ORO! I'm back. Finally. And I'd like to apologize for such a late update. I
had this done for WEEKS. It's just my editor had no time to edit it. But I
cannot blame her one bit. Life has been going haywire lately for everyone,
and fictions were the last thing I had time for. So, I've decided from now
on, I'll be editing everything myself. This should speed the process up
greatly. So, expect updates about every week or two, all right? And for
those of you waiting for my other fictions to update, expect them updated
this week or next. Sorry for the wait.
And, at this time, before I begin, I'd like to thank, and ask any of you, to thank my dear editor, Aerin, for all the work she has put in all my fictions. She's a wonderful person, and deserves all the thanks I can give. My work wouldn't be what it is without her.
Now, on to the story. Let me state I know some people spell "Tessaiga" as "Tetsuaiga." Up until recently, I did, too. But my aforementioned editor explained the second character, used in the form it is, is ss, not tsu, so, that's how I use it. If it is incorrect remember that many people spell many different Inuyasha names differently. You know what I'm referring to. Also note I refer to Miroku's "Kazaana" as his "Wind Tunnel." I do this just because that is my preference.
Now, on with the fic.
Chapter 3: Caves, Hostages, and Lava Pits
Inuyasha growled lowly as he rode the remainder of the distance back home. He shielded himself from the cold with the clothes that were much too big for him at the moment. The very idea that such a powerful half-demon, stuck as a child, forced to ride in a basket, clad only in clothes far too big for him. It was a cruel twist of an undeserving fate. His face scowled as he tried to keep his tough air about him. "This sucks."
Sango was less angry, but just as distressed. She sat behind Kagome, sitting atop her giant hiraikotsu. She looked down at her miniature body. "Miroku will never let me hear the end of this."
Kagome, however, was the most distressed of them all. "Sota. Argh. it's all my fault." she whispered to herself.
They approached the village when Miroku came running as fast as he could, hope in his eyes. "You're back! Did you. fix." He then noticed not only did Kagome still have her cat ears and tail (which didn't make riding a bike too comfortable), but that Inuyasha and Sango were quite. different.
He snickered quietly to himself. Then he chuckled aloud. Then he fell to the ground laughing hysterically. "YOU'RE LITTLE KIDS!"
Inuyasha's face turned bright red, veins popping, partially due to embarrassment, partially due to anger. "CUT THE CRAP, MIROKU, BEFORE THIS 'LITTLE KID' KICKS YOUR ASS!"
Miroku walked over to the bike and began to yank and stretch Inuyasha's cheek. "But how can I resist when you're just so darn cute, little boy?"
Kagome slapped Miroku's hand away. Inuyasha rubbed his cheek, not wanting to admit how much it hurt. "Leave Inuyasha alone, Miroku. This has been one very bad day. The spell screwed up and now these two are stuck like this for a day or so and Sesshoumaru. has my brother and Shippou."
Miroku took a step back. "Sesshoumaru came?! I told you I should have come along! But why would he take Shippou and Sota? He may be a killer, but he's not the kidnapping type. He's more of the type who'd rather kill you one-on- one."
"It's my fault, nyao." Kagome said, looking down and stepping off her bike. "Sesshoumaru wanted the Tessaiga for his own again. but Inuyasha couldn't fight like this. He tried to make a deal that he'd take the Tessaiga now and when Inuyasha returned to normal, they could fight for control of it. So, I took aim at Sesshoumaru. but he." A tear ran down her cheek. "He. he. tried to keep me out of this by taking Shippou and Sota hostage, nyao. Now they're gone, and if I go to look for them, Sesshoumaru will kill them. Only Inuyasha can go."
Sango turned her body on the bike towards Kagome and attempted to calm the broken hearted girl. "Kagome, it's not your fault. You couldn't let the Tessaiga be stolen. Sesshoumaru could have killed so many people with it. We couldn't fight."
Inuyasha snorted. "Speak for yourself. I could have torn him apart in a few- "
Miroku pushed the boastful baby hanyou down into his clothes to silence him. "I'm sure what Inuyasha means is that he's grateful for your assistance and would have been in serious trouble without you, Kagome. Isn't that right, INUYASHA?" He coughed. "Anyway, we don't even know where Sesshoumaru is. but I don't think we're in too much trouble. As I said, Sesshoumaru isn't the kidnapping type. I doubt he'd really hurt them unless anyone but Inuyasha got too close."
Kagome wiped a tear from your eyes. "Thank you, Miroku. I feel a little better. I suppose if we could find a way to sneak up on Sesshoumaru, we could get them both back safe and sound."
Miroku nodded. "Exactly. But there's nothing we can do tonight. Let's eat a little dinner then get some sleep. We'll spend all of tomorrow looking for signs of them. Come on."
After arriving back within in the village, Kagome explained the tale to Kaede, and everyone had dined.
Kagome put down her cup of instant ramen (Inuyasha insisted on it) and looked at Miroku, putting Sango, who had fallen asleep, to bed on a blanket in the corner, next to a sleeping hanyou. "Maybe I was too hard on him," she thought. "Sure, he can be a pervert, that's why we didn't let him come with us today, but he's been so mature tonight. Maybe he's finally going to start acting like a gentleman."
Miroku came back and grabbed Kagome's hand, helping her to her feet. He wrapped his arm around her back. "And now that the young ones are in bed, perhaps it's time for all grown-ups to get to bed." He lowered his hand slowly down her back until it.
Miroku flew out the hut's door and a small blanket came afterwards. "And you can just stay out there all night, you letch! NYAO!" Kagome screamed and then sighed. "Okay, so maybe he's not maturing."
Kagome walked back to the corner where Inuyasha and Sango slept. She was still fuming from the audacity of the monk, until she looked at the two on the floor. Kagome giggled. "Inuyasha would kill me if I said it when he was awake, but he and Sango are pretty adorable as little kids." She sat down beside Inuyasha. He was using his clothes, which, of course, wouldn't fit, as a blanket. It had already slipped down over him and he seemed to shiver in his sleep. She pulled his blanket over him, causing the little hanyou to hug up against it. "He really is just a little softy under that tough guy exterior," she said while yawning but smiling. She laid down and closed her eyes, giggling still to herself.
Dawn came, bright and early, waking Miroku up prematurely. "Errm." he stretched his arms out. "How could she be so cold? She could have at least offered me another blanket out here." He sat up against the tree he had been forced to sleep under. "Well, what's done is done. Might as well wake the others so we may get started in looking for Shippou and Kagome's little brother." He got to his feet and headed towards the hut.
The monk poked his head in through the door and turned to the corner where the rest of the party slept, but at the sight of it, he began to snicker.
"It would appear the spell didn't last nearly as long as predicted." he mumbled. Sango and Inuyasha slept still, but once more in their original bodies. Inuyasha's hair was still black, as he had reverted back to a cat. Since they had slept inside their clothes, when their bodies changed back, they were dressed. however. "It would seem Kagome's maternal instincts were in full effect last night, helping to nurture the young Inuyasha last night. This could prove to be very entertaining."
Inuyasha held Kagome in a strong embrace, still deep in slumber. Kagome, likewise, held Inuyasha tightly. Most likely she had subconsciously cared for him in the night, and was not aroused when he changed back.
"Kagome, it's time to wake up, Kagome. We have to start looking." Miroku said close to her ear, attempting to stir her awake. She stretched her arms and yawned.
"Eh? Morning already?" She opened her eyes slowly and attempted to stretch her arms, but they were wrapped around something. "Eh?" She focused her eyes to see Inuyasha's sleeping eyes before hers, which had shrunk down to tiny dots.
"AIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
"YAAAAAAAH!" Inuyasha woke up in a heartbeat, covering his kitty ears. "What the hell is wrong with you, you stupid girl? Why did you scream in my ears?!"
Kagome stood up and glared right back. "Where do you get off trying to touch me when I'm asleep and then INSULTING me, nyao?"
Sango sat up, yawned, and sighed. "Well, this is the record for the earliest they started arguing."
"ME, NYAO?!" Inuyasha exclaimed. "Like hell I'd flirt with a girl like you!" "I didn't say flirting! You're such a pervert! And what do you mean by 'a girl like me?!'" "PERVERT?! NYAO! Don't flatter yourself! And I mean you're stupid and you're ugly and-" "OSUWARI!"
