Hey everyone!
Making another shout-out to WolfWitchHuntress1318 for their help in development for the works in this chapter. Your edits and adds to the pieces I sent you were an asset as always :)
...That's all I got. Read on, my fellow bookworms!
Chapter 117: A Quintet of Lives in Limbo
Recap:
The merciless Band of Seven, or Shichinintai: A group of mercenaries from more than a decade's past, brought back from the dead to bring havoc to the lands of Edo Japan once again...
Two of the brothers may have departed for the afterlife once more, but the second to die, Mukotsu, had certainly left a severe handicap behind for quite a few members of Inuyasha's group, in the form of poisonous gas!...Mind you, karma came to hit him back tenfold in the form of a rage-controlled Coraline, whom for reasons yet-to-be-rationalized, had murdered the zombie in cold blood with her own blades...
The next brother of the Band to come attacking would be Ginkotsu, an undead who was half human, half machine, all monster, and wasted no time in trying to practically tear his enemies apart! Thankfully, Shippo, Kilala and Freeman managed to gather the incapacitated to escape the area to a temple where they would be safe, while Inuyasha stayed behind to fend off the mecha-zombie...
...Or so that was the theoretical plan. Unfortunately, what no one other than the semi-conscious Coraline knew, was that the monk currently running the Buddha Temple, was really another Shichinintai by name of Renkotsu, after he killed off the true monks previously tending to the sacred landmark!
With the redheaded woman and her friends now forced into sleep by incense, only a miracle performed by her lover could save them from certain doom.
Now...
We find our dog demon in red closing in ever closer to the temple far up the tall hill of the forest valley, determined to the upmost extreme to find his friends and love of his life before the sun sinks from the sky, taking their lives with it.
...However, just as he reaches a higher part of the sea of trunks, his nose picks up on a very familiar fragrance.
Huh? I know this smell: It's the scent of dead bodies and graveyard dirt.
...Does that mean one of the Band of Seven is up ahead?
...No...It's different.
Once he found the tall marble staircase, Inuyasha would rush up to meet the packed dirt of the temple courtyard, his eyes darting over to the sight of a burnt tree that looked as if it was struck by lightning...His muscles tense on alert.
I'm very close...
Sensing another presence, he moves to the back of the main temple structure, finding noneother than Renkotsu just as the latter finishes burying the dead monks in a mass grave.
...The air grows a bit heavy with uncertainty in regards to Inuyasha's mental questioning to trust the new face, so it would be the fake monk who spoke first.
"Tell me, are you Inuyasha, by any chance? I've been waiting for you to arrive."
"...Waiting for me?"
The dog demon then picks up on the more comforting scents of his group members, and darts away to follow them to the room where they're currently being kept. The first person his amber irises fixate on...was Coraline...
...Coraline...
He walks over to her left side and kneels beside her, reaching out a clawed hand to softly touch her cheek, his eyes softening when he hears her hum in her sleep and watches her lean towards his digits.
"...Thank kami...You're okay."
Quickly stealing a caste kiss from her lips, Inuyasha glances over the other slumbering faces while noting mentally,
And it looks like the others are doin' better, barely...
"I take it that you're being pursued?"
He turns to see Renkotsu standing in the doorway, and asks suspiciously (not aware of the latter's true origins),
"...Who are you?"
"As you can see, I am the head monk of this temple...Lately, there has been talk in the village nearby, that the Band of Seven who were ambushed and put to death over ten years ago, have been resurrected to bring calamity to this region."
Hm...so he knows of them...
"The dead that you saw me burying when you first arrived were burnt to death by these resurrected spirits."
"And yet you somehow survived the attack?"
Renkotsu was prepared to answer such a skeptical question:
"I was filled with such fear, that I hid like a coward behind the statue of Buddha...I understand that you are being pursued by these seven evil spirits."
Inuyasha retorts back fiercely,
"Look, I'm not being pursued; I'm the one pursuing, so get your facts straight!"
"I meant you no offense...but please answer me this: Why has the Band of Seven been resurrected?"
Though moving to display a defensive stance with one hand hovering over his Tessaiga, the dog demon asks back calmly,
"...Why do you ask?"
"You know I serve Buddha, but I was helpless to stop the slaughter of my brethren, (bow) and so I wish to make amends. If I'm able, I wish to put at peace the souls of the dead."
A fluttering breeze blows by, causing Inuyasha's senses to fixate on the strong scent of the dead in this area.
