Alrighty then. Told you that I would have this one up soon!

So, the exciting conclusion to the attack… what will happen to our heros… what of their friends? Will Naraku's plan be a success? Humm… so many questions…

Disclaimer: Don't own squat…

Obsession of Sin

Into the Abyss

"Now, Kagura!"

She watched the demon Lord rush to the miko's rescue; watched him dive into the stony orifice without hesitation. Upon hearing Hakudoshi's barked order she drew back her fan and battered the mountainside with a devastating attack.

The earth shook beneath the force of it, huge chunks of jagged rock tumbling down the cliff side to pile against the opening, efficiently cutting it off from the outside world. The taiyoukai and the priestess were trapped inside, swallowed by the mountain.

"Wind scar!"

The demoness hardly had time to get out of the way, the blazing yellow streaks splitting through the rock where she had previously stood. She turned to scowl at the inu hanyou, who was already drawing back his massive fang for yet another attack.

Hakudoshi appeared by her side once more, his barrier erected as he suggested, "We should take our leave. The task has been completed; there is no need to tarry here any longer."

She could not object. Kagura had always been one for self preservation. So, plucking the feather from her hair, she ascended into the gray, muggy sky, still encased in the demon child's barrier. She had escaped this encounter with little damage, luckily. Had the young priestess' attack struck her, she would have been badly injured.

Then again, she had never been struck by a wave of purification that powerful. Perhaps it would have done more than just injure her. She had been inflicted wounds that, by all rights, should have killed her, but because Naraku was in possession of her heart, she escaped death each and every time. But… if her body had been completely decimated, burned into nothing by Kagome's holy energy… would she have lived? How would she be revived when there was nothing left of her?

She had never truly thought of that before, and it planted a seed of respect in her for the young, mortal woman. And as much as she hated to admit it… it made her fear. For now she was safe, but would she be spared the girl's wrath a second time?

She decided then that on their next encounter, she would steer clear of the priestess… leave her to the others. For now… they needed to return to Naraku, and report the success of their mission.


"Kagome!" Inuyasha came to a screeching halt in front of the large pile of rubble, sheathing Tetsusaiga and snatching the first rock he came across. Pushing and pulling, one after another he moved the boulders, his heart racing frantically as the seconds ticked by.

"Stop!"

The red swathed hanyou turned furious eyes to his traveling companion, snapping irritably, "What? Why in the hell would I do that? We have to save Kagome!"

Miroku shifted, Sango's unconscious form dangling from his arms as he approached. The children were at his side, Jaken and Ah-Un not far behind. "The mountainside has collapsed in on itself. That pile of rock may be the only thing keeping it from completely falling in. If you disturb a load bearing stone, you may end up causing a cave in and crushing them!"

"Well then what do you suggest, genius?!"

"I have heard rumor of the caves that wind through these mountains. Sesshomaru has very sharp senses, I'm sure he will find a way to navigate them. They will more than likely emerge elsewhere."

Inuyasha pondered that for a moment, wondering aloud, "What should we do in the meantime?"

The young priest lowered his gaze thoughtfully, eyeing the unconscious form in his arms. "I'm not certain… for now, perhaps it would be best to stay put. Sango needs tending, and you need a night to heal that wound. And this way… if they do manage to find some way to get back out through this entrance, we'll be here. If they have not resurfaced by tomorrow evening, we could continue onward. Sesshomaru will locate us by scent when they emerge from the caves."

Sighing heavily, Inuyasha eyed the gaping gash on his torso, knowing his friend was right. He needed a night to heal, and if anyone could get Kagome out of those caves… it was Sesshomaru.


Screaming as she sailed downward at a breakneck speed, the young miko curled into her self as best she could, bracing for some kind of impact. Who knew how deep this chasm was, or what lie at the bottom. Would there be some sort of underwater river system… or a bed of jagged rocks?

Either way, the result would not be good. Even if she were fortunate enough to land in water, it was pitch black here, where would she go? She could swim for ages and never locate a ledge to find purchase upon. She would die.

She panicked. Her lips parted, drawing in another deep breath to scream.

A warm hand clamped over her mouth, drawing her into an equally warm body. "There will be no need for that," Sesshomaru told her as he tucked her against his chest.

