InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ After-effects ❯ Desperate plans, desperate measures ( Chapter 15 )

Disclaimer: Well, me no own Inuyasha and the gang.

 

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Chapter 14: Desperate plans, desperate measures

 

The first rays of sunlight filtering through an opening in the roof caused Shippo to open his eyes. The first thing he saw was the concerned face of Yuna hovering a few inches over his own.

 

"Shippo-chan!" she exclaimed once she noticed he was awake. "Are you all right?" she inquired with concern.

 

Grunting, the kitsune managed to sit up, though his head felt like it would explode at any moment. "I've been better, but I'll live," he muttered.

 

"What did she do to you?" asked the girl. "She simply pointed her staff and suddenly you were on the ground, screaming," she added.

 

That much Shippo remembered. Every nerves in his body had suddenly started screaming in pain for no apparent reason. His head had been filled with the most intense pain he could imagine, but the worst came in the end when he felt something being ripped away from him. Even now, he could feel something amiss, like a part of himself was not there anymore.

 

"I don't know," he answered truthfully.

 

Before the two could go any further in their conversation, a shape suddenly appeared in the door. "Well, looks like the brats are awake," said the youkai disdainfully.

 

Noticing the staff in the hands of the newcomer, Shippo instantly recognized her as the one who had hurt him the day before. "What did you do to me?" he demanded angrily.

 

This didn't seem to stand very well with Akkimaru as her already cruel gaze turned as cold as ice in an instant. "Moderate your tone kitsune, or I'll give you another taste!" she snapped. "As for what I did... I merely made sure you wouldn't try anything funny," she said with a sadistic smile.

 

Shippo's eyes suddenly widened in understanding. The emptiness inside of him, that ripping sensation he had felt at the end... she had taken away his powers. Seeing his horrified expression seemed to please their captor immensely as she started to chuckle.

 

"If you want your powers back kitsune, you're going to have to break my staff," she taunted in a sadistically satisfied tone.

 

"You won't get away with this!" Yuna exclaimed angrily, causing two pair of eyes to turn to her in surprise.

 

That was it for the little girl. She had been a slave all her life and as such, she was used to punishment of all kind. She was used to being beaten for no reason. She was used to hours of hard labor without eating. She was used to insults when she made a mistake. She could endure everything... but this was beyond her. No one had the right to torture her friends! No one!

 

"Oh? And what makes you think that?" the youkai questioned in a sinister tone.

 

Yuna was beyond fear and concern for her own safety right now. Eyes glinting with defiance, she locked her gaze to Akkimaru's and spoke without a hint of doubt. "Kagura-sama is going to come for us and she's going to break your staff," she said fiercely.

 

Lowering her face so she could speak in the girl's ear, the youkai smirked evilly once again. "By all means, I expect her to come," she whispered. "That way I'll be able to rob her of her powers, just like your friend here," she finished, nodding in Shippo's direction.

 

Whatever the effect Akkimaru had been expecting her words to have, she couldn't have possibly expected what actually happened. It began with Yuna shaking slightly. Thinking she had broken her hostage's spirit, a smirk appeared on the youkai's face. It didn't stay there long however as a strange pulsating light coming from the top of the child's head caught her attention. Looking up, she could see that it was coming from the feather ornating the girl's hair.

 

"What the..." she spoke as a spark of apprehension suddenly lit up inside of her, causing her to back away slightly.

 

That was just about all she had time to say, because Yuna suddenly raised her head and the youkai could see that the trembling had not been caused by crying as she had thought, but rather by barely controlled rage.

 

"NO!" screamed Yuna.

 

One simple word, but with it everything seemed to explode and Akkimaru suddenly found herself hurled backward with such strength that she went right through the wall and landed in a heap a good 30 feet away.

 

Shippo, who had been silent through the whole exchange could only gape in astonishment at the hole in the wall where their captor had passed through. "Yuna... how did you..." he asked, shifting his gaze to the girl.

 

All the questions he had fled his mind at the sight before him. The ten years old was on the ground, panting in exhaustion. Apparently, whatever she had done had taken a lot out of her. "Yuna, are you all right?" he asked as he helped her up.

