InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Half-Breed ❯ Chapter VI ( Chapter 8 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: rockthedragon7 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 02.27.2005 | Updated On: 03.31.2005 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.7K | Visits: 189 | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 02.27.2005 | Updated On: 03.31.2005 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.7K | Visits: 189 | Status: Completed
Half-Breed: Chapter VI
A two-day walk had brought me to the open woods where the timberland stream grew into a wide waterway, and the towering trees grew scattered and allowed the moonlight to pass through the leaves and fall to the woodland floor. I crawled atop a collapsed trunk that was overgrown with moss and mushrooms, and I slowly slid down the opposite side, letting my feet seek out adequate supporting amongst the piles of soggy leaves, glancing cautiously at my surroundings. The putrid, heavy scent of one distinctive body, like the smell of rotting flesh, hung in the air, clinging to every leaf, every branch, every grain of dirt. I was in a demon’s territory. My ears were working overtime, singling out each and every sound, filtering through the noises of the forest, searching for that threatening whisper that could spell my doom.
I hadn’t gone far when an almost inaudible rustle drew my immediate attention. My ears perked to the noise, and I stiffened with anxiety as I halted in my steps, my silver hair tumbling over my back as I whipped around, my blood running cold in my veins, my sharp eyes probing the shadows, but I could see nothing. Nothing at all. I could have sworn that I had heard a warning snarl, nearly out of earshot, but there nonetheless. [Demon! Run!] My instincts were screaming. But there was nothing there. I reluctantly turned, giving a fleeting look over my shoulder.
A blanket of stillness had fallen over the woods. The forest seemed to hold its breath. I strained my senses, stretching them like seeking fingers through the trees, yet I could not gather one trace of an enemy. Was my mind playing tricks on me? Was I imagining things? Perhaps I was just paranoid. I could simply attribute the sound to the mischief of the wind flowing through the leaves, but some misgiving kept tugging, tugging. No, there’s no such word as paranoia among demons - it’s the ‘edge of readiness’. I swallowed hard, and I forced my feet to move, casting fearful glimpses behind me. A snarl drifted over the breeze and was captured by my ears, which I resolutely ignored, and I began to walk faster.
My footsteps came to an abrupt halt, paralyzed as a shadow loomed up before me, and I could only stare forward, eyes wide with fear, mouth clamped shut. Hot, fetid breath blew down, surging in intimidating growls over me. Slowly, I raised my eyes, following the massive black figure. My fear-filled gaze met its seething, red-eyed glare, and I pinned my ears back against my skull with terror. [Demon!] Sword-like fangs lines the creature’s snarling maw; a jagged white mane fell down its powerfully built back; poison-green claws like daggers adorned its lengthy, bony fingers, clenching and releasing with rage as it stared down upon me with its glowing crimson eyes full of revulsion and fury.
“Half-blood,” the beast growled as it leaned closer to me. Its putrid breath rolled over me, fanning my hair back as I stood frozen to the spot, quavering, too frightened to move, too frightened to cry out. The demon snarled, “You reek of Inu no Taishou.” For a moment, the growl grew in ferocity. I could hear only the swift whisper of the air, and the beast’s monstrous hand connected with my side. I was knocked away, roughly colliding with the solid ground and tumbling to a skidding halt. My body was numb with pain. I struggled to take a breath, fighting with the wind that had been forcibly chocked from my lungs as I hit the dirt. Delving my claws into the ground, I floundered to my knees, leaves and twigs tangled in my hair, mud on my face and dirt on my clothes. My chest heaved as my breath came in sharp, broken gasps, and I grappled with the sudden rushes of oxygen surging into my crushed lungs.
“Half-blood.” The demon stalked towards me, and its voice sounded bleary and distant. “Inu no Taishou’s runt!” I glanced up at him through my silver bangs, panting as I steadily regained my breath. “I will tear you limb from limb as though I am tearing apart your father, half-breed, and know that it is his blood that I will be spilling this day!”