"Hmmm? That's odd." Kaede turned towards her hut from her garden. "I might have sworn I heard such a loud crash, but everyone should still be asleep by now."
The group once more set out on the road, the feud between Kagome and Inuyasha ended for now.
"We should all split up to look for clues as to Shippou and Sota's whereabouts," said Miroku.
"Well, that is a good idea," Kagome said, "but where should we start looking? We don't have any idea at all where they could be."
Miroku pointed back over the hill Kagome the others came back the day before. "That's the scene of the crime, where they were kidnapped, if Kagome's story is correct. Inuyasha, carry Kagome up there. You can use your nose to sniff out any signs of their whereabouts. Kagome, you inspect that whole area and listen to Inuyasha."
"I ain't your personal bloodhound. but I'll do it," Inuyasha stated. "Just because I'm itching to get my hands on that brother of mine." Kagome rolled her eyes. She knew he was just as worried as she was.
"Sango and I," continued Miroku, "will ride Kirara and inspect nearby villages to see if anyone has seen or heard anything. If anyone sees anything, come running to find the others."
"All right, nyao. But remember, Sesshoumaru is MINE," declared Inuyasha, wagging his tail furiously in anticipation.
Sango appeared more than a little irritated by the hanyou's headstrongness. "This isn't the time for that, Inuyasha. We'll talk about that after we get a clue. Rushing in will only put everyone in greater danger."
Inuyasha grabbed Kagome quick and threw her on his back. "All right then, let's go. I'm dying to payback my brother for what he did." Kagome held on as tight as she could and Inuyasha leaped and ran at full speed back
Hours later.
"Sango! Could you find anything?" Miroku called out to Sango as he ran to her in an open field.
"No, no one has seen anything. Most villages I have visited haven't seen any demons as of late, even of the smallest varieties," she explained.
"The same story with me, too. That's every place in the nearby area. I suppose we can only go and try to aid Inuyasha in his quest."
Kirara leaped off Sango's shoulder and growled as she grew into her giant tiger-like form. The two hopped onto her back and flew off.
"Nyao. Come on, Inuyasha, how long could it take to find a simple clue if you can already smell it?" Kagome asked, brimming over with impatience.
"Hey, I'm a demon, not a detective, nyao!" He lowered his face to the ground and inhaled deeply, trying to focus in on the smell. His cattail waved back and forth in irritation and a lack of patience at such action- less work.
"Hey, it looks like Miroku and Sango are back," Kagome declared, pointing her finger in their direction as Kirara landed.
Miroku got quickly to the point, asking, "Kagome, any progress?"
"Inuyasha's smelled something for a while now, but it's not much. He can't find it. He says it's sort of like Shippou, but not him or something." she explained.
"Hey, I think I got something!" exclaimed Inuyasha with enthusiasm. He sniffed a small mound of dirt on the ground and stared at it. His kitty ears twitched a few times. "It's so. familiar, nyao. I know this smell from before. I don't know. It's-"
BOING!
"NYAAAAAAAA!" Inuyasha fell over in surprise as a little orange and white object popped out of the ground in his face.
"A mushroom?" Kagome was in a bit of disbelief. "Wait, that mushroom." Upon closer examination it was seen that the mushroom had eyes and flailed about, almost screaming quietly. "These are Shippou's! He must have placed them as Sesshoumaru was carrying him away! And there's a while trail of them!"
Kagome spoke the truth, as out of the ground popped a wavering line of fungi.
"Follow them! They're our only lead!" shouted Kagome. Thus, the five of them all ran off down the trail. It led through some deep woods until it reached an enclave in a mountain. The trees covered up the area, so it was very dark, even at the height of the day. A small opening in the mountain formed a large cave entrance.
Inuyasha held his nose in the air. "I can smell 'em. Shippou, Sota, and most of all, my brother. They're definitely in there."
"All right, then, I guess we should start looking." Kagome stepped forward to enter the cave, but Inuyasha grabbed her arm and pulled her back.
"Listen up, Kagome. 'We' ain't gonna do anything. I'M going in alone. Sesshoumaru is my brother. I'll deal with him my way."
Sango spoke up. "Don't be selfish and overconfident, Inuyasha. Our friends are in there, too. We have just as much right-"
"If you guys go in there, Shippou and Sota are gonna end up DEAD," bluntly stated Inuyasha. "Especially Kagome. If you go in, Kagome, that'll piss him off the most. Sesshoumaru wants the Tessaiga. That's it. If we all enter, I don't want to know what he'll do to them. He might even kill one of you guys first. And I don't know about any of you, but I don't feel like having any guilt trips because some of my friends wouldn't let me handle my business alone! So just stay outta there, OKAY? I'm doing this thing solo." Without another word and without a simple look into Kagome's eyes, the hanyou turned around and started marching into the cave.
"Inuyasha." Kagome said quietly, partially in shock from all of this. "You really don't. We. can't."
Miroku put his hand on her shoulder and shook his head gently. "Let him go. We can't stop him." Kagome turned her head back in time to watch Inuyasha vanish within the darkness of the cave.
"Ugh." Inuyasha groaned from deep within the cave. Barely a minute or so of walking had passed, yet it was nearly pitch black. "It reeks of demon and human blood in here. But I can still smell my brother. Human blood and my brother... I've found better smelling rotting corpses than this crappy cave, nyao." He shuddered. "Dammit, nyao, I can't stop saying that. This whole cat thing just pisses me off. Still, at least I can see this whole place in the dark. I guess this crappy form has some useful parts." He continued marching on.
"Miroku, I've been thinking." said Sango. "If Inuyasha is going to be fighting Sesshoumaru in there, he really could use all the help he could get, right?"
Miroku nodded. "Of course he could. Sesshoumaru isn't just some run of the mill demon. But you know if we show our faces, Shippou and Sota will be in danger, so we don't dare even go in. Inuyasha can probably handle it on his own. For once, his overconfidence may not be too far off."
Sango nodded. "Right, but my question is, when Inuyasha fights Sesshoumaru, who will be watching his two prisoners?"
Kagome's cat ears perked up the moment she heard these words and her tail straightened out. "Nyao?! You mean we should rescue my brother and Shippou while Sesshoumaru is distracted?"
Miroku thought to himself for a moment. "Well, it certainly is worth a try. If we can get them safe, then we could aid him in the battle. Well. all right. Let's go."
Inuyasha came to a fork within the road of the cave. On his right, a descending path, somehow filled with wind, smelled of Sota and Shippou. The other was a straight path that was unmistakably a path that led to Sesshoumaru. "Why would my brother keep them separate from himself.?" His mind went back to the event that led to the kidnapping and his blood began to boil. "Argh, who cares why? Ripping his spine out comes before rescuing brats!" He readied his claws and headed down the path straight to Sesshoumaru.
As Inuyasha walked further down, though, Kagome and the rest of the group arrived at the very fork in the path the hanyou arrived at but a minute before.
"Which way do we go?" asked Miroku.
Sango crouched and inspected the ground. "I can't see a trace of Inuyasha, Shippou, or Sota."
"If we know Inuyasha half as well as we think we do," Miroku began, "then we know he'd go after Sesshoumaru first, not bothering to check any paths for possible traps. So, if Shippou and Sota are with Sesshoumaru, we should take the same path he did."
"But. I don't think Sesshoumaru and our friends are in the same place," Kagome said startlingly.
Miroku turned to face her. "How could you possibly know that?"
Kagome held her head up. "Well, I am half cat now, nyao. And. I know it's not as good as a dog, but I think. I think my sense of smell has improved quite a bit."
Sango looked a little shocked. "So, you can smell nearly as well as Inuyasha? Errr. do you think you could use that to find our path?"
"Hey, I'm not supposed to be a bloodhound here."
Sango sighed. "Where have I heard that line before.?"
"Well, when I tried before. I smelled something weird. I thought Sesshoumaru would keep Shippou and Sota nearby, but I can smell Sota down this path." She pointed down the descending path. "Sota's always used this strong shampoo that bugged me, but I'd recognize it anywhere. And down the straight path I can smell a medicine plant Inuyasha ran through a patch of on the way here."
