InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Malice ❯ Darkness: Descending Towards Hell ( Chapter 31 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Chapter 31: Darkness: Descending Towards Hell

When they finally stepped carefully into camp, the first reactions were fear as Sango and Kikyou, Koga and his friends, and Miroku all rushed to the sides of their fallen friends.

When they got there, though, they all stepped back in surprise with a heavy dose of caution - both of their friends had apparently been knocked unconscious, but Inuyasha was now waking, and was seemingly not quite in his right mind. He had moved to protect Kagome instantly, growling viciously and not allowing anyone near his fallen mate.
Sesshoumaru stayed a bit back, brow raised in a slight show of surprise. "I would advise the rest of you to move away from them - once you do, and she wakes, he will calm again. As far as he is concerned, right now his new mate is vulnerable, as she is unconscious, and he will kill anything he feels is a threat to her."

The moment they all stepped back, the hanyou crouched over Kagome and lifted her into his arms, and he held her there, crooning to her soothingly as he checked her for injuries. After a few moments, he was apparently satisfied when he found none, and he moved closer to the fire, warily watching them as he held her.

Finally, a few minutes after he woke, Kagome stirred, and his attention was instantly riveted on her. The rest of the group sighed with relief - the deadly stare he had pinned them all with was hardly comfortable.

"Inu... Inuyasha?" she asked, woozily trying to sit up, and he growled low, comfortingly as his eyes cleared of the red and shifted back to his normal gold.

"Keh. Are you okay, K'gome?"

"Yeah... I think so. What happened?"

He frowned, and shook his head. "I..."

Sesshoumaru spoke up from where he'd taken a seat. "We are not sure... we were all sitting quietly, when the power from both of you began to spike - your youki became unbearable for the monk and priestess, and Kagome's ki became to much for the youkai."

Miroku nodded as both Kagome and Inuyasha looked surprised. "He speaks truth. We all had no choice but to leave and try to get out of range of whatever was happening. We could all feel the power continue to spike - and then it began to calm, until it finally dissipated."

"I... could also feel the jewel during that time." Sesshoumaru frowned. "It...merged with both of you - I could sense it."

Kagome nodded as she heard what they were saying. "Hai... I remember now. I was remembering..." she looked away, a distant look crossing her face, "well, anyway, then all of a sudden, I could feel the shards - all of them. I just knew it was time, then."

Inuyasha tightened his grip on her, hurt in his eyes as he caught what she didn't say... what she had been remembering. He was afraid to ask. But it really didn't matter in the end, which painful memory it was.

"Yeah... I felt the jewel dissolve. At first I didn't know what was happening, but then... I felt Kagome, and she was peaceful, so I knew it was something that had to happen."

Kikyou turned her gaze away and stared into the fire as the rest of the group settled once more in comfortable places. "So... what does it mean, that the shards are now inside you? Did you... take all of them?"

Kagome nodded wearily. "Yes."

"Then that means that Naraku knows that he's lost his shards."

Sesshoumaru broke in, then. "Perhaps - perhaps not. From what my spies told me, the spider did not look as though he were aware enough of anything to notice the disappearance of shards of a broken jewel. Especially as he'd already begun to understand that they were not what he had originally thought."

Sango had listened to the talk, and pain flared through her at the thought of her beloved little brother - the one she couldn't save, no matter how hard she'd tried, and a hand went to her mouth as she tried to keep from making any noise.

She didn't want everyone to see her tears.

But Kagome picked up on it, and lifted her head from where it lay against Inuyasha's shoulder, smiling across at her.

"Did you really think we'd let anything happen to him, Sango? Kohaku's fine... and he's on his way to Kaede and the village. She'll watch over him and keep him safe until you get back."

Inuyasha's brow rose as she spoke, but then lowered as he realized, he did know what she was talking about. Their soul had protected the boy - he had his life back, and Naraku could never harm him again.

The shard was gone from the boy - and so was all influence of the evil spider.

He nodded at Sango, then. "Yeah... he'll be fine with old Kaede until we get back."

Sango's shoulders slumped then, as the tension she'd lived with for months finally loosened its grasp on her and she let out a soul-deep sigh, leaning into Miroku's side as he put his arm around her in glad support.

"Thanks, Kagome, Inuyasha," she whispered, eyes closed. "Now... I can go after Naraku with no fears about my brother holding me back."

