Chapter 120: D.I.D. & The War for Sanity
With the Tessaiga still embedded in the ground and out of his reach, Inuyasha would have to rely on his bare hands to take on the newly-awakened Suikotsu to protect the young children Chiyo and Yuuta, the second former having just been rescued from being choked to death by the man who could no longer be seen as a 'mere physician'...
"Damn you, Suikotsu..."
Said dead man only chuckles darkly before replying,
"That ridiculous do-gooder physician: He's held me back for far too long."
Over to the far right of the zombie, the rest of Inuyasha's team was still trying to wrap their heads around the sudden shift of demeanor in the 'good doctor'.
"But...he...I don't understand. He's an entirely different person than he was before."
"You're right about Suikotsu. It's almost as if he possesses two different hearts..."
Coraline nods with a straight face and grimness dancing in her two-toned blue irises at the slayer and monk's characterizations.
"In a way, he does...but I'm afraid the problem goes deeper than that."
They look to her in confusion, but it would be Besa who cleared the air.
"I think I know where you're going with this, Cora: You're thinking he's suffering from D.I.D."
Not understanding the modern medical diagnostic anymore than Sango or Miroku could, Shippo asks,
"D.I.D.? What's that?"
"It's short for Dissociate Identity Disorder, a type of mental issue that involves a person having two or more distinct personality states. One of mine and Freeman's old neighbours had a cousin who was diagnosed with D.I.D...Usually, that one person experiences things like gaps in their memory that can't be explained by normal forgetfulness, and shifts in behaviour so quick and dramatic that it can't simply be brushed off as a period of moodiness."
The young man with cornrow black hair turns his focus on Suikotsu's form and adds,
"In his case, that man seems to be caught between a murderer, and a witness."
Inuyasha hmphs and says with glaring eyes fixated on the new man before him,
"I dunno about all of that stuff, but I do know that I was right about you belonging to the Band of Seven!"
Renkotsu then cuts in while tossing something to his fellow murderous brother.
"Suikotsu, here you go!"
Those items, were a pair of leather gloves fashioned with long, sharp claw blades, the gleam of the metal making the three modern teens shiver simultaneously as they recalled a similar set of weapons used by a previous enemy...As he tugged the fastening string tight with his teeth, Suikotsu says to Inuyasha,
"So, I seem to recall you asking to do battle with me. Well, you're about to get your wish."
The dog demon growls, his amber irises side-glancing over to where his dormant fang blade was...
"Ha. What's the matter? Are you too frightened to fight without your mighty sword?"
Flexing his fingers with a knuckle crack, Inuyasha retorts,
"Ha, not likely! Are those claws all you got goin' for ya? 'Cause you're gonna need alot more than that, you filthy, two-faced liar!"
That insult wiped the smug grin off of Suikotsu's face:
"Grr, you better show more respect than that! (Lunge) Haaaaaah!"
He tries to swipe his weapons at Inuyasha, who leaps up into the air before shooting back down with his own counterattack.
"Iron Reaver, Soul Stealer!"
(Boom...)
Dirt is the only receiver of his sharp nails, however, as the zombie scrambles away in a dodge...He pauses to smirk slightly at the dog demon:
"You're a quick one, aren't you?"
Inuyasha's smirk was just as dark, if not more so:
"Heh. I'll cut you into little pieces."
Neither side moves for a moment, trying to fake the other out with a show of pride and strength...before they both charge at one another with war-cries! Inuyasha tries and fails to uppercut Suikotsu's face:
"Die!"
"Your moves are too showy!"
"Huh?"
"I'll show you what close-quarters combat is all about!"
He then moves to swipe at the dog demon a few times, who leaps back to dodge, only to end up with a slash cut across his stomach! Of course, given his half-demon blood, this did little to slow the young man with long, silver hair down, rather it made him more wary of the dead man's speed and accuracy as he kept hopping back to barely get out of the line of fire. Suikotsu doesn't miss the opportunity to taunt:
"If you keep backing away like this, how will you ever turn me into mincemeat?!"
"Shut up!"
"What's the matter? Too much for you?"
"Why you-!"
Inuyasha lunges a hand forward to grip one of the weaponized hands to a stop...
(Bzzzzt)
But was then met with a static of power ensuing from between both opposing appendages!
"Wha-?!"
Suikotsu grins and makes his move, slashing his free arm upward to cut across the dog demon's upper chest! Chiyo and Yuuta, who were watching the battle, whimper with fear and horror at the sight of their doctor acting in the manner of a monster, while Coraline felt her heart skip a beat at the image of blood spattering from her lover's wounds.
Inuyasha...!
Freeman and Shippo cry out their friend's name with worry, just as he lands back on the ground while holding a hand over his wounded chest.
"Grh! Damn you, Suikotsu!"
The zombie just sniggers and licks away a bit of his opponent's blood with a sadistic smile, before rushing forward to attack again.
