Sword of the Soul

Sword of the Soul

Chapter one: Hollow beginnings

Fifteen year old Kurosaki Ichigo lay awake in his bed staring at he ceiling, listening as his father and younger sisters ate dinner in the dinning room. ‘I just don’t get it… Why couldn’t anyone see that monster that attacked this morning? Why couldn’t they but that girl with the sword-?’

Ichigo felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. ‘What is this… this feeling? It feels just like before…’ Ichigo sat up and turned to see the same girl from this morning walk through the wall to stand on his table.

“It’s you! What the hell are you doing here?” The girl ignored him and looked around the room.

“I can sense the hollow nearby…” The girl began pulling out her sword as she observed the room. “Now, where is it?” Ichigo backed up against the wall.

“W-what the hell do you think your doing? Put that thing away already!” The girl ignored him and floated gently to the floor.

“It seems a large amount of spiritual energy is-huh?” Ichigo’s foot connected with her behind sending her across the room.

“What the hell do you think your doing? You know for a burglar you’re a really bad one, for starters you shouldn’t talk to yourself so…” The girl spun around in confusion.

“Wait, you can see me?” Ichigo stopped his rant and looked down his nose at her.

“Considering that was just my foot I planted in your behind answer that question for yourself!” In an instant she got up from the floor and gripped his face turning him at odd angles.

“How strange, ordinary humans cannot see me. You must be defective somehow…” Ichigo felt his blood boil.

“I’ll show you defective you little…” Ichigo lifted his foot and kicked at her angrily; she easily jumped over him and pushed him down to the ground. Ichigo groaned in pain, his face sported a large red mark where his face had met the floor. “God dammit…”

Five minutes later:

Ichigo rubbed his face in a futile attempt to dull the pain, he half heartedly listened to the girl as she explained about soul reapers and hollows. ‘I’m getting really ticked off with that attitude of hers…’

“Alright so let me get this straight, you’re a soul reaper from a place called the soul society and it’s you’re duty to stop monsters like the one this morning that attacked that young girls soul?” The soul reaper girl nodded. “Right, that’s what I thought you said… Sure, I can believe that-JUST LIKE FLYING PIGS AND THE TOOTH FAIRY!” Ichigo threw his table across the room over her head.

The soul reaper got to her feet. “What do you mean you don’t believe me?” Ichigo crossed his arms and closed his eyes. “You have the ability to see spirits you should know I’m telling the truth!”

“No offence but I don’t believe in things I can’t see!” She frowned.

“Well you see me don’t you?” Ichigo shrugged and opened his eyes.

“That’s true and I definitely agree that you’re not human…” Ichigo placed his hand on her forehead and roughly shook her head back and forth. “Why don’t you just go play you little soul reaper game somewhere else? Alright kid?” She grinned wolfishly; she made small movement of her hands and a chant he didn’t understand and suddenly Ichigo felt his arms wrap around behind him and sent him to reunite with the floor. Ichigo struggled to raise his head. She smiled at him.

“That was a kido; it is a high level enchantment only soul reapers like me can perform. Struggle all you like but it won’t do you any good…” Ichigo urged his body to move and felt something keeping his arms locked together.

“Why you little…” The soul reaper once again ignored him and from her robe she pulled out a black marker and drew a moustache on his face. Ichigo screamed at the indignity as she turned to face the window. She played with the marker in question with her right hand.

“Now that I have your attention let’s continue now shall we? I’ll even use small words so you can understand what I’m saying…”

Ichigo glared at the raven haired soul reaper as she continued her long winded explanation. With the marker she had used to graffiti his face she drew many ridiculous drawings to go with it. After what seemed like hours she finally sighed and looked at him expectantly.

“Any questions so far?” Ichigo opened his mouth to make a rude comment but froze. A shrill howl ripped through the air sending shivers down his spine.

“Do you hear that?” She looked at him confused.

“Hear what?” Ichigo’s eyebrow twitched.

“What? Something’s howling outside!” She frowned slightly.

“Howling is it?” Another howl ripped through the air and the soul reaper spun around. “Now I hear it!”

“It’s about bloody time!”

“How did it get so close without me sensing it? Normally I have no trouble tracking down hollows but…” She glanced over at him. “Could it be…?”

Suddenly the house shook and a large crash sounded throughout the house, Ichigo looked over at the door in fear. “That came from the kitchen! My family is in there!” The soul reaper ran and opened the door before coming to a halt. “What the hell is wrong with you women? Unite me already! I have to go see if their alright!”

“I’ve never sensed a hollow with so much power before, how could I have not sensed it sooner?”

Yuzu limped through the hallway to the door; before she tripped and fell to the floor. “Yuzu, are you alright?” His sister looked towards him and reached out.

“Ichigo, you’ve got to help Karin… That thing got her…” Yuzu’s eyes drooped and she passed out. The soul reaper ran straight passed her and down the stairs as she drew her sword. Stubbornly, Ichigo lifted himself off the floor and gingerly stepped past Yuzu. After all that had just happened he didn’t wan to step on her too.

Once he was clear of Yuzu, Ichigo thudded down the stairs. His foot caught on the banister causing him to fall down the rest of the stair case. He rolled on the floor until he hit the wall painfully. The soul reaper turned to glare at him briefly before attacking the hollow with her sword.

“You idiot, what do you think you’re doing?”