 

As it was, she didn't have time to answer because Akkimaru's enraged voice interrupted them. "You... little... bitch!" she panted. "I'll... kill... you!" she added, lowering her staff.

 

Placing himself in front of the girl, Shippo stared at their captor defiantly. "If you want to kill her, then you're going to have to kill me first," he said. "That way, you're going to lose all your hostages," he added, trying to keep the fear he felt at bay.

 

His last argument seemed to reach home though because the staff wavered slightly at his words. After a few seconds of this stalemate, Akkimaru started righting it up very slowly. Once it was perfectly vertical, the youkai slammed it on the ground firmly.

 

"Don't expect my mercy to extend for long," she spoke through clenched teeth. "Once the jewel is in my possession, you will die... very slowly," she added, gripping her staff so tightly that her hand trembled. Finally, with a last growl, she whirled around and left the two alone.

 

Breathing a deep sigh of relief, Shippo finally collapsed to his knees. "I thought I was a goner," he whispered.

 

"Thank you Shippo-chan, you saved me," said Yuna, coming up to sit beside him.

 

"That was nothing," he answered, blushing slightly at the praise.

 

Both were silent for a moment and then Yuna spoke up again. "Shippo-chan, did you see her staff?" she asked suddenly.

 

"What do you mean?" he answered in confusion.

 

"Well I'm not sure but... I think it's cracked," she said softly.

 

"Cracked?" said the kitsune incredulously.

 

"It was almost invisible but, just above her hand, I saw a small crack in the wood," she explained, sounding more certain this time.

 

"Yuna, we have to find a way to let our friends know about this when they get here," he said with sudden urgency.

 

"But how?" asked the girl.

 

"I don't know," sighed the kitsune. Shifting his gaze to Akkimaru's retreating form, a frown appeared on his face as he racked his brain for an idea. That was when something in the retreating youkai caught his eye. "She's left handed," he realized with surprise.

 

Turning back to Yuna, his eyes immediately fell on the makeshift sling they had made for her right arm, the original having been lost in the kidnapping. Illumination dawned on his face as the germ of a plan sprouted in his mind. "This is absolutely crazy," he mused, not believing he could even come up with such an idea. "But if they're observant enough, it just might work."

 

******

 

It was a very quiet couple that made its way through the forest. Ever since Kagura and Kirara had split up with Inuyasha and Kagome a little earlier, worry and tension had been steadily climbing with each step taken toward their destination. The two were so jumpy that when a voice suddenly broke the silence they both litteraly jumped out of their skin.

 

"Well, aren't we gloomy today," said someone they would both have rather not met right now.

 

"Mattemaru..." growled the hanyou, his hands straying to the Tessaiga immediately.

 

"Easy there, Akkimaru's your opponent today, not me," he said, raising his hands to demonstrate he was not willing to fight.

 

"That's right, Akkimaru's our opponent, not you, so get out of the way," shot the miko sharply and made to pass him by.

 

"I'm afraid that if you want to pass you're going to have to leave the jewel with me," he answered, moving to block her path.

 

At this, Kagome's eyes narrowed in anger and a bluish aura appeared around her. "Move," she ordered in a low and menacing tone that made even Inuyasha take a step back.

 

"Well..." he said, his gaze flickering hesitantly between the hanyou who had his hand on his sword and the miko who was ready to unleash her powers on him.

 

Finally, he seemed to think that his chances were somewhat limited because he finally moved to the side. "And here I was, looking forward to having a nice conversation with you," he launched in an melodramatic voice. "How disappointing," he finished and couldn't help but chuckle at the death glare he was receiving.

 

His good mood was literally blown away however when a huge explosion suddenly rocked the earth. In front of him, the hanyou quickly looked at the miko who simply nodded before jumping on his back. The pair then quickly bounded away, effectively leaving him behind. A frown appeared on his face for the space of a second before he shook himself off and followed suit.

 

It wasn't long before Inuyasha and Kagome reached the village and it was even shorter to discover the origin of the blast they had heard, especially when the said location was surrounded by a huge cloud of smoke. As everything started to settle, the two began to make out the two shapes contained within. The first had the traits of a panther youkai and was clad in black robes similar to Miroku's. She was also holding a long scepter with a glowing purple gem at the end. The second was wearing a white kimono along with a black plate armor. What was really peculiar about him though was his long silver hair and golden eyes that were extremely similar to those of a certain hanyou.

