A/N: Thank you for all the reviews! It was a real thrill to get over two
hundred. I was especially happy to get positive feedback on the fight
scene (or what there is of it), because I was a little unsure on it.
Thanks again.
Synthetic Emotions
Inuyasha almost wished he could stop fighting to yell at Kagome. He had some choice phrases for her, but he was fairly certain that the industrial youkai between them wasn't going to let him go. Instead he flexed his good hand, swore under his breath, and prepared for another attack which would most likely prove as fruitless as his others.
Kagome had to get away. That was more important than his own 'survival.' He was sure he could occupy this youkai for long enough for her to get away, but she had to run. He could shout to her, but then this monster might notice her. . .
"Inuyasha!" the girl screamed, making it a moot point.
Predictably, the youkai turned its head toward this new voice, angling its remaining eye on Kagome. Its limbs creaked as it shifted its weight.
"Get the hell out of here!" the hanyou told her over the noise, then launched himself at the youkai again. This time he hit it under the chin nearly punching a hole through the soft spot behind its jaw.
"You're still fighting me, remember?" he said, as he landed, smirking more for the benefit of Kagome and his opponent than because of any real confidence.
The youkai made a coughing sound, opening and closing its wide mouth experimentally. Unfortunately, the joints worked as well as they had before the attack. Inuyasha snarled. How was going to bring this big fuck down? He stole a glance at Kagome and the activist, both of whom still stood there watching him.
"What are you waiting for?" Inuyasha shouted at the girl as the youkai forced him to dodge another swipe from its massive foreleg. This time he missed his counter attack. He had to focus on the fight, but Kagome was there. . .
He shook his head and forced all his attention on the youkai before him. Where was this damn thing vulnerable? His eyes raked over it critically as it opened its huge mouth to let out another outraged roar.
"Inuyasha," Kagome's voice reached his ears. He tried to ignore it as he sized the industrial youkai up yet again. It was blind on the left side, and its reaction speed was laughable, so if he focused on that quarter, he could probably buy himself some more time. The thing didn't seem too bright, either. He might be able to use that to his advantage. . . but then, it wasn't exactly like he had a whole lot to work with.
"Inu--" Damn, that girl was insistent.
The youkai turned away from the hanyou, once again drawn by Kagome's yelling.
Inuyasha had just enough time to think, 'Oh hell,' as he darted around the youkai to put himself between it and the girls. He scratched its cheek as he went, his claws easily gouging even metal. Too bad he couldn't get deeper. . .
A plan formed in the hanyou's head as the youkai snapped at him while he passed, missing his good right arm by more than a foot. It was so incredibly stupid, he wondered briefly if he'd damaged his logic functions without knowing it. But, there was a very good chance it would work.
The hard part would be not getting busted up beyond repair in the process.
Still, if it saved Kagome. . . his priorities were indisputablely written in his codes. The risk to his own well-being was acceptable, if Kagome would be kept safe.
'Let's just hope this thing doesn't keep its brain in its ass,' he prayed silently before launching his next attack.
The youkai saw him coming, and obligingly caught him between its heavy jaws. New 'pain' signals erupted from Inuyasha's side and midsection, where the thing's steel teeth worried at his skin. He did his best not to pay attention to them as he deverted all his energy to his good right hand. That was the easy part.
The tingle beneath his claws grew to a prickly heat, and he saw the faint glow in his fingers become a brilliant light. Then he struck at the roof of the youkai's mouth. The thin metal casing exploded inward under the force of his blow, and the hanyou felt his hand surrounded by a thick mesh of fiber optics and silicon boards. The thing was so simple that it didn't even have chemical components in its brain. Grabbing a fistful of the thin wires, the hanyou began tearing out the youkai's higher neural units.
Within second, he felt the monster shudder in response, its teeth clamping down harder on his middle, bending the cage that protected his own internal systems.
Then, it went still.
Inuyasha grimaced as a quick wave of relief was followed by all the complaints of his abused body, and again at the sharper 'pain' inputs his left shoulder sent out as he wedged it against the inside of the youkai's mouth in order to pry its jaw open. There was no help for it. His right arm didn't have the leverage he needed.
Grudgingly, the hinge opened, and the youkai's mandibles moved enough for Inuyasha to squirm free. With a sigh, he dropped to the ground.
*~*~*
Kagome thought her heart would stop when she saw Inuyasha trapped in the youkai's mouth, caught between its teeth.
When he freed himself, and landed with a sort of tired grace, she was torn between the desire to run up and hug him, and the urge to beat him senseless for making her worry about him. Didn't he even care that she didn't want him to get crushed? That she had been certain he was dead?
She just stared at him for a long moment, until she really saw what the fight had done to him. The sight of the ragged lacerations the monster's teeth had left on him banished her confusion, replacing it with concern. She ran to him, hardly realizing that she still carried Shippo or the shocked anti-youkai activist that followed after her.
