In Time, Death

By Alesyira

Summary: Ready, set, jump!

Cliff

- 1660 -

"This place is beautiful," Kagome breathed, clasping her hands in front of her chest. They stood atop a grassy hill sprinkled with fragrant blossoms that rippled with iridescence as they swayed in a gentle breeze. The early morning sun sparkled over a lake she could see in the distance. "People have been dying here?" she asked, glancing over her shoulder at Koenma.

He shook his head once. "Jorge set the portal exit at a safe spot in the mortal realm near where we believe the humans have been passing through. We'll need to look for any suspicious spots. I am not entirely certain what we will find."

She nodded with understanding. "A few months ago, I found and passed into Makai through a suspicious spot."

"Really? What was that like?" He curled his fingers beneath his chin, watching her with a vague look of consternation.

"I couldn't see it, but I could sense a little bit of the youki and it felt very cold."

"Is there something like that nearby?" he asked, looking around the picturesque location.

Kagome hummed quietly, reaching out for their surroundings with careful attention to anything out of the ordinary. She turned slowly in a circle, holding her hands out at her sides until she found what she was looking for. It was really subtle, a mere fraction of what she'd been able to spot at the start of her quest to rescue the Goshinboku.1 "Over here," she murmured, gesturing toward a rocky edge.

She was surprised to find that the stones cut off sharply into a steep, dark ravine. A chill crept down the back of her neck as she leaned carefully over that edge, her gaze flicking through the deep shadows for any sign of how far up they were. Koenma dropped a rock into the darkness, and they watched and listened for about ten seconds before a faint crack echoed back up to them.

"I…" Kagome cut herself off, biting her lip as she considered what she was about to say. "I think it's down there."

"That's odd. Is this the only one nearby?"

She nodded, staring down into the abyss.

"How have humans been falling into the Makai if it's…" he trailed off when he noticed something to the side. He knelt to pluck it from between two medium-sized rocks and held the little chain of flowers out to show Kagome.

"Oh…" she breathed out, glancing around at a few more mementos that had been tucked out of sight. Together, they found a small doll, a tiny blanket stained with old brown, a little wooden carving, and an odd blackened handprint. "Oh, no," she murmured, wrapping her arms around her torso. The remains of a small fire was between a few other stones, and a scrap of starkly white cloth stood out like a beacon beneath another.

"You don't think…" he trailed off, looking at her with concern.

"I don't want to think anything about how humans may have been getting through a breach that's down there."

Koenma put a comforting hand on her shoulder as they peered over the edge together.

"What do we do about it?" she asked, worrying her lower lip between her teeth.

He shook his head. "There's nothing we can do about the humans that choose to step off this cliff, but we need to do something about the passageways. I worry they're getting bigger or easier to pass through, and I'm trying to not think about the possibility that the spell is failing."

Kagome hummed as she considered the trouble. "In the future, I think you guys have sensors in place. Something that triggers an alarm. I don't know much about it or how it works."

Koenma paced a short distance away, folding his arms as he nodded. "We do have something like that for new souls entering our realm. But it's neutral magic meant to pick up just the mundane that find themselves there without an escort." He glanced at her from the corner of one eye. "If we want to make something similar for people passing through without permission…"

He stopped and put his hands on his hips, his consternation shifting into something akin to excitement as he openly stared at her.

She waited for him to say more, then waved her hand impatiently. "Koenma, it has been a very long day for me. I'm exhausted. You look exhausted. I'd really prefer to get things moving so I can eventually take a nap." She shivered suddenly, feeling the slow return of her excess magic as the bear's enchantment faded. She held on to her time as hard as she could and pulled open her pouch to start looking for a seal.

He chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, I'm pretty worn out. But look," he gestured down the cliff. "I have an idea. If there's a way to look at this from the other side," he said, rubbing the back of his neck as he realized how absolutely ridiculous that suggestion was. They'd have to go back and get more supplies to get them safely down the cliff, or request another portal to put them in the other realm.

She stopped digging for a seal and leaned over the edge to take another look, then tilted her head from side to side as though weighing her options. "Alright, we can jump."

Koenma blinked at her in disbelief. "Are you mad?"

She shook her head and inconspicuously reached out for his arm. As her control over time broke, he'd be pulled along for the change. "The falling part will be pretty easy. What we might find on the other side is entirely different. We won't end up over a river of lava or anything, will we?" Already the gentle morning breeze and the rustle of grasses had started to slow. It wouldn't be much longer before it nearly stopped.