Kikyou glanced at them, then looked away again. She'd been very quiet since they'd all come back to the camp, as had Sesshoumaru and the wolves. With a shake of her head, she sighed. Things keep getting more and more complicated...

Kagome began to sit up, adjusting herself in Inuyasha's lap comfortably, and smiled at everyone. "Okay, everybody, let's lose the melancholy! The food smells really good... why don't we all eat?"

She chuckled, then, and shook her head, eyes twinkling. "Tomorrow's soon enough to be all depressive... when we're running around in dark caves. Let's just enjoy the peace of this evening, guys... okay?"

Inuyasha tightened his arms around her in a hug and nuzzled into her neck as the rest of the group all nodded and smiled at her, agreeing.

Tomorrow was definitely soon enough to let the dark thoughts in.

Tonight... they would enjoy the peaceful atmosphere that had been granted to them.

Morning came, far too soon for most of the group, though Sesshoumaru himself did not care, and within an hour of waking, the camp was taken down...

And they were ready to head into the darkness.

Kagome came to a stop when they reached the entrance to the caves, and pulling out her map, she beckoned the group to surrround her, and they quickly mapped the safest routes.

She frowned down at the paper as she once again noted the ominous symbol on it that stood for the deepest cavern. Sesshoumaru noted her look, and asked, "You fear something, miko. What is it?"

She shook her head, frustrated. "It's this." She pointed at the cavern. "We agreed yesterday that Naraku was probably heading for the deepest, darkest part of the cave system. That's it right there - but this mark means it's dangerous."

Looking up and meeting his eyes, she said, "In my time, that cavern is known to be unstable... and it's also well known that at some point in my era's past, it collapsed - I'm almost certain that if we were to enter that particular cave now, it would look very different to how it does in my time."

Inuyasha scowled down at the map, obviously unhappy. "Keh! If it's that dangerous, Kagome, I don't want you anywhere near it."

Miroku tilted his head, an absent look on his face. "Tell me, Kagome... is it known in your time when this cave suffered its collapse?" he asked slowly, and Kagome's eyes widened when what he was suggesting sank in.

"They can't date it specifically, but... it would be very close in time to... now," she said, horror thick in her voice. "Oh, gods... I bet that's what happens! It's our fight with Naraku that destroys that cave..."

As everyone broke out into speech at her horrified announcement, Sesshoumaru thought about it for several moments, and then spoke. His voice instantly sliced through the babble, and silence reigned once more in the clearing.

"While that is an interesting supposition, and something that we need to consider, it does not change our course." He cast a quick glance at his brother, who reluctantly nodded. "Once inside, I will go ahead with Inuyasha and Kagome following - my brother and I will track the spider by scent, and the miko will chart our position on the map, so we know where we have been."

Kagome shook herself from her fearful daze, and said, "There is one other thing we need to consider. These maps are handy to have, and just may save us - but be aware. They map this system as it is five hundred years from now... and that's a long time. While most of the caverns should be pretty much the same, some might be a bit different - so pay attention."

Koga cast quick glances at his companions, then nodded. "Fine. We'll keep that in mind - and we'll take the rear, making sure nothing sneaks up from behind. We really don't know whether Naraku is alone or not... or what else might be hiding here."

Sango shivered and looked over at Kikyou, who seemed lost in thought, then at Miroku. "I hate caves... I swear."

"Hai, as do I, my dear Sango, but..." he trailed off, not really needing to finish. They all knew what he was saying.

Wherever Naraku went, they would follow, until he was totally destroyed, none of them would ever be free.

With a huge sigh, Kagome took her flashlight, checked the batteries, and then straightened her shoulders with a determined look on her face.

"Let's do this."

Inuyasha grinned at her, and sweeping an arm around her waist, he motioned with the other to his brother.

"Waitin' on you, Sesshoumaru. Get a move on!"

The daiyoukai shot his brother a measuring look, then moved forward...

And the descent into hell began.

It didn't take long before all light from the entrance was lost, and they became reliant on Kagome's flashlight as a point of reference. Everyone stayed fairly close together, not wanting to get separated for any reason, and everyone used every available sense to constantly monitor their surroundings.

After about fifteen minutes of walking, they came to their first halt when they reached an place with two different routes, and Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha both lifted their noses and scented the air.

"It appears that the spider took this route, into the left-hand passage - but something else that also carries a faint scent of Naraku went the other way," Sesshoumaru said.

