InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Headliner ❯ Fire and Explosion ( Chapter 1 )

Um…I'm not really sure what other authors like myself do before they post their stories on this web, but I don't revise mine…..yes, not even once. So you'll have to pardon any rushed-sounding narratives or grammar/ punctuation mistakes. If you would be so kind as to point them out to me, I will be happy to oblige and fix any mistakes or confusing parts.

 

Disclaimer: I'll only say this once, so listen up! I don't own any of the Inuyasha characters, as well as the various plotlines, tributes, and various specific details that come with them. They belong to my favorite manga artist Rumiko Takahashi.

 

There, that should be enough to last for the whole story. Now, enjoy!

 

------------------------------------------

 

A little girl was weeping as she sat there amid the pile of rubble. It was what she had once called home.

 

How had this happened? What had she done to deserve this?

 

Nothing, she thought, the word quickly slipping away amid the anguish in her mind. Her family was dead, brutally slaughtered; their remains lying somewhere beneath the charred and crumbled pieces of brick and wood.

 

She continued to cry uncontrollably, wishing she had perished along with her family, so as not to feel the pain inside her little 5-year-old heart.

 

Of course she was much too young to remember anything in the coming years of that night, but one thing she did remember: red eyes, full of demonic joy.

 

The face of a demon.

 

The nightmare of her family's murderer would haunt her dreams more than one night.

The girl slowly lifted her head, the tears refusing to stop. She looked around, trying to find anything that might have survived the demon's destroying hands.

 

Something caught her eye.

 

Slowly, carefully, she picked herself up, hoping against hope that something of remembrance had been undamaged.

 

Her hopes were quickly dashed as she picked the object up.

 

It was a piece of cloth, made of a material she had never felt before. It was red, the color of the demon's eyes.

 

Carefully thinking back, she managed to salvage another memory from her jumbled thoughts.

 

This piece of cloth had been a part of what that demon had been wearing.

 

As if it were a poisonous snake, the little girl dropped it from her burned hands. It fluttered away for a bit, than came to rest on a wooden beam sticking out of the rubble.

 

She looked at it as fresh tears squeezed out of her eyes.

 

Then, her mind shut down. She couldn't take it. Her life had been cruelly ripped from her, her family taken, her house, gone. It was too much for her to bear.

 

A cold, determined look came into her eyes.

 

Without stopping to think, she walked over to the cloth and picked it back up. Examining it more closely, she was sure that it was a one-of-a-kind material; there would only be a few who had their clothes made out of this.

 

At that moment, she made a vow.

 

No matter how long it took, she would track down the owner of this cloth. She didn't know how, but on the day she found him again, she would make him pay.

 

She would make him feel every ounce of the anguish she had felt today.

 

Gripping the cloth tighter in her hand, she looked around. Clenching her teeth, she turned and slowly walked away, her new resolution giving strength to her tired feet.

 

Soon all there was left was the charred remains of what had once been a happy home.

 

 

---16 years later---

 

Eyes turned as a young woman walked down the streets of Tokyo. She held her head high, ignoring the stares and the whispers around her.

 

"Hey, isn't that the reporter...?"

 

"Yeah, the one who killed off all those demons..."

 

"She has some guts to walk out in broad daylight like that."

 

They were right. She did have guts. All the other reporters who worked with her at Demonic Times took taxis with screened windows, or limousines; if they could afford one. Anything that offered them some cover.

 

It was dangerous for a reporter of demon sightings to be walking around unprotected. Their jobs were to report whenever and wherever there were demonic activities. The demon exterminators would read their paper and go to 'investigate.' In other words, demon reporters such as herself were the cause of a lot of deaths.

 

If a demon spotted a reporter of her standings, then they would surely rip them apart to pieces, even in public. It would be one less trouble for them all.

 

The demons.

 

She gritted her teeth. Oh, how she hated them. It was her loathing for those monsters that had driven her to become a reporter in the first place. They would pay for what they did to her. She would bring as many of them down as she could.

 

And maybe, if she were lucky, she would get to see the demise of him as well.

 

The one who had ruined her life.

 

She didn't even know his name or even WHAT kind of demon he was, but she would do ANYTHING to have her hands around his dying neck. She looked forward to the day when she would be able to report sightings of her bitter enemy.

 

"Kagome, wait up!" A female voice interrupted her thoughts.

 

She turned around to see her partner, Sango, running up to her, waving her hands. Smiling Kagome turned all the way and waited for her to catch up.

 

"Wow, you wake up early," Sango panted as she stopped in front of Kagome.

 

"I'm a very busy body," Kagome said, smiling at her best friend, "can't afford to let sleep take away my time."

 

Sango laughed. "Kagome, you work too hard. No wonder you're the best at the job."

 

"Well, thanks for the compliment, even though it isn't true. Kikyo is a much better reporter than I'll ever be."

 

Sango frowned as they started walking again. "Don't say that, Kagome, you've reported on WAY more demons than she has."

 

Kagome shrugged. "As long as demons are getting exterminated, I don't care who the top of the chart is."

