Title: …only human.

By: EVL5011

E-mail: Omnipotentevil5011yahoo.com

AN: If anyone read the alternate outcome you should know why there's a new chapter. I wasn't begged to continue the story, but two different people wrote to me and convinced me to continue. Thus, delaying the inevitable.

Chapter 4: Kagura and her new puppets

Kagura was soaring high above the skies, headed in the direction in which she believed InuYasha and the others could've gone. She passed the ravaged village and hovered over a large forest, far in the distance was another village. As she flew over it something caught her attention and she descended down. Once on the ground she smelled the scent of the freshly buried dead, upon further examination she saw a shimmering object on a door.

She approached the glimmering decoration and smiled, "The fabled demon hunters." Kagura looked around and found not one single person running to destroy her. She then found the graves of the dead hunters and raised her fan in the air, "Dance of the dead!" The mangled bodies of the dead hunters arose from their graves and gave Kagura a long blank stare, "If only the dead could talk, what they could tell me." She thought.

The evil sorceress commanded the deceased men and women to find and kill InuYasha. The dead hunters remained perfectly still; they appeared reluctant to carry out her orders. Kagura yelled at the dead men and women, "You fools! Would dare disobey me?" she shouted. Kagura approached a battle torn man and waved her fan at him. A volley of light shot forward and tore the man into tiny pieces. His frail body scattered all over the dirt and showered the others with a mixture of coagulated blood and gore.

"Lets try that once more! I want you all to kill InuYasha and his friends, if you disobey me once more you'll all share the same fate as your friend." Kagura covered her face with her fan and moved back as the large group of hunters began their pursuit. The evil sorceress smiled and took flight once more. She knew that it would be a matter of time before they would find InuYasha.

Meanwhile…InuYasha and the others arrived at Lady Kaede's village. Lady Kaede, Shippo, and Kilala greeted them. The hanyou was still carrying Mekura on his back and took him inside of the elderly Miko's home. Once they were inside, Kaede brought out a large assortment of medicinal herbs and bandages. Kaede, Sango and Kagome tended to Mekura's life threatening injuries, while InuYasha and Miroku both stood guard outside.

"I hope that he lives, I haven't thanked him for saving me." Sango thought to herself. The young girl was greatly concerned for Mekura. She had grown attached to his bravery and chivalry. Sango had never met anyone like him before.

"Who is this poor soul?" asked Lady Kaede as she wiped the dry blood from Mekura's chest.

Kagome looked at Sango and saw a great weight hanging over her and felt that she should explain, "His name is Mekura. We found him barely alive at his village. He's a demon hunter and slayer. Just like Sango, he's lost everyone he held dear."

Lady Kaede nodded her head and cleaned off the soot from Mekura's face, "What happened to him? He seems to have endured a great battle. Did InuYasha inflict any of these injuries?" she asked.

Before Kagome could answer Sango interrupted her, 'No, InuYasha didn't do any of that. Those burns and injuries were inflicted on him by a lizard demon. Mekura valiantly blocked a massive fireball with his body and shielded me from it." Sango looked at Mekura's face and ran her hand across it, "I owe my life to him. He endured great physical harm for me, more than anyone I can think of." Sango picked up some herbs from a small table and began to apply them on the unconscious slayers wounds.

Back outside…InuYasha and Miroku began to walk through the village feeling a great sense of accomplishment. Miroku looked at InuYasha and spoke to him, "InuYasha you've been pretty quiet since we arrived. Is something bothering you?" Miroku stopped InuYasha and saw a burdened look in the hanyou's eyes.

"Yeah, I still feel responsible for what happened to Mekura." Replied InuYasha.

"It really must be tearing you up inside. I've never seen you show such great concern for anybody but Kagome or Kikyo." Miroku smiled and placed his hand on InuYasha's shoulder.

"What!? What are you implying? That I'm getting soft or something?" shouted InuYasha.

"It's nothing to be ashamed about. After all you are half human, you do share the same feelings and emotions like the rest of us." Miroku knew that InuYasha was showing his true self for once. With a coy smile on his face Miroku said, "You were concerned for him. I think that you're beginning to enjoy his company and skillful swordsmanship."

"Will you shut up already!" InuYasha dared across the village and left Miroku by himself, "Stupid monk, why the hell did he have to bring that up?" InuYasha thought to himself. The hanyou dashed across the green fields and made his way to a large tree. He immediately jumped onto one of the larger branches and tried his hardest to get Miroku's damn words out of his head.

The afternoon sun was shining brightly on Lady Kaede's village, unknown to our protagonists Kagura and her newly acquired puppets were making their way through the vast forests. The sinister sorceress was a few miles away from the small village and scanned the terrain below. She looked back and commanded Naraku's insects to advance ahead of her and search the land below.

Meanwhile, back at the village…Mekura awoke from his sleep in a cold sweat. With his sharp senses he immediately heard the slow, but steady heartbeat of an unknown person, "Who are you?" he asked, "And where am I?"

"I am Kaede, I am the Miko of this village, and you're amongst friends." The elderly Miko replied.

Just as she insisted that he lay back down and rest Sango entered the small house, immediately running over to Mekura's side, "You're awake, how do you feel now?" she asked politely.

"Sango, I dreamt that retched lizard demon had harmed you. I-I have something I wanted to tell you, but hesitated earlier." Mekura sat back up and turned his head towards Sango. "I think that I'm beginning to fall in love with you, I've never met anyone like you."

