InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Light in Guiding Darkness ❯ Breaking Out, Breaking In, and Breaking Through ( Chapter 2 )

_Chapter Two: Breaking Out, Breaking In and Breaking Through_

Kagome woke early the next morning, sighing softly before opening her eyes. The sunlight sparkled on the wood around her, and the songs of birds fluttered through the air. 'What a beautiful morning,' Kagome thought to herself as she began to untie herself. She set to work on the knot around her right hand, then the left before beginning her climb down.

She used the leather strap as an anchor and slowly slid down the bark of the tree, stepping over various branches and tree limbs before jumping to the ground below. Kagome giggled when her stomach grumbled, pausing to pat the insistent beast with a smile.

"Yeah yeah," Kagome whispered to herself as she returned the strap to her waist. "We could stop and get some of the stuff from my pack, but I'd rather have Mom's breakfast. I wonder what she's cooking." She set off toward the village, humming a happy tune to herself as she lazily swung her arms back and forth.

Kagome sneezed suddenly, the sudden faint smell of something burning irritating her nose. 'The blacksmith must have set the shed on fire again,' she thought with a shake of her head. 'I'm sure his wife isn't pleased about that. This will be the fourth time this month.' The closer she came to the village, the stronger the smell became until Kagome had no choice but to cover her nose with her sleeve. She quickened her pace, darting through the trees as tendrils of smoke finally appeared in the air above her.

Kagome burst through the trees and jerked to a stop, her eyes wide and unbelieving at the sight before her. The wheat field outside the village, the same one she passed through last night, was nothing more than blackened earth and ash. Kagome ventured forth slowly and cautiously, her eyes sweeping over the destruction around her. Fields that were waiting patiently for the last winter frost to begin their lives were nothing more than soot, the skeletons of wretched animals unable to escape bleaching in the morning sun.

Kagome passed the shrine first, the building knocked on its side before noticing that a small part of the blacksmith's shop was still ablaze. She passed it to her house, finding nothing but the burned frame creaking in the breeze. "Mother," Kagome called out as she continued toward the front of the village. "Mother! Anyone! Is anyone here?"

Kagome jumped back, a hand flying to her heart as one of the rooftops of the decimated houses around her caved in. Dust shot from the door to the outside, with some spraying in Kagome's face. She gagged instinctively, frantically waving her hand about her as the dust settled. She turned back to the house, her gags stopping in her throat. There in the threshold of the house, beneath the rubble that once was the roof, lay the tiny, bloody hand of a child, one Kagome was positive she knew and loved like a sibling.

"No," she moaned despondently, reaching out for the tiny fingers before running away. Her hand covered her mouth and nose, the smell of burning wood and flesh turning her stomach. She stumbled blindly through the village square, her eyes squeezed shut to the rivers of blood that flowed from the fountain in the center and the silent screams of the deceased around her.

Kagome fell through the village gates, looked up and paled in the rising sun.

"Mother…"

She hung impaled to the side of the gates, the wooden shaft disappearing underneath her skirts and the tip reappearing through her right shoulder. She stared down at Kagome, her empty eye sockets glistening wetly as tracks of blood tears streaming down her face.

Kagome closed her eyes and screamed.

*

He was blind to it all, refusing to give the little creatures dancing around him the satisfaction.

They would never see him beaten.

He would never cry out.

In the beginning he spat curses at them, promising the hellions retribution of the highest order. Of death beyond death. He would bathe in their blood, dance on their corpses…well, if he did dance.

Is it no wonder they laughed at him?

Now he stood quietly, no longer yanking at the chains at his wrist, ankles and neck. What was the point? He would never be free. If he had to suffer this indignity for eternity, then he would do it with honor.

The little creatures were in rare form on this day, one holding his chin forward while the others jabbed something hot and sharp into his sides. They cackled merrily around him, none of them aware that they're intended had escaped to some solitary region of his mind. He no longer felt the pokes and prods of the pitchforks, nor the slashes of the whip as it tore at his skin.

