Chapter 14
"You wouldn't!" Kikyo said.
Her protests only made the demon's smile bigger. "Actually, I really would. You see, I'm not one to tolerate feisty women like you. Either you cooperate, or you die."
The little monkey shivered from underneath Kikyo. The priestess's eyes darted from left to right, her mind thinking fast of a way to escape. But she was under too much pressure to figure anything out. Then Kikyo contemplated calling for Sesshomaru's help. But would he come? That was the big question. Sesshomaru had saved her life quite a few times before, but did she mean enough to him that he would rescue her again?
"You can't escape, and don't expect that fool of a youkai lord to show up" Onigumo said coolly, as if reading her mind.
"Oh? Why not?" Kikyo asked through gritted teeth.
"Hehehe…just know that there are a lot of animals in the forest, and I have a lot of shikon shards."
…………………………………….
Sesshomaru's eyes popped open instinctively, sensing danger. He was about to get up when he realized Rin was curled up in his armpit, her mouth open and drooling on his robes as she slept. Both annoyed and disgusted, the youkai shoved her off and stood up. Was she sleeping with me the entire night? He wondered, hoping it wasn't so. Then his mind snapped back to attention…why had he woken so suddenly? Sesshomaru scanned the area, looking for any signs of movement. He could feel a strong, ominous aura coming from somewhere, but it was hard to identify the source. He looked out across the lake, then skimmed his eyes along the trees surrounding the water's edge. Still nothing.
All of a sudden, a scream resounded from behind him. Sesshomaru spun around and saw Rin, now awake and panicking, inching backwards on the ground, away from the dark, red-eyed creatures that stood menacingly before her. Sesshomaru stared at them, accustoming himself to their looming presence. Something is fishy about these demons…Sesshomaru thought, reaching a hand towards the hilt of the Tokijin. As the forest animals stared at him with flames burning in their eyes, the youkai lord returned the favor with a cold glare. These creatures…are animals! He realized.
"Rin, run as far as you can to the other side of the lake" Sesshomaru ordered. "Stay put until I come get you."
Rin looked up at him reluctantly for a moment, then saw the animals closing in and immediately bolted, following Sesshomaru's directions. Oddly enough, the possessed creatures didn't seem to care that the young girl was escaping. Their eyes were focused on Sesshomaru, who now had his blade drawn and was pointing it at them menacingly. He would've swung too, killing these poor innocent forest animals, had he not become aware that Kikyo was nowhere in sight. That damn priestess is always getting herself into trouble he thought, his stomach constricting uneasily. Sesshomaru summoned a cloud and took off, flying over the creatures and into the depths of the forest. They followed close behind, not allowing him to escape. Sesshomaru's eyes searched between the trees below him for a sign of Kikyo or any kind of disturbance. For some reason he felt nervous, and this feeling made him angry. A great youkai lord such as him should not get anxiety! But the longer he searched, the more anxious he became. Where the hell is she? He cursed inwardly. Then he spotted her, but there was someone else there too…
Onigumo swung the Tetsusaiga at Kikyo, who ducked barely in time. The blade skimmed her cheek and left a slash just below her right eye. A trickle of blood dripped down the side of her face, but she didn't bother to wipe it away. Her anger numbed the pain, and she glared at Onigumo. However, Kikyo found it hard to sustain her fury while looking into Inuyasha's face. Though his soul had vanished a long time ago, it was still the hanyou's body that stood before her, still those shimmering eyes that Kikyo had known and loved, the same puppy dog ears and long white hair…
"Why Inuyasha?" Kikyo said suddenly. "Of all people, why him?"
Onigumo stuck the Tetsusaiga into the ground beside him and leaned on it casually, twisting Inuyasha's hair around a finger like a little girl. "Oh I don't think you want to know" he sneered.
"Why him?" Kikyo shouted in a more demanding tone. She was completely fed up with Onigumo's teasing and tired of his stupid tricks to get with her.