This smell...
Nevertheless, he merely grunts out while turning his eyes away,
"Hmph, just forget it. This is no business for a monk like you."
I definitely smell a living person...The other smell must be from the people he buried outside...
At the same time Inuyasha was contemplating back and forth between ignoring or allowing another set of ears into this crisis, two other parties were slowly closing into the area of the temple. The first one consisted of Myoga and Lumos, who come across the area where the dog demon and Ginkotsu previously fought, the land carrying a fresh scar from the pressuring energies that collided.
"Hm? What's that?...Take me down lower, bird!"
Eyeing over the deep cut in the ground, he summarizes,
"Yep, I recognize that swap of devastation anywhere: That's the aftereffect of Master Inuyasha's Wind Scar! Hhuh, I guess Master Inuyasha didn't come here to simply enjoy the or springs or the mountain scenery..."
Yet another sign that something is wrong...
"(Ghostly moan)"
The flea demon then pivots his head to focus on the Will O' Wisp currently circling around the pile of rubble, his orbed body blinking red and white-blue.
"Huh? What is it now, my friend? Danger?"
(...C-Clank...Cla-Rumble)
Suddenly, Ginkotsu's mechanical arm comes shooting outward, nearly hitting Lumos while also launching pieces of rock into the air where Myoga and the crow were hovering!
"Gah-hah-aaaa! What the heck is that thing?! Fly higher, fly higher!"
The flea demon's then knocked off the bird by a small stone, and almost goes tumbling downward to the ground...only to be saved by Lumos, who catches and allows the former to ride him instead!
"...Hooooh, that was too close! Thank you, Lumos; now let's get outta here!"
The Will O' Wisp doesn't think twice, and zooms away from the area just as the zombie rose from the crevice, seemingly unharmed and with revenge burning in his being...
The second party in question that was inching towards the main scene, would be noneother than Kōga of the Wolf Demon Tribe, who would lead the way down a rocky dirt path cut outside the forests, while his friends Ginta and Hakkaku rush to try and keep up with his whirlwind speed boost.
"Hah, hah, Kōga, please, wait for us!"
"You'd think after losing his interest in Coraline, he'd start thinking about slowing down...but I guess old habits truly die hard..."
If only my own speed could go that kind of distance for my mate...
While Ginta wistfully pondered that wish, the young pack leader thought to himself with some frustration,
Where is Inuyasha's scent?
(...Sniff) Wait: It's the smell of graveyard dirt...!
Small Time Skip
The sun would soon be at the halfway point to making way for its counterpart the moon, and by this time, Inuyasha had decided to let Renkotsu (whom the former believed to be but a simple monk) in on what his group knew...
"Someone named, Naraku called forth the dead souls? Tell me, who is this Naraku?"
We see that the dog demon was now sitting instead of kneeling by his intended's side, one of his hands subconsciously brushing Coraline's red hair while he addressed the other who was sitting by the doorway.
"Well, he's sort-of like a demon..."
"...What do you mean by 'sort-of'?"
"Naraku is not a complete demon...Right now, I would imagine he's hiding himself somewhere. He's undergoing another transformation to increase his power...and he's using the Band of Seven as a decoy to buy some time."
...A flash of anger forms onto Renkotsu's face, but before Inuyasha could comment on it, he was distracted by the sudden echo of an explosion resonating from just outside the temple!
Rushing out the room, the dog demon mutters on edge,
"Huh? That sounded alot like Ginkotsu, but how the heck could he still be alive?"
He leaps down to the courtyard and preps to go and face the zombie, but not before calling to the disguised Renkotsu,
"Listen, monk: If you wanna stay alive, stay hidden!"
With that, he takes off...leaving the other zombie to quietly shut the doors to the room of sleepers, kneeling near Coraline while thinking,
Damn that Ginkotsu: He should've waited longer before coming...
I've learned one important thing, though: Naraku cannot be trusted.
...He then reaches to take the tiny bottle of jewel shards from Shippo's robes (he given them by Coraline before she was kidnapped by Mukotsu), and sneers down at the seven peaceful faces as his purple markings fade back onto his own.
"...You can all die now...you especially."
His hand reaches to touch the side of Coraline's neck, holding back the urge to strangle her.
"You murderous wench."
Inuyasha's POV
"Geeeesh, Inuyasha!"
"Ginkotsu!"
I leaped up high onto the temple's entrance roof, before lunging downward while reaching to my sword at ready.