Inuyasha looked up, saw her coming, and his face twisted into a scowl. It was not his habitual scowl, but a narrow eyed, taut lipped expression that would have stopped Kagome in her tracks in any other situation. Now she didn't even register it, only the way that his ripped shirt showed the deep cuts on his torso and low on his left bicep, which themselves revealed the glossy muscles under his skin. An abrasion on his left cheek was deep enough to see the dull shine of the metal framework of his face.
Kagome stopped a few feet away. Unsure what to do next, she could only watch him as the damage to his artificial skin oozed a thick, clear liquid. Never before had it been so obvious that he was not human, and never before had it mattered less. The injuries looked painful; Kagome felt tears welling in her eyes just looking at them.
"Why didn't you run?" the hanyou demanded, suddenly freeing her of her thoughts. "Are you a complete idiot? Do you want to get killed? Because if you do, keep right on like this and you shouldn't have long to wait!"
"Oh god, Inuyasha," Kagome said, hiccupping a small half-sob. "I'm so sorry. This is all my fault you're hurt."
"What?" he asked, his frown vanishing. "What the hell? Why are you crying? It's not like it matters."
"Why wouldn't it matter?!"
"Guys, I want to go home," Shippo broke in. "I don't want to be here anymore. We should go home."
Inuyasha nodded, but Kagome shook her head in denial.
"No, we have to go see Miroku," the girl said loudly. "I don't know if he can fix those or not, but he might know someone who can."
"I'm fine," the hanyou protested. "I don't need that worthless pervert's help. I can fix this myself."
"Are you sure?" the girl asked skeptically. He 'looked' very beat up.
"Of course I am," he grumbled. "What about the woman?"
Only then did Kagome remember Hiraikotsu Sango standing behind her, wide eyes fixed in shock on the both the girl and the Companion hanyou who were arguing in the shadow the industrial youkai, which still loomed over them. Her face was blank with shock.
"You alright, woman?" Inuyasha asked gruffly.
Sango shook her head as though to clear it, but her gaze remained blurry. "What are you . . . ?" she whispered to no one in particular.
"She doesn't look too good," Shippo observed.
"She's in shock," Inuyasha agreed.
Kagome caught her lower lip between her teeth, gnawing on it unconsciously. Finally she decided, "Can you carry her to the hospital, Inuyasha?"
"Keh," the hanyou grunted, looking away guiltily. "Why wouldn't I be able to?"
"Then let's get going."
Kagome watched as Inuyasha picked the young woman up and slung her over his right shoulder, and didn't miss the wince that passed over his features. "Inuyasha, put her down," she commanded. "Don't carry her like that. And lift your left arm."
Inuyasha complied, sulking as he set Sango down on the cracked asphalt, then stood up straight.
"Well?" the girl prompted. "What are you waiting for?"
His left hand twitched, and the wince from before turned into a clenched jaw. His arm remained at his side.
"Bitch!" the hanyou snapped, throwing up his other arm in defeat. "Alright, it's damaged. Happy?"
"Of course not!" Kagome shot back. "Why didn't you tell me? And just 'who' is the idiot? We're going to see Miroku, and that's final."
"What about her?" He gestured at the young woman, now blinking vaguely at the ground.
"We'll take her to the hospital first."
"Do you want me to carry her or not?"
Kagome made a sound of disgust and indicated that yes, he should carry her. Shippo clung tighter to her neck, and she calmed down a bit as she stroked his back comfortingly. Taking a deep breath, the girl struggled to regain control of her (understandably) frayed nerves, and started walking toward the hospital.
*~*~*
Naraku watched the fight through the eyes of other youkai linked to his network. He saw the hanyou disable his creature with a gambit that was either pure genius, or absolute, unalloyed stupidity. He saw the protesters who had gathered to demonstrate in front of the cafe Kikyo had targeted in her campaign against the self-same hanyou as had destroyed the industrial youkai.
He also saw the activists running headlong from the scene, and the chaos that sprang to life in his youkai's path. He watched as what had been an isolated protest turned into pandemonium spreading like wildfire through downtown Tokyo. He watched as the frightened people became angry, and destructive. What had started as a few hundred people with placards turned into thousand running amuck.
The hanyou was still functional, but then, Naraku hadn't really planned on having that particular toy of his take care of him. It had been meant to add to the chaos, and if anything, the hanyou's presence had only made it serve that purpose more admirably. Now witnesses would tell the story of how two youkai had gone wild.
Naraku smiled to himself as he watched the riot slowly spreading outward, like ripples of water in a pond. All told, everything had gone very well.
*~*~*
A/N: There you are. Chapter 18, and the outcome of Inuyasha's first real fight, earlier than I though I'd have it done, too. I hope it turned out well, and that the logistics all made sense. If they didn't, I apologize.
