Nianniai watched as Kagome puked her guts out in the corner. She was pregnant, it was obvious. Her slightly distended stomach peeked out a bit from under her shirt. Then she found herself wondering about what it would be like to have a child of her own and raise it herself. Shaking the thoughts away, she left the miko in her cell.
Heading to the main room, the black demoness sat at a high backed chair. There were other demons in the room and they silenced themselves as she entered. She knew that they feared her powers and hence her.
" What do we know?" She asked, facing those assembled. These were the ones she trusted more because they wanted her to be ruler over the humans.
" The half demon Inuyasha is heading this way, milady. He leads a small army of about two to three hundred wolf youkai who refuse to come under your command, mistress," A crow demon spoke out loud, its voice squawking minutely. " His friends, the three humans, the fire cat and the fox child are with him as well. My spies have reported that the night before, he was enveloped in a type of miasma as he slept, and armour formed on him, along with an extra sword. Details are not clear, though it is said that it was a pure miasma from persons or youkai unknown."
" How are we handling this?" Nianniai demanded, not wanting the only chance for her sister to come back to be reduced to ashes after all the time she had worked on her plan of sweet revenge.
" All of our forces are currently gathered in the court yard, waiting for your word to attack. We have decided to let them within sight of the castle before attacking them. We have a few spies following and monitoring their progress continually. They are making good progress and should be here in about two nights, reaching the wall at midnight on the second day, it is estimated."
" Indeed. Continue monitoring them and keep giving me updates as they happen," Nianniai said and left to have some private time. " Get me our dear friend from her cell and bring her to my chambers."
Kagome sat in the dark on the cold stone floor, hands closing around a sharp rock that she had pried off from the wall a while ago. Grasping the dull end tightly, she waited patiently as the wooden door opened, revealing a female demon backlit from the light. Her red hair floated around her serenely, matching her red eyes and dress.
" Come," The demoness said, extending an arm to Kagome.
" What do you want?" Kagome asked, stalling for time.
" That I do not know, but you are to come with me. Milady wishes to see you in her chambers," The demoness in red said, taking a couple of steps toward Kagome as she spoke.
At that, Kagome launched herself at the demoness, the rock held steady in front of her and pointed at the vulnerable throat of the red demoness, who had stepped within striking range of Kagome's attack. The sharp end drew blood as it punctured the artery. Screaming, the demoness staggered back. Slowly, her screams subsided as she drowned in her own blood.
As she tried to make a run for it, a dark coloured crow demon, which had been hiding by the open cell door, grabbed her arms tightly with its feet. It held her there until another demon in human form came down to the cell to get her and bring her up to Nianniai's chamber.
Nianniai stood by her window, gazing out on the assembled demons that waited to go out and kill the approaching miniature army. When the door opened, she didn't turn around, even when she heard a grunt as a foot collided solidly with a shin.
" Leave her," The black demoness said. As soon as the door slammed shut, Nianniai turned around to face Kagome as the miko rubbed her arms.
" What do you want with me?" The raven-haired miko asked, repeating the same question she had asked the red-haired female demon.
" You love that hanyou and he loves you very much. Did you know that he is on his way here to rescue you with an army of two wolf tribes and your friends? As long as I have you, he won't attack me if he thinks that I'll hurt you," Nianniai whispered harshly, grabbing one of Kagome's arms and twisting it cruelly behind her back. " You, my princess, are my bargaining chip."
Letting the miko go, Nianniai called for a guard and a leg chain for Kagome. As soon as the chain had arrived, the guard put it on Kagome's legs and immediately attached it to a solid iron ring cemented to the ground. Leaving, the guard slapped Kagome's butt before exiting the room and closing the door.
Nianniai rolled her eyes at the demon guard's antics before taking advantage of having no observers in the same room with her, and started her torturing of Kagome. Slapping the miko, the demoness smirked at Kagome's cry of pain as she clasped her hand to her cheek.
