Chapter Six: The Guardian, the Warriors, and the Jewels
Night was here. Everyone was once again gathered around a fire. Akia and Nayru were off to the side whispering. Kagome sighed. The feelings she had the other day were back. The shikon jewel was back to being whole and was now in her protection. But something new had arisen soon after. A new threat was forming. And with it came a whole new mystery and danger. These two women were keeping things hidden from them. How could Kagome and the others help if they didn't under stand what was going on?
She looked at the two. Akia, she had recently found out, was a full-blooded demon. The same kind of demon as InuYasha and Sesshoumaru. Kagome had later found out why the female demon was so comfortable around humans. She looked into the fire.
'Akia had said she grew up in the same village as Nayru. After her mother left her, Akia was alone. Luckily, the village took pity on her and took her in. How sad? Left behind by her own mother. I'm glad she met Nayru and became friends. That explains why she doesn't hate humans. But why was she so cautious of us at first? Something must have happened to her as a child.'
Nayru and Akia returned to the group, interrupting her thoughts.
"We will answer any questions you may have now." Nayru folded her hands in front of her.
Akia crossed her arms. "As long as we think it's necessary you know the answer."
InuYasha huffed. "Like that's gonna help. What if we really need to know something and you decide not to tell us?"
Kagome looked up. Akia and Nayru gave each other wary looks. Kagome knew that some things were better left unsaid until they felt that they could trust their new acquaintances. "That's okay InuYasha. They'll tell us all we need to know in time. Let them tell us what they wish to tell us now."
InuYasha gave her a confused look. But he shook it off and looked forward with his eyes closed. No point in arguing with her. If she felt that way about it, then there was good reason. But that didn't mean he agreed. He wanted to know what kind of trouble they were getting into. He wasn't willing to put Kagome into any more danger now that the search for the jewel fragments was over.
Shippo piped up. "So who are you two? I mean, what do you guys do?"
Nayru knew this was coming. She glanced at her demon friend. Akia nodded slightly when she caught her eye. "Well, we're both protectors of the five sacred jewels."
Akia took over. "Nayru is what our village calls the 'Guardian of the spirits.'"
Sesshoumaru glanced at Naryu. "So that explains why Talon was after you, but how are you able to wield such power?"
Miroku nodded. "Yes. You appear to be a human, but obviously you are not."
Nayru was surprised. How could this monk sense the difference in her. "Actually, the jewels provide me with much of the power I use. But sometimes I wonder how I'm able to wield it. Any other human would not survive the transfer of the powers."
"That's one of the mysteries of the guardians. Nobody can figure out why only the ancestors of the original Guardian can be the Guardian of the five sacred jewels." Akia thought for a moment. "The elders may know, but nobody's ever asked."
"I tried once, but they told me not to worry of such things. They said the jewels worked in mysterious ways."
Sango put her hands in her lap. "What about you Akia? What is your role in the protection of the jewels?"
"I'm one of the warriors of the village trained to be one of the 'Guardian's Elite.' We basically protect the Guardian and the jewels."
"So the Guardian is the most important person of the village and she or he has a group of warriors known as the Guardian's Elite," Kagome thought out loud to herself.
Akia's ears picked it up. "Only 'her.' The Guardian is always a female as far as we know."
Kagome almost jumped. "Oh, I'm sorry."
"Don't worry about it. That's why we agreed to answer questions. I think that's about all you need to know about who we are."
Nayru sat down. She looked at the ground in front of her. Some Guardian she turned out to be. The jewels were gone and she had no idea where to look. She brought her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on them. She wrapped her arms around her legs to get more comfortable.
InuYasha asked a question that had been in his head. "What are the Sacred jewels?"
Nayru immediately answered. "The jewels created in my village long ago. Some say the four spirits of this world were bored and decided to use their powers to create something. It took most of their energy to make the jewels that exist today, so they were unable to remain on this earth. The elders told us that they live on within the jewels."
Everyone's interests had increased.
