for his inventions," Pamela explained as she stepped into the room. "Some of them have been here for decades but all of them work."
"Is that right?" Roy replied uneasily as he followed Pamela into the room. Having settled for his quiet life in the Rukongai (or as quiet as it can get with a bunch of teenagers living with you), Roy never thought he'd ever step foot in the Seireitei, nevermind a secret room underneath the Department of Research and Development. The various gadgets surrounding him gave him a feeling of unease as he tried and failed to guess what each one was supposed to do. One particular object that caught his eye was a jar filled with yellow fluid. Against his better judgment, he inched closer to the jar and leaned toward it, certain he could make out a shape floating inside the liquid. That shape suddenly opened into a mouth filled with razor-sharp teeth and snapped at Roy, startling him and making him back into a shelf on the other side of the room. Another prototype, one shaped like a diamond, fell and shattered against the floor.
"Keep it down!" Pamela hissed. "Do you want to alert anyone we're here?"
"What I want is to get the hell out of this dammed place!" Roy argued. "Can't you hurry up and find what you're looking for?"
"Haste makes waste," Pamela replied as she continued to search for the object she desired. Roy mumbled to himself and remained leaning against the shelf so as not to bump into any more things with teeth. "Seriously," He thought. "What is that thing even for?"
Several minutes passed before Roy heard a sharp "Ah ha!" from the back of the room. Cautiously, he made his way toward her and asked her what she found.
"Just what I was looking for!" Pamela answered in elation. "I found both of the devices that are going to help us save my boy!" Pamela reached into her robes and pulled out what appeared to be a red, transparent cube. "This is the captain's prototype for the Chi Fu Kabe. It's basically a giant seal that can cover large areas."
"Right, And we need it for...
"Right as we speak, the Captain-Commander, the strongest Shinigami in this realm, is having a meeting with Central 46 in their compound. No doubt they're talking about my boy and what to do with him." She sniffled a little before continuing. "I want you to go over there and use this to seal him away along with those self-righteous government dogs!"
"So they can't interfere," Roy finished in a deadpan tone.
"Exactly," Pamela looked back to the cube. "Now since this is just the prototype, it won't last too long. An hour at the most. You'll want to stay out of sight once you seal them away."
"But how exactly am I supposed to find Central 46?" Roy asked.
"With this," Pamela reached into her robes again and pulled out what, to Roy, appeared to be a mechanical dragonfly. "This Soul Searcher is another one of the prototypes I've borrowed from here." She explained. "It'll guide you to the Central 46 compound."
"So basically, you're saying I'll be following a robotic bug to a building I've never heard of to seal away some crazy strong fella who also happens to be the boss of this place." Roy had questioned his life choices many times since joining up with Pamela but right now, he was certain that, had he known this was to be his fate, the answer to every choice would have been no.
"Don't gripe!" Pamela scolded as she shoved the cube into Roy's hands. "After all, you have the easy part!" She turned away and headed for the door. "Come along, you need to get moving if you're going to make it in time."
"Time...Wait!" Roy called out. "You said we needed two keys! Didn't you want to take another one of these machines?"
"I already got what I came for," Pamela reached into her robes for a final time and pulled out a shiny blue orb. "And I know exactly what my role is,"
It wasn't long before Ichigo found himself inside the bare room with Jason still bound at the other end. The masked maniac hardly registered the young man's presence until the spears pinning him to the wall vanished and he dropped down. Blood seeped from the resulting wounds as he slowly got to his feet. His hyper-regeneration had helped him to reclaim his lost eye but it still remained concealed behind a permanently closed lid. The other eye, however, locked onto Ichigo with a cruel, cold stare.
"Another one," His mother's voice said. "And a teenager from the looks of it. Oh, he's a sinner alright! I can smell it on him! Make him pay Jason!"
Jason nodded slightly to his mother's words. The last few hours had been utter hell for Jason, both mentally and physically. The first chance he got, he was sure to escape and make these Shinigami pay for what they did to him. But for now, as he had regained the mobility of his limbs, it would seem he would have to settle for the boy with the giant sword.
Of course, Ichigo was none the wiser to Jason's mental processes. Instead, he was simply focused on the upcoming fight. And whether or not he could somehow reason with Jason. Sighing, he rose Zangetsu out from his back and pointed him at Jason to show his intent for battle. Jason seemed to understand the gesture because he unsheathed his machete from his belt.