His mind lingered in happier days; days spent with his beloved mother, her brilliant smile dancing just beyond his reach. So far gone was he that he didn't notice the laughter turn to startled squawks around him, the sound of something heavy and wooden connecting rather forcibly to something wet, yet solid. He still did not notice when the squawks turned to horrified screams, little hoofed feet scampering away as the chains around his ankles loosened. The ones on his wrist and neck followed suit, then completely evaporated into nothing.

He slumped over something, his nude body draped over the mid-calf creature like a tablecloth. His limbs dragged the gravelly earth as the being began to move. His claws sparked on the rocks, the tiny embers dancing around them as the creature carrying him struck another devil.

He felt himself being lowered gently, slowly to the ground, his back leaning against a wall behind him.

"My lord," the creature croaked worriedly. He blinked, then blinked again, the only thing in his cloudy golden eyes was what seemed to be a green and brown blob.

'My my,' he said to himself. 'The creatures of this place are more hideous than I originally thought.'

"My lord it's me! Your loyal servant!" the creature insisted. His head tilted to the side, then blinked repeatedly to clear his vision. The blob began to take shape, becoming a creature with a small green beak, large yellow eyes, and a black hat. "Don't you remember me my lord?"

He frowned thoughtfully, then sat up. "Jaken."

Jaken grinned happily, the webbed hand that tightly fisted the Staff of Heads loosening upon his name. "It pleases this old youkai to see you Sesshoumaru-sama. I've brought you something." He held up a spool of black cloth, sighing unhappily at Sesshoumaru's blank stare. "It's all that I could find. It seems that one must make his own clothes to survive here."

"It is a little concern," Sesshoumaru assured him coldly as he rose to his feet. He glared at himself, frowning at the grease and grime that covered him from head to toe. He reactivated the spells that kept him clean in the living world, watching as the muck rolled down his hair and limbs to fall to the ground in fat murky plops before Sesshoumaru was finally clean. He reached for the spool of cloth, taking a moment to rip a strip for a loincloth before wrapping the rest around himself.

Sesshoumaru whispered to the spirit of the fabric, awakening it and bending it to his will. The hanging folds of cloth soon took the form and shape of a pair of un-hakamas and haori, with a small bit of white where the spool ended becoming a sash around his waist.

Jaken passed him a pair of toed socks and sandals next, waiting patiently until Sesshoumaru was fully dressed before leading the way through the passage before them.

"What has happened?" Sesshoumaru asked as he looked at the red landscape around him. Jaken sighed unhappily. "I am not sure my lord. Five centuries have passed since our demise."

'That long…' Sesshoumaru mused as he and Jaken crossed a ravine. 'Then there is much I must find out about.' "Who set me free?" he asked, becoming swiftly irritated when Jaken shrugged.

"Myouga the flea is finding that out for me," Jaken answered quickly. "We're going to meet him now."

"Myouga the flea is here!" shouted a tiny dot on Jaken's shoulder. He leapt from Jaken to Sesshoumaru, scurrying up Sesshoumaru's sleeve to sit on the taiyoukai's nose. "And I have news for you Sesshoumaru-sama."

"What are you doing here Myouga?" Sesshoumaru asked. "Are you not supposed to be with Inuyasha?"

Myouga sighed sadly, his bulbous head hanging in shame. "Inuyasha-sama…ended my services."

Jaken's eyes widened in shock, with only a lordly snort from Sesshoumaru. "So, not only did he betray his race, he executed his vassal without just cause. Truly the hanyou knows no honor. What is this 'news'?"

"That is another word for information," Myouga answered. "And the information I have is important."

"Speak, old flea!" Jaken ordered hastily. "Sesshoumaru-sama doesn't have time to sit and wait for you're antics!"

"Jaken, that is enough," Sesshoumaru growled softly. "Myouga?"

"Yes my lord. My information. It would seem that someone on the surface freed you."

"Inuyasha's wench," Sesshoumaru guessed, then quieted when Myouga shook his head. "I don't believe it was her Sesshoumaru-sama."

"You don't know for sure?" Jaken cried in outrage. Myouga scratched his head with one of his many hands and sighed.

"I don't, but there are rumors of someone that does."

