Chapter 6

Kaida's body floats underneath the surface of the water. Magic from the warm liquid eats away at the cut on her side, drawing out the darkness from her veins; a process which would have been excruciating under normal circumstances.

Along with the shadowy matter escaping her body, a tiny parasite is pulled out of the wound. As the demonic worm exits the unconscious woman, it races to the surface of the water, desperate to escape the magical acid. Unable to break free from the spring, the water deteriorates the creature completely...

A couple of hours has passed and the sun is almost to the horizon. Kaida slowly begins to regain consciousness, barely opening and closing her eyes. Everything is blurry and her mind is groggy. For a brief moment, she doesn't realize that she is no longer in the middle of the spring.

The enervated woman finds herself lying at the edge of the spring, still fully clothed in her sopping wet kimono. Kaida tries to look around, her vision still unfocused and her body still heavy and weak. She notices something familiar between two large boulders at the outside of the onsen. As her vision clears, the object becomes more focused, revealing to her a unique wooden staff crafted with two heads, a woman and an old man. Perched on top of the heads, a raven watches her as she lays there stiffly.

"Kangee?"

Kaida is barely able to speak, but in response to his name, the bird flies off into the trees, as if telling her to come.

Kaida attempts to get up, but her body refuses to move. She tries again, but still, nothing happens. She looks back up, towards the staff. Kangee, you foolish bird. Why did you bring that thing to me? I doubt I'll even see that annoying little demon anyway. Damn thing talks too much, she groans.
The sound of the raven calling out to her startles Kaida from her thoughts. Once again she attempts to move her body, starting with her fingers. At last, after what felt like a century of willing her fingers to move, they twitch in response.

"Good," she mumbles, forcing her hand into a weak fist and opening it slowly. After an agonizingly long five minutes, she finally manages to move her arms beneath her, pushing herself up; the water drips from her hair and clothes as she struggles to lift her body off the ground. "Come on, body," she coaxes as she continues to pick herself up. She looks over at the table where her sword lays and begins to make her way to it, clumsily crawling across the floor.

After acquiring her katana from the table, she turns around to where the large boulders stand, eyeing the staff that is stabbed into the ground. As she advances to it, she uses the weapon as a crutch while she struggles to walk. Her body aches from the labor she's pushing on it, but she ignores the pain and presses on, desperate to get out of her predicament.

She approaches the Two-Headed staff, at last, but before she could grasp the staff in her extended hand, the sound of footsteps sound behind the door inside the castle.

"Damn it!" she curses to herself, taking hold of the staff and forcing her body to move as fast as she can. By the time she reaches the edge of the castle, she hears the sliding door from the onsen slam shut. "That was close….too close," she mutters to herself, trying to catch her breath while resting against a tree. She takes a moment to look at the sky. It is barely dusk. So much for not being able to move until after dark. Nothing beats a little bit of willpower. The corner of her lips curve up into a small smile at the amusing thought.

Tucking the sword into its rightful place at her side, she continues to use the staff to her advantage. Holding up her weak and exhausted body, she drags herself through the forest in the direction of the abandoned village that Ryoko claims will be able to protect her.

When it becomes time for another break, she realizes that she hadn't heard or seen Kangee anywhere since he had appeared to her with the staff. Kaida leans against tree, breathing heavily from overexerting herself. She scans her surroundings, carefully observing the trees and sky around her and listening carefully for his distinctive call. Only the sound of the leaves rustling in the light breeze. Kaida narrows her eyes, something isn't right here. From the corner of her eyes, she sees something move, but when she jerks her head to see what it is, there isn't a trace of anything. She notices more movement across the trees from the corner of her eye in the other direction. Again, nothing is there when she looks.

"Who's out there?" Kaida calls out.

No answer.