Before Sango could even convey her repressed feelings for him Miroku burst into the room interrupting her, "Sango get your weapons, I've spotted Naraku's flying insects. They'll be upon us in a matter of minutes." Miroku realized that he had just walked in at the most inconvenient time.

"Where's my sword? I have to help." Mekura stood up and searched for his battered armor. Sango, where's my sword?" he repeated.

"I can't allow you to fight, you still need more time to heal from your wounds." Sango approached Mekura and pleaded that he stay inside and rest, but he refused.

Mekura followed the sound of Lady Kaede's heartbeat and kindly asked her for his sword. She reluctantly retrieved it for him and he exited the small house. Sango fell to her knees and wiped the tears from her face.

"Do not weep for him, it's in his nature to battle demons. For without that, he is without purpose. Do ye understand?" asked Lady Kaede.

Sango looked up at the elderly Miko and nodded her head, "I do. It's in his blood. To refuse him that is to refuse him his very existence." Sango wiped away her remaining tears and followed behind Mekura.

Miroku, Sango, Mekura, and Kagome ran over to where InuYasha was peacefully resting and yelled out his name. The hanyou turned a deaf ear and ignored them. He was oblivious to the imminent danger.

"InuYasha get down here!" yelled Miroku. "Naraku's flying insects are headed this way, we can't let them get close to the village!"

InuYasha opened his eyes and looked down at the five pestering friends, "Well, lets head them off!" InuYasha jumped down from the tree and they quickly made their way through the vast fields of grass. InuYasha and the others ran as fast as they could to stop the advancing insects. When the young hanyou had just noticed that Mekura was with them.

"Mekura? What the hell are you doing? Shouldn't you be resting?" asked InuYasha.

"I should be, but as you can plainly see here I am." Mekura held the handle of his katana tightly in hand and ran ahead of InuYasha and the others.

"Slow down!" yelled InuYasha. Damn it! He's going to get himself killed!"

"That's kind of funny, normally we'd say the same about you!" smirked Kagome.

Mekura came to a halt when he heard the strange buzzing of a large group of creatures. He listened to the advancing threat and also heard the faint sound of multiple people running at him. He held his sword firmly in place and felt the large swarm of insects directly over him and something else. It was the breathing of someone or something without a heartbeat, "What's your name?" he asked in a menacing voice.

Kagura jumped down from her enchanted feather and approached Mekura, "You would dare speak to a lady that way?" Kagura walked in front of Mekura and looked into his eyes. What she saw was a man with unseeing eyes, his blind glare pierced into her empty soul and made her move back from him. With the most wicked smile she could produce she raised her fan high into the air and summoned her demon magic.

Just as Kagura was about to attack Mekura with her fan Sango's voice cried out in the back, 'Mekura! Get away from her! She's our enemy!"

When Mekura heard that, he circled around Kagura. His entire body became a blur in front of her and he then swung his bloodstained sword across her back. She stumbled forward, her evil smile twisted into a sneer, and she retreated before he could further attack her.

But before she fled, Kagura turned and faced her blind enemy, "You blind fool, you would dare strike me?" Kagura moved her arms gracefully across the air and summoned her mindless puppets. She then fled on her feather and left Mekura and the others to deal with the dead and the flying insects.

InuYasha and the others stood behind Mekura and gasped in horror. Kagura was manipulating Mekura's friends and family. The corpses of the fallen demon slayers held their weapons and slowly marched towards them.

Mekura knew something was wrong and moved backwards, "She fled didn't she?" Mekura kept his ear towards InuYasha and the others and waited for someone to respond.

"Yeah, she did, but that's not what's troubling us." Replied Kagome.

"Then tell me, is there another demon clan in front of us? I can't tell, I don't hear any breathing or heartbeats." Mekura drew closer to InuYasha and the others and hated not being able to see his enemies.

"I hate to tell you this, but its…" Sango stopped InuYasha and she walked directly behind Mekura.

"Mekura, its your clan." Sango watched as Mekura's face distorted in confusion.

"That can't be, they're all dead. We buried them." Mekura lowered his sword and began to feel his emotions overwhelm him. "Please tell me it's not true!" Mekura moved his head in the direction of all his friends waiting for a reply.

"Kagura has the sick ability to control the dead and make them carry out whatever orders that she has." InuYasha gritted his teeth and knew that someone had to tell him.

Mekura was in shock, InuYasha pushed him aside and saved him from the attack of one of the dead slayers. The skirmish began and Mekura walked away. His mind was still trying to comprehend what he was just told. He left the others to battle his fallen comrades and just listened as they tore through bone and sinew. From what he could hear the dead slayers were overwhelming InuYasha and the others.

"I can't just walk away." He thought to himself. "But, what if they die and my slain friends find the village? More innocent people will die." With the multiple conflicts going through his head he remembered the one thing that pulled him out from his abysmal conundrum, "Sango…I can't leave her behind." Mekura began to breath heavily and turned back around. He darted back and ran into the battle.

The dead slayers outnumbered InuYasha and the others, apparently they still retained their fighting skills, even after death. Miroku and InuYasha fought side by side both of them were swinging away madly. The highly skilled puppets on the other hand were overrunning Sango and Kagome. With InuYasha and Miroku unable to reach them, that left Mekura.

AN: I'll try to have the next chapter up soon, so keep an eye out for it. Oh, and before I forget a big thanks to: Kagu-chan, Sango Lover, icyangelbmw, and Kirtar, General of the Avens. And if I remember correctly "AgentOrange" for his/her letter convincing me to continue, I'd thank the second person but his/her name escapes me right now.