InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Dark Hour ❯ Once was Lost, Now is Found ( Chapter 13 )

Ch. 13

Once was Lost, Now is Found...

"Shit."

Sesshomaru slowly opened his eyes, wincing slightly at the horrible throbbing in the back of his head. It felt as if he were dead...again. He had a sudden sense of deja vu.

He lifted his hand to touch the tender spot, but found that his hands were handcuffed to a metal chair. When had this happened? Sesshomaru closed his eyes and concentrated on what had happened before he'd lost consciousness. He remembered going down the corridor and through the metal doors and then...bright lights.

"The doctor." He hissed, suddenly remembering hearing her voice. She'd been the one to attack him. With what little strength he could muster, Sesshomaru struggled to free himself from the handcuffs. After a few attempts, he determined that it was useless.

He didn't know what was in store for him, but it couldn't be good by the looks of it. He studied his surroundings, a sense of dread settling deep within him. The room was dim, lit only by a single light bulb hanging overhead. Even though the room was dim, Sesshomaru could see a service cart by the door that seemed to hold various metal objects. Other than that, the room was bare. It wasn't the lone service cart with the many ominous metal contractions or even the handcuffs that caused Sesshomaru the knot of unease that slowly formed in the pit of his stomach, however. It was the overwhelming stench of blood.

Even though the room was bare and relatively clean, he could smell the residue of blood all over the room.

'What the hell is Naraku hiding here?'

Sesshomaru desperately wanted to find out, but he had to get free first.

"Good evening, Mr. Hamada."

Sesshomaru's gaze snapped to the doorway. Dr. Fujiwara was standing there, her face a mask. Her hands were clasped behind her back as she walked slowly towards him.

"Or should I call you Sesshomaru?" She said, her head cocked slightly to the side. He returned her emotionless look with one of his own. "And what should I call you? Crazy bitch?" He replied smoothly. He saw a flash of emotion dart through her dark eyes before disappearing. She gave him an icy smile.

"I've heard stories about you, Sesshomaru." She said, picking up one of the objects from the cart. It was long and thin with a sharp hook on the end. "Your cool, calm demeanor is known throughout the underworld."

Sesshomaru gave a disinterested shrug, remaining silent. Dr. Fujiwara stopped directly in front of him, running her finger along the hooked end of the instrument. "I have ways to break that icy image of yours, Sesshomaru." She said quietly, her eyes glinting with a hint of madness. Sesshomaru let out a low bitter laugh, causing Dr. Fujiwara to hesitate.

"You find something amusing at a time like this?" She inquired angrily. Sesshomaru lifted his hands as far as he could. "I was just thinking of how much pain you're going to be in when I get out of these handcuffs." He stated simply, his voice deadly serious. The doctor's cool facade slipped just a notch, knowing this was no idle threat. She'd heard of the things Sesshomaru Iakouy was capable of and there were few who were able to match his merciless nature.

"No one's ever escaped this place," Dr. Fujiwara said, regaining her composure. Sesshomaru kept his gaze level. "You'll soon find out that I'm not just anyone, doctor." He replied. The doctor gave him a strange look before suddenly reaching out cupping his cheek.

"Such a beautiful face." She whispered, her eyes taking on a dazed look. Sesshomaru jerked his face away from her cold touch, eyeing her warily. "Such perfection isn't fit for such a man as you." She hissed. In the blink of an eye, the doctor slashed Sesshomaru's cheek, smiling in satisfaction when shiny droplets of red splashed to the floor.

She stared in fascination at the cut. "I'm going to enjoy marring those features of yours, Sesshomaru." She said with something close to glee in her tone. Sesshomaru remained perfectly still. It was coming.

Dr. Fujiwara turned and selected a different instrument from the cart, this time choosing a large flat metal tool with a sharpened edge. "Let's see if we can't cut off an ear or two," She said in a conversational tone of voice. Sesshomaru closed his eyes, feeling the familiar heat, and chanted the countdown in his head.

'5, 4, 3, 2, 1.'

He heard metal clatter to the ground.

"What?!"

Sesshomaru opened his eyes and looked at the doctor, his eyes glowing blood red. "Seems there's a change in plans." He said. The doctor took a step back, reaching for the door. Quicker than the human eye could see, Sesshomaru broke through the handcuffs and pinned the doctor against the door. She stared at him, her eyes finally showing an emotion Sesshomaru recognized. Fear.

