InuYasha Fan Fiction / Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Not Your Normal 9 to 5 ❯ First Encounters ( Chapter 4 )

Chapter 4: First Encounters

 

“We know so far that the well does contain some kind of temporal passage through time and that its 100% more stable then a time machine. While I don't advise doing anything that could screw up the present as we know it, the split timeline theory we were advised about by our last time travel guest shouldn't take effect here,” the recorded visage of Bulma spoke out to Lennex and his audience.

 

Kagome and Inuyasha had returned almost a day and a half later with the small compact video device Bulma gave them. Apparently Bulma trusted his new friends without his confirmation. He wondered what had transpired in his own time but accepted the small device. Lennex started it up immediately upon receiving it and his new friends from the past had crowded around him to see the `magic talking box' in action.

 

“We did find traces of a plastic charge along with a hardened substance that we conclude to be the XO material. We have taken back to CapCorp to analyze it. From what your new friends say, the portal allows only them to pass through it at will, so we are thinking that something with the XO allowed you to go through. Were not entirely sure why it allowed you, if it even was the cause, but that's the theory I'm leaning towards.”

 

Lennex worked it through his mind. From everything Kagome had told him about passing through the well for the last few years; it had to be some type of variable he himself had brought with him. And the XO theory sounded very plausible.

 

“From what Kagome also told us, you were injured in the blast. We were a bit shocked to hear that.” At this point he saw Kagome frown a little bit. The rest had no idea what a plastic explosive really was, but her being from his time he was sure she did. And Bulma's comment about being surprised to find he was injured probably confused her. Bulma's voice continued.

 

“We hope you were not too badly hurt as we don't have anything to send back to you to help out your injuries. It is out of season for our normal herbal remedy.” Lennex's lip twitched in amusement; while the rest wouldn't have a clue what Bulma was talking about he got the message crystal clear. Korin, the walking talking cat deity that lived at the top of his namesake's tower was out of the healing Senzu beans, beans that, once eaten, would heal any injury no matter how severe, and also replenish ones energy.

 

“Furthermore, due to your new friend's excellent nose, we came clean about you being what you are.” This caused a small surge of adrenaline to go through his system but after a moments thought, realized this was probably what had allowed Bulma to trust them so readily. “But only in name and origin, nothing else that goes along with being a Sayjin. I also gave Kagome a pill box with some capsules in them. Nothing fancy, just some food stuffs. I would hate to see you eat your past hosts out of house and home. Be careful while you're there. I told Kagome to come back and check with us in a week's time. Hopefully, we will have some more information on how to get you home, even if I have to turn Hope into a reality.”

 

Lennex smiled once again. While the rest considered the last phrase the miniature Bulma had spoke words of consolement, he knew she was talking about the time machine her son's future counterpart had used to go back in time to warn them of his future's bleak existence. The Hope was something Bulma had wanted to create for a long time, but with a final message from the future's Trunks, she knew that the machine was dangerous. He had come back with a mission of stopping a holocaust from ever happening. Instead, by saving the present's timeline from the bloody massacre of the androids, he created a split in time at that point. One line was the one Lennex lived in, where Goku and friends had stopped the androids; the other was that in which the future Trunks lived, where the androids had killed everyone that he cared about, and then proceeded to lay waste to the entire world.

 

After hearing that, Bulma didn't want to risk building her own time machine and split reality again. However, this didn't stop her from working on theories on building it; she just never did complete any of her calculations so they wouldn't fall into the wrong hands. That she would speak of completing her side project for him did warm his heart a little. He shut off the viewer and looked to his newfound friends. While Inuyasha and Kagome didn't look quite as puzzled, the other three had confusion written all over their faces. Shippo was the first to ask the question on everyone's mind.

 

“What exactly is a Sayjin?” he asked from atop Sango's left shoulder. On the opposite shoulder sat Sango's demon familiar, Kirara. The small form of Kirara mewed softly as if to follow up Shippo's question.

 

“Well why don't I let Kagome tell you? I'm not too good at story telling and I'm sure Bulma gave them a very nice and simple explanation.”