Miroku examined each pathway. "So, if Shippou and Sota are down here, and Inuyasha's that way, it's obvious he's not looking for the two of them and going after Sesshoumaru first. If that's the case, now's our chance to get them out of here!" The four of them dashed down the descending path.
Ahead, Inuyasha came to a large, bright room. "What the hell? It's a mountain. How can there be so much light down here? And where's that smoke coming from? What's burning?" When he stepped forward a bit more, the ledge dropped down into a pit.
"Shit, this isn't a mountain, it's an inactive volcano!" Inuyasha looked over the edge of the ground down below into a pit of boiling magma. It was only a short gap, though, of a few meters. He simply leaped across onto another platform above the molten rock when a voice called out to him.
As he stood upon the island platform in the sea of magma, an all too familiar voice called out to him. "Well, well, my brother. I did not expect to see you here." Sesshoumaru leaped over from the other side of the room to the platform Inuyasha stood on. "But it doesn't matter. This saves me the trouble of looking for you."
Inuyasha steadied his hand, putting it near the Tessaiga's sheath. "So, where's the little green guy who follows you? Or maybe you want to fight a real fight for once?"
Sesshoumaru showed no anger towards Inuyasha's comments, though. "My dear brother, you know as well as I that I only fight when it is a true battle of skills. But what is this? I know of your disgusting human form with hair as black as the new-moon sky that creates it, but now even as a half-demon it is the same? I can even smell a feline on you. First you disgrace our family by even being born of a mortal woman and now you betray your very breed by being part of a cat? Well, no matter. Your disgusting ways and acts shall soon be removed from our family tree altogether. Prepare yourself."
Inuyasha drew the Tessaiga, growling deeply in doing so. "I'm just here to rescue some people, but if I have to cut that ugly head of yours off to do that, well. keh. all the better. Now shut up and fight!"
"It's odd." Sango stated, walking down a circular-stair-like passage in the cave. "There's so much wind down here, almost like we were outside. What could cause all of this? Wait, could it be Kagura?"
"No," Miroku said, shaking his head, "it couldn't be her. Inuyasha or even Kagome might have smelled her presence. Besides, while both Kagura and Sesshoumaru want to kill Inuyasha, they both have very different reasons and could hardly be considered allies in arms. Most likely this wind belongs to a natural phenomenon or the work of some other demon."
Soon, they reached the bottom and found themselves in a wide spaced room. Nothing at all seemed to be in there, except a few stone pillars supporting the ceiling. But on the other side of the room, right in front of the path down, were two torches pinned to the wall. In their glow were two small, dark figures.
Kagome rushed forward and shouted, "SHIPPOU? SOTA? IS THAT YOU, NYAO?"
"Nyao.?" One figure muttered as it stood up. "I recognize that. KAGOME?! Shippou! Shippou! Wake up! It's Kagome!"
A second figure rose slowly. "Ah! It is Kagome! Kagome, it's us! Over here!"
Kagome sighed in relief. "I was so worried about you two! Come on, let's get out of here before-"
"WAIT!" they screamed.
"Wait for-AIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Kagome walked forward, but fell right off a ledge down cliff that was too dark to see.
"KAGOME, NO!" Miroku hurled himself to the ground, barely catching Kagome's feet. However, the weight was too much and he was slowly dragged over the side until Sango grabbed onto his feet. Still, now the added weight of the monk, they started to slip again. That's when Kirara grew to her full size and stepped onto Sango, using her sheer weight to hold everyone down.
"Are you guys okay?" Sota asked from across the cave.
Kagome's eyes were rather small, staring down into the pit below. "Ummm. I'm hanging over a pit that's probably a few kilometer's deep and I have no way of moving, but I'm not dead. yet. Sango, could you. uhhh. pulls us back up.?"
"I think so." she replied. "Kirara, help me pull them back up.
"We tried to warn you," said Shippou from the other side of the cave. "This is why we couldn't leave. Sesshoumaru left us here and said he'd be back for us when he needed us. I think this is some sort of volcano turned into a shrine."
As Kagome was finally lifted back to flat ground, she sighed in relief. "What's that about a volcano? And a shrine?"
Shippou sat down at the edge of the cliff. "Well, over here, there are some strange markings and drawings on the wall. I see some pictures, too, of some people worshipping something. See, here's the wind they drew. That's where we are now, the wind shrine. Outside is the Earth shrine with all the trees. The top of the mountain is supposed to be covered in snow most of the year so it's the ice shrine, and somewhere in this mountain is an inactive volcano that is the fire shrine."
Sango stared in amazement. "That's amazing, Shippou. You figured all that out just by looking at some pictures?"
"Actually, I kind of overheard all that from Sesshoumaru talking to that Jaken guy that follows him around outside the cave before we came in here."
The group face faulted.
"That's not exactly useful information, though. It doesn't exactly explain how we'll get you guys out of heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeere!"
A gigantic gust came from the entrance and picked up and Sango, Miroku, Kagome, and Kirara were all thrown into the pit below, screaming.
"SISTER!" Sota shouted as their screams died out below.
But then, their screams became louder again as the group was thrown from the bottom of the pit onto the ledge Sota and Shippou were on.
"Ugh, what the hell just happened?" Kagome said, getting off of Kirara, who luckily did not land on anyone.
Miroku laughed. "Well, we survived. And, it seems I landed on a rather soft spot."
Sango snarled. "Miroku, if you don't get your hand off of there, I'm going to throw you down this pit and make sure you DON'T come back up."
Miroku quickly took his hand off her lower region and laughed nervously. "Goodness me, was that MY hand?" Sango stood up and slapped him hard across the cheek.
Kagome looked around. "So, uhhh. what happened?"
Sota laughed nervously. "I guess we forgot to mention it was the winds that were keeping us here. This is a prison in the Wind Shrine. The winds were commanded to keep anyone here forever."
Shippou continued. "Sesshoumaru knows the spell or password or something like that that the people who worshipped here used to stop the winds, but he's not going to let us out of here until he's good and ready."
Kagome's eyes shrunk and her heart skipped a few beats. "Wait, nyao, let me see if I got this straight. No matter what we do, these winds will keep us here."
"Right," answer Shippou.
"If Inuyasha kills Sesshoumaru, he'll come here next to try and rescue us, but since Sesshoumaru alone knows the spell or password to break it, he'll either be unable to help us, or, worse, get stuck with us!"
"Ummm. r-right." said Sota.
"And, worst of all, if Sesshoumaru somehow defeats Inuyasha, HE'LL be dead, then he'll have the Tessaiga, and he'll either come here and kill us all, or he'll just leave us to rot here!"
Shippou and Sota just stared at each other for a moment. "."
Kagome slowly fell down in a sitting position, her ears and tails limp, he eyes small. "This. isn't happening. We're as good as dead."
Miroku tried to laugh a little to lighten the mood, but with his own nervousness (and cheek still red), it was none too reassuring. "Um. well, don't give up hope. I mean, there must still be a way out of here. Wait, Kirara! Can't she fly-"
"She's not strong enough. The winds can hold anything back. I've tried to transform into her and it didn't work," stated Shippou. "Not even Inuyasha could go against these winds. So, unless you could find and trick Kagura into freeing us, it's not likely anyone can get us out of here without knowing the spell or password or whatever it is Sesshoumaru will use to get us out of here."
Kagome grabbed Sota by the shirt collar and smiled sarcastically. "You know, maybe you should have warned us about these things BEFORE WE CAME TO GET YOU!" Her face went from faux-smiling to pure anger.
"WAIT!" Sango exclaimed. "I have an idea! We only have one shot, but it may work!"
Kagome dropped her brother quickly and watched Sango remove the hiraikotsu from her side. "What are you going to do?" She asked.
"See that pillar over there?" Sango pointed to a large, natural stone column on the far side of the room by the entrance. "If I can hit it from here, maybe I can knock it over and it will fall over, creating a bridge of sorts."
Kagome thought deeply for a moment. "But what if it. gets stuck. Then again. What do we have to lose but our lives if you fail? So, go for it, Sango!"
