InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Violation of Honor ❯ Chapter 10 - A Bond Born of Pain ( Chapter 10 )

Violation of Honor

By Rinseternalsoul

**Disclaimer: I do this for free. I'm not affiliated with Rumiko Takahashi's Inuyasha, and only write free fanfiction for my love of twisting her character's to my dark, demented will. May the smut live on.

Chapter 10 - A Bond Born of Pain

A/N: For those of you in need of a happy pill after reading each new chapter of this story, keep the faith. I'm estimating just a couple of more dungeon chapters before things take a positive turn for our characters. Now, don't get me wrong, there will still be several chapters later in the story that may draw a tear or two, but no more torture scenes. Although I believe there may be a few of you that are disappointed to hear that (hehe), I felt the need to let those who are finding the story depressing know that there is always light at the end of the tunnel.

Thanks to Sess1drmgrl, saturns_shimmer & docbevcleaver for taking the time to review and cheering me on!

Miss_Marilyn69, I'm so happy that you were moved by the part about Sesshomaru's name. I think that was my favorite few lines so far. Thanks for mentioning it. Hmm.... I think I detect a fellow hentai here. What do you think everyone? I'm usually right about these things, being kindred spirits and all that. I can promise one more 'sexy torture session' - for some reason that made me think of furry handcuffs and fluffy pink feathers - but I will not tell you who will be in it. Mean aren't I? hehe

Thank you Kawaii_Kilala (and Mike, who recommended 'Violation of Honor' to you!). To answer some of your questions... No, Kagome can't break the dark magic spell on the chains, and no, she can't heal the drug out of Sesshomaru. In fact, she healed his body, but it did not heal completely. He is still injured somewhat and still scarred. However, once he is back to normal health his youkai blood will continue the repairs and leave him with only scars of the mind, not the body.

Thanks to my great friend Kat, who has actually seen a documentary depicting a monkey orgy. I'm sure that King Hyuuga could have given them some pointers. LOL!

Also thanks to Jean, my very first fan. I'm glad that you enjoyed the monkey tail strangulation scene nearly as much as the monkey sex. I think Kat may have some insight on the sex part, so after consulting her on the orgy behaviors of monkeys I may toss in another scene later. Haha!

To Neko-sama, As always, thanks for the review. To answer your question about Koga making it in time to save them... sorry, I can't spoil it for you by telling you yes or no. I have a surprise planned in that regard, so you will just have to keep reading and find out. Muahahaha! Does Asuza have a weakness? They all have a weakness, right? Don't worry, she'll go down when the time is right.

Laria, You give some great compliments! Thank you! I'm so sorry that I made you depressed. I don't know why this story is coming out of me like this, but it has, and I'm driven to write it down. Kat gave me some advice the other day about a character death that I was considering. It would have worked out great for a plot twist that I had in mind, but I knew that it would upset people. Something she said helped me rethink my decision, and I thank her for it. Otherwise you would have been morning Miroku near the end of the story. I always thought myself more a romance/comedy/action-adventure author, but this one is seriously funneling into the horror category. I promise that it will lighten up soon. I hope you stick with me until then. It is great having fans like you.

To my 'die-hard' fan, Chaos-and-Serenity: Your support and enjoyment of this story is a huge ego boost, especially since I love your stories so much. Thank you!

Thanks to Tana-san & ChobitsXDarkFreya for pleading updates out of me! I'm so sorry to keep you all waiting. You're persistence does not go unnoticed or unappreciated.

Last, but certainly not least, a BIG 'Thank-You' to Risa, for her support, love of my stories, and being my Beta!

Sesshomaru felt a twinge of regret for the circumstances of the miko sharing his cell. His brother's 'friend'. It was painfully obvious that the woman had grown fond of Uchuu the snow monkey. Quite some time had passed since the boy had been dragged away, yet still she shed quiet tears for him. Although, he had to wonder if some of the tears she shed were for herself.

Being a recently blinded, human female and imprisoned in a dungeon with youkai was probably most disconcerting. He also wondered if she would be less afraid had she known who it was sharing her cell. Not that it mattered. He had no intention of giving his identity away at this point.

"Where do you think they took him?"

Sesshomaru looked up at the sound of her softly spoken question and caught himself when he nearly answered it. She was looking toward the looming door, as she had been since the monkey was taken. Her eyes remained unfocused, and they were now swollen and red. The pink tones made the blue of her eyes brighter and he thought that it would be a shame if she could never see again. She had been very good with a bow.

Miserably she added, "I doubt they took him out for fresh air."

On that he had to agree. It was probably for the best that she remained ignorant of what was happening to the monkey. Had she any idea of the tortures that could be visited upon him at their hands she would most likely go mad.

