Chapter 7: Harmful Errors
Leaping into the air and glaring down below him, Inuyasha dove down to the ground and swung his sword across his enemy. Though, like all the others times, he was stopped. Gritting his teeth he pushed all his weight against his sword and felt the youkai do the same. "You're not going to make this easy are you Sesshomaru?"
Sesshomaru grinned and leaned harder into the swords, his face inching closer towards Inuyasha's. "Not until I make sure you're dead." Pulling his sword back, he leaped into the air and watched his younger brother stumble forwards. "Lets go Inuyasha. Stop wasting my time." He called down to the hanyou.
Inuyasha growled and glared up at the demon. "Well maybe if you're stop running away you wouldn't have that problem!" He shouted. Kicking off the ground, he soared to the sky, his word readied at hand. Rising in front of the youkai he cracked his knuckles and didn't hesitate to scratch his claws across his arm. "Or is it that you're stalling because you know I'm going to kill you Sesshomaru?" He questioned as his claws ripped through the demon's sleeve, barely touching skin.
Shifting his body away, Sesshomaru tore away the remains of his tattered sleeve and lifted his sword. "You'd like that wouldn't you?" His body suddenly sprung forward from its spot and the two swords clashed again, sparks of light emitting from where they met.
Mara's eyes glanced back and forth from the enemies before her and to her master. She ducked her head slightly as a boomerang flew over head and she shot an icy glare at the man and woman who kept constantly attacking her without a second's break. "I told you that you are not worth fighting!" She shouted in anger, thrusting her hands forwards in the direction of the weapon returning to its wielder.
Frowning as her desired weapon wedged its way into a tree, Sango quickly unsheathed her sword and ran in full speed towards the demon. "Not worth fighting huh? I'd like to hear you say that again when this sword slices you in half!" She shouted, speeding up for a full force frontal attack.
The corner of the demon's lips curled into a sly grin at the exterminator's threats and she rose a testing eyebrow. 'We'll see about that.' Bending her elbows slightly, her fingers locking and her chin pressing into her chest, she narrowed her eyes and glared at the approaching woman.
A large amount of demonic power blasted past Miroku's body and he choked on his own air in disbelief. 'It's coming from that demon!' His mind shouted as tiny sparks of lightning shot from her body and into the ground. Sango's figure suddenly came into the picture and he gasped, afraid of what might happen to her. "Sango no!" Grasping onto his prayer beads around his wrist, he unwound them and unsealed his curse.
Strong gusts of wind pulled at her body as she ran at the youkai. Scowling in frustration, her run stopped in motion and her feet began to slide back. As she swung her sword around her side and was about to throw it at the demon, the ground beneath her began to rumble violently and fell from her hand. Sango looked at the demon in fear as her tiny smirk grew to a large grin and blood ran down her chin from where her fang had pierced her lip.
"You think you're so tough." Mara muttered, her insides tingling with the erotic sensation of power. The sparks of lightning grew at her fingertips and she slowly began to lift her hands to her chest. "Well lets see you handle this!" At the shrill of her voice, large beams of lightning shot down from the sky and collided with her body. Rocks thrust up from the ground around her and a ball of electric energy exploded at her command.
Kagome's shoulders shrunk and her hands covered her ears at such a loud noise. Turning her head in the direction of her friends, her hair whipping past her face by the gusts of wind from the blast, she gasped when she spotted Sango as she was thrown away from the demon. "Sango!" She screamed in hopes that somehow she'd be saved.
Disrupted by the sound of Kagome's voice, Inuyasha looked away from his battle in time to see his monk companion cover the hole in his hand and run to the falling exterminator's aid. A sigh of relief escaped past his lips as she fell into his arms and he lowered her to her feet, realizing that she was obviously unharmed. "Too close." He whispered to himself.
Sesshomaru looked out the corner of his eyes to the hanyou whose attention had been drawn someplace other than where he was. Slowly rising his sword, a grin playing at his lips he tightened his grip around the hilt and prepared to strike.
"You ok Sango?" Miroku asked in concern, holding on to her hand and waist to keep her balanced. He didn't argue when she pushed his hands away from her. His history was probably what caused the distasteful look upon her face.
Sango watched the monk carefully as she brushed the dirt from her arms. "I'm fine thanks." If it hadn't been for Mara she wouldn't have been so obviously cautious around the man and maybe would have let him be a little flirtatious with her- to a certain extent that is. But right now, she had other more important things on her mind and didn't have the patience to slap him across the face if he did get on her nerves. Turning her full body to face the demon she gave her her most hated stare.
Mara relaxed her muscles and the corner of her mouth turned up into a tiny smirk. "You're lucky you aren't dead exterminator." She said while she kneeled down and picked up the sword that the woman had dropped when she was blown away. "And still you don't flee? How stupid can you humans be?" Her glance shifted up to Sesshomaru than back down again.
"What is she…" Miroku whispered quietly, sensing the demon's distraction. Following where she had looked, his eyes widened and his mouth slowly fell open as he saw the demon lord spring from his spot and charge at Inuyasha. "Kagome!" He shouted, beginning to run towards the girl. "Inuyasha!"
Upon hearing Miroku's warning Kagome spun on her heels to see Inuyasha get struck across the chest and thrown to the ground. A loud crash shook her body and she gasped as dirt and debris rose in a dusty cloud. "Inu…Inuyasha!" Kagome screamed, sprinting to reach him.
