I have enough for an update! What an amazing thing. Hope y'all like it. Read and enjoy!
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Mia unsealed the door, which impressed Miroku. "It takes spiritual energy to open this door," he murmured as they walked inside. "I wonder if it requires more spiritual energy inside."
"Possibly," Kagome said. "The Wise One took me directly to the top, so I've never been inside this thing."
"Do you think she would let me shoulder some of the burden from her?" he asked. "I can use spiritual energy myself, and if we meet with monsters in there, we'll both have more energy to fight with."
"Good thinking, but I don't know if it'll work. This place needs a certain type of energy, and as far as I know, only Mia can use it."
"I'd like to try anyway."
"I'll ask, then. Hey, Mia?"
The blue-haired girl turned around. "Miroku says that he wants to try opening some of those things that need Psynergy so you don't waste all yours."
"As long as I'm in the Lighthouse, my Psynergy will replenish itself, but he is welcome to try anyway," she said. "The next one won't be for awhile."
Kagome and her friends trailed behind the Adepts as they wound their way through the Lighthouse. They ran into lower-class demons, which were dispatched with quickly, so Inuyasha refused to do anything about them, leaving Miroku, Sango, and the Adepts to deal with them. Kagome tried to help, but Inuyasha held her back. "What's your problem?" she asked, glaring at the owner of the hand attached to her arm.
"It's dangerous," he answered. "Let them take care of it. You have a job to do up top, and you have to think of your own safety and that of the baby from now on, remember?"
"Oh, that's right." After that, she let the others take care of the demons, but it grated on her nerves that she couldn't at least do something. She did have arrows, after all, and her miko energy was more potent against demons than their Psynergy.
Mia and Miroku took turns using their spiritual energy, and soon Isaac announced that they were near the top. "So, now what?" he asked. "We're almost to the Aerie."
"I'll go up alone," answered Kagome. "It's just up these steps, right?"
"Yes, but there may be more demons waiting. Shouldn't one of us go with you?"
She shook her head. "I will be fine."
"Are you sure?" Inuyasha asked.
"Yes, I'm sure. Now stay." She started up the steps, but turned around when she heard footsteps following her. "Inuyasha, I said I'd be fine," she said, glaring at the hanyou.
"Do you honestly think that I'd let you put yourself in potential danger?"
She sighed. "Sit boy!"
Immediately he slammed into the ground. From the gasps heard from the Adepts, they weren't expecting that, but those from the Sengoku Jidai knew it was only going to be a matter of time. Since she didn't feel like wasting any more time, she continued climbing the stairs and resolved to explain things later if someone reminded her. Following the corridor, she saw a waterfall, only it was unlike any other waterfall she had seen. It was flowing up instead of down. "Interesting," she murmured. "I think this might have something to do with getting to the top."
Taking a deep breath, she ran forward, through the waterfall, forgot to stop, and ran right into the wall on the opposite side of the room. "Itai," she moaned, rubbing her shoulder where it had impacted the wall. She staggered away from the wall and, still holding her injured shoulder, glanced back at the waterfall. "Is this my way up?" she asked aloud, not seeing anything else in the room that resembled a doorway. Cautiously stepping into the waterfall, she felt herself being lifted up by the force of the water. She lost her balance and fell completely into the waterfall, which still continued to carry her upwards.
When she regained her sense of up and down, she realized that she was no longer in the waterfall. Instead, she lay upon one of the floating platforms of the four Lighthouses. I remember this place, she thought, staggering to her feet. Looking across the platforms joining this one to the main Aerie, she saw the giant blue planet still spinning over the open hole where the Mercury Star resided. So that's where I need to go.
She eyed the floating platforms warily. Will they hold me up? Will I even be able to jump to them? So much for being careful. Backing up a couple steps, she leaped over the edge and landed on the first platform. "Whew," she sighed with relief. Now I just have to make it to the next ones.
The next few minutes seemed to crawl. Every time she leaped, she felt certain that she wouldn't make it. However, she did, and it only took seven minutes to clear the platforms, though it felt like eternity to her. On shaky legs she approached the blue sphere. What do I do now? she wondered, examining the planet.
"Touch it," the Wise One's voice said behind her.
"Yah!" she yelped, spinning around and almost falling over the edge. "Don't scare me like that." She tried to will her racing heart to slow down. "What do you mean, touch it? I can't reach it. I'll fall."
"Touch it with your mind. It will guide you to the link with the undead."
"Okay." Kagome knew she didn't sound convinced, but she didn't see how joining her mind with a big blue ball of something would help. She sat facing the ball, closed her eye, and sent her thoughts toward it. Is it even able to receive psychic messages?
Her mind encountered something it didn't expect. Sentience. It didn't have thoughts, exactly, but it possessed feelings like curiosity and pain. What was strange to Kagome was that it had no anger. The whirling planet wasn't capable of fury or anything related to it. It did have memory, and Kagome witnessed when the Adepts put it to sleep, then its reawakening. She saw how Saturos bated Isaac and his new friends, and how he met defeat on the Aerie, and was whisked away by that blue-haired Adept who strongly resembled Mia. Not much happened since then; the demons kept the curious at a distance. The Lighthouse sealed the demons inside so they couldn't escape and destroy Imil, but they also kept the demons alive to prevent people from wandering through.
