Note: Inuyasha isn't mine and I don't intend for him to be mine. He's not my type. :P
CLOSE QUARTERS"Sesshoumaru, we really shouldn't be meeting like this." Kyoubouna's claws reached for the demon lord's face but the taiyoukai backed away and Kyoubouna's hands only felt air between his fingers.
"Your intellect has been failing you, Kyoubouna." Sesshoumaru stiffened his hand, his digits intending to pierce Kyoubouna's chest. "Refrain from making bad jokes." Damn, the demon lord thought as Kyoubouna fell backward. I almost had him!
The two youkai circled each other while slashing at one another with their razor sharp claws. Their katana's were useless in close quarter combat. To take their fight out in the wide-open space of the courtyard would mean one of them has a weakness in certain battle conditions. It would be unacceptable. So they continue to fight it out in the constricting space of the dungeons.
"Huh! Bad jokes! A corpse has more life than you, Sesshoumaru!" His laugh was cut short with a pained cry when Sesshoumaru's claws ripped off a large portion of his back. Kyoubouna slammed sideways against the rough stones, the pain was excruciating.
"Pay attention or you won't have any hide left." Sesshoumaru lifted his bloodstained hands and flicked the dripping blood at Kyoubouna's direction. It spattered the latter's face and clothes with it.
"When I get the Shikon no Tama you won't be this smug, dog!" Kyoubouna slapped away the blood from his face and grinned wolfishly. He wanted to see Sesshoumaru's reaction at his revelation.
"And how will you accomplish such a task?" The taiyoukai's voice ice cold, his face a blank. The demon lord was correct; the trio was planning on using Kagome. But until today he had no idea what for. He had thought the three wanted to control the power of the mirror thru the miko.
"The priestess, of course!" The demon smirked. "We need her body. A black miko will extract the jewel from her flesh and then, when we get it, dog, you will run away with your tail between your legs." The demon of violence laughed hard.
Sesshoumaru reached inside the sleeve of his haori and drew out the ivory comb between his fore and middle finger. He let Kyoubouna take a good look at the object and saw the surprise at the demon's widening eyes.
"The miko is now out of your reach, mutt. I know you were poisoning her mind and body." Sesshoumaru's eyes smoldered with anger. His fingers glowed as he added a lethal dose of his own poison on the comb.
With a sharp flick of Sesshoumaru's wrist the poisoned comb was embedded deep in Kyoubouna's wound in his back. Upon contact the poison began to eat away at the flesh at an alarming rate. Kyobouna's scream of agony was like music to Sesshoumaru's ears. The taiyoukai only moved from his position when nothing was left but sizzling lumps of flesh from the craven demon of violence.
~O~O~O~
"Look at what we have here!" The drawl was followed by a maliciously gleeful hoot.
Kagome and Shippo swung around at the voice. The miko's eyes narrowed at the two. Muchitsujo and Kyouhou were blocking their way. The miko and kitsune had mistakenly gotten themselves lost into a dead end.
"We meet again, priestess. You look great!" Kyouhou has a sword resting on his shoulder while Muchitsujo was slapping his on the flat of his palms. Kagome thought they looked like low rate thugs out to mug hapless victims on darkened alleyways.
"Thanks." Kagome answered flippantly and held back a shudder when Kyouhou's eyes began to rake her form up and down. Shippo began to growl and clench his fingers at the gray-eyed demon.
"A new boyfriend, miko? You work fast." Kyouhou smiled as he looked at the tall and handsome kitsune beside the miko. "Don't worry, boy, I don't mind sharing."
Shippo's growl got louder and the kit was now visibly shaking. Kagome held back the boy with a hand on his arm.
"How dare you say that to her!" Shippo wanted to remove the lascivious look on the dark haired demon's face with his claws. Only Kagome's hand was keeping the kit from lashing out at the two.
Kagome rested a fist against her hip. "By the way, you wouldn't be Muchitsujo, would you?" The miko turned to the green haired demon.
"What if I am?" Muchitsujo grinned. "Would you like to make my acquaintance?" The two brothers looked at each other and laughed like hyenas as if sharing a big joke.
"Yeah, I would!" Kagome smiled. The two demons were bemused at her answer. They slapped hands together at her idiotic remarks.
Kagome slowly moved towards Muchitsujo, making sure her hips were swaying a bit like a ramp model on a catwalk. The black leather pants and bustier over white silk shirt molded her figure like a glove. She smiled when she saw two sets of eyes drawn at that part of her anatomy.
Yeah, that's right boys, take a good look….
She extended her hand toward the green haired demon and the youkai was still chuckling at her as he took her hand when she quickly turned and flipped him over her shoulders in a judo throw. He flew and landed hard on the opposite wall thereby unblocking the way. Kagome dropped and swept her leg behind Kyouhou's feet. She had swiveled out of his reach and in a fighting stance before he fell on his back.
"Yeah!" Shippo shouted and jerked his arms down. "Great work, mom!" The kitsune had never seen his mother fight like that. Hell, THAT and among other things about her since this morning. This is becoming a one heck of a day, Shippo thought.