Sango stared and concentrated for all of a second then hurled the weapon as hard as she could. "This will be tricky. This wind can severely alter my aim. But here we GO!" She hurled it with all her might as it moved exactly towards her target.
Until another gust of wind pushed it farther to the left.
Kagome, Inuyasha, and Miroku all fell down. "We're doomed," they muttered.
The hiraikotsu, however, did manage to hit a column in the very back of the row of columns. It toppled over, but down into the pit, instead of onto the platform like a bridge. Then. the weapon continued on, passing through another pillar. And another. And another. It turned around, and headed through another row of columns. However, none of them landed in a useable position. They all fell into the pit. The group hung their heads in silence.
The cave, however, was not as silent as they, and began to rumble. Debris fell from the ceiling. Huge chunks of rock plunged from everywhere.
"Oh my God, it's a cave in!" Sango exclaimed.
The ceiling kept giving way, filling up the pit very quickly.
Miroku pushed Kagome and Sango to the ground as a huge boulder started to fall above them. "STAY DOWN! WIND TUNNEL!" He unwrapped the jewels around his arm and held it straight over his head. A spiraling vortex of power absorbed all of the falling debris overhead, preventing them from being crushed.
A minute or so later, it stopped. No more rocks fell.
"I think. I think it's over." Kagome said, lifting her head, looking around, and twitching her ears to see if she could hear anything.
"This sword is MINE!" Inuyasha screamed, leaping into the air, trying to bring the Tessaiga down onto his brother, who merely moved to the side.
"You're tiring, dear brother. You won't last long," remarked Sesshoumaru with a cold tone in his voice. He disappeared in a blur of speed and hurried towards Inuyasha. Sesshoumaru swung in the blink of an eye, catching Inuyasha in the left arm.
"Yeah? Not bad, but you haven't won." Inuyasha took his good, right hand and soaked it in the blood of his left arm. "CLAWS OF BLOOD!" He swung his claws quickly, releasing 4 blades of a bloody attack, one of which Sesshoumaru could not dodge and was hit on the very arm he had just injured.
".Impressive, for a mere half-demon. However, I cannot let a half-breed be the superior brother in this family of ours." He charged ahead, slashing at Inuyasha with the Tokijen. Inuyasha raised the Tessaiga in defense, but that was what Sesshoumaru had wanted. He grabbed Inuyasha by the throat and began to secrete his poison. Inuyasha coughed violently.
The ground shook even more violently, though. The platform on which they stood rapidly turned on its side, sinking into the molten rock, as it turned sideways. This caused Sesshoumaru to release Inuyasha. Both brothers were distracted and they leaped to get to the top once more. Staying on the side that they had been on meant a plunge into the magma, which would have roasted either of them. Still, at the same time, the magma levels receded. Inuyasha jumped to a safe vantage point as the platform itself fell through a hole in the floor.
"What the hell happened? Where's all that magma going?"
Kagome surveyed the area. "No signs of any danger. I think. Wait. do you guys. here something like. water? Something sort of like a liquid I hear."
"I don't hear anything," stated Miroku.
Kagome thought. "Wait a second, is it getting hotter in here?"
Sango looked around. "Actually, now that you mention it, I don't know why, but yes."
Kagome turned to Shippou. "Ummm. what shrines did you say were in here again?"
Shippou replied, "Ice, Wind, Earth and Fire. This bottom layer's the Wind, Fire's above us, Earth's outside, and Ice is on top of the mountain. Why?"
Kagome's eyes shrunk again. "KIRARA! TRANSFORM! EVERYONE! MOVE!"
Without question, Kirara grew to her full size and everyone got on her back. Just as she got into the air, a wave of magma broke through the piles of rock, covering the floor instantly. Kirara took immediate flight for the stairway that led back to the surface.
"Interrupted yet again. This grows tiresome." Sesshoumaru wasn't too pleased as the room he stood in began to collapse around him.
"I'm gettin' tired of you, too, dirt bag!" Inuyasha leapt at Sesshoumaru with another claw swipe, but the elder brother merely used but one fist to send his younger sibling down into a rock pile below.
"Well, then, Inuyasha. or perhaps I should call you Nekoyasha to fit your new, disgusting form. It seems you'll be staying. I'll be back in a day or so to take the Tessaiga from your cold, dead hands. Until then." He dashed out of the cave with super speed.
Kirara dashed up the passage, followed by a molten pool of rock almost all the way to the surface. The saber-toothed cat turned towards the entrance darted out of the cave.
"What are we doing?!" Kagome shouted, her tail straightened out in anger. "Inuyasha's still inside!"
Miroku shook his head. "He's a strong demon; he'll be fine. But if we go back in, we might not."
"But what if he's hurt?" asked Kagome. "I'm going in after him!" she turned and dashed back into the cave.
"Bah! That foolish girl is going to get herself killed!" Miroku chased after her into the cave.
"Wait for us!" Sango and Shippou tried to run back, but as they did so, the entranceway collapsed and was blocked.
"Dammit! We have to clear these rocks!" Sango said, lifting one aside.
Inside the cave, Kagome was nearly to the room where Inuyasha lay when she could smell him in the air. "He's still here!"
She sped into the large battlefield that had been destroyed. She walked to the edge of the pit, where she viewed Inuyasha below. He was stranded on a small rock platform with magma levels rising all above him. In a matter of minutes, he would be boiled alive in the sea of burning rock. The height was too much even for him to leap to. "INUYASHA!" she called out to him.
"Kagome? What are you doing? GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE! This place is coming down! You'll be killed!"
"But what about you? We have to get you out of here!"
"I'll think of something!" he reassured her.
"You think I'm going to just leave you here after a speech like that?"
Inuyasha growled louder. "GET OUT OF HERE, STUPID GIRL! Get out of here before you screw up and wind up dead!"
"EXCUSE ME?! SCREW UP?!" She growled herself. "I'VE NEVER MET SUCH A POMPOUS, ARROGANT, SELFISH, IDIOTIC BOY IN MY LIFE! HOW CAN YOU BE SUCH A STUPID-AAAAHHHHH!" The ground broke underneath her feet at the ledge and Kagome fell towards the magma below. "I'm. going to die?" She thought.
She closed her eyes to avoid seeing where she would land. It hit her. But somehow, death felt much. softer. She opened her eyes. Inuyasha had caught her and stood on a small platform above the magma.
Kagome looked Inuyasha in the eyes and a tear rolled down her cheek. "You. you saved me. after I just yelled at you. I'm. sorry."
Inuyasha sighed. "I TOLD You to get out of here. Now we're both trapped, Dammit."
Kagome looked away. "I'm sorry. now we're both. HEY! Wait a second! Just a second ago you told me you'd find a way out!"
Inuyasha glared back. "I lied."
"Arguing to the bitter end, I see," came a voice.
"Miroku?!" They both exclaimed.
"Now both you fools are in danger." the monk said, sighing. "What do we do.?"
"Miroku, can you get Kirara?" Kagome asked.
"No, the entrance is blocked. However, I can get you out of there," he said. "I'll knock some rocks down, Inuyasha will climb as high as he can, and when I say 'jump,' I need Inuyasha to jump towards me as high and far as he can. Don't ask questions, just do it. Got it?"
They nodded.
"Here we go! Wind Tunnel!"
Miroku released his beads and began to use the Wind Tunnel on the opposite side of the room. Great boulders from the walls began to be pulled in. Miroku wrapped the beads around his hand again and the boulders dropped into the magma, onto other platforms, and on each other. Kagome got on Inuyasha's back and he leapt up the rocks until he was on the other side of the room, opposite from Miroku.
"Now, JUMP!"
Inuyasha thought it was suicide. Jumping towards him would make him land in the molten rock below. But he had no choice, as the rocks he stood on began to crumble and he leapt.
"Gotta time this right. WIND TUNNEL!"
Miroku's great vortex yanked Inuyasha and Kagome closer and closer at an increasing speed. As they approached the ledge, the room began to collapse entirely. Miroku wrapped his hand again, and Inuyasha grasped the edge. He pulled himself and Kagome up, and the three of them dashed for the entrance. Sango, Shippou, and Sota were clearing the entrance when Miroku screamed, "Out of the way! Move! This is for your own good!"
