Children of Izanami: Inquisition

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The Hunt for Advisors
"Attention, all citizens of Yūrei!!!"

From a megaphone, Kenta was broadcasting a message within the center of town. Behind him and flanking him were police on horseback, wielding rifles in one hand while keeping a grip on their respective horse's neck with the other. Kenta himself was on foot, with only the megaphone in hand as his only instrument. His dual pistols were holstered on his waist, though it didn't look like he was going to pull them out any time soon. This parade was attracting a massive civilian crowd, who could only look on and murmur with surprise and apprehension.

"Be advised that in an estimate of two days, this entire region will be under attack and under siege!!" Kenta continued to call out, ignoring the reactions of shock and fear, as well as recognition and remembrance of the last encounter with invaders of the city. "Please report to 417 McGregor Avenue in order to accommodate yourself with our underground shelters. If you have any belongings, go back home and take anything you can with you before coming. Not to worry, there will be plenty of food and drink serving during your stay, and we have set up appropriate lodgings for everyone--"

This was not only for that particular block.

Throughout Yūrei and beyond the capital city, there were several rallying police units that were moving to gather civilians and herd them to the underground base that once served as a haven for supporters and participants of the Yūrei Resistance. Within the internet, and mainly on the TV, the announcements were spreading like wildfire. Reporters, although instructed the same as the civilians, were still informing the public as to what was going on as they too were guided to the underground network. No one was spared from the concern, and only those who were able and willing to fight the predicted onslaught stayed on the surface.

"Dammit..." Miharu was getting wind of all this from the news station in the living room, Megami and Daiyaku with them. She was muttering to Daiyaku under her breath so her mother wouldn't hear. "Something big is happening, and we can't do anything at all! I hate this!"

Daiyaku frowned. He could feel her irritation, but there really was nothing they could do. Besides, it was Miharu's fault they were now wearing energy repressing collars.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!

Megami's attention from the monitor was diverted by a loud knocking at the door. Curious, she pushed herself up from her sitting position and walked over towards it. Once she reached it, she opened it, her eyes widening in slight surprise at what she saw. It was the red-haired figure of Ezra, his hands within the pockets of his hakama. "Ah! Ezra, what a surprise to see you here!" She commented, immediately stepping aside for him to enter.

Ezra bowed respectfully before stepping in with a cool, calm, and polite, "Thank you, Mrs. Kurosaki."

Miharu heard the voice of her friend and walked over to the front door. "Ezra." Her voice was surprised. "What brings you around here?" She was pretty sure it was the announcement Kenta was making.

"I just stopped by in order to see how all of you were doing, considering the evacuation...." Ezra stated, shutting the door behind him. "In at least half an hour, police will be here to round up this particular block." He shifted his eyes towards Miharu, tilting his head to the side slightly. "Besides that, I also had to make sure that you weren't living up to your negative reputation."

Miharu's eyes narrowed, her eyes twitching. "Excuse me for a minute." She said to Megami, taking Ezra by the arm and dragging him outside. Her voice was slightly hushed as she spoke to him. "Negative reputation? What do you know?"

"I could tell by the way your energy is flowing within you.... too restrictive for the likes of you....." Ezra simply closed his eyes, breathing in deeply before leaning towards Miharu a little in order to keep their conversation low. "Your family would obviously disapprove of such, so I have to assume that you had gotten into trouble with law enforcement, as well as your dear friend." His next sentence held a slightly smug attitude, though it was honestly difficult to tell. "Besides.... it's not strange for someone to know about what someone else has been doing when they know each other very well, is it?"

"Damn you're smart..." She muttered, sounding pleased and annoyed all at once. "No, it's not strange, but I do wish you wouldn't walk over and say things that could get me in trouble with my mother. The whole reason my energy is restricted is so she doesn't find out about what happened." Miharu launched into an explanation on her attempted invasion of Police Headquarters, how she and Daiyaku had gotten caught and what was restricting her energy since Ezra couldn't see the collar.

Throughout this explanation, Ezra simply remained silent with his arms folded across his chest until she had explained right down to the very last period. When she was done, he spoke again. "I'm aware you don't know the meaning of the word "restraint"...." He began, his tone chiding. "But to lie to your own mother?"

"Is nothing new at all." Miharu said, her tone sharp. "If she gets suspicious about my inability to use spirit energy, I'll just say I have some ridiculous disease. It's not like she'll be able to prove me wrong."

"You're only digging your own grave, matter of speaking." Ezra said flatly. "If what you say is true, then you've been making these lies into a habit. If you really care about your mother, then stop being a coward and tell her the truth. What do you have to lose by doing that?"

Miharu frowned. "The last time she and I got into a disagreement, it wasn't exactly pretty. All I'm doing is saving her a bit of stress by not letting her in on this. After these collars go away, and she never finds out, who was really hurt?"

Her words were making it all too clear that she had lost respect for her mother.

The thought disheartened Ezra a little. What happened to the girl that he had grew to be such close friends with? Back then, she would've had a lot more consideration for her family. But as of now, it seemed as if her more delinquent side was controlling her. He closed his eyes and shook his head, leaning over and folding his arms across his chest. "What makes you think they're going to go away, or that she'll never find out?" He continued to pressure her. "She's your mother, and she can read you like an open book. She can tell whether you're hiding something. Then, what will have caused more stress for her; the fact that her daughter told her something she disapproves of, or the fact that she knows you're hiding something and refusing to talk?"

"So what do you want me to do, casually tell her I attempted to raid the police HQ after she told us to stop investigating?" Miharu eyes, annoyed slightly. Not telling Megami made sense to her. Why couldn't it make sense to him? "Even if I was trying to find out why they incarcerated her librarian friend, I doubt she'd be too thrilled."

"That's the price you have to be willing to pay if you want to keep your mother's trust. Otherwise, what do you think she'll think of you?"

"If she never finds out, she'll think what she's thinking now." Miharu replied. "Why do you think she'll figure it out? It's been at least a week now, and she's not onto me yet!" She struggled to keep her voice from rising out of irritation.

This caused Ezra to fall into a stony silence. Though his expression was serene, it was as if his gaze was piercing high-caliber sniper rounds sending themselves repeatedly into Miharu's head. He put his hands back within his hakama, maintaining the solemn stare for a moment long enough to be deemed uncomfortable for the girl. Then, he simply walked past her without saying a word. "Miharu....you really have changed for the worst...." He thought to himself in disappointment. He did not bring himself to continue speaking to her. If she wanted to keep pushing the lie, he'd let her. In the end, the results would be clear to her.

"Pathetic...."

The look on his face was one of pure disappointment. But his eyes spoke more. Miharu frowned. Why is it that telling a lie is so easy, while telling the truth may have been trying to life of a pile of 1ton weights? Thinking it over, telling the truth did have more benefits than keeping up the lie. If she held silent, and her mother found out, she'd lose Ezra as a friend, and her mother wouldn't be able to trust her at all. If she told her mother now, she'd get over it eventually, and perhaps Ezra would be less disappointed. She walked back into the house, bracing herself.

"Mom...I have something to tell you." She said as she walked back into the family room where Megami and Daiyaku were watching the TV again.

"Hm?"

This caused Megami to turn her gaze towards her daughter in a curious manner, her body turning so that she could put both of her arms on the couch without having to turn her complete body. "Hm?" She questioned her, cocking a slight eyebrow.