 

"Sesshomaru!?" they both exclaimed at the same time causing the two opponents to turn in their direction.

 

If seeing him there wasn't surprising enough, the state he was currently in proved to be even more dumbfounding. His kimono, usually so clean and pristine was thorned everywhere and stained with blood in numerous places. His usually expressionless face was now replaced with cold and barely contained anger.

 

"Stand back Inuyasha!" he snarled. "She is my prey!"

 

With that, he launched himself at who had to be Akkimaru and made a swipe with his sword. Something seemed to be wrong with him though, his usually graceful movements were now slow and sluggish. It was no surprise then when the panther youkai easily jumped out of the way and retaliated by slicing him across the back with her staff.

 

"I'm afraid I don't have time to play with you anymore dog-boy," she mocked from behind the kneeling youkai. "Time to end this," she added while leveling her staff.

 

The jewel at the end flashed once before a beam of purple light launched itself at Sesshomaru. The youkai, barely capable of standing up was unable to avoid it and he was promptly engulfed. An inhuman roar of pain emerged from his throat as the beam tore mercilessly at him. Just as he was about to be completely overcome, the Tenseiga started pulsing and a bubble of blue light enveloped him. There was a blinding flash of light and after that, the youkai was completely gone.

 

"It's just like the time when I hit him with the kaze no kizu," thought the hanyou incredulously. Turning his head to the miko at his side, he could see that she remembered the occurrence as well.

 

Akkimaru on the other hand was looking rather puzzled by the fact that her target had vanished in the middle of her attack. "What sort of trickery is this?" she asked to no one in particular. But then, she seemed to remember why she had ended the fight in the first place and promptly shook off her surprise and turned to the pair.

 

"Well, at least something's going according to plan today," she said in an angry tone. "So I suppose..." she started but then, her eyes fell on something behind the pair and whatever composure the youkai had, it instantly evaporated from her features.

 

"You!" she roared, pointing her staff accusingly.

 

Kagome and Inuyasha both turned their head at the same time to see Mattemaru leaning nonchalantly against a broken house. "Who... me?" he answered innocently.

 

Trembling in barely contained rage, the panther youkai slowly righted her staff and took a deep breath. "Hear my words kitsune, once I have the jewel, you will be the first to die," she hissed.

 

"I'm flattered," he shot back mockingly, causing Akkimaru's eyes to flash dangerously. "But you don't have the jewel yet, so I'm in the clear," he added.

 

"I'll have it soon enough, and then, you're mine," she countered with a feral smile. "Come on you two, we don't have all day," she ordered, turning to Inuyasha and Kagome.

 

The pair exchanged looks that said "so we're not the only skins he's getting under" before hurrying after the retreating panther youkai. "Hey, what about me?" called the kitsune.

 

"You can go to hell as far as I'm concerned," came Akkimaru's venomous reply.

 

Mattemaru frowned in a falsely insulted way before shrugging everything off. "Oh well, I know when I'm not wanted," he said and with that, he vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving only a leaf behind.

 

"Keh! The bastard wasn't even here in the first place," muttered Inuyasha.

 

After that, there was silence for a few seconds broken eventually by Kagome who couldn't stand it anymore. "Where are Shippo and Yuna?" she asked in a concerned tone.

 

"Don't be impatient," answered the panther youkai coldly. "You'll see them soon enough."

 

Akkimaru seemed to speak the truth because a minute later they all entered a large plaza of some sort. The miko was on the verge of asking herself why on earth there was such a large opening in the middle of a small village like this when she noticed that it wasn't how things originally were. All around, she could see spots on the ground where houses had stood, but nothing was there now except a few splinters of wood. The area was circular in shape and covered a radius of at least fifty meters. Alarm bells started to ring in Kagome's mind and apparently in Inuyasha's as well because he suddenly stopped.

 

"What's all this?" he asked suspiciously, motioning to their general surrounding.

 

"That, half-breed, is what we call a security perimeter. It's to ensure that someone, like the wind sorceress for example, is unable to sneak up on us," she answered with a knowing smile.

