InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Purity 6: Shameless ❯ Hero Points ( Chapter 34 )

~~Chapter 34~~

~Hero Points~

 

 

 

The youkai lunged at Gavin. He dodged the first attack easily enough, spinning away and shoving a small surgical table aside. It crashed onto the floor with a resounding crack that echoed through the room, bouncing off the cinderblock walls in such a way that it oddly reminded Gavin of high school and the pep rallies in the gymnasium when the band would smash their hand held cymbals together.

 

Completing the circuit, he used his momentum to lead into a harsh shove, pushing the eel-youkai back. It threw him off balance, but he righted his footing before he slipped. Holding his hands out straight, Eli unleashed two bolts of lightning straight at Gavin's chest, but hit the wall when Gavin dove to the side only to roll to his feet once more before launching himself directly at the youkai. Knocking him back was simple enough—Gavin had more than enough brute strength to accomplish the task. Eli crouched down as he slid across the floor, the heels of his boots squealing against the hardened clay tiles, reaching out behind him to steady himself against the wall then using it to hurl himself at Gavin once more.

 

Gavin caught him in mid-air and tossed him aside as though he were little more than a sack of horse feed before turning to glance at Jillian to make certain she was still all right.

 

“Watch out, Gavvie!” Jillian exclaimed suddenly. Gavin nodded whipped back around to face Eli once more. The youkai braced his hands and feet against the floor before launching himself at Gavin again. Drawing his right hand back over his left shoulder, he was poised to strike. Gavin spun around, his claws catching Eli's cheek, but not in time to avoid the descending blow. With a sharp hiss, Gavin grimaced as an explosion of pain shot down his arm from his shoulder, reverberating through his body as the scent of his blood intensified.

 

“Did that hurt, puppy?” Eli challenged, wiping the blood away from the cut on his cheek.

 

Gavin shook his arm. “Nope. I'm just fine,” he bit out, trying to block out the sound of Jillian's soft whimpering. He needed to focus. If she wasn't still suffering from the influence of the drugs, he'd tell her to go find Evan . . . “Tell me why you kidnapped her,” he growled.

 

Eli shrugged, still content to make light of the wound on his cheek. “Who knows? Avis wanted her. That's all I ever knew.”

 

“Avis?” Gavin echoed, flexing his fingers and satisfied that the lacerations on his shoulder weren't nearly as deep as he'd feared.

 

Eli nodded at the still-unconscious doctor. “Yes . . . Dr. Avis,” he clarified. “This is all well and good, but it'd be so much simpler if you just give me the girl and walk away.”

 

“Like I'd do that,” Gavin snarled. “She's my mate.”

 

“Mates . . . the biggest of all fairy tales,” Eli mused. “Fools die foolish deaths. Is that really what you want?”

 

“You're assuming you can kill me.”

 

Eli chuckled, lifting his hand, cracking his knuckles one by one. “I've just been playing with you, thus far, Mr. Jamison.”

 

“Then feel free to bring it.”

 

Unleashing a vicious growl, Eli shot forward again, his fingertips crackling with electricity. Gavin was faster. Dashing forward, he drew his arm back and snapped it straight out, catching Eli in the center of his chest with the heel of his hand. Eli grunted as he flew backward, tumbling over a high lab table and rolling to his feet once more. Without giving him a moment to recover, Gavin vaulted over the table, kicking out straight. His heel connected with Eli's chin, sending the youkai careening into the wall. Landing in a crouch, he sprang once more, drawing his fist back as he honed in on his target. Eli saw the blow coming and ducked, extending his arms and with a grunt of exertion, he heaved Gavin back, all traces of his prior cockiness evaporated, gone.

