Hello everyone. I hope this little add on doesn't screw things up too much. I was minding my own business when a little voice in my head said, "wouldn't it be fun to mess with the readers heads?" If course I agreed, and found myself typing this up a little while later.

Enjoy!

Prologue: Should I Fail

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Kagome notched another arrow. Her hands shook with strain, with weariness, with sorrow, but the arrow stayed its course, aimed directly at Naraku's core.

Murky miasma billowed forth, snatching the arrow from the sky. The arrows holy light burned all miasma it touched, but it never touched Naraku's body. The dark lord regarded the young Miko coolly.

He smirked. "Go ahead, Kagome. Shoot me. This will definitely be amusing, you're mortal powers against me, Naraku,a near god. You have nothing to lose. Your friends are gone. Or, you could always choose the easy way out, like they did. I'm sure Inuyasha will be happy to see you."

Kagome swallowed, tears stinging her eyes. Inuyasha. Miroku. Sango. Even Shippo. Naraku had killed them all. Their souls had fled, embracing icy freedom from their prison of flesh and doubtful life, and had escaped into the frigid winter air, before Naraku pulled their souls back into him, before he had stolen their bodies to make puppets. Sango stood before her, Haraikotsu gripped in her hand, but it wasn't Sango. Sango was far away now, and would never return. Miroku stood further back, Shippo's small form on his shoulder, regarding Kagome with their soulless eyes. All of them had blank eyes, empty of all warmth, of all emotion. All that was left was a blank slate. No recognition lay in their depths.

Kirara sat purring in Naraku's lap, his long, taloned fingers oozing miasma into her silky coat as he stroked her. Kagome felt at her back for her quiver. Only 7 arrows left. 7 arrows to carry out her task. What she owed her comrades.

She turned suddenly; bow still stretched, towards Sango, and let the string slip from her fingers with a snap. The arrow rushed towards her, with deadly accuracy, towards her best friend, her comrade, her sister. The arrow flew straight and true, cleansing the poison in the air, before it sank deeply into Sango's chest.

Kagome sobbed, a shudder sent throughout her body, for what she had done, for what she had to do. They would have wanted it. They would have rather been killed a thousand times, ripped to shreds, endured all the pain the universe could throw at them, rather then turn on her, fight at Naraku's side. They were nothing more then empty shells, wearing her friend's faces,puppets tied to Naraku's hand.

Tears mingled with blood on the ground. She felt like she was breaking as she notched another arrow, destined for her adopted son Shippo. The one who tried to cheer her up. The one who made her laugh by teasing Inuyasha, and who always took her side in an argument, no matter who was right.

The force of the arrow knocked him off Miroku's shoulder, to the ground below. Miroku seemed to not even notice the absence of weight on his shoulder. He never wavered as the arrow sprung off the bow, speeding towards his heart. He didn't flinch; only fell back to the ground, when the arrow embedded itself deep in his chest.

Kagome fell to the ground, sobs wracking her small frame, weeping openly for the world to see. The only ones she cared about in the world... the only who could understand what she had been through… A cruel twist had made death the only mercy left for her to give her former friends.

Her whole world was dead. She knew deep in her soul, at that moment, that there was nothing left to live for except her responsibility. Her only wish, the shred of will that was keeping her alive, was to see Naraku die. For her comrades, and friends, trapped in Naraku's lies, unable to escape. For Inuyasha, and Kikyo, joined somewhere deep in hell. For all the nameless, faceless people in the world she would never know or meet, that had been hurt by Naraku, deceived, betrayed. For the very balance of the earth itslef, she must complete this one last task.

She bit her lip hard, and blood dripped down her chin. The blood of the betrayed.

"I shall bring vengeance to them."

Kagome's soul nested deep inside her, safe from the universe that had dealt so unfairly with her. This warrior was not Kagome. This was what Kagome has been born for, but she was not Kagome anymore. As Kikyo's purpose had been to protect the jewel, Kagome's purpose was to destroy it. Her life was not hers anymore, she had been given to this purpose the day she was concieved, even before then. She belonged to vengeance.