"Are my little lab rats ready to begin the experiment?" Mayuri teased from the other side of the glass wall. He, Nemu, Rin, and Akon were watching with keen interest
"Don't call me your lab rat!" Ichigo barked only to quickly compose himself afterward. "But yeah. I'm ready!"
"Good!" Mayuri sneered. "Let the experiment begin!"
Ichigo briefly recalled what Nemu had said about Jason learning to use his spiritual pressure and decided to try and goad it out of him. With a sharp inhale, he outpoured his own energy, resulting in a yellow aura surrounding him.
Jason immediately recognized Ichigo's actions as he recalled them from his last battle. Within his mind, his mother's voice spoke.
"It would seem this boy has the same powers as that awful man you got you sent here. You know what to do Jason."
And Jason did. He fluctuated his own spirit energy, producing an icy blue aura that matched Ichigo's in intensity. Once again, Jason felt raw power surging through his veins and relished in the sensation before stomping toward Ichigo, blade pointed upward.
"He really can use Reiatsu," Ichigo thought. As he allowed Jason to come closer, he suddenly felt a chill in the air and shivered involuntarily. "What? Why is it so cold in here all of a sudden? Could it be his Reiatsu?" The blue aura surrounding Jason melded into Ichigo's spiritual energy and the chill intensified, forcing Ichigo to step back. "Yeah! That's it! It's Jason Reiatsu! It's ice cold! Like I'm trapped inside of an endless snowstorm!" Ichigo smirked. "Well, I guess I better get this started." Before Jason could get within striking distance, Ichigo vanished from his sight.
Bewildered, Jason only had time to widen his working eye in surprise before Ichigo suddenly reemerged on his left, grabbing his face and shoving him toward the wall to his right. Jason, a towering man weighing about 250 pounds, was sent flying into the wall like a baseball. The resulting impact created a could of dust that engulfed the entire room although it didn't stay long enough to bother Mayuri.
"Remind me to get that room dusted after this Nemu." He said casually with his eyes glued to the scene before him.
"Yes, Master Mayuri." Nemu promised.
The dust settled just as Jason peeled off of the wall, leaving behind a giant crack. He got back to his feet, realized that his arm was broken, and snapped it back into place without a sound.
"Sorry about that," Ichigo spoke as he held Zangetsu over his shoulder and approached Jason. "Sometimes I forget my own strength," He smiled. "But still, I bet I caught you by surprise, didn't I? Bet you didn't expect a punk kid like me to be able to send you flying like that with just his hand."
Jason glared at the approaching Shinigami and flung his machete at him. Without missing a beat, Ichigo blocked the attack using Zangetsu and sent the machete toward the wall Jason was previously pinned to, its blade vanishing into the concrete. "Sorry, but I'm not like those normal teens you've slaughtered over the years. You can consider this the Universe's way of paying you back!"
"Such insolence!" Pamela's voice cried out from her son's skull. "We'll show him a thing or two about respect! Won't we, Jason!"
Jason nodded and broke into a sprint toward Ichigo. Now that his legs were no longer stiffened by rigor mortis, he found he could move faster and easier. Still it wasn't fast enough to keep the boy from vanishing again which stopped Jason in his tracks.
"Don't panic, my boy! Just think! The last time he pulled that stunt, he got you from the side. He didn't disappear! He simply moved faster than you can see. But you have this power flowing through you now, you can sense him can't you?"
And Jason could. He could feel the boy's presence from above him, no doubt intending to cleave his gigantic sword into his shoulder. It was at this moment that Jason briefly recalled his battle with Freddy and one of the first stunts that filthy Dream Demon pulled. The first indication is that he was not to be just another one of Jason's victims.
Jason quickly turned around, just as Ichigo had appeared before him. Before Ichigo could fully bring his blade down, Jason caught it between both of his hands, stopping Ichigo in his tracks. "Wha!" Before Ichigo could pull Zangetsu away, Jason used the might of both his arms to fling the giant Zanpakuto toward the door Ichigo had entered the room from. It embedded itself right above the entrance.
"Just like with Freddy," Ichigo thought. "Did Jason learn that move from hi-GK!" Before Ichigo could finish his thought, Jason wrapped both hands around his throat and started to strangle him. He lifted the choking Ichigo off his feet, his Reiatsu fluctuating rabidly as Ichigo's waned.
