Disclaimer: I could wish, but I don't own Inuyasha.
A/N: Sorry about the wait, but if you read the AN in 'Entrap,' you would have read that I had some health issues I've been dealing with. I would have had this up at least a week ago, if I wasn't swamped in school work and didn't have a chance to edit this. Thanks for reviews, they were much appreciated.
Couple of points for the story: Someone wrote that Sess was Ooc, and I would like to point out that this is not the Feudal Era where he was exposed to constant battles, so he's not used to seeing dying/dead bodies. Also, Inuyasha will not be on the Island. He will be in the story, but not there. Some might be there, but I'm not mentioning who. Um, I think that's it for now.
&&$$&&$$&&
Chapter 3: Some Explaining
Again fogginess plagued Sesshomaru's mind with his body feeling weak and heavy. He heard voices around him, but he could not decipher who they were or where they were standing in the room. He wanted to demand them for an explanation on what they did to him and why, but he refrained.
As the voices became clearer, he realized there were two people, and they were talking about him and other things. At first, he didn't know what the other things were, but as they continued speaking it became apparent that they were conversing about others like him. It seemed their discussion was heading in the direction of revealing at least a little bit of what they had planned.
Sesshomaru remembered his father telling him if he had an opportunity to get information without the opponent knowing it, take the chance to learn as much as possible (or something like that, since his brain was still a little fuzzy at the moment on his father's teachings). If he could make them believe he was still unconscious, they could possibly reveal some secrets that would be useful to him.
Clearing the last bits of haze from his head, Sesshomaru focused on their conversation.
&$&$&
"Even though he and the girl are the only ones with their abilities, I think it will be enough with the others we all ready have to begin the next phase, Doc."
"Hmm, I must agree with you. The Boss is tired of waiting for us. He wants this project moving, so he could make the next maneuver of his plan. If we don't start this now..." he paused for a moment, "well, let's just say we better start now."
"I'm just as anxious as the Boss is to get this underway. We haven't been working this hard for the past several months for it all to go down the drain."
His companion nodded in agreement. "Indeed, I have worked non-stop with my experiments to achieve a miniscule of what the Boss wanted. Not all have been successes, but he has told me that as long as the young man over here and the young woman are what we say they are, it will be enough."
"And I have been teaching the others the basics of combat to prepare them. They still need plenty of training, but it will become more intense once this guy joins them."
"Hmm, hopefully he has had some sort of training to make things quicker and smoother. His outward appearance and instincts may seem perfect, but if he does not know or learn how to control what I have bestowed upon him, he is useless to the Boss."
"And we wouldn't want to upset the Boss with a useless being. We know how he treats those that are useless to him." Shudders ran through him. "Anyway, once he wakes up, we can put this show on the road. I'm itching to do some fighting against a certain ruler."
"Ah yes, Sugimi Takahashi, the 'renowned' ruler of the Western Lands."
"Yeah, that's the jackass all right."
"Such a high opinion." Amusement laced his deep voice. "What has he done to warrant such regards?"
"Let's just say he didn't like my style of military combat."
"Oh, what style is that?" He was curious since he never said anything before about himself.
"If they're willing to fight, they're willing to die. I had never held any hostages or prisoners of battle (there never was a declared war); because they were all killed if they were with the enemy. He didn't appreciate that very much, so he dismissed me from the service and kicked me out his lands." His shoulders tensed upon mentioning his dismissal.
"I can agree with him somewhat, since I'm a doctor I try to save as many lives as I can."
"Well then, Mr. High and Mighty, what's your grudge with the Western Ruler?"
He looked away from him before answering. "He refused my requests of government aide to support my experiments. Because of that, I had to accept money from wherever I could get it legal or not." He said no more for a couple of minutes.
His coworker couldn't believe that was the whole story, and he was getting fed up with the waiting. "Come on Doc, that can't be the only reason." Seeing the scowl on the doctor's face, he was right. "I knew there was more. So, what is it?"
"What you see now of my work was not how it looked in the beginning. The first test subjects were not anything like what I have created now. They had either died easily, suffered severe deformities, or had lost their minds." He paused as he saw the wide-eyed expression from the other. "But that didn't stop me from continuing on to create the ultimate warrior, so there were more like those first ones. Eventually I was able to figure out where I was going wrong, but I couldn't implement it. The Western Ruler had gotten word of my experiments and had my labs raided. I was able to get away, but he confiscated my written work and what I had done so far. The 'great' Takahashi then declared that I was a wanted man for my 'heinous acts' and was forbidden to enter his lands unless I was to give myself up or under arrest."
The ex-Western soldier had to chuckle. "You know you're a hypocrite, Doc. You are just like me when it comes to taking lives, except we do it in different circumstances."
"We are nothing alike. Those lives were only lost in order to improve others, while you take them without regard."
A smile lingered on his face. "No wonder the Boss hired us to take down Takahashi."
"Yes," a small grin forming on his face, "we will bring down the Western Ruler once and for all."
Laughter erupted from both men until a growl from the supposed unconscious man drew both of their attention.