Inuyasha spoke up disgustedly. "Feh. It's Byakuya - stupid incarnation. I don't care about him, but... it means that we do need to watch our backs - there ain't no telling what else is crawling around down here in the dark." He raised his voice just a bit. "Oi, wolf-shit - did ya catch that, you idiot?"

Koga snorted and flicked a finger in the hanyou's direction. "Bite me, mutt... I ain't stupid, I always watch my back - which just goes to show I'm smarter than you."

A short-lived growl broke out before being cut off by a sharp elbow to the gut and an irritated voice. "Stop it, Inuyasha, and you, Koga, better quit trying to rile him up. We don't need this stupid infighting right now."

Sesshoumaru cocked a brow at his brother, and glanced approvingly at Kagome. "She is correct, brother. Ignore the wolf, he is of no consequence between you and your mate - no longer is he a rival." He ignored the irritated growl from Koga, and the snickers from the rest of the group. "Come. It is time to move on."

Inuyasha snorted, then caught Kagome's hand in his own, following after his brother, and the silence filtered back into the caves, interrupted only faintly by distant drips, and the shuffling sounds of their feet as they passed.

They walked for what seemed like hours, the darkness pressing in on them, and Kagome lost herself in her thoughts. She didn't like where they were leading her.

It was apparent, to her, anyway, that Kikyou did not plan on leaving the caves alive, the first clue being her lack of shinidamachu. They had not followed her here... and Kagome knew that she could only last so long without them.

She had also, Kagome had noticed, become very reticent, almost distant - as though she was preparing herself... saying goodbye. This bothered her on many levels. She really didn't want the elder priestess to die... hadn't fate screwed her enough?

She was shaken from her thoughts as Sesshoumaru once again came to a halt, telling the group to rest, and eat, before taking a seat against a small rock formation on the floor of the cavern they were currently traveling through.

Kagome looked at the map she still held, and was a bit surprised at how far they'd come. So far, it looked as though the caves were, indeed, much the same now as they were in her time - though she wouldn't count on that staying the same the further down they went.

"May I ask, Kagome... how far down have we come?" Miroku's voice was quiet, almost as though he feared to disturb the silence of the caves, and she couldn't blame him; not to mention the echoes were very distracting.

"I'm only guessing here, but I'd say about four hundred to four hundred and fifty feet. The caves descend gradually - at least at first. Plus, the farther down we go, the more obstacles we're going to come across - chasms, unstable ceilings and the like." Her voice was just as quiet.

Ginta and Hakkaku exchanged nervous look with their leader. "You know... I always loved our den - living in a cave never bothered me before but..." Ginta's voice trailed off, and Koga nodded reluctantly.

"Yeah, I know what you mean." He glanced around, taking in what little they could see with the tiny amount of light available. "These caves... there's something that ain't right about them."

Everyone seemed to agree with him, and even Inuyasha was oddly subdued. "Keh. For once, you don't sound stupid, wolf. These caves've got a bad feel to them - and Naraku bein' here sure ain't helping that any."

Kagome shook her head, frowning, she thought back to the two trips she'd taken to these same caves in her time. It was so different, then... with the lights that had been put in most of the caves... dim to be sure - and yet... it changed the feel of them. Now, the darkness was like a living thing inside them, writhing and twisting against them, pressing down on all of them.

"They're different... in my time, I mean. They don't feel this way. Although..." she trailed off momentarily, then continued. "The deepest cavern has always had a reputation for being haunted - they say bad things happen to anyone who tries to enter it."

"It is of no consequence at this time, miko - as we do not have a choice but to follow Naraku." He cast a glance at the wolf. "Unless you, Koga, would prefer to let sleeping spiders lie?"

"Hell no! I don't care where that bastard goes - even if I don't like it, I'll follow."

Kikyou spoke up then, surprising everyone. She'd been so quite they'd forgotten she was there.

"Hell," she mused. "That was an interesting choice of words, ookami. And what will you do if that is actually where we have to go?"

She pinned him with her eyes. "Are you strong enough to descend into hell? Or will you turn away and run back to the land of the living?"

No one said anything as they pondered her words, and wondered.

Were they walking into destiny... or fate?

A/N: Destiny... or fate? Difference is, at least in my opinion, destiny is a choice, fate is a lack of choice.

Anyway... hope everyone enjoyed the chapter as we move into the final chapters of Malice - it's been a long journey, but hopefully, the end will not disappoint!

Amber