"Where did Inuyasha and Kagome go?" Shippo curiously asked.
Kneeling upon the ground, Link allowed his fingers to brush across the earthy soil before inspecting the tiny grains as well as the tracks that led off into separate directions before the trio. If he hadn't been an expert in tracking, then he would have presumably either followed the wrong tracks or gotten himself lost entirely, but Link knew enough. "Judging by the footprints…" He began as he raised himself to stand beside the fairy and child before pointing ahead of him past the trees that curved inward. "Inuyasha ran in that direction, and Kagome ran that way," He explained as he pointed to the path that led deeper into the forest, into an area he never crossed much. However, there were several other footprints leading off into these woods as well, and he wasn't sure if they belonged to Kotake and her sister or some other…
Serena looked at the footprints in the soil, making out a heel and toe marks before looking at the other that showed a strange pattern which was likely Kagome's shoes. "Let me get this straight…Inuyasha is supposedly the son of some noble dog general and he can't even sniff in the right direction?" Not to mention he didn't seem to notice the footprints in the ground either. "Doesn't he pay attention instead of blinding running into things?"
Link didn't answer, but he had to agree with the fairy, silently however as he pondered quietly.
On the other hand, the little boy couldn't help but nod his head vigorously. "Yeah, Inuyasha makes it a habit all the time, but normally his nose is never wrong though." Shippo turned his bright green eyes to Link. "So which direction do we take?"
Considering Inuyasha was more than capable of handling himself when it came to matters as such, Link decided to follow after the trail that belonged to the young girl; it would be better in his opinion, only because he knew that sometimes, Kagome did manage to get herself into danger. With her lack of demonic agility and strength that only Inuyasha and her two friends had, he knew for certain that her spiritual powers and limited supply of arrows would not be enough to escape the dangers that dwelled in these woods. "We'll follow Kagome."
"Oooh are we now?" Serena teased, and Shippo couldn't help but stare at Link as he walked well ahead of the two before smiling slightly. For a moment, as she followed behind the two, she couldn't help but think about the young priestess whom they were now tracking instead of the half demon. "I bet you she got herself in trouble again…"
Shippo blinked and looked back at the fairy in mid-walk. "Why do you think that?"
It was so obvious. "For starters, she's young and very attractive, and a girl no less," The little fairy went on to explain. "Tell me, has she ever been kidnapped before all this?"
Shippo nodded. Where would he begin? There was that time when Manten, the ugly brother of the Thunder Brothers had kidnapped her in an effort to create a hair potion, but he had failed when Inuyasha came to the rescue. Then there was that time when Mukotsu kidnapped her and tried to marry her, but Sesshomaru stepped in just in time. What other times were there? Oh there was also the time Miroku had kidnapped her but he only wanted to take the Jewel from her, and then there was the time Kouga snatched her away and wanted to marry her but Inuyasha got jealous and pushed Kagome into returning home for some time. Honestly, there were just too many instances where the young priestess had gotten herself abducted, and Shippo couldn't count them all.
"Yeah, she kind of does…" Hopefully that wasn't the case now. Maybe she was safe and was just waiting for them beyond the dozens of trees ahead?
"You see my point?" Serena asked. "She stands out with her looks, especially with her futuristic clothing too. I bet you she has many suitors, like that Hojo guy and then there's Jo-Ho…"
Shippo had to agree with that; after all she was a pretty girl. Even Link seemed rather fond of her, and then there was Inuyasha, in a more possessive kind of way more than anything. Then there was Kouga who was bound and loyal to her like an excited puppy. Then there was Hojo of his Feudal Era that had a habit of peeking at Kagome not to mention Sango while bathing a few times on their journey when he happened to accidentally stumble upon their camp. Even a couple demons had their sights on her, though many of the attractions between her and them were usually one-sided.
Serena continued on. "Don't get me wrong. She's pretty fierce in battle but she does make it a habit of pulling a disappearing act on us, and since the missing Deku Princess is somewhere in this forest, with her captor or captors no doubt, I'm sure Kagome is definitely not safe, especially alone."
A sudden pause from Link caused young Shippo and Serena to stare past him, and from their line of vision, they saw a small red handkerchief caught on a tree branch just within view.