"Who?" Sesshoumaru inquired. "And where is he?"

"She," Myouga corrected. "Is who the others around here call the White Witch. She live-"

"Oh no!" Jaken protested. "We're not going to see her! She'd never help us!"

"And why not?" Sesshoumaru asked. "Is there something I should know?"

"It's nothing my lord," Myouga said. "Just that the White Witch can be difficult at times. Jaken is overreacting."

"I am not overreacting!" Jaken countered. "That wench is trouble!"

"But she is the only one with a Mirror!" Myouga fired back. "So unless you have another idea-"

Sesshoumaru cleared his throat, and was instantly rewarded with them cowering before him. "What is this mirror?"

"It's a way to see both this world and the living world," Myouga answered from his new position on Jaken's shoulder. He jumped back to Sesshoumaru's shoulder, then his hand while Sesshoumaru raised him to his face. "She would be the most likely person to see, since someone from the living world set you free."

"Very well," Sesshoumaru decided after a moment of thought. "How do we find this 'White Witch'?"

"The river Styx," Jaken answered helpfully. "It is this way my lord." Jaken waddled down the darkened tunnel with Sesshoumaru and Myouga following close behind.

*

Mid afternoon found Kagome well at work, having fallen into her miko duties by instinct. She searched through the rubble of each house for survivors, only to drag the bodies of those she knew and loved toward the fountain at the village square. Her village wasn't big, but it wasn't small either, so it was well in the afternoon when she finally found the last person.

Kagome dragged the elderly body of her mentor from the remains of the shrine, silently praying for her as she had the others as she heaved the miko to the square. Kagome placed the woman's body on the pile of others, then turned toward the direction she dreaded.

The village gate.

Kagome stepped out slowly, mentally steeling herself as she grasped the end of the pole and hauled herself up. She closed her eyes, her cries soft on the warm breeze when her fingers began slipping on the pole. Kagome grasped the pole tighter, never daring to open her eyes to see what it was she was slipping in. She gasped when her fingers touched the helm of her mother's dress, her eyes finally snapping open as she grasped it tighter.

Kagome climbed a little higher, making it a point to not look in her mother's ruined face. She wrapped her arms around her waist and tugged upward, her empty stomach flip-flopping at the squelching sound as she raised her body from the pole. Kagome tugged twice more, then tugged again when she lost her balance. She fell backward in a panic, her fingers futilely grasping whatever they could to stop her fall.

Kagome hit the ground hard, her back colliding with the earth beneath her as her mother's body fell on top of her. Kagome lay completely still, struggling to catch the breathe that fled her lungs upon impact while blood soaked her clothes. Kagome opened her eyes and choked on her scream as she once again found herself staring into what used to be her mother's eyes.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered as she slowly sat up and grasped her around her shoulders. She dragged her away from the gate, going toward a hole she dug previously near it. She lowered her mother inside, then grasped the shovel in a mound nearest her and began to fill it. "I should have been here. I should never have left."

Kagome finally filled the shallow grave, taking a moment to use an extra set of rosaries from the shrine and a few pieces of wood as a grave marker. She then returned to the village and the fountain, reached inside her backpack for a container and opened it. She sprinkled the little white flowers inside on the ground around the fountain, prayers for the dead spilling from her lips before grasping the little piece of wood that still burned from the blacksmith's shop.

"I know this isn't as good as being buried," Kagome said while she lit the pile of wood beneath them. "But this is the best I can do. Please forgive me." Kagome watched as the wood blazed, then turned her head and sat down.

"I know I wasn't there for you before, but I want to be there for you now. I won't leave you."

`You cannot stay here…`

"Go away," Kagome groaned, raising her crimson hands to cover her face. "Just leave me alone. This is your fault. If I had been here-"

`You would be dead, just like them. Then what would happen to the world?`

"Pardon my language, but fuck the world," she sniffed miserably. "What has it ever done for me?"

`Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country. There are sacrifices that must be made for freedom.`

"That sounds so much like a war campaign," Kagome mumbled, then began to cry when the scent of burning flesh reached her nose. "But that doesn't matter. I won't leave them. Not again."