 

With a frustrated growl, Eli raised a hand as threads of lightning shot up and down his fingers. Mud brown hair spiking all over his head, his eyes ignited in angry fire. Face contorted in a mask of barely-contained rage, Eli grimaced as a thin trail of spittle dripped from his lip. The room was too wide open yet not nearly big enough to withstand an all-out energy attack. Somewhere in the back of his mind Gavin realized that if they weren't careful, they'd run the risk of bringing the entire building down around them . . .

 

Dodging to the right, he eluded the first few bolts of lightning that Eli shot at him. He was doing little more than attempting to buy a few moments while he racked his brain for a better strategy. True, he was trained in the martial arts and in hand to hand battle as well as with a sword. The trouble was that Eli didn't seem to be interested in trying to take Gavin on in closer combat, and without his sword, it was more difficult to launch any sort of real long-range attacks . . . Shoving a table into the youkai's path, Gavin couldn't avoid the bolts of lightning that shot out of each of Eli's outstretched fingertips. One struck him in the middle of his right thigh as he tried to roll out of the way. The shock numbed his leg instantly, and he gritted his teeth as Eli had the audacity to stand back and laugh. “It'll take more than an untried pup to bring me down,” he goaded.

 

Gavin couldn't help the grimace of pain that surfaced as he tried to stumble forward a couple steps. He could see Jillian out of the corner of his eye. Sitting up and gripping the edge of the gurney so hard her knuckles were white, she looked like she wanted to say something but didn't dare interfere . . . She looked concerned, but she didn't look frightened. Biting her lower lip, she stared at him, eyebrows drawn together in fierce concentration, as though she was willing him to read her mind; as though she was trying to send him a message that just wasn't getting through . . .

 

`You're my hero, Gavvie,' her voice whispered in his head. `My hero . . .'

 

And that was enough. Something about the confidence in her words lent him courage, added to his determination. Gathering his strength, he raised his hands. Eli mimicked the motion a thousand sparks of electricity grew in the space between his palms. Gavin felt his energy gathering, igniting in a ball of aqua light that swelled and warmed between his hands. He could hear Jillian slipping off the gurney—she must have realized that she needed to be further away—but he didn't turn to look at her.

 

Pulling his hands apart slowly as the energy ball grew, the unsettling feeling that something was coming undone in his soul registered despite his resolve that he had to stop Eli. He'd only felt that way once before—the only other time he'd conjured up the glowing attack as part of his training years ago.

 

A howling echo sounded in his ears like the gathering wind just before a storm. The glowing ball crackled, fizzled, popped between his hands, blowing his hair back off his face as it grew and expanded, pulsing in the brilliant glow of his energy. With a harsh cry, a savage growl, he unleashed the attack. Whizzing through the air with a high-pitched screech, Eli released his attack. The two balls of light and energy collided, culminating in an explosion that reverberated out in waves of power, rattling the glass-fronted cabinets mounted on the walls, shattering the glass as brilliant flashes of aqua and yellow radiated across the room.

 

Gavin lurched to the side, grabbing Jillian and curling himself around her, protecting her from the unnatural wind that lifted tables and tossed them around as though they were made of cardboard and feathers. Picking her up and hurrying across the room, fighting against the wind and the blowing debris, he staggered toward the doorway. He had no intention of leaving, but he'd be damned if Jillian was going to remain in the melee.

 

A steady hand gripped his shoulder. Gavin growled fiercely, letting Jillian down before whipping around to face the newest perceived threat.

 

“Get her out of here,” Cain Zelig said with a curt nod.

 

“C-Cain . . .”

 

“Just get her out of here,” he repeated. “I'll take care of this.”

 

He didn't want to comply. He didn't want to walk away from his fight, but Cain was right. Jillian had seen enough, hadn't she? She didn't need to witness anything more. With a single jerk of his head, he scooped Jillian up once more. Cain spared a moment to touch her cheek before nodding at Gavin and striding into the dying wind.

 

Gavin watched for a moment before hurrying out of the room with Jillian in his arms.