 

They both stiffened a little at this, though not exactly for the reason Akkimaru would have expected. Kagura was their decoy, so it wasn't really a surprise that the panther youkai knew. What really had their stomach in a knot was the concern they had for their real trump card, namely Kirara. How much did she know? Was she aware of their plan? Was she playing dumb just to humor them? One thing was certain, with so much open ground, coming up unnoticed was impossible.

 

"Well, are you coming or not?" asked Akkimaru sharply, jarring them both out of their respective thoughts.

 

Inuyasha grumbled something under his breath and reluctantly followed suit, Kagome close behind. For some reason, the alarms inside Kagome's head didn't stop ringing. The explanation did make sense in a paranoid kind of way, but then why did she have the nasty feeling that there had been an ulterior motive for this plaza's creation?

 

Her fears were momentarily put on hold when they reached the center of the circular area. Two other panthers were there, each restraining a familiar form. "Shippo! Yuna! Are you all right?" she asked, relieved to see they were both alive and apparently unharmed.

 

"Kagome!" exclaimed the kitsune with urgency. "Yuna's wound is getting worse, we have to get her to Kaede fast!" he screamed before being silenced by a sword pressed against his throat.

 

Kagome's eyes flicked worriedly to the ten years old, only to notice how weak she looked. Her good arm was lying limply at her side and her eyes were glazed over, telltales of a very high fever. "Dammit," she thought grimly before Akkimaru interrupted her.

 

"All right, enough useless chatter, give me the jewel and I'll consider freeing your friends," ordered the youkai coldly.

 

"If you want the jewel, you're going to have to free them first," countered Inuyasha, moving in front of Kagome for emphasis.

 

"Don't try my patience hanyou," she growled and to demonstrate her point, one of her underling brought his blade closer to Yuna's throat, ready to kill at the slightest command.

 

While this small exchange occurred, Kagome's mind was working overtime trying to figure a way out of this hopeless situation. She knew quite well that as soon as the jewel was in Akkimaru's hands, they were as good as dead. But what on earth could they do? They had nothing to bargain with in the first place, aside from the shikon jewel that is.

 

"Well girl are you going to stand there daydreaming or are you going to give me the jewel?" questioned Akkimaru, impatience evident in her voice.

 

"Daydreaming?" she thought and the image of Midoriko flashed briefly in front of her eyes. And then she had it, a way out, desperate and extremely risky. In fact, she might not even survive this at all, but nonetheless she had to try it.

 

"Inuyasha... if I should lose myself... please kill me," she said firmly but sadly.

 

"What..." began the hanyou. He didn't say anymore however because the look in her eyes stopped him.

 

"I know you can hear me and I also know exactly what you want," she began, addressing her demon blood. "Do it then, take it all in, take all of the jewel's power and revive! Swallow me whole if you want to, I don't care! Just get rid of the goddamn jewel!"

 

She could feel it, her plea had been heard and power very slowly started to seep into her body. "Thank you," she whispered before focusing her gaze to Akkimaru.

 

"So you want the jewel don't you Akkimaru? Well, I'll give it to you... but there's one last thing that I must do before I hand it over," she said in a dark tone.

 

"And that is to make sure that it will not cause anyone pain ever again!" she exclaimed just as the sphere around her neck began pulsating brightly.

 

A strange and ominous gray mist slowly started seeping out of the jewel and encircle Kagome's body until it became impossible to see the miko inside. After about a minute of this, the light in the jewel died out along with the leakage of fog. And then, as if sucked in by a powerful vacuum, all of the gray mist started to penetrate Kagome's body. When it was done, an eerie silence fell on the village. Everyone was staring in dumbfounded silence at the miko, not quite understanding what had happened and not really knowing what to expect.

 

After a second of absolute stillness, the girl suddenly collapsed on her knees, eyes wide and mouth open in a silent scream of agony. There was no words to describe the pain she felt right now. It had started with her blood abruptly turning into liquid fire in her veins. As a result of this, her lungs seemed filled with lava and the little air she managed to get passed her constricted throat was definitively not enough to cool them down. And then, there was also the problem that she could feel her body rearranging itself. Her muscles were tightening, her bones were hardening, her senses were sharpening, her nails were growing, turning into claws, her incisors were elongating, turning into fangs. And then a red mist started to descend on her mind, pushing away all rational thoughts, leaving only the burning desire to kill in its wake. A deep feeling of resignation mixed with sadness filled what was left of her mind.