Uchuu was a prince. Brother to Sasaki Hyuuga, King of the Snow Monkey Clan and Asuza's direct enemy. From what he had gleaned in passing, the Lord of the East - a pathetic wretch at best - had fallen easily to Asuza's lackeys. As for himself... well, he was no better. He was her slave; her army was probably raiding his lands and sacking his castle at that very moment. The only one standing in the way of completing her quest for vengeance and power was Lord Hyuuga. Whether willing or not, Uchuu soon could be the one responsible for opening the door to his brother's destruction.

He was not familiar with the monkey clan family alliances, but something told him that Hyuuga and Uchuu were far from enemies. Unlike him and Inuyasha, the macaque brothers held some affection for one another. It was probably going to pain the lord to discover that the enemy had captured his younger sibling. Would Inuyasha care? Sesshomaru gave a half-hearted humph in amusement. Doubtful. He would probably celebrate.

If it were known that Uchuu had been captured, Hyuuga was probably making preparations for an attack. Though that thought stirred some faint trace of hope, rationality expelled it just as quickly as it had arisen. Even if the monkey king's army came for their prince, Asuza would take their king captive with just one thought. They would fail, just as he had failed.

If he knew anything about war, and in that he knew much, the enemy would endeavor to gain secrets from the prisoner. Uchuu would be questioned in hope of gaining key information that would ensure a swift victory. Sesshomaru doubted that the questioning would be a pleasant affair. No, of that he was certain. If Asuza and Iku sought secrets from the snow monkey, his pain would be unbearable until he spilled his very soul.

Sesshomaru watched the miko as she tried to wipe her face of the remaining tears. It was a useless venture as the action only served to smear around the layer of dirt on her face. Not one to be caught unclean, the miko was probably quite uncomfortable in her current state. It spoke of her character that she had not once complained.

"May Kami bless and keep him. Give him strength to survive."

Her whispered prayer was the last words that she spoke for the evening. He doubted that Uchuu would appreciate her words. Surviving would most likely be the last thing the monkey would wish for before his torment was through.

Soon, the silence began to eat at Sesshomaru's mind, leading it astray, taking him back to events best forgotten. Strange that he had never noticed it before but the miko had a sweet voice. It had a way of capturing one’s attention and holding it. Sesshomaru grimaced when he actually caught himself wishing to hear her voice again. It would not do to grow dependent on such a thing.

Resigning himself to the silence, he settled back to rest his weary eyes and before long the darkness would close in.

Uchuu refused to show it, but he was scared shitless. It was very disconcerting to wake up and find oneself strung tightly upon a large 'X' shaped table. The room was dimly lit, save for the two huge candles hovering over his shoulder. He turned his head to look around, but nearly vomited from the swooning pain in his head. Then he remembered getting smashed by the son-of-a-bitch jailer. Kami, his head hurt. If he ever managed to get out of this mess he swore that he was going to kill that bastard.

A shuffle of feet alerted him that he was not alone. His mind had been slow to react and he had missed their scent. There were two of them. One a youkai and the other human. He blinked and his eyes cleared a little. The youkai was tall. A male with long dark hair that cast blue highlights from the candle flame. Only one eye reflected the light eerily with incandescent color, but once he stepped closer, Uchuu could see that it was actually an oddity of pale violet. The youkai's straight mass of hair fell over the left side of his face hiding the other eye from sight. His features were rather sharp, giving him the look of a well-bred aristocrat, but in that eye was a touch of madness.

His scent was familiar. This was the falcon youkai that had spirited him away from Sumiho. He was also the male who had violated the inuyoukai prisoner. The scent of his body and seed had been strong on the poor wretch. There was no mistake.

Uchuu felt the cold fingers of unease creeping up his spine. This youkai would bring him worlds of suffering.

"Monkey Prince," he greeted.

"Yeah, so, who are you?" Uchuu angrily asked.

The youkai bowed slightly, which Uchuu thought was damned arrogant of him, considering the circumstances.

"I am called Iku. Servant and confident to Lady Asuza of the Kobe clan. However, you may call me master."

"I've got something better to call you..." Uchuu began, but his sarcastic remark was quickly silenced when the human stepped up and hit him in the jaw with a metal studded strip of leather. The sting of his flesh being laid open distracted him from finishing his remark. From the looks of things, his threshold of pain was about to be tried.

Iku chuckled and moved up to the monkey prince. They had removed the remnants of his torn and ragged clothing, leaving him in naught but a loincloth between his outstretched legs. Slowly Iku traced his hand over the smooth chest of the vermin spread before him. He was a nice specimen. Not as nice as the inu, but still worthy of appreciation. He looked up and smiled wickedly at the snarling ape. Such youth and vigor; it would be a pleasure to break him.

"As I said, you may call me master and make no mistake, prince, I will master you before I am done."

Uchuu's eyes narrowed and he growled low at the implication, but his heart had just struck a renewed beat of fear. He was aware of what had been done to the inuyoukai, and he had no intention of it happening to him.