He unraveled his arm once more and pulled the rocks out of the way and into the void. The three stumbled out of the cave as the rest of the mountain imploded upon itself.
Kagome looked back at the mountain, gasping for air.
"We made it." she muttered before falling back into slumber from exhaustion and relief.
To be continued.
And, at this time, before I begin, I'd like to thank, and ask any of you, to thank my dear editor, Aerin, for all the work she has put in all my fictions. She's a wonderful person, and deserves all the thanks I can give. My work wouldn't be what it is without her.
Now, on to the story. Let me state I know some people spell "Tessaiga" as "Tetsuaiga." Up until recently, I did, too. But my aforementioned editor explained the second character, used in the form it is, is ss, not tsu, so, that's how I use it. If it is incorrect remember that many people spell many different Inuyasha names differently. You know what I'm referring to. Also note I refer to Miroku's "Kazaana" as his "Wind Tunnel." I do this just because that is my preference.
Now, on with the fic.
Chapter 3: Caves, Hostages, and Lava Pits
Inuyasha growled lowly as he rode the remainder of the distance back home. He shielded himself from the cold with the clothes that were much too big for him at the moment. The very idea that such a powerful half-demon, stuck as a child, forced to ride in a basket, clad only in clothes far too big for him. It was a cruel twist of an undeserving fate. His face scowled as he tried to keep his tough air about him. "This sucks."
Sango was less angry, but just as distressed. She sat behind Kagome, sitting atop her giant hiraikotsu. She looked down at her miniature body. "Miroku will never let me hear the end of this."
Kagome, however, was the most distressed of them all. "Sota. Argh. it's all my fault." she whispered to herself.
They approached the village when Miroku came running as fast as he could, hope in his eyes. "You're back! Did you. fix." He then noticed not only did Kagome still have her cat ears and tail (which didn't make riding a bike too comfortable), but that Inuyasha and Sango were quite. different.
He snickered quietly to himself. Then he chuckled aloud. Then he fell to the ground laughing hysterically. "YOU'RE LITTLE KIDS!"
Inuyasha's face turned bright red, veins popping, partially due to embarrassment, partially due to anger. "CUT THE CRAP, MIROKU, BEFORE THIS 'LITTLE KID' KICKS YOUR ASS!"
Miroku walked over to the bike and began to yank and stretch Inuyasha's cheek. "But how can I resist when you're just so darn cute, little boy?"
Kagome slapped Miroku's hand away. Inuyasha rubbed his cheek, not wanting to admit how much it hurt. "Leave Inuyasha alone, Miroku. This has been one very bad day. The spell screwed up and now these two are stuck like this for a day or so and Sesshoumaru. has my brother and Shippou."
Miroku took a step back. "Sesshoumaru came?! I told you I should have come along! But why would he take Shippou and Sota? He may be a killer, but he's not the kidnapping type. He's more of the type who'd rather kill you one-on- one."
"It's my fault, nyao." Kagome said, looking down and stepping off her bike. "Sesshoumaru wanted the Tessaiga for his own again. but Inuyasha couldn't fight like this. He tried to make a deal that he'd take the Tessaiga now and when Inuyasha returned to normal, they could fight for control of it. So, I took aim at Sesshoumaru. but he." A tear ran down her cheek. "He. he. tried to keep me out of this by taking Shippou and Sota hostage, nyao. Now they're gone, and if I go to look for them, Sesshoumaru will kill them. Only Inuyasha can go."
Sango turned her body on the bike towards Kagome and attempted to calm the broken hearted girl. "Kagome, it's not your fault. You couldn't let the Tessaiga be stolen. Sesshoumaru could have killed so many people with it. We couldn't fight."
Inuyasha snorted. "Speak for yourself. I could have torn him apart in a few- "
Miroku pushed the boastful baby hanyou down into his clothes to silence him. "I'm sure what Inuyasha means is that he's grateful for your assistance and would have been in serious trouble without you, Kagome. Isn't that right, INUYASHA?" He coughed. "Anyway, we don't even know where Sesshoumaru is. but I don't think we're in too much trouble. As I said, Sesshoumaru isn't the kidnapping type. I doubt he'd really hurt them unless anyone but Inuyasha got too close."
Kagome wiped a tear from your eyes. "Thank you, Miroku. I feel a little better. I suppose if we could find a way to sneak up on Sesshoumaru, we could get them both back safe and sound."
Miroku nodded. "Exactly. But there's nothing we can do tonight. Let's eat a little dinner then get some sleep. We'll spend all of tomorrow looking for signs of them. Come on."
After arriving back within in the village, Kagome explained the tale to Kaede, and everyone had dined.
Kagome put down her cup of instant ramen (Inuyasha insisted on it) and looked at Miroku, putting Sango, who had fallen asleep, to bed on a blanket in the corner, next to a sleeping hanyou. "Maybe I was too hard on him," she thought. "Sure, he can be a pervert, that's why we didn't let him come with us today, but he's been so mature tonight. Maybe he's finally going to start acting like a gentleman."
Miroku came back and grabbed Kagome's hand, helping her to her feet. He wrapped his arm around her back. "And now that the young ones are in bed, perhaps it's time for all grown-ups to get to bed." He lowered his hand slowly down her back until it.
Miroku flew out the hut's door and a small blanket came afterwards. "And you can just stay out there all night, you letch! NYAO!" Kagome screamed and then sighed. "Okay, so maybe he's not maturing."
Kagome walked back to the corner where Inuyasha and Sango slept. She was still fuming from the audacity of the monk, until she looked at the two on the floor. Kagome giggled. "Inuyasha would kill me if I said it when he was awake, but he and Sango are pretty adorable as little kids." She sat down beside Inuyasha. He was using his clothes, which, of course, wouldn't fit, as a blanket. It had already slipped down over him and he seemed to shiver in his sleep. She pulled his blanket over him, causing the little hanyou to hug up against it. "He really is just a little softy under that tough guy exterior," she said while yawning but smiling. She laid down and closed her eyes, giggling still to herself.
Dawn came, bright and early, waking Miroku up prematurely. "Errm." he stretched his arms out. "How could she be so cold? She could have at least offered me another blanket out here." He sat up against the tree he had been forced to sleep under. "Well, what's done is done. Might as well wake the others so we may get started in looking for Shippou and Kagome's little brother." He got to his feet and headed towards the hut.
The monk poked his head in through the door and turned to the corner where the rest of the party slept, but at the sight of it, he began to snicker.
"It would appear the spell didn't last nearly as long as predicted." he mumbled. Sango and Inuyasha slept still, but once more in their original bodies. Inuyasha's hair was still black, as he had reverted back to a cat. Since they had slept inside their clothes, when their bodies changed back, they were dressed. however. "It would seem Kagome's maternal instincts were in full effect last night, helping to nurture the young Inuyasha last night. This could prove to be very entertaining."
Inuyasha held Kagome in a strong embrace, still deep in slumber. Kagome, likewise, held Inuyasha tightly. Most likely she had subconsciously cared for him in the night, and was not aroused when he changed back.
"Kagome, it's time to wake up, Kagome. We have to start looking." Miroku said close to her ear, attempting to stir her awake. She stretched her arms and yawned.
"Eh? Morning already?" She opened her eyes slowly and attempted to stretch her arms, but they were wrapped around something. "Eh?" She focused her eyes to see Inuyasha's sleeping eyes before hers, which had shrunk down to tiny dots.
"AIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
"YAAAAAAAH!" Inuyasha woke up in a heartbeat, covering his kitty ears. "What the hell is wrong with you, you stupid girl? Why did you scream in my ears?!"
Kagome stood up and glared right back. "Where do you get off trying to touch me when I'm asleep and then INSULTING me, nyao?"
Sango sat up, yawned, and sighed. "Well, this is the record for the earliest they started arguing."
"ME, NYAO?!" Inuyasha exclaimed. "Like hell I'd flirt with a girl like you!" "I didn't say flirting! You're such a pervert! And what do you mean by 'a girl like me?!'" "PERVERT?! NYAO! Don't flatter yourself! And I mean you're stupid and you're ugly and-" "OSUWARI!"
"Hmmm? That's odd." Kaede turned towards her hut from her garden. "I might have sworn I heard such a loud crash, but everyone should still be asleep by now."