"This is Kagome's," Link and Shippo exclaimed in unison, and it was then that the little fairy sighed.
Looking around the perimeter of the area they stood in, they noticed that the priestess's footprints lead deeper into the forest, and worried, Link sped in the direction of the small imprints in the ground, but when he did, he and his three companions found their path blocked by familiar plant predators.
Acting fast, the child quickly withdrew his firecracker from his shirt and tossed it at carnivorous creature. "Take this!" He successfully managed to hit his target, smiling from ear to ear when he saw the Deku Baba burst into flames and disintegrate before his eyes. That was so easy!
Looking back to Link, who had also managed to deliver a few strikes to the acidic beasts, attempting to snap at him and Serena and easily breaking the stems before slashing at their bulbous heads to effectively eliminate them, Shippo couldn't but think back to his and Link's adventure a few weeks back, and now they were fighting alongside each other again.
"Shippo watch out!" Serena warned as she fluttered to a higher distance to escape the wrath of the beasts below.
He acted fast and leapt out of harm's way when he creature snapped at him, its drool spilling from its mouth disgustingly before it straightened up and snapped again. "I got this!" He said to Link who had been willing to take it out for the child, but seeing the spark in his emerald eyes, Link backed off, understanding completely. "Fox Fire!"
The blue flames engulfed his form and immediately sprung from his outstretched hands and in only a matter of seconds, the creature was defeated, and Shippo turned to Link with open excitement. "Did you see that?! I did it!"
The young swordsman smiled, nodding before leading them back down the trail in search of their missing female friend, wary of whatever else might pop out in front of them.
As they continued down different paths, a loud voice could suddenly be heard, and curious, the three went to investigate. They pushed through the tall shrubbery and wildlife before hearing a recognizable voice ahead, and it could only belong to one person.
"God damn it!" Cursed a seething half demon.
Shippo scurried ahead and looked upon his friend, Inuyasha worriedly. "What happened to you?" The fox asked, but Inuyasha only shot him a glare, as if it weren't obvious enough.
"What does it look like Shippo?" He asked incredulously, pointing at the small mechanical device, its steel jaws clamped tightly around his bleeding ankle as he struggled to free himself without causing further damage. "Damn! What the hell is this thing?!" It hurt like hell, and he felt like the teeth were sinking well past his muscles and to the bone.
Link didn't waste a second as he hurried to the half demon's side before inspecting the situation closely. It was a trap, normally used to capture animals during hunting season, and it seemed Inuyasha had fell victim to the trap. "Don't struggle," He warned him before taking hold of both sides of the teeth that clamped around his ankle before pulling them open in hopes of releasing Inuyasha's foot.
"That looks painful…" Serena commented as she observed her companion pull apart the strange device that was chained to the ground. "I wonder who is hunting so far out here. Not the witches, right?" For some reason, she couldn't imagine sorcerers using hunting traps when they could use their magical spells and what not.
After managing to free Inuyasha, Link threw the trap off to the side before searching through his satchel for his Red Potion he had stocked up on last time they were in Clock Town. When he retrieved the bottle, he handed it to the half demon, who took it questionably. "The witches?" He turned to the fairy. Somehow it didn't seem likely.
"I bet whoever kidnapped the Princess put these here!" Shippo explained, and at this, his friends silently agreed; it did make sense.
"Ooh Ah!"
Unexpectedly, a group of small monkeys jumped into view. They howled and hooted, surrounding them inquisitively, and it came as such a surprise that the four were a little glad to see their return, for the most part that was.
Little fairy Serena fluttered around her companion excitedly. "Link, what are they saying?"
Stepping over to the small cluster of cream colored fur and pink faces and their large beady eyes staring at them expectantly, Link listened to their gibberish language.
"Princess ahead! Come quickly!" One of the monkeys exclaimed excitedly.
"Help!" Another replied, waving its hands for them to follow before it followed after its retreating friends into the forest.
While Inuyasha was hurriedly drinking the potion, which for the most part tasted disgusting, he couldn't help but choke when Link and Shippo sped after the fleeing monkeys. "Hey! Wait!"