"Um..." She looked at Daiyaku, as if asking for his help, but he was glaring intently at the screen. Miharu gulped. "Um...about a week ago, Daiyaku and I got the idea to raid the police station." Daiyaku shot her a look. "Ok, I got the idea to raid the police station. I had thought that I could find something to incriminate them, since I'm sure your librarian friend was framed. I know you said stay out of it, but I wanted to help, and Daiyaku went with me. But, we got caught and we're under some form of house arrest." She gestured to her neck. "With these wierd collars that you can't see, but they suppress our energy and if we use any, we get shocked."

From the start of the speech, apprehension was struck within Megami's heart.

The first sentence caught her by surprise for a brief second before it converted into stern disappointment, and she was about to open her mouth to comment on it. However, upon the third sentence, she once again converted to one of surprise. Miharu had truly believed Aoi had been framed, assured that such a nice soul would have never done such a thing. The rest of the words were almost blotted out, as Megami's mind was stuck on that one statement. Her face contorted to one of slight sadness and sympathy for Miharu's condition as a result of her efforts. She closed her eyes and sighed heavily.

"Miharu...." She began, allowing herself to stand up.

Miharu looked worried for a second, her eyes looking to Daiyaku to avoid looking at her mother. "How much trouble am I in?" She asked, sounding like alot like a little child.

When she finally stopped, Megami was standing in front of Miharu. She raised a hand to shift her daughter's face so that she could look her in the eye. "Listen to me...." She said softly, carrying her motherly tone. "Normally, I would've been upset that you chose to lie to me again.... at least, more than I am.... but I'm really glad to hear that this time, you wanted to do something for me. Next time...." She put on a weak smile. "Just leave things to me, all right?"

Miharu smiled, a feeling of relief washing over her. She nodded.

"So what now?" Daiyaku asked, his eyes pulling away from the television set. "We still have this evacuation going."

This caused Megami to stand back up, her head turning itself so that she could look over his shoulder at him. But before she could answer--

'KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!'

"Attention! This is the police!" A female voice barked out, not being that of Avaron's. "We've come to escort you to your respective shelter." That caused Megami to gasp in a somewhat disheartened manner, her gaze switching towards the door. In mind, she had come to think about the Kurosaki family as a whole. They were never ones to hide in the midst of a battle, of course! They had a strong devotion to it, something that would prove a good asset to the government's cause when it came down to situations like this. She needed to find a way to convince them to stay on the surface.

But how?

She walked over to the door and opened it, seeing a uniformed and female police officer standing with her rifle holstered.

Miharu followed, Daiyaku close behind. So it was time to go. She didn't want that. She wanted to be right in the middle of all of this.

They both would get a surprise.

One of the officers that accompanied the female police officer moved in towards them with a key in hand. Promptly, and before either of them could react, stuck it in the holes of where their collars would've been. In reaction, the collars glowed brightly before disappearing, removing the restriction. As the officer backed away, the female lead officer gave a nod of acknowledgement towards the group, even a silent Ezra who had brought himself to stand behind the crowd.

"Kurosaki, right? You all are with me." She moved aside along with the rest of them, revealing a car-like carriage the size of a mini-van. Each of the other officers got on their solo horses, continuing to move down the block in order to evacuate more citizens. The lead officer opened the door to the entrance for them to enter. "Hop in and I'll take you to HQ."

Not having the time to enjoy their newfound freedom from the collar, Miharu couldn't help but speak. "What if we don't wan-" Daiyaku put his hand over her mouth. He spoke calmly and smoothly, making sure to choose his words carefully so as best to avoid a new collar. "The evacuation is mandatory even for those who can fend for themselves?"

"Nope." The female officer said, with a casual yet firm tone. "That's why I'm taking you to HQ instead of the underground shelters where the rest are going. The Kurosaki family has been noted in the record books as notable heroes of this city, and considering what we've heard about you, your abilities were deemed a necessity in Commander Setsuko's book." She herself moved to hop on the driver of the car, waiting for them to enter.

The revelation immediately caused Megami to sigh in relief. "Ah! Thank you very much." She spoke, grateful that they wouldn't have to spend the war time away from the fight (something which her family wouldn't have wanted). She was first to climb into the seat, scooting all the way to the window in order for the rest of them to enter. Ezra, observing everything, simply climbed in after her.

Daiyaku took Miharu by the hand and led her with him. "From now on, don't speak unless you've thought out what you're going to say. You'll get us imprisoned otherwise." Miharu's cheeks puffed out, annoyed by this, but she agreed as they stepped into the carriage.

"HIYAH!!!"

With a yell and a whip of the reins, the horses let out a loud neigh before pushing themselves forward at a racing speed. Megami was inwardly thankful that the ride wasn't bumpy despite the speed they were going at, as well as amazed that animals could go at such a speed. She allowed herself to rest back against the seat, arms folded across her chest, and eyes diverted to the window.

Ezra had taken to looking over at Miharu, raising both of his eyebrows. "I suppose power does corrupt. Fortunately or unfortunately, that has only seemed to affect your brain."

"What brain?" Daiyaku murmured, causing Miharu to shoot them both disdainful glares. "I'm not talking to you two for the entire trip."

"Very well...." That being said, Ezra turned his attention to Daiyaku. "Since Miharu has decided to remain silent, Daiyaku, how has she been faring other than this incident?"

"Miharu? Oh, she's been doing fine. Something is up with her attitude that I don't quite get yet, but I have about 2,000 years, give or take, to figure her out." He chuckled for a moment. "I wish she'd inherited Megami's brains and attitude though. She seems to be taking after Ahatake more every day..."

"Do you know where he would be?"

"He he was going into training." Daiyaku replied, frowning. "It's been a little over a week since he left."

As they were speaking, Megami had directed her gaze towards the sky, peering at it. She was wondering why it had seemed to turn red all of a sudden, and the clouds seemed to go by faster than before. Curious, she started to turn to the driver of the cart and voice her question when a booming sound caused her to direct her gaze back towards the sky. She peered....

....and her eyes and mouth widened in shock.

BOOM!

A concussive beam of what appeared to be light struck the block next to them with immense power and force, causing the very earth to shake. The carridge's occupants shook violently under, and Megami nearly fell out of her seat. "Oh no....." She muttered, her heart racing violently within her chest.

"What the hell is going on?" Miharu asked, eyes scanning the outside.

"It would appear the city is under attack." Daiyaku replied, alert now. "Ideas, anyone?"

His answer?

More concussive blasts.

'''BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!'''

The energized artillery was rocking the area from the sky, a massive rain down upon the entire region. It was enough to destroy and disintegrate buildings with a single hit. The collateral damage was causing other buildings to fall over like dominoes, shaking the ground even moreso. The female officer's eyes were directed towards the sky, and she swore underneath her breath as she flinched at the ones that were near her position. "Shit!" She swore, flicking a hand up to her earpiece and speaking into it.

What she got was the sharp and almost frantic voice of Avaron, whos voice could be also heard within the carridge. "Attention, all units! Portals are opening within the sky for just enough time to release a burst of some sort of concentrated energy to ground level. I do not see any troops being released from these portals. Any remaining civilians MUST be evacuated as quickly as possible!!!"

Miharu jumped out of the carriage, drawing her sword. "Improvise, Kyuumu!" She swung her sword, sending a large ball of energy into the air, directly above the city, where it exploded, forming a thin barrier that spread out over the region. She looked into the carriage. "It's weak, but it should last for a bit. Enough time for a plan, I hope."

Weak was right.

The consistency of the blasts tore the barrier apart before it could form completely, continuing to wreak havoc on the buildings below. Upon seeing her daughter abruptly exit, Megami instinctively turned her head to look out the window, and Ezra reached over to shut the carridge door. As the carridge fled without her, it turned a sharp corner just as a beam smashed a building in front of them. Its remnants were toppling.... straight onto the road they were coming on.