The group once more set out on the road, the feud between Kagome and Inuyasha ended for now.
"We should all split up to look for clues as to Shippou and Sota's whereabouts," said Miroku.
"Well, that is a good idea," Kagome said, "but where should we start looking? We don't have any idea at all where they could be."
Miroku pointed back over the hill Kagome the others came back the day before. "That's the scene of the crime, where they were kidnapped, if Kagome's story is correct. Inuyasha, carry Kagome up there. You can use your nose to sniff out any signs of their whereabouts. Kagome, you inspect that whole area and listen to Inuyasha."
"I ain't your personal bloodhound. but I'll do it," Inuyasha stated. "Just because I'm itching to get my hands on that brother of mine." Kagome rolled her eyes. She knew he was just as worried as she was.
"Sango and I," continued Miroku, "will ride Kirara and inspect nearby villages to see if anyone has seen or heard anything. If anyone sees anything, come running to find the others."
"All right, nyao. But remember, Sesshoumaru is MINE," declared Inuyasha, wagging his tail furiously in anticipation.
Sango appeared more than a little irritated by the hanyou's headstrongness. "This isn't the time for that, Inuyasha. We'll talk about that after we get a clue. Rushing in will only put everyone in greater danger."
Inuyasha grabbed Kagome quick and threw her on his back. "All right then, let's go. I'm dying to payback my brother for what he did." Kagome held on as tight as she could and Inuyasha leaped and ran at full speed back
Hours later.
"Sango! Could you find anything?" Miroku called out to Sango as he ran to her in an open field.
"No, no one has seen anything. Most villages I have visited haven't seen any demons as of late, even of the smallest varieties," she explained.
"The same story with me, too. That's every place in the nearby area. I suppose we can only go and try to aid Inuyasha in his quest."
Kirara leaped off Sango's shoulder and growled as she grew into her giant tiger-like form. The two hopped onto her back and flew off.
"Nyao. Come on, Inuyasha, how long could it take to find a simple clue if you can already smell it?" Kagome asked, brimming over with impatience.
"Hey, I'm a demon, not a detective, nyao!" He lowered his face to the ground and inhaled deeply, trying to focus in on the smell. His cattail waved back and forth in irritation and a lack of patience at such action- less work.
"Hey, it looks like Miroku and Sango are back," Kagome declared, pointing her finger in their direction as Kirara landed.
Miroku got quickly to the point, asking, "Kagome, any progress?"
"Inuyasha's smelled something for a while now, but it's not much. He can't find it. He says it's sort of like Shippou, but not him or something." she explained.
"Hey, I think I got something!" exclaimed Inuyasha with enthusiasm. He sniffed a small mound of dirt on the ground and stared at it. His kitty ears twitched a few times. "It's so. familiar, nyao. I know this smell from before. I don't know. It's-"
BOING!
"NYAAAAAAAA!" Inuyasha fell over in surprise as a little orange and white object popped out of the ground in his face.
"A mushroom?" Kagome was in a bit of disbelief. "Wait, that mushroom." Upon closer examination it was seen that the mushroom had eyes and flailed about, almost screaming quietly. "These are Shippou's! He must have placed them as Sesshoumaru was carrying him away! And there's a while trail of them!"
Kagome spoke the truth, as out of the ground popped a wavering line of fungi.
"Follow them! They're our only lead!" shouted Kagome. Thus, the five of them all ran off down the trail. It led through some deep woods until it reached an enclave in a mountain. The trees covered up the area, so it was very dark, even at the height of the day. A small opening in the mountain formed a large cave entrance.
Inuyasha held his nose in the air. "I can smell 'em. Shippou, Sota, and most of all, my brother. They're definitely in there."
"All right, then, I guess we should start looking." Kagome stepped forward to enter the cave, but Inuyasha grabbed her arm and pulled her back.
"Listen up, Kagome. 'We' ain't gonna do anything. I'M going in alone. Sesshoumaru is my brother. I'll deal with him my way."
Sango spoke up. "Don't be selfish and overconfident, Inuyasha. Our friends are in there, too. We have just as much right-"
"If you guys go in there, Shippou and Sota are gonna end up DEAD," bluntly stated Inuyasha. "Especially Kagome. If you go in, Kagome, that'll piss him off the most. Sesshoumaru wants the Tessaiga. That's it. If we all enter, I don't want to know what he'll do to them. He might even kill one of you guys first. And I don't know about any of you, but I don't feel like having any guilt trips because some of my friends wouldn't let me handle my business alone! So just stay outta there, OKAY? I'm doing this thing solo." Without another word and without a simple look into Kagome's eyes, the hanyou turned around and started marching into the cave.
"Inuyasha." Kagome said quietly, partially in shock from all of this. "You really don't. We. can't."
Miroku put his hand on her shoulder and shook his head gently. "Let him go. We can't stop him." Kagome turned her head back in time to watch Inuyasha vanish within the darkness of the cave.
"Ugh." Inuyasha groaned from deep within the cave. Barely a minute or so of walking had passed, yet it was nearly pitch black. "It reeks of demon and human blood in here. But I can still smell my brother. Human blood and my brother... I've found better smelling rotting corpses than this crappy cave, nyao." He shuddered. "Dammit, nyao, I can't stop saying that. This whole cat thing just pisses me off. Still, at least I can see this whole place in the dark. I guess this crappy form has some useful parts." He continued marching on.
"Miroku, I've been thinking." said Sango. "If Inuyasha is going to be fighting Sesshoumaru in there, he really could use all the help he could get, right?"
Miroku nodded. "Of course he could. Sesshoumaru isn't just some run of the mill demon. But you know if we show our faces, Shippou and Sota will be in danger, so we don't dare even go in. Inuyasha can probably handle it on his own. For once, his overconfidence may not be too far off."
Sango nodded. "Right, but my question is, when Inuyasha fights Sesshoumaru, who will be watching his two prisoners?"
Kagome's cat ears perked up the moment she heard these words and her tail straightened out. "Nyao?! You mean we should rescue my brother and Shippou while Sesshoumaru is distracted?"
Miroku thought to himself for a moment. "Well, it certainly is worth a try. If we can get them safe, then we could aid him in the battle. Well. all right. Let's go."
Inuyasha came to a fork within the road of the cave. On his right, a descending path, somehow filled with wind, smelled of Sota and Shippou. The other was a straight path that was unmistakably a path that led to Sesshoumaru. "Why would my brother keep them separate from himself.?" His mind went back to the event that led to the kidnapping and his blood began to boil. "Argh, who cares why? Ripping his spine out comes before rescuing brats!" He readied his claws and headed down the path straight to Sesshoumaru.
As Inuyasha walked further down, though, Kagome and the rest of the group arrived at the very fork in the path the hanyou arrived at but a minute before.
"Which way do we go?" asked Miroku.
Sango crouched and inspected the ground. "I can't see a trace of Inuyasha, Shippou, or Sota."
"If we know Inuyasha half as well as we think we do," Miroku began, "then we know he'd go after Sesshoumaru first, not bothering to check any paths for possible traps. So, if Shippou and Sota are with Sesshoumaru, we should take the same path he did."
"But. I don't think Sesshoumaru and our friends are in the same place," Kagome said startlingly.
Miroku turned to face her. "How could you possibly know that?"
Kagome held her head up. "Well, I am half cat now, nyao. And. I know it's not as good as a dog, but I think. I think my sense of smell has improved quite a bit."
Sango looked a little shocked. "So, you can smell nearly as well as Inuyasha? Errr. do you think you could use that to find our path?"
"Hey, I'm not supposed to be a bloodhound here."
Sango sighed. "Where have I heard that line before.?"
"Well, when I tried before. I smelled something weird. I thought Sesshoumaru would keep Shippou and Sota nearby, but I can smell Sota down this path." She pointed down the descending path. "Sota's always used this strong shampoo that bugged me, but I'd recognize it anywhere. And down the straight path I can smell a medicine plant Inuyasha ran through a patch of on the way here."
Miroku examined each pathway. "So, if Shippou and Sota are down here, and Inuyasha's that way, it's obvious he's not looking for the two of them and going after Sesshoumaru first. If that's the case, now's our chance to get them out of here!" The four of them dashed down the descending path.
