InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Alternate Storyteller ❯ Jin ( Chapter 11 )

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

Kimi, wake up…Persy, you’re a total otaku! Get a life…Yield…Kijinko! Watch out!…wake up…It was a dream…wake up…Persephone…Kijinko…WAKE UP!

I jolted to awareness from my restive, memory-plagued sleep, drenched in sweat and shivering. The first thing I registered was the breeze. The second, I was soaking wet, and not all of it was from my nightmarish rest. The state of my clothes kick-started my brain, which slowly acknowledged my surroundings. I could hear the waves crashing against the shoreline some distance away, and as I pried my eyes open, I could see a stretch of sand in the pale sunlight. I painfully lifted my head from its resting place on a small dune, trying to remember how I got here in the first place. Even the smallest movement sent my body into spasms.

My poor body, I thought as I dragged myself into a sitting position, it’s amazing it hasn’t just crapped out on me. I took a quick look around. The beach went on as far as the eye could see in either direction, unrecognizable.

Where am I? What happened? How did I get here? I snorted, I sound like a bloody journalist for W-Five. But answers would make my life so much better…happier…more contented… my thoughts trailed off as I began to remember what happened.

The battle crashed through my memories, bringing with it the terror and despair I had felt at the time. The last thing I remembered, I was falling towards the ocean as a sword materialized in my hands.

An empty victory, I had thought at the time as I fell to my supposed death, but where is it now? I grabbed at the sand around me, and was dismayed to see it nowhere. I cast my eyes around the surrounding area and saw it standing point-down about twenty feet away, gleaming and flickering eerily in the fading sun’s red light as though it were laughing at me.

Okay, that’s just frickin’ creepy, I thought as I got to my feet and made my way over to it. Why do I attract all the “Supernatural” crap? Do I have “creepiness magnet” stamped on my forehead? I continued to grumble as I approached the blade. The closer I got, the more freaked out I became, and yet I felt drawn to it all the same. I slowed my pace down until I stopped a foot away from it.

Do I pull it out or leave it until it rusts? I debated as I stared at it. As if in answer to my unspoken question, the light surrounding the weapon suddenly flared up and I felt, more than heard, the softest of voices whisper across my thoughts.

Take us up. We will protect you. Show you wonders.

I scowled, Right. First you try to kill me, and now you want me to just pick you up and keep you, I rolled my eyes, And now I’m talking to a piece of spiteful metal.

Humans do not keep us, the voices hissed angrily, We keep them until we tire of their stupidity. Leave them after they have served their purpose.

The words really and truly made my blood run cold. This sword wasn’t spiteful, it was just plain evil.

Not evil, they growled indignantly, We are more powerful and wondrous than your small mind could possibly imagine.

Oh, I don’t know about that, I retorted, I can imagine a hell of a lot of powers and wonders. Silence followed my statement. Then…

Take us up, the voices repeated. I stared at it for a few minutes, thinking through all of the possible consequences of taking up such a blade. At the end of my assessment, I heaved a sigh.

“No thanks,” I said as I turned from it and trekked back the way I had come from. As I walked away, I quickly turned my thoughts to the more important questions of finding my exact location and what I could get to eat.

I turned my back to the setting sun and headed towards the hills that faced the water. I managed to find a little-used path and made for the forest, yet, I couldn’t make myself go more than half a mile from shore. I fought it, practically crawling trying to go higher up the path, but something pulled at me the further I got from the water, and the gentle breeze around me shivered with soft, mocking laughter.

You honestly believe we will allow you to leave us? it snickered, Bonded. No way out.

My breath left me at that revelation, but I just couldn’t accept the truth.

“Nonononono!” I screamed, clutching my head, “I don’t want this! Get the fuck out of my head!” A small part of me knew, though. The inability to move inland, the “feelings” I kept getting, and of course the voices, who spoke to me as soon as the dragon had transformed over the water. I fell to my knees on the sand and began sobbing, “Leave me alone! I hate this place. I hate this time. I HATE YOU!” and hid my face in my knees, weeping for all I was worth.