OOO
Woodfall, an entire bog in a large crater at the summit of the mountain that towered over the Swamp Lands; it stood before them like a still painting. Surrounding this area were clusters of many trees, jungles of sorts, but the majority they saw beneath the sky was all swamp. Water spewed from the mountain, near the pass they crossed to reach access to the area, and the origins of the water spewing from the mountain was a mystery to them, but they were more focused on locating anything suspicious.
Within this bog of filthy water were tall trees void of life, stumps, followed by many lily pads floating atop the surface of the water. Elongated and withered logs covered most of the portion of the swamp with moss covering its surface and if one looked closely, they'd discover small pink flowers blooming in certain areas.
Besides the fact that they'd see much of the land during their flight, Sango and Miroku, however couldn't help but turn their attention to the large structure floating in the center of Woodfall. From what they could perceive, it appeared to represent some form of a temple, ancient in its appearance when they discovered that trees were growing through it, their trunks wrapping along the bottom and yet not fully submerged by the water. If that didn't demonstrate its primitive age, then it was the vines that seemed to decorate its surface.
"Looks pretty old if you ask me," Sango replied as Kirara circled the area.
So far nothing looked out of place, at least not that she was aware of. Some distance away from the temple, they saw a large platform where there appeared to be a central podium of some sort with a image of a Deku Scrub painted onto its surface, and they could only presume that this temple somehow connected to its people.
"Maybe we should have a look and see. If anything, this would surely be a place one might hideout in," Miroku explained, and at this, Sango nudged Kirara toward the floating temple ahead.
Upon landing, the two inspected every inch of the outside. So far nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Atop the structure they came upon another tree, this one's length that seemed higher and thicker than most in the area, but still lifeless and without any greenery.
Kirara mewed as she sniffed a rather large flower in which the petals were oranges and browns, and as the small kitten searched around, she realized there were many of the same flowers resting on the surface of this temple.
Miroku paused to run his hand over the thick, grayish stone walls before turning back to Sango who was inspecting the entry way inside. "Doesn't seem like this place has been touched in years."
"Miroku, look at this," Sango ushered him over, and when he stood beside her, she pointed to the entry way, covered in thick webs. From each corner, the silken threads spanned from each corner of the entrance, and it traveled down the entire length. Near the center of this massive web rested a rather large black spider.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, a small Deku Nut hit the monk in the back, followed by another at his shoulder, and Miroku and Sango turned their attention above where large Mad Scrubs sat perched on their flowers, their orange eyes glaring at the intruders distrustfully.
"It seems they don't take too kindly to trespassers…" Miroku replied rubbing his shoulder at the small sting he felt from the impact of the nut.
Since there was no point in investigating further, Sango and Miroku boarded the large feline before escaping the wrath of the Mad Scrubs below. Not far from the temple or the podium, they caught sight of a cave nestled inside the mountain to their left, and since it was the last place they hadn't investigated, they decided to fly in its direction, preparing themselves in case something could happen.
To their relief nothing happened, and deciding the walk the rest of the way, they saw torches lining the walls, their flames still flickering with life, and as they walked along the marble flooring, they realized something was amiss.
There was no melody playing in the cavern.
Eventually they stood before the steps that led to a familiar spring, but instead of welcoming and beautiful lights that normally enraptured them in its beauty, there was silence and just water. No whirlpool appeared before them. No enchantress appeared and neither did any fairies…
Everything was still, and Miroku knew why. During his and Inuyasha's last visit with the great Enchantress back in Clock Town, after their journey to Ikana Valley, the Sorcerous had informed them that her sisters had all succumbed to the inevitable, and she had mentioned that Sakon was perhaps in collaboration with another that plotted to destroy all of Termina.
Miroku thought back on their final conversation with the Great Fairy…
Flashback
"Do not fret. I can sense that the pendant still resides in the palace just south of here, good monk."
That was certainly good news. "I see. Then at first light we shall depart, and then we shall return—"
"Now hold up! Since you know so much, then tell me where that goddamn thief is!" Inuyasha interrupted angrily, fisting his hands and upsetting Miroku who sweat dropped beside him.
Regrettably, she could not answer that. "I cannot sense him at the moment, Inuyasha…there are only times in which I can see him and there are times in which he seems to vanish."
"Damn it!" Nothing was going right. Nothing! He had to avenge Kagome and take back the jewel before anything could happen. Most of all, he wanted to kill that sneaking thief.
