Konnyanyachiwa, minna-san!^^ Here's the fourth chapter…and hopefully, it won't be too long of a wait between this one and the fifth now that I'm off for summer break. I also partly blame the release of the fifth Harry Potter book…for the two-three days in which I struggled to finish it while keeping it out of reach of my brother, I really wasn't able to do much else…those books are addictive! -_-;;; (We should have bought two copies). After this came the purchase of Kingdom Hearts, which is (unfortunately) a very addictive game, and which has zapped several hours of my free time…^^;;;
Arigato for all the reviews!^^ I'm happy that you all like the story, and I'll try very very hard to update as quickly as I can. (Hopefully none of my CCS readers are reading this, because they'll kill me for not updating for them super-duper fast…writer's block is evil! .). To Jade-Inu: ummm, nope, this ISN'T going to be Sess/Kag, mainly cause I'm a HUGE Inu/Kag supporter. Sess/Kag would actually be a good coupling if Inuyasha didn't exist…but as long as he remains in the story (and he is my favourite character, so I won't be killing him off ^^), Sesshoumaru won't even be making an appearance…or he will (I haven't decided yet -_-;;;)
Disclaimer: Maybe once my plans to take over the world succeed, but not while they're only on the drawing board (i.e. now).
Now, without further ado, I am pleased to present the next installment of the story!
Labyrinth
~An Inuyasha fanfiction story presented by Jurei~
Chapter Four: One…
It licked some of the drying blood from its claws in anticipation. It was getting closer…
And with it, that cursed Miko...
Kikyo…*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The shadows shifted suddenly as a phantom breeze caused the torches to flicker.
From his position in the centre of the room, Naraku's features twitched as a drop of oil flew from its torch and splattered upon his cheek, hissing as it left a red blemish in its place. As quickly as it had come, the breeze was gone, leaving the impression that it had never been in the first place.
One of the pale, fine-boned hands lifted, the fingers tracing gently over the burn. The cruel mouth twitched into a half-frown. He would have to remember to have glowstones installed as lighting soon; they did not waver and lasted much longer, though he really did like the shadowy effect given by the torches.
His attention returned to the stone Scrying Basin before him, the edges still rimmed by a ring of flames, though they burned lowly; more of a flicker than anything. Unlike their natural brethren, however, these had not been affected in the slightest by the breeze.
Across the black surface encased by the flames was a corridor strewn with shadowed figures that lay sprawled on the bloodstained floorstones. There were roughly thirty in all; he assumed them to be some random human tribe, though it was too dark to see their tattoos. However, even the darkness was not enough to keep him from seeing the large figure hunched over one of the corpses, its eyes gleaming red with bloodlust.
The aristocratic face remained smooth, though the eyebrows bunched together slightly in concentration. The breeze was back, this time swirling around the bowl as the fine-boned fingers traced one symbol in the middle of the black ice surface. It remained there, even after the hand lifted itself away, glowing brightly for a moment before sinking through the ice and taking the breeze with it.
Naraku smirked.
Now all that was left was to sit back and watch the fun. He straightened, crimson eyes following the figure as it tensed, clearly tasting the Miko magic the moving air carried to its nose. He then watched it as it bounded away, claws scoring the stone of the labyrinth floor as it headed in a direct path towards the First Gate.
Inwardly, he wondered at the truly minimal effort the destruction of his most dangerous captive truly demanded on his part, frowning at the large amount of energy he had wasted thus far. He greatly doubted that even the strange white dog that accompanied the girl would be a match for the Beast. None that had ever faced it directly had escaped, though he, Naraku, had done his part to make sure that some rumours (mostly the worst ones) made their way to the general populace in order to increase the people's fear of the labyrinth…and his own dark power.
Some of his most dangerous enemies had died at the hands of the Beast. Except for that strange matter fifteen years ago with the original White Miko (he scowled at the memory of both her and her damned prophecy), none had lived long enough to even scream. Spears, arrows, spells…all had had no effect on the fearsome bezerker-youkai.
After all, the very part of the creature that caused it to feel pain or emotion was gone, coupled with an incredible ability to heal faster than any other youkai on the entire island. This, of course, also meant that Naraku himself was incapable of controlling it like he did the others and was reduced to handling the thing like it was a very delicate bomb with minor intelligence. He would give covert suggestions towards what he wanted, letting the creature believe that it was all its idea in the first place.
