Title: Tides Against Time
Rating: M (Language, Violence, and Adult Content)
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or the Little Mermaid. All rights should go to Inuyasha Inc. and Disney.
Music: The song I have selected for this chapter is: "Inuyasha OST 1 - Youen." and "Inuyasha OST 1 - Naraku." I love to listen to music on YouTube while I read to add to the atmosphere. You are welcome to listen along with my music selection if you want. It is not required. When you see these marks (***) that means to begin to play the selected song. When you see (xxx) this means to stop playing the music. It is important to pay attention to these marking as there is more than one song for this chapter. I do not have credit for these recordings or channels but I think it adds to the story.
Tides Against Time: Hidden Enemies
(*** Inuyasha OST 1 - Youen ***)
A female octopid slinks in the shadows of the ocean floor. She came around a corner of some seafloor rocks to discover a cave. Around the cave were the remains of whalebones and various other large fishbone that had gotten stuck there over time with the tide. Looking inside she discovers it to of been abandoned for quite some time. Going inside she discovers the cave opened up further inside making a perfect place for a new home. Going back through the entrance to the cave she decides to line the entrance with the bones. With her six legs and two arms she quickly makes work of the bones. The ribs, spine and mouth of the beast soon became its new entrance. She hoped by doing this it would deter any other creature from entering. Going back into the cave she begins moving rocks around in the places she desired. By late afternoon everything inside was as she wished and she went outside through the now whale carcass entrance in search for dinner. Just before the sun went down she returned with a cluster of clams and sea urchins.
Making her way back inside she seals off the entrance with her magic and uses her hand as a torch to see inside. Sitting down on a rock she finally relaxes and eats her dinner. Since her banishment she had nearly been washed away with a rip tide, almost beaten to death on the rocks, been chased by countless sharks and just yesterday had to escape a swarm of flesh eating jellyfish. She was tired, lonely and covered in boils, cuts and bruises. She didn't mean for her magic to backfire and kill that mermaid she was trying to heal. Her magic had always been flawless! She had always used it for good and the one time she messed up everyone freaked out calling her a witch. If she hadn't of escaped they surly would have killed her. Fear was a powerful thing and no matter how hard she tried to go back and ask for forgiveness they always retaliated. As she ate her dinner she realized just how lonely she was. Tears slowly slid down her cheeks as she hid in her cave. However, her tears of sorrow turned into bitterness and anger. Thinking back to the accident somehow she had absorbed the mermaid's soul. Now that she thought about it she did feel different, stronger even. Maybe with her newfound power she could take back her revenge?
"Yes! That's just what I'll do! I'll use my magic to lore them in by offering my help. Then I will make a deal with them to where I will take half of their soul knowing fully well that they wont live very long. That way they will slowly die and suffer! With my magic working for their remaining days of life my reputation for my magic will remain in tact so others will continue to come to me. Then once the magic wears off after a few days the rest of their soul will belong to me! HAHAHA! Oh Yes! This will be perfect!" she said to herself.
And that's exactly what she did. Over the hundreds of years Urasue used her magic to steal souls of the Merfolk race. Her magic would grant their wish they desired and after 7-8 days the magic would wear off and the remaining half of their soul would then be returned to her. After consuming each soul her magic would increase and she would become youthful again. Over time she became so great at her selling pitches that she could sell half her bargain to where later they would be unsatisfied with their original bargain. By them doing this it would make her raise the price making them offer their other half freely! She always had them sign a contract however in case anyone ever retaliated. It was merlaw that if a contract was formed willingly nothing she did was illegal. She had lost track of how many souls she had consumed over the years but every soul she gained she would scatter their ashes at the entrance to her cave and a new plant would grow along her entrance from their remains. Having so many souls inside her made her not feel so lonely anymore. She could watch their memories play in her mind and feel their emotions. They became a part of her as much as she apart of them.