 

He knew by the look Kagome and Inuyasha gave him that they saw right through his excuse. They knew he wanted them to speak of it so he would know exactly what was said in the future. And after their brief explanation, he knew what Bulma had said was on the money. They knew he was a human turned alien and that was it. He pulled out the pill box that Kagome had given him and looked through the capsules.

 

“Tell you what,” he said selecting a capsule, “why don't we have some lunch, my treat, and I'll try to fill you in on what I can.”

 

The group from the past nodded their heads in agreement only to back peddle as quickly as they could when Lennex threw the capsule. After the small popping noise and the smoke had cleared, a large refrigeration box stood where he had thrown the capsule, packed full of food. Lennex looked at the wary faces of his new friends. “Perhaps I should start by telling you guys what the company I work for is famous for creating.” They could only nod in reply.

 

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

 

The smoke that billowed out from the huts of the small village hung in the sky like a black cloud. People ran this way and that to escape the madness that had consumed their quiet home. Men, women, and children alike screamed in terror as a few lesser-demons walked the paths marking quaint little streets of the village, but the real terror was the one that hovered in the sky. He yelled and screamed at the villagers to produce the shard of the Shikon jewel; when they didn't know what to do because they didn't know of any shard of the legendary jewel being there, he rained a destructive energy into their wooden homes. Those unfortunate enough to be caught in the purplish black blasts from the man's hands were incinerated in an instant. The impacts of this wild energy sounded like lightning striking the earth, and the effects were just as awful. Craters littered the ground where it was struck by the flying devil, for he had to be a devil because no man could do this, and the wood of the huts started aflame when the energy hit or just came close. Those that got a look at the `devil' saw the once kind face of the young martial artist who lived by himself to the south. Some who recognized him tried to plead with him but were quickly turned to ash for their trouble. Then the demons had come, adding to their already catastrophic problem. Although there was no time for talking with each other, the villagers all had the same thought running through their head; they wouldn't be alive long enough to see the next sunset.

 

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

 

Naraku and Hakadoshi stood on a small hill just outside the burning village, watching the carnage unfold. While the villagers slept the previous evening, they had sent the Saimyoushou, the giant demon wasps, into the village to plant a shard of the jewel in the unsuspecting village. He would be able to lead Kalin to the `hidden' shard through the bond he now shared with the martial artist through the shards already embedded into his body. Some of the kindness still lingered in Kalin's mind, but the exhilaration of using his newfound power and the promise of more quickly banished the feelings of remorse for the destruction caused by his hands. It also made controlling him that much easier for Naraku.

 

“His power is quiet spectacular,” Hakadoshi spoke from beside Naraku. “He seems to be on par with a middle class demon; it's amazing what a human can do with their own energies.”

 

“This is precisely why I sought him out. I will use this `master' to destroy our enemies, and then when all is over we will kill him. He would have eventually come into these abilities on his own and the last thing I want is these pathetic humans gaining power equal to a demon.”

 

Hakadoshi sneered and looked at Naraku. “You can't tell me you would be afraid of a human with this little amount of power. I said middle class demons, not demons of our caliber. I would think you were afraid of humans.” The smile quickly left Hakadoshi's face as a pain erupted in his heart. He clawed at his chest as the pain quickly dropped him to his knees.

 

“Remember, Hakadoshi, that you are my detachment, and while I grant you more leeway then I do Kagura or the rest, your insolence will not be tolerated.” The pain eased up and Hakadoshi looked up into Naraku's face. There was no malice or anger, only the promise of more pain should he not obey. Naraku looked off towards the village again. “Besides, I didn't say I was afraid of the humans, but imagine this, what if the Monk or the demon exterminator that run with Inuyasha were able to tap into this kind of power. It's bad enough having to deal with the demons that are hunting us, but if their human companions gained this kind of power, our goals would be that much harder to obtain.”

 

Hakadoshi had to admit that Naraku had a point. While crafty and already powerful in their own right, if they were to gain this type of power to combat them with…he didn't want to think about it. As Naraku said, they were already enough trouble as it was. He picked himself up off the ground and resumed watching the massacre of the village.