 

 

-OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO-

 

 

Cain didn't blink as the din died down. It hadn't taken him long to locate Gavin and Jillian after entering the building. Following the sounds of discord echoing through the empty building, he'd stepped over the still bodies that littered the floor in the lowest hallway, and he'd almost reached the doorway when the explosion stopped him in his tracks. Lifting his arms to shield his face, he grimaced at the absolute force that erupted within the room. Unable to discern exactly who had unleashed the attack, Cain had to grasp the doorframe to keep himself from being blown back with the waves of energy and light that reverberated outward. By the time he'd been able to see through the swirling gales, he'd caught sight of Gavin, staggering toward the doorway with Jillian nestled in his arms.

 

He'd called out to Gavin, but the young man couldn't hear him. Portable surgeon's tables were flying through the air, tossed about like paper, swirling around the centrifugal force of the fusing and dispersing balls of energy. Merging into one, they crackled and snapped. Cain strode into the room, laying a hand on Gavin's shoulder to gain his attention.

 

He must have startled Gavin. Setting Jillian back on her feet and swinging around to face him, Gavin looked like he was ready to tear into Cain for the disturbance. “Get her out of here,” he said with a curt nod.

 

“C-Cain . . .”

 

“Just get her out of here,” he repeated. “I'll take care of this.”

 

Gavin didn't look like he wanted to comply, but he finally nodded, scooping up Jillian once more. Cain reached out, stroking Jillian's cheek just for a moment before turning on his heel and striding into the dying fray.

 

“So I rank the personal attention of the tai-youkai?” the eel-youkai asked with an air of mock bravado that Cain could see right through. Gavin had dealt damage enough. Blood streaked down the youkai's cheek from a set of parallel scratches that traversed the left side of his face, and it was evident that he was moving a little gingerly.

 

“I'd advise you to stand down,” Cain stated, careful to keep his tone completely flat.

 

“That's what you advise,” he repeated, making Cain a mocking bow as he casually skirted the perimeter of the room, stalking Cain, studying Cain. Cain noticed, but he didn't move as his eyes tracked the youkai's movements. “How proper of you.”

 

Something about the youkai, though, reminded Cain of someone he'd known long ago. More of a memory than a conscious thought, he narrowed his eyes slightly as he regarded the eel-youkai, and he knew . . . “You're Darren Terry's son, aren't you?” he finally asked in a tone that suggested that he knew the answer without having it verified.

 

A momentary look of surprise crossed the youkai's features, and he leaned back as he slowly shook his head. “So you remember my father? He'd be honored.”

 

“Spare me your sarcasm and tell me just when you thought that it would be acceptable for you to dishonor your father this way,” Cain demanded.

 

“My father died in your service,” he shot back. “He died trying to prove to you that he was a hunter worthy of your notice.”

 

“Your father died defending those who couldn't defend themselves,” Cain replied, “and this is how you would show your respect for him? Do you honestly believe that this is something he'd approve of?”

 

“I wouldn't know,” he growled, the temerarious control he held over his emotions thinning, weakening with every passing moment. “He's dead. Mother's dead. It's nothing personal, you understand. Just business.”

 

“You're wrong,” Cain countered. “You made it personal when you dared to lay one finger on my little girl.”

 

“Sorry you feel that way, Lord Tai-Youkai,” he intoned, insincerity fairly dripping from his voice.

 

The first blast of lighting shot out of his fingertips without warning, hitting Cain in the left shoulder and jerking him back though sheer strength of will kept him from losing his footing. Raising his hand, unleashing a bright teal ball of fire meant only as warning that grazed the youkai's cheek, Cain lowered his chin and slowly shook his head. “Don't push your luck.”