"This time, I'm gonna take, you, down!"
The freak in turn responds with that chained clamp, which I countered with Tessaiga, cutting it down the middle of the metal link!
Ha! Now what, creep?
What I briefly forgot, however, was that wasn't his only trick in his arsenal, and I was soon ensnared by my wrists, thighs and my sword by those stupid steel strands again!
"R-Rgh...those metal threads again...!"
"Geeesh, I gotcha."
"Kuh! If you think, these things can hold me down, rrrgh...(jumps forward) then think again!"
(Thrust, slash)
"Aaagh!"
I watch as Ginkotsu's thrown backwards by my attack in shock, the steel strands releasing themselves from me...
"Keh, you had it comin' to ya..."
That wasn't too different from my strategy against Yura of the Hair, only this time I don't hafta waste my time pullin' on my enemy to see where to aim.
(...Sniff) Wait.
"I smell smoke...!"
I whirl around to where I came from...and spotted the flickering specs of embers beginning to snake out from where...Coraline and everyone else was!
...Oh no!
"Coraline!"
But I would only run as far as a couple steps up, when that monk...who wasn't a monk after all, shows his face at the top of the stairs, with that kind of smirk on his face I've come to know too well thanks to all those fights with Naraku.
"(Laugh) I am Renkotsu of the Shichinintai!"
"Rgh! Why you...!"
That, liar...but I don't get it: He smells like an ordinary human!
"What's the matter, Inuyasha? I dare say, you look a little confused. Your nose is extremely sensitive, am I right? I honestly thought you were onto me earlier, but then...I suspect I didn't emanate the scent of dead bodies and graveyard dirt. Am I right, Inuyasha?"
I growled, realizing what this two-faced zombie had done:
"Damn it...Now I get it...It's this place!"
It completely reeks of the dead here...!
His chuckle confirmed my thoughts:
"It seems that taking over this temple was a wise move. It's surrounded by graveyard dirt of course, so you wouldn't realize the scent came from me. (Gestures his clothes) I wore the clothing that the real monk 'kindly' left behind: Your sense of smell is so sharp, and it immediately caught his, which ironically put your suspicions aside."
His explanation just made my blood boil all the more:
"Why you...! You killed the monks of the temple?!"
"And I just finished burying them when you first arrived."
"I don't believe it...How could I be so blind...?!"
And now...now everyone is in more danger than ever!
"Rrrrrgh, dammit! You set the temple on fire!"
"The flames only hasten the inevitable. Three of your friends were already half-dead from the poison anyway, while the other two inch close to death's door thanks to pushing themselves past their limits...especially that murdering wench with the red hair."
...How dare he...How dare he slander my intended's name!
"Get outta my waaaay!"
Just as I start to sprint upward to bring my sword down on this Renkotsu and rescue my pack, my Tessaiga's fanged blade was caught by an axe attached to a chain, courtesy of that damn Ginkotsu!
"Grh! What the...?"
"Going somewhere?"
Next thing I knew, the former shoots down flames against me on lines of string, burning me some (but not entirely thanks to my fire rat robes)...
"(Chuckle) It looks as if you're in a bit of a predicament..."
I just glare at him through my struggles, muttering,
"Grh, you...you bastard!"
Coraline, everyone...hang on. As soon as I break free from these creeps, I'll save you all!
No POV
As Inuyasha preps himself for a new fight between not one, but two members of the Band of Seven, Lumos and Myoga had finally reached the temple after the former follows the Aura Trail of his partner.
"...Hel-lo, what's that smoke? Float down lower, Lumos!"
The Will O' Wisp heeds the flea demon's request, and swerves downward to the opened entrance of the room where our sleeping seven were, which now had a haze of smoke lingering...
"Hauh! Oh no, it's Coraline and the others!"
Myoga hops down off Lumos to rush over to the two redheads while the latter began darting back and forth to the others, both trying in their own ways to wake them up and warn them of the fire.
"Coraline, wake up! Shippo! It's me, Myoga! Shippo!"
"(Ghostly moan)"
They would succeed in arousing two out of seven, they being Shippo, stirring from unconsciousness after reflexively slapping Myoga for drinking his blood, and Freeman, who was awoken by a release of sparkling rejuvenating energies from Lumos.
"U-Uh? What happened to me? The last thing I remember was that monk bringing in the incense burner, then I got really sleepy..."
"R-Rh-huh? Ugh, my head...Must've dozed off...(Sniff) Huh? Is that smoke?"