 

“What is our next step?” he asked. Naraku smiled and replied, “The next step is to let Inuyasha and friends in on our newest weapon. They will try to collect the rest of the shards that we have hidden for Kalin to find. They will fight and fight and fight some more to stop the rampage we will cause. And then once Kalin obtains the last shard we have put out there, we will watch as he destroys everything Inuyasha holds dear, and then we shall destroy him.”

 

Silent eyes watched the village as flashes of light and sounds of thunder reached their senses. The screams of the humans still rung out in the air, but Naraku and Hakadoshi both realized that the cries were fewer then before. Soon there would be no one left to scream.

 

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

 

Lunch had been an interesting affair. After Lennex had finally convinced his new friends that the food that appeared out of the capsule was safe to eat, he had tried to explain the modern marvel of encapsulation. After the first fifteen minutes of dull nods and confused looks, he finally went with the story that, in his time, people could shrink things really really small and keep them for later. This seemed to please everyone and they proceeded to eat lunch. Of course a second round of explanations was needed after Lennex ate enough food for a dozen people in record time. He explained that a Sayjin's metabolism worked a lot different from humans, and when they ate, they ate quite a bit. As they talked more about their adventures, Lennex observed his hosts with a critical eye. While Inuyasha was gruff and fierce to most, Lennex could see that he would defend any of his group to the death.

 

Kagome was just as loyal to her friends, but the exact opposite of Inuyasha. She was very kind and considerate to everyone, and he could tell that she put herself last and everyone else first. An enduring quality, but one he was sure that got her in trouble. He also saw that she held feelings for Inuyasha. He noticed it in all the small gestures and mannerisms she used towards him. He wondered if the half demon was aware of them.

 

Upon completion of lunch he learned that in addition to being defenders of humanity in their own way, Miroku and Sango also possessed keen intellects for people of the past. While his capsules were beyond them, some of the theories they had brought to the table about life made Lennex think he was perhaps sitting with two great philosophers. He would have to check when he got back to his time to see if these two were in fact people of importance in the history books.

 

Shippo was everything a child was supposed to be. He was cute, not afraid to speak his mind, and due to the people around him, knew that standing for everything that was good in the world was the right thing to do. Lennex liked the kit for this reason, but also for the fact that he could see something in Shippo's eyes, the will of a warrior. He noticed the rest tried to somewhat shelter the kit, to give him the childhood he so deserved. While he agreed that the kit should enjoy life as a child right now, he also considered it a bit foolish not to teach the young demon how to use more of his power. From the stories he had heard it sounded to him as if besides Shippo's illusionary magic, he also held some energy manipulation techniques. The story of how his father's spirit had erected a shield of energy to protect Kagome and Shippo from his father's murderers, the Thunder Brothers, gave credit to his thoughts.

 

After lunch was finished, the group went about their own ways, Inuyasha leaving to be alone. He watched the young half demon perch himself on top of Kaede's hut, reclined against the roof, hands behind his head and one leg propped on the other leg's knee. Lennex questioned why Inuyasha distanced himself but was reassured that while the words were harsh, one of Inuyasha's guilty pleasures was to relax and bask in the sun after a good meal.

 

Kagome and Sango announced that while Inuyasha had `alone time' they were going to the small spring just outside the village to soak. They walked down the path, Shippo behind them because, as he claimed, he never missed a chance to go swimming with the girls. Miroku also started to follow the girls to their impromptu bath, but Lennex decided to have mercy on them and headed the ensuing conflict off.

 

“Miroku, why don't we finish that little tour of the village we started? If this is to be my vacation spot for the next few days, I'd kind of like to meet the rest of my hosts.”

 

Miroku glanced at the boy from the future and then looked longingly at the disappearing backs of Sango and Kagome. Since he was a monk and in the service of Buddha he was charged with helping those in need. While he most of the time put off his monk-ly duties, he knew that this was one of those times he couldn't not turn his back.

 

He also was sure he knew why Lennex had the sudden interest in seeing the village and meeting the villagers, but in the case there was some actual sincerity to the request……

 

He turned back to Lennex with a smile and motioned with one arm to the path through the village. His other arm carried his staff as they began to walk, the rings bringing a musical accompaniment to the small journey. Miroku turned his head slightly to the point of disappearance of the two women and sighed. How he too had wanted to take in the sites.