 

"I'm sorry everyone... there was... no other way," she thought before closing her eyes and letting herself sink.

 

She drifted like this for a few seconds before a voice suddenly filtered through to her.

 

"Don't give in Kagome!"

 

Opening her eyes, she could see a blurry form in front of her. The features were hard to make out, but she thought she could see brown hair. The person also had her hand outstretched toward her, trying desperately to reach her before she drifted out of reach. Weakly, she extended her own hand, her fingers brushing slightly against the other person's, but remaining just barely out of reach.

 

"Fool! Not all hope is lost... Remember!" the voice snapped angrily and abruptly, her black surrounding morphed into a mountainous scene.

 

She suddenly found herself floating in mid air contemplating... herself as she sat behind Totosai, watching intently a scene unfolding below. Shifting her gaze, she was able to make out a huge dragon with a strange sort of mask between his eyes.

 

"That's... Ryukossei," she realized with surprise.

 

She was jarred out of her stupor when Miroku spoke beside her. "Just a minute... Inuyasha is acting strangely."

 

She couldn't help but look down and, sure enough, there was the hanyou. From her point of view, she could see his red eyes that told her that his youkai blood had taken over. And yet, he was stumbling toward his sword, desperately trying to get a hold of it.

 

"He's transformed and yet he's trying to pick up the Tessaiga," this time it was Sango, but Kagome hardly heard it.

 

Tessaiga! The realization hit her like a ton of bricks. It had the ability to seal off youkai blood, if she could get a hold of it maybe...

 

The scenery around her shifted back to the blackness of a few moments ago. The figure was still there, with her hand outstretched, but this time it was clearer, allowing her to make out the features.

 

"Kikyo..." whispered the girl as she recognized who was standing in front of her.

 

"Come on Kagome, let us put that youkai blood of ours back in its proper place," said the miko firmly.

 

Kagome looked surprised for a split second before her features hardened in determination. "Yeah!" she answered as she closed her fingers around the outstretched hand.

 

White light blinded her for a second, causing her to cover her eyes with her free arm and when it died down, pain once again assaulted her senses. She had regained consciousness and partial control of her body, but the transformation was still in progress. The red mist that had clouded her mind before her little lapse was thicker than before, almost overpowering in fact. It was becoming increasingly urgent for her to get a hold of Tessaiga. Turning her head to the side, her eyes immediately fell on Inuyasha who stood a few paces away, looking at her with a horrified expression. Her vision clouded for an instant as her youkai blood overpowered her human mind, but she stubbornly held her ground, forcing it back enough to regain control of her limbs. Slowly, painfully, she struggled to her feet, fighting mind-blowing agony and a youkai blood that refused to cooperate. But getting herself standing was just the beginning, she now had to cover the distance separating her from Inuyasha and the Tessaiga... not an easy thing to accomplish.

 

One step. She extended her hand, almost pleadingly toward the hanyou. Inuyasha took a step back uncertainty painted on his face. Two steps, Inuyasha's hands strayed to his sword, she tried to speak up but it came out as an indistinct gurgling growl. Three steps, Inuyasha's grip tightened, his whole body shaking with apprehension. She tried once again to speak, putting everything she had into that one desperate word.

 

"T...ess...ai...ga," she rasped.

 

******

 

To say Inuyasha was confused right now was probably an understatement. He didn't understand what had happened in the least. One moment, Kagome was standing there with mist swirling around her, the next, she was kneeling on the ground, agonizing as her nails grew, her muscles tightened, her teeth elongated and her ears changed form and place. And now, she was stumbling toward him, eyes bright red in a testimony of complete impossibility: youkai blood had taken over her.

 

"No... not completely," he corrected himself.

 

The way she was stumbling, the way her hand was outstretched toward him, the way she was looking at him. It all spoke of a desperate struggle. She was still holding on to her sanity, if just barely. As she took her first step, her words came back to him, stabbing him through the heart, causing him to take an involuntary step back.

 

"Kill me," she had said. She had suspected that things would turn out this way. She had known... and she had done it anyway. She wanted to see all of her friends safe and that was why she had done... whatever she had done.