WHAM!!!

They barely made it through the building, sweeping through just before the structure could crush their ride.

And so Miharu was by herself, as the blasts of energy tore down onto the city. She made a leap, following the carriage. "Try this!" She swung her blade, releasing several blasts of energy to stave off the blasts raining down, running all the while.

It wasn't working.

Whatever Miharu attempted to unleash, it was simply no match for the artillery that was bombing the city.

At the same time, it seemed like kharma did not like her attempts to defend the city.

BOOM!

A concussive burst smashed a building right next to her, the shockwave hitting her full-force and knocking her off of her feet. The building itself had disintegrated, bits and chunks of the building flew in all directions. She was lucky enough not to get hit by the hazardous debris falling all around her.

She crashed through several buildings before before stopped by what felt like 10 layers of concrete. Upon impact, she could feel herself fading from consciousness, flickering in and out.

"D-dammit..."

In her state of her mind slipping away, her hazy vision was greeted by the form of a young boy walking over to her, a flute in his hands. He crouched over her, and she could see his features quite clearly. His skin was a pale ghostly white, his hair was long and black, and his yellow eyes were akin to that of a snake's. He looked her over for a few moments before sheathing his flute within his pants pocket, reaching up to hoist her over his shoulder with an effortless flair. She would sense a great power coming from him, one that filled the hostile environment with a gentle, amiable, and positive aura.

This would be the last thing she would see.

By the time this was happening, the carridge stopped. Megami immediately pushed open the doors to her side and stepped outside, naturally looking back. She let out a heavy, nervous breath, observing the aerial bombardment as it continued to pound at the city. "I really hope that she's OK...." She muttered to herself.

Daiyaku was visibly bothered, letting himself out of the carriage he looked backed the way they had come. "I'm getting a bad feeling..." He murmured. He wanted to go back, to help her. She was reckless and would probably do something to get herself in trouble. He wanted to go back, but didn't know how much help he could be. Of course, he didn't know how much help he could be here. He felt conflicted.

"Miharu can take care of herself, regardless of how blind her actions are."

Ezra allowed himself to step out of the car, his hands within his pockets as he focused his attention on the building in front of him. However, he kept his tone focused on both Megami and Daiyaku. "As of this moment, we need to focus on what we're doing here."

"Which would be?" Daiyaku had no idea why there were here, except that they were some of the few residents who could fight. His understanding of their situation was limited to that.

Instead of answering this time, Ezra went up to the driver of the car who was lowering herself down to the ground. "Ma'am." He said politely, causing her to turn her attention towards him. "What exactly have we been taken here for?"

"I haven't been told that...." She answered him, keeping an honest tone about her. "I was just told to fetch what I could of your family and bring you here. Speaking of which...." She looked over towards both the woman and the boy. "Do you know of anyone else that might happen to be away?"

"Her husband is currently out of the region, training." Daiyaku pointed at Megami as he said this. "Also, the girl that was with us, I'm sure you know, got out way behind us." "And, you should go and pick up the Injiki family." He added as an afterthought.

"Way to state the obvious, Itonami...."

While Ezra was quick to mentally criticize Daiyaku for the last two statements, the female officer didn't show any response of picking up on them. "All except their offspring have been located and accounted for." She informed them. "One named Kibou Injiki."

Daiyaku frowned. So Kibou wasn't anywhere? That meant they hadn't got Midoriko either. Wherever the boy went, she was sure to follow.

"Please follow me...."

That being said, the female officer led them into the building, where the Injikis were presumably in.

A Mutual Alliance
"Sir, we've brought the Kurosaki family... or at least, what we could recover from their numbers."

Within his own private office (whereas he broke off from the evacuation patrol a while back), Kenta was greeted with an officer's voice as its source stood at the doorway briefly before vanishing. He let out a heavy sigh, shutting his eyes tightly in frustration. He took in a deep breath and exhaled, mentally preparing himself for when they came through his door. He had meant it to be only his opinion, but once again, at least one of them had seemed to take it personally. So he was going to have to deal with the consequences.

Patiently, he waited. It didn't take long before the family members who were on hand to enter the door, Daiyaku entering first, his eyes flickering to Kenta for a brief moment before scanning the office instead, followed by Megami and Ezra. The female officer who had escorted them was the first to step in front of his desk.

"Sir, their daughter exited the escort carridge while it was en route to here in an attempt to defend the city from the aerial bombardment outside. I'm not sure of her status."

"....I'm not even going to ask." Kenta mentally rolled his eyes, but kept his physical ones straight and forward. He gave a nod. "That will be all, then. You're dismissed." With that, the officer gave a respectful bow to him before swiftly exiting and shutting the door behind her, leaving the three in the room. With her gone, he focused his attention onto the two. "I don't suppose if any of you two know if Kurosaki Miharu's current condition, do you?"

At least he didn't let his personal opinion get in the way of business....yet. That brought Megami to breathe a mental sigh of relief, and she answered honestly. "I'm afraid not..." She gave a weak smile. "But, if anything else, she's probably on her way right now. She's quite the stubborn child when it comes to situations like this...."

"That's putting it lightly." Daiyaku chimed in, looking over as a plaque in the office. He was tempted to crack it, but thought better of it. The discussion didn't get any farther before Miharu herself entered the door, looking slightly worse for wear but nonetheless in one piece.

"I miss anything?"

"Phew.... she's okay...."

Megami shook her head, her weak smile growing into a more genuine one as she turned her head towards her daughter. "No, the discussion's just getting started...." She said, folding her hands behind her before she turned towards Kenta.

The officer managed to catch the slight change of expression Daiyaku had, narrowing his eyes briefly for a moment before turning his attention towards the group in total. His elbows were rested on the table, fingers folded at an even level with his face. "Glad you could make it." He began, ignoring the pounding of artillery in the distance. "I want to begin with the...incident... that happened concerning you three...."

Daiyaku propped himself up against a wall, listening intently. Miharu was looking around absentmindedly, and it almost seemed like she was mouthing the words "Cool place you got here.", but she seemed to be listening.

"I take it that during the Takahashi incident, Ahatake Kurosaki as well as your daughter Miharu had seperated from the conflict in Soul Society in order to "get in some extra training", correct?"

This question caught Megami off-guard a little, a bit of surprise showing on her face. But she readily nodded. "Well.... yes."

"And where is your husband now?"

"He said he was going to one Seireitou Kawahiru in order to complete his training of his Shinigami powers, by what he told me." Nothing but the honest truth was coming from Megami's mouth, and Kenta was glad for it as well as the fact that she seemed to be one of the few Kurosaki who were sensible in such situations. He leaned forward slightly, peering into Megami's eyes.

"And I was also told by some that Miharu was also the one to have defeated Takahashi by herself?"

"Yes, that's correct...."

"Why are you talking about me like I'm some pet that doesn't know what you're saying?" Miharu snapped, looking out of her wandering daze for a minute. "If you have questions concerning me, just ask me."

Daiyaku sighed. "There has to be some pill for her..."

"....that's something that I was about to do...." Kenta's eyes narrowed slightly as he switched his gaze to Miharu, slightly irked by the tone that she had taken with him. "But to be honest with you, it's not a question. I told your mother what I did because the Kurosaki family, while being an asset to the city thus far, have also displayed emotional instability that's directed against the government. You didn't disappoint.... your father openly threatened a high-class official of the military prior to barging in a closed doors meeting. Then, you go and attempt a little search and destroy mission on our HQ with the purpose of "incriminating" us. Had it not been for negotiation, you would've torn the entire building down where it stood."

