InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Lambent Passions ❯ memento mori ( Chapter 3 )

STANDARD DISCLAIMERS APPLY: The series Inuyasha and all its characters do not belong to me. They belong to their rightful owners. This is for entertainment purposes only. No copyright infringement intended.

Title: Lambent Passions
Author: Gladiel
Series: Inuyasha
Genre: Action/Adventure, Drama
Rating: PG-13
Summary: AU – For every light there is a shadow and in passion, an equal malevolence. An emperor with a passion for war, a demon with a passion for domination, and a woman with a passion for revenge: three beings found themselves tied by fate to a web of complexity, the disordered state of sensations, where passion may just be the most dangerous and dominant of all. (SessKag)

See the bottom of the page for a few terms you may need to know.

Both demon and human have been walking towards the city of Seho, the Northern Capital, for four hours since they left the uninhabited hut. Once they took a break as they passed by a tree that bore yellow fruit and helped their selves for a late meal. It was not much but it had remedied the problem of hunger.

Fatigue was quickly catching up to Kagome. It was starting to crawl into the muscles of her body, gradually devouring her energy. She feared voicing out any complain and contented herself with whatever break he blessed her with. There was an ironic setback at having the gift of healing: the one that wields the power cannot heal himself. The same rule applies to Kagome and she could do nothing to alleviate her body’s suffering.

Sesshoumaru was slightly annoyed by the slowness of their pace but suppressed that irritation by the fact that he was slowly regaining his lost vigor. By not exerting too much energy for speed, he was conserving it. He walked a few paces ahead of the girl, unaware of her physical struggles. He was lost in his own world, driven by a dream he wished to achieve, and determination resonating from the depths of his soul. His mind was focused only on the fact that once they reach the capital, he may once again make progress in his plans.

Kagome trembled under the thickness of worn-out clothing. She could vaguely make sense of the direction they were taking, not noticing that this demon before her knew the way to the capital. She felt like a dog following its master, ignorant of the reason “why” and the information “where”.

He suddenly stopped his tracks and motion was suspended. There was a second of silence before his voice reached her, “We shall stop here until I say we go.”

Grateful for the desired rest, Kagome expressed her gratitude, “Thank you, Sesshoumaru-sama.”

The demon lord barely glanced her way and affirmed her with a nod. He scanned their surroundings, listening intently for any sign of an unwanted presence while Kagome found the softness of the grass-filled ground strangely inviting. Her legs gave away and she closed her eyes as she submitted herself to sleep.

Satisfied that they were safe, Sesshoumaru sat at a distance from the human girl, preferring the shade of a huge tree to having himself baked under the rays of the sun as the girl was. He then noticed that she made no effort to move from that grass-covered spot to nap: it was the same spot that she was standing on when he issued the command that they may rest. He questioned her preference of heat over shade; he concluded that she simply was peculiar.

The energy he lost from the past weeks of fighting and travel was quickly being rejuvenated. For him it was unnatural, for who would be most familiar with his body than he himself? It should take two more days, surely, but at that moment he felt as if he had never fought a team of Northern soldiers, fought a Northern general, and been hit by an Okoro’s organic explosion.

Was it the girl? Or was it the fecundity of the environment that surrounded him? The human didn’t do anything odd that morning, nor as they were traveling. He did not feel any unusual movements from her except from her slow pace of walking, and an unusually quick breathing. Having witnessed the events of yesterday, he did not think she would be this weak. Truth be told, he assumed that she would be quicker in their travel after witnessing her run across the streak of land before diving into the pool of deep water with an Okoro behind her the day before.

His gaze shifted back to her, the girl who said her name was Kagome. She gave him no indications of a clan name. That was not strange for she was, after all, of the lower classes. There was a lingering feeling of disturbance upon her character, for he felt a streak of genteel nobility in some of her unconscious actions. She walked with careful grace, even when strained her steps were almost noiseless. Her manner of speech was refined. The girl, he mused, was an enigma.

