InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Every Soul ❯ Deadly Danger ( Chapter 3 )

Author's Note: Sorry about the crappy chapter titles. I'm not much good at thinking up decent titles for things. ^_^

 

 

Chapter 3

 

Deadly Danger

 

 

Miroku sat by the edge of the giant chasm in the ground for what seemed like forever. He'd prayed and sent his most powerful blessings of safety to his friends down below but no matter how intently he watched or how he willed it, he did not see any sign of Inuyasha, Sango, Kagome, Shippo or Kirara coming back from the impenetrable darkness. He sighed and sat back from the edge rubbing his back, now sore from leaning over the lip of the hole. He was beginning to regret letting Sango go by herself. Had she found Inuyasha? Had Inuyasha found Kagome and Shippo? Were they all right? All questions to which he had no answers. And the longer he sat here the longer he would go without those answers. He knew however, that to try to go down there by himself was foolhardy. He couldn't see in that dark and without Inuyasha's strength or Kirara's cat eyes, he would probably be a big smudge on the ground within minutes and therefore of even less help to his friends. He knew he was doing more good keeping watch, being ready when they came back with Kagome and Shippo, but that fact didn't make him feel much better.

He was worried for Kagome and Shippo and not just because they must have fallen a long way, he knew there was a demon down there somewhere. He could sense its aura, even from way up where he was. He knew what that aura belonged to as well. When he was young and his father was still alive, he had told Miroku of a demon so powerful and so utterly foul that it was sealed away hundreds of years ago by a powerful demon slayer. “Probably an ancestor of Sango's family.” He said quietly to himself without noticing. The demon was called Nanoransu. It had the shape of a snake but was impossibly large; over 200 hundred feet long from head to tail. Its eyes glowed red with the fires of hell and its fangs dripped a lethal poison. The fumes were fatal to whoever breathed it for too long and if the poison itself should actually hit one, they would melt away almost instantly. It had a deadly intelligence and wicked nature and liked to play with its victims before eating them. It liked to tease them mentally, bringing them to the point of ultimate terror before swallowing them whole and relishing their screams as they were digested alive within its sweltering guts.

So terrible was this demon's power that, despite the fact that the demon slayer was considered one of the most powerful of his time, he could not slay Nanoransu. Instead, he lured it into a deep chasm during a volcanic eruption at the base of Mount Fuji and there it was trapped. Covered in molten lava and rock, it fell asleep and for all these years had been peacefully sleeping trapped under the earth, no longer a danger.

“Until now.” Miroku said out loud looking into the pit once more. He jumped back in sheepish surprise at the sound of his own voice. Just recalling the legend of Nanoransu gave him gooseflesh. Of course now it was no longer a legend. Of that he was sure. Nanoransu was real and if not already, soon his friends would be fighting it, trying to save the lives of Kagome and Shippo, if they weren't already dead.

“No I mustn't think like that.” Miroku admonished himself. “Inuyasha has never failed before. I know he and Sango can save them and bring them back alive. I know they can.” With that he took his position at the lip of the fissure and once again stared into the black depths. Looking for anything, any sign of his friends.

 

“Are you sure about this my master? Do you think it wise to use another jewel shard in yet another caper for Kikyo's sake? She's already lost one shard to dog-boy and his friends. And Nanoransu is going to be a handful. Are you sure you can get your shard back from him?”

Kagura was getting bored. She had been sitting with Naraku (once again concealed in his baboon pelt) in a tree not 50 yards from where the monk was sitting waiting for his friends. She had been there keeping watch for the brats since the day after Naraku's meeting with the undead priestess. She had watched Naraku imbed the jewel shard into Nanoransu (luckily its enchanted sleep had not been broken or even they might have not made it out alive) and then they had retired to this tree. There they had sat; waiting for the brats to take the bait, which they had. Kikyo's spell of power and control had obviously awakened Nanoransu successfully and with the jewel shard in his body he was no longer trapped but free to roam and collect prey. Nanoransu knew of course not to harm Kagome, Kikyo's spell would make sure of that. They would need Kagome alive. For now anyway. The rest of them however, they would be disposed of, and quite slowly and painfully if the legends she had heard about Nanoransu's cruelty were true. She cared not either way. She had been created to serve Naraku and serve him she would; no matter how much she hated it. He held her beating heart, literally, in the palm of his hand. He could kill her with nothing more than a word. So for Inuyasha, Kagome, Kikyo or any of the other characters in this fiendish plot of her master's, she cared nothing. Her only concern was her life and freedom. Well no, there was one other concern.