 

0-0-0-0-0-0

 

Hours later, as the day progressed, and the sun started its lazy descent into the western horizon, the group had gathered again outside Kaede's hut. Inuyasha was once again perched on the roof silently taking vigil over the rest. Early, during Miroku and Lennex's walk through the village, they had spied Inuyasha helping some of the men build a new hut for a young newlywed couple. Miroku explained that while he sometimes felt like an outcast, the village had nothing but respect for the young half demon that had saved their village numerous times. After the girls had returned from their swim, both with smiles of thanks to Lennex, for they knew that their uninterrupted time was due to him, they had helped the women of the village with the crops and other duties. Now Sango sat in front of the hut, a sharpening stone in one hand and the other holding steady her giant weapon, Hiraikotsu, as she slid the stone down the edge. Lennex couldn't fathom this young girl wielding the cumbersome weapon, but was assured she did it with ease and skill. Kaede was joined by Kagome near the entrance to the hut, separating herbs and making ready the ones that had to be crushed. It was a duty that Kagome seemed to enjoy, for she liked to make sure people had medicine to help them when they needed it.

 

Miroku sat on the other side of the women, sitting cross legged, and hands resting on his knees. One of the ways to enlightenment was in meditation and he was currently engaged in that exercise. To the other's surprise, Lennex had joined him and adopted the same position Lennex hid a smile when he noticed their surprise. Spend some time with his master and friend Piccolo, he thought, and see if you don't pick up meditation as a hobby.

 

While Miroku looked for enlightenment, Lennex looked to align his Ki. His body was still stiff and sore, and raising his energy was still virtually impossible. When he tried channeling his power to raise it, he was hit was a wave of fatigue, like he had been fighting for hours. He couldn't wait to get back to the future and modern medicine, or at the very least, a regeneration tank for a few hours.

 

The last two of their group, Kirara and Shippo, ran up and down the dirt street of the village playing some game with the other village children. A small smile did form on Lennex's lips this time. This was indeed, not a bad place for a vacation.

 

Unfortunately, just as the sun was starting to disappear, his vacation went sour. He heard Inuyasha on the roof take a couple deep sniffs and heard him shuffle to the edge of the roof. Lennex opened his eyes and looked at the half demon. He noticed his body was tense and rigid, poised for action. The rest noticed too, and from years of traveling together, they recognized Inuyasha's behavior and made themselves ready.

 

But for what?

 

The answer came in the form of a shout from one of the village sentries. Kaede, being the head priestess of the town, was always called on to help with defense of the village, which was why a young man ran to her to explain the cry of alarm.

 

“Lady Kaede! There is a man approaching on horse. He is being followed by three demons!” That was all it took to spur them into action. Inuyasha leapt from the roof and headed for the village perimeter. Lennex noticed Kirara transform into the larger cat form; her feet now blazed in fire and her twin tails twitched with anticipation. She was easily the size of the largest lions or panthers of the world. He did a double take as Sango shucked the traveling Kimono she wore and revealed the cat suit and armor of her family and village's trade—the outfit of a demon slayer. She quickly shouldered the bone boomerang that she was earlier sharpening and quickly straddled Kirara's back. When her master was firmly seated, the demon cat leapt into the air to follow after Inuyasha.

 

Miroku grabbed his staff and took off at a dead run after his two friends. The departures all lasted about five seconds total. While a little slower then the three seasoned warriors, Kagome and Kaede both grabbed their respective bows and quivers and started after them, Shippo bounding along in their wake. This was one time he definitely wished he could summon his energy. While he got meditation from Piccolo, the desire to help those in need came straight from his other master and friend, Goku. He followed the rest as quick as he could anyway.

 

When he finally caught up to Kaede, Kagome, and Shippo, the man on horse had made it to their position. Lennex could see the exhaustion on both man and beast. The rider quickly slipped off the horse and crumbled before Kaede, words that his village had been decimated by a monster quickly leaving his lips. Lennex, however, only paid partial attention; he was more enraptured by the scene before him. The demons pursuing the man had stopped to take in the new obstacles in their way. Inuyasha stood in the middle, hands clutching his sword which, out of the scabbard, had quadrupled in size. Lennex felt an aura of power radiating from the weapon. On his left stood Miroku, his staff held with both hands at an offensive angle in front of his body. To Inuyasha's right, Sango still sat atop Kirara, eyeing the opposition. What faced them were three creatures Lennex had never seen before. He could definitely tell they were demons, not just from the power he was sensing from them, but because they looked exactly how he had imagined they would.