Just has he had done now…by providing the breeze that carried Kagome's aura and scent to the thing's nose, and relying on its violent nature, hunger for revenge, and yearning for the power that ran through the girl's veins.
He, Naraku, had sensed it before throwing her into the labyrinth…an innate power that slept within her blood. His expression became one of the blackest anger. There was no way of knowing just how much lay dormant inside the girl, which made her all the more dangerous to him…she could not be allowed to wake it!
He frowned, staring down at the shattered image contained within the Scrying Basin before waving a careless hand at it, whereupon it the pieces melded together again. He would have to keep his temper better than that unless he wished to delay his recovery to full strength by having to cast more repairing spells; it was always a greater drain on him to heal destruction than to cause it.
A small sigh escaped his lips, the sound swallowed eagerly by the darkness around him, before he turned his eyes back to the image with a grin that looked oddly out-of-place on his features. Soon, though, all his worries would become nonexistent, and he would be free to question the White Miko, Nanase Sango, to his heart's content. What he had been seeking for fifteen years would be at his very fingertips, closer than ever before. With Kagome dead, there would be none left to physically oppose him on the island (none that mattered, anyway), though the White Miko might try for a while, and he would finally be free…
The world wouldn't stand a chance.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Inu stiffened, nose probing at the still air surrounding the Gate. He could feel it…a dark presence approaching at a fast speed, though it would still be a while before it reached the doorway itself.
And with the First Gate, Kagome…
A growl escaped his throat, though it was too quiet to alert the sleeping girl. The presence was heading in a surprisingly direct course, meaning that it was moving towards them with a definite purpose.
A purpose which most likely included killing them.
Surprisingly, this knowledge didn't seem to faze the dog much, and he padded over to the arch of the gate, sniffing at the air. However, the air was too still…too dead. He couldn't tell what it was exactly that moved towards them so deliberately, though it had the most stained presence he had ever felt. Almost like it had killed countless times for the pure joy of killing.
Inu's hackles rose as his shoulders hunched low and a much louder growl reverberated in his chest. Whatever it was, it wasn't going to get by on his watch.
He risked a small glance towards the small huddled form on the floor behind him. He would have to be careful when the time came…otherwise she might get hurt…
He huffed at himself. He had to be getting soft…after all, she was just another human girl. Though his nature demanded he act as companion towards something, why this girl…? Once again, the question that had tickled at his mind when he had first saved her came to the forefront of his thoughts.
It wasn't as if she was special in comparison to other humans (youkai did not need or want his companionship, and the creatures of the labyrinth were his sworn enemies), though he had felt a small amount of Miko power flowing through her…no, there had to be another reason. Maybe he pitied her?
Yes, that had to be it, the dog assured himself as he spared the girl a final glance before turning back to face the Gate. That could be the only reason that would make sense…as well as explain why he had curled up next to her during his time of rest. She had been shivering and looking thoroughly pathetic. That was all…
His purple eyes narrowed and his body sunk closer to the floor, ready to spring.
It was here…a mere fifty yards, and closing…
And with it came a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach…something he had never felt before, except for in one instance which flitted at the edge of his memory…
No time. Twenty yards…
Fifteen…
Ten…
The growl became louder until it filled the area, rebounding off the wall stones to echo through the air, filling it with sound.
Five…
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Kagome jerked into wakefulness, her muscles aching dimly from her flight the previous cycle, as well as having slept on cold stone. Her fingers scrabbled anxiously at the ground before coming into contact with her ration backpack.
She started at the sight of something in front of her, her still-clarifying brain struggling to catch up with the present turn of events, before she realized that it was large and the shape of a crouching dog.
A large dog-shaped figure with white fur…
He was all right then…she breathed a sigh of relief. The dream that had occupied her sleeping moments was just that: a dream. There wasn't some terrifying creature coming towards them with one thing in mind: kill. They were safe for now…
Scratch that last bit. She could feel it now…the dark, heavy aura pushing down on her, making her feel like some gigantic block of stone was crushing her into the ground. In front of her, Inu sunk lower into his attacking stance, his large white head facing the Gate.
Mere moments later, a dark form burst through the shadows of the Gate, breaking through the thin layer of magic that stretched from one side to the other as easily as if it were paper. It flew past the duo before turning its body around to face them, skidding to a crouching stop with the aid of one clawed hand, a loud snarling sound coming from its throat.
