Other Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Kagome's Trial ❯ Chapter 9

I'm not dead, those of you who were wondering when I'd update. Things have been hectic on this end, and I didn't have access to a computer for most of it. Sorry, sorry, I'll try to do better with the updates. To make up for it, I'll post two chapters. Will that make it slightly better?

 

~*~

 

When she came to, the first thing she noticed was that she could hear waves. Am I dead? She wondered. Opening her eyes, she saw a pair of red ones looking into her own. She squeaked and tried to back away, but couldn't even sit up. “I'm glad you're awake,” the voice of a woman said.

 

“Wh-where am I?” she asked aloud.

 

“You're on our ship, heading back with us to Prox,” the woman answered.

 

Kagome blinked, then took a closer look at the woman. Her skin was light pink, nearly white, and her face was white with strange markings. Her eyes were as red as the ones that belonged to the thing that came to Vale before the boulder fell. And then there were her ears… This woman was a demon of some sort. “What do you want?” she demanded, squirming to get away from the demon woman.

 

She leaned back. “I want you to get better,” she answered kindly. “Everyone else healed quite nicely. You were my problem child.”

 

She leaned forward, but Kagome tried to get away again. “Stay away from me, demon,” she shouted.

 

The demon jerked back in surprise. “That's new,” she said, nonplussed. “I've been called many things, but a demon, and to my face, that's something new. I'm no demon, child. I'm a Proxian, and my name is Menardi.”

 

She doesn't seem to have a demon's aura, now that I think about it. “I'm Kagome,” she said hesitantly.

 

Menardi smiled. “I'm glad to formally meet you, Kagome. You've been unconscious ever since we picked you up by the riverside.”

 

Her memory kicked in. “Were there others? A boy about my age? How about adults? Were there any adults?”

 

“Slow down, Kagome,” Menardi laughed. “Yes, there were adults, three of them, and a boy. I believe they were the only ones who fell in the river besides yourself.”

 

Kagome breathed a sigh of relief. “So they're fine?”

 

Menardi nodded. “They are on deck with Saturos right now. As soon as you have enough strength, you too can go up, but until you can walk, you must stay here.”

 

Menardi was better than her word. She wouldn't let her go up until she could walk around the cabin without falling, and that wasn't for a number of days. But it wasn't all that bad. The Valeans came and kept her company; Felix was ecstatic that she was awake and could talk to him. Once she was allowed on deck, she stayed up there as much as she could.

 

“It's getting colder,” she commented to Felix as they watched the land of Hesperia pass by.

 

“We're getting farther north,” he responded.

 

They were silent for a while, then, “You know, I've never seen Saturos. Where is he?”

 

The boy laughed. “He didn't take a liking to the sea. He's probably in his cabin, wishing he was dead.”

 

“He's seasick?”

 

“Yup.”

 

“Why is that?”

 

“He and Menardi are aligned with Mars, the element of fire, so this is most likely killing him, or else he's just caught a bug.”

 

“Poor guy. Wait a minute! Why is Menardi fine, but he's seasick?”

 

He shrugged. “Who knows?”

 

At that moment Eric called Felix down, so he took his leave of her and went belowdecks. Alone, she looked out over the ocean, feeling the salty breeze blow.

 

“It's nice, isn't it?” an unfamiliar voice asked from behind her.

 

She whipped around and saw…the creature from Vale. His burning red eyes locked onto hers. Still, that didn't mean she didn't notice his blue skin, pale blue face, or his long ears, like Menardi's. He smiled. “The sea, it's nice, isn't it? When it isn't making you sick, I mean.”

 

She nodded, afraid to speak. This was the man who threatened the Healer and the mayor; who was to say that he wouldn't tear her apart? Inuyasha, I need you.

 

He stumbled over to the rail, making sure to keep a three-foot distance between them. Looking out at the sea, he half-smiled. “You're afraid of me, aren't you?”

 

“You threatened the Healer and the mayor,” she blurted out before she could stop herself.

 

He sucked in his breath. “Menardi lost her temper,” he said ruefully. “She felt terrible about it later.”

 

“Menardi did that?” The image of the woman who had befriended her threatening either person of power was almost beyond her imagination. Almost.

 

He sighed. “That whole trip was a failure. All we did was lose good men's lives.” His voice took on a bitter cast. “I failed. They were depending on me, and I failed.”

 

Despite her first impression of him, she felt sympathetic. “I'm sure it's reparable,” she said.

 

He looked over at her. “Maybe,” he said mockingly, though it was more like he was mocking himself, rather than her.

 

Arianna came up then and when she saw Kagome talking to Saturos with no other Valean around, she very quickly walked over and said she needed Kagome for something. She agreed to go with her, and did after saying good-bye to Saturos, as it was only polite to do.

 

After that, she was told to never be near either Proxian without another Valean nearby, preferably an adult. She didn't see the point of that, but she agreed anyway. It didn't matter; Felix was almost always with her, so she could chat with either Menardi or Saturos and not feel guilty. She still felt edgy around Saturos, but then again, so did everyone else; even Menardi would tread carefully at times. Still, most of the time he was actually a good companion. When he wasn't stuck in his cabin from seasickness, that is.