 

One was something that looked akin to a crow, only four times as large, and while still smaller then Kirara, it was still formidable. It had three red eyes in its forehead and its talons looked razor sharp. The crow demon flapped its wings to put some more altitude between it and its enemies. It appeared as if the crow was going to live to fight another day, as it rose some more in lazy circles.

 

The other two, however, decided to chance it. One was a demon with lupine form and it zeroed in on Inuyasha. It was large and its mouth split three different ways to emit a howl of attack. Inuyasha met it head on. The other demon was a larger-than-life centipede. Longer then a bus, it slithered with an unnatural quickness that its size boasted it couldn't possibly have. It moved like a snake, slithering this way and that and raising itself to pounce on Miroku's position. The monk jumped to his left, swinging his staff one handed back at the body of the centipede, the razor edges of the top slicing into the demon.

 

Sango quickly spied the crow demon as it continued its departure, and went to Miroku's aid. Lennex watched as she reared her arm back, and with a mighty shout threw her weapon. The boomerang flew through the air, impacting with the centipede's body. A large cut formed towards the rear end of the demon and it bellowed in pain. It turned to Sango and opened its mouth; a spray of acid erupted forth. Had it not been for Kirara's superiority in the air and quick maneuvering, Sango wouldn't have been around to catch the return of her weapon. With the centipede's attention on Sango, Miroku reached into his robes and removed some slips of paper with some kanji on them. He took aim and threw the papers and the demon. The sacred sutras glowed a pale blue and flew like darts until they impacted the demon, a blue aura surrounding the centipede and a crackling of spiritual energy coursed over the demons body. It screamed in pain and started to twitch and wither on the ground trying to remove the sacred sutures. The centipede managed to rip the offending slips of paper from its body; however the damage had already been done. Its body had been weakened and this time the throw of the Hiraikotsu did more then cut, it severed, passing through the demon's body at the midsection. As the top half fell to the ground, the return of the boomerang passed through what would be the neck, severing the head. Miroku walked up to the body and planted his staff in the ground. He then took his now free hand and unwrapped the beads surrounding his cursed hand.

 

Lennex watched in awe as the beads came off and a swirling vortex grabbed up the broken body and anything else that wasn't firmly planted in the ground. The pieces of demon, loose dirt, grass and other things flew into the monk's hand, entering a void of nothingness. When Miroku was satisfied that the body had been completely taken in, he wrapped the beads quickly around his hand, silencing the curse known as the Wind Tunnel.

 

Both combatants looked to their third comrade. Inuyasha was definitely stronger than the lupine demon, but the thing was undeniably faster. Every time Inuyasha swung the Tetsusaiga for a killing blow it would dodge and then try to rip out Inuyasha throat, Inuyasha dodging just in time. It had been a back and forth struggle during the entire centipede battle but Inuyasha finally saw his opening. He swung the sword from right shoulder to left hip, over extending as he went. The demon leapt out of the way as the swing presented Inuyasha's back to it. It leapt in, its animalistic instincts crying for the blood that was about to spill. However, Inuyasha continued his turn, his arm lashing out and backhanding the demon right across the face.

 

The demon flew in a lazy arc and impacted with the ground, its bell had clearly been rung. It rose to unsteady feet and shook its head. It was all the time Inuyasha needed. He raised his sword over his head and with a mighty cry of “Wind Scar” brought the blade crashing to the ground. When it impacted, Lennex felt the power of the sword spike as five tendrils of energy shot forth, ripping up the ground in tracks as they went. The energy hit the demon and killed it on the spot.

 

Lennex looked on impressed, while not as powerful as a Kamehameha or Final Flash; it was certainly as strong, if not stronger, than a normal energy blast. Inuyasha picked up his sword and rested it on his shoulder turning with a smirk to the onlookers. That's when a shrill cry echoed from above.