"There's that cold again." Ichigo thought as he tried to pry Jason's hand off his neck. "It's freezing! I can't breathe! It's just like..."
And that's when it hit Ichigo. He felt something was off about his original assessment of Jason's spiritual pressure, something wrong with the mental picture of the snowstorm that formed in his mind. As he fought for breath, he realized that his enemy's hands were only doing half the job. Ichigo had already been suffocating from the moment he felt Jason's Reaitsu.
It wasn't like freezing in an endless snowstorm. It was like drowning in a cold lake without a surface to break out of.
Upon realizing this, Ichigo brought himself back to reality and delivered an uppercut to Jason's chin, making sure to put as much force in it as possible. This forced the masked maniac to let go of Ichigo's throat as he was launched onto his back. Ichigo inhaled as much air as he could before flash-stepping to the door, grabbing Zangetsu's handle, and ripping it out of the wall.
By this time, Jason was already standing back up. Once he saw that Ichigo had reclaimed his weapon, he turned around and went to reclaim his.
"Not gonna happen!" Ichigo flash-stepped in front of Jason and swung his sword. Jason managed to dodge the attack again and again, albeit in a clumsy unrefined fashion. He was practically flailing as he moved out of the Zanpakuto's way.
"He's clearly not used to fighting on equal terms." Ichigo thought. "His battle with Kenpachi must have been his first real battle." Ichigo shook his head and went for another strike. This time, while he leaned to the right to dodge it, Jason also lowered his fist below the blade and punched Ichigo in the stomach. The Substitute Shinigami gagged as he was launched into the wall he had sent Jason into not but a few minutes ago, mere inches from where the masked maniac had landed. He peeled off and fell into a rough coughing fit, clutching his stomach tightly. Jason stared at him for a moment before continuing toward his machete. He wrenched it out of the wall with little effort.
"Dammit!" Ichigo coughed again. He was certain he could taste blood in his mouth.
"How interesting," Mayuri cooed as he watched the battle unfold. "While he couldn't match Captain Soifon's speed, there's no denying that Krueger was a fast and agile foe, relying on his speed and agility when he wasn't using his Dream powers. But Jason possesses no such power. Even now that he was awakened his spiritual energy, for the time being at least, seems to mostly act as a buffer to his already incredible physical strength. It's no wonder the barbarian had so much fun fighting him."
"If he were just a normal kid, that punch would have blown a hole right through him." Akon fretfully added.
Mayuri simply responded by smiling wider. "This is most pleasing indeed."
As they talked, Ichigo and Jason's battle had devolved into an exchange of Reshi-powered sword strikes. Again and again, Ichigo would attempt to use Getsuga Tensho but Jason would not allow him the distance to do so, smashing his machete into the Zanpakuto every time and pushing Ichigo back. With a frustrated grunt, Ichigo returned the favor, forcing Jason on the defensive. As skilled as Jason was with his machete, it still couldn't hold and candle to Zangetsu. With a final shove, Ichigo flash-stepped back just in time to avoid Jason's swing.
"Now's my chance!" Ichigo thought as he noticed the space between him and Jason. With his Zanpakuto raised above his head, he gathered his Reiatsu to the tip of his blade and sent it hurling toward his masked opponent. "Getsuga Tensho!"
Jason hardly had time to react before the crescent-shaped slash rammed into him, tearing into his body and knocking him back against the wall. Once again, the dust flying up from the impact concealed the two opponents in the room. As it faded back to the ground, Mayuri and his men could make out Ichigo walking toward Jason who remained slumped against the wall, a huge bloody gash on his left shoulder. Once he was at a good, close distance, Ichigo stopped.
"You must really hate me now, huh? Can't feel good to have your ass handed to you by the very kind of person you prey on back home, can it?" There was not a shred of cockiness or taunting in Ichigo's voice. Just serious contempt with an air of sadness.
Jason, of course, said nothing. He remained still, a puddle of blood forming underneath him. Droplets of blood fell from the bottom holes of his mask as well.
"Of course, it's not like you don't deserve it." Ichigo continued, "You've killed hundreds of innocent people, people that never did anything to you. Why?"
"What an unrespectful brat!" Pamela's voice hissed. "What right does he have to speak ill about what you do!? Don't listen to him Jason. He's just trying to hurt you like that man with the eyepatch was. They are all trying to hurt you! You have to get back up and fight! You need to puni-
"Is it because of your mother?" Ichigo asked.