“Naraku, what about Kanna?”

Kanna was Kagura's elder sister, also created from Naraku. She was made in the form of an eternally young girl with white hair and creepy emotionless eyes. Her weapon was a mirror she constantly carried which could not only show her master what anyone was doing at almost any given time, but its primary usefulness lay in the stealing of human souls. And for this plan of course, that ability would be of paramount importance. Kanna was currently down in the depths with Nanoransu waiting for the right time to steal away Kagome's soul.

“What about Kanna?” Naraku finally said from the branch of the willow they were both perched in.

“Will she be safe? Are you sure Nanoransu won't hurt her?”

“Why Kagura. Concern for your elder sister?” Naraku said in a teasing voice but did not look at his incarnation. His gaze remained fixed on the monk by the crater.

Kagura frowned bitterly at the demon, nay; half-demon that had created her and forced her to become his slave. “Of course I'm concerned. Nanoransu is the most dangerous and vile demon in a thousand years. If Kanna should perish, then this plan of yours would come to quite an abrupt end wouldn't it?”

“Kanna is quite safe.” Naraku answered back with that same taunting voice. “Nanoransu will not harm her or the girl Kagome; thanks to the intricacies of Kikyo's spell.”

“Are you sure you can trust Kikyo to discharge her end of the bargain? For all we know, she's woken up Nanoransu to kill not only Inuyasha but us as well.”

“Kikyo will do as she is told.” Naraku said simply. “Her hatred is such that rational or pure thought is no longer possible. Her past failures and the burning pain of existing in this world have effectively blinded her to anything but the desire of revenge. And as far as she is concerned, I am the only one who can fulfill that desire. Even now she sits alone in her run-down little temple meditating and using all her powers to awaken and control the demon from the depths. She wants her soul back and will do anything to achieve that end. We have nothing to worry about from Kikyo.”

“Why not level with me Naraku.” Kagura said leaning in closer to him. “We have some time while the useless monk keeps watch. So tell me the truth. You aren't planning to return Kikyo's soul to her at all are you?”

Naraku did look at her then. Beneath the hood his eyes glowed like cinders. It was all the answer Kagura needed. “That's what I thought. What are you going to do with it then?” No answer. “That's okay.” Kagura said back in the same teasing voice Naraku had used on her. “I bet I can figure it out. I am `of' you after all. You're ultimate goal is to regain the Shikon Jewel in its whole form. You can't do that until you reclaim the shards that dog-boy and his friends have. And you aren't entirely sure you can reclaim them are you?” She did not wait for an answer this time. “Inuyasha and that girl are turning out to be more of a menace than you thought aren't they? Especially the girl since she almost destroyed you with a sacred arrow a few months ago.” Kagura could feel Naraku's burning eyes on her but she was feeling rebellious. She continued, “If you can get Kagome's soul and destroy it, then you'll no longer be in danger from her or Kikyo. Kagome will be gone and Kikyo will never be whole and therefore never pure again. You will be out of danger.” She looked triumphantly straight at Naraku and instantly wished she had kept her big mouth shut. Naraku sat quite still, without the smallest trace of emotion on his face, but Kagura's beating heart had appeared in the palm of his hand. Before she could protest, he gave it a wrenching squeeze. Kagura immediately doubled over in pain, gasping for air.

Naraku spoke with a tone of one who is talking to an impertinent child. “You forget yourself Kagura. I did not ask for your opinion. Besides, you are not entirely correct. Neither Kikyo nor Kagome is a true threat to me either with part of a soul or the complete thing. No one can defeat me.” As he finished, he abruptly let go of Kagura's heart and it disappeared from his hand. Kagura was able to sit up straight as the pain gradually diminished. She looked defiantly at her master.

