What Happened- Aria's past

"Quickly! We need to run!" A voice cried from down the hall. Bang, bang. A loud banging sound rang out. Flashes accompanied them and then there was silence from where the voice came from. It was two gun shots. Aria stood there mildly in shock as to what happened. Brandon was most likely dead and she had assumed the rest of her friends were too as she had not seen them for some time. Plus there were several gun shots earlier. "Shit, what do I do...?!" She whispered to herself in a panic.

 Earlier herself and her group of friends decided it would be a good idea to hang out on an abandoned piece of property outside of town. Figured they would have a few drinks, laugh, and just generally hang out, but little did they know there was some crazy group of people. She had no idea what they were doing there or even why they were currently killing her friends. She looked back behind her and recalled there was another one of those crazy bastards back there as well. She was cornered with only a door on the side of the hall way. She laughed to herself. She had no idea as to why as she knew this situation was hopeless. Maybe it was that hopelessness that was causing her to snicker at her fate. She sighed and ran to the door. Most likely wouldn't be an escape route. Especially since it was on the second floor. "Well, I'm not going to give up and sit here." She reassured herself attempting to give some form of hope.

 She twisted the knob on the door and it crunched as the rusty knob turned. The door opened and she charged inside; slamming the door behind her. Before her laid a room with a window and that was it. She scanned the room and only pieces of rubble, dust and various things of liter lounged around the room. "I figured." She said with a defeated sigh.

 It was strange. Her death was near, but she felt calm even though there was still so much she wanted to do. She wanted to change her life around and actually do something with her life. Maybe have a child in the future. You know- Normal life stuff. Up until this point she only screwed around with her friends and was a good for nothing. "Regretting a bit huh?" She asked herself with a smirk on her face. "Too late now..." A slight tinge of sadness laced her voice.

 In the corner of the room a long metal bar leaned against the corner. She missed it during her original scan of the room. She moved over quickly and picked it up. It was a rusted steel rebar that must of been left here from some sort of construction project that has since been long abandoned. She weighed it in her hands an felt heavier than it should of. "It must be because my life depends on what I can do with it. I only got one chance." She moved hastily to the door and prepared herself.

 The door opened slowly for brief moment and then flew open. They knew she was there and Brandon yelling what he did earlier didn't exactly help. She breathed calmly as she first saw the gun emerge from the door. It was a black and sleek looking pistol. She had no idea what type it was or anything of the sort. All she knew was that thing was used to kill. Her heart beat quickly as she gripped the rebar with both hands firmly. Yet she was still calm as everything that was happening seemed to be in slow-mo. In another moment the hand that held the gun because visible through the crack behind the door.  It was time as the body entered the room.

 She charged from behind the door an before the man could react; She had hit his hands that were carrying the pistol. It fell to the ground and the man yelled out in pain for a moment. It was only a moment though as he knew he would have to try and get the gun back or at least that's what his instincts told him. He was unable to act on it either as the rebar Aria held was now in his chest and he was being pushed back.

 During that brief moment of disarming her foe she dug her right foot into the floor and then sprang forwards with a pointed end of the rebar impaling the man who once held the advantage. The bar entered into his body easily and in someway she was surprised. "It's easy... So easy." She thought as the rebar slid between his ribs. At first he reached out towards the gun he had lost, but quickly switched his attention to the foreign object protruding from his body.

 He attempted to pull it out, but a mix of his strength failing him and the blood on the bar made him fail. She wasn't done yet as she continued to push until the man was flat on his back and she was gasping for air above his corpse. The bar had pierced his heart and he by some luck he passed quickly. A part of her wanted him to be alive and scream in pain as he died slowly, but it didn't seem to be in her fortune for that to happen. Though because of the events hope rose within her. She might be able to get out of this alive. Yes, she can do this!

 Bang. The sound rang from down the hall way. "Oh yeah... There was another one wasn't there..." She thought. Blood was pouring  from her right shoulder. She had been shot. It was nothing like those movies where the hero or heroine seems to just magically avoid bullets or the bad guys have the aim of storm troopers. However for some reason she felt no pain from the wound. Only warmth as the blood stained her shirt and hoodie. "Unlucky..." Her hope and elated feeling she had experienced a moment ago faded quickly.

