Dying to Live
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.
Cool spring night air, crescent moon over head.
Blood on my hands and caught under my nails again, the former Lord of the West mused. Sesshomaru had allowed himself to fall back from the immediate fight when a spurt of blood splashed across his face.
Spitting crudely into the dirt, he decided that the dark, fresh blood of his enemies did not hit his palate in the same appetizing way as when he had been a youkai. Add it to list of everything that is not as it should be, he scoffed sardonically. At least he could still admire the violent sheen of their blood on his skin, which he did- almost approvingly - as he inspected his human hands.
To say Sesshomaru was having fun would have been going overboard. Never a pleasure seeker even as youkai, "fun" had always decidedly been a relative thing for him. He did enjoy the challenge of the fight more than he had guessed. Stepping back momentarily from the immediate fight was less of a choice than a necessity, as he had kept careful pace of his blood and breath. He was breathing more heavily than other fighters around him, but then again, for the effort he showed, maybe it was only natural and not purely indicative of his prior chest injuries.
Indeed, Sesshomaru estimated that the fight was going as well as he could have hoped. A group of village boys had been drawn to Sesshomaru and Tsukiko. The vehemency of his opening attacks on the first of the zombic wolves proved he was interested in no less than their total annihilation, which the boys had quickly noticed and appreciated.
Though Sesshomaru had always prided himself on his battle instincts, he was still surprisingly pleased at how Tsukiko and her brother had kept up with his vicious pace. As predicted, the girl did suffer a momentary cardiac arrest when she dove in on the first monster he had managed to gorily stab and burn into submission. He had driven the blade in deeper, finding purchase for his dagger in the monster's eye socket. Dark blood fountained up onto them while the blaze of her burning stick caught on the necrotic flesh. Hellsparks sprayed across the front of both Sesshomaru and the girl on a backdrop of her screams. However, to his shouting at her not to back down, Tsukiko did not let up until enough of the flesh had burnt away that Sesshomaru could free his dagger from the eye socket. At that point, lopping off the monster's nasty head with a single slash struck Sesshomaru as almost anticlimactic; yet, that said, his old sensibilities valued the simplicity of it.
From there, Sesshomaru had set upon his process, such as it was. Though he'd almost lost hold of his sword a few times in the midst of trial and error, he did not and successfully kept his grip time after time. He had learned to use a rounded swinging, uppercut motion driven by the power of his right-side body. With the pointed tip sweeping past the ground, he expertly whipped the fire-soaked sword blade up to land its mark heavily in a cross-sectional skewer to the beast's shoulder. The burning resin on the weapon would help ensure the cut. Once he landed his mark, the steel rooted deep in the nasty flesh and sinew, Sesshomaru had to quickly slam his right boot down on the battle sword's handle. The stunning nature of the blow together with the torturous burn of the flame gave him the ultimate advantage. In a move that few others could probably execute, Sesshomaru had only the narrowest opportunity to draw and jam his dagger into the downed beast's cranium. Due to the unnatural toughness of the flesh and bone of these vermin, Sesshomaru immediately preferred to attack the eye socket or cheek, knowing these areas to be weak spots even on the toughest enemies. Then, with his dagger lodged in the monster's face, he had only to hold the beast down long enough with the sheer force of his hands and feet for Tsukiko to purify enough of the flesh for him to go in for the one last decapitating blow.
Perhaps that's what I like about this, Sesshomaru realized between heavy restorative breaths. Sussing out the perfect application of brute force in the respect of the balance and the intricacy of the battle itself. That was what Sesshomaru was born for; that was what he was best at.
Dropping those contemplations aside for later inspection, Sesshomaru moved his tongue about his mouth again to ensure it was clear of blood; whether the essence of these monsters was toxic he didn't know, and while he still hoped for eventual release from his mortal coil, he felt that poisoning would not be his preferred means. Satisfied, he checked his blood-stained kosode sleeve and found a spot near the shoulder to wipe excess blood from the outside of his mouth. The fabric of the undershirt would never be white again, so what if he used it like a handkerchief? Being particular was a luxury that "human Sesshomaru" was better off not being concerned about, he told himself.
