[BleachITP Reborn] Episode 2: Hannibal's Past: Flashback to the Old!

[Frozen_Feet]

Hannibal stares at the book for a moment before picking it up, giving a devilish grin to Taiki. "Geh heh heh... I was hoping I'd get this back. I quit at such an interesting point, the suspense would've drived me crazy. Well, crazier." His face then becomes more serious as he throws the book to his bed.

"Hope you didn't give poor Nasumi-Chan too much trouble. She's such a nice gal. Okay, so her cooking sucks ass and she ain't too bright, but don't tell her I said that." The hulkish man leans closer to the bars, their humming growing ever louder. Some sparks fly between them and the white, spiralling tattoos surrounding the ex-captain's eyes.

"So, I recall it's these damn bars you wanted to check? It's no big deal, really, geh heh, they've held me here for a good while now, I'm sure they'd hold just fine for another two centuries." Hannibal turns to the side and waves his hand as a dismissing gesture. "But hey, if you're so worried of me hauling my butt to that fancy pit to be beaten by all those guards, sure, get to work. I'll entertain you boys with a history lesson while you're at it. Maybe talking will make me hungry enough to down the goop, who knows."

"So, whatcha wanna hear?"

[tgva8889]

Taiki's face takes on a very serious look. "Why don't you start at the beginning for us?" He turns to Takeshi and nods, expecting him to get to work. "Let's start before you were arrested."

[Innis Cabal]

"The bars?"

Takeshi tilts his head, smirking.

"No no, the marks on your eyes. But a history lesson would be...most appreciated. Though I would ask we speak on that in private...if the Captain would be so kind. Today, I will keep you company."

[Frozen_Feet]

At the mention of his "arrest", Hannibal's face is taken over by a dull frown. "You really wanna dwell on that ugly incident. I'd rather talk about the weather outside, you know? Or that wacky bomb thing the Mortals... oh wait, that's old news."

Hannibal walks a few circles inside his cell, staring at the roof, before giving a curious glance to Takeshi. "Eh, if Broken Sword here just approves it, sure. But you better be damn careful with the tattoos. I don't want my head to explode, or something. And if you poke my eyes even once, I'll take that pipe of yours and shove it where sun won't shine, ye hear me?"

The ex-captain stops at the middle of his cell, his back turned to the visitors. For a moment, he's completely silent and seems to be thinking, before he glances over his shoulder with an irate expression. "Ye still there, Broken Sword? Let the whelp in, or whatever, and scram. I've got a story to tell."

"Now, lemme see, where should I begin..."

---

A bit over two hundred years ago, in 11th division head-quarters:

Hannibal Magalhães sits behind his desk, bored out of his wits. During his little hunting trip with the 13th, paperwork sure had piled up. Most of it was just routine bureaucracy, and he can't wrap his mind around the fact that his Vice-Captain hasn't already taken care of them. But then there was a request from academy...

Someone from 11th, it says, is needed to help the 6th out with training new academy recruits in close combat skills. The "usual trainer" it said, had Absence of Leave due to injury. Who the **** is the "usual trainer", Hannibal wonders, scratching his head. For a moment, he thinks about sending a hell butterfly to the VC, but the he remembers he accidentally squashed the last one left few days ago. It makes a tinge of guilt flash through his mind.

Eh heh he... shouldn't have gotten that angry just because one message, he muses. It wasn't the bug's fault... oh, who am kidding. Seems like I just need to do this the old fashioned way.

The captain rises from behind his desk and walks to the door of his office, bashing it open with so much force it's a wonder it doesn't break. "H I M U R A ! Where are ye? I need your opinion on something!"

[tgva8889]

Taiki looks at Takeshi. "Regulations. Sorry, friend, but I can't leave you here on your own. Whatever work you plan to do I can see, can't I?"

[Innis Cabal]

"Of course you can. But I would like to ask some questions that are sensitive to the Kido Corp. I mean no offense, but I am not certain it should be shared with the Gotei 13 just yet. Please excuse my rudeness Captain."

