Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Stopping Time Itself


"Kagome! Kagome! Are you even listening to me at all?" A centaur said to the youngest demi-god he had ever trained. "I'm sorry, what did you say, Chiron?" Kagome answered to her half horse, half human teacher. Chiron sighed before asking his question again. "Do you understand the history of the Titans now? You are the one who asked me how they came to be." Kagome walked over to the window of the house they called home and watched the stars, searching for the constellation known as Orion, her brother. "Chiron, do you think he's watching me right now? Orion I mean." Kagome began to silently cry, wishing her brother hadn't fought Zeus on Olympus for the throne. Just as Chiron was about to answer her, a bright flash from the back of the room caught his attention, and was surprised to see Iris, the messenger of the gods. "Iris! What in the world are you doing here?" Chiron exclaimed. In her monotone voice she answered. "I am here to deliver a message to Kagome, daughter of Artemis, from Artemis herself." Chiron hesitated before allowing her to pass by him to speak to Kagome. "Kagome, daughter of Artemis. Your mother has told me to tell you that Kronos soon is going to rise from the depths of Tatarus. You must stop him from destroying everything. I have also brought someone here with me that your mother has requested for you to see." Iris waved her hand and another bright light filled the room and another person soon stood in the room with them. Both Chiron and Kagome gasped at the sight of who it was. "T-The Oracle of Delphi!" Kagome managed to say in her surprise. "Listen well at what she has to say to you, for she will only say it once." Iris stated, giving the word once an emphasis. The Oracle stepped forward, showing she was about to speak the prophecy. A raspy, harsh voice filled the room as the Oracle began to speak. "You will venture to the Underworld, two partners by your side. You will make it out alive, but one of them shall die. To help you make it through it, you will bring a gift along. This gift you will receive, will be given by the gods. This may seem a difficult task, but you'll beat all odds." With the Oracle's prophecy spoken, Iris waved her hand once again and the Oracle was sent back to her own home. "Kagome, you are the only one who can stop Kronos. He himself is the definition of evil and will do anything to try and get you to help him escape from Tatarus." Iris spoke as she reached into a pocket that was hidden in her cloak. "Here is half of the gift that was mentioned in the prophecy. It will help your arrows pierce even the toughest of armor and make your shots strike true. The other half of it you will find in the Underworld, guarded by the demon dog Cerberus. " Iris told her and handed her half of a golden colored bow. Her image began to shimmer, and finally altogether disappeared. After a long silence, Chiron spoke. "Well, like many of the others I trained, you will come to do great things. You must set out at once to accomplish this task." Chiron spoke hastily as Kagome began to panic. "Chiron! I haven't even seen a fight, let alone been one!" Kagome practically screamed, frightened at the fact that she would have to stop Kronos, the ruler of the Titans, who could bend and stop time at his will. "Kagome, you must. To get into the Underworld, you must first find one of the entrances to the Labyrinth. From there you must find the exit that leads to the Underworld." And with that said, Chiron pushed her out the door and Kagome was left alone with half of a god given gift in her hand. After taking all of the information in, she decided she must find someone that would know where an entrance to the Labyrinth was so she set out to get some information from anyone who might know where one was. Traveling through many different places, she finally came upon someone who knew where one was. He was a man by the name of Theseus, who traveling with another man that went by Achilles. Theseus himself had navigated the Labyrinth and surprisingly, had lived through it, unlike so many others. Now all Kagome had to do was get him to tell her where the entrance was. "Theseus, you have entered the Labyrinth, navigated it, and exited it. Please, you must tell me where the entrance is." Kagome pleaded with him. "Kagome, I will do even better. I will help you navigate the Labyrinth because I remember the last line in the prophecy that I got all those years ago. The line was 'Your journey is not over, you must go through the maze once again. Only then will your destiny be complete, this will be no easy feat.' So? What do you say? Will you let me