She continued. "The four spirits were of Fire, Water, Earth, and Wind. Before they left, they decided to bestow the power of protecting their creations to a young female who was wandering alone in the forest. This girl was from a nearby village. She had no idea about the burden she was to receive. She entered a cave, which belonged to the spirit of Fire, and found the spirits waiting. They spoke to her all about what they had done and what they wanted her to do. They told her about the danger they had unwillingly brought to this world. She accepted the responsibility. When she returned to the village, she told her parents about what had happened. They didn't believe her. Not until the day a demon came looking for her. It wanted the jewels. She fought it off with the aid of the jewels. Since that day, the jewels have remained in the care of the village."
Everyone took a few minutes to let it all soak in. Kagome was stunned. More jewels existed that posed a threat to the world. She had a feeling that these were somehow more of a danger than the shikon is.
InuYasha voiced the same question that had arisen in everyone's mind. "What kind of a threat do they pose?"
Akia spoke this time. She knew Nayru needed a break. "Anyone who yields there power basically controls the elements."
Nayru decided to further the explanation a little. "If someone were to yield them, then they basically become like a god or goddess. If that were to happen, then it would be hard to defeat them."
"Only if they found the way to unlock the spirits power and combine with them." Akia decided to sit down. Her feet were beginning to hurt. "Don't bother asking if we know how because we don't."
"What about the Destiny jewel?" Kagome asked quietly.
Nayru froze. This was a whole different story to tell. "It was created by a Guardian long ago." She closed her eyes. "That Guardian was a showoff. And she wasn't weak at all. She was the most powerful of all the Guardians. She made the jewel to prove this. Like the spirits, she was weakened. The jewel was not created just by her. A demon that she had met tricked her into allowing it to help her because it saw how weak she was becoming. In reality, it wanted to kill her and steal the jewels she protected. The newly created jewel would be an added bonus. After the jewel was complete, the Guardian was too weak to protect herself from the attack of the demon. But before it could take the jewels, her warriors killed it. With both evil and good within, the jewel became the most dangerous and most powerful. It was never purified and no other Guardian has been able to. I haven't had the chance to try.
"The jewel is very seductive. It's like it has a mind of it's own. The elders think that both the demon's and the Guardian's spirit live in it. If that is true, then that would explain why sometimes it's power tries to kill and other times it tries to protect. The Destiny jewel, along with the other four, can be combined to create an unstoppable force. For many years, demons and humans have tried to steal the Destiny jewel. They know it's the strongest. Talon was the only person who was able to get to it. He's discovered that he needs the other four to become even more powerful."
"Luckily he hasn't been able to fully combine with the jewel, otherwise he'd have the other four and we'd be dead," stated Miroku.
Akia nodded. "But now that the other four have disappeared, we're in even more trouble."
Nayru opened her eyes. She stood up and looked around at the group. "We need to go to the village. The elders will be able to help."
Kagome stood up as well. "Then we'll go with you."
The other agreed.
Sesshoumaru looked away. He saw Rin give a worried look to Nayru. He knew she was worried about the woman she had become friends with. "We shall go as well." He turned and walked over to Ah and Un.
Jaken ran over to him. "Lord Sesshoumaru?"
Rin happily skipped over to him. "Why did you agree milord?"
The aristocrat glanced at both of them. "Tensaiga responded to that woman. I want to know why."
The girl smiled. "Yes milord. Then Rin will help." She sat down.
Writing-Angel18: Man this took a lot outta me. I'm not sure how well the explanation of the jewels is, but I tried. If I notice anything confusing or that something is missing, I'll fix it. But man was it hard to do this chapter. Hope you like it though. Review and let me know your opinions. The next chapter is being constructed now. Akia has some reservations about returning to the village. Why? All I'm gonna say is it has something to do with her past. Flashbacks are on their way. In another upcoming chapter, a certain romance is reveled while another blossoms. Please review and let me know what you think of The Sacred Jewels. Till the next chapter………