InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Fallen Part One: Downfall ❯ By Myself ( Chapter 16 )

Well, I had this posted on A Single Spark yesturday but there were some technical difficulties concerning my disk, which I still haven't solved. But never fear. I finally managed to post! ^_^

Alrighty guys, this is it. This is the final chapter to Fallen, but this isn't it. There will be more. I already have… umm… five chapters for the second part. Sorry I took so long to update again too, btw. I survived Frances. My house narrowly missed several tree limbs through the roof. I got my power back the Monday night after the storm passed through, but when I went to put my computer back together (because I dismantled it and placed it in trash bags real neat like) my friggin internet refused to work. ><. I survive all the bad shit only to stumble on something like an internet connection. Damn this world. It never fails. Anyways. Part two for Fallen is titled For Whom The Bell Tolls… keep an eye out for it!! ^_^

Chapter 16: By Myself

Trees blurred as she hastily sped by. She had been on the road two weeks in search of the village Miroku had told her about. In the last week she has been followed. Something or someone was watching her, waiting for a moment of weakness. In the last week she had evaded so many attacks, changed directions to avoid ambush so many times, she was now hopelessly lost.

Onward she continued, however, for if she stopped they would surely catch her. But she had to stop eventually. She, like any other being, required rest, to eat, to sleep. Whatever chased her was not of this world however. They never tired, they never stopped and slowly, they were gaining on her. The creatures that chased her were so terrible, not even the largest, most fearsome of predators dared make its presence known. Even they bowed their heads to these creatures, submitting, hoping not to incur their wrath.

In the wake of these beasts was silence. Complete and utter silence followed these hellish creatures. Crickets dared not chirp. Leaves did not rustle and murmur. Not even the water made any type of sound. Nature itself feared calling attention to itself, for if it did it would also suffer the consequences. These beasts held no regard for what they destroyed. If provoked, they would destroy the earth itself.

`Faster, faster,' her urgent mind called as her body slowed, her breath coming out in ragged gasps. From behind her there was a large crack, as of a tree snapping under the weight of a large lumbering form. Another crack, this one much closer caused the fatigued Kagome to speed up as adrenaline coursed through her veins.

The sudden burst of speed was only good for a short sprint before she began to slow at an alarming rate. There's no way she could out run them now. Harsh laughter that grated on the ears sounded in her path causing her to skid to a stop. There was nowhere else to go but straight. Panting from overexertion, she managed to hiss out a curse.

Things were not looking good. Before her was the red clad mongrel and behind her the hounds of hell snarled at her back. In unison they attacked. She uttered a blood-curdling scream before she was enveloped in a bright light.

~X~

//What do I do to ignore them behind me?
Do I follow my instincts blindly?
Do I hide my pride from these bad dreams
And give in to sad thoughts that are maddening?//

With a scream she sat up. Sweat drenched her clothes and plastered her hair to her head. Flamed wings twitched behind her in an agitated manner. She had been having that same dream every night since the beginning of the second week of her journey. She was lost, alone and scared. Sango and Miroku had wanted to join her in this journey, but she had a feeling that if they joined her they would have died. The dream she had been having only seemed to confirm that. It seemed each time she had this dream she would awake to find that her concealing spell had fallen. The amount of power she possessed only served to attract demons. Slowly she calmed her racing heart and erratic breathing only to realize something was amiss.

//Do I sit here and try to stand it?
Or do I try to catch them red-handed?
Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness,
Or do I trust nobody and live in loneliness?//

Holding her breath she listened for the natural gossiping creatures of the night just outside her barrier only to find none. Everything was completely silent. A shiver of fear raced down Kagome's spine as she saw dozens of pairs of glowing yellow eyes just outside her barrier. Stretching her senses she could feel hundreds, nay thousands of them surrounding her.

From out of the darkness floated a smooth disembodied voice. "You really have no clue how hard you are to track down," it sneered. A section of the glowing eyes parted and a shadowy figure emerged. Kagome froze as recognition tugged at the edges of her mind. She had seen this person before, but she could not figure out where. Something about this person was familiar and yet, not. She reminded her of someone she once knew, but something about the shadowed woman before her was off.

//Because I can't hold on when I'm stretched so thin
I make the right moves but I'm lost within
I put on my daily façade but then
I just end up getting hurt again
By myself (Myself)//

"Who are you?" Kagome asked.

The woman before her paused before she laughed, her sweet voice tinkling like bells, "How could you forget your own aunt?" she asked.

Kagome gasped, as she was flooded with a flash back. Shaking her head, she quickly cleared it before she replied, "But you're dead!"

