InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Light in Guiding Darkness ❯ Entering the Lair of the White Witch ( Chapter 4 )

SF: I'm so glad you guys caught the Aragon/ Aragorn thing! I was really worried about that! Oh, but I don't own the idea, nor the anime. The anime belongs to someone else (I would try to spell her name, but you guys don't want to see it butchered) and the idea belongs to Jeffs! So if it sucks, bother them!

_Chapter Four: Entering the Lair of the White Witch_

To say that Sesshoumaru was bored was an understatement.

He yawned, his position never changing as he eyed the crimson landscape around him. The land seemed built for suffering with high jagged cliffs and sharp rocks. The water below the derelict boat was no better, it resembling watered down tar. He could hear the suffering souls of Hell screaming for release, the crack of whips and the sounds of chains clanging against one another.

It gave one reason to think about the past few hundred years.

What seemed to be to Sesshoumaru but a few days really counted as a more than a few weeks in the living world; as many as four months from the time of his release. He pondered this along with the other thoughts that made their rounds inside his head, the most prominent being, 'Who set me free, and why hasn't Kikyou found out about it? Would it be nothing for the kuro miko to simply recast her spell and set me back to those accursed chains?'

"Sesshoumaru-sama!" Jaken's shrill voice cut through the silence. "We're here at last!"

Sesshoumaru sat up slowly, his back straightening as he gazed around him. The river encircled a large black mountain in the middle of the current. Sesshoumaru tilted his head back, but even he couldn't see the top of the giant structure as the boat traversed around it. Soon they came at a complete circle and both Jaken and Myouga looked to Sesshoumaru for his next order.

"Stop the boat here Jaken."

Jaken did as he was told quickly, using the long pole he employed to steer them toward the rocky beach. Sesshoumaru stepped off the tiny vessel first, with Myouga on his shoulder and Jaken close at his heel. He stared up once again, and again all he saw was the burnt red precipice and the blackened sky. He summoned his youki to his feet, trying in vain to create his red miasma cloud when Myouga interrupted.

"My lord, youki doesn't work here," he informed him. Jaken nodded in agreement. "It's true Sesshoumaru-sama. Not even the Staff of Heads works on this plane of existence."

"Very well," Sesshoumaru mumbled more to himself than the others. 'That makes one more question to ask this White Witch.' "Then we shall climb."

The climb was tough for all involved especially for Sesshoumaru. Not having free use of his limbs for centuries left him slightly weakened, but he was determined to hike this by himself. The rock face seemed to go on forever with sharp jutting rocks and slippery platforms waiting to thwart the travelers at every turn. They're persistence paid off the moment Sesshoumaru's clawed hand pressed down on the top of the mountain.

Sesshoumaru hauled himself up gracelessly, his gi torn and ripped in places from near slips with the treacherous cliffs. His shoes hung from his back by his socks, the knot fastened at the base of his throat. Sesshoumaru lie motionless on the flat land for a few seconds before reaching down and pulling Jaken up as well.

"Thank you Sesshoumaru-sama! Once again you've managed to save your humble servant from a fate worse tha-"

"Silence Jaken."

Jaken's mouth shut with an audible click while Sesshoumaru glanced around them. The mountaintop was nothing more than a vast plateau, with nothing around them but black earth sprinkled with red flecks of sand. "Where is that wench?" Jaken squawked as Sesshoumaru turned around. No matter where he looked, Sesshoumaru determined that the only ones on the mountain were himself, Jaken and Myouga.

"Jaken…"

"Hai, M-my lord," Jaken stuttered nervously.

"Where is this witch?"

"I-I'm not sure Sesshoumaru-sama! She should be here! I don't know where she is!"

Sesshoumaru exhaled slowly, his golden eyes narrowed into little slits as he glared around impatiently. "Do not tell me you've led us to the wrong place…"

"Iie Sesshoumaru-sama! She should be-urk!" Myouga looked on as Sesshoumaru quickly punted the little youkai over the side of the cliff, both he and Sesshoumaru leaning over the cliff slightly to watch as Jaken disappeared in the water at least 40 stories below.

