Chapter 25 - Beginning of the End: Take the Dive Part I


Inuyasha watched with apprehension as his crow carried his message away, blending with the night shadows. He breathed heavily, the bodies of his unconcious friends lying in the snow. Instead of the red tinge of anger, his eyes were filled with worry as he lifted his wife's form against his chest. Kirara was settled between the demon slayer and the monk, growling softly and nudging their shoulders.

Damn it all, what the hell was going on?

Sesshomaru's message had been no surprise: they were on alert for the cursed dragon demon to return. Sango and Miroku were ready, having recently returned from visiting their children on the other side of the well. Kagome was... by his side, ready for anything, like she always was. The team headed out, sans Shippo, left behind to guard the next generation.

They had been traveling hard for hours when Inuyasha heard a twinge in the back of his mind. Once he and Kirara dipped beneath the tree branches, the humans alighted and that was where everything went wrong.

Kagome had dropped her bow and walked forward, miko robes dragged on the damp earth. Sango and Miroku's weapons also fell as the pair moved as if in a trance. When attempting to stop their progress, Inuyasha and Kirara found their friends' strength tenfold what it should have been. Their determination answered the call that was a mere whisper for the demons.

He had begged, pleaded, screamed. Called out her name dozens of times: Kagome! Kagome can you hear me? Kagome! KAGOME! His words were not able to reach her.

With fear and tears, he had punched her in the gut as gently as he could, watching her fall limp as the air rushed out of her lungs. In seconds, he delivered blows to Sango and Miroku, laying them on the ground.

He clenched his teeth. Sesshomaru had warned them! The demon had the ability to take control of people; he'd done it to Rin before she died. They had fallen right into the trap. I should have been more careful!

He looked upon the still forms of his friends and his mind could not help but flash back to that day where he had dragged their bodies out of the fire and he believed all was lost. Panic dug its claws into his heart and his breath came more quickly. What could he do?

With a trembling arm, he held out his hand. Sesshomaru's crow spell materialized, awaiting a response to the earlier message. Inuyasha opened and closed his mouth several times, but the only word he could utter was instinctual.

"Help."

Minutes passed and then some more. It could be hours before anyone even heard his cry. He frowned. Whatever was happening seemed to impact humans the hardest and night was nearly upon them. There was no way to tell what unspoken horrors might come with the deepest darkness.

He took off his firerat coat and wrapped Kagome, laying her against a nearby tree. With no effort, he slung Sango and Miroku on Kirara's back, securing their weapons. He knelt before the cat.

"I need you to get them as far away from here as possible. You can do that, can't you?" He gave Kirara's nose a slight stroke and he received a warm push against his palm in return. A giant purr helped calm him and seconds later it was just him in the silence of the forest.

That and the ever present chime in the back of his head, buzzing like a summer insect in his ear. He settled at the base of the tree, Kagome in his lap, the unsheathed Tessaiga crossed in front of them.

Come on, hurry!


Leagues away, Sesshomaru's crow dissipated after delivering his brother's brief plea. Inuyasha never asked for help. Even after all these years with an established partnership, neither brother completely abandoned their pride to call for help.

Sesshomaru assessed Rin, who was breathing normally, but still out cold. She needed treatment, but the possibility that Inuyasha's team was hindered by the same condition was too high to ignore. He frowned.

There was nothing for it.

"Correction: We will go north and intercept Tsukiakari. I trust you two will be able to accomplish your part of the plan on your own."

Yoihito bristled with imminent objection, but Kongomi restrained his outbursts with an unbending clamp on his arm. She nodded solemnly: "You can trust us. We will head north tomorrow when we are done."

"Good." Sesshoumaru gathered Rin in his arms and prepared to leave when Kongomi stopped him.

"Don't forget her pack." In a quieter voice she mentioned, "She might have items she needs to stay alive in there."

The boat rocked as Sesshomaru pushed off, causing the stars to ripple in what was an otherwise calm surface. Kongomi became aware of Yoihito's glower.