Pamela's voice went silent and Jason's head snapped back up, his single working eye wide open in surprise.
"I know what happened back then." Ichigo continued. "I heard about how you drowned as a young boy because the counselors weren't paying attention to you. After you died, your mother killed those counselors and then she started killing anyone that stepped foot on that camp. All to avenge her child." Ichigo lowered his gaze for a moment as if considering what he was going to say next. "But then, she lost her life. And you saw it happen, didn't you?"
Jason's mind flashed back to that awful night. It had already been years since he somehow returned from the dead. The only clue he had concerning the circumstances of how it came about was a recurring dream of a motherly woman tapping his forehead with the hilt of her sword. Ever since then, he had been left to fend for himself, stealing clothes from clothing lines of houses near the forest and teaching himself to hunt for food. His old cabin was still there to provide him shelter during the cold nights but without his mother there, there was hardly a difference.
And then that night arrived. The night that he, after searching for her for years in the woods, finally found his beloved mother...
...only to watch her head fly from her shoulders as a machete cut through her neck.
Jason didn't remember much after that. He remembered weeping bitterly in the woods for hours until he finally managed to bring himself together enough to collect his mother's head and build a shrine. And he remembered hearing her voice for the first time that night as well.
"They did this to me, Jason! They failed to kill you so they destroyed me instead in order to keep us apart! You know what you have to do!"
And Jason did. And after a year of searching for the girl who ensured that he would never reunite with his mother, that's exactly what he did.
"Believe it or not, I know what that feels like."
Ichigo's words brought Jason back to cruel reality.
"I lost my mother when I was young. Hell, I was with her when she was killed and in some ways, it was my fault." Ichigo recalled the weight of his mother's corpse as it leaned onto him, the scent of her blood intermingling with that of the falling rain. "I felt like my entire world had collapsed. That I would never recover." Then his family came to mind. Karin, Yuzu, and his father. "But I did." Ichigo opened his mouth to say that he had help with the healing process but nothing came out. At that moment, he realized that there was no point in trying to reach Jason. Not when he was at death's door and not when too many lives were on his hands.
"Mourning over their fates will not help anyone, them included."
"I guess...I let myself be blinded by sympathy," Ichigo thought. It was at this moment he noticed Jason marching toward him, machete in hand and Reaitsu pouring out from his body. That suffocating feeling overcame Ichigo again and he found himself reaching for his neck. "I'm sorry. I must have bored you with the details of my life." Ichigo flash-stepped again and reappeared behind the masked murderer. A few seconds later, a large red gash appeared on Jason's back. Blood gushed forth from the wound as he fell to his knees. "Please forget I said anything." Ichigo finished.
A loud bell suddenly dinged from the other side. "Alright, alright!" Mayuri's voice spoke from an intercom. "I believe I've collected all the data I'll need. You may leave the room now, Ichigo Kurosaki."
"Right!" Ichigo started walking toward the door, only to stop and look back at Jason one more time. Hatred dressed the man's single eye as he stared at the Substitute Shinigami, trying and failing to get back to his feet.
"Don't worry about him," Mayuri spoke again. "His healing factor will take care of the wounds while he's bound back up." Out of nowhere, blue spears of light impaled Jason in several different places, pinning him against the wall. "We wouldn't want our star subject to die too quickly on us, would we?"
Ichigo winced as he watched the spears impale Jason but said nothing. He simply stood and watched Jason sadly for a moment before turning his back and leaving the room.
"Ki-Ki-Ki, Ma-Ma-Ma."
Three hours had passed since Ichigo and Jason had their battle. Mayuri had decided that this was the perfect cutoff experiment for a short break and was currently processing the data that he had gathered from the battle onto the master computer with Nemu at his side. Jason was left to his own devices, his wounds healed but fully immobilized. His mother's voice had gone silent and he took this rare chance to sleep. The room was completely dark aside from the glow of the spears pinning him to the wall.
That's when Pamela walked through the door. After making sure that there was absolutely no one else inside the room, she rushed to the glass wall and fought back a sob as he laid eyes on her only son, her pride and joy, for the first time in decades. "My Jason!" She cried as she rubbed the glass. "My sweet angel! What have those monsters done to you!?" She felt rage flow through every vein in her body. Her teeth gnashed. Her fist clenched. She felt as if she could slaughter the entirety of the Department of Research and Development right here and now, even Mayuri.