"Go find this wench Myouga," Sesshoumaru said with a nearly invisible smirk on his naturally stoic features. "Inform her that this Sesshoumaru does not like to wait."

"Why are you so impatient Sesshoumaru?" a childish voice sang out against the empty air. Sesshoumaru glanced around again, and again he found no one while Myouga hid behind Sesshoumaru's right ear.

"Who is there?" Sesshoumaru demanded as he dropped into a well used ready stance. "Show yourselves!"

"Yourselves?" the voice laughed merrily. "There is only one here. Why are you so hasty? After all-"

A little girl appeared in the middle of the platform, dressed all in white and her feet bare as she approached him. Her snowy hair fell in a perfect stream down her back and in her hands she carried what Sesshoumaru could tell was a silver looking glass.

"You've waited five centuries. What difference will five minutes make?"

"You will (cough) speak respectfully to Sesshoumaru-(gag)sama!" Jaken demanded as he hauled himself onto the plateau. Water dripped from his wet gi into a puddle around his feet. The girl looked at him dispassionately then turned dull brown eyes to Sesshoumaru.

"I assume that you wish to know something?" she asked while Myouga and Jaken looked on. Sesshoumaru nodded. "Hai, I do."

"Yet you will not ask for my help. Why is that?"

"You may be an impostor, someone meant to lead me astray from whatever it is my task to do," Sesshoumaru answered with a curious flick of his brow. "Though why the devils of this land would wish to disguise themselves as a child is beyond me."

"I assure you Sesshoumaru, I am not as young as I look," the young girl replied softly, taking sure and even steps toward him until she stood a few inches from his feet. "Perhaps you should return your socks and sandals to your feet my lord. It would not do to be cut on this sand."

Sesshoumaru complied easily enough, figuring the apparition to be concerned for some reason while he used Jaken's head as a footstool. He pulled on the socks easily enough, but kept the sandals in his hand.

"Why do you not do as I ask?" the child inquired curiously.

"Is this not your home?" Sesshoumaru answered back. "It would be rude of me to keep my shoes on."

"I see," she said with a tiny laugh. "So, the Great Sesshoumaru has a sense of humor. How interesting."

"The one thing I do not have is patience," Sesshoumaru growled back. "Do hurry along. You seem to know what I want."

"Proof, yes, I know. I am Kanna. Here I am known as the White Witch but in the living world I was the third child of Naraku. You yourself carried the fang of my older brother and destroyed my younger sister."

"That is not proof to trust you," Sesshoumaru retorted. "and it is also not what I asked for."

"Alright then. Your father was a kind-hearted youkai, too kind-hearted if his demise means anything. Your mother was a different story. Her heart was a cold as the snow on the highest mountain peak, and she-"

"Yes yes," Sesshoumaru interrupted with a wave of his hand. "My father was gullible, my mother was a bitch and Inuyasha's mother was too. I tire of this little witch."

"One would think that time had taken such to teach you patience," Kanna sighed. "I, however, am too busy to teach you. I know of many things, including the promise you made to your father before he passed."

Sesshoumaru stilled, unaware of the questioning glances of his vassals as he stared wide eyed at the crown of Kanna's head. "How do you-"

"I know of the promise, and that you performed it until your very last breath. You did well inu taisho. Very well. You will not find many displays of honor like that in these times."

"What promise?" Jaken asked, slightly miffed that this impudent child knew of such things and he did not. "Sesshoumaru-sama?"

"Is it true," Sesshoumaru began, his earlier shock melting away to the task at hand. "that you turn down those that seek your council?"

Kanna shrugged, her head bowed as she looked into her mirror. "Sometimes. I do not believe it will be true today however."

"Then you will help me?"