Panic sped through me like a shot. I wrestled to stand and stumbled backward, tripping over my own feet. The demon reached toward me with one massive clawed hand to snap my fragile neck in half. I ducked behind a tree, sliding to my knees just as the beast’s palm closed around the trunk. I set my hands against the trembling bark and looked up at the boughs above me as the tree creaked and groaned in protest of the pressure of the demon’s potent grip, and in a second, the thick trunk was broken in apart like a stick… like my neck could have been. Wood and bark rained down on me, and I hid my head in my arms. The demon glared at the tree in its hand and violently thrust it away, sending it crashing through the forest in a shower of leaves.
I peered over what was left of the tree, staring at the seething monster with fearful eyes. The demon whipped its head around at me, its ashen mane flying, and I hid, closing my eyes tight and willing the monster to simply go away. I held my breath, listening as the demon snarled ominously and stomped the ground with its massive two-toed feet. Then, all sound vanished, and the forest was silent once more, save the occasional fall of a leaf. Had the demon just forgotten me, deciding that I was a trivial enough amusement that it left to search for something a little more interesting? I hesitantly looked over the jagged tree stump. I was met with the image of claws and fangs, mixed up in a mass of blackness as the clever demon lunged at me, and I was throw back in a cloud of dust.
Searing pain sundered up and down my right side, and I let out an air-piercing cry. Two cavernous gashes stretched from the center of my thigh, around to the back, burning, smoldering. Thick, red blood flowed readily from the wounds, turning my clothing black. My arm was broken, shattered, and I could not move it. I squeezed my eyes shut against the hurt, wishing that I could just pass out and not feel the pain.
The demon crept toward me, in no need to hurry, laughing wickedly, and licking my blood from its claws. “Is life spiteful, young one? Do not charge me for such cruelty, for it is your damn father’s fault. Was it not your sire who brought you being? Was it not his whore who gave you breath? Yes, it is his fault, and his actions, which have granted your life, have brought you your death!” It grinned that evil grin. “Ironic, isn’t it. When you have died, whether by blood loss or the venom now coursing through your veins, I will devour your wretched body, and be rid of Inu no Taishou…” The demon halted, almost as though its breath had been ripped from its throat, and it eyes widened, staring at me with surprise as I lay feeble on the ground. “…at last.” It let out one last gurgling sigh, and tumbled forward, crashing to the forest floor unmoving. I blinked as I noticed the lengthy javelin protruding from the demon’s neck.
“It’s dead!” The called drew my eyes upward to a human emerging from his hiding place in the trees. He was attired almost entirely in black armor, and a mask covered his nose and mouth, hiding most of his face from my view. In any case, my vision was becoming fuzzy… I was losing too much blood. The man wrenched the spear from the demon’s neck as his comrades came behind him, carrying with them crescent-shaped knives fastened to chains, lances, rapiers, and all kinds of pitiless-looking weapons. While many of the people gathered around the fallen beast, laughing and cheering and clapping each other on the back, I struggled to move away, dragging myself weakly, knowing that these humans were taijiya - demon exterminators - and I was likely next on their list.
One taijiya glanced over her shoulder, taking note of the puddle of blood and the crimson trail leading away. Turning her back to her companions, she curiously started toward the thick red liquid. I watched her from my place in the bushes as she crouched to study the small pool and furrowed her brow. After a moment, she glanced up at the thicket, and I flinched. She was aware that I was hiding, and also that I was injured. Reluctantly, she stood and came toward me. I feebly fought to push myself farther away, pressing my back into the sturdy branches, my splintered arm laying slack against my lap. I could feel my wounds already beginning to fester with the poison. The exterminator halted before the underbrush, and I held my breath, watching her feet as they shifted, and for a moment I thought that she would leave. Instead, she bent down, looking into the bushes, straight into my golden eyes. I simply stared back, too tired, too weak…
Leisurely, she removed her mask and set it to the dirt. “Hey,” she whispered. “Come on out of there.” I slowly shook my head, taking in ragged breaths, trying to blink away my hazy vision. She paused. ‘He’s so young,’ she thought to herself. ‘Just a child… not more than six years old.’ Her eyes fell upon my wounds. “I’m not going to hurt you.” I hesitated, but still shook my head as I began to dwindle into unconsciousness. The world was spinning in a flurry of colours. It hurt… it hurt so bad. She reached an arm out to me, and all at once it was dark.