&$&$&
Sesshomaru couldn't suppress the growl from escaping his throat when the last sentence was said between them. He had listened to the conversation and was intrigued about the girl they were talking about. 'So, there is someone else who has abilities different from the others.' They didn't explain more on her, but they did reveal to him that they were being employed by someone. 'I knew there was someone running this whole thing.'
When the two brought up the Western Lands ruler, he was more than surprised. 'My father! What do they have against my father? Does everything that has happened to me have something to do with my father?' The questions going through his mind were endless.
As the two explained themselves to each other, Sesshomaru knew he had heard of them before. The military one's story brought up a faint recollection, but he couldn't distinctively remember the person. The doctor though was a different matter. He could recall his father telling him about it, and the photos and video from the raid. He had never been more disgusted and appalled in his young life. Sesshomaru had wondered what happened to the doctor and now he knew. 'I'm now one of his sick experiments.'
When they spoke about his father again and what they were going to do, the growl naturally came out from his throat. He had not meant to do that, but he did and it revealed he was awake.
He could see their forms approaching and raised his chin defiantly. He would not back down from these two sick individuals.
&$&$&
Once they were in front of him, the transformed man was able to get a better look at them. One was shorter than the other, and he had long black hair pulled back in a braid and dark blue eyes. Even though he was short, he had a lean body that spoke of hard training. The taller one had short dark brown hair with brown eyes. His shoulders were broad that matched his wide and muscular body. It was easy to discern which one was the doctor, since the taller man was wearing a white lab coat.
The two men stood before the young man with smirks on their faces. Sesshomaru could not figure out what was so amusing, but he would show them he was not one to mess with. As he attempted to stand to confront them, he realized his legs would not respond. When he tried to move his arms, they reacted the same as his legs. Darting his eyes around, he saw cement walls and thick chains holding his arms up to the ceiling and legs to the floor. His frustration and anger were soon coming to the surface for being caged in a cell, but he stopped himself. Sesshomaru knew it would not help if he let his emotions get in the way, so he put on a blank face to get answers to his questions.
"Why can I not move?" At the moment, he figured he should be aware of what was going on with his body.
"I paralyzed your body from the shoulders down with a sedative that immobilizes your movements, but you can feel pain. After that little fiasco when you woke up, I was better prepared." Seeing the glare he was getting, he added a little tidbit. "And you will be punished for what you did to my lab." His partner almost clapped his hands in glee.
"Who are you?" He wanted to know the identities of these corrupted men and to get his mind away from what he said about retribution for the destruction he did to the lab.
They each chuckled at the chained individual before the shorter one answered. "I'm Major Bankotsu Nara." Giving a mock salute, he turned to his companion, "I'll let the Doc introduce himself."
Following the major's lead, he gave a mock bow and responded. "And I am Doctor Suikotsu Yamatta. Please to make your acquaintance." Sniggering with his colleague, he decided to inquire with his own question. "And young man, your name would be?"
Growling at their insolence, he strained to keep his composure, but stopped all thoughts when he realized what he was asked. 'They don't know who I am?' Sesshomaru glanced at their faces and saw expectation written on them. 'They really don't know who I am. I never thought I would be thanking my father for sheltering me all my life.' He knew his father did this for his protection since he was the heir (and other reasons), and now he was going to use this to his advantage. 'I can let them think I'm a nobody, and gather the information I need, escape from here, and tell my father to prepare for war.'
"My name is simply Maru." He hated the nickname, but it was the only thing he could think of on short notice, since the first part of his name would have most likely given him away.
"Ah, Maru, such a simple name for a not so simple person anymore." Doctor Yamatta acknowledged and praised his specimen in a subtle way. After all, he had to congratulate himself on a job well-done. "Do you even realize how special and important you are?"
"I am sure you will enlighten me." Sarcasm was dripping from every word.
Shrugging off the tone, he went on. "You, Maru, are the cornerstone in our fight against the Western Lands."
"And why should I fight for you? I have no grudge with the West."
"How can you not have a grudge? Ever since Takahashi began his rule, he has been throwing his superiority around causing the other Lands to suffer." Bankotsu argued with his own opinion.
Lifting an eyebrow, Sesshomaru wondered on the man's reasoning. "It is not the fault of Lord Takahashi if the other Lords do not have the intelligence to run their lands properly and efficiently. Surely, you have a better reason to convince me?" He certainly wasn't going to fight his own Land, but he needed them to think that he would.
"Enough!" Suikotsu intervened before the major got into a childish argument, because it seemed it was heading in that direction with the way he was grumbling under his breath. Since the doctor didn't want to hear any of it, he decided to play his trump card to persuade the young man. "You have no choice. I know you will fight for our Boss."
Narrowing his golden orbs, "Really?"
"Oh, yes you will. For you see, I am the only one who can reverse your transformation, and if you ever want to return to your previous self, you will serve the Boss and battle against the West." Dr. Yamatta finished smugly.
Snarling and wishing his limbs would move, Sesshomaru wanted to shred the so-called doctor and wipe the smug look off his face. With him being the only known person who could undo his change, he had to comply for now until he was able to gather the necessary data to reverse the process done to him.