Ahead, Inuyasha came to a large, bright room. "What the hell? It's a mountain. How can there be so much light down here? And where's that smoke coming from? What's burning?" When he stepped forward a bit more, the ledge dropped down into a pit.
"Shit, this isn't a mountain, it's an inactive volcano!" Inuyasha looked over the edge of the ground down below into a pit of boiling magma. It was only a short gap, though, of a few meters. He simply leaped across onto another platform above the molten rock when a voice called out to him.
As he stood upon the island platform in the sea of magma, an all too familiar voice called out to him. "Well, well, my brother. I did not expect to see you here." Sesshoumaru leaped over from the other side of the room to the platform Inuyasha stood on. "But it doesn't matter. This saves me the trouble of looking for you."
Inuyasha steadied his hand, putting it near the Tessaiga's sheath. "So, where's the little green guy who follows you? Or maybe you want to fight a real fight for once?"
Sesshoumaru showed no anger towards Inuyasha's comments, though. "My dear brother, you know as well as I that I only fight when it is a true battle of skills. But what is this? I know of your disgusting human form with hair as black as the new-moon sky that creates it, but now even as a half-demon it is the same? I can even smell a feline on you. First you disgrace our family by even being born of a mortal woman and now you betray your very breed by being part of a cat? Well, no matter. Your disgusting ways and acts shall soon be removed from our family tree altogether. Prepare yourself."
Inuyasha drew the Tessaiga, growling deeply in doing so. "I'm just here to rescue some people, but if I have to cut that ugly head of yours off to do that, well. keh. all the better. Now shut up and fight!"
"It's odd." Sango stated, walking down a circular-stair-like passage in the cave. "There's so much wind down here, almost like we were outside. What could cause all of this? Wait, could it be Kagura?"
"No," Miroku said, shaking his head, "it couldn't be her. Inuyasha or even Kagome might have smelled her presence. Besides, while both Kagura and Sesshoumaru want to kill Inuyasha, they both have very different reasons and could hardly be considered allies in arms. Most likely this wind belongs to a natural phenomenon or the work of some other demon."
Soon, they reached the bottom and found themselves in a wide spaced room. Nothing at all seemed to be in there, except a few stone pillars supporting the ceiling. But on the other side of the room, right in front of the path down, were two torches pinned to the wall. In their glow were two small, dark figures.
Kagome rushed forward and shouted, "SHIPPOU? SOTA? IS THAT YOU, NYAO?"
"Nyao.?" One figure muttered as it stood up. "I recognize that. KAGOME?! Shippou! Shippou! Wake up! It's Kagome!"
A second figure rose slowly. "Ah! It is Kagome! Kagome, it's us! Over here!"
Kagome sighed in relief. "I was so worried about you two! Come on, let's get out of here before-"
"WAIT!" they screamed.
"Wait for-AIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Kagome walked forward, but fell right off a ledge down cliff that was too dark to see.
"KAGOME, NO!" Miroku hurled himself to the ground, barely catching Kagome's feet. However, the weight was too much and he was slowly dragged over the side until Sango grabbed onto his feet. Still, now the added weight of the monk, they started to slip again. That's when Kirara grew to her full size and stepped onto Sango, using her sheer weight to hold everyone down.
"Are you guys okay?" Sota asked from across the cave.
Kagome's eyes were rather small, staring down into the pit below. "Ummm. I'm hanging over a pit that's probably a few kilometer's deep and I have no way of moving, but I'm not dead. yet. Sango, could you. uhhh. pulls us back up.?"
"I think so." she replied. "Kirara, help me pull them back up.
"We tried to warn you," said Shippou from the other side of the cave. "This is why we couldn't leave. Sesshoumaru left us here and said he'd be back for us when he needed us. I think this is some sort of volcano turned into a shrine."
As Kagome was finally lifted back to flat ground, she sighed in relief. "What's that about a volcano? And a shrine?"
Shippou sat down at the edge of the cliff. "Well, over here, there are some strange markings and drawings on the wall. I see some pictures, too, of some people worshipping something. See, here's the wind they drew. That's where we are now, the wind shrine. Outside is the Earth shrine with all the trees. The top of the mountain is supposed to be covered in snow most of the year so it's the ice shrine, and somewhere in this mountain is an inactive volcano that is the fire shrine."
Sango stared in amazement. "That's amazing, Shippou. You figured all that out just by looking at some pictures?"
"Actually, I kind of overheard all that from Sesshoumaru talking to that Jaken guy that follows him around outside the cave before we came in here."
The group face faulted.
"That's not exactly useful information, though. It doesn't exactly explain how we'll get you guys out of heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeere!"
A gigantic gust came from the entrance and picked up and Sango, Miroku, Kagome, and Kirara were all thrown into the pit below, screaming.
"SISTER!" Sota shouted as their screams died out below.
But then, their screams became louder again as the group was thrown from the bottom of the pit onto the ledge Sota and Shippou were on.
"Ugh, what the hell just happened?" Kagome said, getting off of Kirara, who luckily did not land on anyone.
Miroku laughed. "Well, we survived. And, it seems I landed on a rather soft spot."
Sango snarled. "Miroku, if you don't get your hand off of there, I'm going to throw you down this pit and make sure you DON'T come back up."
Miroku quickly took his hand off her lower region and laughed nervously. "Goodness me, was that MY hand?" Sango stood up and slapped him hard across the cheek.
Kagome looked around. "So, uhhh. what happened?"
Sota laughed nervously. "I guess we forgot to mention it was the winds that were keeping us here. This is a prison in the Wind Shrine. The winds were commanded to keep anyone here forever."
Shippou continued. "Sesshoumaru knows the spell or password or something like that that the people who worshipped here used to stop the winds, but he's not going to let us out of here until he's good and ready."
Kagome's eyes shrunk and her heart skipped a few beats. "Wait, nyao, let me see if I got this straight. No matter what we do, these winds will keep us here."
"Right," answer Shippou.
"If Inuyasha kills Sesshoumaru, he'll come here next to try and rescue us, but since Sesshoumaru alone knows the spell or password to break it, he'll either be unable to help us, or, worse, get stuck with us!"
"Ummm. r-right." said Sota.
"And, worst of all, if Sesshoumaru somehow defeats Inuyasha, HE'LL be dead, then he'll have the Tessaiga, and he'll either come here and kill us all, or he'll just leave us to rot here!"
Shippou and Sota just stared at each other for a moment. "."
Kagome slowly fell down in a sitting position, her ears and tails limp, he eyes small. "This. isn't happening. We're as good as dead."
Miroku tried to laugh a little to lighten the mood, but with his own nervousness (and cheek still red), it was none too reassuring. "Um. well, don't give up hope. I mean, there must still be a way out of here. Wait, Kirara! Can't she fly-"
"She's not strong enough. The winds can hold anything back. I've tried to transform into her and it didn't work," stated Shippou. "Not even Inuyasha could go against these winds. So, unless you could find and trick Kagura into freeing us, it's not likely anyone can get us out of here without knowing the spell or password or whatever it is Sesshoumaru will use to get us out of here."
Kagome grabbed Sota by the shirt collar and smiled sarcastically. "You know, maybe you should have warned us about these things BEFORE WE CAME TO GET YOU!" Her face went from faux-smiling to pure anger.
"WAIT!" Sango exclaimed. "I have an idea! We only have one shot, but it may work!"
Kagome dropped her brother quickly and watched Sango remove the hiraikotsu from her side. "What are you going to do?" She asked.
"See that pillar over there?" Sango pointed to a large, natural stone column on the far side of the room by the entrance. "If I can hit it from here, maybe I can knock it over and it will fall over, creating a bridge of sorts."
Kagome thought deeply for a moment. "But what if it. gets stuck. Then again. What do we have to lose but our lives if you fail? So, go for it, Sango!"
Sango stared and concentrated for all of a second then hurled the weapon as hard as she could. "This will be tricky. This wind can severely alter my aim. But here we GO!" She hurled it with all her might as it moved exactly towards her target.
Until another gust of wind pushed it farther to the left.
Kagome, Inuyasha, and Miroku all fell down. "We're doomed," they muttered.
