Author's note: I still do not own Inuyasha or any of its characters
~Thanks to all who reviewed… I really appreciate it
Chapter Two:
War Games
A game, this is what it was for him. War was the greatest and most challenging game that a Lord could play. It required countless hours of preparation, tactical strategies that would crumble the enemy's offence effectively and quickly as well.
For two nights he had been locked inside his private study room, maps all over the place, putting the final touches in his plans to push the Southern army out of his lands.
It was almost the end of spring when the final documents that declared that the South and the West were at war were officially signed. But Sesshoumaru had not wasted even a minute and since that day when the message of the South had arrived, he had commanded his generals to intensify the training of the soldiers of the Western army. New armor had been commissioned for the soldiers, new weapons were forged and in a matter of three moon cycles, his battalions were being deployed.
Not that the South had spared a moment in their campaign as well. Reports of several battalions being sent to the borders between the South and the West had been delivered merely three moon cycles after the last document had been signed.
Opening the shoji screen, Sesshoumaru began to walk through the many hallways, taking a series of turns until he reached the main entrance to his Shiro. There, he watched as members of another battalion crossed through the gates of the palace, off to the battlefield. No doubt that they were anxious to leave the safety of the palace, and eager to enter the series of pending battles that was sure to come. This was the moment that they would prove once again why the Western army was known for its ferociousness in war, after all, it had been the West who had fought off demons in the past and had surfaced victorious in the end.
The remaining soldiers that stayed behind turned their attention to the entrance of the Shiro, were Sesshoumaru stood silently like a statue and bowed to their lord. He knew that those soldiers were waiting for their leader to command them, after all, they had been chosen as children, separated from their families at a tender age to begin training to become soldiers of the West. If their lord commanded them to head blindly to battle, they would obey without hesitation, all for the glory of their lands.
Descending the many steps graciously, almost as if he was floating towards the ground at the base of the stairs, and walking towards two of his most trusted generals, Sesshoumaru didn't stop until he reached the bowing generals. As soon as he stood in front of them, both generals straightened their backs to finally set their eyes on the young Western lord. "The battalions in the borders are ready and await your arrival, my lord", spoke Hideyoshi, one of the generals, while Satoshi, the second general held the reins of his horse.
He nodded to them and took the reins from Satoshi, and began walking after the first group of soldiers that had recently left the palace grounds, his generals and the remaining soldiers walking closely behind him. Today, he too would join the frontlines of battle. Mounting the white stallion, Sesshoumaru finally left off to the battlefield, where his men awaited his arrival to command them once again into the path of glory.
After a two day journey, Sesshoumaru finally arrived at the camp. As he made his way through the hordes of soldiers, he inspected the damage done by the war. So far, his generals had told him that the casualties among the Western army were less than those of the South, but never the less, every day that the battle continued claimed the lives of many men and those that survived another day were beginning to lose their strength.
Progress was being made slowly, and that diminished Sesshoumaru's patience. For six weeks the South had been trying to advance on the western borders. For six weeks the West had drove them away victoriously. But Sesshoumaru had other plans, he wanted the war to be over soon, not because of the casualties, not because of the expenses that the war had and not because his soldiers were beginning to tire, but because of his pride. If he succeeded in ending this war before spring came again, he would be the youngest lord to have expelled the enemy from his territory successfully in the shortest amount of time, only a year. That only gave him seven more moon cycles to achieve his goal. That was what truly fueled him, what drove him to devise his most brilliant strategies.
Once he entered his tent, he reunited with his generals once again to put into action his plans. The game was going well, but Sesshoumaru wanted it to be in favor of the West, so nothing could go wrong. And so, for the next weeks, Sesshoumaru headed to war fearlessly.
As the first rays of light illuminated the sky that morning, Sesshoumaru stood in front of his tent, admiring the red and orange hues in the sky. For some, it was a bad omen, but to him, it held a silent promise of victory. After all, the night before he received the most gratifying news that he had received in a long time… a soldier had spotted the Southern lord among the Southern army. If everything went according to his plans, today the West would deal the final blow and crush the defense of the South.
The only sound that reached is ears were that of his erratic beating heart and labored breathing. As he made his way through the dense canopy of the forest, Sesshoumaru suddenly felt as though he was drowning. A coughing fit suddenly hit him, and he braced himself against the nearest tree for support. He couldn't breathe, and when the spasms ended, he wiped his mouth and realized that he was choking on his own blood. Wiping the metallic liquid with his hand, he continued walking deeper into the immense forest.
He knew that he didn't have much time left. He was seriously wounded. Minor cuts and bruises adorned his alabaster skin, but what was surely to be the end of him was the massive wound in his chest, where barely minutes ago, the sword of the Southern lord had pierced through his armor and through his flesh, a wound that was seeping a torrential of blood behind him as he walked.
Suddenly, his legs could no longer support his weight, and he collapsed. Breathing was becoming more and more difficult and each weak breath that he took sent a great amount of pain through his entire being. Summoning the last strength that he had, he crawled to the nearest tree and turned so that his back lay against the rough wood of the tree.
His vision was becoming blurry with each passing second. His eyelids felt impossibly heavy. Suddenly, fatigue hit him and he could begin to see dark shadows obscuring his vision. Closing his eyes, he no longer was aware on the intense pain that was coursing through his battered body. His senses were no longer aware of the distant shouts of war, the ringing sound of swords colliding against each other, or even the gentle rustle of the leaves on the trees above his head.
Opening his eyes one last time before closing them again, Sesshoumaru let out a shaky breath through his thin lips as he watched as a particular shadow seemed to come closer towards him, before everything else went dark.