"Shove it Kenta." Miharu retored. "My "search and destroy" mission was your fault in the first place, if you hadn't arrested..." Before she continued, she collapsed to the ground in a dead faint. Daiyaku as standing next to her, sighing. "We don't have tranquilizer, so I suppose hitting that pressure point is the next best thing..." He turned to Kenta. "Sorry about that, but I figured if I let her keep talking, she'll just get herself into more trouble. Megami-sana and I know her well enough to answer any questions anyway." He placed Miharu onto a chair, propping her up so it seemed as if she'd simply fallen asleep there.

Kenta closed his eyes and scowled, resisting the urge to slap a palm to his face. "Yes....thank you for your concern, Itonami..." He muttered, opening his eyes once again and focusing them on Megami (who had passed a slightly disapproving look to her unconscious daughter). "Now this brings me to my next point. Your husband seems to be a lesser case, but both of them have acted reckless and rebellious when it comes to matters like this. The fact that both of them have recieved an extensive level of training as well as an enhancement of their physical and spiritual abilities to a sky-high level doesn't help. It's only a matter of time before His Majesty decides to look at this as a potential threat to the city."

A rather solemn look crossed Megami's face, and her eyes looked away for a moment more. She understood the gravity of such a situation, so Kenta allowed himself to continue. "So I'm counting on the likes of you, Kurosaki...." He shifted a glance towards Daiyaku. "....as well as you, Daiyaku, to put these wildfires to rest for all of our sakes. It would be unfortunate if this city would be destroyed due to a trivial reason, wouldn't you agree?"

"....yes...." Megami sighed, meeting Kenta's gaze again. "Of course, I understand...."

"Define "to rest" please." Daiyaku said, his eyes narrowed. His tone was polite, but he was wary.

".....what do you think I mean, Daiyaku?" Kenta's frown was somewhat skeptical, his eyebrow cocked in slight confusion.

"Well, simple control like what I just did would be difficult and taxing to try every time either of them act out." He looked thoughtful for a moment. {C But when I think on it, convincing them to act otherwise shouldn't be too difficult. They have to be reasonable to an extent, and Ahatake would do anything for Megami if she pressed the matter enough I'm sure."

"I'll take you for your word at that...." Kenta's words spoke his hesitation at leaving the situation within their hands, but did not allow for any resistance. "Now, for the reason that I've called you here...." He cleared his throat. "Because of your record as well as your heroic deeds you've done in the past, I'm willing to give you a proposal." He stopped for a second, looking to the corners of the room at the cameras as if checking for something. Then, he spun his gaze back to the two. "I'm not supposed to tell you this bit of information or let you do this...."

At this, Ezra, who had been silent as a ghost and leaning against the wall, looked up at the three and perked his ears up.

"....but it's come to be believed that the upcoming invasion as well as the initial one isn't just an attempt to destroy the civilization. But rather, it's a part of the forced summoning of the children of Izanami, the deities of the Red Sun. What the Ahijados are attempting to do is inflict as much casualties as possible on both sides. When a considerable amount of people are dead, that's when it begins to start. Crosses at each corner of the entire landscape that makes up Yurei will rise up from the ground and stretch to the sky. Four of the Children will take up a position on top of these crosses, channeling their own energy through them. That energy will convert and expand itself, wiping existence right off of the map. Living beings, spiritual entities.... long story short, we all will die once that happens."

"Tch..." Daiyaku frowned. Danger really did seem to follow the family.

Megami was silent, taking all of it in with an apprehensive look on her face. Her heart was racing slightly at the news, and she looked down as she subconsciously placed a hand to her heart.

"Because of your tenacity and abilities....." Kenta continued to speak. "You're really the only ones I can count on at this point in time. At this moment, some of that recklessness can hopefully be put to great use against the likes of these "children". I want you to make your way to each corners of Yuurei, confront these things.... and kill them before this so-called Plinian Movement can be engaged." That earned a reaction from Megami, her expression and tone that of shock.

"Y...you can't be serious!!" She protested.

"I wish I wasn't...."

Daiyaku's spiritual pressure began to rise, as if in anticipation. "This is good." He said, his hair shining for a moment. He was ready to get started, Ōnaminagre, his standard power-up, was almost about to be unleashed in his readiness. "Fighting is a good way to calm Miharu down, and to be honest, I'm itching for a chance to do something."

For a moment, Megami could've sworn that there was a hint of something more than satisfaction in Kenta's smile at that point.

"Good....that's what I wanted to hear." He said, lowering his arms back onto the desk. "Mrs. Kurosaki, do you have any objections?"

"....no." Megami really had no choice but to say it. After all, her family, despite this being an obviously next-to-impossible situation, wouldn't hesitate to say yes. She didn't want to be the lone objector, the coward who would've held everyone down. So she would have to roll with it and endure for now. Her family needed her, anyway....

"Then you can go back to your homes if you wish." Kenta's ears perked up for a moment, his sentence pausing as he seemed to listen out for something. "...or, you could visit the Injiki family who's at their own homes, possibly to prepare. I told them the same thing, and they were quick to accept as well."

"Unless Megami has objections, I'd much prefer to meet up with Injiki." Daiyaku said, though is voice was tentative. Megami was the matriarch here, he didn't want to be making all the decisions when he wasn't even a full family member yet. "We can wake Miharu there, and discuss the situation."

"But of course...."

"I don't see anything wrong with that...." Megami said calmly, allowing herself to stand back up.

Daiyaku picked Miharu up gently, she was still out. She looked peaceful, as if she was simply sleeping. She moved for a moment, her hand resting against Daiyaku's chest. "Kenta, thanks for the task. This truly will be a good way to wind Miharu down."

This caused Kenta to breathe heavily, placing a hand on his forehead. "Hopefully...." He said as an addition to that sentence, his voice slightly exasperated.

"So..." Daiyaku said as they got to the outside. His eyes scanned the area. There was so much destruction it was shocking. Buildings were destroyed, the streets had smoking holes. He tried to block it out. "Megami, you aren't too keen on entering battle are you?"

If Megami was attempting to block anything out, she wasn't doing a very good job of it. Her hair overshadowed her eyes as she walked, a slight frown on her face. At first, she remained silent, seemingly not acknowledging Daiyaku's or Ezra's (near-invisible) presence. But it only lasted for a few tense seconds before she allowed herself to speak again. "Why would I be?" She asked solemnly.

"I get a thrill out of fighting, the rest of the family also seems to." Daiyaku thought about it. "I guess you're the only sane one among us, though I could say, without danger of sounding conceited I hope, that I am somewhat more sane than he others."

"Fighting nearly got my husband killed once before, and it only took the intervention of the Monitor to prevent that." The bitter yet sad tone could be heard. "He does his best to assure me that he's not going to die, but I just never can shake off the feeling that one day, he might slip up again. It might happen to him... it might happen to me.... it might happen to any one of us. What good is a fight when all it causes is death in the end?"

"Living is the reward from a well fought battle I suppose." Daiyaku said, chewing over his words again. "Besides, Megami, fighting with this family is inevitable. I've only been a member for a short time, but I've noticed, you all are rather peaceful. You don't go looking for trouble. It finds you."

"Doesn't really make this whole thing any better...." Megami said lowly.