Iku stepped back, allowing himself a good long inspection of his captive while slowly circling the stone tribulation table. "You see, I am honored to serve my mistress, the Lady Asuza, who requires information that you most probably hold. It is my duty, and pleasure, to extract that information on this day."

"You're wasting your breath. I'm not talking," Uchuu snapped.

"I was hoping that you would say that," Iku replied.

Uchuu was sure that he had never heard a darker voice in his life, and much to his horror he began to wonder if he had the strength to endure what lay ahead. He had never experienced torture before. Well, if you didn't include getting stung by a hundred honeybees all at once. "Uh... can't we come to some agreement here. How about you let me go, and I promise to kill you quickly?"

"Your nervous humor is most amusing, Prince Uchuu. Shall we see how long it lasts?" Iku then went straight to the point of the matter. "Where is the weak link in your clan's barrier walls?" He smiled when Uchuu shook his head.

The first slice was agony, but before the pain could recede the second was added. The scent of his blood became strong in the air making him sick in the pit of his stomach. It was only when the human stepped up and applied a metal device to the fourth finger of his right claw that Uchuu began to scream. The sound of his bone cracking was all but diminished when he yelled out his pain.

Sweat beaded on his forehead and he was unable to catch his breath. His entire hand throbbed with blinding pain and Uchuu felt dizzy from it all. His youkai body was not healing as it should, and even the cuts on his face were still lying open and bleeding. It was the same thing that happened to the inuyoukai in the dungeon. The drug in the water had to be the cause.

By the Gods, he could die here. The truth of it hit him hard. Until that moment he had been delusional to the reality of death, especially death in a place as loathsome as this.

"Where? I do not believe that I heard you, monkey. Speak up. What is the weak point that we are looking for? Tell me how to breach your clan's defenses."

Uchuu pictured Sumiho in his mind and held onto her image like a lifeline. He refused to give in to the torture. He refused to be the one who sentenced his entire clan to death. For the sake of those he loved he could not reveal the information - even Sumiho, whose home lay in the direct path that the enemy sought. An army moving through there would bring terrible danger to her and her family. He could not allow that. He would not.

"Very well," Iku smirked. "You are strong. Perhaps it will take some time, no? It is unfortunate, however, that the mistress is away leaving me to oversee her duties. My entertainment here must be cut short." He stepped aside sweeping his arm toward the stinking human male by his side. "This is Kunomaru, and he will gladly carry on in my stead. Kunomaru is very ingenious with the art of torture. I feel confident that you will feel more cooperative when I return. Sayonara."

Iku strolled out of the torture chamber smiling at the sound of the prince's renewed screams. The monkey was proving strong, determined in his obligation to honor his clan secrets. It would take some time for him to weaken, but Iku had no doubt that he would, eventually, do so. And if he proved more durable than expected, well, Asuza would be returning mid afternoon on the following day. She could easily force the prince to spill all, using the power of the amulet.

Making his way through the narrow corridor and up to the main levels of the crumbling castle, Iku swept passed several blushing maids, all of which he ignored. A young male servant wondered by carrying a stack of freshly made candles and caught his eye. Iku boldly acknowledged his interest. To which the young man blushed furiously and quickly looked down with obvious embarrassment. Perhaps once his meeting was done he would have a few minutes to dally with the help. He had not had a good rut with a young human in quite some time.

He turned his attention back to his path, scanning for any danger around him. He enjoyed a willing partner. Coupling in any form was pleasurable. Nothing could push a rush of ecstasy from him like plunging into the backside of a finely built male specimen, but force was so much more exhilarating. There was just something about the taking, the power flooding his veins when the one chosen realized there was no turning back. It was not merely the pleasure that drove him, it was the conquering.

An image of Sesshomaru on his knees before him rambled through his mind and he felt a twitch of interest from his cock. He had to admit; the inu had proven one of the best ruts yet. Overpowering and defiling the great Lord Sesshomaru had been his greatest triumph. It was also proving to be somewhat distracting. More often than not he found his mind wondering back to the inuyoukai and that was not good for business. He was leading a war, and he had no time for silly infatuations. Besides, Asuza would no doubt grant him more time with her inu slave very soon. In fact, once he extracted the needed information from the monkey prince, Asuza would be thrilled, and happily reward him for his efforts. His mistress was most gracious when things went her way.

In the meantime, he might entertain himself with the snow monkey. The idea sprang to life and he tossed it about with growing interest. The boy was a prince, after all. A finely built young prince at that. Previously he had thought the youth somewhat shallow and soft, considering his preoccupation with a mortal female, but his display of courage in the torture chamber had proven there was more to him than that. It had sparked his interest somewhat, and perhaps stirred a tendril of lust. He doubted, however, that the prince would be in any condition to fill his needs today. When Kunomaru was finished with him, there would not be much left to enjoy.

