InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Pirates of the Sengoku Jidai ❯ Aboard the HMS Midoriko ( Prologue )

Pirates of the Sengoku Jidai

Disclaimer:I do not own Inuyasha or Pirates of the Caribbean. I think I am the first to put them together, however.

Chapter One:

((FADE IN on the sea. An impenetrable wall of gray fog covers the horizon as far as the eye can see. All is silent, until, ever so faintly, the voice of a young girl is heard, singing slowly under her breath.))

Kagome: Yo, ho, yo, ho/A pirate's life for me./Yo, ho, yo, ho/It's a pirate's life for me…

((As the girl's singing grows slowly louder, a massive ship slices through the fog-the HMS Midoriko. An awe-inspiring ship-of-the-line, the Midoriko is equipped with twenty-five gun ports on each side, and rail guns to boot. KAGOME HIGURASHI stands at the bow, singing. She is a raven-haired young woman of roughly twelve.))

Kagome: Drink up me hearties, yo, ho, yo, ho…

((She is suddenly cut off as a hand claps down on her shoulder. She is spun around to stare into the face of HITEN, the most superstitious crewman ever to sail upon the seven seas. Some of the oarsmen have whispered that he is a demon, or a pirate, or both. He growls at Kagome.))

Hiten: You be quiet, missy. Accursed pirates sail these waters. You wouldn't want to bring them down on our heads, would you?

Kouga: Mr. Hiten!

((Startled, Hiten turns to face LIEUTENANT KOUGA. The officer was known to be cunning, ambitious, and rising quickly through the ranks. Standing next to him is GOVERNOR HIGURASHI, Kagome's grandfather. His hair is beginning to gray, as compared to Kouga's jet black locks. Both glare sternly at Hiten.))

Kouga: That will do, Mr. Hiten.

((Hiten drops his head slightly and mutters an explanation.))

Hiten: She was singing about pirates, sir. Bad luck to sing about pirates.

Doubly so in this unnatural fog, mark my words.

Kouga: Consider them marked.

((Each word is spoken with a caustic sarcasm that drives daggers into Hiten's pride. The black-haired crewman nods and strides off, trying to salvage his dignity.))

Hiten: It's also bad luck to have a woman on board-even a miniature one.

((Surreptitiously, he takes a swig from a flask hanging at his side.))

Kagome: Actually, I think it would be quite exciting to meet a pirate.

Kouga: Think again, Miss Higurashi. Vile, violent, and dissolute creatures the lot of them; Youkai pirates most of all. I intend to see that any man or demon who flies under pirate flag or wears a pirate brand get exactly what they deserve: A short drop and a sudden stop.

((Kagome does not understand. She glances over at Hiten, who mimes a hanging. The young girl gasps slightly. Governor Higurashi taps Kouga on the shoulder.))

Governor Higurashi: Lieutenant Kouga, I appreciate your fervor, but I am concerned about the effect this subject will have on my granddaughter.

Kouga: My apologies, Governor.

Kagome: Actually, I find it all fascinating.

Governor Higurashi: That's exactly what I'm concerned about.

Kagome: Yes, Grandpa…

((She turns and walks beside the railing gazing out into the empty sea. Suddenly, a ripple of movement catches her eye, and she watches as a white parasol floats, upside-down, past the ship.))

Kagome: What in seven hells…

((She tilts her head, eyes retracing the umbrella's path. Her eyes widen as she sees…))

Kagome: A boy! There's a boy in the water!

((Indeed, a boy is in the water, sprawled, unconscious, across a board that is floating after the parasol. Kouga snaps to attention on hearing Kagome's shout.))

Kouga: Man overboard! Fetch a hook! Haul him out of there!

((In a flash of movement, the sailors have a rope over the side of the ship. The strongest of them slides down and hauls the boy on deck. Kouga kneels beside him and checks his pulse. He places a hand over the boy's chest and feels it rise and fall. He sighs in relief.))

Kouga: He's still breathing.

Governor Higurashi: Where did he come from?

Hiten: Kami-sama!

Governor Higurashi: I think it is exceedingly unlikely that the boy fell out of Nirvana, Mr. Hiten.

Hiten: I wasn't talking about the boy. I was talking about the burning wreck over there!

((He points, leading the crew's attention away from the unconscious boy. The sea is no longer empty. The fog has lifted slightly, revealing a burning wreck. Debris fills the water, along with bloody corpses.))

Governor Higurashi: What happened here?

Kouga: Most likely the powder magazine. Merchant vessels run heavily armed.

Hiten: And a lot of good it did them.

((Kouga looks sharply at him.))

Kouga: Look, everyone's thinking it. I'm just the one to say it, that's all. Pirates!

Governor Higurashi: There's hardly any proof of that. It could have been an accident like Lt. Kouga said.

Hiten: Sure it was. Suuurre it was.

Kouga: You will keep a civil tongue in your head when speaking to your betters, Mr. Hiten.

((He turns to the rest of the crew.))

Kouga: Rouse the captain immediately. If there's even the slightest chance one of these poor devils is still alive, we must try to help them.

((Within seconds, the crew are climbing into longboats and rowing towards the wreck. A pair of sailors lift the still-unconscious boy and move him into a cabin. Governor Higurashi places a hand on his granddaughter's shoulder.))

Governor Higurashi: Kagome, I want you to accompany the boy. He's in your charge.

((Kagome nods))

INT. CABIN

((She approaches the boy, who is lying on the bed. She gets her first good look at him. He is dressed in soggy red clothes and a long mane of white hair tumbles back over his shoulders. A pair of dog ears are perched on the top of his head. Thus an inu-youkai. Or perhaps a hanyou. Kagome idly trails a finger over one of the ears. Suddenly, his eyes snap open, and he grips her wrist tightly with his hand. Kagome places a finger to her lips.)

Kagome: Shh, it's okay. I'm Kagome Higurashi.

((The boy blinks his amber eyes and relaxes his grip))

Inuyasha: I-inuyasha. Inuyasha Ikkitousen.

Kagome: I'm watching over you, Inuyasha.

((INUYASHA nods and slips back into unconsciousness, relinquishing his grip on her wrist entirely. The movement causes the collar of his shirt to fall open, giving Kagome a view of his manly chest…er, I mean, the chain he was wearing around his neck. She pulls it off and examines it. Attached to the chain is a golden medallion, a grinning skull grinning up at her. Vaguely Aztec in design, it means one thing and one thing only to her eyes.))

Kagome: You're a pirate!

((She hears footsteps coming towards the cabin. Quickly, she stuffs the medallion into her pocket. The door opens and Lt. Kouga enters.))

Kouga: Has he said anything?

Kagome: He's only woken up long enough to tell me his name: Inuyasha

Ikkitousen.

Kouga: Very good.

((He nods brusquely, turns, and exits the cabin.))

HMS MIDORIKO-STERN

((Kagome stands at the stern of the ship. She glances around inconspicuously to make sure no one is watching. Satisfied that their attention is elsewhere, Kagome pulls out the medallion and examines it more closely. At that moment the wind picks up. She glances up and suppresses a gasp. Slicing through the fog is a ship, a schooner, with tattered black sails. It is mostly obscured by the fog, but the mizzen-top is clearly visible, and flying atop it is the skull-and-crossbones of the Jolly Roger. Kagome is all but frozen with fear. She numbly lifts the medallion and her eyes widen. The skull on the gold is the twin of that depicted upon the pirate flag. Kagome clutches tightly at the medallion as the skull flag seems to turn and grin at her. Kagome closes her eyes, and prays for it to be a bad dream…))