 

"How can you ask that of me Kagome?" he asked her silently. "How can you ask me to kill you?"

 

As she took her second step, he felt his heart constrict in his chest. He was certain now why she was looking at him this way. She was telling him to finish her off before she lost herself completely. She didn't want to turn into a mindless killing machine. Hesitantly, his hands strayed to his sword. The feeling was a hundred times worst than when he sent her off alone toward Naraku's castle. But he understood, he understood because he would have asked the very same thing of her had this happened to him. He knew then that he would honor her wish, he would kill her and allow her to pass on while a glimmer of humanity still remained within her. After that, he would probably kill himself. He couldn't bare to live with her death on his conscience, not when he had been the one to cause it. His hand tightened on the hilt of his sword, his whole body trembling with the force of his emotions. Just as he was about to draw, something caught his ear. A wheezing sound emanating from her throat, so faint he almost didn't hear it. But he did pick it up and what he heard made him frown in confusion.

 

"Tessaiga? Why on earth would she..." he began and stopped abruptly as the answer suddenly appeared in his mind, blinding him, taunting him with its obviousness.

 

Not even allowing himself time to come back from his surprise, he closed the distance separating him from Kagome and firmly placed the sword in her outstretched hand.

 

The girl let out a strangled gasp of relief when her fingers closed against the hilt. The fire in her veins almost instantly cooled off, the red mist clouding her mind dissolved away and the pain in her body vanished like it never happened in the first place. God it felt good to be able to breathe again, to be able to think again. She would have cried out in relief had she not been so intent on avidly filling her lungs with air.

 

It took her a good five minutes of panting before she recovered enough to register her surroundings. The first thing she noticed was that someone was talking to her.

 

"K... Kagome?" asked Inuyasha hesitantly, concern evident in his voice.

 

Turning her head toward the sound, her eyes were immediately confronted with glowing golden orbs that she knew all too well. Talking was still a little way off, but seeing her haggard yet sane expression seemed to be enough as relief flooded his features for a split second before being replaced with a scowl.

 

"Dammit wench! Did you have to go and scare the shit out of me like that? I almost ran you through!" he exclaimed in a tone that sounded angry, but lacked any definite edge.

 

Kagome's shoulders shuddered in silent laughter at the hanyou's reply and her lips curved upward in a grin, causing her two fangs to poke out at the corners of her mouth.

 

"You have such a way with words Inuyasha," she finally managed to say.

 

Her voice sounded raspy and dry, which was understandable with what had just happened, but it basically remained unchanged. It was comforting to know that at least something of her old self had survived through that maelstrom of transformations. Speaking of which... Her smile dissolved as her eyes traveled the length of the Tessaiga's blade, coming to a stop on her hands.

 

"Claws eh?" she thought dispassionately. And then, unable to contain her curiosity, she brought her left hand to the top of her head and sure enough, her fingers brushed against one fuzzy dog ear. The last words of Midoriko suddenly came back to her mind "youkai and human blood cannot mix together... but they can coexist". A smile appeared on her face as she finally understood the full meaning of it. A meaning that could be summarized in one single word: hanyou.

 

"What I wouldn't give for a mirror right now," she whispered in an amused tone of voice that caused Inuyasha to stare dumbly at her.

 

Finally, with one last shake of her head, she lowered the Tessaiga and turned to Akkimaru who had been too stunned by the whole occurrence to react. Fishing through the folds of her kimono, Kagome extracted the jewel from around her neck and looked at it for a second.

 

"Here," she said, throwing it to the unsuspecting youkai. "You can have it now," she finished.

 

Akkimaru stared at the miko in surprise before lowering her gaze to the round object she now had in the palm of her hands. Faint traces of energy tingled her skin slightly, but they felt more like drops of water left on a glass after you emptied its content than the torrent of power that should have been there.

 

"That cannot be," she whispered, a mixture of horror, surprise and disbelief appearing on her face. "It's empty... completely... empty," she finished, her eyes wide.

 

Even as she said those words, cracks started appearing on the now colorless sphere. They continued to grow until they covered the whole surface and then, with a snapping sound, the jewel shattered into pieces, which almost immediately turned to dust. The shikon jewel was finally no more.