"Sango, snap out of it!" Miroku yelped, dodging her claws as she stabbed out at him. With a series of ducks and weaves, he had managed only a scratch or two on his legs, and a gash on his left cheek. He had been trying in vain to coax her out of the trance and had stumbled over roots in his unfocused retreat.

He couldn't open his wind tunnel. Not just because it was Sango he was fighting and he would never open it on her, but also because Sango had stabbed through his right shoulder and he didn't want to open it without the support of his right hand. He had also lost a lot of blood, and he didn't know the effect that would make on the hole. Even if he could open it, there wouldn't have been a chance. He was completely absorbed in dodging, and he would have been stabbed through the minute he stopped to try. There were other means by which Sango could be stopped, but he had dropped his staff back where Kiki had disappeared and couldn't find the time to pull out a sutra.

Despite the desperate situation he still messed up horribly in his stepping, and ended up falling backwards to the ground, silently cursing the root that had tripped him. Sango swiped at him as he fell, skimming the air above his stomach by a mere millimeter or two.

His shoulder stabbed with sharp pain as he lifted his blackening vision up to a dull, unemotional face. It was obvious Sango had no regrets about attacking him, and it was just as obvious that she was under someone's control. He watched in suspenseful horror as Sango raised her right hand high above her head and stabbed down at him with all the power she could.

"Stop!" Inuyasha roared, catching her hand just as it was about to stab him through. He pulled against her with all his strength, just as Sango was trying to make the last inch with all of hers. Before she even thought of attacking with her other hand Inuyasha grabbed it, forcing her backwards. She snarled feraly at him as Miroku sighed in infinite relief and let his head settle onto the ground.

"Thank Buddha I'm still alive." He whispered, praying quietly to the depths of his mind. The right side of his kimono was soaked in blood, and a stream of it trickled down his cheek and into his neckline. Inuyasha noticed this and pushed Sango angrily onto the ground, pinning her hands next to her head and sitting on her stomach.

"What are you doing?" he snarled at her. "You're wasting my time!" Sango struggled against his grip, baring her teeth and kicking her legs. If Inuyasha had made his appearance any later, she would have killed Miroku. Obviously she was upset with him.

"Inuyasha." Miroku said sternly from where he was laying down. "She's not right in the head right now."

"Well that much is apparent! Kiki might be dead and she's just making it worse!" This seemed to reach Sango because she stopped struggling and just stared off into the sky above them. Inuyasha glared at her and then turned his head a bit to look at Miroku again. His voice was less harsh, but barely. "Can you stand?"

"Yes. Hold her there while I get a sutra." Miroku mumbled, sitting up and reaching a hand into his kimono. He pulled out a piece of paper, surprisingly untouched by blood, and then struggled to his feet. His eyesight was not eager to clear, and he stumbled forward blurrily. Sango growled at the sight of him and Inuyasha pushed her wrists harder into the ground.

"Shut up." He hissed, staring her down. Miroku shot him a cold, ungrateful glare.

"She's under a spell." He stated harshly, as if Inuyasha didn't already know this. His eyes were like ice as Inuyasha looked up at him.

"She tried to kill you!" Inuyasha objected in a disbelieving voice.

Miroku squatted down next to her head, pushing her hair aside so her forehead was clear. His eyes were gentle, to Inuyasha's complete surprise. Sango just glared back at him with anger. "Not in her own will. Sango, this will hurt a bit. Grit your teeth and bear it."

Sango almost bit him as he placed the sutra on her head, stopped only by a sharp shock of spiritual power that exploded into a storm of shocks running down her body. Inuyasha made like he was going to let her go, but Miroku stopped him before he had the chance. "Hold her down or she might hurt herself!"

So he held on. Sango refused to shriek or to struggle much. Seconds turned to minutes which almost seemed like hours. Eventually, a true minute later, the shocks stopped and the sutra was just a blank piece of paper, which Miroku peeled off. Inuyasha let go of her and ignored the marks he had left on her wrists, unashamed by his harshness with her. Her claws of light had shattered mere seconds into the seizure, so she looked as she normally did, eyes closed as if she was asleep. It wasn't long before she stirred and opened them.

She bolted upright. "Wh-" Her eyes darted everywhere and landed on Miroku. "WH-"

"Later." Miroku said firmly, resting a hand on her shoulder. "This is simply not the time for questions."

"But you're bleeding!" Sango objected, turning wild eyes to Inuyasha when he snorted in mock laughter. "Why is he bleeding?"

"Later." Miroku said with more force. She shut her gaping mouth and nodded, watching him as he stood up.

"Sango? Get up. Miroku, can you run?" Inuyasha barked at them.

Miroku turned weary eyes to the half breed as Sango scampered into a standing position. "I can try."

"Good. Then let's move." Inuyasha said and then stopped to look at them more closely. "Sango, where's your hiraikotsu? And Miroku, where's your staff?"

But what if they were too late?

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Kiki was lost, and the feeling was all too familiar to her. She had been lost all her life: lost in mysteries, lost in her mind, lost in the woods, lost in her body, and even lost in her own village. The whole idea of being lost was so comfortable to her it was actually quite pathetic. Yet, right now, despite all of her experience with being lost, she was terrified at the idea. The knowledge that Naraku was so close, that he might as well have been standing next to her, was so overwhelmingly powerful that she was scared.