The hiraikotsu, however, did manage to hit a column in the very back of the row of columns. It toppled over, but down into the pit, instead of onto the platform like a bridge. Then. the weapon continued on, passing through another pillar. And another. And another. It turned around, and headed through another row of columns. However, none of them landed in a useable position. They all fell into the pit. The group hung their heads in silence.
The cave, however, was not as silent as they, and began to rumble. Debris fell from the ceiling. Huge chunks of rock plunged from everywhere.
"Oh my God, it's a cave in!" Sango exclaimed.
The ceiling kept giving way, filling up the pit very quickly.
Miroku pushed Kagome and Sango to the ground as a huge boulder started to fall above them. "STAY DOWN! WIND TUNNEL!" He unwrapped the jewels around his arm and held it straight over his head. A spiraling vortex of power absorbed all of the falling debris overhead, preventing them from being crushed.
A minute or so later, it stopped. No more rocks fell.
"I think. I think it's over." Kagome said, lifting her head, looking around, and twitching her ears to see if she could hear anything.
"This sword is MINE!" Inuyasha screamed, leaping into the air, trying to bring the Tessaiga down onto his brother, who merely moved to the side.
"You're tiring, dear brother. You won't last long," remarked Sesshoumaru with a cold tone in his voice. He disappeared in a blur of speed and hurried towards Inuyasha. Sesshoumaru swung in the blink of an eye, catching Inuyasha in the left arm.
"Yeah? Not bad, but you haven't won." Inuyasha took his good, right hand and soaked it in the blood of his left arm. "CLAWS OF BLOOD!" He swung his claws quickly, releasing 4 blades of a bloody attack, one of which Sesshoumaru could not dodge and was hit on the very arm he had just injured.
".Impressive, for a mere half-demon. However, I cannot let a half-breed be the superior brother in this family of ours." He charged ahead, slashing at Inuyasha with the Tokijen. Inuyasha raised the Tessaiga in defense, but that was what Sesshoumaru had wanted. He grabbed Inuyasha by the throat and began to secrete his poison. Inuyasha coughed violently.
The ground shook even more violently, though. The platform on which they stood rapidly turned on its side, sinking into the molten rock, as it turned sideways. This caused Sesshoumaru to release Inuyasha. Both brothers were distracted and they leaped to get to the top once more. Staying on the side that they had been on meant a plunge into the magma, which would have roasted either of them. Still, at the same time, the magma levels receded. Inuyasha jumped to a safe vantage point as the platform itself fell through a hole in the floor.
"What the hell happened? Where's all that magma going?"
Kagome surveyed the area. "No signs of any danger. I think. Wait. do you guys. here something like. water? Something sort of like a liquid I hear."
"I don't hear anything," stated Miroku.
Kagome thought. "Wait a second, is it getting hotter in here?"
Sango looked around. "Actually, now that you mention it, I don't know why, but yes."
Kagome turned to Shippou. "Ummm. what shrines did you say were in here again?"
Shippou replied, "Ice, Wind, Earth and Fire. This bottom layer's the Wind, Fire's above us, Earth's outside, and Ice is on top of the mountain. Why?"
Kagome's eyes shrunk again. "KIRARA! TRANSFORM! EVERYONE! MOVE!"
Without question, Kirara grew to her full size and everyone got on her back. Just as she got into the air, a wave of magma broke through the piles of rock, covering the floor instantly. Kirara took immediate flight for the stairway that led back to the surface.
"Interrupted yet again. This grows tiresome." Sesshoumaru wasn't too pleased as the room he stood in began to collapse around him.
"I'm gettin' tired of you, too, dirt bag!" Inuyasha leapt at Sesshoumaru with another claw swipe, but the elder brother merely used but one fist to send his younger sibling down into a rock pile below.
"Well, then, Inuyasha. or perhaps I should call you Nekoyasha to fit your new, disgusting form. It seems you'll be staying. I'll be back in a day or so to take the Tessaiga from your cold, dead hands. Until then." He dashed out of the cave with super speed.
Kirara dashed up the passage, followed by a molten pool of rock almost all the way to the surface. The saber-toothed cat turned towards the entrance darted out of the cave.
"What are we doing?!" Kagome shouted, her tail straightened out in anger. "Inuyasha's still inside!"
Miroku shook his head. "He's a strong demon; he'll be fine. But if we go back in, we might not."
"But what if he's hurt?" asked Kagome. "I'm going in after him!" she turned and dashed back into the cave.
"Bah! That foolish girl is going to get herself killed!" Miroku chased after her into the cave.
"Wait for us!" Sango and Shippou tried to run back, but as they did so, the entranceway collapsed and was blocked.
"Dammit! We have to clear these rocks!" Sango said, lifting one aside.
Inside the cave, Kagome was nearly to the room where Inuyasha lay when she could smell him in the air. "He's still here!"
She sped into the large battlefield that had been destroyed. She walked to the edge of the pit, where she viewed Inuyasha below. He was stranded on a small rock platform with magma levels rising all above him. In a matter of minutes, he would be boiled alive in the sea of burning rock. The height was too much even for him to leap to. "INUYASHA!" she called out to him.
"Kagome? What are you doing? GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE! This place is coming down! You'll be killed!"
"But what about you? We have to get you out of here!"
"I'll think of something!" he reassured her.
"You think I'm going to just leave you here after a speech like that?"
Inuyasha growled louder. "GET OUT OF HERE, STUPID GIRL! Get out of here before you screw up and wind up dead!"
"EXCUSE ME?! SCREW UP?!" She growled herself. "I'VE NEVER MET SUCH A POMPOUS, ARROGANT, SELFISH, IDIOTIC BOY IN MY LIFE! HOW CAN YOU BE SUCH A STUPID-AAAAHHHHH!" The ground broke underneath her feet at the ledge and Kagome fell towards the magma below. "I'm. going to die?" She thought.
She closed her eyes to avoid seeing where she would land. It hit her. But somehow, death felt much. softer. She opened her eyes. Inuyasha had caught her and stood on a small platform above the magma.
Kagome looked Inuyasha in the eyes and a tear rolled down her cheek. "You. you saved me. after I just yelled at you. I'm. sorry."
Inuyasha sighed. "I TOLD You to get out of here. Now we're both trapped, Dammit."
Kagome looked away. "I'm sorry. now we're both. HEY! Wait a second! Just a second ago you told me you'd find a way out!"
Inuyasha glared back. "I lied."
"Arguing to the bitter end, I see," came a voice.
"Miroku?!" They both exclaimed.
"Now both you fools are in danger." the monk said, sighing. "What do we do.?"
"Miroku, can you get Kirara?" Kagome asked.
"No, the entrance is blocked. However, I can get you out of there," he said. "I'll knock some rocks down, Inuyasha will climb as high as he can, and when I say 'jump,' I need Inuyasha to jump towards me as high and far as he can. Don't ask questions, just do it. Got it?"
They nodded.
"Here we go! Wind Tunnel!"
Miroku released his beads and began to use the Wind Tunnel on the opposite side of the room. Great boulders from the walls began to be pulled in. Miroku wrapped the beads around his hand again and the boulders dropped into the magma, onto other platforms, and on each other. Kagome got on Inuyasha's back and he leapt up the rocks until he was on the other side of the room, opposite from Miroku.
"Now, JUMP!"
Inuyasha thought it was suicide. Jumping towards him would make him land in the molten rock below. But he had no choice, as the rocks he stood on began to crumble and he leapt.
"Gotta time this right. WIND TUNNEL!"
Miroku's great vortex yanked Inuyasha and Kagome closer and closer at an increasing speed. As they approached the ledge, the room began to collapse entirely. Miroku wrapped his hand again, and Inuyasha grasped the edge. He pulled himself and Kagome up, and the three of them dashed for the entrance. Sango, Shippou, and Sota were clearing the entrance when Miroku screamed, "Out of the way! Move! This is for your own good!"
He unraveled his arm once more and pulled the rocks out of the way and into the void. The three stumbled out of the cave as the rest of the mountain imploded upon itself.
Kagome looked back at the mountain, gasping for air.
"We made it." she muttered before falling back into slumber from exhaustion and relief.
To be continued.