(Crackle, crash)
Both souls would be startled to reality when a few burning pillars collapse!
"Whaaaaoh!" "Shit!"
Cluing into eachother's voices, they darts their heads to one another to exclaim their names, before focusing a second later on trying to wake everyone else up.
"Miroku, wake up! Sango! Coraline!"
"Come on, bro, wake up! Sis?! Kilala!"
But no matter how loud they cried out, no one else would stir...They quickly realize why:
"Oh no, they're not waking up! The poison hasn't gone away!"
"And Cora's still way too weak from that freakout with her Aura Powers, or so Besa told me before he passed out...Damn it!"
"We've given them the antidote for the poison, so why didn't it work?!"
"(Ghostly moan)"
"Hm?"
Shippo snaps out of his frustrations to the sound of Lumo's calls, and sees him hovering back and forth between Sango, Miroku and Besa while emanating a sickly green glow...
"Uh! Lumos!...Are you, t-trying to say that the poison's too strong for the antidote?"
No form of reply is given, and the Will O' Wisp resides to resting on top of Coraline's chest, now radiating a dark blue shine...
"And, what does that mean? That Coraline's somehow okay, or, is something else wrong with her...?"
Freeman shifts the conversation to more pressing matters:
"We can figure that out later, little dude. Right now, we need to concentrate on getting away from this fire."
"Uh! Right!"
(Topple...)
The fox demon then lays out his various trick items from his bag, still digging into his robes while thinking frantically,
Come on, there's gotta be something useful in here...
"Aha!"
He then pulls out his spinning top:
"Maybe the wind from my smashing top will help!"
"Wait, don't!"
"Uh?"
Shippo heeds Freeman's halting hands before the latter adds,
"With how contained this room is, usin' a wind current will only make the fire spread! Then we'll really be in trouble!"
"Gah! Oh man, you're right...So what do we do?"
Wincing some from his injuries, the teen with dark skin mutters while standing up again,
"We need to evacuate everybody from this room, at the very least. Rgh, it'll be a pain in the ass with how stiff and sore my body is, but I'll do what I have to!"
"I can help with that!"
(Pop)
The fox demon then shifts his appearance to mirror Freeman's (minus the bandages on his limbs and torso)!
"Whoa! Nice one, little dude!"
"Thanks, but this form won't hold for long...If only one of the others was awake instead of just the two of us..."
"(Mewl...)"
"Hm?" "Huh?"
The dual Freemans then turn to see Kilala stirring awake, and eye the two with as much surprise at the situation as they felt.
"Kilala!"
"Thank god, you're up too!...We need to get everyone else outta here, girl. Can you handle some weight?"
The cat demon nods, before transforming into her true form, already kneeling down to nudge Sango onto her back...The disguised Shippo and Freeman turn to one another with determined expressions.
"...Let's do this!"
Coraline's Mindscape, Her POV
"So, let me see if I understand correctly: The reason I went into that murderous rage, is because of an unstable intertwine of my emotions and my spiritual power as an Aura Reader?"
My ancestor, Rosiagnes, nods her head with a solemn and serious expression that made her seem older than she truly was, which, in some fairness would be correct considering how long it's been since...she departed from the physical world.
"That be correct, chile...Unfortunately, our kin's inherited gift of seeing into the Soul, has a dual purpose as both a gift, and a curse. Humanity in general possesses but few traits and talents that stand out among the rest, Survival being one of them...To handle the weight of being able to perceive that which is hidden from the normal eye takes an exceptional sanity."
"And, I'm guessing, even our own family can't always step up for that role, huh?"
"Aye...To be completely frank, only a handful of each generation survive past fifty years of age."
Fifty years, eh? How ironic...
"Most would have either lost themselves to the beast known as Insanity, or were killed by their very own Souls when the power became too much to contain."
I gasped, and held a hand over my heart while mumbling to myself with a new grim awareness,
"So...I could, either die young, or lose my very self..."
"Not if ye act now before another great catastrophe threatens ye."
I look up at Rosiagnes with a confused air, to which she would respond to with a wise smile of assurance.
"Thankfully, ye are still young and in the early stage of yer power development, despite some complications in this past year..."
Complications?...Oh, right.
She must be referring to those other two times I nearly lost control of my powers, against that first Naraku Demon Puppet, and Tsubaki...
"Yer journey is actually none too far off from me own when I was young, so I understand yer struggles."