The fact that everyone had disappeared into a sea of blackness was adding to her terror. No matter how much she called for them, nobody replied. She struggled against the pushing idea that they were dead, knowing that it would break her to think that way. Because she was so utterly petrified and alone, Kikyo's voice should have been a welcome sound. But against all reasoning, it just made her even jumpier.

"You get possessed too easily."

The simple yet true statement stabbed Kiki sharply in the ego. The annoyed tone on the voice made things even worse than they already were. The only thing she could think of as a replied was a weak and feeble, "Do not!"

"You really need to train more. And why are you so tense? Seems that at the slightest noise you'll just burst off running." Kikyo continued, mercifully ignoring Kiki's reply. "You're not a very good priestess."

"Harsh." Ryoko's voice came with a laughing ring, somehow soothing Kiki. "I think she is well enough with her powers."

The two figures faded in before her, sitting lazily with their arms crossed. Kiki felt like hugging them, she was so lonely. Dimly she realized what it meant to be talking to them and groaned. "I'm in my mind again, aren't I?"

"She's not very quick, though."

"No, she isn't."

Kiki sat down with a sigh, wondering why Naraku had put such odd people in her body. Ryoko looked at her, amused, while Kikyo's face clouded over in fury.

"How am I odd?" she hissed harshly. "I only speak the truth."

"You can hear my thoughts?" Kiki exclaimed in surprise, staring at the unsettled priestess.

Ryoko laughed. "Again, she isn't very quick."

"No, she really isn't."

"But back to the comment on her getting possessed. I don't blame her. Naraku created her, and it's not as if she can defy him." Ryoko argued, acting as if Kiki wasn't there.

Kikyo acted in the same matter. "It's her body. She can do whatever she pleases."

"That's not exactly true, considering…"

"Excuse me! I'm right here!" Kiki snapped, unnerved by their chatter. "What are you talking about?"

Both stared at her as if she was crazy. It was Ryoko who replied. "Naraku pushed us all into this awful hunk of a body. I would have assumed you knew that."

"Not abut THAT. About him possessing me and defying him. All that." Kiki said in exasperation. "Am I being possessed?"

"Not... Currently, I don't suppose." Kikyo murmured thoughtfully. "But you did lead your friends into a trap. I guess you didn't mean to… We don't exactly know what happened to them, either."

"But I didn't-"

"Well of course she didn't know she was leading them into a trap!" Ryoko barked. "How could you say such a thing?"

"Why are you so touchy on the subject? I only speak the truth!"

"Because that is how I got here! Friendship, as useless as it is, is a shameless weapon. Naraku is disgusting to use it against people."

Kikyo stared at her, suspicious. "Your friends led you here?"

"Not by their own choice. I was trying to save them!"

"You don't sound like much of a demon."

Before Ryoko could reply, all three had their attention drawn to the swiftly lightening area around them. When before they had sat in mere darkness, now a fog of light seemed to be forming, and they were alarmed.

"What's going on?" Kiki wondered aloud.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"A cave?" Miroku inquired halfheartedly. Most of his attention was focused on being able to walk. After stumbling once, the group had considerably slowed their pace for him, and now he was leaning on Sango for support. "Just like-"

"Just like Kiki said. I know." Inuyasha sighed. "You two should stay outside."

"Because it's safer, right? Not on your life, Inuyasha. We both want revenge as much as you do. Naraku has injured all of us, physically as well as emotionally." Sango snapped, pissed off not only at the suggestion but the situation. "And since Miroku is dripping blood, we're probably attracting hordes of demons. We'll be safer inside."

"You can't come in." Inuyasha said stubbornly. "Miroku's half dead. He'll be fully dead if Naraku lays even one hand on him."

"I'm not half dead!" he objected. "You're both over reacting!"

"We're going in!" Sango said forcefully, ignoring Miroku completely. Inuyasha turned to have a stare-down with Sango, and lost miserably.

"Fine. You can come." He grumbled. Since it had barely been an hour from Kiki's disappearance, it was fairly light outside. Yet, all the same, the cave entrance looked dark and foreboding. None the less, all three went in. Miroku's breathing was undeniably heavy and echoed, causing Inuyasha to stir towards his former argument.

"Miroku…"

"Keep walking!" Miroku snapped before Sango had a chance. He was obviously not use to being so weak, and it was irritating him. Inuyasha sighed but let it go.

To the groups' surprise, the cave got lighter as they went along. Kiki's words seemed to ring through all of their ears. "A cave. A large cave. But... No... It's a room that is big. Lit by the unknown." It also became clear that there was an area ahead they needed to get to. All were amazing by Kiki's senses and words, and found the only explanation for such a feeling within them. Everything had been planted. All the same, they trusted the knowledge and kept going.

Inuyasha wrestled with his need to run ahead and save Kiki and his need to stay behind and help Miroku. Her scent was driving him mad, but Miroku was still bleeding. What if he collapsed? There was also a tainted, vile smell that was just as strong as them. It didn't take a genius to figure out who it belonged to.

Inuyasha decided he was not drawn by his feelings enough to leave Miroku and Sango behind. Sango had made some good points back at the entrance.

No one could doubt what lay ahead of them.

Naraku.

And the final battle.