Central 46 (Zf6hellion)

The Central 46 (中央四十六, Chūō Shijūroku) is an organization that serves as the judiciary authority of the Soul Society. Operating under a mandate from the Soul King, the influence Central 46 goes well beyond the boundaries of a judiciary authority and into those of legislative and operative authorities.

Overview
The Central 46 is comprised of forty wise men, gathered from all over the Soul Society, and six judges appointed from within the and. These men are in charge of trying all crimes regarding those living in Soul Society, be they or, regardless of whether they were committed in Soul Society or the. The Central 46 are also within their jurisdiction to order the use of deadly force by the Gotei 13, the or the. Once a decision has been made, it is rarely overturned. While Soul Society has its own royal family and king, they reside within a distinct dimension outside of Soul Society and their rule is not felt by Soul Society's residents. The Central 46 receive a mandate from the to act in his place and so are considered for all intents and purposes as the royal and the ruling class of Soul Society. However, the Central 46 have no jurisdiction over the or the. In such a case that the members of Central 46 are slain or otherwise rendered incapable of carrying out their duties, the Captain-Commander of the Gotei 13 is given charge over performing their tasks until new members can be found.

In addition to their regular duties regarding the judicial and legislative factors of Soul Society, they are also charged with monitoring persons of interest living within the or Seireitei allowing them to decide whether those same people should be considered a threat or benefit to the balance of the realm. Lastly they are in charge of the eight floors of the Central Underground Prison, they personally appoint the guards that patrol its floors and oversee the integrity of the seals placed upon the cells by the Kidō Corps.

The 46 Names
The names of the members of Central 46 are kept secret, both from the public and each other. Instead, each of them is assigned a number pertaining to their seat in the assembly hall of the. As a matter of convenience and for the sake of identification, all of them are presented with a new name with which to identify themselves by, especially with regards to other members of the 46 chambers. These names often coincide with deific figures created in the mythology of various cultures in the and in some cases been the basis for those myths themselves. The names are typically permanent and can only be changed when a member of Central 46 is replaced, though the choice is left up to the successor. In the cases that they do change, the names are likely to tie in with myths of the era in which that particular member ascended to the position of judge or wiseman.

The Judges

 * Judge 1:
 * Judge 2:
 * Judge 3:
 * Judge 4:
 * Judge 5:
 * Judge 6:

The Wisemen

 * Wise 1:
 * Wise 2:
 * Wise 3:
 * Wise 4:
 * Wise 5:
 * Wise 6:
 * Wise 7:
 * Wise 8:
 * Wise 9:
 * Wise 10:
 * Wise 11:
 * Wise 12:
 * Wise 13:
 * Wise 14:
 * Wise 15:
 * Wise 16:
 * Wise 17:
 * Wise 18:
 * Wise 19:
 * Wise 20:
 * Wise 21:
 * Wise 22:
 * Wise 23:
 * Wise 24:
 * Wise 25:
 * Wise 26:
 * Wise 27:
 * Wise 28:
 * Wise 29:
 * Wise 30:
 * Wise 31:
 * Wise 32:
 * Wise 33:
 * Wise 34:
 * Wise 35:
 * Wise 36:
 * Wise 37:
 * Wise 38:
 * Wise 39:
 * Wise 40:

Proceedings
The proceedings take place in the underground assembly hall within the. Each of the Central 46 has a plaque with a number on it obscuring his face. These plaques are the only means to identify individual members. Investigations will be held by the Onmitsukidō in secret, at the behest of the 46. Defendants will not be told exactly what it is they are accused of until sentencing, nor what the source of the accusation was; they are only allowed to speak when they answer the questions addressed to them and will only rarely, if ever, given a chance to speak for themselves. The evidence is deemed far more important than any testimony. The Central 46 has very little patience to breaches of protocol. Wanton disregard for the proceedings or contempt of the Central 46 will more than likely bring added charges or sentence.

Laws

 * It is against the law for a Shinigami to give their spiritual power to Humans.
 * It is against the law for a Shinigami to use forbidden Kidō.
 * It is against the law for any citizen of Soul Society to create weapons of a dangerous nature not sanctioned by the feudal government. To do so is treason.
 * It is against the law to attack a captain. To do so is treason.
 * It is against the law to commit terrorist action(s) or attempt to overthrow the balance of Soul Society. To do so is treason.
 * It is against the law to commit murder.
 * It is against the law to kill a Human that a Shinigami has not been ordered to kill.
 * It is forbidden for a Shinigami to acquire or attempt to gain Hollow-like powers.
 * It is against the law for the Gotei 13 to meddle in the affairs of the noble families unless the family in question breaks one of the laws of Soul Society beyond a shadow of a doubt.
 * It is a crime for a Shinigami to remain in the Human World longer than a certain time limit. This can be overlooked in cases of war.

Rulings

 * : Detention in the Nest of Maggots is a punishment less known among the citizens of Soul Society and even the ranks of Shinigami. It is commonly reserved for high-level Shinigami who have either broken the law, quit the Gotei 13 or were otherwise deemed dangerous and mentally unstable (as per the government's interpretation). Many officers under Jaromira Dragan were recruited from within the Nest of Maggots. The sentence is carried out by the detention unit of the Onmitsukidō.
 * Spirit-Sealing Pit: The spirit-sealing pit is an ancient form of execution in which Shinigami criminals are thrown into a pit walled with – a type of stone that absorbs spiritual power, preventing those nearby from using their powers. Hollows are then thrown into the pit with the criminals as the means of execution. The practice was considered too barbaric and was discontinued. The pits themselves were converted into garbage dumps. When they were still in use Jojishi Kyōjin and Hachū Bōkunō were both sentenced to be executed here but both managed to escape, prompting the investigation into their use that eventually led to their discontinuation.