He knew nothing about her. Everything he “knew”, he simply supposed. There were no facts in his assumptions, only hypothetical guesses which he derived from her words and actions. This sudden interest in the human puzzled him. He decided that it was the absence of another presence and her strangeness that caused her to be a focus of his attention. Would it not be an indication of narcissism if he thought solely about himself? It was, after all, natural to have one’s curiosity piqued by something that is strange and foreign to one’s self.

Letting a few minutes pass, he relaxed his body and silently mused about the course of action he was to take. He knew there was a village somewhere nearby; he just couldn’t remember clearly where. It had been twelve years since he last visited the North, and he could only remember the direction of the capital.

Sesshoumaru remembered the events that drove him to the North twelve years ago. It was just before the Western territories plunged into chaos. He was visiting his uncle that resided in one of the Emperor’s lands. During an evening of his visit, he received a note delivered by his father’s messenger requesting for his presence at the Castle at once. He left the North in great hurry, however he arrived too late. What was once a thriving city in the desert turned into remains of crumbled rocks. The city his father built had been ruined.

“Sesshoumaru-sama!” a frantic little green-skinned demon rushed to the adjoining room, a scroll half-opened in his hands. “There was a message from your father! He wishes you return to the West at once!”

His expression unchanging, he took the scroll from the open palms of Jaken. He quickly skimmed through the message. It was noticeable that the note was written in haste; the ink was slightly spilled and the wax seal was unusually large—it was poured carelessly. It did not indicate the reason for his much-needed attendance but he felt an uneasy sensation echoing through his body as he thought about the possible situation at the West while he was absent.

Sesshoumaru turned to his uncle and apologized, “Forgive me, Komoshita-sama. I fear that there was an unexpected emergency from the West that I must leave in haste.”

The other demon that sat opposite him nodded in affirmation. His uncle, a fellow dog-demon, looked at him, eyes filled with worry, “I believe it is best that you go, Sesshoumaru. There may be trouble in the West.”

His uncle regarded Sesshoumaru with respect. Yet, he agreed with the others when they said that the Western lord was undeniably unfeeling. He wore a terrible cold exterior that even when grave news was at his hands, his expression remained monotonous; there were no signs of anxiety or worry, no shock. It seemed that nothing could disturb his calm and composed demeanor.

Having received his uncle’s blessing, Sesshoumaru left the Northern Emperor’s lands. Riding Ah-Un, he went directly to his father’s land, anger slowly building up towards whoever was the cause of this sudden disorder. From above he smelled the smoke that came from burning houses and land, he heard shouts and wailing and his heart seemed to beat twice its normal rate.

The hours it took him for his travel proved enough to drive the city in chaos. Other demon lords in his father’s court have disappeared, others he found dead or badly wounded. Demons were fighting demons. Humans caught in the apparent uprising were bloodied, a future meal for other predators.

The central castle, his home, was one of the few edifices that were left standing. The moon glared at the cursed land with anger. Stones that used to be part of houses had been reduced to small pebbles that rested on pale yellow ground.

His homeland smelled like a basin of bloodied corpses.

“Sesshoumaru-sama,” said a hooded figure that suddenly emerged into existence from the blazing fire-lit darkness. His eyes, clear sapphire crystals, bore a heavy seriousness. Locks of sandy tendrils fell at both sides of his face, most of the mass gathered behind the cloak.

“Sakeshi,” he affirmed. Sakeshi was a loyal spy of his father and he was someone his father deemed trustworthy. He was the kind of demon who would willingly offer his life to anyone whom he swore allegiance to.

Sesshoumaru continued walking towards the still-standing manor of the Clan. It seemed as if there were no enemies present and most demons were in hiding. Sakeshi walked behind him while Ah-Un, with Jaken riding him, trotted beside Sesshoumaru.

“Lord Marukaya’s First General commanded the attack,” Sakeshi started. It did not surprise Sesshoumaru. He had been aware of a few suspicious dealings that the other western lord was into. He had been eying him ever since a dispute between the lord and his father fifteen years ago. “And with his forces was Yumori-sama.”