`If you don't, then they're deaths will be for nothing. You are all they have left. Their vengeance must come from you.`

"Haven't you heard that an eye for an eye only makes the whole world blind?" Kagome responded bitterly.

`The vampires will return. They will kill you.`

"Then I will take as many as I can with me," Kagome retorted. "I'm not leaving."

`Then you give me no choice…` Kagome jumped when a hand gently clasped her shoulder. She turned toward it, thinking it was a survivor. She found nothing but the flaming fountain behind her, yet she still felt the pressure on her shoulder. "Who's there?"

`If you don't leave, you will sentence those you love to a fate worse than death…`

"What could be worse than death?" Kagome countered angrily.

`This…`

The village shimmered around her, and in a flash the fire was gone, leaving Kagome to stand, confused, in the center of the village square.

"What on earth?"

"Kagome-nee-chan?"

Kagome looked down and into the smiling brown eyes of a little girl. "Yes?"

"Here you go." The child handed her a flower, a tiny blue one with bright yellow sprayed on the inside. "Midoriko-miko-sama said that Kagome-nee-chan liked flowers. It took Rin all day to find it."

"Thanks Rin," Kagome said before the child skipped off. The flower disappeared in Kagome's hand, but the hand on her shoulder stayed firm. "What's happening?" she whispered as people she thought were dead went about their daily business. She glanced toward the back of the village, watching as her mother and the old miko talked to each other before waving at her.

`This is what you sentence them to,` the voice explained.

"I don't see what's so bad," Kagome responded. "What would be wrong with staying here with them, living with them until I died? I'd join them, right?"

`You are not paying attention Mistress,` the voice sighed. `for if you were, you would realize that they have done this already.`

'Huh?' Kagome looked around her and indeed, the events around her were nothing but previous actions.

`Should you choose to stay here, you will sentence them to relive yesterday…from beginning to end.`

"No," Kagome gasped as she backed away. "That's not possible."

`The child who just ran away will repeat the same day. She will give who she thinks is you a flower, play with the local animals, fight with her siblings, eat with her parents and witness her parents being ripped to shreds before being drained of every single drop of blood before dawn. Come sunrise, she will do it all again, as will everyone else until the end of time.`

"But-but," Kagome stuttered. "I can't-"

`Your mother will die the same death every night, only to live again the next morning to repeat the cycle`

"But they're dead," Kagome countered. "They're not real."

`But they are, they're spirits anyway. This is their hell, given to them by the vampires. You would lock them here, seal them forever without so much as trying to save them?`

"But I don't know what to do," Kagome sobbed. "I'm afraid!"

`You know what to do,` the voice told her. `And you must do it. Or they will never find the peace they deserve.`

Kagome watched as the village returned to normal, the wispy passerby's fading in the afternoon sun.

`Change clothes Mistress. We must be off.`

Kagome did as she was told stiffly, stripping off her clothes and tossing them into the fire before using the village well to wash off the dried blood. She rummaged through her pack and found another set of clothes, this time a pair of midnight blue cotton hakamas and a matching haori. She retrieved her cape from one of the many fence posts and returned it to her shoulders before making her way toward the forest. She turned to look behind her a last time, a single tear streaking down her cheek before turning and disappearing into the woods.

*

He stood outside his cave, completely ignorant to the volcanic eruptions around him as he stared into the distance. Though the afternoon sky looked no different to others, to him it seemed to signal something, for he turned on his heel and entered the cave.

He sat the giant mallet beside the cave entrance, taking a moment to pat the three-eyed ox on the head before reaching inside his pocket and pulling out a small fang. "Soon it will be time," he whispered to himself, his croaky voice echoing on the cavern walls. "But until then, I must prepare. There is still time before he comes."

*

The wind scattered the debris of the once noble city, the shrieking call of nearby birds overshadowed by the occasional scream of agony. Little fires still burned inside the city walls, the spirit of the flame dancing over both stone and earth.

A mound of rubble began to shake, then exploded in a cloud of dust, revealing a lone figure within. He inhaled deeply, his face upturned to the sun as emerald eyes stared into the sky.