"Well, if you really must know…" Onigumo began, but before he could finish Sesshomaru landed in the middle of the scene.
Kikyo gasped at the sight of him. Is he here to protect me?
"So we meet again" Onigumo attempted to say calmly, which came out more like a snarl.
Sesshomaru wasn't the least bit happy to lay eyes on Naraku again, nor was he at all surprised. But the fact that he had already killed Inuyasha and was now facing him again caused him to feel slightly disturbed. He drew the Tokijin and in a flash had cut through Inuyasha's skin. "Fight me in your true form" Sesshomaru said coldly, watching the dark red demon blood pour out of the newly torn flesh.
Kikyo stared in shock as Inuyasha's skin split apart and peeled away, guts splattering every which way. Then a new body emerged, a big and gruesome form dripping with foul smelling blood. Four arms extended out, covered in spines like little daggers. Onigumo opened his mouth and roared, revealing rows and rows of sharp fangs. Sesshomaru stood in front of the true Onigumo, sword in hand and eyes fixed.
"You are one ugly bastard" he said.
Onigumo let out a nasty shriek and went for an attack. Sesshomaru sliced off the arm before it even came close to hitting him, and then he flew up straight towards the demon. He swung the Tokijin again, this time aiming for Onigumo's head. But his attack was a little too slow and Onigumo reacted faster. He slashed at Sesshomaru, who fell back with a bloody gash on his shoulder. Kikyo still could not believe what was happening, but she couldn't allow herself to just stand on the sidelines and watch. She had to do something. Picking up her bow, she strung an arrow across and aimed carefully for one of Onigumo's beady, bloodshot eyes. Just as she was about to release it, Kikyo felt a tug on her robes and she looked down to see the monkey, trembling and pointing. Kikyo turned in the direction of its finger and realized that the consumed animals were closing in on them. Thinking fast, Kikyo reached down and picked up the monkey, allowing it to ride on her shoulder. Onigumo is controlling all these animals she thought. If I can just take him out, then they will all go back to normal.
Though Sesshomaru sliced and diced Onigumo, his efforts seemed to be wasted. Every cut left pieces of flesh that only reassembled themselves. Onigumo cackled in a nonhuman tone of voice. "You can never destroy me" he said, slamming fists into the ground.
He's become much stronger than before Sesshomaru thought with frustration. He hated wasting time, and fighting this demon seemed to be going nowhere. He couldn't afford to lose another arm, and the gash in his shoulder felt like it was deepening. Sesshomaru had his sword halfway sheathed when Onigumo suddenly reached out, catching him off guard. The demon ripped him from the ground and squeezed the breath out of him. Though the pain was excruciating, Sesshomaru allowed no expressions to escape him that would let on that he was hurting. The Tokijin had fallen from his hand and was lying on the ground a few feet away. Sesshomaru stared fearlessly into Onigumo's eyes, which were completely clouded over with red haze.
"I have you now" Onigumo hissed, spitting clear liquid into the youkai's face as he talked. "Lets see how pretty you are once I bite off your head!"
"Leave him alone!" Kikyo cried out, standing directly in front of Onigumo.
Sesshomaru did not divert his attention from Onigumo as the demon focused its eyes on Kikyo. "Do you not realize what will happen if I let him go?" he cackled, his voice breaking with every word. "Do you take me for a fool, woman?"
Tears began to well up in Kikyo's eyes. She had no idea why, but they came almost instinctively as she looked up at the man being crushed in Onigumo's fist. "I can't stand you!"
Onigumo clenched Sesshomaru even tighter. "He feels nothing for you. Why spare the life of a heartless bastard?"
"You're wrong…" Kikyo said, readying her bow.
"You want to die in his place?" The demon bellowed, taking a lumbering step forward towards the priestess.
Kikyo took a step backwards, the blood pounding in her ears, and the adrenaline rushing through her body. "Shut up!" she yelled. "Believe it or not, I love him!"