That's all for today. Remember to review.
Until next time.
Thanks again.
Synthetic Emotions
Inuyasha almost wished he could stop fighting to yell at Kagome. He had some choice phrases for her, but he was fairly certain that the industrial youkai between them wasn't going to let him go. Instead he flexed his good hand, swore under his breath, and prepared for another attack which would most likely prove as fruitless as his others.
Kagome had to get away. That was more important than his own 'survival.' He was sure he could occupy this youkai for long enough for her to get away, but she had to run. He could shout to her, but then this monster might notice her. . .
"Inuyasha!" the girl screamed, making it a moot point.
Predictably, the youkai turned its head toward this new voice, angling its remaining eye on Kagome. Its limbs creaked as it shifted its weight.
"Get the hell out of here!" the hanyou told her over the noise, then launched himself at the youkai again. This time he hit it under the chin nearly punching a hole through the soft spot behind its jaw.
"You're still fighting me, remember?" he said, as he landed, smirking more for the benefit of Kagome and his opponent than because of any real confidence.
The youkai made a coughing sound, opening and closing its wide mouth experimentally. Unfortunately, the joints worked as well as they had before the attack. Inuyasha snarled. How was going to bring this big fuck down? He stole a glance at Kagome and the activist, both of whom still stood there watching him.
"What are you waiting for?" Inuyasha shouted at the girl as the youkai forced him to dodge another swipe from its massive foreleg. This time he missed his counter attack. He had to focus on the fight, but Kagome was there. . .
He shook his head and forced all his attention on the youkai before him. Where was this damn thing vulnerable? His eyes raked over it critically as it opened its huge mouth to let out another outraged roar.
"Inuyasha," Kagome's voice reached his ears. He tried to ignore it as he sized the industrial youkai up yet again. It was blind on the left side, and its reaction speed was laughable, so if he focused on that quarter, he could probably buy himself some more time. The thing didn't seem too bright, either. He might be able to use that to his advantage. . . but then, it wasn't exactly like he had a whole lot to work with.
"Inu--" Damn, that girl was insistent.
The youkai turned away from the hanyou, once again drawn by Kagome's yelling.
Inuyasha had just enough time to think, 'Oh hell,' as he darted around the youkai to put himself between it and the girls. He scratched its cheek as he went, his claws easily gouging even metal. Too bad he couldn't get deeper. . .
A plan formed in the hanyou's head as the youkai snapped at him while he passed, missing his good right arm by more than a foot. It was so incredibly stupid, he wondered briefly if he'd damaged his logic functions without knowing it. But, there was a very good chance it would work.
The hard part would be not getting busted up beyond repair in the process.
Still, if it saved Kagome. . . his priorities were indisputablely written in his codes. The risk to his own well-being was acceptable, if Kagome would be kept safe.
'Let's just hope this thing doesn't keep its brain in its ass,' he prayed silently before launching his next attack.
The youkai saw him coming, and obligingly caught him between its heavy jaws. New 'pain' signals erupted from Inuyasha's side and midsection, where the thing's steel teeth worried at his skin. He did his best not to pay attention to them as he deverted all his energy to his good right hand. That was the easy part.
The tingle beneath his claws grew to a prickly heat, and he saw the faint glow in his fingers become a brilliant light. Then he struck at the roof of the youkai's mouth. The thin metal casing exploded inward under the force of his blow, and the hanyou felt his hand surrounded by a thick mesh of fiber optics and silicon boards. The thing was so simple that it didn't even have chemical components in its brain. Grabbing a fistful of the thin wires, the hanyou began tearing out the youkai's higher neural units.
Within second, he felt the monster shudder in response, its teeth clamping down harder on his middle, bending the cage that protected his own internal systems.
Then, it went still.
Inuyasha grimaced as a quick wave of relief was followed by all the complaints of his abused body, and again at the sharper 'pain' inputs his left shoulder sent out as he wedged it against the inside of the youkai's mouth in order to pry its jaw open. There was no help for it. His right arm didn't have the leverage he needed.
Grudgingly, the hinge opened, and the youkai's mandibles moved enough for Inuyasha to squirm free. With a sigh, he dropped to the ground.
*~*~*
Kagome thought her heart would stop when she saw Inuyasha trapped in the youkai's mouth, caught between its teeth.
When he freed himself, and landed with a sort of tired grace, she was torn between the desire to run up and hug him, and the urge to beat him senseless for making her worry about him. Didn't he even care that she didn't want him to get crushed? That she had been certain he was dead?
She just stared at him for a long moment, until she really saw what the fight had done to him. The sight of the ragged lacerations the monster's teeth had left on him banished her confusion, replacing it with concern. She ran to him, hardly realizing that she still carried Shippo or the shocked anti-youkai activist that followed after her.
