Chapter Twenty-Three:
The Miasma was thick in the air the closer they got to the castle. Inuyasha covered his nose as he checked on his group.
"How much further? It's been too long already!" Inuyasha snarled.
Kohaku shook his head trying to clear the fog. "We're close. Once we breach the barrier the miasma isn't as strong."
The humans in the group breathed a sigh of relief. Sango's mask held back the worst of it, but even she was having a hard time staying conscious.
Pushing through with renewed hope the group headed on. Inuyasha's demon snarled as they grew closer. He could feel her fear and it clawed at his heart to know she was alone. He knew his brother was worried about his state of mind, but all he cared about was Kagome. If losing his mind to his demon helped keep her safe, he was fine with that. So much had happened already in such a short amount of time he was lucky he had made it this far.
"WAIT!" Kohaku yelled from atop Kirara.
The group stopped as the young demon slayer jumped down. "The barrier is right ahead, we need to break it before we can go any further."
Inuyasha smiled as he unleashed his tessaiga. "Just leave that to me!" His sword transformed and turned bright red. His red eyes flashed as he wielded his sword "WIND SCAR!" The wind shifted as his attack reached the barrier, there was a flash of purple, but the barrier didn't drop.
"Dammit! Why didn't it work?" Inuyasha was pissed! He never had this problem with Naraku's barriers before.
"Naraku has been in hiding making himself stronger, it would seem it affected his barrier as well. I might be able to get in by myself." Kohaku said.
"No! He'll kill you! We need to find another way!" Sango yelled as she jumped off the demon cat.
Sesshomaru walked around the barrier in thought as his brother's pack tried to come up with a plan. He looked over at the dead miko and figured it was worth a shot.
"Miko." Kikyo looked over at the inu lord. "Shoot an arrow at the barrier." Everyone got quiet as Kikyo just nodded.
Loading an arrow, she shot it towards the barrier. Once again the barrier shifted but did not come down.
"Hn. Brother, use tessaiga at the same time the miko fires an arrow. With the combined strength, it should come down." Sesshomaru nodded at his brother.
Inuyasha growled, but did as he was told. Lifting his sword high, he waited for Kikyo to shoot and unleashed his wind scar. The flash of red and pink combined together and slammed against the barrier. A moment later a bright light flashed as the barrier finally came down. The air shifted as the miasma lessoned and the once invisible castle was now in view.
"Well come on! What are we waiting for!" Inuyasha yelled as he resheathed his sword and headed towards the castle.
"Inuyasha wait! We need a plan!" Miroku yelled out but was met with deaf ears. Shaking his head he looked over at Sesshomaru as they followed.
'Baka' Four minds thought at once.
The air grew cold the closer they made it to their destination.
"Keep an eye out, he is near." Sesshomaru stated as they became alert.
As they walked through the dirt-covered grounds, everyone was on edge. The castle was massive and surrounded by dead trees and plants. No animals were around to make a sound and there was barely any light from the sky. But there was no one around. Surely there must be guards?
"Something doesn't feel right, Naraku normally has demons posted everywhere." Kohaku whispered as he pulled out his sickle.
"I smell em, they're around here somewhere." Inuyasha growled as he crouched down.
"UP THERE!" Sango yelled as he pointed to the sky. Coming out of the fog were hundreds of low-class demons headed straight for them.
"Stand back Sango! Wind Tunnel!" Miroku threw off his beads as his hand started to suck them in. He braced himself as his hand devoured countless demons. His face contorted in pain as he felt the samyosho starting to be sucked in as well.
"Miroku you idiot!" Inuyasha tackled his friend down and covered his hand. "Are you trying to die!"
Sango ran over to protect her friends as they continued to fight them off. "Inuyasha! Go get Kagome! We can handle this!" She yelled as she released her hiraikotsu killing twenty demons in one swipe.
Nodding his head he turned to his brother as they headed inside the castle. He was worried about his friends, but he knew they could handle themselves. This was their fight as well.
"Come brother, we need to stick together we will find her." Sesshomaru stated as they ran through the castle.
The stench of Naraku was heavy in the air, but Inuyasha could feel his mate near. He just wanted to get in there and get her out as soon as possible. He would send her off with his brother, then he would kill the bastard who dared to take what was his. If he died in this fight, he would die in peace knowing that he had not failed his mate again. He ran faster.
Coming down a corridor, they paused to see a Kagura on the floor holding her chest. Inuyasha wanted to ignore her, but she had tried to help his mate and he knew Kagome would be pissed if he did. Sesshomaru looked like he was thinking the same thing as they ran towards her.
"Kagura." Sesshomaru said as he stared down at her.
Kagura's breathing was labored as she looked up at the brothers with a grin. "Sesshomaru." She gasped out. "Go...there is no helping me now. He has her locked in a room down that hall." She lifted a shaky finger to the adjacent corridor. "Be quick, he is coming." She panted out before she lost consciousness.