But she forced herself to calm down. There was no time for punishment and in any case, it wasn't her job. It was Jason's and it was time for him to get started. She rubbed the glass one more time as she stared pitifully at her boy and ran back to the control panel. "Let's see. I should remember how to do this." Pamela began typing away, booting up the control panel, locating the triggers responsible for the spears, and commanding them to shut down. One by one, the spears pinning Jason to the wall vanished, causing his weight to shift and for Jason to wake up. He slumped to the floor bewildered, with only the spear thrust through his left wrist remaining.
"Just one more, my sweet boy!" Pamela cooed as she prepared to delete that spear as well. "Just one more an-
The lights turned on, startling Pamela. She frantically turned to see Akon casually walking into the room. "Prim?" He asked with only mild concern in his voice. "What are you doing here?"
"Akon," Was all Pamela could think to say. She was sure certain Mayuri and his cronies were on the other side of the barracks processing data.
"What's going on?" Akon asked as he surveyed the room. His eyes widened once they spotted an almost free Jason yanking on the last remaining spear. "What the hell!?" He rushed to the glass, nearly running into it. "What's going on!? What happened to the spears!?"
"It's really a shame." Pamela's voice spoke behind him.
"What?" Akon was only given time to turn around before Pamela's blade sliced through his left arm. Blood sprayed from the wound in all directions, coating Pamela herself in crimson. "P-Prim? Why?" Akon managed to choke out as he fell to his knees clutching his still-bleeding stump. His arm hit the wall and left a trail of blood as it slid down.
"You can stop calling me Prim," Pamela grabbed the bloody bandages around her face and tore them away. "I don't think I need to tell you who I am?"
Akon's eyes widened as he beheld the woman's true face. The same face he had seen in the Human World news articles. "P-Pamela? Pamela Voorhees? H-How?"
"I really am sorry Akon. Of all of the deranged lunatics running this asylum, you were the kindest." Pamela walked back to the control panel and continued typing away. "But I've spent the last 17 years working toward this very moment. You understand, don't you? I can't just let you destroy my pride and joy!" Pamela completed her mission with a single press of a button. "There."
On the other side of the room, the last spear holding Jason in place vanished. The masked murderer fell to the floor with a thud and remained still for a moment as if gathering his strength. Before long, he slowly started to get back on his feet.
"No!" Akon reached into his robes and pulled out a Jigokucho. Before he could relay his warning to the Captain and his fellow Squad 12 members, however, a Kido blast destroyed the butterfly and most of his remaining hand. He screamed in agony and fell to the floor.
"I'm afraid I can't allow that," Pamela said grimly. "I can't allow you monsters to hurt my poor child anymore." Pamela once again began typing away on the computer, this time logging into the security mainframe. "I was never much of a computer person, you know? My skills are better suited to the kitchen," He flashed Akon an evil smirk. "As well as the occasional pest control!"
"What are you planning!?" Akon shouted, "How do you possibly hope to get your son out of here without drawing attention?"
"Oh. I don't. In fact, I plan for Jason to make quite the ruckus once he breaks out of this hellish lab." Pamela continued to type away. "After all you Shinigami need to be punished just the same as those dirty filthy counselors!"
"Pamela.." Akon tried to get up but it was no good. He had lost too much blood and would fall unconscious soon.
"That being said, I do plan to help Jason out a little. After all, isn't that the role a mother is supposed to play for her child?" With a snicker, Pamela activated the security system, causing the alarm to blare endlessly. Jason seemed bewildered at the sudden noise and flashing red lights. Before he could fall into disorientation, however, a familiar voice called out to him on the intercom.
"Jason! This is your mother! Can you hear me?"
Jason looked around for the source of the voice. It was different from all the times he had heard it before. It sounded more distant but at the same time, more clear, more nostalgic. More real. Yet, despite his best efforts, he could not find his mother. All he could see was a glass wall.
"I know you must be confused and scared my sweet child, but I'm here to help! Do you see that door in front of you?"
Jason looked ahead and nodded when he noticed the steel door.
"I've unlocked it. Once you leave this room, take a right and continue down the corridor as fast as you possibly can. Then you'll make it outside."
Jason took a step forward, only for his mother's voice to continue speaking.