"My mother is the sweetest woman in the world. My dad died when my little brother was still a baby, leaving my mom to support us. My grandfather agreed to take us in so we moved to the Higurashi Shrine. I'm glad that we did. He needed us there and we needed him too, though I didn't recognize it at the time. Gramps told us stories of my father's childhood and that kept his memory alive. It was important, since Souta was too young to remember him when he died. He died in an elevator accident. Did I mention that? That's a weird way to die, isn't it? I mean, how many people do you meet that knows someone who died in an elevator accident?"

None that he could think of. It would certainly help if he had an inkling as to what exactly an elevator was. Sesshomaru eased back and shifted his neck just a little to the left in order to ease the dreadful burning in the muscle of his shoulder. The miko, Kagome, was leaning against the bars of the cell and absently braiding a few pieces of straw. She had been talking like that, relatively non-stop, since she had first awoken. Sesshomaru had to assume it was from nervousness over what she had done during their sleep.

It was somewhat disconcerting to think of it. It hinted at a developing dependency that he had no wish to formulate with the girl. Although, apparently, as in most things that occurred to him lately, he had no hope of stopping it. He had never been prone to nightmares, even in childhood, but since the 'incident' he couldn't seem to close his eyes without reliving some portion of that moment.

Sesshomaru had awakened in a panicked state, sweating and wrenching against his bonds. The images in his dream were still playing through his mind, slow to release him from their grasp. He had snarled, the sound drenched with all of the pain, terror, and fury of a trapped and injured beast.

The miko had not hesitated at all. Before that single horrific sound could completely leave his chest she was there. She placed her hands on his leg and whispered words that meant nothing, but gave comfort anyway. Promises not to leave him alone. Promises that everything would turn out well. Empty talk.

It was her power to soothe his frantic heartbeat and calm his racing blood that finally stamped out the dream haze, leaving him with the reality of what had occurred. While greatly relieved to discover that he was not back in Asuza's chamber, Sesshomaru had been faced with the miko and the fact that she had once again rescued him from a state of emotional distress.

She had released him at once. It was almost like she could feel the state of his emotions coming under control, which was most unsettling. She then silently nodded and crawled back onto the thin bed of stale dirty straw she had gathered for a bed and went back to sleep.

The crux of his problem did not end there, for the nightmare had later returned and for a moment he had again been sucked into its grim hold. In the dream he had been chained, beaten, and raped, all the while Asuza stood over him laughing wickedly. Then the dream faded, the laughter ceased, the pain gone, and he was safe. The chains had became wisps of soothing warmth that swirled from his wrists and ankles to feather a path of tingling contentment over his arms, legs and body. It was a warmth pure and true. One that he could trust.

The remainder of the dream was lost to him after waking. The memory, however, was brought back and made all too real when he became aware that the girl had shifted while he slept. No longer was she comfortably away from him, sleeping on her straw bed against the bars. Instead she was sleeping on the bare stone of the cell floor, on her side and curled in a ball, but close enough to him that she was able to grasp his ankle with her hand.

She had driven the nightmare away allowing him to rest in peace. It was the most refreshing sleep that he had acquired since coming to this wretched place. Sesshomaru was loath to admit it, but he was grateful.

Unwilling to wake her, he had not pulled away, leaving her touching his skin with her soft little hand while he considered her freely. She was a slight young thing, hardly as tall as his chest. Her waist was so small that he could probably circle it with his hands. She had long hair the color of a raven that seemed to shine with highlights of blue. The mass of unruly waves fanned around her head and shoulders, lying haphazardly all over the filthy dungeon floor.

Her eyes were closed and her features smoothed and relaxed, giving her a look of innocence that matched her true nature. She was not unattractive, for a human. In fact some would consider her quite lovely, he was sure. Her eyes were large, her brows delicate. Her cheekbones had become more prominent in her womanhood, and her nose was small and pert. Sesshomaru decided that her mouth was the most interesting feature of all, for her bottom lip was full and the top just a hint smaller. Both were pink and glistening with moisture as she softly breathed in her sleep.

He supposed that most mortal males would find the girl attractive, so why had Inuyasha not marked her as his own? It could not have been for a dislike of human women, for he had foolishly loved the undead miko. The one that still walked the earth as a living clay replica of her past self. Perhaps that was it?

Oddly enough, Inuyasha seemed to have some lingering attachment to the walking dead. He had been witness to Inuyasha's grief once when the boy mistakenly assumed that Naraku had slain the undead woman near Mt. Hakurei. It was obvious that the fool still carried feelings for the wench that had once pinned him lifelessly to a tree for fifty years.

At the time Sesshomaru had not considered the baka's relationship with the other, living, miko - this miko. It had been of no interest or consequence to him then. Now, however, he had more time on his hands than strength to push away the darkness. He was moved to fill that time in some way that did not include unbecoming fits of panic. Perusing the mysteries of the miko lying next to him was good enough for the moment to accomplish that.