guide you through the Labyrinth, along with Achilles of course." Theseus questioned her. "Yes, I will allow you to. You must promise me that you will be careful. But you must swear upon the river Styx." She added after remembering the third and fourth lines of her prophecy. Both Theseus and Achilles did and they were on their way headed toward the entrance of the Labyrinth that Theseus had informed them was at Sparta. Unfortunately for them, it was guarded by cyclopes and you had to answer 3 riddles first. "Okay then, Cyclopes. Ask us your riddles and we will answer." Achilles stated. "Okay then, here is the first riddle. It is greater than the gods and more evil than Hades. The poor have it, the rich need it, and if you eat it you'll die. What is it?" The cyclopes finished and left the heroes to think it over. "Well, that's an easy one. Nothing. Nothing is greater than the gods and nothing is more evil than Hades. The poor have nothing, the rich need nothing, and if you eat nothing you'll die." Theseus answered, surprising not only the cyclopes, but Kagome as well. "That is correct. Now for the second riddle. What always runs but never walks, often murmurs, but never talks, has a bed but never sleeps, has a mouth but never eats?" Achilles was the one to answer this one. "This one is as simple as the one Theseus answered. The answer to this riddle is a river." The cyclopes by this time began to get aggravated, so he decided to make the last riddle even harder. "Alright then, here is the final riddle. You say my name and I disappear. What am I?" The cyclopes thought that he had outsmarted them but was surprised to hear Kagome answer it so quickly. "The answer is silence." With all the riddles answered, they were allowed to pass and made their way into the Labyrinth. "Okay, Theseus. Lead the way to the underworld." Kagome said nervously. "When I navigated the Labyrinth, I had the help of the golden thread. We don't now." Theseus spoke out loud to no one in particular. "Well, since we don't know which way to go, why not pick one?" Achilles questioned Theseus. Theseus sighed before agreeing with him. "Alright then. Let's try straight." Theseus in front, followed by Kagome, and then Achilles went deeper and deeper into the Labyrinth and after what seemed like just minutes, they were back at where they started. "Ugh! How is this even possible? We were just here a few minutes ago!" Kagome screamed in frustration. "The Labyrinth is a maze. It is almost impossible to get through without help." Achilles stated. A sound was heard from within the Labyrinth and sounded like it was coming from the tunnel that was just to the left of them, and to their surprise, a satyr came running out and skidded to a stop just in front of them. "Are you Kagome, Theseus, and Achilles?" The panting satyr asked. "Yes, we are. Who are you?" Theseus answered throwing a question right back at him. "My name is Faunus, and I have come here to help you. Hera, queen of the gods has sent me to help you to get through the Labyrinth." Theseus regarded him by nodding in his direction and a simple "Lead the way." After dozens of twists and turns, the satyr stopped walking and turned to face them. "This is as far as I will go. I warn you though. Before you can enter the underworld, you must kill the Hydra first." And with that said, the satyr took off in the direction that they came from. "Well then, let's kill the Hydra and get to the underworld. Kagome said and rounded the corner. She stopped dead in her tracks at what she saw. There were at least nine heads, All connected to the same body. Theseus yanked her back just as one of the heads looked in their direction. "Kagome, you can't be reckless while in a fight. It could get you killed." Theseus said pushing her behind him. Neither of them noticed that Achilles had disappeared and was fighting the Hydra until they heard a loud roar and a large thud was heard when a head of the Hydra landed near them. "What in the world was that?" Kagome screamed, but didn't get her answer because both her and Theseus heard Achilles yell "Both of you get out of here now! I can't hold this thing off forever!" Both of their heads whipped in the direction the voice was heard from. "Achilles! Are you crazy? What are you-" Kagome didn't get a chance to finish scolding him because just as she was about to finish, the Hydra opened its mouth and blasted him with scorching hot fire. Kagome, believing he had been killed, screamed at the top of her lungs, but to her surprise, he was still standing and didn't have a burn on him. "How in the world did you do that?" Theseus screeched, beating Kagome to it. "I am invulnerable except for my heel. It