Over the years she had discovered the value of minions for client recruiting and spying. With her current minions being the Thunder brothers, made from two of her stolen souls, it was with their help she was able to get her new project in motion and oh did she have great plans in store. With Kagome being the Mer-King's daughter she could not only strike her revenge against all Merkind, but also take away their princess and crush the heart of their King! She hoped that the King would come to her aid and try to take her daughters soul back bartering his soul instead. She couldn't wait to consume his power and magic. Once she obtained that and his magical trident she would become unstoppable. If she could succeed in doing this she would eradicate all Merfolk and finally satisfy her revenge. She had never sent a mermaid to land before and was a little nervous of the outcome in how the soul would be returned to her but she would figure it out as she went. She had sent her minions to keep their eyes on her while she stays at the castle. Now she just had to wait for her remaining magic to wear off of Kagome and see if her plan would fall into place.
"Just you wait Poseidon, I'll get my revenge and your pretty little princess too. HAHAHA!" cackled Urasue.
(Suitors)
Koga was growing frustrated. He didn't understand why the sisters were taking so long in choosing him as a mate! What was he doing wrong? He provided for them daily, protect them from those Hammerheads, and comforted them when they were exhausted after healing that damn Amazon. They had even watched him fight Meat Head and Pretty Boy and seem to really enjoy it! He had even been told that the sisters liked him over the others. He had been using Ginta and Hakkaku as spies. With them using their cousins for information it was not surprise for him to learn this. Of course he was the best! However, he couldn't put his true plan into action until after Poseidon gave his blessing and he and the sisters had officially mated. He did genuinely like the sisters. They had been very close as younglings and when they were reunited he couldn't believe just how beautiful and powerful they had become. He knew their offspring would make great rulers one day with their mixed blood and couldn't wait for their mating to actually happen.
It wasn't his first rut but it would be his first matting and with having two mates at the same time sounded thrilling. He couldn't wait to experiment. Soon the fantasies he had had over the years while creating his plan would become reality. Just thinking about them got him hard and pissed him off. He could tell they were both pure by the smell of their heat and his instincts to impregnate them was beginning to get the better of him. The mating games were only a few days away and he only hoped his control would last just a little bit longer before he did something stupid and ruin his chances of winning them, the King, and all of the Merfolk over to his side. When he had found out about Kagome and Kikyo and the issue of the demons he didn't know what to think at first. However the more he thought about it and what Kagome said and how they acted it all started to make sense. They wished to be mated to the demons, not them! Disgusting! He was glad their father stepped in and resolved the issue though. Now with the approaching mating games everything would be set into motion and he would soon be mated to the sisters. Then he and his men would move in, kill Poseidon and rule the Water Kingdom.
Bankotsu was deeply missing the company of his brothers and their many concubines. Being the oldest of seven of the ruling Astarte tribe he had been sent here to unite their tribes and to bring the rule of power back into the Astarte's grasp. 800 years ago the Astarte Merfolk were once the ruling tribe but when their leader only produced daughters with powers instead of sons, the reign shifted to the Mediterranean Merfolk and they become the Royal Tribe. Now the tides have changed once again. The current Royal tribe had two eligible daughters with powers and a son born without any. It was the Astarte's chance to once again take control of the Water Kingdom. They had always been the strongest of the Merfolk and they believed the gods had always favored them above all other's and thus were designed by the gods themselves to rule. They craved power and all forms of wealth. They also believed they were the most beautiful of Merfolk and others should worship their demigod status.
Bankotsu fully believed in this theology and flaunted it in his appearance, strength, attitude, and personality. He truly believed he was invincible and was destined by the gods to be King. He had barely even lifted a finger when Koga and Ryura were "fighting" him. In all honesty he had just wanted to get a gage of his competition before the mating games so that way when the true battle came he could receive the recognition he truly deserved as a demigod. He had just been playing nice at the time and trying to impress his future mates. Plus he was growing tired of sitting around doing nothing. He and his brothers would always spar or have their way with their family's concubines. Once he won the games and mated with the sisters he would send one of his tribe members back to inform the rest of their tribe they were united once more. Then he would introduce Kagome and Kikyo to his already 9 younglings, or was that 10? He was sure they would love them and he couldn't wait to have more just like him.