“Then why…”

“That is none of your concern Kagura.” Naraku said sharply this time and Kagura immediately shut her mouth. “The only thing you need to worry about is making sure that anyone from Inuyasha's party, including the monk, never leave this clearing alive. We don't need any interference after we've collected the girl's soul. Can you handle that or do you need more incentive to do as you're bid?”

“NO!” Kagura almost yelled. “I will do as you have bid my….master.” She spat the last word out with obvious contempt but Naraku only smiled.

“Very well. Then I leave you to deal with the monk and whoever makes it back from the depths, although I think that very unlikely. I go now to the lair where Kanna waits for Nanoransu to return with his prey.” Naraku laughed maliciously and disappeared.

Kagura shook her head and sighed heavily. God how she wished she could be free from that bastard! She turned to face the monk, still absorbed in his useless guard duty. It was all right. She would take her frustration out on him. Just a little longer. She smiled coldly and waited.

 

 

Kagome did not know how long she fell, only that she did not remember coming to a stop. She was at first sure that she was dead. The ethereal light that came slightly through her closed eyelids gave her a very surreal feeling. She was for a second convinced that she would open her eyes and find herself at the gates of heaven. She only realized that she was still alive when she felt the pain. Her back was a concerto of aches and her head felt as if it would split in two. This was proof enough that she was still alive. She made to open her eyes but pain exploded behind them when she tried. It was the same with her body. Every twitch of muscle sent pain blasting through her back. She felt a thrill of terror as she thought that perhaps she had broken her spine but the pain in her legs and the fact that she could plainly feel her toes as she frantically wiggled them brought wonderful relief washing over her. She wasn't paralysed. But it did seem that she was hurt pretty badly. Dizziness washed over her and she desperately fought back the darkness that threatened to overtake her. She knew she had to stay awake, to open her eyes and try to move. She had no idea where she was but she knew that her physical injuries were the least of her problems. Even through the cacophony of pain she could sense that the jewel shard was extremely close and she could also feel that it was imbedded within a very large, and very evil aura. There was a demon down here with her. And, she involuntarily gasped as the memory came back; Shippo had fallen down the hole too! Was he lying down here hurt or perhaps worse?

Kagome's voice was edging on panic as she called, “Shippo! Shippo are you okay? Answer me please!”

“Kurfme? Em her! Gerrof meh!” Came the muffled reply.

Kagome was at once relieved that Shippo was alive but worried that his voice was so stifled; she could not tell where the voice was coming from. Could it be possible that Shippo was trapped under some rock and rubble from the earthquake?

Ignoring the pain, Kagome forced her eyes open. Everything was a blur but she could make out the slightly smooth rock walls of a huge cavern that seemed to pulse with its own light. She could see the blurry outline of several tunnels puncturing the walls at uneven intervals. She looked up and could see nothing but more rock which told her that she was not at the bottom of the pit anymore. She and Shippo had been moved. Kagome opened her eyes further still and strained to clear them. The light that seemed to come from the rock walls themselves had a misty quality to it but whether that was because of her eyes or just the way it was wasn't important. Right now she had to find Shippo. Slowly, she moved her right arm and then her left. There was pain but it was bearable. She propped herself up on her elbows, gasping at the pain in her back. It felt like she had pulled every possible muscle in her body and broken a few bones to boot. Gritting her teeth, she gradually rolled over so that she was leaning on her right side. She called out again.

“Shippo! Can you hear me? Are you alright?”
“Em her! Uner u! Moof!”

“Shippo?” Kagome heard his voice from behind her now and rolled over on her back again. She strained to hear anything from her little friend but heard no more. She was about to try calling to him again when she felt something moving against her legs. She stifled a scream and looked with her unfocused eyes, down at her legs. They were covered in dirt and she could see, very faintly, something that looked a lot like a bottlebrush sticking out from under her legs and the dirt.

