OF DEMONS AND HUMANS
Chapter Two
The Black Slayer
By Ashley
Glimmering in the sunlight and protruding from the mass of decaying bones was a hiraikotsu of the purest ebony. Sango gasped when she saw the weapon that mirrored her own. When Kagome, Miroku, and Shippou saw the large boomerang, they, too, sucked in a breath.
"Miyu?" Sango whispered as she stared, mesmerized, by the weapon. All of a sudden, it glowed in a red and black aura. Then, lifting from the clutter of bones, the hiraikotsu zipped off into a direction behind them, nearly knocking Shippou off of Kagome's shoulder. Everyone turned to see where it had flown off. Standing in the distance was a figure holding the weapon slung over her shoulder.
The figure was that of a woman. She was glowing in the same ominous black and red aura. The most shocking feature, however, was her outfit: she was wearing a demon slayer's uniform! It looked exactly like Sango's except for the accent color was red instead of pink. Her long waves of brown hair billowed in the wind. Her eyes were dark blue and feral.
"Miyu?" Sango asked aloud, a smile coming to her lips. "MIYU!" She exclaimed. The woman did not seem fazed.
"You know her, Sango?" Inuyasha asked, his nonchalant tone combined with the new way he angled the Tetsaiga told Sango he wasn't prepared to let the earlier interference in his battle go easily.
"It's Miyu! I'd know her anywhere. I haven't seen her in over seven years. I wonder what she's doing here." She decided she would try to get her old friend's attention again. Kilala took a couple of leaps toward the woman. "Miyu! It's me! Sango! Don't you remember me? MIYU!" Just as Kilala tried to advance even closer, Miyu launched her hiraikotsu with incredible speed and it came zipping in front of Kilala, warning her not to get any closer. The boomerang twirled back around and the slayer snatched it out of the air. "Miyu! What's wrong!" Sango exclaimed.
"I think I've heard enough." Inuyasha broke in. "It's obvious she ain't her old self. She ain't talking and just launched her weapon at you, Sango." Inuyasha angled the Tetsaiga in front of him, carefully targeting the slayer before him.
"Inuyasha!" Kagome exclaimed. "You can't. That's Sango's friend. We need to find out what's wrong with her. Maybe we can save her."
"You're Inuyasha?" Came the unexpected question from the slayer. Her voice was monotone. Everyone turned their attention on her once again.
"Yea. What of it?" He replied. But the woman known as Miyu did not answer his question. She launched into her attack. Her speed was incredible! She sped up to him and jumped into the air, spinning down and swinging her weapon at him. He blocked the attack with his sword, feeling the power of the blow in a twang of the blade. He slid back a few inches but instantly rebounded from the first attack. They launched into a battle while the others stared, totally submerged in the waves of the encounter.
Miyu slid back as Inuyasha struck hard on the boomerang. Her position was crouched. As if ricocheting off an invisible spring, she launched into the air.
"HIRAIKOTSU!" She exclaimed in a thundering voice, releasing the powerful weapon on the dog demon opponent. His yellow orbs could see the demonic aura charging him and prepared for a blunt attack. Using his palm against the back of the blade, Inuyasha thrust the blade of the Tetsaiga toward the boomerang. He slid back several feet as its power pushed his guard to the max. He growled, straining to push the weapon off of him.
"Wind tunnel!" Miroku yelled, slipping the cobalt beads from his wrist and hand. Opening his right palm, Miroku released the awesome power of his wind tunnel. A powerful sucking brought in several bone skulls, pulling on the force of the weapon. His hope was to pull it off of its course, giving Inuyasha a chance to attack her when she was unarmed.
"Miroku!" Came the abrupt scream from Kagome. He glanced over in her direction and saw Naraku's poisonous insects rapidly flying for him. "Ah!" Whipping the beads back on, he closed up the wind tunnel just as the bees came swooping over his head. "That was close." He muttered, beads of perspiration dotting his forehead. But his plan had worked! The ebony hiraikotsu flew off in another direction. Inuyasha took the chance and darted for the slayer. Something in her seemed to snap and a human look came back into her eyes. He saw his reflection in those deep blue hues for the first time in the entire battle. However, this did not slow his attack. The fronts of wind came crashing in his line of vision, the wind scar busting through. Rearing back, he opened his mouth to shout the attack.