"Miroku and Sango were married last year. The wedding was so beautiful. I think that I cried enough to fill a bucket. Her dress was perfect and Miroku was so proud."

When she had woken to discover her compromising position, she had quickly jerked her hand back and scooted away. He had watched her openly, since there was no need to hide his curiosity. It appeared that she had been unaware of the hold that she placed on him during sleep. She had even grasped her hand - the one that had been wrapped so firmly around his ankle - and pulled it against her chest before whispering a rather husky 'sumimasen' to which he merely grunted in reply.

Since that moment, it seemed that she had not been silent for more than it took for her to draw another breath. One would think that she was unaware of his strict confinement and feared retribution.

Suddenly she became quiet and looked away. A totally unexpected turn. It seemed that there were many facets to the miko that he had never noticed before. Oddly enough, it left him anticipating her next move, her next reaction and next comment.

"I'm really sorry," Kagome softly apologized. "It's pretty obvious that you either can't talk, or simply don't want to, and here I am going on and on. I've talked your ears off, haven't I?" She then turned her head toward the silent youkai.

She could hear small shuffles as he attempted to ease his obvious discomfort. She could even hear his soft, even breaths. Occasionally, he voiced his disgust or disapproval through a well-timed snort of air, but for whatever reason, he would not speak to her.

She had thought him prejudiced against humans for awhile there, but was beginning to believe that his vocal withdrawal was rooted elsewhere. She couldn't very well force him to talk to her, but she sure wished that he would try a little. It was so boring and she was very worried about Uchuu. A little two-sided conversation would go a long way in distracting her from morbid imaginings.

To say that she had slept fitfully was a major understatement. She kept having crazy dreams where she was constantly fleeing from some dark enemy. At one point a particularly nasty fright had been enough to wake her, and she faintly remembered feeling distress that wasn't her own. Her hazy mind still foggy from the dream had sought to calm the source, so she touched the youkai, which immediately began to calm him. She had also spoken a few soothing words, then; obviously, she had fallen back to sleep, not even bothering to move back to her corner of the cell.

Waking up and discovering that she was latched onto to a stranger, human or youkai, was not too easy on a girl's nerves, especially when said stranger had previously been less than accepting of contact. She really should apologize.

"Um, I hope you aren't mad about this morning. I mean... I didn't intend to offend you or anything. I just..." Kagome inhaled then sighed miserably. "I'm always the one who helps people feel better. I'm the one who bandages the wounds and who eases the aches.

"I used to be terrible with a bow." Kagome laughed half-heartedly. "No. Seriously, I sucked," she added as if her mute partner had actually made the effort to protest her admission. "Inuyasha used to really give me trouble about it. He expected me to shoot as well as Kikyo, who had probably practiced shooting a bow since she was a toddler. Heck, I'd never held a bow until I came here to the feudal era."

She said that as if she were not of the era herself. Sesshomaru found that odd. She was always saying such strange things.

"I couldn't shoot a bow, but I could apply ointment and wrap a bandage pretty well. In fact, it came as naturally to me as putting on clothes. I think that my body knew that I was a healer before my mind ever caught on. My hands could sew up deep cuts and every stitch was small and nearly perfect. It took awhile, I will admit, to get past the urge to vomit when faced with a gaping wound.

"Where I come from, it is very rare to see someone badly injured unless you work for a hospital. I mean, it took some time to adjust to so much blood, but it felt good to help. Since there are no hospitals or doctors here, I started learning what herbs and roots made good medicine. I learned what to do when a fever hits and how to purge poison from the body.

"Most of the stuff I learned came from an old miko called Kaede. She was actually Kikyo's younger sister. That put us both in a weird position, but it was worth the effort on both our parts to look past that whole reincarnation thing. Kaede was like a grandmother to me. I never had a grandmother before. Both of mine had died before I was born. Since Kaede never had children she took me in as one of her own. She did the same for Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango and Shippo. She was a good woman, kind but stern. She could put Inuyasha in his place so quick that it would leave your head spinning." She laughed lightly in remembrance.

"I got much better with the bow. I practiced really hard, especially when I was at home in Tokyo. Of course, nothing is better for learning a skill than fighting for your life or the life of your friends. Needless to say, I learned how to hit the mark pretty fast. It was that or get killed.

"In fact, right after I first came here we were attacked by Inuyasha's older brother, Lord Sesshomaru. It wasn't our first run-in with the youkai lord, but it was the first time that I shot at him myself. He was trying to steal Inuyasha's birthright, the sword Tetsusaiga, and he was being pretty nasty about it. He had lost an arm in an earlier battle, and was using a human arm with a Shikon Jewel shard embedded in it to wield the Tetsusaiga. You see, the Tetsusaiga rejects him because of his enmity against humankind. So when I saw the shard I just knew that if I could hit that shard then he would no longer be able to use the sword against us.