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A two-day walk had brought me to the open woods where the timberland stream grew into a wide waterway, and the towering trees grew scattered and allowed the moonlight to pass through the leaves and fall to the woodland floor. I crawled atop a collapsed trunk that was overgrown with moss and mushrooms, and I slowly slid down the opposite side, letting my feet seek out adequate supporting amongst the piles of soggy leaves, glancing cautiously at my surroundings. The putrid, heavy scent of one distinctive body, like the smell of rotting flesh, hung in the air, clinging to every leaf, every branch, every grain of dirt. I was in a demon’s territory. My ears were working overtime, singling out each and every sound, filtering through the noises of the forest, searching for that threatening whisper that could spell my doom.
I hadn’t gone far when an almost inaudible rustle drew my immediate attention. My ears perked to the noise, and I stiffened with anxiety as I halted in my steps, my silver hair tumbling over my back as I whipped around, my blood running cold in my veins, my sharp eyes probing the shadows, but I could see nothing. Nothing at all. I could have sworn that I had heard a warning snarl, nearly out of earshot, but there nonetheless. [Demon! Run!] My instincts were screaming. But there was nothing there. I reluctantly turned, giving a fleeting look over my shoulder.
A blanket of stillness had fallen over the woods. The forest seemed to hold its breath. I strained my senses, stretching them like seeking fingers through the trees, yet I could not gather one trace of an enemy. Was my mind playing tricks on me? Was I imagining things? Perhaps I was just paranoid. I could simply attribute the sound to the mischief of the wind flowing through the leaves, but some misgiving kept tugging, tugging. No, there’s no such word as paranoia among demons - it’s the ‘edge of readiness’. I swallowed hard, and I forced my feet to move, casting fearful glimpses behind me. A snarl drifted over the breeze and was captured by my ears, which I resolutely ignored, and I began to walk faster.
My footsteps came to an abrupt halt, paralyzed as a shadow loomed up before me, and I could only stare forward, eyes wide with fear, mouth clamped shut. Hot, fetid breath blew down, surging in intimidating growls over me. Slowly, I raised my eyes, following the massive black figure. My fear-filled gaze met its seething, red-eyed glare, and I pinned my ears back against my skull with terror. [Demon!] Sword-like fangs lines the creature’s snarling maw; a jagged white mane fell down its powerfully built back; poison-green claws like daggers adorned its lengthy, bony fingers, clenching and releasing with rage as it stared down upon me with its glowing crimson eyes full of revulsion and fury.
“Half-blood,” the beast growled as it leaned closer to me. Its putrid breath rolled over me, fanning my hair back as I stood frozen to the spot, quavering, too frightened to move, too frightened to cry out. The demon snarled, “You reek of Inu no Taishou.” For a moment, the growl grew in ferocity. I could hear only the swift whisper of the air, and the beast’s monstrous hand connected with my side. I was knocked away, roughly colliding with the solid ground and tumbling to a skidding halt. My body was numb with pain. I struggled to take a breath, fighting with the wind that had been forcibly chocked from my lungs as I hit the dirt. Delving my claws into the ground, I floundered to my knees, leaves and twigs tangled in my hair, mud on my face and dirt on my clothes. My chest heaved as my breath came in sharp, broken gasps, and I grappled with the sudden rushes of oxygen surging into my crushed lungs.
“Half-blood.” The demon stalked towards me, and its voice sounded bleary and distant. “Inu no Taishou’s runt!” I glanced up at him through my silver bangs, panting as I steadily regained my breath. “I will tear you limb from limb as though I am tearing apart your father, half-breed, and know that it is his blood that I will be spilling this day!”