 

Saturos, Kagome, Felix, and Menardi were all on deck, just watching the waves. Saturos was well enough that day to steer the ship away from the icebergs that seemingly appeared overnight, but he wasn't too distracted to speak to them.

 

“You were a scholar?” Felix asked incredulously, repeating what Saturos just told them.

 

He laughed. “You sound so surprised,” he said. “Is it that hard to believe?”

 

“Yes,” Kagome replied, emphasizing that one word and nodding her head. “Look at you. You're built like a fighter; how could you ever have been a scholar? It takes years to build up those kinds of muscles.”

 

“It did take years to build this up, but before I started training, I read every chance I got. Even during training, I still read when I wasn't doing anything else. I do it now, too.”

 

“Saturos, how did you learn about the Elemental Stars?” Felix asked.

 

The man grew thoughtful. “I don't really remember,” he confessed. “It's in the old scrolls in Prox, but since we live near Mars Lighthouse, we always knew about their existence.”

 

“There are Lighthouses in Angara, but we were raised to believe that the Elemental Stars were a myth, not something real.”

 

The man laughed and companionably threw an arm around the boy, keeping one hand on the wheel. “I can understand that, considering how hard your elders insisted that they didn't exist. At first I didn't think they were serious. I guess they don't have the old scrolls that mentioned the Elemental Stars and how they did reside in the Lighthouses at one point in time.”

 

“Saturos, look!” Menardi cried, pointing north.

 

The blue-skinned man's gaze followed her finger, and he grinned. “We're almost there, children,” he announced. “Go alert your elders; it won't be long now.”

 

When they docked, none of them could see a town nearby, just a land of white snow. When the Proxians shouldered their packs and started out, Arianna spoke up. “There is no town near here. We'll freeze to death, even with these heavy coats.”

 

“Stay close to us,” Menardi instructed. “We're Mars Adepts, so we give off heat.”

 

“I'm a Mars Adept, too,” she pointed out.

 

“But you're not a Proxian,” Saturos pointed out. “We were born and raised in this weather. Stay close to us, and we won't let you freeze.”

 

The rest of them didn't have a choice, so they picked up their packs and trudged after the two Proxians. The wind wasn't strong, but the longer they walked, the more obvious it became that some of them weren't going to be able to make the trip. The adults kept going with steely resolve, but Felix and Kagome were struggling. Kagome was used to traveling due to her experiences with Inuyasha, but she wasn't as experienced in the snow, and poor Felix didn't even have what she did. He was the first to fall and not get back up. He tried to, as he had before, but he couldn't find the strength.

 

“Get up,” Kagome urged him, kneeling beside him. “You can do this.”

 

“I'm sorry, Kagome,” he replied weakly. “I don't have anything left.”

 

“Saturos!” she yelled, getting the man's attention.

 

“What's wrong?” he asked, walking back to them.

 

“Felix is at the end of his strength,” she explained. “He can't go any further.”

 

“Yes, he can,” Saturos said grimly. Reaching down, he picked up the now unconscious boy with one hand and put him over his shoulder.

 

“Hurry, we need to get there soon, or he'll get frostbite,” Menardi said. “I can keep it at bay without him conscious, but only for so long.”

 

They were only able to go for a few more kilometers before Kagome succumbed to the cold. Saturos was about to pick her up as well, but Menardi stopped him. “I'll take her,” she said. “If you take them both, then we'll only be going that much slower, and these children need more warmth than we can give them.”

 

Unlike Felix, though, Kagome was still awake, and wishing that she wasn't. The cold was biting, and she couldn't feel her limbs anymore, never mind what was attached to said limbs. She kept her eyes closed since it hurt to keep them open. I really wish I had that haori right now. I know it repels fire, but it does a good job at keeping heat inside, too.

 

“There it is,” she heard Saturos say. “You're almost there. Soon you can rest.”

 

There was a definite increase in the pace. The Valeans were jogging after the Proxians, and as soon as Kagome found the strength to open her eyes, she saw that they had passed the village gates, and now were close to warmth. Relief flooded her veins. To be warm again…

 

“Puelle, we have need of a healer,” Saturos said to someone she couldn't see, as she was looking behind them and he was addressing someone in front of him.

 

She was put onto a bed, and out of the corner of her eye she saw Saturos put Felix onto the one next to hers. An old man came running into the room and stopped by Kagome's bed. “She's awake,” he said in surprise. “That's a good sign.” He did something, and she felt energy and warmth flowing through her. Then he left and went to Felix. “This boy will need more care,” he said, sitting down in a chair next to the bed.

 

For some reason she felt very sleepy. It was like in order to heal her, the man had used her own strength. That was all she had time to think before she fell into the depths of healing sleep.

 

~*~

 

“What happened?” Puelle asked. “I didn't know we were taking hostages. This must mean things went badly.”