Inuyasha looked up, saw her coming, and his face twisted into a scowl. It was not his habitual scowl, but a narrow eyed, taut lipped expression that would have stopped Kagome in her tracks in any other situation. Now she didn't even register it, only the way that his ripped shirt showed the deep cuts on his torso and low on his left bicep, which themselves revealed the glossy muscles under his skin. An abrasion on his left cheek was deep enough to see the dull shine of the metal framework of his face.
Kagome stopped a few feet away. Unsure what to do next, she could only watch him as the damage to his artificial skin oozed a thick, clear liquid. Never before had it been so obvious that he was not human, and never before had it mattered less. The injuries looked painful; Kagome felt tears welling in her eyes just looking at them.
"Why didn't you run?" the hanyou demanded, suddenly freeing her of her thoughts. "Are you a complete idiot? Do you want to get killed? Because if you do, keep right on like this and you shouldn't have long to wait!"
"Oh god, Inuyasha," Kagome said, hiccupping a small half-sob. "I'm so sorry. This is all my fault you're hurt."
"What?" he asked, his frown vanishing. "What the hell? Why are you crying? It's not like it matters."
"Why wouldn't it matter?!"
"Guys, I want to go home," Shippo broke in. "I don't want to be here anymore. We should go home."
Inuyasha nodded, but Kagome shook her head in denial.
"No, we have to go see Miroku," the girl said loudly. "I don't know if he can fix those or not, but he might know someone who can."
"I'm fine," the hanyou protested. "I don't need that worthless pervert's help. I can fix this myself."
"Are you sure?" the girl asked skeptically. He 'looked' very beat up.
"Of course I am," he grumbled. "What about the woman?"
Only then did Kagome remember Hiraikotsu Sango standing behind her, wide eyes fixed in shock on the both the girl and the Companion hanyou who were arguing in the shadow the industrial youkai, which still loomed over them. Her face was blank with shock.
"You alright, woman?" Inuyasha asked gruffly.
Sango shook her head as though to clear it, but her gaze remained blurry. "What are you . . . ?" she whispered to no one in particular.
"She doesn't look too good," Shippo observed.
"She's in shock," Inuyasha agreed.
Kagome caught her lower lip between her teeth, gnawing on it unconsciously. Finally she decided, "Can you carry her to the hospital, Inuyasha?"
"Keh," the hanyou grunted, looking away guiltily. "Why wouldn't I be able to?"
"Then let's get going."
Kagome watched as Inuyasha picked the young woman up and slung her over his right shoulder, and didn't miss the wince that passed over his features. "Inuyasha, put her down," she commanded. "Don't carry her like that. And lift your left arm."
Inuyasha complied, sulking as he set Sango down on the cracked asphalt, then stood up straight.
"Well?" the girl prompted. "What are you waiting for?"
His left hand twitched, and the wince from before turned into a clenched jaw. His arm remained at his side.
"Bitch!" the hanyou snapped, throwing up his other arm in defeat. "Alright, it's damaged. Happy?"
"Of course not!" Kagome shot back. "Why didn't you tell me? And just 'who' is the idiot? We're going to see Miroku, and that's final."
"What about her?" He gestured at the young woman, now blinking vaguely at the ground.
"We'll take her to the hospital first."
"Do you want me to carry her or not?"
Kagome made a sound of disgust and indicated that yes, he should carry her. Shippo clung tighter to her neck, and she calmed down a bit as she stroked his back comfortingly. Taking a deep breath, the girl struggled to regain control of her (understandably) frayed nerves, and started walking toward the hospital.
*~*~*
Naraku watched the fight through the eyes of other youkai linked to his network. He saw the hanyou disable his creature with a gambit that was either pure genius, or absolute, unalloyed stupidity. He saw the protesters who had gathered to demonstrate in front of the cafe Kikyo had targeted in her campaign against the self-same hanyou as had destroyed the industrial youkai.
He also saw the activists running headlong from the scene, and the chaos that sprang to life in his youkai's path. He watched as what had been an isolated protest turned into pandemonium spreading like wildfire through downtown Tokyo. He watched as the frightened people became angry, and destructive. What had started as a few hundred people with placards turned into thousand running amuck.
The hanyou was still functional, but then, Naraku hadn't really planned on having that particular toy of his take care of him. It had been meant to add to the chaos, and if anything, the hanyou's presence had only made it serve that purpose more admirably. Now witnesses would tell the story of how two youkai had gone wild.
Naraku smiled to himself as he watched the riot slowly spreading outward, like ripples of water in a pond. All told, everything had gone very well.
*~*~*
A/N: There you are. Chapter 18, and the outcome of Inuyasha's first real fight, earlier than I though I'd have it done, too. I hope it turned out well, and that the logistics all made sense. If they didn't, I apologize.
That's all for today. Remember to review.
Until next time.