Show me the link, she thought to the planet. Where are they getting their power?
The planet's mind flickered with what Kagome thought of as recognition of the query, and she felt herself pulled along to a spot that was brighter than the surrounding area. Her mind could see the power flowing out of the spot to several different directions. So this is it, she said to herself. Now how do I stop it from sending power to the undead?
The planet pulsed as her thoughts reached it, and Kagome watched as the bright spot dimmed. Once the spot had almost completely vanished, the planet showed her what to do to keep the link severed. So I form a block with my mind? That's not that difficult. She imagined that a wall stopped the power of Mercury from leaving, and as soon as she felt it become solid, the planet pulsed once more, sending a blast of energy toward her and throwing her out of her mind-sync with it.
"Itai," she moaned, opening her physical eyes and rubbing the forming bruise on her right shoulder where it had connected with the ground when she fell from the shock of the abrupt link separation. As she tried to catch her breath, she wondered how she was going to get down. I came up a waterfall, and I don't think I can swim down a waterfall that flows up. How will they know that I won't be coming back the way I went? Maybe I can find them once I get down.
Once she felt well enough to stand, she staggered down the steps and stepped onto the platform on the opposite side of the Aerie. The platform gently descended to the ground level, and when she got off, it rose once again up to the Aerie. Making her way down the stairs at a pace much slower than she was used to, she stumbled off the last step and into Inuyasha's waiting arms. "I-Inuyasha?"
"I had a premonition that she would come down this way and need some assistance on the way back," she overheard Ivan's voice say. "I'm glad I was right again."
"Are you okay?" Inuyasha asked, supporting her.
"Yes, I'm alright. I'm just tired, that's all. Are we going back to Imil?"
"Dunno. You should probably ask one of them?"
Looking around Inuyasha's arm, she called to Isaac, "Are we going back to Imil or straight back to Bilibin?"
"Imil," Mia announced before Isaac could even open his mouth. "You're completely drained, and you have to recover before we go through the caves again."
Kagome tried to step away from Inuyasha so she could walk down the rest of the stairs, but the world decided to start playing games and tilted sideways, making her lose her balance. Before she could touch the ground, Inuyasha caught her. "Clumsy," he admonished her. "Whatever you did, it took too much of your energy. You won't make it to that village."
He swept her off her feet and started walking after everyone else. "Inuyasha, put me down," she demanded. "I can walk on my own, thank you very much!"
"Hah, like you did on the stairs? I don't think so. Just stop fussing and let me help you."
As they walked, a feeling of nostalgia washed over her. I feel like we're back to being like we used to. Almost, anyway.
They got separate rooms at Imil, one for the Adepts, and one for the Japanese. Inuyasha insisted on carrying Kagome all the way up the steps to the room and deposited her right on the bed. "Stay there," he ordered.
"I would, but I need something to eat," complained Kagome. "I haven't had anything since…I don't remember, but I need food!"
"Then Miroku will go get some."
"What?" Kagome and Miroku exclaimed. "Since when did I volunteer to be a servant?" Miroku continued.
"Since you decided to help me and Kagome look for the Shikon Jewel shards, now go get her food."
"Fine," the monk sighed, getting off his cushioned chair and heading towards the door.
"I'll go with him," volunteered Sango. She followed Miroku out the door, and not two seconds later a yelp followed by a loud slap reached the ears of those remaining in the room.
"I could just see that one coming," Kagome sighed. The effort of severing the link didn't seem like much at the time, but now the fatigue was catching up to her. At least, that's the only thing she could think of that would cause her to be this tired. "Why was I the one that the Wise One chose to do this?" she asked aloud as she lay back against the pillows.
"Who know?" Inuyasha shrugged. "What happened up there?"
She told him what happened, and some time in the middle, Sango and Miroku came back with food for everyone. How they came by it was a mystery since they couldn't understand the Imil language, and vice versa. However, they succeeded in bringing the food, so no one questioned them, and they listened as Kagome wrapped up her tale. "Be on guard next time," Sango warned her when she finished. "Those things weren't expecting you to do that this time, but next time you may not be so lucky. Expect to have some sort of lash back, and be prepared to redirect it."
"I don't understand."
"This is the first link you've cut, so they weren't expecting it. Next time, though, they might have something prepared to defend that link. It might be dangerous, so think of a way to disarm whatever they have coming at you. For instance, before you join with the power, put up a shield. Understand?"
"I think I do. Sure, I'll do that."
"I'll go with you to make sure you're safe," Shippo volunteered as he bounced up and down on her bed. He was still small, so Kagome couldn't even feel him impact the mattress, though there was only two feet between her side and his feet.
"I don't think you'd be able to come with me," she said. "I wish you all could come with me, but I think I have to go by myself for this to work."
Shippo's demon eyes grew sad. "Then be extra-careful. We don't want you to get hurt."
"I know." She looked out the window at the bright moon. I wonder what Felix is doing right now. Is he looking up at the moon, too? If only we could be together.
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