"I will do what I can for you," Kanna corrected. "Which includes answering your question-"

"Now wait just one minute!" Jaken interrupted as he stomped toward Kanna. He barely reached her shoulder, but that didn't seem to phase the short youkai as he glared up at her. "Why didn't you help me find Sesshoumaru-sama earlier if you're so willing to help him now?"

"All you said was 'Help me find my lord!' Jaken," Kanna answered with a displeased sniff. She grimaced slightly, no doubt receiving a nose full of Jaken's less than pleasing scent. "Do you know how many come to me with that question?"

"You were foolish enough to be that vague Jaken?" Sesshoumaru inquired.

"Well my lord, you see-AHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhh…….(splash)"

Kanna giggled in spite of herself while Sesshoumaru looked over the plateau's edge once again. "I wish I had thought of that," she admitted before returning to her normal calm indifference.

****

SF: Ah come on! You mean to tell me that you wouldn't laugh after something like that?!

****

"As I said Sesshoumaru, you may ask me anything and I shall answer the best I can," Kanna informed him as she held her mirror toward him. "Things I cannot answer will appear in my mirror, so be aware. Please begin when you are ready."

Sesshoumaru thought a second, then listened and nodded as Myouga whispered something in his ear. "Why can I not use my youki?"

"You're youki is attached to your living being. Without it, you no longer have the ability to fly, nor do you have your other abilities. You are reduced to your claws and a quarter of your brute strength, which is why you could not escape the chaining spell on your own. You also do not bear the symbol that tied you to the Western lands."

"I see," Sesshoumaru accepted with a nod. "And my lands, what happened to them?"

"It is just as the flea man explained," Kanna answered with a regretful sigh. "Just as you are tied to your lands, your lands are tied to you and without you or an heir they withered. Some parts became wild while others simply died."

'Then the legend Father spoke of was true,' Sesshoumaru thought to himself. 'Just as the land gives us power to protect it, we give it the strength to survive.' "Who released me?"

Kanna gazed into the mirror and chuckled. "Why, you did."

"Do not play games with me child," Sesshoumaru growled in annoyance. "My patience-"

"Is short, yes I know," Kanna dismissed before turning the mirror toward him. "But it is as I said. You, or a you from another universe, set you free some months ago."

'Months….surely she is mistaken,' Sesshoumaru thought as he peered into the mirror's surface. Instead of showing his reflection. He watched as a different version of himself stood in the cliff face above the vampire capitol, glowing crimson eyes glaring at a marble castle of the same color. "That…is not me."

"As I said, it is not you," Kanna said with a ghost of a smile. "It is another you. This Sesshoumaru managed to destroy all of Vlad Dracul's defenses, kill Vlad himself and enslave his soul inside his Toukijin."

"For what purpose?" Myouga asked as he hopped onto Sesshoumaru's nose.

"They stole something precious from him."

"What was it? A weapon perhaps," Sesshoumaru guessed, his bored tone belying the curiosity within. Kanna shook her head. "Not exactly a weapon. Vlad dared to steal and convert his miko."

"hm," Sesshoumaru snorted in disbelief. He turned his back to the glass, leaving Myouga to find other ways to view the mirror as Sesshoumaru disagreed. "Then he is weak. This Sesshoumaru would never dare to ally himself with a human."

"This human was special," Kanna told him. "She managed to break the vampire curse, is strong in her miko abilities, and has a sort of time magic surrounding her. A goddess seems to have enchanted her as well, but they disappeared from this universe before I could see further into it."

"It is still impossible for me to understand why he...I...no-HE would ally himself with a creature so undependable and fragile."

"Ask another question," Kanna replied quietly, no longer interested in Sesshoumaru's arrogance.

"Why was I set free?" he asked next. "For what purpose?"

Kanna smiled, and though it was tiny one could see the mirth behind it. "You were allowed to be set free by a foreign god, though they all approve of your mission."

"Mission?" Myouga repeated as Jaken finally reappeared on the plateau. "What mission?"

"Sesshoumaru is to clear the world of the vampires."