I don’t know how long I sat there, but when I looked up with my bleary eyes, the moon was already riding high. The stars twinkled and seemed to watch me as I reluctantly unfolded myself and got to my feet, returning to the shore. Staring hard at the glittering spike that had turned my world upside-down, I approached it as someone would a viper ready to strike at any time. The closer I moved, the brighter it shone, until it was engulfed by red and silver flames when I stood right next to it.

Now what? I asked while swallowing nervously. The voices were silent for so long, I hoped that the earlier episode was just a bad dream.

We begin, It stated, You must begin training in your pitiful martial arts again to wield us in this form. The innate abilities that attracted us to you must also be honed to be of use to us.

So I’m some fucking tool, is that it?! I was enraged. I never liked being used back home, and I certainly wasn’t going to put up with that crap now.

Oh, no choice in the matter, they laughed, You either comply or rot on this shore. Resistance is not an option.

I blinked. Then snickered. It’s either the Devil or the deep blue sea, and I ain’t gettin’ outta here by way of the Ark. I sighed and rolled my eyes, I don’t want this, and yet I have the option of the Borg Collective or death. Fine.

“Alright,” I said aloud, “I’ll do it.”

Something akin to joy coursed through my mind as I spoke. I took a deep breath and prepared for an onslaught as I reached for the hilt.

As soon as I touched the cool metal, my mind and body were assaulted with so many different sensations I thought I would go mad. Physically, I could feel something crawling into my skin, yet I wasn’t afraid. I saw people in ancient clothing from cultures now long dead. Places that had risen to their pinnacle and fallen to the deepest depths flashed before my eyes. Mind and soul I was transported through the memories of this strange being, with no perception of time. It showed me every single one of Its’ ’masters’, along with their deaths, always at the hand of the dragon sword because they had outlived their usefulness. I started panicking at those last images, because my death would obviously be the same and I would have no control over it, or them.

I refuse to believe that I have no control over you! I cried from the depths of my soul, forcing the minds to focus on me and not their melding process.

We will prevail!!! It screamed as intense pain washed over me.

I screamed wordlessly in defiance as the world went dark.

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I awoke to the sun stabbing my aching eyes through their lids. I slowly opened them, squinting in the miserably cheerful light the orb was blazing down. I sat up, again wondering why my body continued on when it was continually battered by everything under the sky.

Cannot die until we say, the voices said, You are essentially immortal.

“A double-edged sword, much like you,” I chuckled with black humour, “Must be nice to wield that much power.” I could’ve sworn I heard a groan.

We begin today, while the sun shines hot and true, came the somewhat testy statement.

“Fine. Whatever,” I said as I pulled the sword out of the sand. I just wanted to get this whole ordeal over with.

It directed me to stand in the water about 20 feet from shore and close my eyes. I did as directed, feeling the waves lap at my torso and thinking this was a bit stupid. After a few minutes, I began feeling as though the whole of the ocean was around me. I could hear the silence of the deep waters and the crashing of the waves on distant shores, feel the fishing boats on the water and the sea life swimming through it simultaneously. It was the most unnerving experience I had ever had, almost like the way the Force was described in the movies and books, but on a smaller scale.

You can feel it, but now you must command it.

My eyes shot open, “How am I supposed to do that? No one commands the entire ocean!”

Oh, but you will when we are through with you, came the ominous reply, Do!

I snorted and closed my eyes again, sinking into the sensations of the water once more. This time, I attempted to take an active role, feeling every particle of sand and plant in the water, every wave and current. I felt a large wave coming in, and upon concentrating harder, could actually see the currents shifting as it approached me as I clutched the sword. I dug deeper into the wave’s structure and began commanding it to break up before it got to me, while the skin on my hands began to ripple. I felt the water beginning to shift, but just as it was about to disperse, I lost my concentration in the elation of the moment and it crashed into me at full throttle. I flailed around under the water for about a minute before breaking the surface and coughing hard as I made my way back to the shore, panicking about where the stupid blade had gone.