 

Sango shook her head. "Sometimes I think you hold your grudges too long, Kagome."

 

Kagome just kept walking.

 

Sango was the only one who knew what had really happened to Kagome's family. Sango's family thought it was a fire accident, and Kagome had just left it at that. They had taken her in without any hesitation, and she was grateful, no doubt; she just didn't want to bring it up unless absolutely necessary.

 

"So, during the night, did you see any..." Kagome began.

 

"NO, Kagome," Sango sighed. "I didn't see or kill any demons who were wearing red. Seriously, do you have to ask that question every morning?"

 

Kagome smiled guiltily. "Sorry."

 

Sango just rolled her eyes.

 

Sango was a demon exterminator. She was usually the one who went out to exterminate the demons that Kagome reported, along with Miroku, who was a monk by profession. Together, her, Sango, and Miroku made up one of the many pods in the Demonic Times company.

 

And one of the best, she might add.

 

Sometimes, Sango would be on patrol duty at night, which meant she kept guard over the sleeping city against unwanted visitors. It was dangerous, yes, but Kagome had full confidence in Sango's ability and strength. She was one of the best in the country, after all.

 

Miroku also had high spiritual powers, but he could sometimes be...well....unspiritual as well.

As if it were timed, Sango yelped next to Kagome. A slapping sound was heard all the way across the street, along with Sango's voice yelling, "Monk, I told you not to do that!"

 

Miroku rubbed his sore cheek and smiled happily. "But Sango dear, you know as well as I do that you are just too much for me to resist."

 

Kagome shook her head as she tried to suppress her laughter. This happened almost everyday, yet it never ceased to give her a laugh. It was a relief from the dangerous and stressful job that Kagome had took on at the age of 16. 5 years of that could really work at one's nerves.

 

Sango was no exception. "Don't do it again or I'll exterminate you!"

 

Miroku fell in line next to Sango, who in reply, shifted a little towards Kagome.

 

"My dear Sango, please accept my apology. In fact, as a sign of my sincereness, I will buy lunch today!"

 

Kagome and Sango cheered, and immediately began to discuss what they would eat at the expense of the lecherous monk.

 

As they entered the giant skyscraper in downtown Tokyo, they were greeted by a flurry of activity.

 

Everyone was busy doing something; there were no idle hands. Papers flew across the room as phones rang continuously; people scurried here and there, as the sound of computers roaring and bosses yelling reach the three friend's ears.

 

They quickly made their way to the elevator, catching it and squeezing in with about a couple dozen other people. It was quite cramped and stuffy in there, as they rode up, which gave Miroku another chance to...

 

Slap!

 

"MONK!!!"

 

"Sorry, so sorry, I didn't mean it, really!"

 

Sango just glared at him.

 

The others sighed.

 

Finally, they reached their floor, and they sprang out. Breathing a sigh of relief, they walked down the busy corridor to their pod's privat office; a big white-walled room with a window making up one of the walls. It overlooked the city's central district, past the harbor warehouses, and onto the sparkling ocean.

 

Kagome sighed at the view and sat down at her desk. The others followed suite, and soon their dicussions began.

 

 

 

It was towards the evening when Kagome decided to leave early. She was tired from staying up late last night working on a report; she was ready to drop dead on her pillow. The lunch Miroku had bought for them wasn't helping her fight her weariness either.

 

"Sango, Miroku, I'm kinda tired....I think I'll retire early today."

 

Sango and Miroku looked up from their papers in surprise. Usually Kagome was the last one to leave.

 

"Oh, oh, Kagome is leaving the building before I am! What is the world coming to?" Miroku cried out in mock anguish.

 

Kagome looked at him skeptically before leaving the room. "See you guys."

 

"Bye, Kagome," Sango waved, "have some well-deserved rest when you get home."

 

"I will," Kagome said, lying through her teeth. They all knew she would force herself to work at least until midnight. It was how she drove herself to continue living for so long.

 

As she waited for the elevator to reach her floor, she pondered on how she would get home. A taxi? Walking? She really didn't feel like walking all the way to her apartment.

 

She had lived with Sango until she was 18, when she decided to move into a room of her own. She dug into her savings to fish up some money to pay for the apartment rent. It was a one-room thing, with the room, the living room, and the kitchen all in one. The only other room was the bathroom. Even so, Kagome preferred not to burden her friend anymore than necessary. She had got along fine so far on her own (that's 3 years, for those who are calculator-challenged), and she was determined to make it.

 

A ding sounded, and the elevator doors swung open, revealing a sour-faced woman: Kikyo.

Right away Kagome could tell that she was in a bad mood. She debated on whether to go into the elevator, where she was sure to meet Kikyo's wrath, or to take the stairs. Kikyo glared at her.

 

"Are you going to stand there all day, or get on this elevator?"

 

Sighing, Kagome got on reluctantly, and turned to press the 'Lobby' button.

 

"Don't bother. I'm going down too."

 

Kagome nodded and stood by as the elevator doors closed.

 

As they went down, Kagome had to endure while Kikyo ranted on about another one of her boyfriend who had dumped her. How he didn't know fate when he saw it, how he was missing out on his soul mate, how he was dumb, how she had just been playing hard to get....