"I know, but it gives some justification for the fighting I'd suppose." Daiyaku was doing a better job at blocking out the sights around him, keeping his thoughts focused firmly on the conversation. "It keeps Ahatake sharp and ready for the next battle ahead. All of his past trials have been beneficial in this way I suppose. But, this isn't something you should spend too much time worry about Megami. You'll give yourself high blood pressure."

To that, Megami responded with another bit of tense silence for another moment. Daiyaku's last line sounded, at least to her, a morbid joke. It even insulted her a little, almost as if Daiyaku was calling her an old hag! She allowed the silence to linger for a moment before looking over her shoulder slightly. "Don't talk like that..." She scolded lightly. "I'm not an old woman in a hospital bed yet, and I won't be for a long time."

Daiyaku backtracked for a moment, the screeching sound almost audible. His response sounded apologetic and pleading. "Megami, I-I didn't mean it like that. I just don't want you to worry so much, it's not good for anyone."

"I have my own issues with this...." Megami said, her voice retaining its calm tone. "But don't worry for me. I can put them out of the way for now. If it means protecting by place of birth as well as its residents.... if it means my daughter can live to grow up and live a peaceful life.... then I don't mind unsheathing my sword, if only for a brief moment."

"That's what makes you sane Megami. You fight for reasons other than the thrill." Their conversation was about to be cut short, as they were now reaching the Injiki's old house. Hands full, Daiyaku rapped on the door with the tip of his foot.

"I think it's stupid. The Red Sun's nothing but a myth. Why the hell would the police attempt to send us to kill gods that obviously don't exist?"

That was Ryūka's statement as he sat on the couch with his arms folded across his chest and his eyes closed. In a chair opposite of him sat Kyashi, her look solemnly thoughtful as she tried to come up with an answer to what Ryūka had asked.

"I'm not sure that the police are going to believe something to the point of actually sending people out to investigate if they think it's just some legend...." Kyashi said, tilting her head back for a moment.

"I'm incline to agree with Kyashi." Not a big surprise coming from Midoriko, the eldest Kurosaki daughter. She was standing with her back against a wall, arms crossed. She looked very irritated, possibly due to the absence of Kibō. "Besides, Injiki, you haven't fought anything decent in, what, a decade or so, should you be excited about an opportunity like this?"

"Firstly, I'd get excited fighting something that's real." Ryūka said, not even bothering to ignore her for her use of the shared last name. "Secondly...." He snorted, rolling his eyes. "What's there to expect? I've been in the 11th Division, and their function is basically battle. Gets exciting the first few times, but after that it's gotten real dull."

"At least Tō-san knows how to get properly excited at the idea of a decent fight." Midoriko replied. "I doubt the police would recruit people just for some elaborate practical joke. If these guys aren't real, I'll eat your left arm." "No point in risking mine." She added, muttering.

"You wouldn't." Ryuka said bluntly, shifting his position on his back.

"I hear our flesh tastes like pork, I'm sure eating yours wouldn't be-" She was cut short by a rapping sound at the door. "Oh, someone's here."

"....well, don't get up at once!"

Kyashi, clearly annoyed by the lack of reaction by the other two occupants in the room, allowed herself to stand up and walk over to the door. She grabbed the door handle and pulled it open, eyes widened in surprise as she saw the kind-hearted face of Megami. "Ah, Megami-san!" She commented, peeking over the redhead's shoulder to see three others behind her. "I guess they told you the same story, right?"

Megami nodded respectfully. Kyashi allowed herself to step aside for the four to enter, with Megami stepping in first. Ezra followed shortly after.

Midoriko looked at the guests who were entering. "Oh, Mother. How are you?" She had opted to just refer to Megami as her mother instead of stepmother. She found the latter to be more of a mouthful, and besides, the woman was her mother for all intents and purposes. She saw Miharu unconscious in Daiyaku's arms. "What happened to her?" She asked, surprised.

"She had difficulty controlling her own tongue when in the face of authority, so Daiyaku had to silence her." Ezra said bluntly, choosing a wall to lean his back against. He folded his arms across his chest, keeping his look locked on Midoriko as he spoke. "She's the only one who doesn't know."

"Assuming that what they're worrying about is nothing more than a big joke...." Ryūka remarked with dry sarcasm.

"Injiki, take your denial of all this and shove it up your ass already." Midoriko said waspishly, earning a roll of the eyes from the male Injiki.

"Nice to see you two are getting along as well as ever." Daiyaku remarked, his hand glowing. He placed it over Midoriko's face. Her eyes snapped open.

"...Aoi in the first place, we could have easily avoided all of this!" Were the words that spewed from her mouth, carrying on from the talking to she had been giving Kenta shortly before being knocked out. She looked around. "Wait...where am I?"

"....the hell?"

While Ryūka mentally expressed this thought while staring at the young Kurosaki with a slightly cocked eyebrow and a frown, Kyashi was physically expressing it with furrowed eyebrows and her own frown that clearly said "woah, kid....", Ezra just sighed and shook his head before allowing himself to speak. "We're in the Injiki's home. Sorry to say, but it was thanks to Daiyaku that you only finished that sentence here."

"What?" Miharu was still clearly lost.

Daiyaku launched into an explanation, one of how he knocked her out to prevent her from mouthing off to law enforcement, and two, about the task Kenta had assigned to them. Miharu's eyes lit up.

"Finally!" She breathed. "Something to actually do! I can't wait to finally have something to vent my frustration on!"

"Once again, if this isn't just some stupid joke courtesy of our precious law enforcement." Ryūka said bluntly.

His cynical attitude towards the situation wasn't improving Kyashi's mood, either. She scowled, her arms folded across her chest and her eyes directing themselves to him. "What's made you so sure all of a sudden that this is some sort of twisted and sick practical joke?" She questioned him.

He shrugged, resting one of his arms on the armrest of the couch and another arm to emphasize his words. "Because Red Sun is nothing more than a religion. Everyone may believe it, everyone may not believe it, but that doesn't make anything from it more truth than myth. I mean.... if there's going to be any sort of paradise initiated, the Soul Society would have done so instead of these other so-called deities. We are death gods, after all, and there's no one that can go over us except our own kind. Need I say more?"

"You seriously cannot be saying that all of the police--" Megami started, but Ryūka abruptly cut her off.

"We also have a tendency to act human in the most stupid of cases, sadly enough...."

Midoriko sighed. With her Zanpakutō, she could easily make Ryūka excited. But, it would affect everyone in the room, and Miharu honestly had enough energy.

"So when do we get to fight?" Miharu asked excitedly, ignoring Ryūka's remarks completely.

"....Megami." Ryūka had a deadpan look of annoyance on his face as he spoke the next words, causing a quiet Megami to look up from her own spot. "Have you ever considered testing your kid for ADHD?"

This promptly caused Kyashi to slap a palm to her face and Megami to bristle slightly at his blunt words. It was exactly the kind of words Kibō would have said at that particular moment. Both he and his father had a habit for being brutally honest and a knack for speaking their mind. Just like the battle-crazed desire the Kurosaki seemed to have between them, it seemed like the character flaw that would get them killed unnecessarily.

...that could be an exaggeration, in the case of the Injikis though.

"Injiki, yer an ass." Midoriko said, glaring.

"I don't mind it." Miharu didn't seem at all. "I heard Injiki damaged the part of his brain that monitors what he says, he can't help it."

Daiyaku had to repress a chuckle. "That sounds more like you."

"Maybe we could share an asylum cell, then...." Ryūka said jokingly, smirking as he pushed himself up to a sitting position. "Out of curiosity.... where would these so-called gods be at? Surely, they somehow managed to pin them to a specific location..."

