Of Sands and Ruins

Zanpaku-tou(s) State(s)
Fujin: Sealed || Raiden: Sealed
Power Limiter
Active
Other Active States
None

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NopLittered around the world were ruins; not ruins of an ancient civilization though those probably still existed. No, these were ruins of a far more recent nature. Ruins of cities that not long ago in relative terms were bustling with activity and...well life. That was before the real wars started, before the invasions. That was back when the Earth was still the domain of man, not the battlefield of demons and monsters. The battlefield of shinigami and iramasha and a hundred other races. Back then the world was more peaceful; it seemed so long ago, but that's only because war has that effect. Where the cities once stood now ruins sat, grim monuments to exactly the kinds of damage that had been wrought on the planet; and people had been worried about global warming. Every continent housed ruins of those cities and towns that had not been consumed by the domes that made it possible for the continued survival of mankind. This story, however, does not concern most of those. It concerns only one, at one time and place; midday in a city-ruin located at the edge of the Gobi Desert.

At one time it would have been a decent sized city; not one of the great cities of the world but large enough to be sure. Now, nature was in the process of reclaiming the land. Highways were shattered with sections missing, buildings that had sat empty for decades were crumbling slowly into dust. Man had built this city, and the desert had advanced and overtaken it; even after that man had continued to live here and had fought to make the city habitable. The eruption of the spiritual wars had placed the final nail in the coffin; the city had been attacked, and with little in the way of valuable resources or strategic location it had simply been abandoned by survivors and never looked at again. Now the desert was slowly swallowing it once more.

On this day though, there was movement in this long forgotten city. A lone figured walked slowly down the decayed raised highway that had supported cars. He wore no insignia, no symbol of rank, no distinguishing mark other than his own appearance. His silver hair caught the light, and you'd think he was unbearably warm in the black coat he wore. Yet he did not seem to mind; Genpaku Arishima enjoyed the feeling of the warmth for what little he could feel of it. Gigai's were not made to be as finely attuned to the temperaments of the weather as a true body, but they were close. Feeling the ground beneath his feet and heat on his being made him feel almost alive. It wasn't that Genpaku wished he were alive; he had outgrown that wish centuries before. Or, maybe it would be more appropriate to say that he had come to terms with no longer being of the living. Either way, its not important. Why was the Commander of Vanguard, one of the strongest individuals living (even if he didn't believe that fully) here unguarded in one of the most barren places on Earth?

Because he needed to see these ruins. It was not because these ruins were special, nor were they significant to the young shinigami in any particular way. They were but one set of thousands if not millions; and that was why they were important. This was, in many ways, what Genpaku had created the Special Human Task Force (that would later become the Vanguard of today) to stop; the destruction of livelihoods, the destruction of lives. These were one of thousands of testaments to his failure in some ways, just as every dome was a testament to a victory. He was not here to dwell on either; he was not here to mope and lament his failings. That was for another time. No, Genpaku was here for something far more significant if only to himself; he was here to remind himself what he was trying to stop. Sure, there were factors concerning the fall of this city that made it more out of anyone's control than most, but that was a trivial fact; if more protection had been offered the city would have continued to try and prosper against the onslaught of the desert.

The young man walked at an easy pace down the round, his footfalls echoing off the walls of dilapadated buildings and through the silence of the land. Sand crunched under his feet with each step. The wind kicked up and whipped through the shattered windows and doorways, through the streets and alleys that still remained. Genpaku took this all in with his emerald eyes and his face gave away very little of what was going on in his head. He simply looked and thought. Once, there had been people living here. Once, people had fought not only against the elements but against forces they could not hope to combat here. Once, children traveled the same path he now did with their parents. This had been a harsh and pace; this had once been home to hundreds of thousands. Now, not a soul lived here.

He came to a stop finally, just looking out over the destroyed structures. If something didn't change this was the fate that awaited this world; this and worse. He stood there, not seeming to care about the heat or the fact he was technically in what may have constituted as enemy territory; the information about who owned what sectors of the “conquered lands” was somewhat sketchy at times. He didn't really care about it either; it wasn't as though he was walking around blasting spiritual power around him. Truth be told he was concealing more than a small amount of his power both by intention and not. He had not come to this place seeking battle; he had come seeking a reminder. Genpaku's self-doubt was easily one of his greatest pitfalls; though he hid it well it was always there. Events like those of London and Madrid did nothing to help it. For a time he had been worried about his personal level of strength; how he was not strong enough to fight the terrors that threatened this world. In a way, Genpaku needed a reminder not of what he was fighting for, but why he could not afford to loose any longer.

He took a single, deep breath and let it out slowly. Around him the silence hung, strangely fragile as though it were about to be shattered.