In that moment, Sango registered the humanity come flooding back into her long, lost friend.
"No..." She whispered. Inuyasha was going to destroy her! She had to do something. Fast. Tightly clutching the brown straps of her boomerang, she leaned back and then let loose her weapon. It went zipping in and clanged the Tetsaiga. The wind scar was lost. It bounced back and Sango grabbed it back up as it zoomed for her. Within a moment, the demonic presence returned to Miyu and she began to glow in the dark aura. Her hiraikotsu returned to her hand.
"Sango!" Inuyasha boomed. "What the hell was that for!"
"Kagome!" Sango exclaimed, ignoring Inuyasha. "I think Miyu has a jewel shard planted in her somewhere. Can you see it!" She called down to the girl below her. Kagome fixed her gaze on the slayer, studying her intensely. Then... the tiny glow of purple made itself known on the small of Miyu's back.
"I see it! On her back! Inuyasha, can you hit it?" Kagome pointed toward where the shard was located. Inuyasha jumped up and attacked but Miyu was prepared. She rebounded his assault with more gusto than before. Everyone could see that Inuyasha was getting irritated and they knew at any minute he might use the wind scar. Kagome knew what she had to do. Slipping an arrow from the quiver on her back, she locked it onto the bow shaft and plucked the string. The arrow went whistling through the air, a purple glow sparking and enveloping it like a fire. It was the enchantment reacting. It plunged into the jewel shard and the enchantment caused it to eject from her body.
Miyu's eyes widened as the power of the jewel shard left her. It felt as though all of her strength were flowing out of her muscles, the power she possessed being sucked out. Yet, clarity arose in the emancipation. Her objective was still the same, though it did not seem to be the goal to which drove her existence.
In an unexpected twist, Miyu twirled around and swung her weapon at Inuyasha. He barely had time to block and the force combined with his being caught off guard knocked him onto his back. He went sliding in the bones, making a clear path through the skeletal pieces. Everyone gasped.
"Hey! What'd you do that for?" Shippou exclaimed. Sango clutched her weapon tightly, wondering if she had somehow been mistaken about the extent to the spell over her friend. Was Miyu really under some sort of spell? Or was she simply out to kill Inuyasha and Sango had made a mistake thinking that good still shone in her friend?
"Miyu! What are you doing?" Sango asked, though she didn't really expect a response. To her surprise, however, the former slayer turned her attention upon Sango, who was hovering near by on the back of Kilala.
"Sango?" Miyu questioned. It was as if Miyu just now realized that her old friend was present. Sango took a breath and smiled. Kilala rushed down to greet her.
"Miyu!" Sango practically jumped off of the two-tail's back, happily running up to greet the former slayer. The women did not respond in equal happiness. "What happened? When I saw Naraku's poisonous insects, I knew that he had to have tricked you into trying to kill Inuyasha. Now that the jewel shard has been removed, you're no longer under his spell."
"Spell?" Miyu asked incredulously. Laughter then erupted from her lips. "I am under no spell! I am a demon slayer, am I not? Inuyasha is a demon, half-breed or not." She turned a menacing glare upon the dog demon who was pulling himself up with his sword. "He will die like all of the others."
"Miyu?" Sango searched the face of her friend, hoping that a smile would break through and she would declare that she was only kidding. However, she did not. Instead, she said something far worse than before.
"And you, Sango. You are a slayer, are you not? How can you sit idly by while this demon wanders freely! You travel with him, do you not? All of the wicked things he has done... He even slew a priestess!"
Sango's eyes widened. All of the memories of her past came flooding back, including how Naraku had tried to use her brother, Kohaku, to get Sango to kill Inuyasha. Could that be what was going on here? Or was Miyu really out to rid the world of all of the demons? And... more importantly, what was she supposed to do? She couldn't possibly betray her friends! But, Miyu was also a friend... a friend from her childhood.