 Her head turned and the second man could of sworn he saw a demon for a moment. Her eyes seemed to glow and piercing his very existence. A smile laid almost bare on her face with only a few strands of hair covering bits of her face. "Wha-what?" The man stuttered in shock. He never seen anyone smile like that after being shot and because of that it caused him to hesitate.

 She gritted her teeth and dragged the rebar from the lifeless body. It came clean with a little effort and clattered briefly from hitting the wall. Her gaze never leaving the second man and as she turned to face him he shot again. Hitting her in the lower torso. She begain to walk towards him. Ignoring the pain or should it should be said for whatever reason she felt none. Yet, she was aware that she was most likely gravely injured. That last bullet ripped into some vital organs.

 Again he shot as she moved another step towards him- Again- Again- Click, click. The gun was out of ammo. He never reloaded from the bullets he fired earlier. She was somehow still moving towards him as if she were a zombie. Her piercing gaze unwavering anger. It somehow invoked fear into him as he struggled to find another clip.

Finally he found it- Breifly looking away from his target. She was still a bit away from him. He pressed the mag release an quickly slid in the new one and returned his gaze to where she was. She was no longer where he expected. She laid on the ground motionless. "Ha...Hahaha, of course. There was no way someone would still be able to move after being shot five times like that." He reassured himself, but the fear he felt before wasn't entirely gone. It was scarred his mind that this girl before him smiled as she was shot several times. He had never seen anything like that before and never would again in his life, but still always haunted him.

As she was moving down the hall she realized she didn't have the energy to run and it took everything she had just to walk down towards him. "Don't stop... Don't give up... I can't die!" Her mind screamed over and over with each step. However, the edges of her vision began to fade and with each shot that pierced her body it grew darker. She moved until she couldn't anymore. She no longer held the rebar; she must of dropped it a few steps ago. She only noticed it was missing now and it was hard to focus her mind. "Ah" The word escaped her lips as she looked at her empty hand that was covered in blood and no longer help the rebar.

She fell to her knees and then fell flat onto the ground. She had no more strength in her body. "Of course I couldn't do it. At least I tried and went out with a bang." The smile never left her face as darkness now fully consumed her vision and the last thought she had before she died was- "I could of jumped back into the room and got the gun. God I'm dumb."

 Next thing she knew she opened her eyes like nothing ever happened. "I'm alive?" She said in disbelief. She blinked and then looked down at her feet. "No, I'm not." She said bleakly. At her feet laid a smiling corpse that looked quite familiar. It was her. "Interesting. So there is something beyond death."

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"So... Am I a ghost?" She asked herself. She never was much of a believer for something beyond death. So in a sense this came as quite a surprise. Was there no stairway to heaven or ray of light to beam her up?  Just as she was marveling at what happened and contemplating what to do now. A noise came from behind her. "You bitch! You killed me!" She turned to face the man she had stabbed with the rebar.

 It seemed their ghostly forms didn't keep the injuries they sustained like in the movie Beetle Juice. That was a bonus. She wasn't sure as to how she felt about having bullet holes in her body for who knows how long. "I wonder why?" She said mockingly. "If you and your friends didn't try to kill my friends and I; well, you would be alive. Which also begs the question. Why?" She glared at him. "Why?" He repeats. "I don't owe you any fucking explanation!" With anger in his voice he lunged towards her. "Already caused my death once already. Trying to do it again already?"

As he charged at her a figure stepped between them. The figure held a sword an the hilt of the sword was currently placed on the man's forehead. He was no longer moving and something seemed to be happening. Disregarding that for the moment she realized that the figure before them just kinda materialized or at least that's how it appeared to her. "Man; such a busy night." The man said as a large gate behind the man she killed appeared.