"What complaint can you possibly have? We both knew it would come to this: my blood is needed to summon the dragon, I'm the only one that can control them. We need Mirai if we stand a chance against that Pian bastard. You cannot deny that!"

He crossed his arms. "I can. I refuse to acknowledge that there is nothing else that we can do."

"Then why did you not say something when we first received SEsshomaru-sama's message? Why did you not prevent us from leaving? You had ample opportunity to stop this before we reached this point." Kongomi stormed over to him and looked with fury on her face.

"As if I could ever contradict you! Especially without an alternative ready!" His voice rose. "But I do not have such a plan, and so I can do nothing but reduce your burden the best I can."

"Then why complain at all?" She exclaimed, exasperated.

"Because you are my treasure and I will not stand by silently while you destroy yourself." His voice and eyes dropped. "I want to believe there is another way, but you are right - with no alternatives before us, this is what must be done." He gave her a sad smile, eyes glistening.

All her rage flowed away with a prolonged sigh. She reached out to caress his cheek. "You have every right to be worried...and scared." She gulped. "I am. But we have spent the last year planning for every possibility and this was the outcome. I trust Sesshomaru-sama when he says this is the only way we can counter the threat before us. If you cannot trust him, trust me."

He collapsed onto her in a tight embrace. "Promise me we do this together. And don't say anything stupid like I need to survive so I can lead the people of Ryudo. I am no replacement for you."

She squeezed him back. "Don't be ridiculous. My council will see to that. If I promise, will you promise me to let me go if it comes to that?"

"No."

She sighed once more. "It was worth a shot. Come on, let's get some sleep. Tomorrow we have to summon a dragon."


Tsukiakari raced through the forest, overlooking everything in their path, yet something caught her attention - a bit of slow movement on the ground. She touched down and let Kohaku slide out of her hold.

Peeking through the trees, she could see humans lazily trudging forward, in the same direction they were headed. Which was odd, considering the impending evening.

"What on earth?" she pondered. "Kohaku-san, do you see this?"

Kohaku was performing the same lethargic march, his scythe dragging through the soil by the long chain wrapped around his wrist.

She immediately scoped him up and carried him further away, checking on his facial expression every few seconds. After only a minute or two, he blinked, shaking his head to clear away the cobwebs of confusion.

"What happened?"

They stopped in a tree. "There is a spell at work, I'm afraid." Tsukiakari's brows knit in frustration. "It seems to be drawing all humans to a particular location. Our hypothesis that the target was en route to some location in the north is correct."

"Aneue and everyone were headed in that direction. We need to save them!" Kohaku was pale under red cheeks touched by the freezing air.

It was at that moment that Kirara burst past them, shouldering Sango, Miroku, and their weapons.

"Kirara?" Kohaku shouted and ran a few steps, kicking up a bit of snow. He threw his arms around his furry companion. "You're supposed to be guarding Sota and the others, but I am glad you're not," he admitted.

"They appear to be okay, maybe just knocked out," he called back to Tsukiakari. When he got no response, he turned around.

Tsukiakari was fixated on one of the magical messenger crows on her sleeve. The bird dissolved and even then, she did not move.

Sesshomaru had sent her a visual message: Rin lying comatose on a wooden deck, a quick scan of the horizon, a quick view of the land in the distance. Just enough information for her to use her teleportation spell and get the clear missive: come here.

Striding forward, she captured Kohaku with an unwavering gaze. "Tell me exactly what happened to Rin to let her come back to life."

"I-I don't know! She said she has some sort of dragon cloak that makes her look the way she does and then she has this little inky blob that gives her golden light. I have no idea how it works!"

"The dragon mantle," she murmured. A less common bit of spell casting, but one that she had heard about while studying what materials were left in the library of the rebuilt Ryudo. That would veil her from the effects of the bewitchment, to some extent. If Inuyasha-sama had sent away his closest friends, then the situation to the north must also be dire.