"But be careful! Because as soon as you step outside, those bad people in black robes are going to try to stop you! Try to hurt you! I'm sure you know this by now but they're not like the kids you're used to at Crystal Lake! They're strong! They're evil! And they have all sorts of powers at their disposal! But I know you can beat them, Jason. Because no matter what they do to you, no matter how hard they've tried in the past. You cannot die, Jason! You can never die! It's your gift sweetheart and now's the time to put it to good use!"
Jason nodded, clenched his machete tightly, and marched toward the door.
"Once you're outside, look for a tower with a giant gate on top of it. You need to get up to that courtyard and to that gate! It's the only way back home!"
Once Jason reached the door, he kicked it down with a single try and stormed out, making his way through the corridor his mother had told him about.
"I'll be there with you every step of the way, Jason!" Pamela promised. "And these monsters will pay!"
*Near the Central 46 compound, a few minutes before Jason's escape.
Ichigo wasn't really sure where he was going. Although he was given the go-ahead to return to the World of the Living, he figured that, by now, he had missed too much of the school day to really be worth it and to remain in Soul Society a little longer. He did wander away from the Squad 12 barracks and into the streets of the Seireitei. Every so often, a Shinigami would greet him on the street and he would reply in kind, only to resume his wistful expression as he walked. There was simply too much on the boy's mind.
"What is Captain Kurotsuichi gonna do with all the data he gets from Jason?" He thought back to the Squad 12 Captain's less-than-stellar behavior back in Akane's district. "Is it really good for someone like him to possess such knowledge?" His eyes widened as he suddenly recalled what Akane had requested. "Oh crap! I forgot to say that!" Groaning loudly, Ichigo dug his fingers into his scalp. "Ahh! I'm such an idiot!"
"Please Kurosaki, if you're going to have a mental breakdown, do it somewhere no one will see!" A familiar voice demanded. Ichigo ceased his fit and turned to see Toshiro and Rangiku approaching him.
"Rangiku! Toshiro!"
The short Captain scowled. "That's Captain Hitsuguya to you!"
"Are you doing ok?" Rangiku asked with concern in her voice. "You seemed really upset about something."
"Oh it's nothing! I just forgot to do something a friend asked me about and I guess I was just kicking myself for it." Ichigo spoke. Inside, the guilt ate away at him as it dawned on him that he would most likely not get a second chance to speak to Jason. He decided to push it aside for the time being. "So what are you guys doing here?"
"We were actually on our way to the Squad 12 barracks for a lab report," Toshiro answered. "Knowing Captain Kurotsuchi, he'll be too preoccupied with his sick little experiments to bother organizing the proper paperwork and I want it good and ready for when the Head Captain returns from his meeting."
"Meeting?" Ichigo asked. "What meeting?"
"Huh? You mean no one told you?" Rangiku asked. "After we brought Jason back from Crystal Lake, Central 46 demanded that the Captain-Commanders of the Gotei 13, Onmitsukido, and Kido Corps all head to the compound at once to explain themselves. See, we kinda did this whole thing behind their backs."
"Central 46 huh?" Ichigo was vaguely aware of the judicial authority of Soul Society, mostly given the role they played in Rukia's planned execution. Or at least, the role Aizen made everyone think they played. "I don't know much about the Kido Corps but I do hope Soifon and the old man are all right."
"Oh they'll be fine!" Rangiku slapped Ichigo's back. "Captain Soifon's a tough girl and the Head Captain's dealt with these guys before. They can handle it."
"Besides, they're more pressing matters to worry about." Toshiro interrupted. "Like Jason."
"Jason?"
"It isn't just for the report that me and Rangiku were on our way to the Squad 12 barracks," He explained. "I also wanted to see if perhaps I could convince Mayuri to destroy Jason already, as futile an effort as it may be."
"Destroy Jason?" Ichigo asked. "Aren't they already planning to do that once they finish with him?"
"That is the plan, yes." Toshiro nodded. "But this isn't just some run-of-the-mill Hollow we're dealing with. It may not look like it but this place is still shaken up by the attack from Freddy Krueger. I dread to think what would happen if Jason escaped and every second he's here invites the possibility of such a disaster."
Ichigo didn't say anything although he did find himself agreeing mentally.