"Now die!"
(...Sheen, slash)
"Guh!"
But just as he got only a few feet away, Suikotsu was forced to slide into a halt when a familiar ice blue slash mark comes cutting through the dirt right between him and Inuyasha!
...Both sets of eyes turn to the source with astonished expressions, contrasting the calm, collected one occupying Coraline's face, as she then reached to pull out her combat knife from its sheath on her thigh, holding it in her right hand while poising ShatterSoul up in a forward point in her left...Two of her fingers then curl up from the handle of her short blade in a 'try me' sort of gesture, which doesn't go unnoticed by the newly aggravated Suikotsu.
"Hmph! You wanna fight me now, woman? What makes you think you can take me on better than the welp here?"
The girl with long red hair doesn't reply verbally, and only narrows her eyes in both a cool anger and a sizing measure, causing the zombie to laugh a little.
"Just that confident, hm? Very well, but it's your, (lunge) funeral!"
Coraline meets the rushing zombie in her own dash forward, and soon, both were engaged in a blades on blades battle, leaving observers to watch with wide eyes at the clash of spirits...
Some had anxiety reflected in their irises, they being the other humans and two demons that followed her...
A few merely watched with mild surprise and slight annoyance at the girl's interference, Jakotsu's being the highest.
"Ugh, that bitch just had to jump in, didn't she?...Oh well, at least her death will leave Inuyasha open for me to kill."
And speaking of Inuyasha, his eyes were locked on the battle with a mix of emotions churning in his gut, worry being the strongest in terms of his intended's safety.
Coraline...!
Meanwhile, said redhead was keeping her attention on every swing coming at her, using her sword and knife to just block in time while also trying to land a hit to the zombie, who merely sidestepped away or used his own weapons similarly to she.
Damn, this man's even faster than Saki was during that fight. It's taking all that I've got just to block.
...But I've got to stay strong, just until I can find an opening.
A minute later, her wish was granted as she ducked down from an uppercut of Suikotsu's claws, which left his torso wide open to an attack.
Got 'im!
"Hah!"
She twists herself up and readies to plunge her knife in his side...
"Not fast enough, woman!"
"Huh?!"
(SLASH)
"Aaaaaagh!"
What she didn't know was that Suikotsu feinted the uppercut, really aiming to bring his claws against Coraline's arm to force her to release her main blade, leaving a deep cut across the lower appendage close to her wrist!
(KICK)
"Gu-ah!"
And to add insult to injury, the zombie then brought his foot up to knock it against the girl's hip to whack her down hard to the ground, the drop's impact causing her to drop her other weapon. Scared gasps sounded from her friends, while Inuyasha felt his own blood turn to ice from the sight of his lover's spilling from the wound on her arm.
"Coraline!"
She tries to lift herself up with her good arm, but froze when the clawed blades of Suikotsu's right weapon glove come to point dangerously at her throat.
"G-Gh!"
Daring to glance up at the zombie, he looks down at her with a deadly grin.
"It's all over."
He raises his other claws at the ready, and just as Inuyasha prepares himself to lunge in and try to rescue his girl,
"Cora-"
"Stop!"
Chiyo's voice finally dislodges from his own throat to try and talk some sense into the Shichinintai mercenary, he and Yuuta knowing that the doctor they've come to know was in him...somewhere.
"Doctor, what's wrong with you?!"
"Please go back to the way you once were!"
Coraline glances over at the children with pity at their lack of understanding the more troublesome details in this situation...But then her attention darts back on the zombie who had her at blade point, whose body was now shaking as he clutched his head with an agonized expression!
"Graaah! Grh! Go, away! Go...away!"
What on earth...? Is that other personality of his fighting for control again?
"...Coraline!"
"Hm?"
She turns to the sight of Inuyasha rushing over to her proximity:
"Inuyasha...!"
He kneels down and carefully gathers the girl into his arms while leaning her lower back against one of his legs so she was sitting up.
"Are you alright? Lemme see your arm."
She winces from the nerve pain as the dog demon lightly grips her left appendage to examine, growling at the sight of three slash cuts bleeding in thin trickles from the broken skin.
"How, dare, he...!"
"It's partly on me for not dodging fast enough. Mph, it's, not that bad..."
"Not that bad?! Those same claws were at your throat ready to lop your head off! Coraline..."
Inuyasha pulls the girl into a tight hug and whispers fiercely,
"You shouldn't have jumped in like you did just for my sake..."
"I know...but, seeing your blood being spilled, thanks to that beast of man...I-I couldn't just stand there."
Coraline wasn't able to say anything else, and just buries her face into his shoulder while releasing a few tears from her eyes, her emotionless mask coming off for a moment to help relieve some stress. Smelling the thick salt water, the dog demon sighs a little and pecks a quick kiss to the side of her head while combing his fingers through her hair to soothe his intended mate's fears...