She rose, emotions heaving inside her, but they were not hers alone.

Her aura was as impassive as stone, and her face showed neither emotion, nor mercy. Anger swelled in her breast, and the bitterness of thousands of faceless souls, twisted and innocent, the pain, the sorrow, the tears, the blood, so much blood… All who had been changed by the jewel, by Naraku.

She straightened, and stood, notching her bow carefully. There was a controlled passion behind her, a cold calculation. She would not fight out of fire, and lose control of her emotions. She used her emotions as mere fuel, but her feelings had nothing to do with it. The task had to be done, and she was the one to do it. She would do it.

Naraku lay silent, studying the changes within the mortal girl.

The arrow stretched across the bow, eager to drink his blood, to strike him to the earth. For one instant, one impossibly long second, he saw Kikyo in her stance, In the curve of the bow, in her cold gray eyes. Fully robed as a Miko, robes billowing behind the powerful wave of magic in the arrow. But then she was Kagome, eyes with cold defiance, wearing the expression Kikyo wore on the day she died.

"You look just like Kikyo did yesterday..." Naraku drawled, tempted to tease his prey before he trapped her. Her face remained expressionless. He frowned. Kikyo was as edgy topic for Kagome, or so he had found while rifling through Inuyasha's soul. He diverted, trying to bring Kagome back again, anything to destroy the cold mask that lay upon her face. He needed her to be human for him to finally destroy her. Mortal.

Vulnerable.

"They came yesterday. Inuyasha and Kikyo came together. Seemed to be under the impression that they could defeat me alone, undo everything I've worked for with one simple strike. They were wrong. But I guess you already knew that, eh?" He chuckled.

"And Inuyasha said something awfully interesting before he died… thought you might want to hear it… As a courtesy before you die, eh? From one all powerful being to another?"

Kagome's response was to tighten her bow. But Naraku saw a spark behind her dark, soulless eyes, recognition in her mask of apathy. He had caught her attention, at least.

"He wanted me to kill him without you around. With Kikyo's assistance. He didn't want you, or anybody else to be there."

There was no tangible reaction to this statement, but Naraku saw pain flash across her eyes, before turning resolute again. And then he knew. He hand always known, but now, without a shadow of doubt. The miko halfling had fallen for the demon halfling. He smirked. How fitting. Mortals were so entertaining, and so full of surprises…

"But he fought hard. He got a few deep gashes on me before I absorbed him. But do you know what the last words were on his cold, dying lips?"

he looked at her impassive figure, standing resolute. And he knew he could kill her in one stroke.

"Kagome," he asked, a half smile playing upon his lips, "don't you want to know what his last words were?"

The arrow snapped forward, racing towards him, eager for death, the vengenace of thousands of people urging it faster, onward. The white light bloomed in its wake, stretching forth behind it, billowing like a sail. It was immense, and he could barely see her through the dazzling white light.

His eyes narrowed. A blast of miasma shot forth from his chest, matching the white light, marring its purity with deep purple streams, swirling and consuming the pure white light until all was black and gray, the world lost behind a thick layer of fog.

Kagome fell to her knees, weak from the burden of the heavy soul work she had performed, well beyond her years. Naraku shot forth, breaking through the beautiful barrier as if it was smoke. He landed in a crouch before the weary young Miko.

"You really want to know what he said, Kagome? You'll never know. You'll never even get the chance to ask him in hell. I'll make sure of that."

The flash of silver shone before her eyes, and cold iron bit her very soul. The last thing she felt was the cold of the air, and heard the dark laughter of evil triumphant, and then the void swallowed her, and she felt no more.

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Thank you for reading this prelude. It's funny, because I completely changed the story without acatually rewriting it, only adding this little piece to the beginning. I wanted to make you wonder if Kagome is really crazy or not. Spoiler is she simply going mad, or was it narakus further deceptionl so that instead of death she would simply never find peace in this world or the next? Even I don't know.

As always, reviews are wonderful, even if undeserved.

That's all for now. Thanks again.