Takeshi waits patiently at the door, waiting to be let in.

[tgva8889]

Taiki scowls. "Hmph. Business as usual here in Sereitei. I will stand right here as per regulations. You can ask whatever you want. Chances are high I'll find out about whatever you end up asking if I want to anyways."

He puts a hand on the wall near the cell, closes his eyes, and focuses for a moment. A minute later, the cell bars click. "You can go. Just walk straight through."

[Innis Cabal]

Takeshi slips through the energy field, bowing to Hannibal. He offers the Captain only a single smile before turning to the murderer.

"Ex-Captain Hannibal? I am the current Kido Captain, I believe my previous Commander was the one to place these tattoo's on your face? To be honest, I really don't know what the hell she was doing, but I guess I'll give it a look."

He laughs, scratching the back of his head.

"Can I offer you a pipe Captain Hannibal?"

[tgva8889]

(The "doors" are not doors, but rather seem to be some kind of energy. Takeshi should be able to pass straight through them without having to open or close anything.)

[Boo]

200 years ago:

In the courtyard near Hannibal's office and voice, the one he called for was separating two shinigami in a spat. A clothesline and a mollywop later, and she arrived at the his door leaving the two on the ground for the dogs.

"Yes, Captain, what do you need?"

It would be obvious to Hannibal that there was a reserved resentment in her--Himura's voice. Standing in front of him with a straight back, and unflinching eyes aimed at his, she waited for his question.

((I wanted to correct your calling her Himara. =P))

EDIT: Deadtime for din din.

[Frozen_Feet]

Past:

Hannibal lifts the scroll holding the academy request up with his left hand so Michiko can see it and points at it with a riled expression. "What's this thing on my desk?", he asks with a bemused voice. "I've told ye, woman, you don't need to bother me with this sorta things. Why didn't you just pass this to that Kinjo guy? Isn't he the go-to fellow in these things? You don't need me to whack him in the head to order him to go bully some kids." He's talking of the current 4th seat of the division.

"Come to think of it, where's that sucker been lately anyway?", the captain continues with a thoughtful frown of his face. "Haven't seen him around much. Is he slacking off or something?"

[Boo]

"Sir," Himura begins, slightly irritated that this detail was forgotten, "Kinjo is currently in the care of the Fourth Division. He was greatly injured during his last mission with you."

She glances at the scroll momentarily, moving her hand to it, motioning Hannibal to hand it to her. "I can take it to Yoshigo." The current 15th seat. "He is slacking."

"Today... I'll do it today..."

[Frozen_Feet]

"During the last mission, huh? That was frellin' months ago! The bastard's just afraid that I'll clobber him again for falling to that Hollow's stupid trick when he gets back", the captain growls, crumpling the scroll as he hands it over to Himura. "Okay, so I will clobber him, but that's besides the point. Wait for a second, I'll pick up my sword."

Hannibal goes briefly back to his office, lifting Espirito de Ferro from the wall and throws the sheath of the massive sword over his shoulder. "Okay, we're good. Lead the way, woman", he says with a strangely gleeful voice that does not bode weel for the poor Yoshigo. "Oh, whuzzat yer doing today? Do ye have something to tell me?"

[Boo]

Back in the good ol' days:

Taken aback that he heard her, Himura was only quick enough to reply with "Kido!" Her hands never could shape their proper form. "I'm trying to learn some kido... to demolish hollow more easily, and discipline our officers without difficulty." He'd approve of this much more easily than the truth in her words.

After his reply, if any, she led the way to Yoshigo. He was sitting in the shade, his sword in his left and a drink in his right. "Yoshigo! Drinks away. Captain..." he'll probably interrupt her, "...Magalhães is in need of your full attention."

A worried look crossed the seated officer's face for an instant, shifting to an obedient stare. "Captain!" He placed his drinking cup down along with his sword, all to clamour into a bow. "What will you have me do?" There was a fearful tremor present in his fingers, but he formed them into a fist, and pushed them into the earth.