"He mentioned something about "crosses at each corner of the city"." Daiyaku said, remembering the talk. "Four Children, so four corners. Sounds like North, East, South, and West, though I'm merely pulling that out of the air."

"Actually...." Megami chose this time to interrupt with a cough. "He said they were at the four corners of Yuurei, not the city itself. These four corners.... they're basically at the ends of the entire landscape. If we want to get there at all..." She paused for a moment, closing her eyes and putting on a look of soft-hearted annoyance. "We're going to have to traverse this entire piece of land, and God knows how long that will take."

Miharu frowned. "This is normally when you'd go to Aoi for help." She sounded irritated now. "I don't want to take so long to find something, I just want to cut my frustration into someone!"

Daiyaku placed a hand on her shoulder. "Relax will you? You're going to put everyone on edge." Megami placed a hand on her other shoulder and squeezed it gently - a gesture signaling her empathy.

"You might not have to wait for that...." Kyashi piped up, looking out one of the nearby windows. "Their infantry might be pounding the area at any given minute. If you left and this did prove out to be a fake, you wouldn't get to see the enemy that's coming for sure."

Miharu looked confused. "You've lost me."

"Not big surprise..." Ezra deadpanned, earning a snicker from Ryuka.

"He's referring to more of the Arrancar that had fought the police force from before...." Megami decided to supply, considering that neither of them were helping her out. "Still remember that from the news, Mi-chan?"

"Ehhh...sorta." Miharu chuckled weakly. "My memory's currently focused on alot of the electrocution from awhile ago."

"Electrocution?" Midoriko asked, confused.

"It's a long, painful story Midoriko." Daiyaku replied. "Don't ask, you'll be better off for it later."

"What about them though?" Miharu asked, sounding excited. "There's more?"

"Long story short, yes." Megami frowned, eyebrows furrowing. "There's more....they're expected to come soon, and none of us have any real idea when eactly "soon" will be....just hope it doesn't have to be too soon..."

"I hope it's real soon." Miharu said, sounding excited. "What do we do until then?"

"The best thing we can do at this point." Ezra spoke up once more. "Prepare ourselves, or at least find ways to do so."

Daiyaku thought for a moment. "Megami, Aoi may not be running the library, but I am certain that it's still there. Either someone could be running it, or you could simply break into it...hopefully more efficiently than Miharu when she tried to break into the Police HQ, but that's beside the point. Books on mythology, if these people are thought of as "gods", then perhaps a book there may have what you are looking for."

"Of course!"

Megami's eyes snapped up in realization.... until she remembered one crucial thing. Ever since Aoi had been arrested, the police had shut down the library. "But.... the library's shut down due to security reasons. The only way I can go in.... is the latter choice, unfortunately...." She didn't want to do it; she had been respectful of Kenta, and it would be a shame for the peace between them to shatter with what would seem like a hypocritical action. But as it was, she had no choice in the matter.

"Breaking into it without setting off alarms is an easy matter." Daiyaku said, looking at Miharu. "Miharu can go with you and let you phase directly through the walls."

"Ohhhh I can." Miharu had spent the last minute wondering how her mother could get in before she remembered her own powers.

Megami nodded in acknowledgement, sighing lightly. "Guess we have no choice.... we'll have to get inside if we want to learn more about this situation. The rest of you, stay here.... we only need me and Miharu for this."

"Oh sure, leave me out of it, I haven't been in an important role in God knows how long anyhow..." Midoriko thought to herself. Perhaps she was simply bored without Kibō.

"I'm ready to go at anytime." Miharu said, smiling brightly.

"I have a bad feeling about this..." Daiyaku murmured.

Megami reached over to place a hand on her daughter's shoulder, looking at her with a slightly firm expression. "Take us to the back entrance of the library. It'll be the least guarded area." She ordered, not hesitating in her words.

"Sure, we can get there in no time." Miharu said, drawing her sword. "Improvise, Kyūmu." She twirled it above her head, and they were covered in ribbons which expanded and then wrapped around them, teleporting them away.

Infiltration
The ribbons reformed right outside the back entrance to the library, expanding before expelling them and returning to sword form. "I did it." Miharu whispered. "Success!"

"Good job, Mi-chan...." Megami said lightly, giving an earnest smile before turning her attention to the task at hand. She closed her eyes, reaching out with her senses in order to gain a good feel of the place. As she had suspected, there were a few guards on the other side. There were several more inside, the outer patrols light and casual. When she sensed deeper into the library, there was more of a concentration of police officers within. But what she hadn't expected to sense was several energies underneath the library.

"Well...." She said, her voice slightly hesitant. "It seems like there's quite a patrol around this place. A tight one, too.... but I also sense signatures underneath the library."

Miharu frowned, racking her brain for a solution. "I can go in first. Kyūmu and I can spread sleep powder throughout the library, we'll knock them out in seconds. Or, we could phase through invisible and search the sections." She sounded more enthusiastic about the first suggestion however.

"We'll have to focus the sleeping agent at the location, where we'll be headed. That way, we can take our time and keep them unaware of our presence...." Megami said. "Can you do that?"

"Just to make sure I got this, you mean after we get to where we want to go, I put them to sleep?" Miharu asked, trying to make sure she understood.

"If you could, I would prefer if you did it before we got there."

"Even better." She said, grinning. She drew her sword again, cloaking them in an aura of invisibility as well as making them intangible. "Alright, we can go in. We can't touch anything, and they can't see us. All we need to do is be absolutely silent and we can get what we need."

"Stay close and follow me.... I know the way."

With that order, Megami closed her eyes and pushed herself through the wall, her daughter's powers making her a virtual ghost.

Because the library did not house multiple rooms, they were right at the back of the bookshelf department. As Megami reached out with her senses, she could make out several officers within their proximity. One in particular was walking past her, a sub-machine gun held in his hands and ready to be shot. Out of curiosity, she reached out and put out a hand in front of him. Miharu's Zanpakutō powers served their truth; the hand went through the guard as he passed by, and he didn't even look up as he continued walking.

With a smile, Megami motioned behind her for Miharu to follow before walking once more.

Miharu tagged along willingly with her mother, much like a child who had been promised candy for helping with a chore. However, Miharu's true excitement stemmed from the fact that she could make up for her earlier failure at assaulting the police, if she could help her mother here and thus embarrass the officers working here by taking vital information from right under their noses. She silently chuckled.

It didn't take them long before they reached the section where Megami desired to go. She stopped, turning to face the bookshelf. "I saw this book in one of my past visits, but I didn't pay much attention to it under the circumstances..." She whispered. "The title's called Theological Anthropology: Red Sun.... now if I can-- Ah!" Running her hands over the books, she finally found the one that she wanted and took it out.

"Wow...." She commented, chuckling a little. "If I knew it was going to be this easy, I wouldn't have thought it to be necessary to use incapacitation methods..."

Miharu kept her voice to as low a whisper as her mother's. "What now? Do I make them sleep? Or should we just get out while we have the chance?"

"We leave." Megami nodded. "I've got what we needed, so there's no use overstaying our welcome."

Midoriko looked disappointed, she truly wanted to unleash hell on these fools. But there was no point in botching this investigation, and consented to follow her mother.

There was only one problem.

Miharu's Zanpakuto, when active, could not allow for herself as well as her mother to touch and pick up objects outside of the designated influence. So when Megami stopped to pick out the book, it was required for Miharu to turn her abilities "off" in order to do so. This rendered them visible and spottable by the police patrols roaming the library.

So it wasn't a surprise that a random police officer just happened to come across the two.