She made her decision. "Kohaku-san, take your sister - get as far away from here as possible. We have not learned the reach of this magic and I cannot risk any of you falling prey to its allurement again. I recommend getting to the evacuation point for the village. You must make sure that none of the villagers are missing."

He nodded and she leapt into the sky, sprinting with all of her might.


Sesshomaru raced through the black forest, his golden eyes guiding him. Luckily, Rin remained asleep, currently immune to whatever force

There was a slight rustle off to his right. Tsukiakari's eyes and crescent moon shone, reflecting the light of the actual moon as she fell in step.

"All humans are being lured to his location. I am not sure how far this effect is radiating, but I told Kohaku to take his sister and the monk to the evacuation site, to offer support to the villagers."

"My brother and his wife were not with them?"

"No. He probably remained behind, per the original plan to rapidly locate the target."

Sesshomaru did not say anything, but there was a bit of concern at the back of his mind. Something that bothered him about Tsukiakari's observation about the range of the spell. She brought a voice to his dread.

"If you were on your way to the dragon, that distance far exceeds the influence I have seen so far." Tsukiakari said hesitantly. "Rin-san should not have been impacted."

"Unless his original spell is in effect."

"That is not certain. It could merely be that she is more susceptible because of that prior connection."

"I don't care how it happened. All that matters is that it did happen and will happen again." His tone was clipped.

Neither of them needed to express aloud their fear: that Rin would once again be trapped under a curse that could lock her breath. Sesshoumaru clenched her body a little tighter. Not again.

"Sesshomaru-sama, stop." Tsukiakari paused on a nearby tree branch. "Please allow me to try an idea." She began weaving her fingertips together. "I will need your consent as this will involve you."

"I do not care. Do what you must." He spared a brief glance at his fiancee before keeping his gaze locked on Rin.

"Are you certain? I will be reinforcing the powers she currently possesses with your life energy. I may not be able to reverse this and I am not sure of what the future consequences may be." Her eyes fluttered. "I would offer myself, but I believe she would appreciate it more from you."

"She will never know." Whatever mission she had, he would help her see it through. If she insisted on keeping her identity a secret, he would lie for her until one of them died. Perhaps not even then.

"Do you truly believe that is the correct way? You two may walk different paths, but is maintaining this distance what you want?"

"Do it and I'll hear no more of this." He growled slightly, barely keeping his fangs in check.

Tsukiakari lowered one of her hands to Rin's face and held another in front of Sesshoumaru's.

"I am sorry, Rin-san."

A pale light faintly blossomed between the two; he could feel their hearts beat as one, the heat of his demonic aura connecting and twining with hers. Under the pulse of dragon energy, beyond the spots of life from the kagekyo, he could sense her - just Rin, the same girl he remembered.

Whatever enchantment this was, Tsukiakari was pulling no punches. As the glow evaporated into obscurity, everything became still.

"What exactly did you-"

Rin stirred, feeling as though a huge bolt of lightning had shot through her chest. And my head, she thought, grabbing her throbbing temples. Through the wash of pain, she remembered: I was on the boat when a sudden call…

She froze. The voice in her mind had been his; chilling, unfeeling, and it cut through her like cold steel. She shivered. That was one sensation she hoped to have left in her grave.

She became aware that someone was gently squeezing her shoulders and her eyes popped open. AHH! What am I doing in his arms?! Fighting her internal distress, she tried to keep her face stoic.

"My apologies for that … episode." She sat up and looked at their surroundings with mild perplexion. "Care to tell me what we're doing in the middle of nowhere?" Checking her armor and fixing her robes served as an excellent distraction to her thudding heart.

"Pian has unleashed a spell that is affecting humans and low level demons," Tsukiakari explained. "You were able to resist the thrall, but at a cost of expanding your own energy. You collapsed from exhaustion."

Oi, oi, oi. What precisely does THAT mean? How much does she know? Did she find out? "Why don't I hear it now?"