 

“Worse than bad,” said Saturos, looking down at his snow-covered boots. “The elders of Vale don't even believe that the Elemental Stars exist. They wouldn't give us permission to go into Mt. Aleph to look, so we had to sneak in.”

 

“That's where we made our mistake,” Menardi took up the tale. “We were able to make it into the main chambers of Sol and Luna, but there was a trap, and we set it off. We are the only ones who survived.”

 

They all bowed their heads down. “They were good men,” Puelle said softly.

 

“They were,” Saturos agreed. “Unfortunately, the only thing we found out was the elders don't know what they're guarding in Mt. Aleph, and there's a trap to make sure that people like us don't get near it.”

 

“Don't say people like us,” Puelle reprimanded him. “We are going to use them to restore Alchemy to the world so our people don't die.”

 

“How far has Gaia Falls eroded the land now?” Saturos asked.

 

“In the past month, it's been speeding up. We're now down another 3 yards.”

 

Saturos gasped. “That much in so short a time? If we don't hurry, Gaia Falls will erode Prox and Mars Lighthouse, and there won't be a chance of stopping the world's erosion once the Lighthouse is gone.”

 

“I had hoped that the elders of Vale would cooperate in sight of our dilemma, but you've just proven that to be a false hope. We'll have to try again later.”

 

“Yes, Puelle,” Menardi and Saturos said, getting up and leaving.

 

“Saturos, how did you know about the erosion?” Menardi asked as the left the main building.

 

“I helped measure the amount that was gone before I started training to be a fighter,” he answered her.

 

“But isn't that dangerous? What if you fell over the edge?”

 

He shrugged. “It's dangerous, yes, but so is getting out of bed each morning. I've been more informed than most people because I was brought up to know these things. I was raised by a scholar, after all.”

 

She smiled. “It's good to be home,” she remarked, changing the subject. “I need to get home; Karst is probably worrying about something bad happening to me.”

 

“She adores you,” he said. “You're her older sister, and her idol. Of course she'll be worried.”

 

“I will see you later, I guess,” she said.

 

He nodded. “Feel free to drop by anytime. I'm never swamped with visitors, so it would be a welcome change to have someone to talk to other than another scholar.”

 

Menardi went one way, and Saturos took the path that led to the house he shared with the man who raised him, Ralom. “Is anyone here?” Saturos called, looking around.

 

“Is that Saturos?” Ralom's voice floated down from upstairs.

 

“Yes, we're back.”

 

“Did they give you the Elemental Stars?”

 

He sighed. “Quite the opposite. They refuse to believe that the Elemental Stars even exist, and while we were looking for them, we lost everyone except myself and Menardi.” He flopped down on one of the couches.

 

Silence. “Everyone?”

 

“Everyone.”

 

Ralom came down the stairs. “That is very distressing, Saturos,” he said. “Gaia Falls won't stop tearing away at Weyard just because some people believe that the Elemental Stars don't exist. Of course they exist! Why else would the Lighthouses be here?”

 

“I have a feeling their records were destroyed once the Elemental Stars were hidden,” Saturos said thoughtfully. “In one of the scrolls I've read on the top shelf over there,” he indicated to the second bookshelf on the right wall, “it said that once the Adepts agreed to hide the Stars, they destroyed most of the evidence that they ever existed so no one would try to find them and relight the Lighthouses.”

 

“I believe you,” Ralom said, his tone turning teasing, “but, Saturos, don't say `one of the scrolls I've read'. You've read every single piece of writing in this house, so saying `something I've read' means absolutely nothing to me now.”

 

Saturos grinned sheepishly. “Sorry. I'll keep that in mind.”

 

“Anyway, it's late, and I know you must be tired because I am, and you've just hiked all the way back here from the dock. Good night.”

 

“Good night,” he called after him. Getting up, he got his bag and trudged up the steps and down the hall to his room. Throwing it into a corner, he removed his armor and set it in its proper place before sitting down at the edge of the bed.

 

His red eyes scoured his reflection in the mirror. His long, silvery-blue hair was getting a little too long; it would have to be cut very soon, or Menardi's mother would have a fit. It wasn't fair, really; Menardi's blonde hair was down around her waist, and his hair wasn't even to his shoulders. It looked shorter than it was since it was all thrown to the right, but her mother still made an issue of it.

 

He thought about what Kagome had said back at the ship. You're built like a fighter. Looking in the mirror, he still didn't see a fighter, just a regular scholar of a boy. He was more muscular than an average scholar, he would give himself that, but Agatio was much bigger than he was, and he was quite a few years younger than Saturos.

 

Being a scholar wasn't all that bad, though. That's why they chose him to be the ambassador to Vale; he used his head. Granted, he didn't use it very well, and now they still didn't have the Elemental Stars, but who would've thought that the Valeans would be so uncooperative? This was their world, too!

 

He shook his head. Reviewing the stupidity of others isn't going to help me at all. Sleep is the best thing for me, then do some more research. I suppose I'll also need to check in on the Valeans. He lay down on the bed and closed his eyes, still worrying about what they were going to do with their unexpected burdens.

 

~*~