Meanwhile, Renkotsu watches his struggling fellow brother with a frown:
"Well this is inconvenient: Suikotsu hasn't completely awakened yet."
He then sneers a little and says,
"Well then...do your thing, Ginkotsu."
"Geeesh..."
The cyborg zombie starts up his engine, before moving forward towards the area where Kikyō laid unconscious! Lumos tries to wake her up with a series of panicked moans, but to no avail, while Inuyasha and Coraline dart their heads to the priestess's direction.
"Kikyō!" "No!"
Rushing to a stand, both parties ready to run to the specter woman's aid, but were stopped by the swipe of Suikotsu's claw.
"Gh!" "Auh!"
The dog demon pushes the human girl behind him protectively, as the undead mercenary struggles to hiss out,
"Keep your eyes on your opponent."
The couple glares at him with anger and annoyance, before switching tactics so they were fighting against Suikotsu together, with Inuyasha doing most of the heavy combat using his claws, while Coraline provided back-up with her new telekinetic ability, directing her combat knife to drive through the air to and fro like a heat seeking missile...
But even with 'double the trouble', the zombie was able to out up a substantial defense, using his own claws to block the dog demon's while also being mindful of the incoming short blade, dipping his head downward and sideways when appropriate.
"...Where do you think you're going?!"
He then stops the redheaded from trying to slip away from the area to help Kikyō, swiping one of his bladed weapons dangerously close to her already injured left arm, causing her to let out a startled cry before scrambling backwards in a spinning sidestep back to where her boyfriend was, who immediately tugged her close by the waist while growling at the one who tried to hurt her...
"Ha! If either of you want her life to be spared, you'll have to defeat me first!"
Looking forward, we see that Ginkotsu was picking up speed, getting all the more closer to where the unconscious and vulnerable priestess laid...
Inuyasha makes a fist and mentally curses,
Damn. If only I had the Tessaiga...
Coraline was having similar thoughts:
Ugh, it just had to be my left arm to take that hit. Now there's no way I can try a close-quarter strike...
If only Suikotsu wasn't so fast, then I'd stand a better chance with using my new move with my knife.
...Hm?
That's when she notices two pairs of familiar forms sprinting towards where Kikyō was, making her gasp quietly.
Guys?
A Few Minutes Earlier, Freeman's POV
Oh man, this just went from bad to really bad in zero to sixty...!
With Inuyasha and Cora preoccupied by Suikotsu, poor Kikyō was left like a sitting duck right in the path of the coming tank that was Ginkotsu!
"It doesn't look like either of them can get to her!"
I exclaim determinedly after Shippo,
"Then we'll have to do the rescuing this time! Besa?"
He nods to me with a serious expression:
"Right. I'm sure I can bolt over there fast enough if you use your hammer to distract them."
"We'll help too."
We turn to Miroku and Sango in mild surprise:
"You sure?"
"Positive."
"Hm...okay, here's the plan: Sango, you head with Besa to act as another line of cover with Hiraikotsu, while Miroku, you come with me. Shippo, stay back here with Kilala incase we need a Plan C."
Everybody nods in agreement, before we all head in our own directions, Miroku and I running down the right way while Besa and Sango started a big circle to the left.
We might just be able to pull this off...
"No so fast!"
(Fwooooom)
"Gah!"
I yanked Miroku down to duck away from the incoming shot of fire, courtesy of that asshat, Renkotsu.
"You haven't got the time to rescue her right now. You have to fight with me instead."
Raising my hammer at ready, I growl back,
"Tch, says you!"
Thank god we have another team bolting for Kikyō...
Besa's POV
Sango and I had gotten halfway across the expanse of barren ground that was once a thriving village, when I heard my brother yelp in alarm and turned to see he and Miroku being slowed by that bastard Renkotsu.
Grh, figures the other Shichinintai wouldn't make it easy...
"Should we stop and try to help?"
I sideglance to my friend running with me and call back,
"No, I'm sure Miroku and Freeman will have eachother's backs. It's better we focus on getting over to Kikyō before Jakotsu gets any bright ideas!"
"Alright!...Uh! Too late for that; look out!"
Sliding out of the way, I let Sango charge before me to release her weapon in a strong thrust.
"Hiraikotsu!"
(Toss, spin...Cla-cla-cla-cla-cla-TOK)
And just like last time, her boomerang would entangle with the many blades that made up the zombie swordsman's, well, sword, before both go tumbling into the ground! I see Jakotsu make an offended expression mixed with anger, while Sango turns to me and shouts,
"Go, run, Besa!"
"Right!"
I willed the muscles in my legs to go faster and faster, eyes fixated on Kikyō's form.
...Almost...there...! Hang on, Kikyō!
...It would be just a few seconds before Ginkotsu's wheels and metal spider legs came trampling in, that I let out a yell and jumped forward to scoop the woman into my arms, somersaulting us out of the zombie's way!