Here, whispered the many voices.

I looked around, trying to find the source. I felt It direct my gaze downwards.

Hands.

I flopped down on the warm sand and stared hard at the glittering strands on my fingers and palms that had appeared with the sword‘s disappearance.

Yes, they whispered, We either rest on your hands as jewels or as a blade to be wielded.

The said ’jewels’ were fine gold chains that wrapped around the fingers and met at the tops of my hands to form bracelets that covered the tops of my hands and went up to my wrists. The threads on my palms formed a web, of sorts, to my wrists as well. Creepily enough, every chain was grafted to my skin, so it looked like gold henna and gold chains at the same time.

“Oooo. Pretty,” I admired, “What’s the purpose?”

Disguise and use. In this form, you command Elements. We assist.

“Eh?” came my intelligently grunted reply, “How does that work?”

Will tell later. Must continue training. Get up!

I made my way to my feet, puzzling over the riddle. The Presence, as I’d taken to calling It, demanded that I put my hand to the ground and focus on what was beneath my hand. Rolling my eyes, I did as I was told. My eyes closed, I began to feel a throbbing in my palm and hear strange whispers. Upon paying closer attention, the whispers turned into soft words speaking about people and animals as the throbbing grew louder. Just as I figured the sounds out, the Presence broke into my thoughts.

Yessss. It is Earth. The whispers are plants, the throbbing is heartbeat of Earth. She speaks through all land and growths.

I sat there for I don’t know how long, just listening to the Earth live. I was utterly humbled by the experience, feeling the age and sheer power of my planet in my veins. Gradually, I came back to an awareness of the present, and reluctantly withdrew my spirit from the Earth and my hand from the shore. I was surprised to see the sun making for the horizon.

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly before asking, “Now what am I doing?”
Silence answered me for several heartbeats before a reply came to my query

Now you train in Wudan with sword. Learn to function without Elements.

I blinked. The sword was entwined in my flesh, so how was I supposed to bring it back?

Will tell you! Presence snapped impatiently, hearing my mind again, Must be patient! Cannot have answers instantly.

I held back my retort, since It appeared ready to let me in on the next big secret so long as I shut up. I felt movement around me as my hands began to tingle. Looking down at them, they were starting to glow and the chains were detaching from my skin.

Follow instructions closely.

“I’m listening,” I said, closing my eyes.

Close left hand in fist. Hold in front of chest with palm towards you. Close right hand in fist, then point second and third fingers out. Put right palm down over left.

I did as I was told, frowning the whole time. Once my hands were in place, the tingling intensified.

Now, Its voice glided over my conscience silkily, Think of sword forming in hands.

I thought hard, willing the sword to form in my hands. The tingling turned into a crawling sensation, but I refused to open my eyes to see what it looked like. Shortly after I commenced the exercise, a light built up with the same momentum as the skin-crawling. I couldn’t resist opening my eyes then, getting dazzled by the brightness before my pupils adjusted, and saw a shining stake engulfing my left hand. It was pointing to the ground, and as I watched on, it resolved itself into the Chinese sword, with my right hand resting on the pommel.

I stood in awe at the feat I had just performed. I began getting giddy at the thought of learning more things like that and the experiences with Water and Earth, but sobered up at the thought of giving over more control to this…thing.

Must give control, or will rot on this shore, It snickered, Will show you more tricks in morning. Rest. Eat. Train. Much more to learn.

I despised how I was stuck with this damn demon now, yet I craved more of what I had gone through today.

I loathed the feeling.

I did as I was told and called on my rusty Wudan skills to begin training in the sword once more. I spent several hours reviewing the basics, forms, and simple routines before I decided to call it quits for the day and go fishing.