"Calm yourself Inuyasha," Replied the monk. "Growing agitated will not solve anything." His attention shifted from the half demon to the enchantress. "As I was saying, I will place a barrier around your fountain and we will leave at first light."
The Great Fairy nodded. "Thank you, and stay safe. I will do what I can here. Please return to my spring as soon as you can, within the next few days."
End Flashback
The slayer watched as her companion offered a small prayer to the once living Great Fairy of this spring. "She said to return within three days…"
He nodded. "And it's been two days already," Miroku replied. "By tomorrow we need to head back, hopefully with the pendant…" There was no telling what could happen by tomorrow, but they were hoping they wouldn't be too late. After all, their morning hadn't started off too well when they found Romani Ranch nearly in shambles from the massive quake that had erupted.
Sango frowned. "But that still leaves us one pendant short…"
That was true. Perhaps if they were lucky, maybe they'd run into the thief, Sakon, who stole it. Somehow he had a sneaking suspicion he was somewhere in the Swamp watching them. "Let's meet back with the others. Maybe they've had more luck than we did," He explained, and with that, he and Sango left the cave.
OOO
Finally caught up with the fleeing monkeys, Link, Serena and Shippo finally emerged through the foliage where a small clearing stood. Ahead of them, situated beneath the base of a tree sat a small iron cage, holding its small captive, and the sight was so startling and yet relieving that little fairy Serena and Shippo sprang from the bushes and toward the monkeys circling the cage.
However, as they raced ahead to inspect the well-being of her Majesty, Link remained rooted to his spot behind a large shrubbery, his eyes searching the perimeter skeptically. Why would someone kidnap the Princess and then suddenly leave her there without a care? Well it seemed obvious enough; it was a trap, but then again, as he thought about the monkeys surrounding it, he couldn't help but ponder further. Maybe this entire scenario was just a distraction…for something bigger?
"Are you feeling alright in there Princess?" Serena asked curiously.
Inside the small cage, the Princess, decorated in her many flowery petals nodded her head slowly, and grasped the bars a she stared at her supposed rescuers. "Please can you help me?"
"Of course! That's why we came!" Shippo exclaimed before pulling on the bars, but his efforts were futile.
The Princess canted her head thoughtfully. "Did my father send you? I've never seen your kind around here before."
Before Shippo could explain further, the little fairy piped in enthusiastically. "That's right!" She wasn't about to mention how her father was a complete grouch, but instead helped Shippo search for something to unlock the cage. "So…did you happen to get a good look at the person who did this to you?" She asked in mid search.
She nodded. "I did…and they're still around here I'm sure…"
Serena paused and turned to the Deku questionably. "Wait…there's more than one? How many?" And speaking of which, why was she left out here in the middle of the forest?
"There were two," She explained. "They might return soon. Please hurry!"
Because he couldn't find anything lying around on the ground, thin and sharp enough to unlock the cage, Shippo sighed and began searching through his shirt. "I can't find anything," He replied despondently. If only he had the key.
Glancing back in the direction Inuyasha was last seen, Link took one final look around before deciding to join the others. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, except for the cage lying innocently by itself, but Link didn't see any threat or traps besides that.
As he stepped over the shrubbery, he heard something snap behind him, and instinctively he unsheathed his sword and turned to deliver the attack, but there was no one behind him. He narrowed his eyes and with his ears, he listened.
Silence.
"Link! A little help please!" Serena hollered suddenly before turning back to help Shippo, unconcerned about her companion's sudden change in behavior.
Deciding it might have been his imagination, he slowly turned away, but the moment he did a shadow fell over him, but before he could turn or utter a single word, something slammed into his upper back, effectively knocking the breath out of him. With a clatter of his sword thrown a distance away, he fell to the ground. Attempting to stand up and fight back against the one responsible, he felt a calloused hand grasp the back of his neck tightly, before pulling him back roughly and immediately the person smothered a cloth against his nose and mouth. The strong odor emanating from the material caused him to lose focus before he collapsed entirely into a suffocating darkness.
"Link! What's taking—" The fairy paused when she turned back to look at her friend, but he was nowhere in sight. "Huh?" One minute he was there and the next he was gone. "Link? Hey, where did you go?" She called out, alerting Shippo and the Princess of his absence.