Mara twisted her grip on the sword and ran out to meet the slayer. "This'll teach you to mess with enemies stronger than you!" Leaping into the air, she attacked from above and drove the blade of the sword down her target's arm. The strong smell of blood aroused her senses and she licked the tip of the blade clean of the hot substance. "Have you learned a lesson yet exterminator?" She asked in a calm tone, running her fingers across the sharp metal.
Sango winced slightly and held onto her bleeding left arm. The ruby red liquid covered her fingers like a warm blanket and dripped off down to the ground. Letting loose a single chuckle, Sango grinned at the over-confident demon sorceress. "We'll see who learns a lesson here." Having her threat delivered and without waiting for her enemy's reaction she turned in the direction of her weapon and ran as fast as she could towards it.
Growling in rage as the woman ran away in an attempt to retrieve her weapon and balance the odds, Mara quickly took after her to stop her before she reached her destination. "I don't think so! You will die!" She hollered, lifting her sword over her shoulder.
Sensing the danger behind him, Miroku whipped around and bit his lip in fear when he saw the demon ready and about to kill the one he loved. "Sango!" He shouted, snatching onto his prayer beads and lifting his hand out in front of him. After unwinding the first wrap around his wrist, he was about to release the void when an arrow hissed past his ear and struck the demon before he could. Turning his head over his shoulder he saw Kagome still holding onto her bow, a fierce glare aimed at the demon that fell the ground with an arrow protruding from her arm. "Kag-"
"Get out of here. Take Sango and run. Inuyasha and I can take care of this." Kagome instructed with an urgent and pleading voice. Strapping her bow around her shoulder she turned away from the monk and continued running to where she was originally headed. She didn't know for sure if her and Inuyasha alone could handle it but she couldn't stand to see her friend's lives in danger.
Miroku was about to deny leaving but bit his tongue as the hanyou stood to his feet, cursed the demon above him and sprung to attack. Swallowing his voice he nodded his head slowly and caught up to the demon exterminator. Without looking back he snatched onto her arm and ran her out and away from the battle.
Sesshomaru grinned as the hanyou rose again with his sword in hand, preparing to take him down in just one swing it seemed. "Oh Inuyasha. You're incapable of learning the most vital technique to killing me." He tisked as he lifted his sword to his chest and gripped it tightly. As the half-demon grew closer so did his grin, a sharp white fang slipping over his bottom lip. "You will never succeed in a victory unless your enemy is not expecting it!" He shouted.
Inuyasha gasped and tried to stop his movement upwards as the demon lord snapped his whip across his hand. The poison leather like strap tightened around his fingers and ate away at his flesh. He grit his teeth to try and bear the pain but he didn't last long and unconsciously let go of the Tetseiga. 'Oh no!' He watched in terror as it fell to the earth and pierced the ground on contact. Stopping himself from rising any further he turned his body around and dove to the ground.
Looking from the Tetseiga to Inuyasha, Kagome froze in her spot when she saw Sesshomaru dive right after him. She didn't have time to shoot the demon down before he reached Inuyasha so she could only resort to warning him and hope he'd hear her. "Inuyasha look out behind you!" She screamed.
With a dumbfounded look upon his face, Inuyasha peered over his shoulder and felt the pain before it even hit him. Having no time to move and escape unharmed, Sesshomaru slashed the Tokijin from his shoulder down to his opposite hip then stabbed him right through his abdomen. His mouth opened to scream but no sound came out. The sky above him and the smirking demon in front of him began to blur and melt away as he slipped into an unconscious eternity. 'Not…again.' He could feel his body falling from the sky and taste the thick blood gathering in his throat. '…Kagome.' His eyes shut tight and all feeling disappeared as his body slammed into the ground.
Kagome shook violently and covered her face as the hanyou vanished in a cloud of dust. Slowly peeking between her fingers, tears swelled in her eyes when he wasn't anywhere to be seen. "Inuyasha?" She whispered softly, though only the cold brutal silence replied her. 'Is…he…' Shaking her head frantically side to side she ran to him to discover the truth.
Sheathing his sword, Sesshomaru landed softly on his feet and frowned in dissatisfaction at the girl who still ran to his younger insignificant brother. What did she see in such a weakling half-breed like him anyway? He silently congratulated himself as a cool breeze passed by his body and carried no scent of his younger half-brother. He sighed lightly, his deed done and now he could roam the lands carefree and conquer whatever he felt like conquering. Brushing his hair over his shoulder he turned from the scene and began to walk away. As he was about to enter the forest he stopped abruptly and cautiously looked back. 'What was that I just sensed? It was like a thousand knives had just ripped my insides out…' He wanted to look at Inuyasha to make sure it wasn't him and a sudden rustling noise relieved him from doing so.
A low growl rumbled in her chest as she slowly rose to her feet. With a heated glare on the girl running to the aid of her lover, Mara snatched onto the arrow in her arm and pulled it roughly out with no regard to the condition of her skin afterwards. Shivers of hate prickled her pale skin and her body shook with the urge to kill. "Damn that wench." She muttered devilishly. "Damn her to hell. I'm going to kill her even if it's the last thing I do." She finished, crackling her fingers and licking her lips as if the taste of blood were already there.
'Please.' Kagome pleaded, entering the cloud of dirt that surrounded the hanyou she was looking for. 'Please don't be dead.' As the smoke began to clear, a faded red figure slightly appeared and her stomach twisted knowing who it was. "Inuyasha!" She called, running to the fallen man. As his whole body came into view she suddenly stopped, her bow slipping off her shoulder and crashing to the ground. Her mouth opened and all she could do was stare with glossy eyes at the bloodied hanyou below her. "…No…Inuyasha."