Sesshoumaru actually laughed at that one, a deeply rich resonance that sounded as beautiful and rare as it was. "If I were to agree with this," Sesshoumaru said when he finally stopped, unaware of the panic-stricken looks on Myouga and Jaken's faces. "And believe me, I have no intention to, just how would I? By the time I'm reincarnated, the vampires would have found out about my purpose and kill me before I get the chance."

"See, that is where you're missing the big picture," Kanna answered. "They have no intentions on reincarnating you. They're resurrecting you ."

"That's impossible," Jaken argued as he stomped toward her once again, his wet feet slapping the ground. "I myself destroyed Sesshoumaru-sama's body! There's no way he can be resurrected now!"

"Not exactly," Myouga thoughtfully responded from his perch on Sesshoumaru's shoulder. "I believe I have heard stories of vampire soldiers that were resurrected without their proper bodies."

"Correct," Kanna said with a nod. "Though having your remains would be easier, I'm sure she'll be able to return you to the living world just fine."

"She? Who is this she?" Sesshoumaru demanded.

"Ah….I thought you'd never ask." Kanna glanced down at the mirror once again, explaining to Sesshoumaru as the mirror's surface swirled to life.

"You see Sesshoumaru, the other Sesshoumaru set off a chain of events that led to your freedom. It also led to the saving of this girl's life. It's she that's coming for you, Destroyer of the Circle of Life. Now, you are only known as He Who No Longer Walks the Earth. Quite a long title if I do say so myself."

"It is impossible," Sesshoumaru disputed as the mirror finally stopped shifting. It's surface showed a large forest somewhere on the edge of the southern lands. Sesshoumaru could tell that it was mid spring, and he felt that he could somehow smell the thawing snow in the breeze that passed by. The sky was lighting up above it, but the sun still slept as the mirror's eye moved closer to the forest.

"You wish to see who's coming for you, do you not?" Kanna asked as the mirror's eye sped up at a lightening pace. It dipped down into the forest and zipped between trees, narrowly missing some by mere millimeters before stopping at the roots of a great elm.

"I will allow you to see her but know this; your approval or not, she is coming for you and you will have no choice but to leave and do as you have been commissioned."

"For what purpose?" Sesshoumaru asked as the mirror's eye began a snail-like ascent up the trunk of the tree. "For what reason should I do the grunt work of the gods, foreign or domestic?"

"Because," Kanna responded when the mirror's eye was twenty feet from the ground. It settled on a dark green smudge attached to the tree, something Sesshoumaru thought to be moss until it moved. "You're sword wishes to."

The hunter green hood fell away, revealing a young woman with dark hair and fair skin. She slept with her hands bound to the tree trunk, her breathing slow and languid as her head fell back and fully exposed her face to the eye.

"Kikyou," Sesshoumaru snarled hatefully, ready to turn away from the mirror again when Kanna's voice steadied him.

"No, not Kikyou. When the sun wakes up, so will she and then you will see the difference."

Sesshoumaru leaned over once again, watching as the sun's brilliance slowly lit up the world. Golden rays of light filtered through the tree tops to the ground below, yet the woman slept unawares until a sunbeam made its home directly on her face. She winced, struggling to remain in the land of dreams before finally sighing as she slowly opened her eyes.

"No," Sesshoumaru agreed with an awed shake of his head. "She is not Kikyou." For a split second, he found that he couldn't take his eyes away from her face, his eyes staring deeply into hers though she remained unaware. 'She cannot be human,' Sesshoumaru reasoned as she stretched, yawned and began to untie herself from the tree. 'No human has eyes such as those.'

"I promise you, she is human," Kanna replied out loud. "But she is special. She is a miko as well. Sesshoumaru?"

"Hmm?"

"Would you like the mirror?" Kanna asked, outstretching the silver looking glass to Sesshoumaru. He took it hesitantly, almost expecting the vision in the glass to fade if it left her little hands. Something inside him was grateful when it did, and Sesshoumaru mentally stomped on it as he looked down.