However, what was surprising was the fact that he immediately decided to shoot them instead of calling them down.

Raising his submachine gun and leveling it at the near point-blank range they were at, he unleashed a volley of rounds in their direction.

Miharu, who hadn't been paying attention, was shot right in the shoulder. Before she could even process this, three more bullets struck her in the back, sending waves of pain straight through her body.

"W-what the..."

Megami didn't use any words for her next action.

With reflexes that could only come from the likes of a Shinigami veteran, she twisted around and grabbed the barrel of the SMG before the police officer could turn it on her. With a push, she struck him in the face in order to stun him. Then, she yanked the gun out of his hands, pulled it back, and swung it into his skull as hard as she could without sending him flying. The force of the strike rendered him unconscious immediately, and his body spun around violently before collapsing like a sack of potatoes.

Dropping the gun, Megami immediately ran over to her daughter's side, alarm crossing her face. "Mi-chan!! Hold on, I'm going to--"

She didn't get to finish her sentence, as more police officers were converging on her position. Knowing that they were fully ready to kill them on the spot, Megami scooped up Miharu and used a Flash Step in order to appear by the exit door, only to stop and stare in surprise. The doors were not the glass they had been before, but rather a thick steel metal that had red lights blinking on an off on its hinges.

Shaking the thought out of her head, she slowly began to crouch in an effort to lower Miharu. "Miharu, are you all right? Can you still walk?"

Miharu coughed, a bit of blood trickling down her mouth. "I-I'm fine...I've had worse..."

As Megami lowered Miharu to the ground and allowed her to stand on her feet, she heard the voices and commands of the police officers as they came closer and closer to their location. Immediately, she ran over towards the door and tried to use her immense strength to push it open. However, much to her shock, the doors would not budge! Maybe if she could get back to the back entrance, they could escape through there!

But with the condition that Miharu was in, as well as the fact that their opposition had that basically covered, she would not be getting anywhere without risking the book.

Therefore, she knew what she had to do.

The Sacrifice and Revelation
"If you can still use Shunpo....." Megami whispered, grasping the book and walking over to Miharu's side. She reached over and clasped one of Miharu's wrists, gently pulled it out, and placed the book in her hands. "Then you have to head to the back entrance and escape. I'll stay here and provide a distraction so they won't get you."

Miharu took the book, and looked at her mother. "Kā-san, y-you aren't the overly violent type, but if it looks like they're going to capture you..." She coughed again, blood trickling out. "Lop their heads off."

"Yeah...."

With a solemn glance in their direction, Megami switched her gaze back over to Miharu. "Now go on! Before they catch you!"

Miharu used Kyūmu once again to become intangible, sealing her wounds temporarily as well with it to prevent a trail of blood that could be followed and phased through the wall, leaving her mother to fend off the officers as requested.

"Now, then...."

With the wounded gone, Megami could concentrate fully on the task at hand. Without hesitation, she sprinted towards one of the bookcases, crouched down, and hid herself from their view.

As the room around them began to darken, she could hear the cold and calculative radio commands of the police officers as they neared the front entrance.

"Sir, one of the intruders' signatures are gone from the sensors."

"Which one?"

"That of the daughter."

"So the monkey's whore remains. Spread out and search for her. Put as many rounds in her as you like, but I want her alive. Commander Sonoda will see personally to her execution!!!"

"Yes, sir!"

"C-commander....Sonoda....?" Megami's blood chilled in her veins, and she peeked around the corner just in time to see multiple officers armed with SMGs and shotguns. However, she was paying more attention to their outfits and the insignia on their shoulders. Everyone of them was one thing she could recognize - the insignia of the Sector 3 Overwatch.

"But....this doesn't make sense.... why would he--?!"

"THERE SHE IS!!! FIRE!!!!"

She didn't give it much thought, as multiple rounds converged on her position. She had to make this quick.

With a Shunpo, she vanished and re-appeared right in the midst in their group, in the active position of a spin-kick. Her foot caught the face of an unfortunate officer that was nearby, sending him careening through several bookcases. They all kept their guns pointed at her, moving expertly so that they wouldn't catch themselves in the gunfire. However, with her usage of Flash Step and her acrobatic movements, she was single-handedly taking them out one by one with her bare hands alone. Unlike her family, who would've gladly used their Zanpakuto at that point in time, she was using nothing but her bare skill in order to fight off her attackers.

Within seconds, she had punched and kicked her way through the wave, leaving several unconscious officers in her wake as she ran towards the back entrance. However, more and more seemed to keep converging onto her position, and she was forced to contend with them as well. Even as she continued to knock them aside, others seemed to replace them. Even with her Punishment Force-level martial arts, she was going to tire herself out sooner or later. "Where do they all keep coming from?!" She thought to herself, clearly unnerved by the continuous onslaught.

However, she finally made it to the door that she had been hoping for. Relief washing over her, she grabbed the knob and pulled it open for her own escape back.

Time stopped.

As soon as she pulled open the door, a lone figure calmly strolled from around the corner with a revolver pointed in her direction. His gaze was calm, serene, and initially apathetic. However, as he raised the gun for a hard-hitting spot on her body, she saw a flicker of victory within his eyes. The worst part was that she had seen this man before just a few minutes ago.

She could only manage to get out one word.

"Kenta...."

BANG!

With one pull of the trigger slightly, he had sent a total of five rounds tearing through her left shoulder. The damage was enough to cease her movement, and she collapsed to the ground on her back. The pain was so sudden, she didn't even have time to yell out. She could tell the injury sustained was severe, as she found her vision hazing slowly. Kenta stood over her for a few moments and looked her over before diverting his attention away from her and making a motioning gesture towards those outside of her vision. Then, he walked away, and the last thing she saw was several of his subordinates standing over her and surrounding her prostrate form.

Then, she blacked out.

Miharu, who was already a good distance away from the library, felt her mother's spiritual pressure drop. It wasn't gone, but it was spiraling down before it hit a low point.

"Dammit!" She thought. "What the hell happened? I can't tell anything." She tried to turn back, but she felt a hand on her shoulder, turning around to see Kyūmu of all people stopping her.

"Where do you think you are going?" She asked, her eyes as piercing as ever.

"I'm g-going to h-help." Miharu replied, coughing blood again.

"What can you even do in that state? You'll only wind up getting yourself killed. That book in your hands is vital to saving the spiritual world. Throwing it away to help one person is foolish."

"W-what!? This is my mother we're talking about!" Miharu snapped, angry at her Zanpakutō.

"Yes, and she knew what she was getting into when she sent you out of the library. And either way, with the wounds you are just barely closing, you won't accomplish a thing. Now get moving."

Though she was furious with her Zanpakutō, she couldn't deny the point her spirit made and took off back towards the Injiki house, opening the door without so much as knocking and collapsing to the ground where her wounds quickly reopened.

"Oh, hell! What in the--"

"Good god, what happened to her?!! Someone get her some medical attention!!"

As the alarmed voices slowly faded out, she felt someone calmly take away the book and allow for the rest to swarm her in preparation to seal her wounds.

In the world that was Megami's mind, all was silent and void. She was in a state of unconsciousness, with all but her thoughts as her company. She was confused and in a moderate state of distress. Why had the police not hesitate to attempt to kill her and refer to her with such harsh words? What did Kenta, of all people, want with her? Why did he want to see to her death?

Then, a cold feeling overswept her senses, and she let out a soft groan as she slowly opened her eyes.