"Hah...hah...hah...hah..."
As I settled into a kneeling crouch, I could feel my heart racing a mile a minute, my dark green irises outlined by deep coco brown wide as wide could get, while my body shook from head to toe from the major gamble I took with Life and Death.
H-Holy...crap...!
I snapped out of it to the sound of a few distant cheers, and darted my head over to the distance to see Sango giving me a wide smile and thumbs-up while running with her weapon back over her shoulder after retrieving it from where it landed.
"You did it!"
Then at Shippo who was dancing and hopping atop Kilala with relief and glee.
"Yay, Besa!"
And then at Miroku and Freeman who were currently being protected with a shield projected by the latter's Seven Light crystal from Renkotsu's flames, their smiles gritting a little from the pressure of the fire but nonetheless positive.
"Wayda go, bro!" "Well done, my friend!"
Guys...
Forming a small smile of my own, I let out a deep, silent breath to let go some of the stress wracking my nerves, before looking down at the woman currently in my arms with a friendly gaze, while also sending a quiet greeting to the Will O' Wisp who came zooming over in all his excitement.
"Heh, hey, Lumos. I'm alright...and so is she."
No need to worry, Kikyō...You've got more friends than you realize.
Inuyasha's POV
Oh thank Kami, Besa got to her in time...Kikyō's safe.
I heard my intended let out a quiet but big sigh of relief, and turn to see her with a smile reflecting said emotion, myself forming one as well.
Right...Now that she and my brave friend are out of danger, my lover and I can concentrate on this freak!
As if she could read my thoughts, Coraline's face twists into a serious expression to match mine, and we nod, before charging back at Suikotsu with renewed fighting spirits, I throwing a sharp punch right at Suikotsu's torso, followed by my girl thrusting a strong spin kick in his hip seconds after.
"Hiiiya!"
(KICK)
"Uuu-hah!"
The bastard goes down with a hard slide in the dirt, and Coraline turns to me to say,
"Now would probably be a good time to get back Tessaiga. I'll keep his eyes on me in the meantime."
I was reluctant to follow her urge, considering her injured arm, but reminded myself that she was strong and I was fast, so I nodded with a grunt before turning to rush over to where my sword was.
Time to take these mercenary freaks down!
No POV
We cut back to Freeman and Miroku, as the former finally cancels out his shield once Renkotsu stops spewing fire against the two, a smug smile on his face.
"Ha! How'd you like that, sucker? Everybody's got everyone else's backs; your efforts to hurt us are for squat!"
The zombie lets out his own sneered scoff before retorting to the dark-skinned teen,
"Actually, we never were after the girl."
"Say what now?...Gh, oh crap! You don't mean-"
"That's right: If we kill the children, there will be nothing left to distract Suikotsu. Then he'll be able to suppress that troublesome doctor."
...In accordance to the despicable scheme, Jakotsu had already snuck behind the huddling Chiyo and Yuuta, sword in hand.
"Hoh boy, why do I always get stuck with the dirty work?"
The young ones sense his presence, and turn around to gasp at the sight of the lethal feminine male...
"Don't worry. It'll all be over quick."
Chiyo and Yuuta let out matching shrieks, which catches the attention of the mentally-struggling Suikotsu.
"Stop!"
He clutches his head tight once again, temporarily forgetting about the woman in front of him.
"Stop! Pl-ease, stop...! I beg, you...! Rgh!"
Coraline notices that his facial tattoos were beginning to fade, and lowers her short blade slightly while thinking,
I can sense his Light piercing holes in his Darkness. It's trying to suppress...but it's also damaging his spirit.
The two personalities are just too polar-opposite to coincide with one another...so they wanna kill the other off.
Jakotsu pauses with his sword in midair while grumbling in frustration,
"Grh! Suikotsu, come on...!"
Renkotsu wasn't far behind the other zombie with his own thoughts:
Something is preventing Suikotsu from fully taking over. If we kill the children, it may push him over the edge and we may lose him.
He then looks to the distant holy mountaintop, wondering,
Could it be the barrier of Mount Hakurei?
By this time, Inuyasha had reached his dormant blade, and picks it up while awakening its power once again, before turning to glare fiercely ahead at the forms of the Shichinintai.
"That's it: You guys are goin' down!"
He starts his run back, while Renkotsu calls back,
"I hate to disappoint you, but it seems that we can't remain in this place any longer."
Swigging down another gulp of that substance from the gourd, the zombie then shoots some flames at Freeman and Miroku to distract them long enough for him to hop back aboard Ginkotsu.
"This is it for today! Come Suikotsu, let's go!"
"Gr-gh, but why...?!"
Jakotsu hurries to help the other on their feet with one arm over his shoulder.
"Come on, let's go, Suikotsu."
They make a break for the cyborg tank as well, with Inuyasha hot on their tail, joined quickly by Coraline.