"No melting or burning deaths have been reported here," he said slowly, unable to comprehend what she had in mind. "Last I checked," he muttered, looking at her more carefully, "which is now, you're still very mortal. So yeah, falling will be easy, but what's your plan to survive the landing?" He could live through such a steep drop, but it would hurt and require a significant chunk of his energy to recover.

She shook her head and looped her arm around his waist. "Just hang on tight, okay?"

Koenma's eyebrows shot upwards as he wrapped his arms around her, and then she pulled him backwards off the ledge.

He choked on his next breath in surprise as he dangled haphazardly from the girl in his arms. She squeaked out a laugh as his grip slipped and he had to adjust and cling harder like an over-sized monkey. His face flamed with embarrassment that she'd caught him so off guard like this, but was thankful that she didn't look up to see his reaction as she watched for the pathway beneath them.

It was very close, but she wasn't completely sure they'd be able to just pass through like the humans that had come before them. They were in luck, though, and soon she felt the familiar icy chill creeping over her feet. It washed over her inch-by-inch, and she instantly regretted the slow-fall that her broken time had provided. Her teeth were chattering by the time it slid up her waist.

When they fully passed through the opening into the other realm and the pale pink light of Makai's sky washed everything in rosy tones, she sagged in relief. Warmth trickled back to her as their feet touched the ground a moment later, and she tilted her head back to stare up at the ledge. "It's not very far down," she murmured, shivering violently against the lingering chill.

His arms briefly tightened around her as he looked above them. "You're right. The fall wouldn't have killed anyone jumping from that spot."

They both glanced suspiciously down the winding length of the little gully where they now stood. "So," she whispered, "What did kill the ones that came through here?"

Koenma shrugged and lowered his voice to reply, "The ones we interviewed couldn't remember any of the circumstances before or after their death."

Convenient. She frowned. "We're on the other side, now. What do you think we should do?" He dropped his arms with the intention to move away from her, but she didn't let go until she had his attention. "At least hold my hand," she ordered quietly.

He quirked his eyebrow but did as she asked. They held hands as he knelt and picked up a small stone from the dried stream bed.

"This is a spur of the moment plan," he whispered quietly, "but it might just do the trick. Once I understood how the anchors worked in Baikal's community, we stole the idea and imbued our gates with detection spells. It doesn't keep anyone out or in, but few people try to sneak into Reikai, so it does what we need it to."

He rolled the stone between his fingers. "It took a combination of magics from several people," he murmured, leaning slightly into her space. "But everything here is just brimming with magic. If you and I add ours to things like this," he grinned down at her, "We can just leave a little trail of spells all over these places, and maybe find our trespassers before it's too late to help."

"Great," Kagome whispered. "That doesn't answer the question of how they've been dying."

Koenma shook his head and gave her a funny look. "Does it really matter how they've died? If a human jumped off that cliff up there, they weren't planning on making it to the bottom in one piece."

Kagome stilled, peering into the shadows a short distance away. "I wasn't asking because of others," she hissed, watching carefully for any sign of movement. "I was asking because I didn't want to get surprised by something that thinks humans are extra tasty."

His mouth made a little O of comprehension as he tugged her back against the sharp slope. "Let's get this done so we can go."

It was strange for her, remaining on the lookout for danger as Koenma picked up a dozen small pebbles. It was equally as odd to find herself clinging to his arm, especially after telling him that they couldn't date because she was already seeing someone. What would Hiei think if he saw her like this?

(He might try to rescue her.)

Something glimmered in the shadows, catching her attention. She stared, her eyes straining against the darkness, looking for anything out of the ordinary. (What might constitute 'out of the ordinary' in the very young magical realm was a little hard for her to define, but she did her best.) They were outside of regular time and moving much faster than any human would be able to track, but she knew that wouldn't make them invincible, especially in a place like this.

She spotted the glimmer again, this time a little clearer and a very distinct turquoise. It was too brief to be sure if it was an iridescent scale or the shine of a creature's eye. She leaned against Koenma to keep contact with him as she pulled the bow from her shoulder. "We might have company…" she muttered.

"Hm?" he asked, distracted with his rocks.

Kagome frowned at him with dismay. Does he ever do field work? She stepped away for a moment, leaving him behind in slowed time as she eased toward the thing she'd spotted. Whatever it was remained very still as she cautiously approached, her eyes slowly adjusting to the dim light so she could get a better idea of what it might be. The creature looked like some kind of overgrown mantis, roughly waist-high with numerous sharp, spindly legs. As she neared it, she realized it was guarding a large white mass tucked into an alcove just behind it.

It slowly turned its head in her direction to try and follow her movements, the razor-edge forelimbs lifting in a defensive display. A slight motion to its side caught Kagome's attention next, and she realized there were more of the creatures peering out from dark tunnels and other shadowy alcoves. She backed slowly away from the nesting insects with a shudder.