A dark heavy feeling surrounds her as she straightens herself up off of the tree and hurries through the forest in order to flee away from the approaching danger. But after taking a few steps away from where she stood, Kaida's foot gets caught in a large root that is sticking out of the ground. She lifts herself up from the forest's floor that is only inches from her face, and looks up at the darkening sky. It glows a dark orange hue. It's almost night. This medicine should wear off completely very soon. I can barely do anything in this state, Kaida groans. She, again, spots more movement within the trees, but this time, when she quickly shifts her eyes to see what it is, they don't disappear.

Shadows. The same type of shadows that had followed her in the hallway of the castle are circling her in the forest, as well.

"Damn it!" she says, furrowing her brows in irritation. She then reaches over and starts untangling her foot from the root. Between getting her foot caught and trying to tear it free, her ankle and bare foot are scraped up and bloody. She growls at herself as she untangles from the root, "So much for not having any wounds. This only makes things slightly more difficult." As the gears in her mind turn, trying to come up with a plan on how to get to the village safely, her foot finally snaps free and she scrambles to her feet, limping as she staggers quickly through the trees; watching out for obstacles in her path.

Finally, after her body grew used to her struggles, she no longer needs to use the staff as a crutch, but instead, holds it in her hand as she runs through the trees, jumping over large roots that stuck out of the ground and rocks that would trip or injure her bare feet. She spots a road up ahead and stops to catch her breath before continuing on.

That was a mistake.

"Where do you think you are going?" an amused, yet annoyed, voice of a woman asks from behind her.

Kaida turns around to see who it is. Mika is standing there with her arms crossed and a huntress look in her emerald green eyes. Kaida curses in the back of her mind; she isn't quite in the position to fend off the demoness, let alone outrun her. She takes a deep mental breath and plays it cool. "I told your lord that you demons couldn't keep me confined in that castle. I guess he didn't take me seriously," Kaida says, as if she was slightly disinterested in the demoness standing before her. She turns her back on Mika and looks down at the staff curiously, pondering on whether or not she might be able to use it like the little imp had. If I have powers like Shoumetsu claims I do, then it should be simple, right? Laughing at herself for the thought, she closes her eyes in defeat. The only hope I have with using this thing is whacking her in the head to buy myself some time to run. Even that looks hopeless.

In mere seconds, Mika is directly behind her with a handful of Kaida's loose, damp, and unkempt ponytail. "You shouldn't turn your back to a demon who is more than willing to rip your head off that pretty little neck of yours."

Without much thought crossing her mind, Kaida takes a tighter hold of the staff and with one swift motion, stabs the staff into Mika's abdomen. Mika yelps in pain and surprise, releasing Kaida's hair as she grabs at the hole in her gut. Kaida takes this chance to make a run for it, charging for the road in front of her.

"You Bitch!" Mika yells out in anger and humiliation. She then charges after Kaida in a fit of rage, reaching her hand out to the woman's ponytail once more in an attempt to yank her hair and throw her across the forest. But before she could get a good grip of her hair, the woman trips and the staff that was in her hands flies through the air, landing on top of a little imp demon's head. Mika stands there with the woman's hair ribbon in her hand, observing how unique it is; completely ignoring the two demons that tower in front of the collapsed human.

The white ribbon has several small stones beaded onto the center of it. The middle bead is a large dark purple gem. "Amethyst, huh?" Mika says, mostly to herself.

Kaida lifts her head, her damp hair sticking to the sides of her face. In front of her face there are two black, booted feet. She slowly looks up, cautiously taking in the being before her. Along with the black boots, a large fluffy-looking boa drags on the ground behind them, then she sees white sashinuki hakama, pants only those of noble men would wear, along with a blue and yellow sash hanging down in front of her face. She looks higher; at the man's waist, two swords rest at his left hip, and the sleeves of his kimono are red with cherry blossom crests. She notices that both hands are clawed but only one of them has two magenta stripes on the wrist. A demon, she concluded. Over his kimono, he wears spiked armor attached to the top of his cuirass.