"You bastards! You ain't gettin' away!"
"Stop right there!'
The dog demon then tries to release a Wind Scar at the zombies, but Ginkotsu counters by trying to blast him with their cannon, forcing him to quickly grab the girl with him and leap away in a dodge.
(Boom...)
They land on the ground safely, and Inuyasha asks Coraline,
"You good?"
"Yeah..."
"...Inuyasha!"
The couple darts their heads forward to see Ginkotsu moving far away through the dissipating smoke, and Jakotsu waving with a cheery, smug smile.
"Bye-bye for now~!"
Suikotsu, meanwhile, was crouching while holding his head with a grinding frown.
"Damn it...How irritating..."
Inuyasha began to shake with fury at the sight of the shrinking forms of his enemies, while Coraline sheathed her combat knife with an indifferent frown, her eyes blazing with an anger she fought to not let blow up.
...They got away...
"Lady Kikyō!"
"Hm?"
Attention is then turned to the distant left, as Chiyo and Yuuta kneel with Besa around the specter priestess's form with worried expressions.
"Please...wake up, Lady Kikyō!"
"Kikyō? Can you hear us?"
Unfortunately, their calls fell on deaf ears, the woman showing no signs of stirring back to consciousness...Inuyasha and Coraline approach their proximity next, kneeling in front of Kikyō with their own deflated expressions.
"...Kikyō..."
The woman with blue irises reaches her bad arm out to brush the other's black bangs away, prompting Besa to wince when he sees the slash mark, the blood drying around the open wound.
"Cora, your arm..."
"I know, and, I'll be fine, Besa. It did less damage than it may look...Kikyō..."
She must've lost a good number of the Souls from her body...
...But then, where are the shinidamachū?
She would get her answer courtesy of her creature partner, Lumos, who began letting out moans of urgency.
"Hm? What is it?"
The Will O' Wisp spirals upward as his way of pointing, and looking that way, we see several of those soul-collecting demons trying to enter the area, only to be prevented so thanks to a transparent barrier of sorts that purified them upon impact.
"Uh! The shinidamachū..."
"They're disappearing?"
Besa corrects Inuyasha by stating,
"No...they're being destroyed..."
Miroku, who was now standing with Freeman joined by Sango, Shippo and Kilala near the others, mutters,
"What does this mean?"
Coraline watches as the remaining shinidamachū switch to just hovering near where the rest had disintegrated, wondering,
Why can't they come any closer?
"Tis because of the holy energies of this place, I'm afraid."
Uh! Rosiagnes...Wait, holy energies...as in Mount Hakurei?
"Correct, chile. Given the deeper nature of the creatures up yonder, they be not lasting long enough to enter somewhere with such a...pure air."
...I heard the distaste and wariness near the end. This pureness you speak of...it's not natural, is it?
"No, it is not...The priestess can shed more light on the subject, if ye hurry her away from here where her allies cannot reach."
Right...
With that...Coraline reaches down to hoist her arms under Kikyō's frame, standing up so she was carrying the other woman bridal style. Everyone looked at her in surprise for her act, and she says with resolute,
"We need to take her away from this area, where the shinidamachū can reach her...otherwise the strength of her Soul's ties to this realm will continue to wane."
"Coraline..."
She turns to shoot a tired smile at Inuyasha, before casting it over the alabaster face of the woman in her arms, her eyes reflecting a sisterly concern and love.
As long as your Soul still clings to this world, I won't let you be deprived of your last wish.
...That is my promise to you, Soul Sister.
Small Time Skip
The dark of the night comes to bathe over the lands near the holy Mount Hakurei, and we zoom in on an area outside the damaged village up a tall knoll under an oak, as Coraline sat with her back against the bark while allowing Kikyō's head to lay on her lap, and Inuyasha knelt by his woman's side, both waiting with bated attention for the priestess to awaken again. Everyone else stood to the side near them, watching as the eel-like demons deposited several Souls of the Dead into the waiting body...
...After a pregnant pause, Kikyō's brown irises flutter open, making Coraline smile a bit.
"...Hey."
"...Coraline...Where am I?"
Inuyasha would softly answer that question:
"Away from the village."
"(Glance) Inuyasha...I see..."
The priestess caught between life and death turns her head to look down at the distant, disheveled structures that were once simple, happy homes.
"So then, I take it that my Soul Collectors were unable to enter the village?"
Coraline nods her head in confirmation:
"Afraid so. They were, purified upon impact, and the Souls they carried floated to the heavens."
"Hm...What happened, to them?"
"The Shichinintai?"
"Yes. Those accursed men who possess those defiled Shikon-no-Tama shards."
Forcing back the urge to growl, Inuyasha gruffly replies,
"They retreated, and they took Suikotsu with them."
"I see..."
Kikyō then moves to sit herself upward with a slight wobble, making Coraline reach her arms out to help the other keep steady.