 

With a savage growl, Eli launched himself at Cain in a blur of motion and reverberations of rage, of hatred that centered solely on the perception of Cain. He could feel the anger of the man who still felt the pain of being little more than a child who didn't understand exactly what had happened and why his father just wasn't coming home; the anguish of losing his mother sooner than he should have and the hopelessness of being left all alone. Bringing his arm up to block the descending claws, Cain grunted, grimaced as Eli's claws sliced through the fabric of his shirt. Grabbing Eli's wrist, Cain jerked, bringing the youkai down flat on his back and planting his foot in the center of his chest. “Give up, son,” he said quietly.

 

“Like hell!” Eli spat, latching onto Cain's leg and jerking it out from under him. Cain hit the floor and rolled to his feet, diving to the side again in time to avoid a full-on blast of lightning that melted a thermo-plastic tray on contact, igniting it as smoke roiled in the air. “Why won't you die?” he bellowed, his eyes sparking as streaks of lightning crisscrossed the room, uncontrollable, wanton.

 

It was a split-second decision—one that Cain hated to make but knew there really was no way around it. Young Eli Terry had made his choice long ago, hadn't he, and maybe it was something that had been no more than a simple matter of time. The foundation of the building was groaning, creaking, screaming under the assault of the electrical attack. Cain dashed out of the way of the next string of bolts as the fluorescent bulbs overhead fizzled and popped, exploding waterfalls of sparks that rained down to fuel the fires igniting all over the room. Smoke poured between the fissured ceiling tiles—the overload on the building's electrical systems a living, breathing thing. The steady hum of the broken circuits erupting in a wizened groan as the structure shuddered.

 

Stopping abruptly, Cain turned, narrowed his eyes as he gritted his teeth, as he focused his power, his energy. The blackness of the room was filled with the strobe-lighting effect of the bolts of errant lightning flying through the air. Even the knowledge that he really didn't have a choice didn't alleviate the feeling that dug at him, tore at him—the same feeling he always got when he had to issue a kill-order, only this time, the feeling was intensified, tying his stomach in knots as he slowly raised his hand.

 

Eli stood, frozen it seemed, unable to move as the burn took over. The insane lightning sputtered and died as the youkai grunted, as the first tendrils of steam rose from his body. The room took on an eerie, hazy glow that emanated from Eli's solitary form that warred with the piles of burning plastic. Burning from the inside out—some might have likened it to spontaneous combustion—it was a horrible way to die. The smell of charring flesh filled the room along with the anguished moans from the eel-youkai.

 

He exploded with a flash of blinding light, with an unnatural wind that howled in Cain's ears—a death knell. He stood, hand extended, unblinking as the light and wind died away. There was no sense of satisfaction, no relief that the ordeal was over; just a sense of complete emptiness; a melancholy that it never should have had to come to such an end.

 

Striding over to grasp the unconscious doctor's body, Cain drew a deep breath and grabbed a set of handcuffs off the floor near the gurney, pausing long enough to secure the youkai's hands behind his back before hefting him over his right shoulder and striding out of the room again.

 

`Jillian's safe,' he told himself, chanting it like a mantra over and over again in his head. `She's safe . . .'

 

That was the most important thing. Climbing the stairs, his movements infinitely weary though the exhaustion was mental more than physical in derivation, he sighed. It was over, yes, but the questions remained: just why the hell had these people wanted Jillian, in the first place?

 

 

-OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO-

 

 

“I can walk,” Jillian offered as Gavin wandered through the forest with her held securely in his arms, nestled against his chest.

 

“I'll carry you, thanks,” he mumbled, his cheeks reddening as his grip tightened on her.

 

“I knew you'd come for me,” she said quietly.

 

“Of course I would . . . you're my Jilli . . . my mate.”

 

“Oh, God! You're going soft!” Evan grouched. He was lingering a few steps behind Gavin—InuYasha had insisted that Evan go with Gavin to make sure that there wasn't anyone else lying in wait to cause trouble on the trek back to Denver.

 

Gavin shot Evan a dark scowl. “Shut up, Evan.”