 

"Kikyo!" Kagome couldn't take it anymore, "This is the billionth boyfriend you've had in the past year, and it's hardly even summer yet. Don't you think you should start looking for THE one? I mean, you're the same age as me, you know?"

 

Kikyo's temper visibly flared. "Who are you to tell me how to run my life? Besides, I wouldn't be talking. YOU'd rather marry your own work than a real man. I bet you've never even gone on a date before!"

 

Kagome didn't say anything, because it was true. Kikyo went on, "And to think, you're trying to lecture me on finding THE one while you haven't even had your first kiss yet! Just what are you trying to prove?"

 

"The possibility of the independence of women," Kagome replied simply. Before Kikyo could reply, the elevator doors swung open, and Kagome walked out.

 

She continued on, making a fast decision of taking a cab home. She was spent after that tiring conversation with the paper editor.

 

She raised her hand and yelled, "Taxi!"

 

She didn't have to wait at all; there were always plenty of taxis available in front of her workplace owing to all the others taking cabs every day.

 

Seriously, Kagome thought angrily, if they're so scared of demons, why did they take the job as a demon reporter anyway?

 

As a taxi pulled up in front of her, Kagome opened the door and jumped in. "To 242 Small Street, please."

 

"Right away miss."

 

As they started to pull out of the driveway, Kagome heard an explosion behind them. A loud one.

 

She whipped her head around in time to see a great cloud of debris fly up from the direction of the warehouses by the harbor. Sparks and flashes of lightning were clearly visible as the pedestrians around her murmured in fright.

 

Kagome's head cleared after the initial shock; she had trained herself in the harshest ways to keep a cool head in panicky situations. Only one word came to mind as she looked at the cloud rose up into the air.

 

Demons.

 

Without taking her eyes off the explosion, she addressed the driver in a colder tone, "never mind the address I just gave you; take me to the warehouses, in the direction of that explosion."

 

The driver looked at her disbelievingly. "You want me to take you TOWARDS that explosion?"

 

Kagome knew he would refuse, so took a desperate dive, "I'll pay you double."

 

"Next stop, the explosion at the warehouses!" the driver shouted, doing a U-turn.

 

Kagome sighed, both at the greed of the driver and the thought of her empty wallet. She didn't have a very high income; she would be broke of pocket money once she paid him his dues.

 

Still, nothing got in the way of her work. If this explosion meant the demise of more demons, she would stop at nothing to learn more about it.

 

Soon they reached the sight. The driver stopped the car about 30 yards from the giant crater that gaped in the ground.

 

"That's it, I'm not going further than this."

 

Scowling, Kagome took out the money and paid the driver. She got out and stood for a moment, surveying the scene as the taxi screeched away.

 

A fight had taken place, no doubt. Between high-leveled demons too, by the looks of it. A giant crater in to ground was evident where a warehouse had once stood flanked by two others. There were still fresh embers inside the crater and around it. The smoke was clearing up now, and she was able to see more clearly.

 

The ground around her was littered with debris; the actual battle seemed to have ceased when the explosion...well...exploded.

 

The sight of the fire was starting to give her flashbacks, but she coldly pushed them away. This wasn't the time to get sentimental. She briskly walked towards the sight, as the demons seemed to have run away long ago. A few feet away from the edge, she reached into her purse and took out a notepad and a pencil.

 

She was about to jot some details down about the scene, when a flash of white passed directly in front of her.

 

She had no time to wonder before her mouth was clamped shut in an iron grip; another hand shot out from behind and crushed her against a rock-hard object, her arms useless in the grip around her waist.

 

This all happened in a split second; she was still wondering about the flash in front of her when her arms had been pinned to her side.

 

Her eyes widened, and she shook her head in panic. A chilling whisper sounded close to her ear, "One move and I'll slit your throat, got that, wench?"

 

Kagome stilled. She was in a deathly embrace of a demon she knew nothing about, and she had no one to call to for help. This was a situation in which she was entirely on her own. She whimpered at the thought of what the demon holding her would do to her. Having been attacked by a demon before didn't help her courage at all.

 

He was silent for a moment, as if pondering what to do with a fish he had caught. Finally, in his cold whisper, he said, "you will not write or report anything you saw today, not to ANYONE, got that?"

 

Kagome nodded, mumbling incoherently.

 

He seemed amused by this for some reason, as she heard him laugh softly under his breath. His breath tingled her neck, and she shivered, not in a good way.

 

"Well, cooperative, at least," he continued softly into her ear, "now, I will let go of you, and you won't make a sound until you've counted 60 seconds, nor will you turn around. If I even hear a sound out of you, then I'll...."

 

She felt him tighten his grip around her mouth. She flinched.

 

"Good, now then, it was nice meeting you."

 

She felt her captor's hands retreat from her body. She fell limply to her knees, not having the strength to scream even if she had wanted to. Without waiting for 60 seconds, she turned her head to look behind her.

 

All she saw was an empty lot, with no sign of the demon who had held her captive a few seconds ago.