Panic sped through me like a shot. I wrestled to stand and stumbled backward, tripping over my own feet. The demon reached toward me with one massive clawed hand to snap my fragile neck in half. I ducked behind a tree, sliding to my knees just as the beast’s palm closed around the trunk. I set my hands against the trembling bark and looked up at the boughs above me as the tree creaked and groaned in protest of the pressure of the demon’s potent grip, and in a second, the thick trunk was broken in apart like a stick… like my neck could have been. Wood and bark rained down on me, and I hid my head in my arms. The demon glared at the tree in its hand and violently thrust it away, sending it crashing through the forest in a shower of leaves.
I peered over what was left of the tree, staring at the seething monster with fearful eyes. The demon whipped its head around at me, its ashen mane flying, and I hid, closing my eyes tight and willing the monster to simply go away. I held my breath, listening as the demon snarled ominously and stomped the ground with its massive two-toed feet. Then, all sound vanished, and the forest was silent once more, save the occasional fall of a leaf. Had the demon just forgotten me, deciding that I was a trivial enough amusement that it left to search for something a little more interesting? I hesitantly looked over the jagged tree stump. I was met with the image of claws and fangs, mixed up in a mass of blackness as the clever demon lunged at me, and I was throw back in a cloud of dust.
Searing pain sundered up and down my right side, and I let out an air-piercing cry. Two cavernous gashes stretched from the center of my thigh, around to the back, burning, smoldering. Thick, red blood flowed readily from the wounds, turning my clothing black. My arm was broken, shattered, and I could not move it. I squeezed my eyes shut against the hurt, wishing that I could just pass out and not feel the pain.
The demon crept toward me, in no need to hurry, laughing wickedly, and licking my blood from its claws. “Is life spiteful, young one? Do not charge me for such cruelty, for it is your damn father’s fault. Was it not your sire who brought you being? Was it not his whore who gave you breath? Yes, it is his fault, and his actions, which have granted your life, have brought you your death!” It grinned that evil grin. “Ironic, isn’t it. When you have died, whether by blood loss or the venom now coursing through your veins, I will devour your wretched body, and be rid of Inu no Taishou…” The demon halted, almost as though its breath had been ripped from its throat, and it eyes widened, staring at me with surprise as I lay feeble on the ground. “…at last.” It let out one last gurgling sigh, and tumbled forward, crashing to the forest floor unmoving. I blinked as I noticed the lengthy javelin protruding from the demon’s neck.
“It’s dead!” The called drew my eyes upward to a human emerging from his hiding place in the trees. He was attired almost entirely in black armor, and a mask covered his nose and mouth, hiding most of his face from my view. In any case, my vision was becoming fuzzy… I was losing too much blood. The man wrenched the spear from the demon’s neck as his comrades came behind him, carrying with them crescent-shaped knives fastened to chains, lances, rapiers, and all kinds of pitiless-looking weapons. While many of the people gathered around the fallen beast, laughing and cheering and clapping each other on the back, I struggled to move away, dragging myself weakly, knowing that these humans were taijiya - demon exterminators - and I was likely next on their list.
One taijiya glanced over her shoulder, taking note of the puddle of blood and the crimson trail leading away. Turning her back to her companions, she curiously started toward the thick red liquid. I watched her from my place in the bushes as she crouched to study the small pool and furrowed her brow. After a moment, she glanced up at the thicket, and I flinched. She was aware that I was hiding, and also that I was injured. Reluctantly, she stood and came toward me. I feebly fought to push myself farther away, pressing my back into the sturdy branches, my splintered arm laying slack against my lap. I could feel my wounds already beginning to fester with the poison. The exterminator halted before the underbrush, and I held my breath, watching her feet as they shifted, and for a moment I thought that she would leave. Instead, she bent down, looking into the bushes, straight into my golden eyes. I simply stared back, too tired, too weak…
Leisurely, she removed her mask and set it to the dirt. “Hey,” she whispered. “Come on out of there.” I slowly shook my head, taking in ragged breaths, trying to blink away my hazy vision. She paused. ‘He’s so young,’ she thought to herself. ‘Just a child… not more than six years old.’ Her eyes fell upon my wounds. “I’m not going to hurt you.” I hesitated, but still shook my head as I began to dwindle into unconsciousness. The world was spinning in a flurry of colours. It hurt… it hurt so bad. She reached an arm out to me, and all at once it was dark.
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