InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Seventh Key ❯ Lucky Seven ( Chapter 7 )

The Seventh Key

 

Chapter 7

 

Lucky Seven

 

Inuyasha sank back against the wall and tried to tune out the yowls of the demons on the ground floor. He looked to the side at Kagome with her arm around Shippo.

 

“Who's that?” he asked, standing up.

 

“His name is Shippo,” Kagome replied. Inuyasha knelt down in front of him and frowned.

 

“I know you. You're the kid who saw me at the car,” he muttered. Shippo sniffled and nodded.

 

“That man with the sheriff came back…my dad told him and leave and he didn't….he told me and my mom to run, and the man came inside…” he explained between sobs. Inuyasha nodded and flipped open the satchel on his belt, withdrawing the key.

 

“Damn it, Inuyasha…” Kagome groaned. Inuyasha lifted the key and pressed it to Shippo's head. “Like they'd possess him, he's a kid,” Kagome scolded as he put it away.

 

“Ya never know, gotta be sure,” Inuyasha defended. He went back and sat against the wall. The yowls of the demons kept reaching his ears as he fell back.

 

“So what now?” Kouga snapped, drawing his attention. “You keep getting us pusher into a smaller and smaller corner.”

 

“Just wait them out, that's all I can tell you,” Inuyasha groaned.

 

“That's bullshit!” Kouga roared.

 

“You brought those damn things here, we deserve an explanation,” Kagome chimed in.

 

“They're right,” Bankotsu agreed. Inuyasha scowled.

 

“I didn't think it was gonna be tonight, ok!?” he shouted. “There was Ayame, Kagome, Miroku, Kikyo, Mushin and Kouga. Then Bankotsu and Sesshomaru showed up, Naraku killed the sheriff, that's seven. It didn't match up when I got here, I didn't expect it. It all has to line up, seven people, seven stars, seven ke-.” Inuyasha stopped himself and rubbed his temples. Kouga snorted while everyone else stared.

 

“I didn't make this shit up, alright!?” Inuyasha snapped. “I didn't ask to spend my life running, I didn't ask to be immortal, and I sure as fuck, didn't ask for these!” Inuyasha ripped off his gloved and held out his palm. Everyone stared at it and the seven stars tattooed in a circle on it. Inuyasha pulled the glove back on with a glare.

 

“Ya wanna know what's going on? Ya wanna?” he demanded. He took a breath and leaned his head back. He pulled out the key and looked down at it. “In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth.”

 

“That's Genesis,” Kikyo interrupted. “I've read the Bible.”

 

“Before that,” Inuyasha muttered, glaring, “the universe was a shapeless void, nothing but darkness. And there were demons in it. Thousands, millions. And they had seven keys formed from the flames of Hell, that focused the power of creation into their hands. Until God said `let there be light'. And there was light. The demons were vanquished, most of them wiped out, and the keys were scattered across the universe,” Inuyasha paused for a moment and took a breath.

 

“Now, let's jump ahead, two or three hundred thousand years. The demons are rebuilding their army. And they've found six of the keys. And then, about two thousand years ago, the seventh key was uncovered here on Earth. And the demons sent forth their legions to reclaim it.”

 

“Now, to stop them, God tracked down the key Himself. It had been found by a thief named Midoriko. The first demon who found her, chased her, and she tried to hand the key over. God blessed the key, and its holder, and decreed that if she gave it willingly, she would die. So she kept running, and the demon cornered her, and it got burned when…blood fell on its hand. It was the blood of a young carpenter, who was being crucified by the Romans. The demon retreated, and Midoriko…opened up the key, and let the drops of blood from the man's hands fill it.”

 

“Wait a minute,” Kagome said. “The blood of a carpenter who was crucified…so, that blood in there belongs to…”

 

“Some of it,” Inuyasha confirmed. “It's gotten pretty diluted over the years. See, every time the Guardian dies, they have to use their own blood to refill it. But the power's still there. Most of what's left here belonged to army gunner named Gerad, a Union soldier who got killed during the Civil War. He passed it on to me while we were in the foxholes and got attacked by the demons.”

 

“Civil War…that makes you how old?” Bankotsu muttered.

 

“What happens if you run out of blood?” Kouga asked. Inuyasha shrugged.

 

“Well, the blood's the only thing that creates the barrier and keeps them out for good. You run out…no more barriers. No more burning them with its touch. And no passing it on to the next Guardian. No more blood…no more Guardian,” he replied. “I protect it, until I find the next Guardian. Then I refill it, pass it on, and die. And they keep running until they meet the next Guardian. I run, and run, and I fight. Then I pass on the key. And then I die,” Inuyasha finished. The group was silent for a moment before Inuyasha looked up and smiled bitterly.

 

“There. Now you know what's going on. Does anyone feel better?” he asked. Everyone stared back in silence before Mushin out a breath.

 

“I'm really missing that six-pack in the fridge right now,” he said. Inuyasha grunted before standing up.