[Frozen_Feet]

There's an angry tick in Hannibal's right eye as Yoshigo bows to him. "Dammit, boy, I told ye not to drink that stuff at work! It's bad manner!" The captain takes a step forward and grabs the man from the collar of his Shikahusho, lifting the man's head up to meet his the angry gaze of his purple eyes. "Open yer mouth! Now!"

The whole scene looks as if Hannibal is scolding a puppy dog rather than a grown man. It's given comedic tint by the fact that Yoshigo is notably larger than the man holding him. The 15th obediently opens his mouth and Hannibal sniffs his breath - considering he then hurls the officer a good two dozen feet away, the captain didn't appreciate what he smelled.

"Ye ain't getting paid for this day, whelp! And no day-offs in a month! Ye'll report to me four in the morning today, ye hear me!", Hannibal rages, pointing an accusing finger to Yoshigo, who picks himself up an hurries off muttering "Yes sir!" as he goes.

"He ain't fit for work", Hannibal mutters as he turns to face Himura again. "Can't let him in front of the kids - he'd just make buffoon outta himself, and the whole darn division. Uh, anyone else we could turn to?"

[Boo]

She watched as Yoshigo left, picking himself up with each step. Upon Hannibal's words and stopping, she responded. "Currently..." Himura took her time to answer, recalling mindfully of where each and every squad leader is, "all of our seated members, besides Yoshigo and Kinji, are on duty."

She made several steps into the shade, picking up the sword left by the tipsy slacker, and held it up to the hidden sun; the red of her gloves against the black of the case was lovely. Inspecting and unsheathing it, Himura half-glanced over at Hannibal. "I will go." She slashed the air with three swings in sudden succession. "The greens need to be grown properly, and I feel like working outside today." The sword was sheathed; shushed to a clack. "Is that acceptable, Captain?"

[Frozen_Feet]

Hannibal cringes at Himura's words. "Crud." He'd actually been hoping for this day for a long time but still, why, for pity's sake, this day had to be one when all the fight-happy imbeciles were doing their actual jobs? However, he's still surprised by Himura's offer.

"Huh? Don't ye have that training to do?", the captain questions, straightening his blood-stained haori. "I wouldn't wanna take that from you - it'd be nice if we had one person competent in good ol' blasty stuff, for a change. If there's really no-one else, I can take care of it myself." He holds out his hand and wriggles his fingers expectantly, waiting for Himura to give the scroll back.

"If ye get done ahead of time, ye can join me. I'll, er, lend one of those bugs to send you our location. Lets consider it a special treat for the kids, eh?"

[Innis Cabal]

Present Day

Takeshi shifts his pipe, smiling as he lifts his hands, blue arcs of lightning connecting to the tattoo's.

"Hmm...what a complex kido...Ex-Captain Hannibal, when my old Commander placed these on you, did she use needles? What was the incantation she used?"

The lightning grows brighter, white hot as it sizzles and spits sparks into the air.

"You don't have to answer that. Its not what the Kido Corp is interested in. Its your mask, Ex-Captain Hannibal. I want to hear about your mask. When you put it on, how do you feel? How do you feel when you take it off. What does the world look like through the eyes of yours when its on. I'd like to hear it in detail, if you would, Ex-Captain Hannibal. Can I offer you a drink? Do you drink? I have some sake with me, we shouldn't be so cold to one another."

[tgva8889]

Present Day

"*cough* I'm going to have to check the sake if you plan to give it to him." Taiki is still staring directly at Hannibal and Takeshi, not allowing a single movement to go unnoticed.

[Innis Cabal]

Takeshi pulls a large flask from his sleeve, throwing the container to Taiki.

"If you were thirsty Captain, you should have spoke up! Did you know the Kido Corp has just installed its newest brewing facility? Its -very- complex."

[Frozen_Feet]

Present day:

"Impatient young fellow. It's bad manner to interrupt us geezers telling a story, ye know", Hannibal grumbles as Takeshi begins his query. "Lemme see... well, the old lady just kinda punched me in the face. Don't recall what she said, for obvious reasons, eh heh. It was after I was already here, though."