"A priestess?" Kagome mimicked. She must be talking about Kikyo... I'll bet Naraku tricked her into believing that! "You have it all wrong, Miyu!" Kagome exclaimed, running to meet the two slayers. "Inuyasha didn't kill Kikyo! Naraku tricked them both into turning against each other."
Miyu turned a harsh glare on Kagome.
"You lie!" She retorted. "Silly girl... strange girl. You would side with a demon?"
"Inuyasha is only half-demon, but so is Naraku! Don't you get it? Naraku is trying to trick you into killing Inuyasha just like he did to Kikyo and Inuyasha fifty years ago!"
Miyu's eyes widened. "Naraku... a half demon?" She stammered.
Kagura growled. Not only had Inuyasha and the others broken through the spell by extracting the jewel shard, but now they were beginning to convince Miyu she was fighting the wrong people. She didn't care all that much about Miyu's loyalty, but she despised the slayer and this show of weakness in the human agitated her. Kagura decided that she had to step in.
"That's right!" Kagome chirped. "Naraku is a half-demon, just like Inuyasha. But, unlike Inuyasha, he's a terrible and despicable demon! He tries to hurt people and does terrible things!"
Sango nodded in agreement. Shippou bounced up on Kagome's shoulder.
"We're out to defeat Naraku and restore the jewel shard to its original state." He said, his fluffy foxtail twitching. Miyu opened her mouth to say something but something caused her to shut her mouth again. Her eyes narrowed into slits and her attention was diverted to something in the sky.
"Dance of blades!" Kagura exclaimed, riding down to earth in a spiral of wind. The bolts of energy went slicing through the air toward Kagome, Shippou, Sango, and Miyu. Sango darted forward, snatching Kagome's wrist and pulling her and Shippou to safety. Kilala swooped down and they all jumped onto her back. Miyu back-flipped twice, easily dodging the attack.
"Kagura!" Miroku exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm here to retrieve Naraku's jewel shard, of course! Miyu is no longer needed now that she has failed to slay the half-demon." She replied, folding her fan up in front of her chest. Several poisonous bees buzzed down to the ground where the shard had landed and one picked it up with its legs. It flew up toKagura and dropped the shard into her palm.
"Failed?" Miyu roared. "Failing would imply a contract! I made no such pact with Naraku! I will kill Inuyasha, and if you interfere again, I will slay you as well!"
Kagura frowned and tightly clutched the jewel shard.
"Watch your mouth, half-wit!" She snapped. But Miyu had released her hiraikotsu before Kagura could even finish the sentence. It went spinning into the air and soaring by Kagura's face. The black tresses that she possessed brushed against her face as the boomerang sailed around her, coming within an inch of contact. Miyu reached up and caught it. The entire time, her eyes remained locked on Kagura's ruby orbs.
"Next time I won't miss." She warned.
"Hmn." Kagura huffed. Slipping a feather from her bun, she tossed it into the air. It grew to a large enough size and she stepped upon it. The wind picked it up into the air and she sailed off, a trail of Naraku's bees following in her wake. The wind blew and dust rolled by. All was quiet momentarily. Inuyasha broke the silence.
"Errrr! She got away with another one of our jewel shards!" He exclaimed. Kagome nodded and lowered her head.
"Gained one... only to lose it again."
"Next time, we'll get it before Naraku has a chance to take it." Sango encouraged. Miyu's brows furrowed. Did they think that just because Kagura had taken her leave the threat had diminished. She was still there to kill Inuyasha, and she was determined to succeed in her mission.
Inuyasha was making his way over to Kagome and the others when the ebony boomerang came whistling by his head. He jumped to the side to dodge the attack, bouncing back to avoid the sweep of the weapon. He growled and narrowed his weapon.
"You know, you're askin' for it, lady!" He growled. Miyu didn't seem to care. She lunged for him and they launched into another battle. The slayer used her hiraikotsu as her main weapon of attack. Then, ejecting the arm blade, she switched between the two weapons as she twirled before him. Inuyasha had to give her one thing: she was well trained in her art. But this was getting tedious! He had to knock her back and then he would finish her off with his wind scar!