"Why would you give this to me? Is it not the source of your power?"

Kanna shook her head. "No, it's not despite what others think. My powers are in it however, so be careful with it."

"Would it be a way to speak with her?" Sesshoumaru asked, his eyes firmly glued to the glass as the miko climbed down from the tree and began walking toward the west. "To assure myself that this girl is equipped to do what she's supposed to."

"Unfortunately no, not without her having something that once belonged to you."

"I see." Sesshoumaru sat down where he stood and leaned against a rock that appeared behind him. He looked up from the glass only once, and it was only to inquire one thing…

"What is her name?"

"Kagome."

"Kagome," he repeated, then nodded before returning to the mirror. "Yes, you will do for now."

*

Aragon arrived on the outskirts of the village at daybreak, dismally shaking his head at the destruction around him. 'Someone here must have upset Aloyoshenka,' he concluded as he studied the gutted huts and blackened skulls. 'He never was one to control his temper. Now to see if there are any clues to the girl.'

He walked the remains of the village slowly, making sure to turn over whatever wooden plank or stone that looked interesting. He stopped after an hour of searching, casually scratching his head as he looked around. 'I don't understand it,' he thought while a scowl marred his perfect, pale face. 'Something should be here. I know the little miko didn't die in this. Aloy said so. So where's my…ahhh. There it is.'

Aragon stepped outside the village gate and kneeled at a shallow grave. A single wooden piece jabbed out of the dirt with a pair of black rosary beads wrapped around it. Aragon unwound them slowly, weighing the painted wooden beads in his hand before smiling to himself. "So, you are alive aren't you? Good." He touched his talisman and closed his eyes, using his mind's eye to unlock the talisman's magic. Small pink footsteps appeared on his mind's landscape, leading away from the grave and to the village square.

Aragon followed the pure trail away from the square and the well toward the other side of the village where the footprints disappeared into the forest. 'Well,' he thought with a grin as his eyes turned blue. 'Looks like you left a trail after all.'

*

It streaked through the lands, it's speed nearly breaking the sound barrier but still not fast enough for it. It felt a sense of dread it couldn't explain, as if the desire that awakened it turned into a full blown need to protect it's new master. Nothing would stop it as it flew over the last of its homeland and into the lands of a foreign enemy.

----

SF: That's it for this week! Wasn't that cool?

Silver Fox: Have you ever known someone so in love with their own character?

SF: What? Whatever! Aragon is cool as crap, and in the next chapter we get to see what those little spheres are for. I promise you guys, you'll be shocked when you find out!

Silver Fox: I doubt it. By now, they know you're crazy so nothing should shock them.

SF: On the contrary stupid one, they will be. Anyway, Sesshoumaru's questions have been answered and he now has something to spend his days doing while Kagome still roams the land, Aragon gets closer to her and whatever it was that appeared in the last part of the chapter is loose and running around. The next chapter of this story:

Chapter Five: A Demon By An Unlikely Name

See you soon! ( I couldn't help myself!)

Responses:

Kool, CharMoonshineINU & Sesshomaru Luv You: Thanks for the love! I'll update as soon as possible!

Kagome: Kikyou in this story is an...opportunist. She sees it and gets it if she wants it. You're right, I do like a good dragon story.

Father Malvado: Aragon is...special. He's a full vampire, but there's something about him that makes him different than the others. You're the first to ask about Aragon's spheres. They're weapons that you won't really understand nor expect until you see him use them. Trust me, they're a lot more entertaining than the sword. What's Death of the Necromancer?