She slung her bow with a small frown and reached out for Koenma's arm to pull him back into her time, and he jumped in surprise. "What in the—" he choked, dropping half of his stones. "You just… flickered!" He looked her over quickly, unable to believe what he'd just seen. "And appeared in a completely different spot!"

She shrugged. "I'll explain that later, but for now, there's something up ahead. What did you want to do with those? I'd like to leave before whatever it is decides we're a threat."

He shook his head and knelt to collect the stones he'd dropped. "These all have natural energy. Yours is oppositely aligned, and mine is neutral. If we can charge up these stones, I can embed our detection spells. We'll drop them around this area before we head to the next location."

"You said there have been increasing numbers of deaths. Have you had more coming through this area?"

He shook his head. "No, this one seemed pretty consistent. I think it's far enough away from common pathways to avoid drawing in random travelers from either side."

"But still, people have been dying here…" she paused, looking up the line of rocks. "I really think this one needs to have the humans stop coming over the cliff. Obviously some reason is leading them to what should be a pretty obvious death. Whether they're jumping or being pushed, whatever that is should be found and stopped."

"But we shouldn't meddle in the affairs of mortals," he argued.

"Maybe you shouldn't, but I can. It makes no sense to save people after they've fallen in here when it could have been avoided in the first place." She paused and looked at him askance. "If you aren't supposed to meddle in the affairs of mortals, why are we even here?"

Koenma's mouth fell open as he cast his gaze around, trying to think of a reason that made any sense. He shut his mouth and shrugged. "It's just getting a little concerning that we've seen more and more humans die somewhere they should no longer be."

Kagome arched an eyebrow. "That's it?"

Looking a little sheepish, he fingered the rocks in his palm. "I guess I was more worried the spell might be failing than I was about the humans suffering."

Kagome frowned at him as he waved his free hand defensively.

"Hey, I can't be worrying about every single human that meets a terrible end, otherwise I'd never get a moment's rest!"

She rolled her eyes. "Little efforts like this one," she waved above him, "Might save you a lot of trouble later on."

He grumbled and looked away. "Anyways," he reminded her, "if this side is so close to the entrance back to the human realm, I definitely want to be able to spot any youkai trying to use it as an exit."

She sighed and pressed a hand to her face. "Right, it makes sense. Let's do your thing, then let's go back and figure out what the problem is."

He glanced down at her hand on his arm. "Why are you being so clingy right now?"

She twisted her lips ruefully. "It's a long story, but I will definitely explain later."

"I'm not complaining," he grinned. "You can hang on me as much as you'd like."

Kagome blew out a long sigh. It was going to be a long field mission.

Koenma ended up tossing a dozen spell-laden stones in a wide circle around them, but if he noticed they didn't travel far (or fast) as they left his hand, he didn't say anything. Kagome watched with vague interest as they slid through the air, wondering how he'd know when someone triggered the detection spells.

"That should be enough," he said, patting her hand with thanks. "Let's go help out some humans so your bleeding heart doesn't end up killing one of us." He leaned forward to summon a portal to the mortal realm.

Kagome glanced back in the direction of the nesting insects, noting they'd moved much closer in the short amount of time they had stood there to prepare Koenma's spells. Her eyes widened, and she grabbed at his arm and hurriedly pushed him through the opening to get them both a safe distance away.

"Hey, whoa!" he protested, stumbling a little on the rocky outcrop where they emerged. "What's going on?"

"There was a whole pack of youkai in there that looked ready to maim us."

"So? We're both armed."

She shook her head in disbelief. "Are you really so tired of doing paperwork that you'd risk life and limb for some action?" She paused to watch his face flush. "We shouldn't be getting into fights we can avoid, especially with creatures just protecting their young."

"Okay, sorry," he muttered. "I'm not even going to ask how you knew all of that." He looked around them with confusion. "Why is it so quiet?"

Kagome gave him a look. "You only just now noticed that?"

"I noticed it in the other realm, but I thought it was some creepy ambiance that was normal in that area."

She shook her head in disbelief, reaching for her pouch to fish around for a new seal. "My time's kind of busted," she briefly explained as she pressed the paper to her bare wrist. "These seals…" she sighed, trailing off as she finally let go of his arm. "Let's go find out where these humans are coming from. I'll tell you on the way."

"Right, okay. Wait one second," he requested, tossing his remaining spelled stones around the top of the hill and throwing a few off the edge. He kept three, tucking them into a pocket.