"Dumb, huh? I mean, this guy is no pansy. He is soo powerful that it's scary. He has acid whips and poison in his claws. He's so fast that it boggles the mind. I really never stood a chance against him, but things were going bad and I just had to try.

"I shot that arrow, praying for a hit and amazingly enough, I got one. Funny thing though, I missed the stupid shard and hit his armor instead. Boy was he mad. His armor cracked and I just knew that I was dead." Kagome sighed in memory and shook her head. "I guess the Kami was shining on me that day, because after all was said and done I was still alive, and Lord Sesshomaru walked away from the battle without actually killing any of us. I used to think he simply knew that he was defeated and nothing else, but now I realize that he does nothing without purpose. He let us live, for whatever reason, and we all went on to fight again another day."

Hearing about their second encounter firsthand from the miko left an unusual feeling in his chest. He had tried to kill her on that day, and would have had Inuyasha not successfully diverted his wrath.

His first encounter with her had cost him a perfectly functional arm.

Remembering his own narrow-minded arrogance during that time in his life nearly made him want to laugh. After his fathers death he had crossed the countryside like a deadly plague, killing indiscriminately any that dared get too close. Not aimlessly though. Never that. He always knew his path, even then.

Or so he once thought.

Power meant everything to him then. It was his reason for living. It was his whole focus, and he put every fiber of his being into gaining it. It took meeting a nearly matured Inuyasha and the young mortal sitting in front of him to begin the opening of his eyes.

His arrogance had been infinite. He had never fought a battle that he did not decimate his enemy. They either fled - if he allowed it - or died. There were no other choices for them. He took no prisoners.

All who knew him cowered at his feet and those who did not suffered for their ignorance. He had thought to do the same to Inuyasha, but their father's blood proved to be stronger than he first expected. With the young mortal girl at Inuyasha's side he gained strength and speed incredible for a hanyou. Inuyasha's vow to protect the miko had transformed the Tetsusaiga and ultimately spelled his doom.

Losing an arm to the hanyou had infuriated him. He had attributed it to 'luck' on Inuyasha's part, and had continued his single-minded pursuit, that is, until the boy actually killed him. The full power of the Kaze no Kizu had been as much a shock as it had been a revelation. Had not his own sword, Tenseiga, come to his aid, ultimately saving his life and transporting him from danger, he would have died on that day at the hands of a hanyou.

It had been a disgraceful feeling to realize the truth of his existence. He was not all-powerful and his skill not above reproach. His arrogance had nearly cost him his life and left his barbarian of a half-brother lord over his ancestor's lands. Some self-reflection had been in order and meeting Rin during that time had proven a true gift from the Gods. Rin had changed everything.

Power became a reward instead of a goal. Priorities had been changed and total self-focus cast off. Her kindness and generosity in the face of his self-centered life had shaken him. It made him see that the demon he had become was not such a great lord after all.

He had been somewhat humbled.

"I tend to talk a lot when I'm nervous and upset. It's an annoying habit I suppose, but it's so quiet down here."

Sesshomaru was brought out of the past by her voice. He wanted to tell her to continue - that her voice was the only thing keeping him sane. He wanted to ask her where she had come from, if not the Feudal Era of Japan. He wanted to know why she spoke with strange words and why she and Inuyasha remained only friends.

Kami help him, he wanted to converse with her, he wanted to.... but he could not.

Iku made his way down to the torture chamber where the monkey was being interrogated. The day had gone smoothly, and the generals in attendance had only good news to report. His strategies had thus far proven highly effective and the only thing standing in his way from total victory was that damned monkey clan.

A portion of his army was currently preparing to storm Lord Sesshomaru's fortress while the remainder prepared to join a platoon of mortal warriors led by Nobunaga in taking the monkey king's realm. While Sesshomaru's forces were weakened greatly by his obvious absence, his generals were not to be taken lightly. They would not be defeated easily, and Asuza's participation in the take-over may be paramount to the final victory.

With the Amulet of Coactum Asuza could bend the high ranking men to her will, but she would have to face them first and only a few at a time. The amulet had tested true in overpowering the minds of dozens of humans at once, but to wrap her control around that many youkai at one time could prove an error in judgement. It would only take one to throw off its power. Only one to kill her. Iku could not allow that.

He would wear them down and open the way for her. It will be as it always has. He would clear the path to victory and she would take it for them both. She was nothing if not loyal. For that he would gladly die for her.

Once he was assured of victory in the West, he would turn his full attention to invading the North and relieving the monkey king of his life and lands. It would be a great pleasure to witness Sasaki Hyuuga draw his last breath, but he doubted Asuza would willingly kill the wretch quickly. If he knew his mistress - and he most assuredly did - she would feel the urge to enjoy some playtime with her new captive. Iku could hardly blame her, for Hyuuga was a well-formed devil. He most certainly would not mind spending himself within the bastard's depths. Perhaps he and Asuza could play a new game with the monkey? He would think on something enjoyable for them both - to celebrate the victory.