The gate filled the entire hallway and seemed to be even larger than that. Bones seemed to decorate the doors and seemed to be part of a larger skeletal form. In the hallway only hands could be seen. They almost seemed to be opening the door and it slowly began to open. "One to hell." The man said as he rubbed his own head; ruffling his hair. "What? What's happening?! What do you mean hell!?" The other man said as panic began to appear on his face. Obviously anyone would be confused as to the events that were happening. All religions seemed to be far off the mark as to what actually happened beyond death. The man before her seemed to be a judge of some sort or maybe he's just here to send souls to hell. She could only make assumptions at this point. "Well, you tell me. Just think on what you did tonight." He was referencing how he and his group murdered four strangers. "Good bye." The man with the sword said with coldness in his voice and at the same time chains spewed forth from the now open gate. All that could be seen within was darkness as if it were the abyss. The chains themselves seemed to wrap around the man she killed and then suddenly they began to pull the man into the depths of what she now knew as hell.

He screamed and yelled various curses as he slid across the ground. The chains seemed to dig deep into his body and looked quite painful. As his form disappeared into the abyss beyond the gate the doors began to close and once it closed fully it disappeared as if it were never there to begin with. "So, what now?" she thought. Is she also to go to hell or what? Is there even a heaven? Could she run away? The only answer she had was for the last one. There was no way she could run from someone who seemed to just be able to materialize.

"So- Little miss creepy." He said as he glanced her over. She was taken back by what he said a bit. "Little miss creepy?" She thought an couldn't figure out why he said that to someone he didn't even know. "I've already sent your other three friends. I have to send you now as well." He said as he slowly moved towards her. "So, he's already done whatever with them too huh?" She noted as she glanced over him. He wore what looked like traditional Japanese clothes. "Nice black robes. So who the hell are you?" She said with a slight hint of hostility. "Whoa, whoa calm down. I'm not a bad guy. I'm just doing my job." He said with a slight laugh. He pinched the kimono with his fingers and held it out slightly. "Black robes, huh? This is called a shihakushō. Quite a mouthful, but it represents dead souls or something and I'm what's called a Shinigami. In other words a death god." He said sternly.

"Now then. I gotta send you like the rest." He said as he gripped his sword tighter and moved over to her. "Like hell! I'm not going to let you to send me to hell or whatever!" She jumped back from him. "I have no idea about anything! There's no way I would just blindly listen to a guy who dragged someone to hell!" She screamed at him. Of course though she knew there was no way for her to stop him, but it still felt good to protest.

 He sighed. "Listen! And boy oh boy do I mean listen. I've had to explain this faaaar too much today. Just because he went to hell doesn't mean you are going to as well. Listen, as long as you haven't done anything horrible in your life you'll go to a place called Soul Society and not have to really worry about anything anymore." He explained while remaining calm. "So, not really heaven huh? Still, kinda hard to believe you after the recent-" She was cut off as he moved instantly in front of her and place the hilt of his sword on her forehead. "Sorry, but I don't have all the time in the world to explain everything to you. Frankly I don't even want to bother with it. Good luck." He said coldly.

"You bastard!" She shouted as a blue light enveloped her body. A moment later a loud roar rang out. She wasn't entirely sure of that either. Kinda almost sounded like a scream as well, but it wasn't her problem. She was about to be sent to hell or wherever now and she had no control. She couldn't even move her body and for some odd reason she felt at peace. The anger she felt dissipated and everything just went black. There was nothing and that nothing was accompanied by absolute silence.

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"Yes, you'll do nicely. From this moment on I shall follow you." A voice echo'd in the darkness. "Am I in hell?" Her mind drifted to the gate she saw the man be dragged into earlier. However she had no memories of being bound by chains. There was however a weird scream or roar, but disregarding that. Who was talking to her? "Hello? Who's there? I can't see anything." She asked. "Don't worry. Soon you'll wake up. Don't lose the sword that'll be next to you. It'll help you in the future. Hopefully you can live up to my expectations. After all you're filled with regret. Don't make the same mistake twice." The voice stopped and Aria's ears rang in the silence.

 Chirp, chirp. "Mm." She groaned and rolled onto her side. How ever the birds' ruthless assault continued and the chirps rang louder in her mind. "Ugh, shut birds! I'm trying to sleep here!" She cried out. "Wait... Sleep?" Her eyes shot open and everything that just happened flooded her mind. She was dead. The events tore deep into her mind and one thought just kept repeating in her mind. Death. Yet here she was alive and in the middle of what seemed to be a forest.