As Sesshomaru finished wiping his face, out of curiosity, he turned his head to see how the kitsune was doing.
Shippou, the wolf demon Ginta, and the nekomata were helping organize their own attacks with a gaggle of villagers. Their moves were clearly patterned on Sesshomaru's though, to which he could not deny himself a dark smirk. Agreeably, the kitsune did not miss the smug expression Sesshomaru cast him, as he caught the glamorized youth momentarily paused as well. The auburn-haired demon's leaf green eyes keenly fixed Seshomaru's challenging, muddy-brown gaze before the ex-daiyoukai turned away dismissively.
Probably just checking to see if I've keeled from breathing problems or if I am in threat of getting eaten alive, Sesshomaru jeered inwardly. The Former Lord of the West was no fool: he knew perfectly well that his half-brother's goons didn't give a rat-demon's ass about his well-being outside of his ethereal connection to their precious monk. So Sesshomaru would take no guilt in getting under their collective skin when it suited him.
"Sessho-san!" Kei shouted, bounding over from having equipped his sister with a fresh, flaming stick. "Your sword is goin' out! Lower it, n' I'll reapply the resin so Tsukiko can relight it," the boy offered urgently, and Sesshomaru complied. Seeing that her brother was adding resin to the blade, Tsukiko hurried over dutifully. Soon, Sesshomaru held his burning blade aloft toward the dark, night sky.
Sweat chilled the back of Sesshomaru's neck. Again, he derided the odd process by which this body of his could be simultaneously overheated and yet chilled. He cleared his throat and told himself to ignore it. Like the heaviness in his chest and the matching fatigue in his upper back muscles, he would treat the blood and sweat clumping in his distractingly wet hair as if they were nothing.
This battle was his, and Sesshomaru wouldn't stop until he felled the last monster.
"You," he spoke loudly, as one of the village boys took a backward step from the fray. Sesshomaru recognized the boy as one of the youths they had first been introduced to after arriving in Harumura. "Signal your friends and send another one of those mongrels here," he commanded between steady inhalations.
The boy nodded and shouted forward to his companions, "Oi, Akio, guys – he's ready to take on another one. Let's try to separate another one off the group and then hold the rest back like we have!"
Sesshomaru watched as the boys gave chase, wildly swinging their burning branches so as to corral the stupid beasts. Sesshomaru had been keeping an eye on one larger than the rest that stayed at the back of the pack.
The pack leader. He knew it had to be. Mere drone demons like these always seemed to come with one. Don't worry, you'll taste my sword like all the others, Sesshomaru promised ominously, as he looked away from the prowling giant that skulked a bit further back from flames than the others. It was the barest sign of having a few extra ounces of intellect among a crowd of already very dumb creatures.
However, it was the zombic wolves' numbers that made this fight the challenge that it was, and Sesshomaru had told himself repeatedly that he would not let his guard down.
Old habits died hard, as the boys directed a particularly mangy looking beast running in Sesshomaru's direction. Instinctively, the former inuyoukai bared his teeth. Even his tired lungs accommodated as he forced a primal growl to tear from his throat. Channeling the predator he was born to be, Sesshomaru sprung without abandon upon the approaching monster.
:
Rin had felt sicker as the minutes passed. Outside whispering, urgent voices told her that the fighters for the village were tensing for the approaching fight. Meanwhile the hot, orange light of the fire pits around the hut had roared to life, reminding the young woman freshly of her encounter in the burning hall the night before. Steadily, her skin began to crawl in unfamiliar ways, and the room began to do a little warping spin in her vision. The claustrophobia was unexpected and made her perspire through her already sweat-caked clothes.
What could she do? She refused to let the young mother beside her see her face. Not after Rin herself had tried to comfort her; Rin believed in her friends - that wasn't the problem. So she wrenched her eyes shut and pressed her face to her knees. Pulling at the skirt of the worn and unfamiliar bed clothes she wore over her still smoke-laden long underwear, she wiped shakily at the tears and sweat coating her cheeks. She tried to force herself to breathe silently, though she guessed she must have failed, as the pregnant woman beside her had taken to rubbing Rin's back with her free hand.