When she finally looks up at his face, she is paralyzed by the sight. Golden eyes peering down at her, emotionless and cold. She couldn't think; couldn't move. She lays there staring up at him, frozen in fear and amazement. His silver hair flowing in the small breeze, the blue crescent moon on his forehead, two magenta stripes on his cheeks under each eye, and the red markings on his eyelids. He is definitely a demon; no doubt about that. She can sense the danger in his demonic aura, but for some reason she couldn't tear her eyes from him. It feels like time is standing still.

"You foolish human!" an annoyingly familiar voice exclaims. "Stop gawking at Lord Sesshomaru like that! Where are your manners?! It is rude to stare!"

Kaida rips her eyes from the demon's golden ones and shifts her attention to the dramatic imp who now has a hold of his staff with a demonic death grip. Nothing would ever pry that thing out of his little green clawed fingers, even in death.

"Wait," she says quietly to herself. "Did he just say 'Lord Sesshomaru'?" Her face becomes flushed with the realization that this demon, who obviously is no one to take lightly, is the same one who she had so boldly bad-mouthed, doubting the high expectations that the little imp demon had proclaimed. The demonic aura coming from him is proof enough that he is very powerful. How did she not notice it before when she was running through the forest,or when she encountered Mika in the trees?

Mika? That's right. She was chasing me a moment ago. Kaida turns around quickly, seeing Mika observing the hair ribbon in her hands. Pushing herself up to her feet, Kaida clinches her fists in anger and irritation, glaring at the redheaded woman. As if feeling the piercing glare, Mika lifts her eyes, amusement filling in them as she returns the stare.

Kaida stands with her arms crossed, showing that she isn't interested in playing petty games, "Hand it over, Mika. That ribbon doesn't belong to you. Besides, isn't it me, who you are after?"

Mika chuckles, "My, my. A little possessive, don't you think? I find it rather intriguing. Tell me, girl. Is this the source of your seal?"

"Seal?" Kaida says, completely confused.

"Hmph." A daring smile forms on Mika's face as she prepares to crush the amethyst stone on a large rock beside her feet.

Without warning, Kaida takes hold of the hilt of her sword, drawing it out of the scabbard in one swift motion. The sudden reaction took Mika by surprise as she is drawn back to a tree, the dark blade held closely to her throat. The two women stare in silence. Mika grows excited at her new discovery.

An annoying voice calls out from behind, "You idiot! Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

Kaida looks back at Jaken, frightening him with the anger gleaming in her violet eyes. Returning her attention to Mika, she says in a threatening voice, "Don't you know you're not supposed to take things that do not belong to you?"

Mika giggles, "Why are you so protective over a simple hair ribbon? Shouldn't you be running for your life?" Her voice strains in the last words as the blade pushes on her throat, drawing blood.

"Other than my sword, that hair ribbon is the only thing I have left from my past. I'm not going to let an arrogant whore take and destroy something that is rightfully mine!"

Jaken and Mika gasp at the sudden outburst while Sesshomaru stands there and narrows his eyes, observing the situation that is unfolding before his very eyes. "I'm growing rather tired of listening to you pathetic women taunt each other. What is the meaning of all this?"

"Hm?" both women respond in unison, turning their attention to the tall demon who looks extremely annoyed with them. Mika takes the advantage of the distraction and shoves Kaida off of her, causing her to slam into Sesshomaru and hit the back of her head on hard metal, barely grazing her scalp on the spikes of his armor. Kaida moves her free hand to the scrapes at the back of her skull, feeling the warm blood dampening her thick, dark hair. Seconds later, she realizes that she is being held up by Sesshomaru instead of sliding down to the ground like she normally would have.

"So," Mika calls out. "You are the All-Powerful Sesshomaru this little toad demon was telling me about?" Mika smiles mockingly.

"I'm not a toad! I'm an imp!" Jaken corrects, swinging his arms dramatically.

Mika scrunches her face in disgust, "Whatever."

Sesshomaru releases Kaida and flexes his claws, ready to strike. Smiling at the demoness, he says, "Are you wishing to challenge me?"