My eyes widen slightly with interest:
"Is, that right?"
"Heh, oh aye. Much like ye, I was a little wayward spirit, rebellious against the tide that regular folk would call normal, embracing the ever-changing waves that life truly offers...Yet, I too struggled with me place among even me supportive kin, feeling me calling was beyond me reach. It wouldn't have been until ShaterSoul made its call, that things became a little less murky..."
"Yeah...That's how I feel too: Every time I hold ShatterSoul in my hands...it's like it knows where I need to go, where I stand when I don't."
Rosiagnes bites back a chuckle that sort-of reminded me of Sonya's hearty laugh.
"Tis because ye and I are one in the same, chile. Blood and Soul, ye and I are Croft, and ye, are me reincard."
Ah yes, of course: I am basically the new age's Roisagnes...
...But her name is her own, just as Coraline is mine.
"That is correct, chile. I am but the last projection of that Soul, while ye are its current identity. We are the same, but not the same. As it should be."
I jumped a little, realizing I must have mumbled those thoughts aloud, before looking away with a minor blush of embarrassment...
"But we are getting off topic, are we not?"
The woman then steps closer so she could place her hands on my shoulders, while giving me one of those looks a mother would her child.
"Coraline. Ye must begin to train yerself to prevent the possibility of yer energy instability from spiraling out of control more frequently. Otherwise, not only will yer very life be in jeopardy, but those of yer friends and yer dog-boy lover as well. If the priestess from the foreign lands remained a part of our Soul, then circumstances may have been different...however..."
It surprised me that she knew about my friends and Kikyō, and the fact that Inuyasha and I were together. But then again, there was a strong possibility she has become omniscient since she passed centuries before...Anyway, I swallowed a small lump in my throat, before quietly asking in a meeker voice than normal,
"But...how do I train me-er, myself, to do that? It can't be so simple as a mental exercise..."
Rosiagnes merely smiles at me before replying,
"It can be...if ye have a proper teacher."
"Huh?"
"As one Croft to another, I, shall lend ye an old woman's hand."
Ginta's POV
After a little longer, Kōga finally slows to a halt, giving me and Hakkaku time to catch up with him...
Yet, as we slowed down ourselves, I couldn't help but feel this unease growing in my gut thanks to an unsettling scent that was lingering in this area.
It stinks of the dead and graveyards here...just like that Kyokotsu monster...
Does he have more allies? Are they nearby?
I would get my answer quick enough, when our leader suddenly leapt out of the way of a shot of blades from a single sword!
What the-?!
The weapon in question, belonged to a strange fellow whose appearance seemed to carry...similarities to a female.
"Hi there. You must be Kōga of the Wolf Demon Tribe."
Such a dull address after a lethal attack like that...
"Goodness, and I thought I had seen everything."
Kōga would take a turn at speaking with this new face shortly after my muttered comment.
"Hey yourself. I figure you must be a pal of Kyokotsu...I know that smell anywhere. Tell me, have you come here looking for revenge?"
"Hmm...The outfit I kind-a like and the liberal use of fur's working for me...Haaah, but I hate to tell you, you're just not doin' it for me."
W-What did he just-...Unless...is it possible this man, is attracted to other men?
While I may have gotten an idea to the behaviour, my other two friends were either truly ignorant, or played a feint.
"Huh? What on earth is this fool talkin' about?"
"I dunno."
Forming a nervous smile with a head shake, I reply to them,
"Take it from me, you guys: Be blessed that you don't know."
"Enough chit-chat. Let's get down to business!"
Next thing we knew, that stranger thrusts his blade in our direction again, and while Hakkaku and I ducked to the sides to dodge, Kōga rushes towards the other after swiftly moving to the side away from the attack.
"Now I dunno what're up to, buddy, but I'm taking you down!"
"Hrrrrrr, (swing) Gyah!"
Another attack is thrown, and my friend/leader barely swerves out of the way in time, while the blade retracted back to the point of origin like rubber.
What an odd sword...It moves with the motions of a serpent...
"Look, I'm in a rush, so quit resisting. Hurry up and die so I can watch Inuyasha's death, okay?"
This guy doesn't sound the least bit interested in us...Wait: Did he say Inuyasha?
Kōga caught that part too:
"Huh? Hey, whadda ya mean by that? What was that you were sayin' about Inuyasha's death?"
"Hm...what is your relationship with Inuyasha?"
"I don't care about that mutt, but there's a girl called Coraline traveling with him...She better not be any danger!"