One successful fishing excursion later, I had a half-dozen friends for dinner. My stomach growled at me while I built a fire for the fish fry, and made quick work of the cooking, but even as I sat eating, I could feel my eyes drooping. I managed to get the minimum of clean-up done before I passed out by the fire for the night.

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The next day was much the same. I practiced summoning the sword from my hands and putting it back onto my body. I went through more Wudan, adding a couple of the more complex forms. It had me tackle Water and Earth again, and added Air.

That was interesting, since I learned not only how to shift and direct the air currents to create winds, but I actually got off the ground and floated about two feet before losing it. The landing almost cost me my ankle, and a good chunk of pride. The Presence wouldn’t stop laughing about it for the rest of the day. I went to sleep in a huff.

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And on it went.

I lost count of how many days we were on that shore, training and bonding. We reviewed the previous lessons and added the other Elements: Fire, Shadow, Light, and finally, Spirit. The Presence explained to me during a training session about the difference between the controls of the sword and hands.

Hands are us within you, controlling Elements. Sword is us at your command. We are manifest outside of you.

“So instead of waving my hands around and making things happen, you actually appear as dragons, and do the work yourselves.”

Yes, It said, sounding pleased that I had understood do easily, Much more terrifying as sword, but much quicker as hands. Choice is personal and practical.

So I learned the basic controls for each, but wasn’t taught much more. I finally asked It why one day, frustrated at being held back.

Controls must be second nature. Must not have to think about it. Won’t have such time in battle, It replied, Will proceed when you have proven capable.

I chafed at the restrictions, but couldn’t argue It’s logic. It was simply common sense, and it urged me to work even harder during the daily lessons. Presence was pleased with my progress, and one day pronounced it was time to return.

“Return?” I asked, confused, “Where are we, then?”

Do not need to know, It replied, Not important. We return and you go on with life as before.

“ ’As before?’ Before, I wasn’t schizoid with a sword embedded in my hands. Now I have to battle virtually everything before I can move on to the next stage,” I argued, “And unless you can hide your aura, I’m gonna be challenged by every demon in existence.”

A short sigh was followed by, Worry too much. Think too much. Deal with enemies as they happen.

“Fine. Whatever,” I snorted, “When are we leaving?”

Before sunrise. Be ready.

Later, as I got comfortable for the night, I realized a very important question hadn’t been asked yet.

“What am I supposed to call you?”

Ryuuseijin.

“Shooting Star? Why?”

Is my name in other land here. Came from beyond your sun.
It took me only a split second to get it, “You’re from another part of the universe.”

Fell onto Earth. Was found and remade. But no more talk, must sleep.

I couldn’t believe the turn my life had taken, and it was a while before I finally dozed off.

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“How long has it been since we left?” I shouted at the head of the large, watery dragon, clinging to its mane and the sword.

Over six months, Ryuu replied as we continued to race across the choppy water.

Six months, I thought to myself, Has Sesshoumaru finally given up? Has Inuyasha stopped hunting for me?

I continued to mull over the possibilities until the familiar shores of southwestern Honshu came into view. I stared hard at the approaching coastline, until I realized where our exact location was.

“Why are we returning to Shimonoseki?”

Wish to return to friends, yes?

“Yeah, I guess so,” I responded as I thought about trekking through Western territory in my present state, “Couldn’t we just head underwater and land near the village?”

Will hide for journey, so not challenged beyond usual stupidity.

I snorted with laughter. That’s something I would have said. How could I be rubbing off on this thing already?

Are approaching land, Ryuu broke in, Prepare to wade.

As soon as the water was shallow enough, Water Ryuu returned to the sword. I looked around as I waded out of the water and hoped nobody had seen us land. Thankfully, we were far enough north of the town that we went undetected. I used a quick water technique to squeeze the moisture out of my clothes. Before turning to the south and hitching Ryuuseijin to my back, I put my long-unused disguise on my hand again.

“Home, sweet home,” I sighed and headed for town.