Sesshoumaru was startled by the mention of the name. However, his composure did not loose the threaded coolness. “Yumori-sama?”

Yumori was his father’s best friend and cousin.

“Yumori-sama betrayed the Clan. He was with some foreign demons. There were seven of them,” continued Sakeshi.

Seven—no, eight demons were the cause of this chaos? “Traitors?”

“None from your army, my lord. All of them were Yumori-sama’s. However, it was impossible to tell if there were any other spies in hiding in your army or in the Inu no Taisho’s,” he said, referring to Sesshoumaru’s father.

“Where is Yumori?”

“They disappeared, soon after the attack.”

“And they left no trace?”

“None that I saw, my lord. However, I saw something unusual with Yumori-sama and his subordinates.”

“Speak.”

“Yumori -sama and some of the other demons that followed him had black, spider-like marks on their bodies.”

Sesshoumaru contemplated on the information for a few minutes. It was foreign…there were no Spider Clans in the West. Was it an enemy from the North or East? There seemed little possibility that it was from the South for the South hated wars and the irregularity of peace. They particularly upheld all virtues and dogmas that promoted peace, within and outside their country.

“You have done your duty well, Sakeshi,” Sesshoumaru praised.

“Command me, my lord. I shall be at your service.”

“Give me names: the traitors and the dead. Take Ukimo with you.” Ukimo was his appointed informant, as Sakeshi was his father’s.

“Affirmative,” Sakeshi nodded once.

“Where are my father and the sword?”

“I do not wish to be the bringer of worst news, my lord, but the Inu no Taisho and Tessaiga are missing.”

He did not dismiss the possibility of his father being dead. His half-brother was no different. However, he must secure the sword. There was a reason why his father’s lands were attacked, and he felt it was related to the two swords he entrusted he had made from his fangs.

“You are dismissed.”

Sakeshi, now spy and servant to Sesshoumaru, blended with the darkness.

“Jaken.”

“Hai, Sesshoumaru-sama?”

“Have the remaining generals gather in the castle, as well as the nobility. I will first restore order, execute the traitors, then we shall attend to the matters regarding father.”

“A wise plan, my lord.”

It was not only his father’s city that tasted pandemonium. Some cities experienced an uprising by a few demon clans similar to the land of his father’s, other towns and villages were massacred by a group who some said smelled foreign.

Because his father entrusted Tenseiga with him long before, the sword rested at his side. He was confident about the probability that his father hid the sword.

His father was dead. If he were alive, his presence would not be absent in a crucial time. Whoever drove his father to death must have wanted something badly; he could only conclude that the cause of that tragedy, that violent uprising and division between clans, wanted to take possession of Tessaiga or Tenseiga, or both, that would give whoever possessed them control over the whole West.

Jaken had been with him, as well as Ah-Un. He gained control over the demons that were fighting over the power of a lord’s control and rebuilt the city. He executed those that went against him, formed allies with the other lords in the West that had control of their own towns or cities, and made peace pacts with powerful human clans.

He devised his own network of informants and searched for Yumori and Lord Marukaya, as well as anyone else connected to the event that caused the momentary chaos throughout the West. He heard rumors about Inuyasha; his half-brother was alive. He did not care if he wished to reside in another place other than their father’s lands, or if he wished to travel to wherever.

What gave him the key to the identity of the person behind everything was his father’s cousin, Yumori.

“You returned?” Sesshoumaru asked coolly, his expression unreadable.

“You did not expect it?” Yumori, the cousin of the last Inu no Taisho, smirked.

“On the contrary, I thought that someone as stupid like you might return for something you have failed to possess. What have you hare to gain?”

“Position. I will gain control of the lands of your father!” he finished with a laugh.

“You humor me, Yumori. I, Sesshoumaru, won’t let you take any step further.” The claws on his left and right glowed green, gathering poison for his use.

“You plan to fight?”

“I plan to kill.”

