I know, I know. Took me long enough. I just lost inspiration. I do that when things start getting to a high point. I hope you liked the idea of Sessomaru joing the team. Somebody had to fill the gap. Oh, tomorrow is my birthday so Good reviews would make it special. Later.

Dog May Cry

Chapter 14: Formidable Alliance

Rin hit the ground on her right arm with a thud and let out a loud scream of pain. She sat up sobbing and clutching her wrist which fell limp. Sango ran over to the girl and held her as she inspected the obviously broken wrist and maybe even arm. Miroku stood above them, defending against the considerably lessening wave of demons. He hasn't been able to use the wind tunnel because as with all agents of Naraku, Sanyosho where floating around everywhere. Kagome watched, numb minded, not even fully registering what had just occurred. All she could really think of was the red jacket strewn out inelegantly on the dirt ground. All of a sudden, she got angry, angry at another red suited man. Nothing would please her more than to have his head impaled on her sword… his sword…

She rose to her feet, with rebellion in hand and charged the evil half demon. Inuyasha found this new assault similar to the one he had just ended. He had no room to back up or even attack. He could hear his name come from his loves voice in a strained manner but had no opening to go to her. Kikyo lay in a heap on the ground, souls were pouring out of her. Her entire right side, going down just below her breast and including her arm had been blown clean off. She gasped for breath as the lights fled from her broken body. Kagome didn't let this stop her however and she continued her relentless attack on a now distracted half breed. Kagome got several hits on various limbs of his body but somehow Inuyasha kept her from any major damage. However he was weakening from the exertion of two battles with two very pissed off half demons. On top of his fatigue he had to find a way to help Kikyo, who was losing vitality fast. To the new corrupt ones relief, a brown thorny tentacle sprang from the sky and knocked Kagome of her feet and meters away. Inuyasha didn't even question what happened; he was immediately at Kikyo's side, preparing her for a quick retreat.

Kagome back flipped from the ground to avoid the jabbing limbs from impaling her. She retaliated with slicing it clear off but more just grew. More tentacles sprang forth, swiping at her from various directions. Kagome sliced, rolled, and jumped her way through them all with grace he didn't even know she had. She was driven to get the one behind the appendages. The mastermind behind all her loss, behind nearly everyone in this era's loss. She wanted answers to this attack and revenge for all the death. She wanted…She wanted…She didn't know exactly what she wanted, but she new killing the Dark half demons would make her feel better. At least she hoped it would.

"Inuyasha" Naraku called "Get Kikyo to safety then return here. We will end this your way for once." Naraku said coldly. Inuyasha quickly collected the dying priestess in her arms and fled the fight. Naraku turned his attentions back to the group of hunters that sought his head. "I had not expected that idiot half breed to put up such an adamant fight for that girls life. That idiot bandit will pay for his treachery, I can assure you." Naraku said as he scanned the bodies of the bandits lying around the village. Some had died from the fight or just too much blood loss but most had fled.

"I don't care about your stupid plans. I don't care about your stupid ego. I don't give a damn about the jewel. You've killed or hurt everyone I love. The only thing I care about now, is sending you back to hell where you came from" Kagome Growled out, her head bowed and her eyes dark and reddening. She dropped her sword to the ground and left it there as she walked towards Naraku at a zombies pace. Miroku and Sango looked on in horror as they watched her friend transform into a new breed of demon. They hadn't even thought about this possibility, but it could happen. They all had their backs to the wall and the poor girl had nothing to leash her inner demon. All they could hope for was the first transformation would be controllable, like Inuyasha's was. They immediately grabbed the Rin and ran out of sight, praying to god Kagome would be alive at the end of this.

Naraku laughed his maniacal laugh that only proved to enrage Kagome even further as she too several quick steps forward.

"You truly think you can beat me? All you will do is prove how weak you still are. The longer time goes on, the more shards I collect, the closer to invincibility I become. Not that you or your pathetic humans could even touch on my weak times. I have always enjoyed your persistence. You and your group were always my favorite play toys. But all toys wear down and bore their owners. It's time a crushed you once and for all.You can go join your lover in the afterlife." Naraku said with a sick, enticed appearance.

Kagome said nothing, just continued her slow walk towards the dark half demon. She seemed to be fighting herself. Naraku did not like the dangerous silence. He seemed to irritate a little himself.

"Hmm… you're losing control. You don't have the training to keep your own mind in power in this state. The most you can do now is flail around. You will be easy to defeat." Naraku said cockily. Kagome leapt at the vile being and slashed through the spiked, brown ligaments, jumping from those she dodge to get closer to her prey. She was almost there when Naraku released a generous dosage of miasma directly into her face. Her eyes, nose and mouth burned with agony as her mindless body wailed around on the ground. Sango and Miroku were struggling against the enormous amount of Naraku's limbs to aid her. They couldn't get there quick enough before Naraku wrapped his victim up and squeezed her like a squeaky toy. Her lungs would fail quickly and she would suffocate to death. That is she would have if the tentacle wasn't severed from its master by a flash of blue energy.