Kagome stared in terrified awe at the five deep scratches embedded in the floorstones, ending at the creature's hand where he crouched eighteen feet away. They had scored the stone's surface so easily…
Her gaze travelled up from the clawed hand to the creature's face, eyes hidden by uneven bangs of white-silver hair. It was naked from the torso up, though it wore a ragged red-coloured pair of hakama that covered everything except its feet (for which she was thoroughly relieved).
Humanoid feet…her expression became puzzled. In fact, it looked startlingly human for a creature with such a dark aura. From its well-muscled chest (had this been any other situation, she would have blushed) she could tell it was male, though the stains of crimson splattered across it at various intervals did much to deter her from studying it further, and compelled her instead to find a corner in which to be sick.
It was most definitely blood…and most definitely quite fresh.
And from the huge and immensely dark, bloodied aura coming off the thing in waves, what faced them was most definitely the legendary Beast of the Labyrinth.
Its head snapped up suddenly, exposing crimson eyes set in a wild and snarling face to her horrified gaze. Then, it lunged, clawed hand raised in the air as if to cleave her in half.
For a moment, it looked like it would fall short of her. Then, however, it completed the swiping motion, claws outstretched to form five evenly spaced arcs.
She threw herself to one side, avoiding the worst of the attack, though new blood could already be seen staining her forearm, the old bandages falling to the floor where the Beast's youki had sliced them in two. She hissed, cradling the injury as she turned to face the creature once again, expression a mix of fear and anger.
It eyed her hungrily before lunging at her again, claws at the ready. However, this time, it collided with another form in mid air and came crashing to the ground, rolling away and to its feet with an angry snarl.
Inu skidded to a halt in front of Kagome, form hunched low in preparation for another leap. His fur stood on end, bristling along his shoulders, while his mouth pulled back to reveal sharp pointed teeth.
The two creatures faced each other, neither moving an inch. Then, the Beast smirked, revealing its own sharp eyeteeth, before straightening up to its full height. It cracked the knuckles of its right hand in preparation, a feral grin on its features.
Then it moved. At the same time, Inu leapt, paws outstretched in front of him, teeth bared in a snarl. Kagome watched in awe as both were lost to sight, their movements a blur to her eyes, before they came together in a mighty collision of teeth, claws, and silver-white hair. Snarls, growls, and howls emanated from the fray, filling the corridor with their primal sound. Then the two leapt away from each other, landing roughly eighteen feet apart, each in a growling crouch.
The girl resisted the urge to run over to her companion, knowing full well that doing so would only put him at a disadvantage. The Beast seemed very unlikely to wait patiently while she checked to see if the dog was all right, and much more likely to use the oppertunity to kill them both. From where she stood, however, she could see a few minor cuts on the dog's sinewy body, staining parts of the white fur crimson.
Across from him, however, it was evident that the Beast harboured several of these wounds as well, meaning that both creatures were evenly matched. What she found disconcerting was the fact that Inu bore these injuries like they were a minor discomfort, while the Beast seemed completely unaware that its body had been marked in any way.
The two opponents charged again, colliding with each other in mid-air. This time, the bout lasted longer, each creature trying to break through the other's defenses and score a serious blow. Small flecks of blood flew from their savage forms, ignored in the face of the mortal battle being fought. Savage bites, scratches, claw wounds…all were blocked or borne without hesitation. Scarlet met indigo, both sets of eyes locked on the other, glowing with bloodlust and the light of battle.
This time, when the two separated, chests heaving in exertion and forms tense with adrenaline, they bore more visibly the fruits of their bout. Both bodies displayed long bloodied scratches and bite wounds, the crimson liquid mixing with saliva and perspiration (on the part of the Beast, seeing as dogs don't sweat). This time, it was also obvious that Inu was losing his ground; the pain and exertion could be seen not only in his stance but in the way he held his weight off his right front paw as if to accommodate an internal injury. The Beast's right hand also bore traces of serious injury, though it seemed completely unaware of this hindrance, features still creased in a bloodthirsty grin.
And in a moment, Kagome knew why. The creature straightened, tearing at it's own wounds while the first words to come from its lips hissed through the dead air.
"Hijin Ketsusou!"
Inu was caught by surprise, flying back as the claws of blood impacted his body with incredible force. This time, Kagome did run to him, her arms stretching out to catch his airborne body and break his fall. She was, however, taken by surprise by the sheer weight of the dog, and the two then rolled to a stop five yards back, the girl shielding him with her body.