“You forget. I am two-hundred years older than you,” Yumori said, taking one step backwards with his left foot and getting ready into a fighting position. “And I know your Dokkasou.”

“Age does not immediately deem the victory of a battle never started.”

In a single moment, Sesshoumaru disappeared from Yumori’s sight. Behind him, Sesshoumaru dashed forward, his claw in position to pierce the other demon. Yumori dodged the attack, although not without difficulty, and took out his sword from its scabbard.

“Tch,” Yumori frowned. Sesshoumaru was faster and that in itself was already a disadvantage for him. He spotted Sesshoumaru and dashed to the left. He swung his sword diagonally, creating a strong gust of wind, which quickly took its direction towards Sesshoumaru.

He dodged by jumping upwards. Poison dispersed from his clawed hand. Thrusting it downward, poison mixed with the wind that resulted from his opponent’s sword.

“Your poisonous claw is useless, Sesshoumaru, if it never touches this body.”

It was never Sesshoumaru’s fashion to chat about trivial topics when in battle. He concentrated on the moves of his opponent, correctly predicting the upward sway of Yumori’s sword, bringing with it some of the air pressure that resulted from it.

Yumori, strong in his own right, held his ground. However, he already inhaled some poison that mixed with the air around them. This weakened him and slowed him down considerably, affecting the strength and power of his attacks.

He charged Sesshoumaru, planning on slashing his body instead of attacking from afar. Sesshoumaru stopped the sword with his own sword; his hands still green and emitting poison. Yumori struck and was trying to wound his opponent but his decreased agility made it easy for Sesshoumaru to block the attacks.

A green-like whip formed from one of his fingers on his right hand. Glowing an eerie white, it wrapped around Yumori’s sword, encircling it with fast motion. The sharp tip of the whip pierced through Yumori’s hand and he screamed in pain.

“DAMN YOU! I will have the power that the Northern Emperor promised!” his hand bleeding, Yumori dropped the sword. Sesshoumaru charged forward and with incredible speed, made it impossible for his opponent to evade. His claws slashed Yumori’s throat, bringing the other demon down to his knees and to death.

Now that he discovered the allegiance between his father’s cousin and the Northern Emperor, the person who helped bring the West a taste of hell, he entrusted his lands to an uncle so that he himself could hunt the Emperor down. To that demon he could entrust his life, therefore to him he entrusted his lands. He, with Jaken, headed towards the North, to the Palace of the being that was the cause of all causes in the Time of Pandemonium (a name the residents of the West came to baptize the span of twelve chaotic years after the Uprisings), the Northern Emperor.

He had dedicated the past year to perfecting his plans. Aside from assassinating the Emperor, it was part of his goals to gain control and dominance over the lands of the North. He could expand his territories and construct an empire that would give ultimate dominance to demons.

He broke away from those thoughts and noticed his servant stir. Deciding it was time for them to go, he stood up and approached the girl.

He nudged her sleeping figure with his left foot. Jet-black eyes opened suddenly and stared at him, fear evident in the clear orbs. She blinked, as if first unaware of the nature of his presence, before quickly sitting up. She took in deep breaths and stared at the ground, still quite in a daze.

“We’re going,” he said, before turning his back once again and started to walk.

She nodded, although unnoticed by him, and stood up. She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to recall a nightmare she just had. She felt fear when she woke up, but she could not remember the series of images that woke that fear. Frowning, she decided not to think about it.

Kagome felt slightly improved. A few minutes of rest had made her head ache less than before. She smiled at her better condition and now realized that Sesshoumaru did not and still was not asking her for directions to the capital. Walking behind him, she dared to ask, “Sesshoumaru-sama, how do you know the direction of the capital?”

He did not regard her with annoyance and simply replied, “I have been there once.”

His reply puzzled her. What was her use to him then? She thought she would be in charge of the task of leading him to the capital.

She decided not to ask and continued on playing what she considered “Following the Leader”.

They walked on for hours, wordlessly at first. It was Kagome who broke the silence for she found it unbearably deafening.

