Thank you for letting me know I spelt Bokusenou wrong, Shay. I feel silly…
North.
He had flown north, to the house of Akou, Arconen and Salvera's domain. This, if he solved the puzzle Bokusenou offered correctly, would be where the gate could be found. And in going to this location, he would somehow be able to return Kagome to their realm. So long as Arconen and Salvera cooperated, but he seen no reason why they would refuse. And if they did…
The venom boiled at the very thought.
They would assist, or they would die. It was that simple for Sesshoumaru, due to their near killing of Kagome, his alliance with their house happened to be on thin ice as it was. Any refusal on their part would end badly for them.
He supposed, however, that it was a good sign the guards of their keep did not attack him when he came upon their doorstep. No, instead, they allowed him entrance. If his once allies had become hostile or held ill will toward him, surely they would not have allowed him to enter. Unless perhaps they wanted to formerly dismiss their treaty. If so, they had better do him one final favor, as he was owed, else everyone in this home would die.
This violence in him, held for a being other than himself, was uncommon, but Sesshoumaru understood it would not leave. He'd decided Kagome, in some sense, belonged to him and that he would never be rid of her. He had accepted it, being with her was unavoidable. Of course, the entire world had no need of knowing such, especially before Naraku's demise.
"Lord Sesshoumaru," Arconen greeted, briefly bowing to the demon of the west. "We received word you made haste for our lands. To what do we-"
Sesshoumaru would play no games. "You have a method for which to reach another plain, I understand." Arconen's brows rose and he stood silent, staring at the demon lord. "I have need of this method."
"Lord Sesshoumaru," Arconen began carefully. "This method for which you seek was a gift given by the Gods. It is not a toy or something to be used lightly."
A brow raised. "I have no intention to use it lightly, Lord Arconen." Sesshoumaru intoned. "I have every intention of killing a demi-God." That was not considered light business, was it?
"To kill a demi-God?" Arconen questioned, his eyes revealing little to nothing, but Sesshoumaru knew this demon and could feel the unwillingness to assist him. "That is a high crime, Lord Sesshoumaru. Your soul-"
The Inu youkai nearly scoffed. "Spare me the ridiculousness of my soul's welfare, for that is not of my concern."
"Mate," Salvera called as she made her way around the corner, behind Sesshoumaru. "We shall do as he asks."
"Salvera!" Arconen growled as discretely as possible, a dangerous flashing to his eyes.
"It is not for himself he does this." Salvera stood a few feet away from Sesshoumaru, looking over his still injured body. "These wounds are old, you know this. He has not stopped to heal and the miko… She is no longer here." Looking at Sesshoumaru, she asked. "The great power, some days ago, it was the demi-God, was it not?" Sesshoumaru's silence was her answer. "And he has taken Ka-" At his aura flaring, she silenced herself.
Do not say her name. She knew that's what he told her, that she did not deserve to speak it and she understood. After what she had done, Sesshoumaru was right. She had no right to whatsoever. When Arconen's energy shot through the roof, however, Salvera took her stance once more, this time facing her mate. "Do not dare." She growled. "I killed her. I have no right to speak of her."
"I will have no being threaten my family." Arconen raged, and Sesshoumaru only watched, prepared to fight or to remain civil. This would of course be Arconen's decision. And if he made an ill one, then realized his fault later, Sesshoumaru would not allow him to back down from it.
"Let me make amends for what I have done." She almost begged and Arconen's eyes softened reluctantly. "Lord Sesshoumaru," she turned her eyes to him once more. "It will take us some time to prepare the portal, and we can only leave it open for a short time. If you do not return, you shall be stuck in another realm for eternity. If Arconen or I feel an evil racing for this realm, we will close the path."
"Hn." The Inu youkai turned without another thought, agreeing to their terms and going to wait for their summons.
"Lord Sesshoumaru." She called once more and so he paused. "We have a room already prepared for you. In order to defeat Ocraseous, perhaps you should rest and regain all of your strength." When he seemed to chew on her offer, she added. "No one will bother you so long as you wish to be alone."
He gave a slight inclination of his head and continued outside, deciding that this was barely tolerable.
She'd had no visions of anyone she loved, of nothing from her life before, but… She felt it reaching across the expanse of her soul like a maggot infested hand. This feeling was grating, frightening and downright disturbing. And she knew it wasn't just a vision of the final battle, this was something more terrifying. In no way could Kagome pull out of it.
"Kagome, Kagome," She heard just beside her ear, unable to move as a scene played out before her.
There were humans surrounding a village, men and very few women holding up their last lines of defense, dirt, grime and blood smearing them. A young boy, who could be no older than twelve, was shaking from utter fear, his eyes wild and almost sightless in the night. Kagome trembled as this young man relieved himself from pure terror.
"Bird in the cage." The voice continued ever so slowly. She couldn't recognize it, but was so distracted by the humans watching the last rays of light dim over the horizon. This village was… familiar somehow. She couldn't quite figure it out, but knew it was important to do so. "When," the voice murmured. "When will you come out?"
The light that was fading, came over a statue that made Kagome nearly fall in shock and weakness. It was her. She had her short hair, wore a miko garb with a bow in one hand, and her other drawing an arrow from the quiver at her back. Children and those too weak to fight were huddled around the statue. A child cried out in fear as the final ray of light blinked out of existence. Hair raising energy rose up from the ground, around the alter, glowing bright, white blue as it surrounded the children.