Inuyasha looked to where she pointed and back to his brother. He felt bad for Kagura, but he needed to get to his mate. Looking at his brother's emotionless face, he rolled his eyes before lifting the demoness over his shoulder. He ignored his brother's questionable look as he headed towards his mate. He knew what he was thinking, but he was not getting soft dammit!
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Kagome's cries turned into soft mumbles. She was growing weak from blood loss and the cold. She prayed that she would pass out soon to escape the pain, but her hopes didn't seem to be coming true anytime soon. Looking around the room she shuddered. How many months had she prepared for this moment? The blood and sweat she spilled to prove she was worthy. She gave a humorless chuckle as she shook her head. Inuyasha was right, she was weak. Maybe if she died he could find a worthy mate. Kikyo could use the jewel and return the rest of her soul and they could be together. They loved each other once, they could do it again. She was only a danger to those around her. How many times had her friends been hurt to protect her? How many times had Inuyasha almost died? Would she be able to live with the guilt if something happened to them because of her? She looked over at Kouga and knew she couldn't. The guilt of his death alone made her wish for death.
"Is this how Inuyasha felt?" She whispered. "When Kikyo died...is that why he was ready to die with her." She laughed again. "I'm sorry love, I think I understand now." Scooting closer to the wolf demon Kagome moaned in pain. Her whole body was in pain as she laid down beside him. "I'm so sorry Kouga...if you never met me you would be alive right now." She cried as she reached out to his hand. "Ayame's gonna be so mad at you." Her smile quivered as she held his hand. He was still warm and she felt guilty for enjoying the comfort it brought her.
"Yea...what's new though..." Kagome jumped as the hand she was holding squeezed back. Looking up at his face, new tears filled her eyes as Kouga shot her a pain filled grin.
Kagome cried out as he opened his eyes. "Wwhat?! Kouga! Bbbut how? You're dead!" She rushed out as her tears steadily flowed.
"Come on Kagome, I'm hurt! You should know it would take more than that to kill me!" Kouga smiled as he closed his eyes. "I might need a minute to get up though." He laughed.
Kagome was quick to laugh with him, the relief she felt at that moment made her forget the pain she was in. He was alive! She still felt guilty he was in pain, but he was alive! She moved closer to him to make sure she wasn't hallucinating.
"Take all the time you need, I'll protect you till you get your strength up." Kagome was determined to keep him safe.
"Ha! I know you will, I heard what you said before I passed out." He snickered. "Who knew sweet little Kagome had a mouth like that?"
Kagome was surprised she could still blush even with the blood loss. "Why are you surprised? Between you and Inuyasha it was bound to happen sooner or later." She smiled as he laughed.
Slowly after a few minutes, Kouga started to sit up. He was still in pain, but he knew they didn't have time to sit around. Squeezing his eyes tight through the pain, he held his breath and lifted his upper body to sit against the wall. Once he was sitting he exhaled and concentrated on his breathing. With each inhale, he gagged at the smell of blood and Naraku that filled the room. As his mind started to clear, he realized the amount of blood he smelled didn't come from just him. Jerking his eyes open he stared down at his friend. His heart sank as he noticed her skin was ghost white and her lips were tinged blue. Looking her over her growled as he noticed the blood dripping down her center.
"Kagome! What happened!" He went to reach for her but barked out in pain as he did.
Kagome smiled. "I'm ok Kouga, it's just a scratch, I'll live." She tried to sound convincing, but the quiver in her voice didn't help at all.
"SHIT! We need to get you out of here!" Looking around for at least a way to cover her, he didn't even find a cloth on the futon. He knew his pelt was small and covered in blood, but it was better than nothing. "Kagome, can you help me get this off? You need to get warm." He knew he couldn't do it alone and his pride was wounded by the thought.
Kagome nodded as she slowly sat up. Trying not to show any pain she leaned over the wolf to pull off his vest. Leaning over him and feeling his warmth, she lost all strength and leaned into him. Kouga must have known how weak she was and just wrapped his arms around her. He would give her at this comfort at least. Feeling the cold touch his skin, he had to fight back the memories of when she died. He could not break down right now, she needed him.
"Hold on Kagome, if I know that mangy mate of yours he'll be here soon. Just relax for now." He rubbed his hands up and down her back trying to fight off the cold.
Kagome just nodded as her body became numb. Her vision was fading and she was just glad the pain was finally going away. They laid there for a while till his voice broke the silence.
"We need to go...were gonna help each other alright?" He felt her slight nod and knew he would have to carry her. There was no way in hell he was watching her die a second time.
With strength he didn't know he had he started to rise from the floor. Looking down in shock, he was surprised that Naraku hadn't taken his jewel shards. "What the fuck" he murmured. Not about to question his luck he started to make his way to the door. The pain in his chest increased with the added weight of Kagome, but he was a demon he could make it. He reached out for the door but stopped as he heard a thud. The smell of snake demon filled his nose and he readied himself for a fight. Taking a deep breath he grabbed the door and slid it open.
Looking down at the ground he was confused to see the demon missing its head. Looking back up, he stumbled as he was met with red eyes and silver hair.
"Dog-shit? What the hell happened to you?"