"Careful. You just woke up."
"I am alrig-Uh...Coraline. Your, arm is..."
Her eyes had fixated on the now bandaged left appendage free for all to see thanks to the short sleeves of the redhead's t-shirt. Said subject of attention looks at where the woman with long black hair was staring, before forming a grim smile and muttering,
"I'm alright. Just, got swiped by Suikotsu's claws trying to protect Inuyasha earlier...It wasn't too deep; just struck a good artery to allow alot of blood flow."
The priestess could sense more between what the swordswoman was saying aloud, but only brushes her fingers against the white gauze with a firmed expression, her brown irises reflecting her cooling worry...
"Kikyō?"
"...You must have seen it too, correct? The Shikon-no-Tama shard in Suikotsu's neck."
Though a bit confused on the slight shove in topic, Coraline nonetheless replies in kind,
"I did...The light within the shard became overshadowed by his darker mentality."
"And then he went away, didn't he? (Narrows eyes) It's this place...It's because of this land."
The young woman with blue irises nods in comprehension, remembering what her ancestor said not too long ago, leaving Inuyasha to stare between them and wonder,
Kikyō...Coraline...what are you both trying to say?
"This land is wicked. It does not allow anyone with a demonic aura to approach...It is because Mount Hakurei, is purifying the air of the areas that surround it."
"Mount Hakurei?"
Miroku felt something click upon hearing the name:
"I've heard of it before. It is a sacred mountain which absolves and cleanses criminals."
Kikyō nods to the monk:
"That's right. The man known as Doctor Suikotsu was able to live here, because deep down inside, he had a pure, untainted heart."
Freeman then says with a look of realization,
"So when his other identity pounced up, he was considered by the mountain as bad as an evil demon and was forced to hightail it outta here."
Inuyasha summarizes,
"So then the reason they all stopped fighting, was because they were too close to Mount Hakurei?"
The undead priestess muses her own cryptic thoughts aloud:
"Pure has become Impure. Impure has become Pure. Good is Evil. Evil is Good. To Live, is to Die. To Die, is to Live...Yes, Mount Hakurei is indeed too pure."
...Coraline responds quietly with a dark smile,
"Well, even those with the best of intentions can sometimes go too far...At that, the concept of Good, becomes something worse than Evil..."
Kikyō looks at her with a flash of astonishment at the characterization.
"Coraline..."
The redhead just smiles more gently with a head shake...Meanwhile, Miroku was thinking more intently about the supposed holy mountain.
"Hmm...Mount Hakurei, huh?" Sango asks him,
"So, what should we do, Miroku?"
"Let's go check it out. I'm curious..."
Inuyasha then asks the priestess,
"Kikyō, what about you?"
...There's a pause, before she and the other woman sitting with her notice Chiyo and Yuuta standing off in the distance with two more of the orphan children, looking at the former with desperation shining in their eyes.
"Lady Kikyō..."
Forming a sympathetic expression, Kikyō then replies,
"I choose to stay here. I want to stay close to those children for a while...Besides..."
Coraline gently urges,
"Besides...?"
"Even if I wish to, I cannot go."
"Kikyō..."
"Coraline...You saw them. You saw that my Soul Collectors were being repelled by the Aura of this land...It took everything I had, just to stand at the base of the mountain."
Holding out the back of one of her hands to gaze at the skin, the priestess adds almost solemnly,
"Not only that...but, I could feel the friction of the barrier. And, it made me feel as if I was about to be set to flames. My very skin was, threatening to blister."
"Uh! But, how can that...unless...No. Your new flesh...it, has...!"
Kikyō meets Coraline's eyes with a grim smile of her own:
"I am afraid so...An extremely faint trace of that, strange demon's aura, may have been left behind in my skin."
"Oh, Kikyō..."
"It is not your fault. I, had only begun to suspect this a few days ago myself..."
Nonetheless, the redhead felt ready to pull the other into a hug, thinking to herself a bit sadly,
Curse that crazy triangle...and these prejudice lands.
Now Kikyō can't get within a foot of Hakurei...
And if this is where the path of the Shichinintai took us...then maybe...maybe this area has a clue to where, he is.
"...I should at least do you this kindness."
"Hm?"
Next thing the priestess knew, she felt her long black tresses being undone from its white ribbon, making her eyes widen a little at the redhead, who held a soft smile on her face as she held up the thin material.
"...Coraline...?"
"I can't fully predict what may happen this next while...but you will make it up Mount Hakurei someway or another."
The girl with blue irises then pulls out her combat knife, and wraps the white ribbon around the handle before tying it off with a tight knot.
"This ribbon will make sure of that. I'll even make it my sole duty to drive it into the heart of the beast responsible for all this turmoil...so that the final blow, will be yours as well."
"Uh...Coraline, I..."