Mika braces herself for an attack as Sesshomaru dashes forward, appearing beside her in a matter of seconds. She quickly leaps away into the trees, narrowly missed by his claws releasing poisonous fumes. Mika attempts to use her flames to protect herself from the demon's poison claws, but

Sesshomaru appears behind her instead, piercing his hand through her back and out of her stomach.

Mika coughs up blood, "How?"

"You shouldn't underestimate your opponent," Sesshomaru advises, removing his hand from her back. "A demon, such as you, will have no chance against me."

Mika coughs again, spitting blood out as she drops to the ground and lands on her knees. "I'll remember that next time," she smiles, wiping the blood from her mouth.

She stands back up after a moment and observes Sesshomaru more closely. "I thought you looked familiar," she says with surprise recognition all over her face. "You are the son of those two dog demons. Oh what were their names?" Placing a finger to her lips, she thinks for a minute and then she snaps her fingers, "Oh, that's right! Inu no Taisho and…oh, what was her name….oh yeah, everyone had called her Inukimi!"

"You know of Lord Sesshomaru's parents?" Jaken says in astonishment.

Sesshomaru narrows his eyes, "I do not know you. How would you know anything about me or my parents?"

Mika giggles at a thought, "That's right, you were only an infant at the time. My you have grown up handsomely."

"Who are you?" Sesshomaru flexes his claws.

Mika jumps back and up into a tree, "In due time, boy. Shoumetsu is going to be thrilled to learn that you are the son of the Great Dog Demon." With the snap of her fingers, flames ignite around her and surround her body while forming a large ball of fire. "Until we meet again," her voice echoes from the fire.

Kaida sheaths her sword and steals a glance at Sesshomaru, curious about what he was thinking. Unable to read his face, she sighs, speaking to herself, "Well, that was interesting. Looks like I'm no longer the only target." Looking back up to Sesshomaru, she says, "Thanks, but I didn't need any of your help."

"YOU UNGRATEFUL HUMAN! THAT IS NO WAY TO SPEAK TO LORD SESSHOMARU!" Jaken scolds, whacking Kaida in the head with his staff.

"Ow!" She attempts to take the staff from him to return the blow to his head, but she couldn't shake him off of it; so instead, she lifts the sleeve from her right arm and punches the imp on the top of his head, leaving a large growing lump in its place. "You stupid imp! How dare you use that thing on me? Especially since I'm the reason you have it back in the first place." Crossing her arms, Kaida continues, "Who is the ungrateful one, now?"

As Jaken and Kaida glare at each other, sending sparks of irritation flying between them, Sesshomaru turns away, continuing on his journey to find out whose ominous aura that he's feeling belongs to. The first one to notice him leaving is Kaida; looking over to him as he had his back turned to her.

"If you are curious about that demonic aura, it belongs to a demon named Shoumetsu." To Kaida's surprise, Sesshomaru stops and glances at her from over his shoulder as if questioning whether or not she will follow him. Kaida looks away quickly, her face flushing, "I'm not going back to the castle; besides, I'm on my own mission."

"Good riddance," Jaken says, crossing his arms and speaking confidently. "We don't need a pathetic human around, anyway. You'll only get in Lord Sesshomaru's way."

Kaida crosses her arms as well, "Hmph." Then something comes flying at her from Sesshomaru's direction. While fiddling her hands, trying to catch what was thrown at her, she notices that Sesshomaru has already continued walking again.

Jaken then runs off after Sesshomaru, hollering, "Wait for me, Milord!"

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. Author's Notes:

Hey, guys! I hope you are enjoying this so far.

Did Mika seriously just claim that she knew Sesshomaru as a baby?! Where's the baby pics! I need to see them!

Anyway. Merry Christmas to everyone! And Happy Holidays to everyone who doesn't celebrate Christmas! I send the best wishes to you and hope that you guys make happy and fruitful memories, for it is the end of the year and a new beginning just around the corner!

I'd also like to give a shout-out to my friend, Eclipse89. If it wasn't for her, this story wouldn't flow as well as it does. You're the best!