"Her, or my mate!"
Much to the shock of my packmates, the man and myself, I bravely rushed to meet Kōga's left side while glaring fiercely at the stranger, feeling my instincts beginning to rise with warning and worry for Freeman's safety.
"If I hear anything about you being responsible for hurting Freeman, you're finished!"
"Ginta..."
The man with the snake-like sword seemed rather taken aback by my characterization of my mate.
"W-Wait, what are you saying, wolf; that the stud's taken?! Ugh, just my luck; it's always the exotic ones that get bagged first!...Hmph, well whatever, least I still have Inuyasha..."
He then sends me a sadistic grin before mentioning,
"Besides, I'll find it a wonder if little Freeman's still alive from all those cuts I gave him several hours ago..."
"Grh! What did you just say?!"
My mate, injured...?!
"And as for that wench, she's probably long dead by now!"
Another thrust from that stranger's sword sends me and Kōga to scramble into a dodge in a few leaps, but the two of us...were becoming hell-bent on taking this new zombie down!
"Whadda ya mean dead?!"
"Grrrrrh...No one hurts Freeman and gets away with it...you bastard!"
Freeman's POV
"Hm!"
Huh? What was...I could've sworn I felt a, surge of anger that wasn't mine...
"...Freeman!"
Snapping out of my daze, I turn to see Shippo (who was currently sporting his own copy of my body) running out of the back way of the temple with Miroku and his staff in his arms, followed by Kilala who rushed with Sango on her back, along with her weapon and the satchels that belonged to me and my two siblings.
I myself had already carted out Besa and his sickles before darting back inside to grab Cora and her weapons, ignoring the splits of pain in my limbs from the heat waving through my bandages to the cuts from Jakotsu's sword...I almost dropped sis when a beam suddenly gave way to the floor and sent some embers to burn the top left of my back nearing my shoulder, but somehow pushed through it to safely bring her to this area near a mass grave.
"Shippo...Kilala...Okay, this means we got everyone out, (glances down) including Lumos, and Myoga..."
The Will O' Wisp hadn't moved from his place atop Cora's chest, while the flea demon was now sitting between Besa and Miroku as the latter was being placed down on the ground by Shippo before he popped back to his normal self.
"Haaaah...Uh! Freeman, your back, it's...!"
I smiled grimly with a grimace faltering in and out and wave a casual hand at the little dude.
"I know. I, got licked by the flames comin' out with sis, but it couldn't be helped..."
Myoga hops onto my right shoulder and comments solemnly,
"The both of you and Kilala showed great bravery tonight...but, I fear if these events go on for longer, efforts may have been wasted."
I knew he was talking about the slowing of my friends and family's heart rates.
Shit, he's right: We might've tried to move fast, but there's a chance they got suffocated my the smoke...!
...No...No, I can't lose them! My friends...my sister...my...my, brother.
Please, god, please let everyone live!
"We can't give up, though. We still have a sliver of hope now that we're outside the burning temple."
Mine and Shippo's heads dart up from a fearful dip to look at Myoga with a flicker of hope.
"We do?" "How?"
Even Kilala was looking at the flea demon with attention, who then says,
"First things first, you three must have a short moment of rest. After that, we need to get everyone away from this temple before the fire spreads quicker than we need it to."
Fueled by the new hope in saving our loved ones, I dart to my feet a bit hastily and exclaim,
"Screw waiting around; I say we move now while the gettin's good! I don't wanna leave Besa, Cora or anyone else in jeopardy any longer!"
Shippo jumps to his feet with similar motivation:
"Me too! I can be strong longer if it means we can save them! Kilala, what about you?"
Though panting a little, our twin-tailed friend grunts and nods in agreement.
"...Hooh, very well. If you insist."
Myoga then turns his eyes to Lumos for help:
"Lumos, my friend. Can you lead us down the safest route from here to the woods yonder?"
The Will O' Wisp 'nods', and readies to float steadily ahead of us, while I reach down and grab Miroku to hoist gently over Kilala's back, followed by Sango, then Cora. I resolved to carry Besa myself, despite the shot of pain from my new burn wound I would feel with the weight on my arms.
"G-Gh!"
"Freeman?!"
"I'm, alright, Shippo...(Deep breath) Let's go."
We can come back for our things and weapons later. They're far enough away from the fire's reach...
Besa...brother...if you can hear me, stay strong, even if your chest doesn't move!