"I'm not going to say this again, so listen well, doctor." Sesshomaru hissed. "Either tell me what the hell is going on in this place or I'm going to rip your head from your body."

The doctor's eyes darted about wildly, looking for an escape. Sesshomaru extended his claws and gripped her by the face. His claws dug into her soft flesh, fresh pricks of blood springing to the surface. Her eyes watered at the excruciating pain.

"I'm not playing games, doctor, so you'd better tell me what I know in the next five seconds." Sesshomaru warned. She closed her eyes and seemed to give up.

"I'll tell you, just please don't hurt me!" She whimpered. Sesshomaru made a sound of disgust. How easy it was for a person to lose their nerve when the tables were turned. "Start talking." He ordered, loosening his grip slightly.

"Naraku set this up as a mental institution, Tranquil Springs, as a cover for its real purpose, setting up Project Y." She said shakily. Sesshomaru stared at her. "What is Project Y?" He asked. She shook her head, tears now rolling down her face. "I don't know. He only hired me to recruit possible candidates for the project."

Sesshomaru didn't know whether or not to believe her. By her reaction, he was pretty sure she was telling the truth. "Tell me about these candidates you recruit." He demanded. The doctor glared at him. "I don't have to tell you anything, you fucking creature!" She spat. Sesshomaru didn't hesitate to slam her head back against the door, emitting a cry of pain from the doctor.

"Would you rather I kill you, then?" He said evenly. The doctor quickly shook her head, wincing at the throbbing that soon followed.

"No...I'll tell you," She replied hoarsely. "Naraku only wanted candidates with severe mental problems who had no ties to the outside world. Naraku was very adamant that these requirements be met."

Sesshomaru frowned, still not understanding the full story. It was like trying to figure out a puzzle with half the pieces missing.

"What happens to these patients once they're admitted?"

The doctor once again shook her head. "I don't know!" She whimpered. "I don't have that kind of information. Once the patients come in, they're taken away by the aides."

Sesshomaru's ears perked up at this. "Aides?" He repeated. The doctor nodded wearily. Her face was streaked with tears and blood and her eyes started taking on a bleary appearance. Sesshomaru was positive she would lose consciousness soon.

"They look like regular hospital aides, but they're not, or at least I don't think they are." She said. "The only time I see them is when a new patient is admitted and they just show up and take the patient."

"Where do they take them?" Sesshomaru said, shaking her roughly. Dr. Fujiwara cried out, shaking her head violently. "I don't know! I don't know anything else!"

Sesshomaru knew she would be of no further use to him. He was on his own. With a single flick of his wrist, he threw her against the opposite wall, her body crumpling to the floor. She wasn't dead, but she wouldn't be able to interfere either.

He stepped out of the room cautiously, scanning the area. He again found himself in a corridor, only this time there were multiple doors on either side. At the end of the hall to his left was a large room brightly lit up. Sesshomaru remembered the room as the one he'd been in before the good doctor had jumped him.

There were no sounds, the place eerily quiet. Sesshomaru made his way slowly to the brightly-lit room. The room was empty except for a large platform in the middle on which sat a circular desk that wrapped around the platform's entire length. The desk itself held multiple televisions, their screens blank. Sesshomaru approached the desk, spotting a cluster of switches to his right. He flipped on the switches and the television screens blinked to life.

He studied the screenshots closely, trying to make out what he was seeing. From the various images of one screen, Sesshomaru gathered that what he was looking at was footage from security cameras set up around and throughout the facility.

He focused his attention on one particular screen that showed images of people lying strapped to steel tables. He could make out an assortment of tubes and monitors hooked up to the bodies. Sesshomaru frowned. He didn't know if the people he was seeing were dead or alive.

"If only I could find out where these bodies are." He muttered. Sesshomaru's ear twitched and he tensed. He heard footsteps rapidly coming towards him. He sniffed the air and growled. He should've known Naraku would have demons guarding the facility. He whirled around and faced a throng of growling, bloodthirsty demons.