 

Inuyasha half turned and cursed himself. The crow demon that he had though had left had just taken air to do what it was doing now. It had dived for him from a high altitude, poised to strike, and while the blow wouldn't kill him, he knew it was definitely going to hurt, and he wasn't going to be able to avoid it in time.

 

The next thing everyone saw was a pink projectile flying overhead, impacting the crow before it could get to Inuyasha. Inside the aura of pink, Lennex could make out and arrow. When it hit the crow, the demon screeched out in pain as it was instantly purified. Nothing was left of it when the bright pink light of the arrow's impact subsided. Lennex looked over and saw Kagome, bow raised with one hand as the other slowly lowered from its position of releasing the arrow. He heard Kaede's compliment of improvement in her archery skills. Inuyasha sheathed his sword and headed back towards the group of villagers that had gathered to watch the battle, thankful that Kagome had hit the mark. A year ago he would have been deathly afraid that the arrow meant for his enemy would have just as much chance of hitting him. She had indeed improved.

 

The man they had saved was still going on about how his village was destroyed and that he was the only one who had escaped when the second surprise of the now waning day presented itself. During the battle the sun had almost set, casting everything in twilight colors. The purplish black aura that screamed across the sky could have almost been mistaken for light brought on by the setting Sun, except for the fact that it moved straight for them.

 

When it stopped midair above the gathered group, they all looked up in surprise and awe, for it was a man that hovered in the air above them. After stopping, the aura had disappeared leaving a clear view him in the darkening sky. The only one who wasn't surprised was Lennex. For this was something he was indeed familiar with. For the sake of it, Lennex tried to raise his power again and met with the same resulting failure. He couldn't get his body to cooperate. The man in the air looked around and spotted the man that had come to the village.

 

“You thought you could escape the fate the rest of your worthless village endured. You are mistaken,” he spoke. His voice rang out, an iron determination lacing his words.

 

The man cried out in fear even as Inuyasha was about to deliver a retort and pushed past the red clad half demon racing for his horse and leaving the protection of the village guardians. Lennex saw the man in the air raise his arm in an all too familiar pose. Before the man could reach his horse, a beam of light lanced out from the open palm of the airborne stranger. The beam passed through the man's back and out his chest. When the beam ceased its existence, the man had a hole in his chest the size of a fist. He was dead but the last few impulses left over kept the body upright for a few seconds more before it collapsed to the ground.

 

The man in the air sneered at the group below him and spoke again.

“Feel lucky that you and your village never crossed me, the mighty master Kalin. Since you have not crossed me, nor do you possess any shards of the sacred jewel, I will leave you to your pathetic lives.” He turned in the air and rocketed off, leaving everyone to gape after him. Lennex felt the adrenaline leave his body. If asked, and he had been honest he would have expressed that he was a bit afraid at that moment. Without his power, he wasn't sure if his new friends would have been up to the task of taking out someone with Ki manipulation abilities.

 

He looked at the group and saw Kagome conferring with Inuyasha. He heard the words sacred jewel shards again coming from her mouth and walked over to get in on the conversation.

 

“He had about seven of them embedded in his chest; they were tainted though, extremely evil, like the ones Naraku has possession of. One thing's for certain, he can't sense the shards like I can or he would have noticed the two I have.” Inuyasha nodded his agreement and Lennex was about to ask a question when the third surprise of the now-gone day occurred.

 

“You are correct, my dear priestess, A very astute observation. Now allow me to fill you in on the details you don't possess,” a voice called off from the distance. As the mystery man had appeared, killed, and departed, the sun had set and the moon had begun its journey across the sky. A beam from the newly risen moon hit the ground on the outskirts of the village, illuminating a man dressed in the pelt of a baboon.

 

Lennex watched a drastic change come over his friends. Inuyasha quickly ripped the Tetsusaiga from its sheath, transforming the sword in draw. He brought it out in front of him in a two handed grip, blade tip pointing to the sky and the edge towards the man. Almost as quickly everyone else had their weapons poised for attack, and a deadly seriousness was on their faces, even Shippo's. The expression had not been there during the demon attack nor at the arrival of the mysterious Kalin. It was this fact that Lennex deduced the identity of this new person.

 

Naraku.