"That was most unpleasant," he said to himself as he dusted himself off. Dirt caked his leather jacket and pants, the black material now reduced to a brownish-gray. He shook his hands through his hair, watching the dirt fall from the loose black waves before looking around him. 'I told Tepes to let the girl alone,' he thought angrily. 'Now look at this. Complete destruction.' He shrugged, smirking slightly, then attempted to remove a smudge on his jacket.

"And my clothes are completely ruined," he bemoaned, an obvious accent coloring his voice. 'But it was worth it to see you die.'

Another shriek widened his smile, his glee growing by leaps and bounds as he stepped from the rubble that he was once buried beneath. "Foolish Nightstalkers," he said with a smile, his lower lip wrapping around his fangs. "Don't you know better than to step into the light?" He had a good laugh at their expense, his mirth ringing out among the screams and cries for help.

'I am wasting time here,' he said to himself finally. 'There is much to be done. The Japanese shogun is the next in line, so it is he that must be told.' Green eyes faded to a crystal blue as he shot toward the sky and flew away.

*

She arrived at the outskirts of her village at sunset, her steps light and bouncy despite her heavy armor. "I can't wait to show Kagome what I've brought for her birthday. I hope I'm not too-"

She stopped and stared, her mind telling her eyes that what she was seeing couldn't be real. "Gods," she breathed as she entered the village. "What happened?"

She watched the smoldering bonfire, then glanced over the rest of the village before kneeling down and picking up a white petal. She sniffed it gently, then glanced toward a single grave near the gate.

"Whatever has done this shall pay," she growled softly, her fingers lightning to her sword as tears spilled from her eyes. "But that must wait. My little sister is to be found, and then we will have our vengeance together."

*

The garden, once the pride of the land, now lay overgrown and wild. Woodland creatures resided within it's shadowy depths, simple animals that called it home. The stone gate crumbled around it, the last battle too much for the fortress to withstand.

Upturned cobblestones led the way to the inner parts of the garden and around a single fountain. It was cracked and worn due to neglect, the noble inu youkai statue now chipped and dented with cracks along the fountain basin. A deer approached the ground around it and began nibbling the tender grass growing from underneath the pathway as a rabbit bounded past.

The ground began to shake beneath them, the deer running away at the first tremors. The fountain viciously rocked from side to side, the white marble cracking underneath the pressure before finally splitting in half. A white ray of light shot from inside and streaked northeast toward the eastern lands.

----

SF: Well, not bad if I do say so myself.

Silver Fox: Here she goes. It's not like her head isn't big as it is.

SF: Quiet kit! Don't make me fry you. This is the story breakdown so far-

Kagome: Sesshoumaru's finally here (I know you Sesshou fans are excited) as well as Jaken and Myouga.

Miroku: There are four new characters to worry about, including this White Witch Sesshoumaru is supposed to be seeing.

Inu-chan: Where am I? Aren't I supposed to be in this story too?

SF: You're in the next chapter, along with one of the new characters. I like this new character! He's so exciting!

Silver Fox: You would. Anyway, the next chapter won't be so Kagome-based. I think it'll be more Inuyasha-Kikyou-Naraku-OC, then Sesshou-

SF: That's been said already!

Silver Fox: Where?

SF: Um, well, it doesn't matter! I said breakdown, not crap fest! We've got to leave suspense!

Silver Fox: WE. The next chapter will be Chapter Three: A Rise to Power

Responses:

Reality: Thanks so much for checking this out! Another update's around the corner!

The Ultimate Faerie of Death: Um, nope, nope and nope. I wish I could tell you, but I'm more than happy to give you clues throughout the story.

Rabid-Inu-Girl: He didn't exactly dump the story. He's still working on KWAY, but he did leave some of the worlds that Kagome and Sesshoumaru have touched open for others to write. The vampire world just so happened to be my favorite.

Raine84: What's confusing? I'd be more than happy to explain it to you.

Misu no Hikaru: Nope, it's not Sesshoumaru or Miroku. It's not Naraku either. You're right about Inuyasha however. Nice guess though.

