It was the darkest hour of the night when they heard it; the low, bone-chilling howl of an inhuman beast coming from the shore. Inuyasha snapped up from where he slept, propped up against the wall of the shack. He was out the door in a heartbeat. As soon as he stepped outside he caught the overwhelming stench of rotting fish and blood. As the others filed out behind him, his sharp eyes caught the hulking form of a creature, approaching the village from the ocean shore. It was tall, at least 7 feet in height, with long arms ending in clawed hands. It was covered with skin the sickly dark green color of rotting seaweed. Its head was large with a gaping mouth filled with razor sharp teeth and bulbous, red-rimmed eyes. It howled again sending shivers down the spines of the human companions.

For all it looked like a demon, instinct told Inuyasha something wasn't quite right about the beast. "What the fuck is that thing?"

Yuta replied in a calm low voice, "It's an abomination. A Lost Soul."


If I Have Forever

An Inuyasha / Mermaid Saga crossover by nishikaze

Chapter Two: Lost Souls


Inuyasha half turned toward Yuta, "A what...?"

Yuta's eyes never left the raging beast. "Kill it." He dashed toward a storage shed between the little hut and the monster. Kicking open the door he entered emerging seconds later with a harpoon and a knife.

Inuyasha wasn't paying attention. Taking up the Tetsusaiga he rushed the creature, bent on destroying it quickly before it entered the village. He swung the mighty fang, slashing open its chest. Black blood gushed from the wound as it collapsed to the sand. As Yuta and the others caught up to him, Inuyasha turned his back on the creature, his eyes searching for Kagome. "Does it have the shard?"

Yuta screamed as the beast climbed back to it feet, "NOT DEAD!" He tackled Inuyasha, saving him from a swipe of the Lost Souls massive claws. Inuyasha, taken by surprise was easily brought down by Yuta's tackle. Before the beast could strike at the two in their vulnerable position on the ground, Kirara attacked, giving them just enough time to roll out of harm's way.

As Kirara wrestled with the Lost Soul, Inuyasha turned on Yuta, "What the hell did you do that for?"

"Didn't I tell you they are hard to kill! Look!" He pointed to the beast. The wound Inuyasha had delivered was grievous, no mortal man or demon could have survived it. The beast had been cut long, chin to groin and deeply, cutting most of its major organs. As Inuyasha watched it struggle with the giant demon cat Kirara, the wound healed before his eyes, becoming nothing but a memory.

"What the... How the hell do you kill that thing? It should be dead!"

"Take its head! If you don't it'll just keep regenerating!"

"It's head? Fine. Clear out." Yuta backed off as Inuyasha stood up. As soon as she saw Yuta and Inuyasha were clear, Kirara instinctively leap away. Inuyasha rushed the beast in an inhuman burst of speed. Before the beast could turn, Inuyasha attacked, separating its head from its body. Its head flew free, landing several feet from the body that gruesomely moved as if to complete its turn before collapsing to the ground at Inuyasha's feet.

"Kami-sama." Sango's gasp pierced the silence following the destruction of the beast. "That was no normal demon."

"I'm not sure it was a demon at all," Turning his attention from the corpse to Yuta, Miroku studied the man whose own gaze was turned away from him. He watched him for a moment before turning to Kagome. "This creature didn't have the shard, did it?" It was more of a statement than a question.

Kagome was about to answer when a scream pierced the night, originating from the other side of the village.

Yuta was the first to act. "This way!" He ran up the cliff face path back toward the village. Inuyasha quickly overtook him and pulled out ahead, easily outdistancing the rest of the party. For the most part the village remained untouched except for one building that had been shredded, its occupants long gone. Just outside the small house lay a body of a young man. One look at his mutilated corpse and the party could see he was dead before he had hit the ground. The party entered the house and immediately saw the evidence of a struggle, a little blood, but no more bodies. Inuyasha smelled the blood, and, "Dead fish." He said as he thumbed his nose in annoyance.

Yuta was distraught as he examined the scene. "I... I don't understand. They're not acting right. Where are the bodies?"

Sango turned to him, "What don't you understand? It looks like the family who lived here was kidnapped. The real question is why?"

Yuta ran his hand through his hair in annoyance and frustration, "Why? Lost Souls are exactly that. They've lost all intelligence and act like rabid beasts. They kill... they don't kidnap. It's almost as if the Lost Soul we fought was a distraction."

"He's right," Miroku stood where he had been examining a torn wall.

Inuyasha punched his hand though a wooden beam in frustration. "So what the hell is going on here?"

"And why would these 'rabid beasts' kidnap a family? Unless something else took them... but what about the trap? Could you be wrong about them, Yuta?" Kagome asked.

Yuta through out his arms. "I don't know, until now I've never seen them act this way."

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed, "Ya know... You seem to know an awful lot about these things. Care to explain why?"

Yuta turned to look at Inuyasha, meeting his gaze. "I told you... I've been hunting them for the village. I've studied their habits as best I could." He sighed. "Look... We'd best try and track them now, or the family is dead."

"They could already be dead, but I agree." Miroku stepped outside the ruined hut. "This is the best opportunity we have to follow them to their lair. Sango... Can you and Kirara follow the trail?"

"If she can't, I can," Inuyasha scratched his nose, "The scent is fresh."

Yuta grabbed a few harpoons and torches and the companions left the village following the trail into the cliffs by the sea. Sango turned to Yuta. "I don't get it? Are they coming from the ocean?"

"No," Said Yuta, with a degree of certainty in his voice. "There are a number of caves in the sea-side cliffs; most are very dangerous because of tides. At low tide they empty out into the ocean but at high tide they fill with water making them death traps for anyone unfortunate enough to be inside them. Some of the caves higher in the cliffs never fill unless there is a storm or Tsunami. That would be an ideal place for them to go."

Sure enough it wasn't long before Kirara and Inuyasha's nose leads them to a cave high in the cliffs. Inuyasha was nearly overcome by the stench inside the cave. He covered his nose and entered.

The cave was dark, so dark the party was forced to light a torch to guide them. The natural path was narrow and slippery from the heavy sea air, but as the path slopped down it seemed to grow wider. They had just rounded a corner when Inuyasha, who had led the party into the cavern, stopped short. Lying in a small, stagnate tidal pool lay the corpse of something. A headless something.

There was very little blood despite its headless state and it lay half in and half out of the pool. The top of the body was that of a nubile young woman. The bottom half was a fishlike tail. The head was no where to be found. It was dead, that much was obvious, but the body was pristine. No blood-stains, bruises or cuts marred the ivory skin of the creature and the cut that took the head was clean. Inuyasha's voice was filled with confusion when he spoke, "It doesn't stink... It should be rotting, it should at least smell like dead fish but it doesn't... What is that thing?" For the second time that night he was forced to ask that question. The entire situation was beginning to seriously annoy him. Demons he knew how to fight, but this...?

Yuta pushed his way to the front of the group and Kagome could see his face grow pale as he viewed the corpse. "I was expecting this..." His whispered comment was almost unnoticed, in a louder voice he told the companions, "That is the body of a dead mermaid. And that is the source of all our problems."

It was then that a blood-curdling howl echoed through the cave followed by the scream of a woman. Miroku spoke, "We're running out of time."


Another chapter finally completed. Somebody please review. My story isn't that bad is it?

What is that thing in the cave and why is Yuta convinced it's the key to everything? What could be worse than a Lost Soul?

Next Chapter: Dead Mermaids