Beyond the entrance to the torture chamber, he shoved open the inner door. Iku was stunned by the sound of silence. Where were the screams? Where were the pleas for mercy?

Immediately he spotted the monkey prince still strapped tightly to the table, but the monkey prince did not spot him. The reason for that was fast apparent. He was unconscious.

A closer inspection revealed that the boy was still alive, but barely. He was covered in wounds made by the torture master. Burns seared into his inner thighs and the bottoms of his feet were swollen and running fluids. More burns covered his chest and arms. Precisely administered slices lined his stomach and thighs, while his fingers were mangled with raw nail beds and missing claws. His face was misshapen from swelling and bruises. Blood oozed from his nose atop more layers of the same dried black. He was unrecognizable as the man who entered. There was not one area on him that had not bled.

The worst was what Iku feared might result in the death of the prince. His tail had been severed. Half of it was gone, and the wound still bled freely.

Iku's eyes narrowed menacingly. He had entertained thoughts of easing his need inside the monkey prince this eve or even on the morrow. In his dire condition, that was definitely out of the question. The captives' condition angered him a great deal, for he had made his orders clear to Kunomaru. The fool was supposed to gain information, leaving the monkey conscious until his return. Now all could be lost if the monkey happened to die before any useful information was gained.

"Kunomaru!" Iku bellowed. "Where are you, you sniveling pest?!"

In seconds Kunomaru scampered into the room covered in a fresh habit and smelling newly clean. He must have been soaked in blood, for the foul mortal never bathed otherwise. Obviously he had been more concerned with a clean shirt than the life of an important hostage. Iku held his tongue, saving his rage in the case that Kunomaru had gained the knowledge that they sought. If that were the case then there was no need of the prince save for entertainment purposes.

Iku gave the mortal male his most fearsome scowl and demanded, "Tell me, slug, that you have gained the information vital to our cause before he lost consciousness!"

The vermin actually had to presence of mind to fall to his knees in a reverent bow. Iku did not think that bode well for his answer.

"Master, it was most tragic, but the stupid ape refused to reveal his secrets. There was nothing that I could do to sway him, sire. Everything that I tried, everything that I did, was useless in making him talk. He screamed. Oh yes, he chuckled maniacally, the monkey screamed loudly. I even took his tail!" His whining chuckle was laced with evil thoughts as he remembered the agony that he delivered to the beast.

Kunomaru continued, his voice shifting to one of vengeance. "I shall gift the thing to my sister whose husband was strangled to death by the beast this very morn."

Almost as an afterthought the man added, "The information that my lordship seeks simply could not be gained."

"Baka Fool!" Iku screeched furiously before flipping his right hand and extending his talons. "You will die for this disobedience!" He bent and snatched the mortal up by the neck and squeezed until he pissed himself and cried. He squeezed until the bug-eyed idiot turned blue and then, ever so slowly, he slid his talon through Kunomaru's tender neck until it slid with a wet thud to the stone floor.

The headless corpse fell twitching and Iku stepped over it without further thought.

He pulled in the residue of anger that always lingered after an emotional kill, and turned his full attention to the monkey. By the Gods, he was a mess. "Guard!" Iku shouted, and a second later a young youkai soldier appeared. "Get someone in here to cauterize the boy's tail before he bleeds out, then wash some of the blood off and return him to his cell." He looked over the grisly scene and added, "Then have someone clean up this filth!"

Iku hoped to hell the monkey lived, otherwise Asuza was going to have his head on a platter.

With a snarl of frustration the tall warrior bird strode from the room muttering about the rarity of good help. He stopped by the room at the end of the corridor and shoved the door open. Iku angrily kicked Kunomaru's personal items aside as he sought the tail. He found it wrapped in a cloth and stored in a bamboo box near the bedroll. The incompetent fool had put personal revenge over the desires of his master. Such disregard for authority could never go unpunished.

He unwrapped the coarse fabric and revealed the monkey prince's tail. The portion was as long as his arm tipped in soft silvery fur. When he held it up the tip of it bent into a smooth curve. Iku studied the appendage thoughtfully. He could give it back to the monkey, it would certainly reattach itself to its host, or he could keep it as a trophy. A smirk of satisfaction curved his lip. He thought that a marvelous notion and so Iku left the dead torture master's chambers carrying a limp souvenir.

Sesshomaru heard them coming then smelled them as they got closer. Kami, Uchuu was barely alive. The door was opened and the miko shot up and grasped onto the bars anxiously. There was no need for more than three men this time - the jailer and the two dragging the carcass of the tortured monkey. Sesshomaru felt the bile rise into his throat at the sight of him. All over he was cut. It seemed there was not a spare portion of flesh that had not been touched by a knife. His naked body was covered in bruises and areas darker than a bruise, areas that could only be burns from a branding iron.