The sorcerous held up one of her hands and a golden light swirled between her fingers. "I was able to put a barrier of sorts around you. You should be immune for now."

Rin did not miss the tiny twitch from Sesshomaru. That is a lie. A pretty big one. But which part is untrue?

"We must hurry. Inuyasha-sama requested our aid and we are on our way to render that assistance."

Rin felt terrible: she had promised to take on the dangerous role in summoning the beast, but that was clearly left squarely in the hands of her compatriots. It seemed silly to bother inquiring when she knew what the answer would be.

"Let us go." Sesshoumaru's deep voice echoed in the night. Tsukiakari pinched his sleeve and he knelt, offering his arm, which she perched on with a steadfast grace. His lordship spared Rin a second glance. "Keep up." He leapt into the sky.

Ignoring the jealous pangs, Rin started to run along the ground with her new demonic speed.


Pian remained perfectly still, hands relaxed on the armrests of the abandoned throne, his legs loosely crossed at the ankle. Floating a few inches in front of him, the inu clan seal floated in the air, the moonlight glinting off the golden surface, reflecting off the red fibers of the tassel.

This had been a most miraculous boon. In the original castle, the barrier was fueled by dragon demon girls who had to be captured in hidden traps, forced into subservient quarters and routines. Now he merely had to conjure a vague impression of his prey and they would come.

None of the humans had reached the perimeter of his masterful barrier, but it would not be long before they collapsed against the energy shield, their meaningless lives feeding his protective spell. Recalling the villages he passed on the way to his destination, the first would appear by daybreak or shortly thereafter.

With his perpetual barricade in play, he allowed his mind to drift. Casting the siren's call had been unlike any mind control that he had experienced before; it was anticlimactic. There was none of the struggle, there was no need to bend them to his will. A mere whisper, a suggestion, and the seal could broadcast. The faintest touch of his skin against the metal would allow him to peer into the minds of those heeding the invitation.

Keeping his eyes closed, he reached out and placed a single fingertip on the floating artifact. Where did you go, my darling? I heard your voice among thousands, but you are gone. Hear me, my dear.

His mind roamed, passing over the mundane acquiescence of the human herds edging forward.

He could hear the hearts of several running full tilt away, their souls within his grasp, but no longer in his interest. They will come soon enough, when the others are dead. They cannot resist playing the hero.

He cast his net out as far as the seal would allow - all the way to the waters to the far west. That was where he heard her mind scream in rebellion, but it had been replaced by the dull emotions of that tragic princess and her wretched shadow. Their anxiety was palpable. Time to spice that a little bit. He sent a new command to another of his pawns. That will be delightfully tasty once it is ripe.

But his attention was focused on another prey. The fact that the unquestioning strength of the inu welp was gone, moved far to the north, pressing directly to him confirmed his suspicions. They were all on the move, which meant she must be too, and yet, she managed to elude him.

Where oh where did you go, my dear Rin-chan?


A few hours later, dawn arrived, casting shining rays that promised the coming of spring, but that went completely ignored by those on the cusp of the battle for their lives.

Kohaku raced on the back of Kirara with his sister and brother-in-law, trying to keep ahead of the invisible force that threatened to arrest their spirits.

Kongomi and Yoihito treaded water beside their sea dragon, one with a fresh bandage around her arm, the other with a skin that sloshed with blood as they both inhaled as hard as they could before submerging.

Sesshomaru and Rin chased the fading dusk, joining Inuyasha as the sun peeked over the mountains. Tsukiakari jumped into action, creating a barrier around the miko who was already awake and inching towards the same fate that awaited so many humans.

Through it all, Pian smiled, watching the puppets tugging on the imaginary strings wrapped around his fingers.


A/N: I know this one is a bit shorter, but I think the next few chapters will be like this as I manage multiple fronts of action.

Thank you to each and every one of you who took the time to leave a comment or a review. I know this is a stressful time across the world and I truly appreciate the words of encouragement and kindness. In return, I will do my best to keep the story going while we are trapped at home!