 After a couple moments of thinking she stood up and breathed deep. "Was it a dream? How did I even get here?" She thought and just as she was about to move an object laid on the ground next to where she laid. It was a sword. Specifically a katana. "Right... That voice told me it would be here. I guess it wasn't a dream." She said to herself and with a sign she picked up the weapon. "I guess I need to figure out where I am. This seems too peaceful for it to be hell."

 "I guess first things first. I need to see if I can find civilization." She stated as she looked for which way to go. Her hand gripped the seath of sword she now carried. Thinking on it she realized the man that sent her here had a sword just like this. "Hmm, does everyone get one of these?" She thought as her gaze went to the hilt. It looked like any other katana she had seen. The hilt was wrapped in a green fabric and the rest just looked like any other metal to her. The sheath she held was a plain black with nothing special about it either. She sighed and recalled the voice. "Well, I hope the voice was telling the truth." She thought as it returned to her side.  Truth be told the weapon felt familiar as if it were hers for a long time or perhaps a part of her. It was unusual, but it felt comfortable to have it.

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A day had passed before she found civilization. If you could call it that anyways. Most of the buildings looked old and seemed to be made of flimsy materials. Some of them even looked if you just breathed on them wrong they would collapse. Either way it seemed to be the place where people gathered. In the distance far nicer looking buildings seemed to be. "So it's not all junk, huh?" She whispered to herself as she scanned what she could. "I'll make my way towards there and hopefully I can get some answers to a few of my questions."

A few minutes of walking passed before she actually saw another person. Well, in this cause person is incorrect. There were three. The one furthest from her noticed her first. "Oi, boss look!" He pointed towards her and all three now looked over to her. They moved over to her and attempted to appear threatening. "Looks like we gots ourselves a newbie huh?" He smirked and laughed. The man was quite large and have had quite a few inches on her. "I don't mean any trouble. I would just like some questions answered." She said calmly as she stared them down. None of them had a weapon so at least she had that advantage. "How about you just give us everythin' you gots on ya? Then you just turn your ass around and go back to wherever ya came. That way we dont's gotta hurt such a cute face." His voice was threatening. "Geez, just got killed the other day and more trouble already. So much for this being heaven." She thought as her hand move to the hilt. She wasn't in the mood to be running around. She was tired and frustrated. "Boss, she's got a sword. She's a Shinigami!" The first man that pointed her out said. "Nah, don't worry boys. She don't knows anything. There's no way she is. I bet she just found it laying around somewhere and picked up. That's called stealin' missy. Why don'tcha hand it over to me?" He said while reaching behind his back. With a schlick sound effect he produced a small blade and brandished it towards her. "Surround her boys." He motioned for them to do so as he said it. They hesitated for a moment, but quickly moved into position. "I don't take this as a simple threat now." She said as she drew her sword.

 She had no formal training with the sword or anything and at best she knew that one side was pointy and the other was for holding. However, that's all she needed to know as the next thing that happened took place in a matter of moments. He began to move forward and with movements that even impressed her she managed to swing and it connected straight into his wrist and out the other side. His hand with the dagger fell to the ground with a thud and just laid there.

A moment had passed and nothing happened. The three were briefly stunned, but only briefly as the large man began to scream from the pain. "MY HAND!!!" He roared as he griped his now stub of an arm. They no longer seemed to want to fight. They must of thought her bluffing when she drew the sword. "Go. I won't attack you if you leave now." She said coldly without even glancing at the other two. She felt something stirring inside her and she was unsure if she could control it. Oddly enough it felt like... Joy.

She was reminded of the time she killed in self defense before she died. It was easy and for some reason she felt excitement and joy from the events. "Like hell we will!" The large man shouted and proceeded to pick up the dagger with his other hand. Blood gushed from the stub an yet he ignored it. A small voice cried out from the back of her mind telling her to kill. She more than obliged as the man attempted to stab her; she side stepped and planted the blade deep into his chest. His body became limp.