Speaking in a clipped tone, he did not want them to see the defeat he felt inside. "It seems I have no choice."
"You made the right one." Bankotsu said while slapping him on the shoulder, but had to snatch his hand quickly when the transformed man snapped at him. He let him have that and gave him a self-satisfied smirk, because soon he was going to be dealing out the punishment.
Suikotsu called the Major to accompany him out of the cell for a brief minute. He had noticed a slight motion in one of the young man's limbs and wanted to equip Bankotsu with another syringe. The doctor knew Maru was all ready building a resistance to the sedative because of the poisons flowing through his veins, and had to monitor the doses before it became ineffective.
After he was handed the syringe and proper instructions, Bankotsu had to know one thing prior to going back in the room. "Hey Doc, can you really put him back the way he was?"
"I know I can reverse what I've done to the others. With him," halting to look at Maru from a security screen of the cell before continuing, "well, what he doesn't know won't hurt us. As long as he's willing, the Boss will be an extremely pleased man, and we can get our revenge on the Western Lord." He didn't even want to fathom what would happen if the young male knew his transformation was irreversible, because of the poisons coursing in his body.
Mentally shaking away the thought, he patted the Major on the back and sent him on his way. For now, he wanted justice for his precious lab.
&$&$&
Sighing, Sesshomaru relaxed in the soothing shower. His tense muscles became loose and the blood was easily rinsed away with the warm water. Watching the swirling liquid go down the drain, he recalled upon his punishment.
The hot-headed major had settled upon using a whip to beat his prone figure for his 'misdeeds'. After ten lashings, the major's smile faded as he realized his skin rapidly healed and left no marks behind except for the blood that had escaped. Unfortunately, the sick grin returned when he concluded he would just have to give a longer thrashing to make a lasting impression on his person. For an hour, he was whipped repeatedly until there was enough blood to satisfy the major.
With his body still feeling the effects of the drug, he was dragged by two guards to a small suite that was to be his room. When he was able to move, he searched the rooms and found it to be suitable if he had to say so. His 'living room' had a black loveseat, a small cherry wood desk with a chair, and a television on a stand that only played two channels (one was for broadcasting info, directives, and reasons for destroying the West in the compound, while the other played movies for little entertainment). The bedroom had a double-sized bed covered in beige sheets and a brown comforter with a four-drawer cherry wood dresser. The bathroom had a shower stall, toilet, sink, and vanity mirror all in shades of grey.
Being the heir to the Western Lands, Sesshomaru had better accommodations, but it was more comfortable than the room he had first awaken in. He had thought when they mentioned the others that he would be with them in some kind of barracks. 'Well, I have some privacy.' He knew he did not have total solitude, because he was positive there were some security cameras spying on him, but at least he was away from the others. He did not feel like being around other people right now, since he was still trying to get used to his new body and the fact he did not look like a human anymore.
Glancing down from the spraying of the shower head, he examined the rest of his body. He noticed he now had defined muscles on his chest, abs, arms, and legs where before he had only slight definition on his lean figure. Also, more magenta stripes decorated his frame. Two stripes were on each hip that wrapped around each thigh to stop at his knee. Two more started high on his ankle that curved over the top of his foot to end at the big toe. On his toes, the nails were now claw-like similar to his hands but shorter.
Turning the shower off and grabbing a towel to dry himself off, Sesshomaru let his mind go blank. He was so tired and a bit stressed that he wanted to forget just for the night that he was not some freak of nature and still the secluded prince of the West. 'I wish that could be true.'
Tossing the used towel on the floor, he pulled on a pair of boxer briefs and went into the dark bedroom. He crawled under the covers and tried to find a comfortable spot to lie on for the time being. He only had six hours of sleep to get before he had to wake up and begin his training. Closing his eyes, he thought, 'Maybe when I wake up, this nightmare will be over.'
'If only...'
&&$$&&$$&&$$&&$$&&
A/N: How was that? I was questioning myself if it was confusing or not, but I'm not sure. So, was it? I swear it will get clearer as the story progresses.
I know someone guessed the doctor was going to be Naraku, but I didn't want him since it was obvious and overdone (And NO he's not the Boss. I doubt he's even going to be in this story). I decided on having Suikotsu as the doctor, because of his split personality. One side of him wants to help people, but the other will do anything for it, including experimenting and killing others. And Bankotsu just seemed like the perfect military guy to me.
Okay people, I like to get across that this is AU. With that said, I will be making the Western Lands and the others on a larger scale. As in, the Western Lands of Asia, EL of Asia, and so forth. I figured if it was just of Japan, then the Boss wouldn't be trying to make an army of genetically engineered warriors for some small piece of land and defeat a ruler of a small country (there is absolutely nothing wrong with Japan). I figured for him to do this, he would want to defeat someone of higher status (and also other reasons). Remember, this is only for the story's purpose.
Next chapter, we will see some of Sess' training, and meet the others and Kagome.
Sorry for the long AN. And can someone recommend a website where I can find Japanese names and meanings? Thanks.
Please read and review!
DOTS