 

Evan managed a wan grin despite the obvious stiffness in his gait. When he'd gotten back to the lobby with Jillian, Evan had been stumbling down the staircase with a glower on his face as he rubbed the back of his head. The relief on his face, however, was intense, and without a word, he ran over, pulling Jillian out of Gavin's grasp to hug her tight. InuYasha had been busy rounding up the bodies of the unconscious youkai, a couple of whom were in the process of waking up. They'd located some rope in one of the rooms, and it didn't take long to secure them all. It was Gavin's considered opinion, though, that the rope wasn't really necessary. Not one of the youkai looked like they really wanted to tangle with the hanyou of legend, not that he really blamed them. Growling at him to get Jillian out of there, he hadn't taken his eyes off the captured youkai, even when he'd reached over to touch Jillian's hand as Gavin carried her out of the building.

 

“Call and reserve a hotel room,” Gavin commanded over his shoulder.

 

Jillian shook her head. “No. I want to go home,” she argued.

 

“Jilli,” he protested. “You need to rest—and you probably need to see a doctor, too.”

 

“I need to go home,” she insisted. “Besides, Kichiro will be here soon, and he can check me out, can't he?”

 

Gavin wanted to argue that, but he sighed. As much as he'd love her to see a doctor now, he had to admit that there wasn't a better one around than Kichiro Izayoi. Glancing down at Jillian's contented expression, he shook his head. He had a feeling that he was in for a lifetime of giving in when it came to her, and somehow, the idea of that just didn't bother him in the least. “Call and see if there's a flight out to Helena,” he grumbled.

 

“Yeah, sure,” Evan remarked. “'Course, before we get on a plane, you'd better do something about Jillian's smell.”

 

“Her . . . what . . .?”

 

Jillian giggled. Evan snorted. Gavin drew a deep breath then grimaced. In the insanity and the late relief, he hadn't noticed that her scent had shifted as she snuggled closer to him. Face exploding in hot color, he winced and increased his stride. “Jilli!”

 

She laughed. “What?”

 

“Stop that!” he choked.

 

Evan groaned. Gavin didn't have to look to know that he was probably rolling his eyes.

 

“I can't help it, Gavvie!” she protested, wiggling around in his arms in an effort to lean up, to kiss his cheek. “You broke down the door—”

 

“Gavin broke down the door?” Evan echoed incredulously as Gavin's blush darkened.

 

“Yes, he did, and his chest was heaving, eyes flashing . . . skin sweaty . . . muscles rippling . . .”

 

“Yeah . . . maybe you should stop remembering it so vividly,” Gavin grumbled as Evan hooted in laughter.

 

“You looked so fierce, Gavvie . . . it was hot!” she insisted.

 

“Oh, God,” he groaned.

 

“If you'd like to go take care of that, I can keep a watch out for you,” Evan offered magnanimously.

 

“Shut up, Evan,” Gavin growled.

 

Jillian giggled again, but just as suddenly, her laughter died away as her fingertips brushed over the torn flesh on his shoulder. “Are you sure you're all right?” she fretted. “I really can walk.”

 

“It's fine,” he stated. “Besides, your legs still seem a little shaky.”

 

“I'm a little queasy,” she admitted slowly. “I can still walk.”

 

Gavin shook his head stubbornly. To be honest, his shoulder felt as though it was on fire, but . . .

 

But holding onto Jillian . . . it was something he wouldn't give up for the world.

 

 

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A/N:

 

I won't be uploading a chapter of Purity 6tomorrow as I will be uploading a chapter of Desideratum. See you again on this story Thursday …

 

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Final Thought fromGavin:

I can't believe that, after everything's she's been through, she'd …

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Blanket disclaimer for this fanfic (will apply to this and all other chapters in Shameless): I do not claim any rights to InuYashaor the characters associated with the anime/manga. Those rights belong to Rumiko Takahashi, et al. I do offer my thanks to her for creating such vivid characters for me to terrorize.

 

~Sue~