Coraline merely smiles determinedly, before sheathing the weapon away and reaching over to one of the pockets of her satchel to pull out something.
"Of course, I can't just take that without offering a replacement of sorts...Here."
Taking one of the undead priestess's hands, she places the object into their hand, revealed to be a white hair elastic with small, clear, spherical plastic jewels hanging off on tiny, sparkly strings.
"This is one of my own world's version of a hair tie, called a hair elastic. The jeweled parts you see are fake, made from a material called plastic, but they do shine as brilliantly as any other real mineral...It's, heh, a little girly, but, I figured this might be stronger than the ribbons you use."
...Kikyō could only stare at the foreign accessory with a slight gape of awe, touched by the other young woman's generosity...She then forms a small smile of her own, before reaching behind to her long black locks to tie them back in the same manner she would with her ribbon.
"...Thank you. This, certainly does feel like it will last."
"Mhm..."
Everyone else had watched the exchange between the women with their own soft expressions of amazement, before settling into smiles at the redhead's gesture...
Time Skip, Coraline's POV
It's now a new day approaching close to high noon, and we've all since left the area near the village that sat at the foot of Mount Hakurei...and, Kikyō. It hurt my heart a little that she wasn't able to continue further with us because of that barrier the mountain was emitting, but I knew deep inside somehow, everything will work out in all of our favours.
I'm now riding aboard Inuyasha's back, while Shippo rode on Miroku's running form, Kilala flew on between us with Sango and my brothers on her back, and of course, Lumos zoomed on ahead all of us. My eyes may have been taking in the flat green that stretched before me, but my mind was drifting back to earlier before we left...and my last word exchange with the priestess.
(Flash)
"Well...I, guess we'll see you when we see you, Kikyō."
"Yes..."
She and I exchanged another hug, and she whispered into my ear,
"...Be careful and continue to train hard with your ancestor."
I froze a bit, before asking quietly in astonishment,
"...You know?"
"Heh, yes...It would seem that our connection of Soul, has opened us to one another in more ways we would not see coming."
"I...I see."
"I can also, sense your current predicament...So I can only ask of you this."
We part, and Kikyō places her hands on my shoulders while looking at me just like an older sister would, wise and protective.
"...Do not lose yourself."
(Flash)
...I'll do my best, Soul Sister, for I know you know how it feels, to fight against the weight of your darkness.
"...Say, Coraline?"
I jolted slightly out of my thoughts to the sound of my boyfriend's voice, and look down to him to ask,
"Yes?"
"When we stop in the next bit...can we talk?"
"Uhm...sure."
I think I know where this is leading...
After about another hour or so, we all stopped in a meadow that slopped somewhat, with patches of tall grass and some wild white flowers similar to daises peeking out from the green. Everyone else was sitting together a small distance away with their backs to Inuyasha and I out of respect to privacy (well, the illusion of privacy, at least), we sitting so close our hips were just a few inches from touching...
...There's a small period of silence, before he finally asks,
"So what's been going on with you lately?"
"You're, referring to my behaviour on the battlefield yesterday?"
"Not just that: This sudden jump you've made in intensive training. Even I would've taken a day at the least to rest...but you. You just shoved yourself back onto your feet like what happened at, that temple, didn't happen at all..."
He turns to meet my blue irises with his amber:
"But I know that can't be possible, especially after what everyone else had told me they remembered seeing before they passed out from that poison."
"Uh...Mm. (Looks down) Yes..."
"But I wanna hear from the source...What happened to you, Coraline?"
Taking in a deep breath and a weighted heart, I began the awaited explanation.
"Mukotsu...His manner. It, triggered alot of, unpleasant memories of feeling helpless. Gatenmaru, my, experience in India, and a few other events that came and went so fast I couldn't discern them...My Soul. It became overloaded by the emotions of Fear and Rage that were rising in me, and...I had a psychotic break. My vision was swallowed by my Aura Sight, and all I could think was 'Kill Him'."
"Coraline..."
I wrapped my arms around my knees to steady myself, my eyes dilating with shame.
"My knife just kept, plummeting into his torso over and over until he tried to crawl away...but I just followed after him, before destroying him with my sword. After that, I was barely cooling down when your brother arrived. I recognized his voice and Aura, and, he only make a smart comment before you and Shippo showed up, Freeman and Lumos following shortly after...When Freeman mentioned what happened between he and Jakotsu, I could feel my fury spiking anew, wanting to track down that zombie to kill them as well, which sapped the last of my body's strength, before I collapsed...When I was unconscious, I met face-to-face with my ancestor, who explained what happened to me."
"Your ancestor?"
I smiled slightly at the surprise in Inuyasha's voice and the thought of the spirit imprinted within my Soul.