“Sesshoumaru-sama, where are you from? The East? West? South?”

He did not answer her question but instead asked another one. “Why do you wear a man’s clothing?” His steps slowed down considerably, allowing Kagome to catch up with four quick steps.

“It’s safer to travel in these clothes. Besides, they aren’t even actually mine.”

“Stolen?” he half-stated.

“Borrowed,” Kagome said as her hand unconsciously rubbed the right side of her head. The headache disturbed her, but not as much as a few hours ago. She was still quite feverish but she ignored the physical signs of her body.

“You need not hide the facts, woman.”

“It was my hobby to tell the truth."

“Was, not is. Therefore the same rule does not apply in the present, now that you are under my command.”

She glanced at him before answering, “I apologize, Sesshoumaru-sama.”

Kagome started to hum a common children’s song as they walked. She thought about her “self”. Somehow, she felt as if she was treading on dangerous waters; she was doing something that she shouldn’t dare do: talk as if an equal to Sesshoumaru. She was surprised he hadn’t dismissed her yet for her seemingly apparent insolence. Then again, she really must have some use to him.

“Is there any nearby villages here?” his voice made her halt her humming.

Kagome’s lips twisted into a joyful smile. “Yes!”

He regarded her with an unruffled gaze despite the fact that she caught him quite off-guard for having directed that smiled at him.

“Silly fool. What reason do you have to smile about my question?”

“The next village is the one where I live,” she explained. “If Sesshoumaru-sama permits, may I visit my grandparents simply to inform them that I am to go with you to the capital?”

She was emitting a carefree radiance that Sesshoumaru felt compelled to crush her hopes just to swipe away that smile on her face.

“No,” was the insensitive reply.

Kagome’s face dropped for she was hoping that he’d at least inform her grandparents. This satisfied Sesshoumaru. He did not want her to feel ludicrously happy when he was not the least bit enthusiastic and joyful.

“This servant shall inform her grandparents really fast,” she tried to convince him.

“No. I will only stop for new clothing, but nothing else. I do not wish for anything to delay this trip any longer.” He eyed her and noticed her worn-out and faded clothing. He wondered for a moment if he should replace her clothes for something more presentable.

“Sesshoumaru-sama, I know where you may get excellent clothing in the village. Only let me see my grandparents once, just once, and we shall soon be off our way.” Kagome ran ahead of Sesshoumaru, faced him, and bowed. “Please, my lord. I will also be more obedient to my master’s wishes.”

She was making a bargain. He contemplated about it for a mere ten seconds before nodding. Traveling would certainly be easier with a submissive girl than one who tried to defy the traditional customs of classes.

He nodded in agreement.

“I am in your debt, Sesshoumaru-sama.”

They arrived at the village at dusk. It was a small village and even as the sun was a setting red orb in the sky, there were barely anyone outside the huts and houses. Sesshoumaru smelled both the scent of demons and humans in the area.

“There are demons here?”

Kagome nodded. “There are humans and demons here but most of the demons are merchants while most of us are farmers.”

The demons are forerunners of the trading industry, then.

He asked no more and the two walked in silence.

He let the girl lead her. She walked the streets with familiarity, effortlessly leading him to what seemed like a shop. They had passed many houses and he could only question the financial difficulties of most of the village dwellers. She stopped by its door and lifted her hand to ring a hanging bell.

“Watsukokoroshi-san!”

Sesshoumaru looked at Kagome as if she were making jest. Watsukokoroshi? What a ridiculously long name.

It took a few minutes before someone opened the door. A lizard-like demon, with eyes that glowed lavender and gray scales that gleamed under the orange rays of the setting sun, greeted them.

“Ah, Kagome-chan!” The demon was tall; he wore a red dobuku, a short open-fronted jacket,with orange prints. Underneath he wore brown garments. He smiled at Kagome, his tongue involuntarily sticking out quickly before being summoned back into his mouth. Sesshoumaru noticed a flicker of sorrow in the demon’s eyes as he greeted the girl.

“And who is thisss?” he asked, as he directed his attention to Sesshoumaru.