"This is the last time you threaten a member of my company, Naraku. You were foolish to spring from hiding. Even if this form of yours is just a puppet, I will find you're real self easily now." Said a cold, calculating voice on the left. Sesshomaru, lord of the western lands and half brother to Inuyasha, stood with his sword, Tokijen, drawn. He glared at Naraku for a moment before turning his gaze to the young girl covered in the red trench coat still clutching her arm in pain. She hadn't even heard her lord approach. When she did she almost forgot about her pain.

"My lord, you have come for me!" Rin tried to get up but was too weak. She only succeeded in pushing herself to a sitting position.
"Stay where you are, Rin." Sesshomaru ordered with a barely noticeable hint of concern.

"Ahh, Sesshomaru, I guess you saw through my plan to lure you away. I will have to be more careful next time."

"Your pathetic traps do not faze me nor do they entertain me, the bees you sent as a decoy where less than believable." Sesshomaru explained with his unattached tone. He unleashed his swords energy at the demonic marionette but the shield that protected all of Naraku's creations was ever present.

"There is no reason to waste a puppet against you Sesshomaru. You have won today. I commend you. I may not have gotten what I wanted, but today wasn't a total loss...well, not for me anyway." Naraku said cruelly as his puppet disintegrated into the ground.

Sesshomaru sheathed Tokijen and slowly walked to his ward and picked her up in one arm letting the coat around her fall off and lay on the ground in a pile. Rin blushed; her lord had never held her before. It was almost like her father used to hold her. He inspected her closely to find all aliments then turned his attentions to the humans that always followed his little brother around.

"What has happened here?" Sesshomaru asked simply, sounding like he didn't care either way.

"It was a bandit attack, milord. When Jaken and I were shopping like you told us too…Oh no, master Jaken! He could be hurt!" Rin cried out in concern for the toad demon.

"Calm yourself Rin. I found him under rubble before I entered the battle. Now tell me how you injured your arm. Was it Naraku's doing? " Sesshomaru asked with a little more concerned expression.

"No. It was your little brothers. He attacked me with that yellow light attack but the nice man in the red coat pushed me out of the way before I was hit. I accidentally hurt my arm in the fall but it wasn't his fault." Rin tried to explain truthfully all she could remember but that was hard since she was only barely conscience when all of it happened.

Her lord put her down on her feet then helped her to a sitting position then told her to wait there while he went to go talk to the humans and walked towards the black haired man in purple robes.

"Monk, where is my idiot brother. I will destroy him before I go after Naraku. And don't you dare lie to me." Sesshomaru said in an angry voice very different than his normal demeanor.

"Feel free to kill Inuyasha in anyway you see fit. He is no longer our ally." Miroku said coldly.

"No! Inuyasha is mine to kill. Do whatever you want with Naraku but Inuyasha is mine." Kagome yelled, red faced from the poison but other than that just seemed mentally distressed.

"You will have to excuse her rudeness. Inuyasha has done her many injustices. Now Sesshomaru, I am concerned for Rin. If that arm is not treated quickly then it could very easily get worst. I don't suppose you know first aid for humans do you?" Miroku spoke in a formal way, like he was attempting to get the demon lord to sign a contract.

Sesshomaru didn't enjoy the monk taking advantage of his lack of knowledge in anything, even something as useless to him as first aid for humans.

"If you allow us, we will take care of Rin for you." Miroku said.

"What is it that you want, monk? Do not try and hide your motives from me." Sesshomaru stated frigidly.

"Yes, I was simply going to offer you our services in helping to protect Rin. Naraku obviously wants her for something, what I don't know, but simply wanted to suggest that having a few more eyes on her wouldn't hurt." Miroku said cautiously. He knew to well he was in dangerous territory with the dog lord.

"Fool, I need no assistance from humans. What could your pathetic powers offer to me?" Sesshomaru growled.

"I have glimpsed your traveling company before. It contains mostly of the child, the two headed dragon, and that annoying imp. You often take the dragon with you when you split from them and just leave the imp. But since I was able to beat the imp to unconsciousness when I myself was almost dead, I know for a fact he has trouble keeping up with the girl, much less defending her." Miroku knew he had made many good points. But could Sesshomaru see past his pride for the good of his beloved follower?

"I can simply leave Rin in my fortress of my lands. There is no need for more watchers, fool." Sesshomaru said logically.