Sesshomaru instantly fell into a battle stance, claws extended. He smirked. They'd all be dead in a matter of minutes.

~~~~~~

Kagome giggled as Sango recalled the look on the waiter's face when she'd gagged on the sushi.

"He looked like he was about to faint!" Sango exclaimed, bursting into a fresh set of laughter. Kagome rolled her eyes. "What did you expect after you practically choked on it! The poor man thought you were going to die!"

Sango wiped the tears from her eyes. "Miroku didn't help by performing his version of the Heimlich maneuver, damn near dry humping me in front everybody!" This caused Kagome to gasp with laughter. She covered her mouth, trying to be considerate of the other occupants of their floor. It was 12:30 in the morning.

They finally arrived at their room. Sango gave Kagome a worried look. "Are you sure you're going to be ok by yourself?" She asked. Kagome gave her wide smile. "Of course I am. As soon as I get out of these clothes, I'm going straight to sleep." She gave Sango a sly look. "Which is something you're probably not going to be doing any time soon."

Sango stuck out her tongue. "I will be going to sleep, thank you very much!" She replied. "After me and Miroku fuck our brains out, of course." She added with a wink. Kagome gave her a shocked look.

"Sango, such language!" She admonished. Sango shrugged. "Only telling it like it is." Kagome shook her head and reached into her purse for the key. "Well, have fun and don't hurt yourself." She teased. Sango gave her a quick hug and took off for the elevators. Kagome chuckled and unlocked the door. She closed the door behind her and threw her purse on the hall table.

She let out a huge yawn and kicked off her shoes. She smiled, walking over to the balcony and throwing open the doors. She'd forgotten how much she'd missed hanging out with Miroku and Sango. It had been just like old times, staying out late and living it up. She stepped out onto the balcony, taking a deep breath of the night air.

She felt at peace, like all the events that had taken place in her life since meeting Sesshomaru had never happened. She was about to turn back to the room when she heard a loud crash come from the direction of Sesshomaru's balcony. She noticed the balcony doors were open, the sheer curtains blowing gently in the night breeze.

"Sesshomaru?" She called out, a hint of worry in her voice. There was no response. She called out again but received no answer. Concerned that something was wrong, Kagome hurriedly left the balcony and went next door to Sesshomaru's room. She turned the handle and was surprised to find that the door was unlocked.

"Sesshomaru?" She said quietly, slowly entering the room. The placed was completely dark, making it hard to see. Kagome slowly made her way to the living room, holding her hands out in front of her so as not to bump into anything.

"Sesshomaru, are you alright?" She called, a weird feeling settling in the pit of her stomach. The living room was illuminated by the moonlight filtering in through the open balcony doors. She gasped as she took in the room's state of disarray.

Furniture lay overturned, pictures were slashed, glass was broken. A sound brought her attention to the balcony. There stood Sesshomaru, his back to her.

"Sesshomaru...what happened here?" She asked, her body turning cold. Something was different about him, something that made her heart beat a little faster.

"Sesshomaru?"

A chilling laugh broke the still night. Kagome took a step back, not quite knowing what was wrong with this picture.

Sesshomaru turned around slowly and Kagome's face drained of all color. It wasn't Sesshomaru at all. It was something straight out of Kagome's nightmares.

"W-what..."Kagome couldn't finish the rest of the sentence. It was too much for her mind to comprehend. Before her stood Inuyasha, only not the human Inuyasha she knew. This was something else much more frightening.

"Aww, what's the matter, Kagome? Don't like what you see?" Inuyasha drawled, his eyes glinting red in the moonlight. He chuckled, the sound holding no mirth. Kagome took another step back, but Inuyasha appeared behind her before she could even blink.

"You're not going anywhere, bitch." He hissed in her ear. Kagome tensed as his hands gripped her arms. He shoved her forward, causing her to fall to her knees. Inuyasha quickly grabbed her by the hair and yanked her to her feet. Kagome yelped in surprise and pain.

"That's what I like to hear," Inuyasha purred, a sick smile twisting his lips. Kagome stared at him, her expression one of pure terror. He cocked his head. "I bet you're wondering what the hell happened to me, aren't you?" He asked. Kagome remained mute, to horrified to respond. Inuyasha rolled his eyes and yanked her roughly by the hair.

"Yes! Yes!" Kagome cried out, tears forming in her eyes. Inuyasha smirked. "Well, to make a long story really, really short," Inuyasha said. "I'm a demon."

Kagome felt the sudden insane urge to laugh. A demon? She felt like she'd slipped into the twilight zone or something. Inuyasha saw the look of disbelief. "Don't believe me, huh? Well, I really could care less."

He ripped a power cord from a smashed lamp and quickly tied Kagome's hands behind her back. Kagome winced as the cord bit into her skin. Once Inuyasha was satisfied that she was securely tied, he shoved her onto the floor. Kagome closed her eyes tightly. Maybe it was all just a nightmare and none of this was real. She'd rather believe that than believe there was an honest to goodness demon standing in front of her.

"Feh." Inuyasha spat. "There's no use pretending like none of this is happening, sweetheart."

Kagome gave an emphatic shake of her head. "T-this can't...demons aren't..." She was confused, not really sure what was going on. Inuyasha kneeled down in front of her. "These," He said pointing to his jutting fangs. "Are very real. And these," He said while tracing his claws slowly down her neck. "Are not a figment of your imagination."

Kagome inched away from his touch as far as she could. Inuyasha gave her a cold smile. "Now what I want you to do is tell me how much my big brother knows about Tranquil Springs."

Kagome shook her head. She honestly had no idea what information Sesshomaru had found out about Tranquil Springs. Inuyasha frowned. "You better not be lying to me." He warned her.

"I really don't know anything." She whispered, her voice pleading. Inuyasha straightened up.

"Well, no matter. I can still use you." He said matter-of-factly as he quickly knocked her unconscious, flung her over his shoulder, and leaped from the balcony into the night.