Moving into the offensive position, he began a more powerful serious of thrusts and slashes versus the blocks he had been using before. Miyu recognized the change and fought to regain her advantage. But Inuyasha was powerful and he was fast! The tip of the Tetsaiga caught her right arm and a streak of blood glistened through the torn cloth. Another slice was made to her right leg. Miyu grimaced and moved in for an unarming technique. Hooking the Tetsaiga with her arm blade, she used the hiraikotsu to knock the weapon loose in his grip and then she pulled it away from him and threw it up into the air. As she did this, she swung the boomerang to his gut so that he would have to rear back to avoid being hit. The technique worked like a charm!
"Er... Iron Reaver Soul Stealer!" Cried the half-demon. Miyu wasn't expecting that. Her close proximity with Inuyasha did not allow her to dodge the attack. The claws sliced into her left leg and left side, leaving several scratch-like wounds. Bounding away, Miyu jumped into the air with the energy she had left and reared back for, what Sango recognized as, a slayer secret technique.
"Miyu! NO!" Sango yelled, but it was too late. Miyu spun around and launched her weapon at Inuyasha. The speed of the weapon increased as a dark purple aura glowed around it.
"HIRAIKOTSU!" Miyu screamed. Inuyasha furrowed his brows, positive that he could withstand the blow. It was coming in fast and he readied his claws. Twenty feet. Fifteen. Ten. Five... BANG! A shock of ivory and ebony blurred before him as Sango's weapon knocked Miyu's off course. Both boomerangs went crashing to the ground and a resounding shock of power exploded off to Inuyasha's left. Inuyasha held up the right sleeve of his blood red kimono to shield his eyes from the blast and the dust it exhumed. When the cloud had almost disappeared, he lowered the sleeve and peered through the thin brown and gray particles to where Miyu was standing. She was looking up into the sky at Sango on the back of Kilala. She seemed furious. Sango looked equally determined. The dust finally settled.
"Why do you stop me, Sango!" Miyu exclaimed.
"Because! Inuyasha is my friend, Miyu! I will not let you harm him!" Sango's expression seemed to soften. "He is my friend... just as you once were... as you are!"
"Friend? What would you know about friendship, Sango?" Miyu asked. For the first time, there seemed to be pain in her voice when she spoke. "Trader!" She yelled, another pained streak cracking her voice. Sango's face seemed distorted with a sudden sorrow.
"Hold on just a minute!" Kagome interrupted, stepping forward and placing her hands on her hips. "I know that no one's perfect, but Sango is a great friend and I value her friendship!"
"I value Sango's friendship over my very life." Miroku added, stepping up by Kagome's side. Sango's eyes grew teary as she listened to the proclamation of her friends.
"Kagome... Miroku..." She whispered.
"Yea! Sango is a great person who cares about everyone. She has a really big heart!" Shippou piped up, again jumping onto Kagome's shoulder. Inuyasha jerked the Tetsaiga from the ground and turned his glare upon Miyu.
"And she ain't a half-bad fighter, either." He remarked.
"Shippou... Inuyasha..." Sango muttered, closing her eyes to push back the tears that threatened to spill over her cheeks. Miyu watched them as each person stepped forward to declare their friendship to Sango. They had united themselvesinthat momentand Miyu realized that she could do nothing here for the time being. Perhaps, she would see them again soon... But one thing was for sure: one day she would kill Inuyasha... and rid the world of all demons.
Stepping back, Miyu raised her hand into the air. The boomerang glowed in the same eerie red and black aura and pulled from the ground. It shot over to the slayer where she snatched it out of the air. Turning her back on the group, she hobbled away into the woods. Sango and Kilala touched down into the field of bone near Inuyasha and the others.
"What was that all about?" Inuyasha remarked.
"Another failed attempt by Naraku to cause division within the group, I believe." Miroku answered.
"Who was she?" Kagome asked. Everyone looked over at Sango, whose gaze was focused on the ivory hairs of Kilala's fur.
"Her?" Sango asked. "That was Miyu... the Black Slayer."