The trail down the hill meandered for half an hour as Kagome tried to explain the little bits about her magic and how she thought her seals worked. Koenma nodded, thoughtful, but didn't make too many comments as she led them around trees and through uneven parts of the trail.

"Are you okay?" she asked him as he stopped to pull off his shoe.

"Yeah. Rock," he explained as he cleaned it out and slid it back over his foot.

"You don't get out very often, do you?" she teased.

He shook his head with an unhappy frown. "Too much paperwork. Too many souls to process."

"Why don't you have more people to help you?"

He shrugged. "They'd probably do things wrong."

She nudged him with her elbow. "You need to learn how to delegate or you're going to burn yourself out."

He arched an eyebrow at her. "How many tasks have you been running around to take care of? Shouldn't you be delegating?"

She scoffed. "At least I take breaks to sleep and spend time with my friends and family."

He grumbled, "I'm a little short on those right now."

As the path widened enough for them to walk side-by-side, she looped her arm around his. "You have at least one friend to spend time with right now. Enjoy the lack of paperwork while it lasts."

He looked down at her and watched as she pointed at a colorful bird that perched on a nearby branch.

She missed his small, appreciative smile.

Nestled along the trees at the foot of the hill was a little village. A kind-looking old man sat in front of one of the homes, cutting some bright vegetables over a small basket in his lap. He quietly pointed them at an odd shack a short distance away. It was draped with colorful scraps of fabric and dozens of trinkets hanging around the entrance.

Kagome slowed, tugging Koenma to a stop. "That old man thought we were looking for someone."

He quirked his lips with amusement. "Right, you told him as much."

"But he didn't ask anything. Nothing about who we were looking for, what they might look like, or when they may have come through."

"So?"

"This is really suspicious," she murmured. "There might be something in this area that's causing people to just go crazy and jump off a cliff, and we could be walking into a trap."

He frowned a little, but shrugged in agreement. "Sure, I guess."

She handed him the borrowed bow and quiver. "You should stay out here and keep watch in case I come out looking like a suicidal damsel in distress."

"What? No, don't be silly," he said, trying to hand them back to her.

"Look," she reasoned. "We can't both go in there in case it's a trap. Do you really want me to be the one to swoop in save you from danger?"

He arched an eyebrow, clearly weighing the benefits of getting to play hero. He nodded begrudgingly as she beamed up at him.

"At least wait out of sight, ok?" she asked, pushing him to go hide.

He nodded and ducked around the corner of a nearby home.

Kagome understood that non-magical folk could be just as dangerous as the magical ones that had been pulled out of the realm a decade ago. She found the small blade Hiei had given her the morning she'd left and slipped it into her sleeve where it could be more easily reached, then folded her hand over the paper seal clinging to her wrist. In case of trouble, she could easily rip it free and have a much better chance of escaping.

A heavily scarred middle-aged man sat slouched over a low table. He glanced up at her with a forlorn expression, then peered back down at the cup he held between two hands.

"Are-" she paused, looking down at the rather sad appearance of someone who looked like their puppy had died. "Are you okay?" she asked. The expression on his face was completely out of place for someone that looked like they had survived at least a dozen battles.

The man shrugged. "S'my wife. She's gone. Last week."

Kagome winced in sympathy. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry. I didn't mean to intrude, but…"

"Old man sent you this way, did he?" he muttered, pushing his cup around with a scowl.

"Er, yes," she said, feeling a little embarrassed.

"S'fine. Someone missing?" he asked, looking up from his drink to give her a bored once-over.

"Yeah," she said, rubbing her wrist self-consciously.

"Lemme guess: they've been gone for years and years, and you can't find any sign of 'em."

Kagome furrowed her brow in confusion. What an odd assumption, she thought, but the man nodded at her reaction as though he'd seen it many times before.

"Lots of you ladies have managed to find your way here. Lover gone missing and you don't know where else to look. They didn't abandon you, honey. They're just hard to find, now."

They? This guy had jumped straight to the point, but she was completely confused. Kagome fought to make her expression hopeful. "How…?" she trailed off.

He nodded and stood with a sigh of resignation, dusting his pants off. "I can show you where if you have something to trade."

That easy? She pursed her lips in consideration. She didn't carry money, but… she cautiously opened her pouch and flashed the shining edge of the vesper. "I have this trinket from my…" she trailed off, hesitant to call some random missing person her lover in front of this guy. It didn't sound very authentic. "From my friend," she finished, feeling a little lame.

He nodded with a hint of self-satisfied amusement, as though he knew she meant something different.

She bit her lip and looked away, feeling distinctly embarrassed having to lie like this. "It might be worth something to someone, but without him…"

"Say no more, child. Follow me. I'll show you where you can start looking."