The most shocking view came when the two men squeezed through the cell doorway giving Sesshomaru a look at Uchuu's back. There were few damaged areas there, as if he had been strapped to a table, but the macaque's tail had been chopped in half. They had tortured the boy horribly, even his fingers were mangled and the soles of his feet seared from an iron. He could not help the shudder of distaste that crept up his spine. The monkey had suffered through horrible pain, and the drug was not allowing his youkai body to heal properly. Without care, he would most likely die.

"Uchuu?"

Sesshomaru gladly looked away from the gruesome scene when the miko spoke the monkey's name. She could not see the sad state that Uchuu was in, and for that he was grateful. He was unsure of his own mind at this point, he certainly did not wish to be locked up with an unstable female as well.

"Uchuu, can you hear me?" she called out uncertainly.

Sesshomaru cursed the fact that he could not move to pull her away from those bars, and for the fact that he felt the urge to do so. He had never in his life wanted to speak so badly as he did at that moment, if only to dissuade her from calling out further. The jailer took care of that problem for him, and not at all in the way that he would have handled it.

"Quiet wench! That beast will not be answering you today... or tomorrow if my guess is right. Hell, this one might not live to see the morn." The big oaf then chuckled, but it held a note that rang closely of regret. Almost as if he held a sense of admiration for the beating that the monkey had endured. "He's a tough one, he is." The big man closed the door to the cell and locked it, then looked over his shoulder as if the miko could actually see him. "He actually stayed conscious 'til poor 'ol Kunomaru chopped off his tail."

The hint of reverence in his voice did nothing to soften the blow that doubled Kagome over until her tasteless bread came up even more disgusting than it had been before. She heaved again while tears streamed down her face. Sesshomaru felt something in his chest tighten at the sight of her suffering for a creature that she hardly knew. Her emotional pain was etched in her features twisting her loveliness into something that he never wished to witness on her again.

He tugged at the bands holding his arms and jerked at the one around his neck. The magic was too strong and he was still emphatically too weak. The miko was bent over the waste bucket and sobbing desperately. She trembled all over and he thought that if he could just touch her, then perhaps he could ease her suffering somewhat.

"Oh... oh great Kami above," Kagome hiccuped. "I am so sorry Uchuu, that I could not save you. That I can't even help you now!"

The sound that came from his chest was unexpected. Sesshomaru had not intended to take his concern further, but his body began the soothing thrum before any thought had been given to it. It was a low toned rumbling that inuyoukai used to soothe their offspring or calm their mates. He had used it only a few times and that was for Rin, who was plagued by nightmares of rabid wolves' years ago.

The sound reverberated through the empty stone chamber, bouncing off ceiling and walls. Kagome felt like it was wrapping her in a warm cozy blanket and lulling her into peace. She allowed it to, because that was the only thing that she could do. She was trapped in the cell and useless to Uchuu. She couldn't see how bad his wounds were, and he was unconscious leaving her imagine the worst.

Here she was faced with a depravation that went beyond anything that she had ever faced before and found herself lacking. She wasn't strong enough to endure this place. She wasn't born to these horrors. "I don't belong here," she murmured softly as she wiped her mouth on her sleeve and curled up into a ball on the floor. "If only the well had not stopped working. I would go home and I don't know if I would ever return."

Her sniffles and mumbling had made it hard to understand her ramblings, but Sesshomaru caught the majority of it. What had she meant by a well not working? How could that stop her from returning to her home?

The miko was a strange character to be sure, and one that he could not help admiring for her strength. There were mysteries surrounding her and he found himself inclined to discover more. While he watched her unseeing eyes grow heavy and tired, he wondered how much more she would reveal during their stay in 'Hell'?

He continued to issue the soothing thrum well after she drifted off to a fitful sleep.

It seemed that sharing a dismal fate was somehow endearing him to the miko, and he knew that it was a ridiculous venture at best. No matter how ill fated, he knew that he needed something to hold his head above the water - something to occupy his mind and keep him sane.

The complexities of the miko Kagome could very well be his saving grace, and she needed to know that she was not alone in the dark.

A/N 2: Poor Uchuu!! I hated to do him like that, but it was inevitable really. Did you know that in the dark ages, it was common practice to imprison those thought to be possessed of the devil, then they were introduced to a pot of boiling water and ordered to retrieve a small stone lying at the bottom? Their hand and arm was literally boiled. A priest then wrapped it in cloth. It was determined that the person had been innocent of the crime accused only if the wound began healing on its own, thus proving that the body was pure. If it festered and became infected, then the body was un-pure and the victim guilty of their sin. Either way, you were screwed. I've said it before, and I know that all of you agree with me. I am soooo thankful to be a modern day woman.

In the next chapter Sesshomaru will learn more about Kagome, and Uchuu's fate will be revealed. Rin gets into some serious trouble with a witch, and Shippo must come up with a clever plan to save her. Until then... Ja ne!