He was heavy and it was slightly difficult to get him off her sword, but she had to. The other two were closing in on her and sought vengeance for their now slain boss. So with some effort she managed to push him away and as his body fell her sword came out. The first to reach her was unarmed, but the second behind him had found a piece of lumber and was using it as club. The first lack to reach her realized his opportunity was gone as the blade cleared his bosses body she swung in one motion immediately from clearing his body. Giving him no time to even fall back. He was unarmed, but his reaction still told him to try and block with his arm. It didn't work as her sword cleaved straight through and into his neck. He collapsed to the ground while gargling blood.

All that was left now was the one holding a wooden stick for all she cared. Her heart fluttered with delight as the man fell to the ground. She smiled and almost giggled in delight as her gaze shifted to the last of the three. "C'mon, give me a bit more fun. You dumb asses initiated this! At least make it more fun!" She said with malice. Her mouth almost grinned ear to ear as she began to move towards the last. "N-no! Wait!" He said as he attempted to block with the piece of wood. It failed. The wood couldn't stand up to a well sharpened blade and wasn't even that thick for a piece of wood. So the blade cut clean through and into the man's shoulder where the blade stuck. "Tsk. Not strong enough. You're a waste of life. Picking on an unknown stranger who only asked for help!" She shouted with a smile never leaving her lips and proceeded to pull the blade out of bone.  The man screamed in pain. "Stop! Don't kill me please!" The man begged and began to turn to run. As he did he slipped and fell to his knees. "No mercy for a fool." She plunged her blade into his back with no remorse.

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Reality snapped back. Her gaze shifted to the limp body before her. This person was no longer alive and she felt no remorse for his passing. "Wait." She thought as that thought crossed her mind. "We're not even alive are we? So what happens when you die after you've already died?" She pondered as she cleaned her sword on the body before her. After she sheathed her sword she looked around the area to see if anyone saw the carnage that unfolded. Whether it was her luck or possibly bad luck- There was no one. She was still confused and as lost to as she was before the fight. The only information she received was that there were still punks like this in the afterlife. "Nothing better to do, but head in deeper."

 After walking awhile she began to notice more and more people, but most of them were in their homes or out of the way. Finally she ran into someone she decided to talk to. He was a slender old man. His hair ash grey and his skin wrinkled from the years. His skin was tan from being in the sunlight and he seemed to almost radiate wisdom or at least that's what she hoped for. She approached him and cleared her throat. "E-excuse me." She said nervously. She wasn't a fan of talking to strangers if it could be helped and preferred to be drowning out the sounds of the world with headphones.

The man turned towards her and it seemed as if his bones were rusted over with how he turned. "Oh-ho-ho-ho..." He trailed on with the absurd oh ho's. "So much for that aura of wisdom." She thought to herself. "Yes? How may I help you?" He inquired with a puzzled look on his face. "Ah-Um- Yeah." Brief moment of silence as she wracked her brain for what she wanted to ask. "Uhh... I guess I'll start with the basics. What is this place? I think I..." She trailed off as the events still laid fresh in her mind. "I died." She finished. The old man grinned, but it wasn't bad. It was a grin of warmth. "My dear. This is Soul Society. The place where spirits that have no sinned go to. Here you have no worries and can live as you like!" He was trying to make her feel better about the situation,  but was failing. It had only confirmed her death. She left such an incomplete life behind. So much she'll never be able to do.

The old man's gaze shifted over to the sword in her left hand and his eyes widened. "That sword!" He said with a slight tone of disbelief. "You're a Shinigami?" He asked. Her gaze followed his to her sword. "Oh, this? When I woke up it was next to me." She declared to the man. "Wait a moment. That man who sent me here was a Shinigami. Is this what the sword represents? Shinigami?" She tossed the thought in her head. After all the group she killed in self-defense said something similiar. Apparently have a sword like this marks you as a Shinigami. Her stomach growled. "Ahaha, sorry. I've not had anything to eat in awhile and I don't even know what a Shinigami is really." She said with a laugh. "Really?" He said with a slight tone of disbelief and seemed to be thinking for a moment. "If that's the case all I can say is head towards the middle of this place. There will be several white buildings. The question you have will be answered more fully there." He said ominously and pointed inwards. "So much for getting help from him and now I got to worry about food." She thought as she thanked the old man for what little help he was and went on her way.

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