The kitsune turned just in time to step aside when the dark haired demon attacked with a bolt of flame. He rolled away, skidded to a halt and got into an attack crouch. He bared his fangs at the grinning demon.
~O~O~O~
Kagome made a running jump to plant both her feet at Muchitsujo's chest. The momentum took them way beyond the corridor. She managed to keep her feet connected to the demon's chest as he fell so her three-inch heels made holes on his torso as she used him as a jump off bed. She flipped and landed on her feet with a thud on the hardwood floor.
Muchitsujo wanted so much to break the neck of that bitch! With all his might he threw the dagger hidden in his sleeve as he stood. The winded miko staggered to the wall as she clutched her bleeding right shoulder. Before the miko could recover and remove the dagger Muchitsujo was squeezing her neck with both hands. His fingers squeezing tighter and tighter… she began to see spots…the miko let go of her shoulder. She grabbed his hands….
"Die, you bitch!" Muchitsujo's breath was hot on the miko's face. "We'll pry the jewel from your carcass!" The demon leaned to apply more pressure. The miko was struggling to get some air, her face becoming a splotchy pink and red. It won't be long now…
Kagome forced herself to expand her neck muscles to get a little bit of air…just a…little bit…air…
~O~O~O~
"'Mom?'" the gray-eyed demon spat the word. "What is this name you call her?" Kyouhou threw a bolt of yellow flame at the kitsune but Shippo countered with blue fox fire. The flames canceled each other.
"It means 'mother', idiot." Shippo maintained his eye contact with the demon as they traded flames.
"You are her son?" Kyouhou barked in disbelief. "You lie!"
"I don't care what you think, baka!" Shippo pointed challengingly at Kyouhou as they circle each other. "Don't you dare come near my mother!"
"You can't honestly take me on, boy." Kyouhou released bolt after bolt of flame at the fox demon laughing at the sight of the kitsune trying to evade his flames.
"You haven't seen what I can do yet!" When he barely reached Kagome's knees, his Foxfire was pathetically useless; this time, thanks to his training, he can really do damage.
~O~O~O~
"You are not welcome here." The girl stood ramrod straight.
The sound of laughter rang in the empty corridor. "Don't you dare point that blade in my direction, ningen!" The youkai pointed his blade at the human girl.
"I will point this anywhere I want to, Hoyo." Rin held her battleaxe straight with its pointed tip glinting at the direction of the disgraced former captain and right hand of Sesshoumaru. "What in seven hells are you doing here?"
"What gall you have, ningen. You think you're now above me?" Hoyo shouted. "I will get back what was taken from me and more!" He slashed his sword left and right but did not attack.
"Yeah…yeah! Are we gonna stand here all day or are you gonna make a move?" Rin titled her head to the side.
"You are nothing!" Hoyo's face twisted in fury. "When all this is over all of you are going to bow before me!"
"Then we shall see in a few moments who will be 'nothing', shan't we?" Rin smirked, pointedly ignoring his hystrionics.
The youkai snarled. Rin growled in response. As if on cue, human and youkai charged at each other.
~O~O~O~
"Are you okay out there, Kagome?" Shippo didn't turn his head while he and Kyouhou were in a katana wrestling match. The kitsune and the demon were almost an even match. They have barely managed to singe each other so now they have crossed swords to see who can do more damage.
"Scared for your 'mom', kitsune?" Kyouhou goaded.
"Hmp! You wish!" Shippo saw the gray-eyed demon slid his eyes to where Kagome and Muchitsujo were last seen. As Shippo followed his movement, the boy belatedly recognized the ploy. With a shout Kyouhou lifted his feet and kicked the kitsune thus breaking the impasse. And before the startled fox demon could recover his footing the dark haired demon lowered his sword in a death slash.
~O~O~O~
Rin's hands slammed on the floor to break her fall, her battleaxe landing with a clang a few meters away from her. She heard Hoyo's thundering footsteps as she flipped away from his sword; the weapon slashing at the air. Rin flipped a few more times to get into a good distance away from the big demon but several meters away was the wall. She would be in big trouble if she got pinned. No can do.
She reached for the 'ornaments' in her hair and threw the iron stakes at Hoyo's legs. The demon staggered at the pain for a few seconds but it was all Rin needed to land, run the distance to the wall, scale it and flip over with the demon hot on her back. When she was airborne her chain snagged around Hoyo's neck, as the girl touched the floor behind Hoyo her weight dragged the taller demon down on his knees. Rin sprang up to use her weight on his back to topple the demon forward, her hands not letting go of the chain's choke hold. She can hear him gagging.
With a shout and a quick jerk of her hand Hoyo's neck broke with a crunching sound as he fell flat on his face.
Rin's ragged breath was loud in the aftermath. She was still lying on the back of the big demon. She can't hear his heartbeat.
She was startled when the shadow of a hand suddenly appeared above her face. She grabbed the striped hand as he helped her up. His eyes held hers for a long time, pride evident in his gaze. Rin's breath caught in her chest in wonderment when Sesshoumaru smiled.
~}O{~