He led the way out of the little shack and glanced back occasionally to make sure she was following. Either this guy meant to pull her into the woods and rob her (and worse), or…

He guided her up the same trail they'd followed down the hill. He must have made the trek several times a week, because he didn't slow until he reached the top and showed no signs of weariness. He was a little surprised to see she wasn't tired, either, but didn't comment on it as he waved her over to the edge of the cliff.

"Over here, just over the edge, is a gateway to another world."

"There is?" she asked, surprised he would know such a thing.

"Sure is. My wife… she had the sight. She could see these things. She knew this was where everyone could find their missing friends. All you have to do is go and get them."

"Go and get them?" she echoed, feeling like the biggest idiot. She had assumed there would be some gaggle of depressed people lingering in the area just biding their time until they couldn't take it anymore, but instead she found this?

This guy had somehow convinced countless people that they could jump off a cliff to find friends and lovers that had gone missing?

He nodded. "Now, if you don't mind, that trade?"

Kagome looked around at the random things that had been left along the hilltop. "What are all of these trinkets?"

"Previous travelers. They left something behind." He paused and stooped to pick up a strip of violet fabric. "They all leave something behind when they go, y'know? Even my wife." He glanced up at her. "What will you leave behind?" he asked.

"Your wife…" she murmured, looking over the edge. "Your wife didn't… jump… did she? To go there?"

He laughed and stood up. "Naw." He stepped a bit closer. "I pushed her. She was startin' to feel bad for our travelers. So you gonna give me that trade, or…?"

Kagome blinked up at him. "You…" He was at least a foot taller than her and several times as big around. He'd come unarmed, but that didn't mean he couldn't beat the living daylights out of most unaccompanied females. "You pushed your wife off this cliff?"

He nodded and held out his hand expectantly.

Kagome sighed and glanced past him at Koenma, who'd arrived shortly after they had, although the guide hadn't noticed him. "This guy…" she muttered. The guide realized they weren't alone on the hilltop and moved quickly, hoping to face the new threat and reduce his opponents by pushing Kagome over the edge.

Unfortunately for him, she'd just spent the last week sparring with someone that liked to try and take advantage of distractions, and so Kagome easily caught his wrist, spun into his space, twisted and pulled him over her hip.

He hadn't been expecting a young woman to defend herself and landed on his back at the edge with a little grunt of surprise. He bounced and flailed a little, his hands scrabbling for purchase along the smooth rocks as his voice rose into a shrill shout of fear. His grip failed and he slid off into the darkness, followed shortly by the sound of loosened rocks cracking quietly against the walls and bottom of the ravine.

Koenma stepped to her side and put a warm hand on her shoulder as she stared at the guide's disappearance. "Oh!" he said suddenly, glancing down. "My pocket just tingled. My spells are working."

Kagome smiled, just a bit. She couldn't believe that man had sent so many desperate people to their deaths. Whether they'd made it through the entrance or not, the fall or those insects would have ended them pretty quickly. Sad, but she was relieved to think that there should be far fewer deaths from this location now that the culprits were gone. She bit her lip and glanced back down the hill, wondering if there were more people in on the guide's terrible scheme.

"Let's finish the rest of your problem spots and get back," she said, stretching a little. She fought back a yawn and rubbed at her face. "I am absolutely worn out."

Koenma nodded, his pleased expression shifting into something mischievous. "You should let Jorge know we're ready to go to the next location."

Kagome's eyebrows quirked, but she pulled out her vesper and they both glanced down at the screen. "Um, call Jorge?" she said, feeling a little uncertain. She wasn't sure how many of the Reikai employees she might be able to reach with her device.

A little holographic image popped up, depicting Jorge sitting at Koenma's table with his very large feet propped up on its edge. He glanced up from a very fancy goblet and shrieked in surprise before falling over backward, red liquid splashing directly onto his face as he landed.

He scrambled to his feet and looked at them with blinking disbelief. "S-sir?" he stammered, wiping red from his vision.

"We're ready for another portal."

"Y-yes, sir!" Jorge responded, prepping their next destination.

Kagome sighed and frowned at Koenma. "You seem a little too happy about surprising him like that."

Koenma nodded with a huge grin. "I never get to sneak up on him. He's normally too vigilant."

"Be careful, or you'll make him paranoid," she cautioned, remembering how much Jorge hovered when she'd seen him in the future.

"Nah, he'll be fine," Koenma reassured her with a smile as the portal opened.

She bit back a grin and followed him through the doorway of light. Yeah, but will you be?

*see book 2