Kilala shot from overhead, rushing toward the darkness, Sango on her back, her eyes lit with fire. Kagome watched her disperse into the dark, hearing the boomerang crash into flesh and bone, voices that were inhuman crying out. A fight ensued, flashes of death and destruction and war. Kagome's heart pounded in her head as she watched the chaos, unable to move or speak. "In the evening," the voice began once more. The sun began to crest the hill. "Of the dawn?"
There was also, at the left of Kagome's statue, one of Miroku, eyes closed, his hand pulling at the beads protecting his wind tunnel. At her back, Kagome suddenly realized, was Kikyo in the same stance as she was and across from Kikyo was Inuyasha, crouched, brandishing Tetsuiga. "What does this mean…?" Kagome trembled, looking at the statues, never having seen any of them fight. She hadn't, Miroku hadn't, Kikyo and Inuyasha hadn't. "Sango!" Shippo shouted, rushing forward as Kilala more slammed into the ground than landed, her weak body unconscious not a moment later.
The demon slayer didn't register Shippo, only cradled Kilala's small, kitten like form to her body and crawled, slowly, on one hand, to the distance Miroku's statue stood. Sango took a bloodied hand, placed it upon the statue, curled around Kilala and her chest fell, never rising again.
Kagome cried, shaking as time seemed to fast forward and a statue of Sango was placed opposite of Miroku, Kilala proud at her side and her boomerang ready to fly at its next enemy. "The crane and turtle slipped." Continued the voice.
The village, that had to be Keade's village, was almost wiped out now. There were hardly any lives left to be saved. Yet Shippo, on the next night of the attacks, stood before one small little girl. She could not have been anymore than three and had Sango's brown hair, but Miroku's eyes. She wasn't in the protective barrier that Kikyo's and Kagome's statue held. She was in the middle of the village and Shippo couldn't get her to move.
The last few villagers dropped down to their knees as the onslaught came and began to pray. Her heart was going to crush from the pain, she knew it. A demon swept down for Shippo, some sort of dragon, and a mighty roar broke through it's promise of death. Sesshoumaru, in his truest form, attacked the dragon, climbing into the sky after it, unafraid. He had other wounds, terrible ones, and Kagome felt much like Izayoi watching Inu Tashio fight to the death. Fear held her still in a moment longer than any other.
The dragon fell from the sky, dead, and its minions ran. Sesshoumaru slammed into the ground not long after, nearly shaking the foundations of the statues as he did so. His body was weak, on the brink of death, but still, his red tinted, blue eyes watched Shippo with a calmness. He growled for some time, the villagers frightened to come near while Shippo listened.
"He says the four great dragon Kings are dead. Sesshoumaru-sama killed two, and before Inu no Tashio perished once more, he killed the others." Shippo was trying not to cry. "We're all safe now. It's what she would have wanted." The villagers understood, looking to Kagome and praying at her unmoving memorial.
Sesshoumaru's eyes, as Shippo whispered this last bit, looked to Kagome's statue as well. A snarl came to his face as he stood, forcing himself upright. He moved forward, over Shippo, and toward her statue, leaving a deep river of blood on his way. Her statue was almost as tall as his true form, so that when he came before her, he could almost look directly into her eyes. He took in a few uneasy breaths, staring into her stone eyes before closing his own. Energy whirled from his body, and he ceased to exist in the physical world.
The villagers made one, final statue before the vision vanished, a vision moments long, but truly, weeks of time in the future.
"Who," the voice whispered in the black of nothing. "Stands behind you now?"
Kagome felt more than seen an energy burning brighter than the sun, hot, warm, inviting, powerful… "A Goddess…" Kagome whispered beyond her tears. "Amaterasu…"
"Indeed." And then the entire area was alit with beauty, with the freshness of sunlight. Kagome turned, seeing only a faint outline of a woman in glorious heavenly light. "I have shown you this for a purpose, Kagome."
"When a God touches a human life, no matter if he or she is demi-God, the human life changes dramatically. All visions of the future from a former time are changed irrevocably." Kagome's heart beat unsteadily. "There will come a time when a particular Inu youkai's stubbornness returns you to the earthly realm. And when this occurs, new visions will accost you as a torrential rain. It may not be directly, rather until you sleep, but you shall find how the world will change simply because you have received such attention from one of Godly blood."
"Is this part of that future?" Kagome asked.
Amaterasu sighed. "It may be, should you fail."
Kagome sputtered. "If I fail? How am I supposed to keep this from happening? I'm just human, I-"
"You are a prophecy, Kagome Higurashi. Your fate was created long before you were born." Kagome eye's went wide as she looked upon the Goddess. "You will not be the wife of a God, but you will be the mother of one."
"Wh-what…?" She distinctly felt Amaterasu smile at her before she shuddered awake, looking into the worried eyes of Kiru and Ocraseous. And her first reaction was the most ungracious reaction, but she couldn't help it. He was leaning over her bed, black hair tickling her arm. She slapped him right across his face in her sleep fogged, panic ridden delirium. "I am not having your baby! I don't care what Amaterasu says!"
The demi-God blinked at Kagome in confusion as her red hand print throbbed against his face.
He got smacked! Ha, ha, poor Ocraseous.