Nyx: You're not the first person to tell me that. That Vlad (and I think it's Jeffs Vlad too) and the one you're thinking are one and the same. Dracul himself. Silver's always been one for spoilers. He guessed the ending to 'End of Days' out loud in the middle of the movie. I just knew we would get beat up afterward, so we had to run to our car before the credits rolled.

ReginaLucifer: I'd love to hear your guess! I'm almost positive that you don't know though. It's kinda hard. But a lot of people are close!

BelleDayNight: Yeah, I remember Sliders...though I only watched it for that O' Donald dude. Was that his name? I just remember his eyes. They were the perfect shade of blue....(sigh) {::drool::} Silver Fox: And off she goes, to La La Land. The title's not catchy, but it does work. Well, it kinda works. You're pretty close to who it is. I'll be more than happy to provide more hints as the story wears on. I can't wait for her and Sesshoumaru to meet too, but there are other characters that must be introduced first. I can't wait for the butt-kicking to start!

??????????: Nope, the voice isn't Shippou. He is coming though, but not yet. I had no idea. {::blushes::} I'm glad you guys like me so much.

Midori Mizu: There are a lot of stories out there that I love but just don't get. I'm glad to have become one of them. Everything will be explained before the end. Shoot, some things might get explained before the middle. You just never know.

LittleBlackAngel: I love vampires too. They're soo cool. Oh, but not all the vamps here are evil. There is one that will go to the light, but not just yet. Grandpa and Kouga aren't in this fic, and it's not Shippou. Yup, the story is S/K. Yeah, I get the 'vanilla folders' a lot. It's a force of habit. Believe it or not, it's harder to stop doing that than it is to stop biting my nails.

BloodRoseOTDemon: Thanks a lot! I'm going to try to update soon!

NoLabel: {::blush::} Thanks, but if you ever do see something that needs help, please don't hesitate to give it. I didn't mean to creep you out with Kagome's mom, but when you find out what her condition was, you're going to want to hurt me. It's not Kikyou, or the others. This voice is rather unexpected, but I'll be more than happy to give you a hint if you want one. Plus there will be hints throughout this story.

Migele: Thanks! I was worried about that. Jeffs made it so dark, and I've never written dark before. I do love to read it though. This will be S/K too. In this world, the vampires have no connection to the master, like in Anne Rice's stuff. It's kinda like 'Make 'em and leave 'em'.

Fire Phoenix: Thanks a lot! Hopefully I'll be able to keep the darkness in this fic. Looks like I get to gorge myself on horror fics...Yay!

Kojika85: Thanks for the vote of confidence! Jeffs is one f my fave authors, and I just couldn't wait to try this idea. I hope I do it justice.

Dark Neko-chan: I just knew you'd like this! And I've heard Sesshou say worse, so don't let him censor you! Tell KT and the others HI!

Kagome: Yup, lot's of blood in this one. Poor Kagome. Not only does she have to fight vampires, she has to fight crazed oni and lesser demons as well. But I haven't gotten to that yet. Kagome won't be alone for long, though if you listen to the voice she's never been. I have an entire posse lined up for her, and one by one they'll join the group.

Asmodeus: (grins) Thanks a lot, for the compliment and the condolences. It hurts like the devil, but it's only because I'm not used to moving it. I didn't find out that I could move my ears until a year ago (the opportunities I've missed to freak people out), and it's only been recently that I can move my left one of my own free will. How fucked up is that to only be able to wiggle one ear? (sigh) Anyway, don't be insulted by the 'blonde elf hotness'. Orlando Bloom (contrary to popular belief) is a butt ugly dude when he's not in a film. Give me a guy with a great heart and a beautiful set of eyes and I'll call it a day.

ACrimsonNight: I plan on telling you guys soon, but I'll also drop a few hints.

MediaMiner:

Beanner, & Fire Ice: If you get it right, I'll give you a box of eclairs instead of cookies. Or maybe a cheesecake. I don't know. I'll have to think about it. It's not the Tenseiga, but you are close. Keep trying.

Kikyou372: Thanks a lot! I'm glad you're enjoying it! More's coming soon!