Ichigo slowly pulled himself to his feet as he took in his surroundings. Another monster like the one he’d seen this morning gripped Karin’s unconscious body. ‘That bastard…’ Ichigo felt something inside him snap; strangely he didn’t feel enraged but he did feel something bubbling up for under his skin. It was almost a pleasant feeling… but around him he could feel the soul reapers kido binding him, it chafed at his skin irritatingly. Ichigo bit his lip concentrating. ‘Think… there has to be something I can do… Do something…’ Unconsciously something inside him agreed and began to burst from his skin, ripping at the kido.

The soul reaper jumped back from the hollow and glared at him again. “Stop it! No human can break a kido; you’ll damage your soul if you keep trying!” Ichigo bit his lip harder. ‘Break…’ Obediently the power continued to increase. For a moment Ichigo thought he could see words written in light wrapped around him but he didn’t stop. He felt the kido release and his arms fell to his sides in relief.

The soul reaper looked at him as if he had grown another head.

“You… broke the kido…” Ichigo glared at her.

“Well I wouldn’t have had to break it if you had just taken it off in the first place!”

“How annoying you are, it would have been so easy to devour a bound human… At least I know now, you are the delicious soul I’ve been looking for!” Ichigo turned to look back at the hollow in surprise but then it howled again. Ichigo yelled out in pain as the sound ripped through his ears. He placed his hands over his ears in a vain attempt at blocking the noise out.

The hollow charged towards him dropping Karin without another thought. Ichigo closed his eyes and lifted his arms up to cover his face as it ran straight past the soul reaper and knocked her to the ground.

The sound of bone meeting steel rung through the air and Ichigo could feel the hollows foul breath on his face. The smell of blood was almost overwhelming to his senses but mixed within was the smell of something he didn’t recognise. Ichigo timidly opened his eyes to see the hollow ripped in half. Ichigo’s traitorous legs buckled in relief causing him to fall to the floor. The blood soaked his clothes but he didn’t mind, the hollow began to dissolve into light before disappearing entirely.

A warm hand gripped his shoulder tightly, confused Ichigo turned to look at the person behind him.

“Are you alright son?” Ichigo felt his eyes bulged as he looked at his father; he had the same black robe on as the soul reaper except the tattered remnants of a white jacket sat from his shoulder.

“Dad, what’s going on?” Isshin looked at his son impatiently.

“Answer the question Ichigo!” Ichigo nodded dumbly.

“I think so…” Isshin leaned down to whisper in Ichigo’s ear.

“Listen to me Ichigo; take Karin to your mother’s grave…” Ichigo looked at him in surprise.

“But… She and Yuzu are hurt! We need to get a doctor or…” Isshin tightened his grip on his shoulder.

“Ichigo, just go… I’ll bring Yuzu soon, that soul reaper is already gone. She’ll bring more back and they’ll be coming after us now that she’s seen me like this. Soul reapers don’t keep track of where people are buried so they won’t think to look for you there…” He sighed sadly. “Hurry Ichigo…” Isshin let go of Ichigo’s shoulder and ran up the stairs.

Isshin ran up the stairs with his sword still in hand, Ichigo got to his feet and ran over to Karin. He shook her gently.

“Karin wake up…” Karin moaned quietly but didn’t wake up.

“Ichigo get the hell out of here now! They’re already arriving!” Ichigo scooped Karin up in his arms and began running out the hole in wall. Ichigo ran down the road as quickly as he could. Pieces of broken glass bit into his feet painfully through his socks.

Tenth division captain Tōshirō Hitsugaya caught a glimpse of bright orange hair running of in the distance as he immerged from the portal.

“Abarai and Matsumoto come with me! We’ll capture the escaping fugitives, Captain Unohana and Kuchiki will deal with Kurosaki!” Hitsugaya jumped out the window to follow the boy.

Hitsugaya quickly began catching up to the boy in front of him.

“Kurosaki Ichigo stop immediately! You are under arrest by the thirteen protection squads!” Ichigo looked back at him momentarily.

“Yeah right, I’m not going to give into an elementary school midget like you!” Hitsugaya’s eyebrow twitched and the temperature dropped ten degrees.

“I am not a super midget!” Ichigo poked his tongue out at the captain as he continued to run.

“Looks like I hit a nerve, I never went that far shortie!” Hitsugaya disappeared. Ichigo whirled around in surprise seeing his pursuer disappear. “What? Where did he go?”

Hitsugaya reappeared behind Ichigo.

“Behind you… bakudo 61 rikujokoro…” Six bright yellow became imbedded in Ichigo’s midsection. Karin fell out of Ichigo’s bound arms to the ground. Ichigo swung his head around to see Hitsugaya’s bright blue/green eyes glaring up at him. “Lieutenant Abarai remove his soul while he’s bound. I don’t want him escaping from the bakudo like he did Rukia Kuchiki’s.” The red haired man advanced on Ichigo pulling on a glove with a skull symbol on it.

“Relax kid this won’t hurt!” Ichigo squirmed in the binding.

“What the hell are you going to do to me?” The man didn’t reply and his gloved hand descended on Ichigo. As his soul was pushed out of his body Ichigo began to black out, he was barely awake as he fell back into the third soul reaper’s arms. ‘Sorry Karin…’ Ichigo was soon passed out in the female soul reaper’s arms.