is the only part of me that can be wounded. As long as I am distracting this thing, both of you can get out of here without having to fight something you can not kill." Achilles explained to them while fighting off the Hyrda. When he turned to face them fully, he did not pay attention to his enemy and the Hydra swung its tail and it struck Achilles in his heel, and he was killed instantly. At this time Theseus had remembered that just a few months ago, he had slayed Medusa the Gorgon and was still carrying her head with him. Bringing the head out he stuck it out in front of him, he yelled and caught its attention. As soon as it caught site of Medusa's disembodied head, it turned to stone leaving the two companions alone in the Labyrinth. "Why did I let you two come with me? I should have known that no matter what I did that one of you would die." Kagome spoke while sobbing. "Even if you did know, it wouldn't have changed anything." Theseus said, trying to comfort the crying girl. Theseus walked over to his dead friend's body and knelt down. "My dear friend Achilles. I promise your sacrifice will not go in vain. We will avenge you." Tears fell onto their fallen companion as Theseus stood up and walked toward the entrance of the Underworld and stopped just in front of it. "Well, are you coming or not?" Theseus's voice was cold and gave no emotion. Kagome rushed after him just as he stepped through the exit to the Labyrinth and the entrance to the Underworld. Seeing the palace straight in front of them, they rushed through the doors and skidded to a stop. in front of them there was a man and a women sitting in thrones at the front of the room. "Ah yes. The young heroes that were sent by Iris and Chiron to fetch the other half of the bow. What were your names again? I believe they are Kagome and Theseus. And where's the other one? Achilles was it?" The man spoke. Theseus drew his sword and pointed toward the two. "You must be Hades. And by the way that women is glaring at you I would say she is your wife, Persephone." Kagome walked forward and glared at the two. "Just give me the other half of the bow and we won't have to hurt you." Kagome stated without a second thought. "Ha! You hurt us? Like you could. Why don't you just go back to cooking and cleaning and let the men handle this like a good girl should." Kagome at this time had begun to get mad and was about to tell him a thing or two but was stopped by Theseus. "Hades, what do you want in exchange for the other half?" Theseus questioned him with narrowed eyes. "Hmm, let's see. I got it!" He exclaimed, snapping his fingers. A large growl was heard and a large dog head protruded out of the shadows. "So you're going to make us fight a little puppy?" Kagome said confidently. Two more heads came out of the shadows and the full beast was shown as it walked out fully. "Okay then, not a puppy." Kagome stated, talking back what she had just said. Well then, get on with it. If you want the other half, you must slay Cerberus." Kagome stepped forward, indicating that she was going to be the one to take on the challenge. "Theseus give me your sword." Kagome demanded with a cold voice. "Why? You told me yourself that you had never even fought in one, or seen one. Besides the one you saw today." Theseus spoke while unsheathing his sword and handing it to her. "Because I am going to be the one to fight it. I don't care what you say." She spoke with such a fierce tone in her voice that it surprised not only Theseus, but Hades as well. "Very well then. Cerberus, attack." As soon as those words left Hades mouth, Cerberus's heads snapped to attention and he ran straight at Kagome. Kagome, in return, rushed at him with Theseus's sword in hand and began to battle to the death with the deadly demon dog. Cerberus's paw was raised and he brought it down and left a large gash on her leg. To pay him back, Kagome took the sword and brought it down on his first head, and in the process, she head it off. Cerberus let loose an ear piercing howl and swiped at her again with his large paw, but this time she was ready for it. She dodged out of the way and just like last time, cut his second head off. The light glinted off her sword and blinded the dog and in that small pause, she beheaded him of its last head, killing it. "Happy? Now give me the other half and we'll be on our way." Kagome demanded and Hades face had paled quite a bit. Hades took the other half in his hand and held it out to her. She snatched it out of his hand and started back towards the entrance to the Labyrinth when and unexpected thing happened. A large rumbling began and a crash was heard. "What in the world was that?" Kagome