When the ex-captain hears mention about his mask, his face darkens considerably. But when he hears about sake, he becomes outright angry.

"Sake? A whelp like ye? Clearly, yer parents didn't spank you hard enough! If you want to commit suicide that badly, I can murder ye on the spot!" The ex-captain turn slightly towards Takeshi, motioning wildly with his hands. "All Broken Sword here has to do is turn around. I promise, I'll make it quick'n'painless. Maybe."

He lets out a sigh, and lets his arms drop to his lap. "The mask thing . . . bah. Listen closely, and I'll tell you near the end. It's not something I like to talk about, you hear? Have to get warmed up at first. So bear with me, kiddo, will ya?"

[Innis Cabal]

Takseshi dosn't even flinch as Hannibal goes into his tirade, lifting his hand slowly.

"Calm down old timer, if you didn't want it, thats all you had to say. Don't worry about my health if your going to threaten it."

He laughs brightly, his eyes squinting shut as he continues to smile.

"I'll wait if its what you want. But I won't forget. You may not like answering it. But they'll be the most comfortable questions I'm going to ask. So lets call it prep huh?"

[tgva8889]

Taiki examines the container for a moment, looks up for a moment, then tosses it back through the field.

"It's fine. Make sure you toss that out here when you're done, Hannibal."

He keeps watch on Hannibal and Takeshi, not even reacting to comments towards him.

[Boo]

Back in the Good Ol' Days:

For several moments, the Vice Captain was unsure of what to do. She was very reluctant to let her captain teach the young ones in the way that he was: brutal; but she couldn't very well stop him. She wasn't prepared yet.

Her hand removed the scroll from her person, and tossed it to Hannibal. "Make sure to be careful with them." Quickly, she turned. "I'll finish the paperwork left over from the last mission before starting on my training today." Without waiting for a reply, she was gone with the wind, away from Hannibal.

It really was a nice day to be outside.

[Frozen_Feet]

Present day:

"Blah, blah, whatever you say, Broken Sword. Ye're the boss here."

"Now, where was I . . . ?"

---

Good Ol' Days:

Hannibal catches the scroll and blinks as Himura hurries off. What's wrong with her? Come to think of it, his Vice-Captain had been rather uptight lately. Maybe I should buy her flowers or something?, the befuddled captain thinks, scratching his head, before speeding away in a flash of Shunpo, making his way towards academy.

Lemme see... what should I teach the kids? Locks and throws would be good - I heard they neglect those because they "aren't useful in high-speed combat" or some other bullcrap. Heh heh... gotta make this day memorable for them.

[Innis Cabal]

Present Day

Takeshi steps out of the prison, breathing heavily, leaning his head against his knee's.

"The tattoo's are intensive...The manner of which they were created requires delicate care...do you have any skilled in Kido under your command Captain? I can, if able, give a pass to one of my own to come down here, if you permit."

[tgva8889]

(What blade? Didn't he hand it off at the entrance?)

Present Day

Taiki seems concentrated on Hannibal. "Yeah, that's fine. Just make sure to send the request my way so I can grant access."

[Innis Cabal]

((oops, forgot >.>))

Takeshi nods, holding out a piece of paper.

"If you could run that up and send it to the Kido Corp Grounds, I would really apperciate it Captain, I'm so very sorry to trouble you like this, but I can't leave my work here, I have a complex matrix going on at the moment. If I leave, his head might explode."

[tgva8889]

Taiki takes the paper and reads it closely, not responding to Takeshi until he finishes reading.

[Innis Cabal]

The paper seems to be quite offical, the lettering rather flowery, written by a clearly feminine hand.

Spoiler

Show

Kido Commander calls for Unit 5 Member: Aekami Shiru, to report to the Maggots Nest immediatly, zanpakuto is to be left in the Corp Grounds. Matrix 7 must be activated before leaving Grounds

-Takeshi