She felt the speed they were falling at reduce, Sesshomaru's body twisting in the air so that his feet were facing downward. She could feel his jaki swelling around them, slowing their decent until it felt as thought they were floating. The miko felt a slight jar, and, realizing they had finally reached the bottom of the chasm, sighed in relief around his palm.

Sesshomaru peeled his hand away, but kept Kagome nestled tightly against him. He had heard the explosion that followed his entry into the cave, and knew what that would result in. "Do not stray from my side," he instructed Kagome tersely, his eyes trained above him.

The young miko cocked a brow, wondering why he was still so rigid. She couldn't sense anything else down here, as of yet. As far as she could tell, they were alone in this dark, gaping pit.

His sight was indeed keen at night, unmatched by most. But when there wasn't a shred of light to use as reflection, even he was rendered virtually blind. He removed his hand from Kagome's waist, his fingers shimmering an eerie green.

The faint illumination was all he needed to detect the motion from above, and he flicked his wrist to loose his acid whip. The glowing tendril snapped through the air, splitting one of the many boulders that were descending upon them in two.

The halves landed on either side of them with a crushing 'boom', making Kagome jump in fright. That jarring crash was followed by several others, the deafening sound echoing throughout the cave like claps of thunder. Her weak human eyesight could just barely pick up what it was that was falling, but it was enough for her to understand exactly what was happening. There had been a cave in at the opening she had descended through. They would be crushed!

Winding her hands into the silk of her savior's haori, Kagome buried her face into his chest, wishing that she had been more careful. 'If I had watched where I was going… if I hadn't let her herd me like that… none of this would be happening!'

"Miko," Sesshomaru drawled silkily, his eyes trained on the top of her head.

She perked at the sound of his voice, peering through an eye to take in the situation. The ground was littered with rubble, boulders lying all around them. Many had been hacked into pieces, their edges flat and cleanly cut where Sesshomaru's acid whip slid through them. "Oh," she hummed, moaning in relief.

She took a hesitant step backward, listening as several other, much smaller stones and pebbles bounced off the cave walls as they fell. "Well, what now?"

"Now," Sesshomaru began, "we find our way out of here."

Kagome cast a fleeting glance upward, pondering aloud, "I don't suppose we could just try that way?"

The taiyoukai shook his head once, intoning, "The entry is blocked; the cliff has caved. It would be far too dangerous to attempt escaping through that route. Even this Sesshomaru would not be able to survive should the mountain collapse."

He peered thoughtfully around the cave, taking in their surroundings and assessing the most logical method of escape.

"Um, could you possibly illuminate things a bit… ? I can't see anything, and it's sort of disconcerting," Kagome requested shyly, almost embarrassed to admit the human weakness. This demon, this perfect male specimen whose senses were beyond anything she could ever hope to grasp, made her feel a tad pitiful. Scratch that… he made her feel immensely pitiful.

Acquiescing to her request, Sesshomaru called forth his demonic power, and it leeched from his skin as an iridescent, yellow light.

Kagome stared in awe at her companion, her jaw slack as she took in his ethereal, majestic form. He looked like a god; a living Adonis swathed in rich, golden light. His silver hair moved like water, flowing down his back and around his shoulders with liquid motions. His robes rippled gently around him, caressing his tall, lean form like the hands of a lover might. Here, among the gloom of their enclosure, he looked more beautiful than he ever had.

Blinking when she realized she had been staring – and probably drooling – Kagome fanned herself quickly and cleared her throat, straightening her spine and mumbling, "So… where too next?"

Sesshomaru hid a grin at her obvious distress, pleased that he seemed to have such an effect on the girl. At the moment, she was rather appealing herself. She was slightly mussed, her scent dappled with desire and uncertainty. The glow he was giving off bathed her skin in a warm, honeyed light, accenting her lovely features wonderfully.

He imagined this is what she might look like first thing in the morning, her hair tousled from a night of vigorous lovemaking, her soft skin bathed in the warm light of the sun as it poured through the balcony doors in his chambers. But he was getting ahead of himself. She had asked him a question.