Other people also gasped and wept to themselves, and Rin tried to ignore them. The wolves were here, and she felt as though her organs would freeze. She hated that she couldn't stop her blood from running cold again. She worried she might faint and grew more anxious, as she looked for the telltale sign of her blood beating against her inner ear.
And yet it didn't. Only her tears kept falling, and her back hurt from trying to hide the shaking in her frame. Her skirt was so wet now from wiping her face, that she reached for the bed covers only to pull something else to her face.
The fabric wasn't even to her face when she was hit with the familiar musk of cool pinebark and warm perspiration. She recoiled, as she realized what she almost smeared her snot on: Sesshomaru's dark-blue haori overcoat.
Gripping the fabric tightly, she was hit with an all new wave of emotion. Her own clothes must have burned in the fire, the beautiful new silks that Sesshomaru had so surprisingly gifted to her before circumstances had cast a rift between himself and Rin.
She still did not know how she'd made it out alive from the village hall, but his overcoat spread across her bed seemed to speak volumes to the events she had missed given how she knew her enigmatic lord. She gripped the fabric between her shaking fingers and suddenly realized what was wrong.
"Be ready! Follow me damn it!" she heard the familiar male voice suddenly rising up from somewhere outside the hut's walls.
Reflexively, Rin looked up in the speaker's direction.
"Rin-chan," the village woman who had been rubbing her back whispered, probably surprised at the girl's sudden reaction. "Are ye okay? It's the sounds of our neighbors coordinatin' the fight-" She tried to speak, but Rin interrupted by springing out of her futon. The distraught young woman even felt a tug on the hem of her bedrobe but ignored it.
Like a moth drawn to the danger of the flame, she approached the gapped planks of the hut's wall nearest to the sound. Her stomach tumbled with each step, and she nearly tripped into the wall on weak legs.
But it was his voice she had heard.
Sesshomaru.
How had she not realized that he was not inside the hut with them this time? The haze of unconsciousness she had emerged from had not fully lifted, and mentally, she had not been prepared for another night of horrors so soon.
And now, Sesshomaru was out there with the monstrous undead wolves.
"Rin-chan?" someone called urgently under their breath to her from behind, but Rin only heard the stranger's voice without really comprehending.
Because though she hated it with every drop of nervous sweat that clung to her, her concern for him somehow outweighed a fear that struck her to her core and gave her years of nightmares.
Even now she wasn't sure: was this real life, or just another night-terror that she believed she had long outgrown?
Unbreathing, she pressed her eyelid to the gap in the splintered boards.
What am I doing? Where is the bravery I swore I would have? she told herself, angry and yet wanting to cry all at the same time.
She thought she might vomit from the stress, but still, she forced her eye open. She forced herself so close to the wall that her lashes caught on the wood grain and splinters jabbed her finger pads. Her hot breath, rancid from the dehydration that was probably hurting her more than anything, blew back in her face.
She would watch the attack. She had to stand watch. If all she could do was not let fright or anger with him stand in her way, Rin would be brave.
And if her Lord Sesshomaru would not retreat, then in her own small way, then neither would Rin.
She only prayed he really meant to fight and that somehow, by the kami, he would win.
:::
Note: Wow, guys! No lie, this chapter went through approximately fifty-BILLION (ok maybe not that many) drafts before I was even close to satisfied enough to post it. But I think (I hope ^^' ) I finally got it how it needed to be; plus more good news, it actually split into two chapters instead of one shorter, originally-planned chapter by the time I got it sorted!
Also just gotta say, I was vibing to Su Lee's song "I'll Just Dance" by the time I finished it, just to put it in perspective. And then I was like, you know what, I actually somehow kind of like this paired with the mood of Sesshomaru and Rin within the context of this chapter. Just another example of how it all comes together nicely eventually, right?
Anyway, hope you guys enjoy how it's coming out. R&R if you can! Thanks to crashletastrophy, Inusesshyfan, and Guest for the March/April reviews. Hugs to the favs/followers too ~ you are the best, dear readers! Origamikungfu.