 

“Hey, Inuyasha,” Kouga said, standing up behind him. Inuyasha turned. “I'm sorry man, really. Look, I still ain't happy you brought that shit here, but hey, I didn't know the whole…Hell and God thing. You got some balls,” Kouga explained, holding out his hand. Inuyasha looked down at it for a moment before taking it and shaking. “Defending humanity from demons…you're a fuckin' hero,” Kouga grinned wryly.

 

“Trust me, it sounds more glamorous than it is,” Inuyasha replied. Kouga nodded and shrugged.

 

“Where's Shippo?” Kagome gasped. Inuyasha spun around and pushed his way past the others.

 

“Shippo!” he called. “Dammit! We gotta find him before they do, he couldn't have gone downstairs without us seeing him.”

 

“We gotta check around,” Bankotsu said.

 

“Right. Kouga, keep an eye on them down there. The rest of us, check the bedrooms,” Inuyasha ordered. Kouga nodded and moved back as the other guests of the motel filtered to their rooms.

 

Inuyasha was so busy giving orders he didn't feel the hand slipping into his satchel.

 

- - - - - - - - - -

 

“Shippo,” Kagome hissed, opening the door of a bedroom. “It's Kagome. You in here?” she asked. She closed the door behind her and knelt to look under the bed. Nothing. She stood and looked behind the door before going to the closet and opening it. Nothing. The room was empty. Kagome sighed and turned around.

 

“Hey, do me a favor,” Naraku's voice whispered. Kagome gasped. The bedroom was gone, replaced with a long, moonlit hall lined with posters. “Don't scream. Just let me say what I have to say. Then you can scream,” Naraku finished. Kagome turned to find a blank wall behind her.

 

“You're young, smart, beautiful, talented. You deserve the best the world has to offer, Kagome. And look where you are, a run down motel in a run down city,” Naraku said. Kagome turned back and began slowly walking down the hall. The posters were, surprisingly, of her. Various glamorous outfits in cities she had seen in magazines. The first was of her in an evening gown at the Eiffel Tower.

 

“You should get out, travel, see the world. I can help you.” The second was some sort of stone temple from Rome or Greece. “Rome, Paris, Egypt, Athens, name it, you got it. Consider me a genie, only more handsome,” Naraku chuckled. Kagome looked past the rest of the posters. On the wall at the end of the room hung a plasma-screen TV. She walked up to it.

 

“Let's be honest, Inuyasha isn't gonna get you out of here, you heard him, he doesn't expect to get himself out of here,” Naraku continued. As Kagome neared the TV, she made out its image. It was her in some sort of movie, dancing with….Kagome grimaced at the sight of her TV self dancing with Naraku in a ballroom. “Inuyasha's gonna die, and if you stick with him, so will you.” Kagome watched as the TV Naraku stepped away, and the Kagome on the TV turned and winked out at the real thing. Kagome's eyes widened.

 

“Hey, wanna see something? Check this out,” Naraku laughed. The TV Kagome was tossed to the ground as demons burst onto the screen and began ripping into her flesh. Her TV kept staring at her and smiling as she was dismembered by the monsters. Kagome squeaked and stumbled back, hitting a hard chest. She spun around.

 

“Nasty, isn't it?” Naraku sighed. “It doesn't have to be like that. To be honest I wished it wasn't, blood is damn messy, especially when you go around killing humans for a living,” he grinned at the last comment as Kagome back up against the wall. Naraku smiled and walked up to her.

 

“Hey, I know what you're thinking. You give me the key, lose your soul, turn into a demon and look like shit. Where's the deal, right? I know, hey, if I would end up looking like them I wouldn't take that deal either. So, here's a real deal,” Naraku lifted Kagome's hand and took it in his own as she glared at him.

 

“You give me the key, and you can keep your looks. Hell, you're beautiful, Kagome, and young. I know that sounds like a line, and yeah, I've used it before, but it's true. Take it from someone who lived through the Crusades and had a lot of fun with them, you're definitely in my Top Ten. You want to stay young and beautiful forever? I can make it happen. All you have to do is give me the key. Take it from me, you're gonna die anyway, it won't hurt to be friends with one of Hell's elite when you do.” Naraku gently pressed his lips to the back of Kagome's hand, and smiled. “What do you say?”

 

Kagome hocked back in her through and spit. Naraku grimaced as the glob of saliva landed on his cheek. He lifted the sleeve of his coat and wiped it off with a sigh.

 

“Ok, obviously our relationship has some trust issues,” he muttered, shrugging. He pulled out his sunglasses from his pocket and slipped them on. “That's ok, we have an eternity to work on that.” Naraku flung out a hand, and Kagome gasped as she was pulled forward. His fingers wrapped around her chin.

 

“I will get that key,” he whispered. “One way or the other, it's going to be mine, and you and all your friends are going to die. And the sooner you wise up and make it easier on yourself, the better it'll be for the both of us,” Naraku smiled and put his hands on Kagome's shoulders.

 

“A simple deal, Kagome,” he chuckled. “You let me in, and I'll let you out.” With that, Naraku spun her around, and Kagome was standing back in the bedroom. She turned to look at the empty closet before swallowing heavily and hurrying out of the room.