“Shippo!” Kagome cried as she recognized Shippo's tail. She moved her legs as fast as she dared and Shippo appeared at last, coughing and spluttering but otherwise looking none the worse for wear. He took a deep breath, coughed and began to brush himself off.

“Oh wow. What the heck happened to us? One minute we're standing innocently looking for a jewel shard, the next we're falling down an enormous hole and I almost end up as pancake. Actually, that's a good point. Why aren't we pancake Kagome? Kagome!”

Shippo had looked up at Kagome lying on the floor next to him and his little heart skipped a beat. She looked horrible! Whatever had happened, she had definitely gotten the worst of it.

“Oh Kagome! You're hurt really bad aren't you?” He asked skipping over beside her head.

“I'm fine Shippo.” Kagome lied as best she could. Shippo looked ready to cry as he looked at her and that scared her. She had no idea what she currently looked like but if Shippo's face was any indication, she must look like hell. She propped herself up again on her elbows, ignoring the agony in her back, determined to show Shippo and herself that she was really okay. Her back would not give her that satisfaction however and she was forced to lie down once again as another wave of dizziness struck her.

“I can't let Shippo see how bad this is.” She thought to herself. “He's got to think I'm okay or he'll never leave and I can feel the jewel shard coming closer.”

Trying to feign the attitude of one who was having a casual conversation, Kagome looked at Shippo and said, “Shippo, your bow. Where is it?”

Shippo felt the top of his head and noticed it was gone. “I don't know. It must have fallen off somewhere.” He looked around but could not see it. “It's not here. Maybe it came off when we fell down the hole. How did we get here anyway?” He said finally taking notice of the large room they were in. “The last thing I remember is the ground giving way and then I woke up under your legs and all that dirt. How did we get from there to here?”

Kagome did not answer. She did not want to scare Shippo any more than necessary. The important thing now was for him to get out and get help. “Shippo you have to get out of here. You have to go find Inuyasha and the others.”

“No way Kagome!” Shippo yelled. “I'm not leaving you here like this. You're really hurt and you need help!”

“Shippo please don't argue with me. You're quick and you can find them the….” She was cut off by a sudden coughing fit as a foul scent assailed her. She hadn't been able to smell anything other than musty air before but now her nose felt as though it was being raped. “Oh Lord what is that smell!”

Shippo had covered his mouth as well and was trying not to cough. “I don't know but I can smell it too. Where did it come from? Oh man. That's (cough cough) awful. I can barely breathe. It smells like something that hasn't seen fresh air for years.”

“More like centuries.” The thought came unbidden but it did not surprise Kagome. Terror clawed at her again as she realized what that smell meant. It must be coming from the demon and it was getting stronger with each passing second. That must mean that the demon was getting even closer to them. Kagome did not know the legend of the horror down here but she knew enough about poisons (Kaede had been a good teacher) to know that if they stayed here much longer, they would likely suffocate before the demon even reached them.

“Shippo you have to get out of here. Find Inuyasha.”

This time Shippo did not argue, the smell was so bad it was all he could do to keep drawing breath. “But which way do I go?” He was looking around frantically at all the tunnels.

Kagome strained her neck to look. There were so many! “It doesn't matter Shippo, just get the heck out of here! Now!”

Shippo swivelled his head around trying to decide which tunnel would lead him back to the opening through which they had fallen. His eyes settled on the largest of the tunnels and he sprinted for it.

Kagome saw him head for the tunnel nearest to them and her heart suddenly gave a jolt. The jewel shard! From that direction?

“No.” She gasped. “Shippo no! Not that one!”

It was too late. Shippo had reached the mouth of the tunnel and disappeared inside. Kagome sat up, tears now streaming down her face from the pain in her back and head and dizziness threatening to overtake her once again. She had just managed to get to her knees when an ear splitting scream came from the tunnel Shippo had gone down. Kagome froze, unwilling to believe it but not being able to ignore it as the scream echoed ceaselessly throughout the cavern. She could not move, she simply sat on her knees, the pain temporarily drowned out with Shippo's screams.

“SHIPPO!”