“Koko-san, this is Sesshoumaru-sama. He needs new garments to wear,” Kagome briefly explained.

“Sesshoumaru-sssama?” He looked at Kagome then at Sesshoumaru then back at Kagome. “You are employed?” he asked her.

“Hai,” Kagome nodded.

“Have you been home yet?”

“No, I went here first for Sesshoumaru-sama’s business.”

“I sssee, I sssee…” he placed his fingers below his chin and rested his elbow on a folded arm, giving an image of a demon in thought.

He faced Sesshoumaru saying, “Welcome to my humble shop, Sesshoumaru-sssama. You are foreign, I presume?”

Sesshoumaru regarded him with cold indifference. “That is not your business.”

“Ah, yesss, yess.”

Watsukokoroshi led them inside his shop, with Kagome last to enter. There were a variety of silks and cloth that hung inside, each having a different print, pattern, and color, as well as, Sesshoumaru felt, magical ability.

“Pleassse wait here. I will get a ready-made garment that would perfectly fit you, my lord,” he said before disappearing into the next room.

Sesshoumaru heard a sigh escape from the girl’s lips.

“What is it?” he asked, not so much annoyed.

“Oh,” Kagome was a bit surprised by his question. “Nothing really.”

Golden eyes were fixed unto her, a force that compelled her to confess the truth.

“I just can’t wait to get home,” she finally murmured, and an awkward silence followed it.

“Here it isss!” Watsukokoroshi suddenly entered the room, breaking the wordless atmosphere that surrounded both servant and master.

He showed Sesshoumaru a navy outside garment with simple white designs on the edges of the sleeves. The undergarment was white and the oguchi, a red type of hakama and undergarment, came with it. The uwabakama, a formal hakama worn over the oguchi, was the color of clouds; white and smooth, and made of silk. It was formal attire worn by those with status.

Kagome almost gaped at the simple elegance of the clothes. She had seen such clothing before, perhaps even more splendid than the one in front of her, but she didn’t know that Watsukokoroshi kept something like that in his shop. She stared at Watsukokoroshi with open wonder.

“Stop gaping, woman, and close that mouth,” was the command that came from her master. Watsukokoroshi winked at her and she quickly shut her mouth.

Sesshoumaru examined the set with satisfaction. “I assume these are spelled,” he finally said.

Watsukokoroshi nodded agreeably, glad that he was able to please this customer. “Of courssse, my lord. The best defenssse I can offer.”

“The price?”

“Twenty thousssand rishi.”

Sesshoumaru showed no hesitance. He produced a bag of coins from a garment pocket. However, before handing it over, he said, “I have but fifteen.”

“Then you, my lord, shall owe me five.”

“You trust that I will return to pay them?” Sesshoumaru challenged.

The merchant met eye-to-eye with him and with confidence said, “Of courssse.”

Sesshoumaru was, truth be told, impressed. He nodded at the merchant. “Then I will,” and he tossed the bag of coins to the other demon.

They left the shop with a fully clothed demon lord and a cheerful girl-servant.

He let her lead once more, for he did not know the direction to her home. “Be quick at your business,” he said.

“I am grateful, my lord, for letting me see my grandmother and grandfather.”

“Hmph.”

“They live almost outside the village, so it won’t be too far from the road to the capital.”

As she said, it was quite far from most of the village houses, and it was obvious that they were tenants of a small farm.

As if reading his thoughts, she said, “They are farmers.”

He did not reply anything to the volunteered information. As they neared the house, Kagome quickened her steps and rushed ahead of him. Exited, she shouted, “Obaa-san! Oji-san!”

She opened the door and was welcomed by the hanging corpses of an old couple.

Kagome was frozen in place and not a word could escape from her lips.

TERMS:

1. Dokkasou – “Toxic Flower Claw”. Sesshoumaru’s ability to produce poison from his claws when they glow green.

2. Rishi – the currency in this story. Although there is a division between the North, East, West, and South, the four use the same currency.