"Most of the other captains are of the same opinion," Toshiro continued. "The only reason Jason still lives is because of the condition Mayuri set when establishing the D.A.C.U. But if you ask me, no amount of information is worth another incident like Freddy! That's why-
"Enough already captain!" Rangiku slapped her hand over her captain's head and continued to gently pat it as she spoke. "Geez, you've been like this all morning. Jason this. Doom that, It's all you ever talk about anymore! Give it a rest will ya?"
"Rangiku!" Toshiro growled. "Stop it at once!"
Ichigo couldn't help but smile as the Squad 10 Captain and lieutenant talked back to each other. Something about their quarreling put his mind at ease. It reminded him of how he and Rukia would sometimes fight. This, of course reminded him of the kissing they did last night, which of course he wasn't about to tell anyone, least of all someone on the same payroll as Byakuya Kuchiki. This, however, then brought him back to the promise he had made to Akane and with that he got an idea.
"Hey Toshiro! Can I-
Before Ichigo could ask him if he would deliver the message to Jason, however, a small tremor shook all three Shinigami. It wasn't enough to knock them down but it did cause them to immediately search around for the cause. They found it in the form of a giant red block engulfing an area several miles away. "What the hell is that?" Ichigo asked.
"I don't know but it looks like some sort of Kido!" Rangiku answered without taking her eyes off of it.
"No..." Toshiro whimpered. "That's...That's where the Central 46 compound is!" He turned to Ichigo, his eyes wide with panic. "That's where the Head Captain is right now!"
Before Ichigo could respond, a large blaring alarm sounded from behind him. It didn't the three Shinigami to realize with terror that it was coming from the Squad 12 barracks a ways away. They could see the flashing red lights from where they were.
"Now Squad 12's under attack!?" Toshiro asked. "What the hell's going on?"
"I don't know but I'm gonna find out!" Ichigo prepared to flash-step toward the barracks only for Toshiro to grab his shoulder. "Wait! Ichigo!"
"Don't try to keep me out of this!" Ichigo demanded. "I can help!"
"I know! That's why I want you to investigate the Central 46 compound instead!"
"The..compound?"
"If what happened at Squad 12 is what I'm afraid happened," Toshiro explained. "Then I think me and Rangiku should take care of it."
"But Toshiro,"
"Ichigo, whoever set up that Kido barrier around the compound is getting away as we speak! There's no time to argue!"
Ichigo looked toward the blaring alarms and then back at the giant red barrier before shouting "dammit all!" and rushing toward the latter. "Alright, I'll follow your advice but I'm coming back as soon as I can! Don't die on us!"
"Same to you, Ichigo Kurosaki," Toshiro said with a faint smile. Then he turned to Rangiku. "Let's go!"
"Right!" The Captain and lieutenant raced toward the alarms. "I was afraid this would happen!" Toshiro thought as fear and worry consumed his heart. "Damn you Mayuri!"
"Oww!" Roy whined as he peeled himself from the wall. "No one said anything about the recoil!" Groaning, he slowly got back to his feet and rubbed his aching back. Once he had arrived at the compound, the Soul Searcher as Pamela called it, gave him instructions on how to activate it. It involved a long and frankly silly incantation that Roy had to work up the nerve to make himself say out loud in public. Once it was finished, however, the red cube glowed before suddenly ballooning to the size of a skyscraper. The force of the growth was enough to slam Roy into a nearby wall.
On his feet again, Roy took in the sight of the giant red barrier. He could still see the small building through a reddish tint and the Soul Searcher was nowhere to be found. "Great, so I made a giant block." He groaned. "Now what?" It was then that Roy heard thunderous footsteps approaching fast. Looking to his left, he saw an entire army of Shinigami rushing toward the barrier. "Shit!" Roy frantically ran for cover, nearly tripping on his robes as he did so.
Not sure of where to go, Roy kept running away until he came across an empty road laying next to a nearby forest. He could still hear the raging Shinigami but the sound was faint and remained that way. As he leaned against a building to catch his breath, Roy found himself staring at the barrier. Every so often, he would see a spark of light or some sort of elemental blast strike the barrier, no doubt the Shinigami trying to destroy it.
"I gotta get out of here," Roy said to himself. "I got to get out of the Seireitei and back home! I gotta-
And then he felt it. A powerful spiritual pressure outmatching even Pamela's. Sweat forming all over his skin, Roy gulped and forced himself to turn around and face what he was certain was a Captain-level Shinigami.
"Hey!" The orange-haired punk dressed in Shinigami robes shouted. "Do you have anything to do with that Kido barrier?"