~~~~~~

Sesshomaru disposed of the last of his attackers, quickly slashing the demon's throat with his claws. He surveyed the bodies, making sure they were all dead. Sesshomaru hesitated before making his next move. He was sure there'd be more guards coming after him, but he couldn't stop thinking about the seemingly comatose bodies he'd seen on the screens.

He looked around the room. He had three options; he could either leave, taking the corridor he'd first come in through, go back down the hall where Dr. Fujiwara was lying unconscious, or take the remaining hall. Sesshomaru chose the last hall, his curiosity getting the better of him. He made his way to the hall and stopped in the entrance. The hall was completely bare, leading nowhere.

Sesshomaru frowned. There were no doors, no windows, nothing. He slowly walked to the end of the hall and touched his hand to the wall. It was solid, nothing behind it. Sesshomaru turned to leave, but stopped when his ears picked up a distant sound. It was inaudible to human ears, and even he had to strain to pick up the sound. Sesshomaru moved quickly to the center of the hall, where he heard the sound more clearly.

He couldn't be sure, but he heard the steady humming of machines. That could only mean there was some kind of hidden entrance somewhere in the hall. It seemed to be coming from beneath him so he took a step back. He focused on a spot on the floor and released long ropes of a thick acid-like substance from his fingertips. The liquid immediately burned through the tile floor on contact. In a matter of minutes, there was a decent sized hole in the floor leading directly down.

Sesshomaru peered over the edge. He could see a mass of machines set up, not exactly sure what they were used for exactly. He dropped down into the hole and landed in a crouching position. This room, like the room above, was empty as well. Sesshomaru started to get suspicious. It wasn't like Naraku to leave what looked to be an integral part of his entire operation.

He rose slowly to a standing position and looked around the room. There were machines and television monitors everywhere, making the room appear cluttered. Sesshomaru spotted a hallway off to the right. He slowly made his way over to the hallway. There were about ten doors on either side of the hall. Beside the doors were clipboards. Sesshomaru walked over to the first door on his left and peered at the clipboard. Attached to it was a document with a person's name, their medical history, and a bunch of jargon Sesshomaru didn't understand.

"Gensai, E." Sesshomaru muttered, reading the name from the clipboard. He turned the doorknob, not surprised that the door was locked. He stood back and kicked through the door, the metal door crumpling easily. He stepped through the door and stopped. A woman lay on a steel table in the middle of the room. Her eyes were wide open, but Sesshomaru was positive she was seeing nothing. There were machines all around her, some were IV's with some strange liquid leaking through and some were monitors.

He took a step toward the woman and was disturbed by what he saw. Her body seemed to be in a state of decomposition, her skin already beginning to discolor.

'What kind of sick experiment is Naraku doing?'

He left the room and quickly checked the other rooms. He was down to the very last room and had come to the conclusion that all of the bodies were dead bodies. Even though they'd come in alive, they were turning up dead.

He scanned the last clipboard, his brow furrowing. This one was free of the patient's name and medical history. He destroyed the door and entered the room. This room was the same as all the others, holding the same machinery. He stepped closer to the body. His body turned cold.

This body was different. There were no signs of decomposition, although the body did appear to have a yellowish tint. The eyes were open wide just like the other bodies, but these eyes were familiar. Sesshomaru stepped right up beside the body.

"Onigumo."

a/n: umm...kinda feel like i rushed through this chap, but hope you enjoy and thanks for the reviews! bye til next time...keep r/r = )