No POV
At the same time our three fatigued and two able (one demon, the other a spirit creature) prepare for a final run to freedom from the burning temple, Inuyasha continued to struggle under the hold of Renkotsu's flamed wires and Ginkotsu's chained axe.
"Cor-aline...hang in there. I'm coming...!"
"(Laugh) Give up, Inuyasha. It's all over for your friends: They'll either die from the flames or from Mukotsu's poison. Either way, there's no saving them."
"Why don't you, shut, uuuuup?!"
The dog demon tries to rush forward, but was tugged to a stop by the other demon who had a grip on him by his sword.
"Gah!"
Damn!
Cutting briefly through a backdoor leading out of the once-sacred grounds, we spot the retreating forms of Kilala and Freeman, with Shippo riding the former's neck to watch over the barely alive three, and Myoga riding atop the teen's shoulder, all making their way into the safety of the field of trees.
"I gotta keep it together...I gotta keep it together...I gotta keep it together...!"
"That's the spirit, little dude: Keep that mantra up, and we'll be home-AGH!"
That was when the pain from his multiple injuries hits Freeman with full force, and he stumbles to the forest floor hard, causing his grip on Besa to slip and fall with a roll with him.
Crap...Be-sa...
He blacks out cold, much to Shippo's dismay:
"Nooo! Freeman!"
The weakened party slows to a halt upon the teen's collapse, and the fox demon hops down off Kilala to try and shake the other awake.
"Freeman...Freeman, wake up! Oh no, his injuries got to him!"
Does this mean...that everyone, will...
Fat tears began to fall from the young one's face, fearing a dreadful outcome, while the twin-tailed cat demon whimpered with worry as she glanced back at the three bodies on her back, and the flea demon bowed his head grimly once he rose from his fall off of Freeman's shoulder.
Damn, what a turn. If the danger continues to linger...this, could mean certain doom.
(Shakes head) No! I must not assume the worst yet! As long as Master Inuyasha is fighting out there...hope, is not lost.
The dog demon in question was experiencing a none-the-better crisis, he turning to address the zombie who stopped his charge with a glare.
"Rrrrgh! Gin-kot-su...!"
"Ge-he-he-eeesh, I have another idea..."
A compartment on the mecha-zombie then opens from his torso, revealing a large steel drill!
"Geeeesh, I'll run you through!"
"Grh! Go ahead and try it!"
Ginkotsu obliges, yanking the chain towards him, and Inuyasha with it! Thankfully, the dog demon manages to sneak a foothold a few steps downward, determined to hang on...
That's when a new idea came to his head, and he twists himself around before throwing his sword on a straight trajectory for the drill, to which the blade would revert back to its dormant state, leaving the chain to tangle around the drill and stop it spinning!
"Ge-heh-heh-eeesh. Can't do much without your sword, can you?"
Inuyasha begged to differ:
"I'll, show you what I can do...! Iron Reaver, Soul Stealer!"
The force of power from his claws breaks the flaming threads, much to Renkotsu's shock.
"What?!"
The dog demon sprints downward to attack Ginkotsu, who wasn't ready to back down.
"Oh no you don't!"
He shoots his buzz-saw blades at the other, but they easily dodge while exclaiming with frustration threatening to boil over,
"Okay, that's it: I've wasted enough time on you, you freak!"
Inuyasha then swipes back his sword from Ginkotsu's chest, just as the jagged round blades come whirling back, this time impaling right into their point of origin rather than simply returning to their holster!
"Gaaaaah!"
"Try this: Wind Scar!"
(SLASH)
The mecha-zombie lets out a grunted shriek as his body is hacked by the three-clawed cut mark, before exploding to pieces!
(BOOM)
...But that wouldn't be Inuyasha's main focus, once he turns to see the temple engulfed in the orange glow!
"Uh! The temple...! Miroku, Sango, the twins...Coraline!"
He wastes no more time, and runs up the steps to find everyone to help them, leaping over Renkotsu.
"Out of my way!"
...The zombie that was still alive watched the dog demon go, muttering to himself,
"Hrm...So bothering to kill me wasn't worth his time...I'm insulted."
But he smirks when he reminds himself,
"Hm, still, I did manage to learn a little more about Naraku, and I have the Shikon-no-Tama shards."
He looks at the tiny bottle of said jewel shards between his fingertips.
"Well, all things considered, that's not too bad for a day's work."