screeched. "Kronos. He is beginning his ascent towards my realm of the dead. There is no way to stop him now!" Hades spoke, laughing with triumph as the Lord of the Titans broke free of his prison. "Kagome! Kagome!" Kagome looked up and was surprised to see her teacher Chiron looking down at her from a cliff. He dropped something down towards her, which she caught with ease. "A quiver? What is this for?" Kagome questioned with confusion clear in her voice. "For your bow. Each time you use an arrow, just think about another one appearing in its place. You will never run out of arrows. Take the two halves that you you gathered and put them together in the correct position. They will then fuse together, creating the ultimate weapon for destroying Kronos." Kagome took the two pieces she obtained and put them together to where it looked like they would fit together and there was a bright flash. In her hands she held a complete bow. "Kagome! Move!" Theseus shouted as he pushed Kagome out of the way just as a large hand swung at her, only to be thrown to the side like a useless rag and not move when he hit the ground. Kagome imagined that her quiver was full with arrows of sacred power that could bring down even the mighty Zeus. Notching one of her arrows, she took aim, but didn't get a chance to fire because Kronos froze her right where she stood. A loud, booming voice could be heard as the leader of the Titans spoke. "Ha! Pathetic puny little half breed! Do you really think you could defeat me in a fight? I am Kronos. Ruler of the Titans." The Titan began to laugh, creating a large earthquake that broke Kagome out of the trance like state she was in, making her fall to the ground. "I don't care what it takes. I will defeat you no matter what. When I first started this quest, I was an ignorant little girl who didn't know a thing about fighting. Now that I understand it, I'm going to use it to cast you back into Tatarus." Kagome stated, determination clear in her voice as she rushed over to Theseus's side and ripped the sword from his side. Tears glistened as they ran down her face. The tip of her sword pointed straight at him, she rushed towards him, intent on killing him. Her sword made contact, but just deflected off off him and broke, as if he was made of steel. "Stop now. You know you cannot win." Kronos said triumphantly. "No, no. I won't stop because if I do, the whole world will perish in turmoil and chaos. I won't let that happen. I promised Chiron that I would beat you. Besides, I was never one to to lie and take back a promise. Kronos bellowed in rage at her statement, and in that short amount of time, she took the opportunity to notch her bow, took aim, and fired. The arrow flew through the air and struck him right where his stomach would be. Kronos's eyes bugged out in surprise as he doubled over in pain. A clanging was heard and a sword skidded across the floor towards her. She looked up in surprise and spotted Chiron motioning her to pick up the sword. "A sword can't hurt him. You saw earlier." Kagome spoke with confusion in her voice. "Yes, you are right no normal sword could hurt him. This is no normal sword. This is Xiphos. It was created by the inventor Daedulas. It is an indestructible sword that not even the power of Zeus's master bolt could break." Kagome looked down at the sword she held in awe before snapping out of it and looking towards Kronos and raising the sword with look of anger on her face. Walking towards him with a look of rage on her face, she began to speak in cold monotone voice that scared even Kronos. "For years in the past, you killed innocent people for no reason. You are a cruel and mean person who doesn't deserve to live." Kagome spoke, circling him with the blades tip pointed at him. "You swallowed your own children in fear that one of them would overthrow you and take you down. If I were to let you live, you would continue to kill people. This is why you must die." Kagome stopped walking and faced him. She took the sword's hilt in both hands and raised it above her head and brought it down with all the strength she could muster. Kronos was cut clean in half and was brought down by his greed and cruelty. With her quest finished, Kagome returned home with Theseus and Chiron. She was later wed to Theseus and gave him three children. Two daughters and a single son. The daughters were named Antheia and Adara. The son was given the name of Achilles, after the brave hero that had given his life to help save Kagome and Theseus. All three of the children did great things in their lifetime just as their parent had did, but that is a story for another time.


END

A/N: So tell me. How did you like it?