"Oh no, my dear. I'm very much alive," she laughed.

"What do you want?"

//I ask why, but in my mind
I find I can't rely on myself//


"Now, should an aunt really have a reason for wanting to see her niece? … No, but you're right. You see, there's some unfinished business between your mother and I, but since she's not here, I'll just have to take it up with you," she said as she stepped forward, walking through the barrier as if it weren't even there.

"Well, niece," she spat, her voice becoming harsh to the point where it grated on sensitive ears. "It's time to die," she said softly as she shot forward and closed her hand over the younger girl's throat.

Desperately, Kagome struggled to free herself, to draw breath. Her nails lengthened into talons and she began to scratch at the one who held her captive. Her vision began to blur and the scene before her disappeared. Faded completely from her vision. Everything became clear in that moment and she felt that she was completely safe. Then the moment passed, ripped from her grasp and she plummeted forth once more.

//I can't hold on
To what I want when I'm stretched so thin
It's all too much to take in//

~X~

She opened her eyes to find that she was indeed being strangled, her subconscious having manifested that portion of her dream as a way to wake her up. The apparition that haunted her dreams was not choking her; rather, she was being choked by a wraith swathed in the sheets of black velvet, cloaked in the shadow of the night. The dream she had was a premonition of sorts, but the fleeting bits slipped from her grasp in her life-threatening situation. She had not the time to analyze her dream.

//I can't hold on
To anything watching everything spin
With thoughts of failure sinking in//

Her eyes bled a deadly crimson before her wings sparked to life throwing her attacker from her person. With a shriek she launched herself at it, lashing out with her fists and glowing balls of flame that turned all it touched to ash. She allowed her rage to take hold of her and launched out a full out assault on the embodiment of her failure. The creature sparked to life an indescribably power self-loathing that had, until now been buried deep within. The beast clawed at its' cage, crying for release, but somehow she managed to hold on. For the time being she managed to hold a strings worth of control. The creature before her was the incarnation of her failure to protect her friends, her failure to destroy the evil that plagued the Earth. With all her rage she unfurled an arsenal of attacks that would have killed thousands, but did little to scratch it.

//If I turn my back I'm defenseless
And to go blindly seems senseless//


It stood before her now, this entity, laughing at her failure, making a mockery of her plights. She was panting heavily, still unused to her new power, and covered in numerous new wounds that overlapped the old. She lacked the endurance to maintain this pace for much longer. Her limbs felt like lead weights from her journeying and constant fighting without proper time to recuperate.

The monster lunged for her, hell bent on claiming her life. She defiantly raised her chin, closing her eyes as she awaited her fate. She knew she had not the strength to make even one more attack, to dodge one more blow. Silently she begged her mother's forgiveness. A tear slipped forth, and a rush of wind hit her, drying it, but nothing more happened. The seconds seemed to pass achingly slow and before she knew what was happening a force jerked her back and up. She felt the air rushing passed her and her stomach dropping to her feet with the speed. A sudden stop left her dizzy and she was just about to open her eyes when she was dropped, the air whipping her hair as she plummeted forth. She cried out when she roughly hit the ground, the air being knocked from her lungs. She lay still for several minutes, breathing heavily, before she tentatively cracked one eye open. She could hear the beast snarling and jumped when she heard an answering growl. She grimaced slightly and groaned mentally. A staring contest must have ensued before the former of the two spoke.

//If I hide my pride and let it all go on
Then they'll take from me 'till everything is gone//

"Give her to me. Her life is of no use or value to one such as yourself," the gravelly yet silky smooth voice calmly stated.

"Her life is not yours to claim… Naraku," Sesshoumaru stated coldly.

"I beg to differ, my lord," the baboon pelt loving freak cooed mockingly as two red clad figures slipped through the shadows cast by the now waning night, making their presence known.

Kagome's hiss of rage soon joined Sesshoumaru's growl at the sight of Kikyou and Inuyasha flanking both sided of their most hated enemy. Shakily Kagome rose from her position and slowly made her way to Sesshoumaru's side. Her presence went completely unnoticed, ignored, just as was to be expected. Kagome readied her holy powers, her energy renewed by the excessive amounts of adrenaline, while Sesshoumaru smoothly drew his sword. Sparks flew from the blade as it greedily sang for blood. Lightening sparked in Kagome's pure white eyes as two glowing balls of pale pink energy formed in her hands.