Just as Renkotsu comes to such a conclusion, five of the Saimyōshō buzz into the area to cart off the head/torso of Ginkotsu away, suggesting that we might be seeing the undead cyborg again...
Meanwhile, Inuyasha had arrived in front of the blazing temple, his anxieties rising anew at the sight of the wall of fire.
"...Coraline...CORALINE!"
Just as he prepares to run in to save whom he believed was still trapped inside...
"(Ghostly moan)"
"Huh?"
Our familiar Will O' Wisp had finally left his human partner for a short bit when he sensed the dog demon's proximity near, and flew to meet the former at the front courtyard!
"Lumos! Where'd you come from?"
Lumos didn't reply directly, instead resolving to circle fast around Inuyasha, before darting over around the same direction he had left with the others prior to the fire spread, pausing halfway to bob up and down frantically to get the dog demon's attention...
"What? What're you-Wait...Are you saying you know where everyone is?!"
The Will O' Wisp 'exclaims' 'Yes!', and Inuyasha, though somewhat uncertain, complies to following the former in a run between the burning buildings to the back ways of the temple complex...
At the same time, the fight between Jakotsu, Kōga and Ginta was reaching closer to the end, as each wolf demon tries to land a punch and a kick at the zombie, who in turn swipes his blade at them, which they would dodge.
"Whoooa, that was scary..."
It's the first time anyone has sidestepped my attack like that...
I do believe this guy's becoming a bother, (glance) same for that other one who has a lover's rage in his eyes.
Slowing to a stop, the young demon tribe leader takes a second to observe the behaviour of his comrade Ginta, surprised that he was even fighting this time.
Well this is different: Normally, neither Hakakku nor Ginta is anywhere keen to taking on someone like this...
But instead, Ginta's fighting as fiercely as any of our other tribe members...
Must be his mating instincts kicking in...He did look real pissed when he heard Freeman was hurt.
...Uh! Speaking of him: His siblings, Besa, Coraline...God, we need to get outta here and find them!
Kōga then spirals out a whirlwind and begins sprinting off in the direction of the temple, much to Jakotsu's annoyance.
"Auh! Hey!"
"Sorry, I don't have time to fool around with you right now, but the next time we meet, I'll show you what scary means!"
Hakkaku leads the charge after the leaving wolf demon, and while a part of Ginta was tempted to stay and keep fighting the zombie in accordance to a boiling anger...he snapped out of it and allowed his worries for his mate to take the wheel, following after his pack mates.
"Wait up, Kōga!"
"Kōga certainly has no qualms about retreating, does he?...And for once, neither do I."
Freeman...please be alright!
Meanwhile, Inuyasha had reached the back grounds of the temple near the mass grave, and was able to pick up on the retreating scents of his group members.
Uh! I can smell Coraline and the others...They must have somehow escaped before the fire spread!
But how-Unless...Maybe Kilala, Shippo and Freeman woke up.
"Whatever happened...I still need to find them!"
With that in mind, the dog demon continued to follow the guiding Will O' Wisp away from the burning temple, heading out the same back entrance a few other souls did only a little while ago.
"Guys!...Coraline!"
...Once they were about halfway into the thick backwoods, the half-demon/spirit pair reached the area where everyone else currently was, first finding the unconscious Freeman face-down in the mossy grass!
"Guh!...Freeman...!"
Inuyasha rushes to the teen's side, noting the new burn mark on the top left corner of his back and a bit of crimson staining on the bandages around his limbs. Gently turning the dark-skinned male on his less-injured side, the dog demon curses to himself,
Damn...he must've pushed himself too hard and got hurt trying to evacuate everyone.
...I can barely hear him breathing.
"(Sniff) I-Inuyasha..."
"Hm?"
He looks up to meet the eyes of Shippo, who was fighting back the urge to cry while slowly walking over to the other.
"Shippo...I'm glad to see you're still alive."
"I...I knew. I knew I had to be strong! I did my very best, t-to help Freeman get everyone out, Kilala too!"
"I know. You were very brave. You got everyone out and protected them."
...That's when the dog demon notices the other four bodies behind the fox demon, Kilala's dormant form curled by Sango's head while her body shivered with a sad whimper...
"I know...Gh! B-But even though, I t-tried to save them...F-Freeman, fell cold to his injuries, a-and...everyone else stopped breathing, Inuyasha!"
At that, Shippo couldn't hold back any longer, and bursts into a new set of sobs, leaving the poor dog demon to gasp and stare helplessly at the down five, specifically, the face of his young love...