BelleDayNight: Do you? I thought that some would complain since Jeffs' father figure was such a nut. I'm glad you like it. Inuyasha doesn't feel like that yet, but he will later on in the story. For right now, the curse and losing control of his youkai blood is clouding his good sense of judgment. I agree with wanting to slap him. I've got to check on the new Inuyasha episodes so I can avoid the Kikyou ones. It wouldn't do for me to see those. Temper's too bad. Kanna is interesting, both in what she has to say and how she treats Sesshoumaru. No one, in living or death, has ever treated the tai in such a manner and he's not exactly sure what to do about it. Yeah, Sesshou's being a real jerk about A Breaking Point, especially now that a few people think he's a mama's boy. I keep telling him that he's not, but he refuses to listen.

Cynical Chaos: You're jealous? God, don't be! I feel like a freak! If they both wiggled, then I could freak out the neighborhood kids but noooooo...I just had to get stuck like this. I suppose it is kinda cool though. Sesshou does seem rather...tolerant, but he has been chained up for the past 5 centuries. He's bound to be just a bit mellow during his first days of freedom. Kagome's major appearance will be in the next chapter, when she and the voice talk a little. My hair did grow a little during my absence, but it was down my back to begin with. I'm going to cut it for the summer however. It gets hot underneath all that stuff.

LittleBlackAngel: I have to give you credit. You're the first person to think of that. Nope, it's not her father. I haven't the slightest idea what book you're talking about, but you're not the only one to ask that. My Aragon is very cute. Have you seen those Excedrin commercials with that great looking guy with the black, curly hair and electric blue eyes? Make them green and you've got Aragon. I feel so bad for Myouga. Inuyasha was very wrong for that. I don't know about an Ship/ Kag story. I don't think I'd be able to do it.

Dark Neko-Chan: You like him too huh? I just adore him! Even his weapons are cool! And Sesshou, you are very much so kawaii, especially when you get turned into a kitten. You make such a great one!

NoLabel: Believe it or not, it's not either sword. The Tetsusaiga is...well, indisposed, and the Tenseiga is too. Aragon is very hot! How could you not love a revenge-driven vampire? I've seen the BCCT and it's great! I've always been a fan of Jeff Foxworthy.

Migele: Yeah, I know. I like being vague sometimes, but everything will be explained once the time comes. You're right about the ball of light. It's not Sesshoumaru. Don't worry about that though. It's coming sooner or later, hopefully sooner.

Fire Phoenix: Aragon is hot! You know who he reminds me of? That blue eyed dude that used to be in the Excedrin commercials. You know, the one with the perfect curly hair and electric blue eyes? I watched commercials just to see him, then they replaced him with some other dude. Sucks. His side story is pretty sad and it's one of the many reasons his path crosses with Kagome's. Sesshoumaru fits into all of this because he is, and isn't, the one who destroyed the vampire capitol. Inuyasha is a tragic hero of the story. He's been lied to from the beginning, and he doesn't truly understand how deep the lies go until he meets Kagome as well.

Gopher2806: I surely will! I'm pretty sure he knows though. Thanks for the confidence boost.

Kagome333: Aragon will meet the little miko, and I don't believe he'll be the same afterward. Kagome's little wake up call in chapter one results in so many lives changing, and she doesn't even realize that she's the cause of it.

Tsuki Yume: It's not Kaede, nor is it Toga. I didn't know that was his name. I've just gone off what everyone else says. Well, looks like I'll have to make some adjustments to A Kiss then. Elizabeth and what happened to her is Aragon's past and the reason for the way he feels toward those of his kind. No walls are in sight for this one, but you never know. Thanks for the hope.

ACrimsonNight: He is! You're the first one to say something! Aragon's ability has little to do with his birth and a lot to do with the vampire that bit him. Don't worry, because he'll explain this soon.

Fire Kitsune Goddess: You're not the only one. I've asked that delectable vampire what he is and all he'll tell me is that 'he is what he wants to be when he wants to be it.' (huffs) Men...or maybe it's just him.

Mediaminer:

Fireice: Nope, it's not the talisman. That's a part of Aragon's past, and believe it or not, it serves a different purpose. You'll come to understand it soon.

FallenAngel666: Nope, it's not Miroku. Miroku's actually in one of the coming chapters, along with a few other people.