//If I let them go I'll be outdone
But if I try to catch them I'll be outrun//

Naraku backed into the shadows as Inuyasha and Kikyou prepared to fight his battle. Kikyou readied an arrow as she and Kagome faced off. Meanwhile, the two brothers faced off. Blood red eyes met pure gold and both lunged for each other. As the two separated, Kagome and Sesshoumaru caught sight of Naraku fleeing, melting into the shadows and made to pursue him. It was then that Kikyou and Inuyasha chose to simultaneously begin a full out assault.

Kagome's mind was too shell shocked to truly process what she had just seen. Mechanically she parried and dodged attacked never taking the offensive.

"Naraku's alive?" her mind screamed. "But he's supposed to be dead! There's no way he could have survived that! It's impossible! I killed him myself!This can't be happening!" her mind cried, trying desperately to cope with the sudden overload.

//If I'm killed by the questions like a cancer
Then I'll be buried in the silence of the answer
(By myself)//

So immersed in her thoughts was she that she completely missed the arrow headed straight towards her until it was too late. She move, almost in slow motion as the arrow that would have struck her down through her eye grazed her cheek. Kagome hissed in pain as blood trickled down her cheek, the blood bursting into flame, before the wound closed.

//I ask why, but in my mind
I find I can't rely on myself//

Deftly, she flipped the next two arrows and began to take to offensive. She barely dodged another arrow as she released a glowing mass of energy at the golem that so resembled herself.

Kikyou twirled her bow, creating a shield that barely managed to deflect the pure energy. The force of the blow caused Kikyou's bow to snap, the string catching her face, leaving bloody red welts. The raw energy hit a tree behind her, exploding on contact. The light of the explosion illuminated Kikyou's form from behind, but it seemed as if the light originated from Kagome rather than the flame.

//I can't hold on
To what I want when I'm stretched so thin
It's all too much to take in//

Inuyasha leapt at his brother, barely registering whom it was he was attacking through his red-fogged mind. With each day he stayed in this form, the more he lost of himself. He was rapidly nearing the point of no return, but it was amazing he lasted this long. Anyone else would have been a mere killing machine within days; he's lasted a few months. But, he like any other had to give in at some point. He was merely a marionette now, nothing but a pliant puppet, trapped in his own mind. What was left of his mind was screaming to die for all of the crimes he had committed against his friends and loved ones.

He charged at the pristine white warrior, claws extended. The brothers went back and forth in a deadly dance of attack, parry, and retreat. Both sported many wounds of varying degrees. Sesshoumaru had long ago sheathed his sword and was fighting with the abilities nature blessed him with at birth. The call for blood sang in both their veins.

//I can't hold on
To anything watching everything spin
With thoughts of failure sinking in//

Desperately Kikyou dodged another of Kagome's attacks, the ball of energy missing her head by mere centimeters. Each attack increased in strength as the fight progressed rather than getting weaker. She would not last much longer under these circumstances. Turning to Inuyasha to call for help, she was stopped short. Both brothers were locked together in a contest of strength that Inuyasha was clearly losing.

"You disappoint me, little brother," Sesshoumaru growled as he pushed the younger of the two back. The person in question snarled, but did not reply. Sesshoumaru continued his taunts, " Allowing yourself to become a mere servant. You're a disgrace to the family… Father is probably rolling in his grave…" He didn't get to finish what he was going to say because Inuyasha broke free, his eyes flashing golden. Sesshoumaru always knew how to get under his skin. For a single moment, Inuyasha was himself as he punched his elder brother in the jaw. His eyes returned to the blood lusting red as he charged again, however. Though he was strong, he was not strong enough to completely rid himself of the spell.

In the blink of an eye it was over. Sesshoumaru stood in the clearing, blood staining his clothing and dripping from his fingertips. Inuyasha's head slid from his body and rolled to the ground to stop at Kagome's feet. Kikyou silently slunk away, her soul stealers carrying her to safety.

//How do you think I've lost so much
I'm so afraid, I'm out of touch
How do you expect I will know what to do
When all I know is what you tell me to//

Kagome looked down at the severed head distastefully before she kicked it away, then turned and began to walk away. "Forgive me, little brother," her now keen hearing heard Sesshoumaru murmur. Her posture stiffened and she momentarily paused before she continued on her way. Her wings drooped tiredly behind her before they dissipated, hidden away under a concealing spell once more.

//Don't you know
I can't tell you how to make it go
No matter what I do, how hard I try
I can't seem to convince myself why
I'm stuck on the outside//

Silent tears slid down her cheeks. She had failed again. She had failed someone she loved again. How was she supposed to complete her mission, if she could not even protect her own friends?

//I can't hold on
To what I want when I'm stretched so thin
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
To anything watching everything spin
With thoughts of failure sinking in//