"Yes. Her name is Rosiagnes, and, she was the last wielder of ShatterSoul, the woman from that image Sonya showed us...She told me about the truth behind the Souls of Aura Readers: As strong as we are spiritually, that same power...it's, not really made well for the human body. Our Souls are actually almost too powerful to handle, which throw our very lives and sanity at stake...I know I've told you about how most of my family tree has been killed off thanks to Trinity...but some...some died because they were destroyed from the inside out by their very Souls."
"Uh...!"
"In that event, my ancestors began to develop coping techniques to help catalyze this issue and lessen the risk...What you and others saw yesterday was one of the more common choices, called emotion dislocation. I basically forced back my more raw emotions like Fear and Anger to allow more room in my head for clarity and focus in battle. That's, why I seemed a little more stoic than usual."
...There's a pause between us that lasts a minute or two, before I open my mouth again, this time with a bit of a quiver in my tone.
"I...What happened with Mukotsu...I don't want that to happen again. That's why I've been pushing myself into training with Rosiagnes so soon after recovery. I'm...I'm just, so scared."
My body begins to tremble again, recalling India, then that poison-using zombie and the senses of being I was in at the time.
"Th-There was already one incident in the past, that I fell into such an unforgivable state of mind, a-and for it to occur again now, only worse...It feels like I'm turning into, a-a killer, and I, I-"
I was cut off from my stuttering by a set of strong, clawed hands pulling me by my arms to be swallowed into a tight hug by their source, the man beside me.
"Stop that. Stop saying stupid stuff and making yourself sick with paranoia."
He couldn't fool me, though: His words were merely meant as a distraction for the two of us from our own versions of worry...I just broke down and cried silently into his fire rat robes, finally letting the stressing weight of my new trials loose for the world to see. Inuyasha acted tender to me, running his fingers through my hair and whispering calming words into my ear between the soft kisses he trailed over my head...
Once I stopped crying, I mumble with a shaky smile,
"(Sniff) I think I now fully understand your struggles with your own soul, Inuyasha...for I seemed to be following step with you down that hard path, to maintaining our sense of reason and identity."
I hear him take a sharp breath in...before he pulls me closer until I was sitting comfortably in his lap, muttering back a touch gruffly,
"Yeah..."
"Hah, and a long road it will be: As good as Rosiagnes is a teacher, her telepathic training can only go so far."
"Keh, so I've seen. That new ability with your knife is nice, but using yourself as a practice dummy's not a great idea."
"Ah yes, I could feel you and Miroku staring at me the night before..."
"...I can teach you better."
That offer wasn't something I expected, and I lean back a little so my expression of surprise was on full display for Inuyasha to see.
"Really?...You'd, do that, for me?"
"Of course. It's actually something I've meant to put to action for a while. You've got the skills for sure, but they definitely need some work, the kind that doesn't involve you training like your fighting yourself in front of a mirror. You need serious examples of combat situations."
His mouth upturns a little with one of his fangs peeking out as he adds almost proudly,
"And what better way than to go up against a fellow sword wielder?"
Inuyasha...
I found myself staring in utter awe at him for his offer, before he reaches to brush his knuckles over my cheek, moving a strand of red behind my ear, and says in a vow with a more serious expression,
"Coraline...I won't lose you to anyone or anything, not even the power of your own Soul...I'll do whatever it takes, to keep you with me."
I could feel the Auras of everyone else spike with a mutual feeling to my boyfriend's words, telling me that they would follow his example, making me in turn feel so loved...My mouth forms a small but stronger smile of gratitude, before I leaned back in to rest my head on his shoulder and whispering,
"Thank you."
Thank you, everyone, for being the rock that keeps me sane.
At the Same Time, No POV
"So, tell me, Renkotsu: Where are we going?"
We see Ginkotsu traveling along with his three fellow mercenary brothers aboard his form far off from where their enemies are, heading for somewhere that the fire-user has yet to reveal. He doesn't answer Jakotsu's question, of course, but any indignation for the silence would quickly be forgotten when a familiar young form is spotted ahead near a small knoll with a tree planted diagonal at the foot.
"Hey, isn't that little Kohaku?"
Renkotsu finally voices a reply:
"He's come to meet with us...(Grin) Alright then. Let's go meet up with big brother, then the Shichinintai will be at full force again."
...And somewhere even farther from that area, we see a young-looking male with tanned skin, long black hair tied back into a thick braid, wearing a set of clothing consisting of a white hakama and a matching kosode, black gloves held in place by his middle fingers, iron armour decorated with a blue/violet feather pattern, including a shoulder piece on his left shoulder attached with a red cloth strip, a red obi sash around his waist, and wore the footwear of this era's shinobi.
He stood atop a hill facing a distant castle nestled on a mountain cliff side, gazing at it with the flames of vengeance burning in his dark cobalt irises.
"...So, that's it, is it?...I finally found it."
His mouth turns upward into a anticipated grin, the laugh emitting from between his teeth in a manner that would only spell all kinds of bad news for the occupants in the far-off structure...