She found herself on a cold metallic floor. As her hazy eyes cleared and looked around, they caught the sight of metallic, glowing bars as well as two officers standing on either side of her. They had yet to notice her stirring, though, and she had no intention to keep them in the dark. After all, she was caught and captured, and she was bound to wake up sometime.

Slowly, she allowed herself to sit up, her movements catching their attention.

A bullet went whizzing right by her head, embedding itself into the wall next to her. Standing outside her cell were two police officers acting as the guards. One was holding a smoking gun.

"Damn, seems I missed." He said, sounding thoroughly disappointed.

"It's a good thing you did, the execution's not for a few hours anyway. Commander Sonoda wants the honors of doing it himself." His partner replied.

"E....execution....What are you talking about....?"

Her words were somewhat slurred as she tried to stand back up, barely registering the shot made towards her life. However, as she brought herself to her feet, she was forced to stumble against the back wall. Her hand reflexively gripped her wounded shoulder, that area of her clothing stained red. However, it seemed like it had been patched up at some time. "I....I did nothing....that prompted execution...." She panted, a pained expression on her face.

"Your invasion of territory under lockdown is a good enough reason for Commander Sonoda." One of the officers replied coldly. "After the incident involving the young librarian, how could you not expect this place to be under strict guard? The fact that you brazenly strode in here, for whatever reason, is also the height of foolishness. I think death is an appropriate punishment."

Even though she caught the words, Megami shut her eyes and turned her head away from them as the pain throbbed in her shoulder. She forced her breaths to steady themselves, her words slightly shaky when she spoke. "E...even your police commander is not above the law.... he knows fully well that he can't declare judgement without trial...." She said, slight defiance in her voice. "My crime was no different from my daughter's--"

Then, her eyes widened in shock as she felt spiritual pressures drop a ways off. She jerked her head up in alarm at the sudden plummet of energy. Once her ears tuned in, she could even hear the faint sounds of gunfire as well as screaming of men, women, and even children. Her expression contorted to one of horror and shock as she listened in, and it occured to her that Miharu may have been right about the police all along.

"My daughter was right..." She said, her voice taking on an angry tone, her eyes glaring at the officers in front of her. "You are trying to hide something!!!"

"Isn't it always fun when you realize something and it's too late to do anything about it?" The officer who had previously shot at her said this with a chuckle. "The world is changin' ya know. Sit back and enjoy the last few hours you have left, unless of course, you'd rather us shoot ya dead now?"

For a moment, Megami looked ready to assault the officer right then and there. However, she knew the futility of her situation as well as theirs. These thoughts made her expression lessen to a more despairing look, and her body relaxed its tension. She could do nothing about the sounds of gunfire in the distance, nor could she block out the agonized death screams of the victims that didn't do anything deserving of death.

"At least tell me this...." She said quietly. "How many hours exactly do I have until I die?"

"About two hours, assuming the Commander doesn't bump it up." The other guard said, seeming to be more amiable then Mr. Trigger Happy next to him. "It seems that business is booming down there." He was referring to the screams downstairs.

Megami sighed heavily, bringing her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around her thighs. "Since I'm about to die, can you say why that slaughter's taking place?" Her voice was clearly bitter, but it lacked the defiance that she had presented moments before. It was the result of the effect the cell had on her; she could not use her abilities, it was constricting her energy, and the cold and callous nature of the cell seemed to hammer at her resolve. She never felt so helpless before in her very life....

She only hoped her family would not miss her too much....

"We weren't told much, all I know is that the death's need to reach a certain amount." He replied. "I think he intends to save you or the little girl for last."

"Why are you telling her this?" The other officer hissed.

Despite herself, Megami smiled weakly, her eyes squinting into an upside-down U shape. "Why not?" She countered. "It's not like I can tell this to anyone anytime soon. Your dirty secret is safe with you. After all, the dead tell no tales."

"Smartass little-!" The officer with the gun advanced on the cell, but the other officer held him back. "Self control you idiot."

He cursed under his breath. "Perhaps the Commander will give me her body when he kills her."

"You really are sick."

To this, Megami allowed herself to remain silent. She closed her eyes and lowered her head onto her knees in her sitting position, deciding to let her mind drift back to unconsciousness. There wasn't anything else to do other than speak to the guards. She had only two hours before she was promptly executed by whatever means they had of doing so. "Ahatake....where are you....?" She thought, tears silently falling from her face. Even though she was resolute in death, the thought of dying without her husband at her side did not suit her well.

"Please....hurry back...."

With that, she fell asleep.

Miharu sat bolt upright, and immediately wished she hadn't. She her shoulder and torso were covered in bandges, and the moment she moved she could still feel pain.

"What the..." It took her a moment to remember where the wounds had come from. "How the hell did I get fixed though?"

"Me." She looked over to see her sister sitting in a chair, reading a book entitled "Powers You Never Knew You Had and What To Do With Them Now You've Wised Up". On a small table where other, already read books, some titles which read "Secrets of the Darkest Art", "Body Horror: Now You Too Can Ruin Someone's Body From The Inside Out", and a few other chilling titles. Miharu could only hope these were not what her sister had read before patching her up.

"I'm not as good as Akiko, so I had to consult a few handy guides, but my Kidō proved enough to fix you up." She said, her eyes sclera was slightly gray. "How are you feeling?"

"Like shit." Miharu replied, frowning. "Oh, what happened to my book?!"

"Injiki has it." Midoriko replied indifferently, so it was obvious which Injiki she was referring to.

"Huh?"

The Injiki in question, as well as his wife (who had been looking over his shoulder) raised his head up from the page that he was reading, expression in slight surprise as he looked at Miharu and Midoriko. It faded back into his more glib look. "Oh, glad to see you're still breathing, kid." He stated calmly. "Where's your mother?"

"Well...they found us, it wasn't my fault, we had to get the book, but then they shot at me, and she managed to get me to the door, but we couldn't get out. She gave me the book and told me to run. The last time I felt her spiritual energy, it dropped by a large amount." She said all of this very fast.

"....uh....?"

Thankfully, Ezra, who was leaning against the opposite wall, filled in for the speed that Miharu demonstrated in her talking. "Megami had to hold back the patrols that were possibly aiming to capture them and allow Miharu a chance to escape with that book." He explained. "From the spiritual energy drop, it can be safe to say that she was either grievously injured or killed in her efforts."

This caught Ryuka's attention, his eyes widening in shock. He almost stood up. Beside him, Kyashi's eyes were also widened in shock, and she had to place her hands on her mouth to muffle a gasp. "Y...you mean she....she could be dead?!" The blonde exclaimed, clearly not liking that possibility.

Ezra nodded solemnly. "Dead... or worse."

"You can't be serious Ezra!" Miharu almost got up, but the pain of her wounds kept her down. "Maybe she just suppressed her energy or something, to conceal herself!"

"That's a better outcome than death." Midoriko agreed.

"I'm just stating the possibilities...." Ezra said coolly. "But if she truly hid herself, wouldn't she have been back, right behind you? That's the only route she, of her persona, would take once she evaded their patrols."

"Shut up Ezra..." Miharu hissed. Midoriko pressed her hand on her shoulder. "You lie down Miharu, or you're going to re-open your wounds. We're about to take a look at that book anyway, just let me go get Daiyaku." She left the room and quickly came back with Daiyaku. He looked weary, as if he'd come from walking through a large desert. His first reaction was to go up to Miharu and hug her.

"D-Daiyaku, you're hurting me." He let go, looking at her for a moment.

"Remind me never to volunteer you for missions like that again." He said, looking almost guilty. "I'm glad Midoriko's healing worked."