Before Ryura had left the Arctic Tribe with his traveling gossip his father made sure to remind him that if he were to fail he would be banished from his shame towards them and stripped of all titles. As the mating games continued to approach Ryura was steadily feeling the pressure behind his father, his tribe and future. His father had sent spies along with the mate seeking gossip to insure his father knew of his every move. He could still feel his father's lashings on his face and back from his last failure. No, he could not fail, not again. How he longed to just be able to enjoy the freedom away from home and look for a mate of his choosing. But no, not even here could he escape the hand of his father. Before he was sent on this journey he had already planned on mating within his tribe with his lifetime friend Toran. However, now with the potential of his failure and possibly being banished he couldn't do that to her. He had to let her go if he failed.
It already killed him to see her being pursued by other males. He could tell she enjoyed their attention but was still holding back for him. She knew of his feelings for her and she had agreed that they would mate but now she had the chance to leave his side for another and he would not take away her chance at happiness. If he failed in his mission and Toran was freed to another due to his banishment he would surly kill himself. He just had to win, he just had to. Toran was his only reason for living, if she was taken away from him he had nothing else to live for. She had been the only one to ever see him for who he was. Being the eldest son of the Ice King was excruciating. There was not a day that went by were he was not scolded or beaten into the perfection he was now. People viewed him as cold and indifferent but Toran knew better. She had been there through everything. She knew him to be actually shy in nature, dry in humor and a great artist in sculpting ice. She always knew how to make his cold heart melt. If he couldn't win it for himself, he would win it for her.
(The Duke)
(*** Inuyasha OST 1 - Naraku ***)
Inuyasha's coming of age celebration was fast approaching and the Duke could hardly wait for the damn thing to be over with. They were already loading their belongings on the boat they would be using to transport from London to Santander, Spain. From there they would cut through Spain using the Ebro River and come out the other side into the Balearic Sea. They would then head south reaching the port of Valencia, Spain on the day of the 50th year anniversary if everything went according to plan. Being a spider demon the Duke hated everything to do with water and was not looking forward to this trip. It was only by his spies at the Tashio Castle and their recent headway in convincing Lord Sesshomaru to agree moving forward with his marriage contract with his eldest daughter that he was even coming. It had been 50 years since his spies successfully poisoned Lord Toga on the beach and implanted his minions into his son's leadership committee. Now all of his plans were falling into place and he wasn't about to miss his chance to finally see it through.
Spain's imports and exports were already heavily tied to England thanks to his influence. With the King of England on his deathbed and with only a daughter to take the thrown he had made sure he made a binding contract with him to insure his niece married him. With him in power of England and their extended commonwealth and his daughter influencing Spain and their commonwealth he would have rule over the entire known world! Even with the possibility of his eldest daughter or Lord Sesshomaru dying he had insured both his second daughter and Lord Toga's second son made another binding contract. He would not allow another to take what was his away from him. Being the son of the previous King's human mistress, making the Duke the half brother to the current King of England and a half demon didn't make his rule to power any easier. He was bound and determined to put anyone in their place for doubting him. He had not worked this hard to see his plan fail. So he would get on that damn boat, sail to Spain and make them wed while he was there. That way it was done and he could move onto his own wedding. Soon he would rule the world and everyone would know of his power. There was still much to prepare for and he could not afford to make a single mistake.
(End of Chapter 11)
(Poor Ryura! What will become of his future? While Toran mate before he has a chance to win the mating games? Would Toran be willing to become his third mate? What of The Duke and Urasue! The Past is catching up to the future! And someone need to put Banktostu in place! What will happen at the Mating Games? Will Koga finally earn the right to mate with Kagome and Kikyo? Only time will tell!
Please let me know what you think of the chapter! I thought it might be interesting to give some background to our villains. Hope it helped fill in some story gapes and helped you understand the characters a little more. I didn't want to give too much away! Would love your feedback. Make sure to leave a review! More to come soon! Thanks for reading.)