Neither Kagome, Inu, nor the Beast moved for a moment. Then, the great white dog struggled to his feet, grimacing in pain before trying to wipe some of the blood from his eyes on the fur of his foreleg. The white hair was smudged an almost pink colour in both places, though the muzzle retained a darker colour where the blood from Kagome's own wound had mingled with his own. He growled, louder and more menacingly than ever before, his indigo eyes narrowed to mere slits.
Then he leapt at the Beast, moving so quickly that he seemed to disappear for a moment before making contact with the creature's shoulder, teeth ripping at the skin with a savage ferocity. The Beast seemed to be in shock, scarlet eyes wide with surprise, before it howled in pain for the first time.
Then the two figures were engulfed in a flash of white light identical to the one that had destroyed the Skerrigor, and were lost to sight completely.
Kagome covered her eyed, her arms thrown over her face and head in an attempt to shield herself from the violent wind that accompanied the flash this time. The air that had been so still and dead mere moments before was suddenly moving with the ferocity of a typhoon, ripping at her skirts and rags so strongly she felt that they would be torn from her body any moment. Her hair whipped around her head, resembling a candle flame as it flowed first one way and then another at the mercy of the wind's fury.
It seemed like Kagome was forced to lie immobile in the gale for an eternity before the winds died off as quickly as they had begun. The blinding light was gone as well, making the corridor that much darker by comparison. The girl struggled to her elbows, staring around at the walls for a dazed moment before she scrambled to her feet, rushing forward with no thought to her own safety, concern for Inu consuming her thoughts completely...
"Inu! Inu! …Are you all right? Inu-"
…Before she came to a stop, mouth open in complete and total shock at what she saw before her.
No…that was impossible…it couldn't be…
The figure stirred, groaning as it reached a tentative and to its head and hissing in pain at the wound its fingers encountered. Long, clawed fingers…though the talons weren't as long and pointed as the Beast's had been.
Kagome swallowed several times, struggling for a good moment before the words finally managed to leave her dry mouth.
"…I-Inu…?"
Dog ears twitched through long silver-white hair, turning in her direction accompanied by a pair of shocking amber-yellow eyes.
"What's with you, bitch? I'm not a damn dog; my name is Inuyasha."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
…And cut! That's a wrap!^^ It isn't exactly quite how I pictured it originally, but I couldn't phrase it exactly right…-_-;;;; I know you are going to want to kill me, but I really couldn't think of a better place to end the chapter. Also, I thought you might actually want an update sooner than later, though it's already been more than a month since I last submitted something. I know some of you are probably going to be utterly and completely confused about what happened, but I promise that an explanation will come soon enough, even if it has to come in the form of an author's note in the next chapter, rather than in the actual story.
Anyways, those of you who don't give a rat's furry behind (most of you) can now close their eyes and scroll past this bit here. The Soundtrack for this chapter is:
"Fallen" CD by Evanescence (man, I LOVE their stuff!^^), especially the songs "Everybody's Fool", "Going Under", "Haunted", "Tourniquet", and "Whisper".
"St. Anger" CD by Metallica (would this story really be the same without the music of the mightiest metal band in the world? ^^;;;), especially the songs "Some Kinda Monster" (awesome for writing the part of the Beast!^^), "Sweet Amber", "The Unnamed Feeling", "Dirty Window", and "All Within My Hands".
"Ride the Lightning" CD by Metallica, especially the songs "Fade to Black", "For Whom the Bell Tolls", and "The Call of the Ktulu".
"Hybrid Theory" CD by Linkin Park, especially the songs "Forgotten", "Cure for the Itch", and "Papercut".
"Meteora" CD by Linkin Park, especially the songs "Faint", "Session", and "Breaking the Habit".
Yes, lots and lots of music this time around…almost TOO much, seeing as I'm having trouble hearing what people say to me now…-_-;;; Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter of "Labyrinth", and beg you to review! ONEGAI! *kneeling* It's what I survive on! (Jurei: sooo…weak… Lia Strife: Here, Ju-chan, reviews for you! Jurei: reviews! *consumes them after reading them*) So remember! Reviews mean Jurei lives long enough to write the next chapter! ^^;;;;
Next chapter is "Chapter 5: Haunted"… yes, I did get the name from an Evanescence song, but it really does work better for what I have planned than anything else I could think of.
Till then, Ja ne minna! *bows* (_ _)
~Jurei-chan^6