He took another quick look around the cave. The large chamber they stood in now extended upward, into another, smaller cavity. There it split into what looked like three separate routes. He would have to scent each one before deciding which would be the best choice.

Turning to the curious young girl at his side, he motioned for her to follow, leading her into the smaller chamber. He paused a moment there, taking his time to scent each passageway, as well as listen for any signs of life, or water.

There was a very faint dripping noise coming from one them, but he could not decipher which one. The echoing made it difficult to detect the source, and apparently these caves all connected again further on, because they all smelled the same. He could scent fresh air, and water… but the smell seemed to be coming from all three. He supposed then, that any option was suitable, since they all appeared to reconnect.

He chose the passage to the right, and the woman followed quickly behind him. He had no idea how long these tunnels went on for. They could be stuck inside the mountain for hours… days even. In fact, the latter was the more probable notion. They had fallen a good few hundred feet before reaching the bottom. Even if he were to fly, it could take some time to navigate through this maze of underground channels.

Until he found some form of suitable lead, he would go at a slower pace. Hopefully patience would lead them to a scent that he could trace… or better yet… water. Underground rivers all came from an outside source, so to find one would mean finding the way out.

Kagome grumbled miserably to herself. The ground here was rocky and uneven, making it hard to find good footing. All she needed now was to fall flat on her face in front of Sesshomaru. Maybe she would break her nose on a protruding stone. Wouldn't she be desirable then… with a bloody face and two black eyes?

She could practically see his expression. There would be that quirk of an eyebrow, followed by the twitch of his mouth and a spark of amusement in his eyes. He wouldn't laugh outright… no, he had more control than that. He would be laughing to himself though, that much was certain… and that knowledge alone made Kagome all the more wary.

As luck would have it, her train of thought had distracted her enough that she ended up wedging her foot between two rocks. It wasn't enough to make her fall, but it was enough to twist her foot at an awkward angle.

"Ouch!" she yelped loudly as pain lanced up her leg.

Sesshomaru turned sharply, eyeing Kagome with concern. His honeyed orbs swept quickly over her person, landing quickly on her foot. He backtracked, stooping low to carefully pry her shoe out from between the rocks.

Kagome hobbled ungracefully on one leg, gingerly pressing the tip of her injured foot against the ground to test it. As she had feared, another jolt of pain shot through her, her ankle throbbing as though it were on fire. She bent down, finding a larger rock to perch herself on. Peeling her pant leg up, she tested the skin around her ankle, finding it swollen and turning an angry shade of red.

Sesshomaru shook his head, murmuring softly, "Silly, little human."

She shot a cold glare at him, but he ignored it and grinned crookedly. Bending over, he slid his hand under her arm and around her back, his pelt looping under her bottom to lift her from the ground. Straightening, he turned and continued walking, her slight weight no hindrance at all.

He mused at that, how very tiny and delicate she was… 'Just a silly, little human,' he thought to himself. The notion did not disgust him, however, as it would have a short time ago. All it served to do was endear him to her more. She was a silly thing, yes, but it was more amusing than anything. It wasn't as though the girl was a blithering idiot, she was merely a klutz, and accompanied by that wide eyed look that only she could produce, as well as her purity, it made her extremely alluring.

She was fragile: a soft, delicate being who needed care and protection. That fact made a feeling unlike anything he'd ever experienced rush through him. The combination of adoration and possessiveness that swelled within him was not something he was used too, but he found he enjoyed the sensation. Kagome was his to defend now, and he would do so without question.

Kagome couldn't find it in her to stay mad at him. He may have been arrogant, but he hadn't said the words in a hurtful manner. In fact, she swore she heard a hint of adoration in his voice. After all, she supposed she was really just a silly, little human. It was certainly a good thing she had him there to watch out for her. She smiled at the idea, twining her hands behind his neck and resting her head on his shoulder.

"My hero," she muttered playfully, and the taiyoukai smiled a little.

Awe, so sweet! So, alls well that ends well! The pair was fine, of course, and the others will just have to hold tight and wait it out for a time.

As for the next chapter, it could be a bit longer. I've got family coming out to see my new baby, and I've got my shower on the weekend. Hopefully by Monday or Tuesday I'll have the new installment ready.

Please, review…