"Please, Lord Sesshomaru, I know your disposition on human intellect but do not take me as much of a fool as others. I know you would have done just that if you could. There is something either physical or otherwise keeps her with you. I will not question your motives on that but I ask you to see past your prejudice of us and allow us to join you. With our combined strength, Naraku will be much lighter footed with his we may even be able to find a weakness." Miroku continued to plead his case. He new his party would need such a powerful ally to survive much longer. Sesshomaru was impassively quite for only a moment before questioning,

"Why are you so desperate for this alliance?"

"A powerful demonic ally such as yourself would be invaluable to us. You have extensive knowledge of demonic magic's that none of us could hope to understand" He played into Sessomaru's ego a little. Sesshomaru's eyes burned into Miroku, like searching his soul. Then, calmly and almost quietly, said

"Very well, you will accompany me to aid Rin and assist in my battle against Naraku. But I warn you monk, your party had best not irritate me or slow me down." Sesshomaru warned.

"I assure you, we will not be anymore a hindrance than the toad" Miroku replied. Sesshomaru looked towards the west at the rising sun.

"We will leave this place for now to care for Rin and any injuries your party sustained. We will move out when the sun sets this evening. Prepare to leave." Sesshomaru walked to Rin and picked her up in one arm, then continued to walk without a backwards glance.

"Come on everyone, let us take our leave." Miroku said to his friends with as humorous a tone as he could. But the cheer he had mustered was sapped from the scene; all his friends wore sorrowful faces. Kagome was on her knees, clutching the red coat while Shippo hugged her from behind, tears in his eyes. Sango was obviously trying to be strong but couldn't find the right words. She was never good at comforting people, usually her way ended in throwing someone off a cliff. He also knew she was saddened too.

They all had grown attached to the strange warrior from the west. He had helped Sango with her rage problems by being a punching bag in their sparring matches. Anything she threw, he could take with a grin and a grunt. Shippo had come to admire Dante and his lifestyle because or the stories he told around the campfire when Shippo said he wasn't sleepy. Usually his stories only provoked the kid into a more hyperactive state.

What boy aspiring to be a great warrior wouldn't want to hear tales of a hero over coming pirate invasions of his ship, freeing entire countries from oppression, and of course the classic rescuing of the damsel in distress. It inspired all of them at times. Even he had become good friends with Dante. Dante, unlike Inuyasha, wasn't afraid to share his opinion on the ladies from the last village they passed. He could even be found to share an experience from time to time. And it was Dante who finally set Miroku straight enough to open Sango up a little. Miroku felt indebted to him for that. Still, now was not a time to mourn him. He had just risked life and limb for a powerful alliance and made them a good opportunity. They couldn't risk losing that now.

"Come now, we must leave with Sesshomaru or we will be left behind." He knew it sounded cold but he couldn't help it, it was a cold statement. Sango lifted her face in anger to the monk's insensitivity but one look in his eyes and she understood. He was the tactful one. Even if he was hurt as well he would not let his feelings or grief hamper his pursuit of the ultimate goal. He didn't always act like it but he did have subtle attributes that prove his intense spiritual training. She whispered soothingly to Kagome, who hadn't looked up from the red jacket she held. Kagome just nodded numbly and stood up to show her face. Still red in the eyes, it was hard to tell if it was the poison or tears, but her face was dry and her expression stern. She clutched the coat in a death grip. She just nodded and started striding proudly towards Sesshomaru's exit point. Before she was out of sight, Miroku watched her slip on the coat.

"Well, shall we follow, my love" Miroku asked Sango, outstretching an arm.

"Yes, let's" She took the offered hand and smiled.

"Oh great! Are you two going to start talking like Dante when he has a few to many" Shippo said sarcastically. They all had an awkward laugh…

"So what now? Are we going to try again? My brother will be on high alert now that he knows where after the girl." Sitting up, Inuyasha pulled on his white undershirt.

"No. The summoning needs a child of pure innocents. But she was not the only one, just the most available. We will talk with Naraku about this subject more but I think a search will be necessary. However we must do this with absolute caution and precise accuracy. But now that that other half demon is out of the picture, I think we can breathe slightly easier." Kikyo said opting to lounge in the bed a little longer.

"It's a good thing I got in that lucky shot at the last minute. I was on my last leg there and he hadn't even broken a sweat. Strange that he would fall so easily from just a simple wind scar. I've fought way weaker guys than him that could take it without flinching." Inuyasha stood up to pull up his pants and tie them in place.

"My, my Inuyasha, Are we paranoid? He is dead and gone. The light cannot bring someone back from the dead. We both know that" Kikyo said, looking down at her blanket covered body.

"I know, just something doesn't feel right about him. He coulda killed me easily, I know he could. But he held back, like waiting for something…

"Just misplaced fears, my love. I promise you, when this is all done; we will have more power than anything on this earth and will finally be able to truly be together."

"You're probably right…" an uncertain tone in the mutt's voice.