The next two days were painful ones for Kagome, but ones of great amusement for Nianniai.
Inuyasha slowed down. The path in front of him was dangerously steep. Turning around, he spoke to his army.
" Listen, the path here is steep like hell, so watch yourselves," The hanyou said before turning back to the path. He slowly started down, and felt Shippou grab onto his haori to keep himself from falling off. Glancing up, he saw Kirara take to the air, carrying Sango, Miroku and Kohaku across the path, which led to a large gorge. At least, if anything serious happened, they could help the others cross.
Midway down the path, a snake demon popped up from behind a couple of very large boulders. It was larger than large. It struck out at Inuyasha. Dodging the blow, he stuffed Shippou beside a rock. Drawing Tetsusaiga, the hanyou called upon the power of the windscar to him and hurled it at the youkai. The attack hit the snake's tail, causing an angered youkai to lash out wildly. The large rocks at the edge of the gorge trembled, finally falling on the youkai and killing it.
Inuyasha grabbed little Shippou from beside the rock and ran for it, the avalanche not that far away. A boulder crashed beside the hanyou, making a startled Shippou climb over Inuyasha's eyes, preventing him from seeing anything. Then something smacked into the small of his back, making him wince in pain.
Shippou was thrown free as Inuyasha went down on one knee. He watched, horrified as a mid-sized rock bounced off the hanyou's head. He saw the hanyou fall unconscious as he scrambled to the half demon. As he reached Inuyasha, he squeezed his eyes shut in fear just as another boulder fell to them.
After the dust had settled, everyone stared at the place where Inuyasha and Shippou were last seen. It was a pile of rubble. Kirara landed by the pile, letting the three humans off her before they started digging. The rocks and rubble shifted, the dust rising in thick clouds as they dug, some of the smaller rocks tumbling off the mound and landing the humans' feet.
Ayame hurried down the path, going to help the humans unbury the hanyou. She knew that it was only Inuyasha that could defeat the new demoness, Nianniai. After all, he had defied her powers once; he could do it again, right?
Inuyasha woke up to a harsh throbbing in his head. His back hurt like hell, but he could live with it, considering he got out from under the rubble some time soon. He felt Shippou's tail tickling his nose. The kitsune was unresponsive to his hacking calls. The dust in his lungs became so thick that he couldn't breath very well. As he slipped back into the darkness of unconsciousness, he heard his name being called. He tried to answer who ever it was, but nothing would respond to his brain's commands.
Sango found Inuyasha first, the taijiya working furiously to free him from the ensnaring rubble as she called for help. With all of them working on freeing Inuyasha and Shippou, they got them out in no time. Bringing the unconscious hanyou and fox demon to the top of the path, they threw water on their faces to revive them.
Shippou sputtered as he inhaled some of the water that had been thrown on him. He cracked his eyes open. Coughing, he sat up and looked around. He saw all of his friends and a still unconscious Inuyasha beside him. He wasn't breathing at all.
" Papa? Wake up, Inuyasha, please," Shippou whispered. But Inuyasha didn't stir at his pleading words. He broke down, tears spilling down his cheeks as he realized that Inuyasha might be dead.
Kohaku watched as the fox demon cried over the hanyou's still form. He felt pity for the young demon as he cried for his new adoptive parent. Then there was a bright purplish-blue light, the same kind as the night before. That caused all the commotion that followed.
Inuyasha inhaled and coughed weakly. He could see the light and feel its warmth as it enveloped him. He could feel Shippou's tears as they fell on him. Raising a clawed hand, he dried the tears off the fox demon's face.
Shippou stared at Inuyasha as the hanyou as his hand wiped the tears from his face. Smiling through the tears, the fox youkai hugged his new father. His rust coloured hair pressed against the hanyou as he cried in relief.
Groaning, Inuyasha tried to get up on his own, but his back cried out in pain. Grimacing, he let himself lay back down. He felt hands helping him stand up and saw Sango and Miroku helping him stand up on his feet. Kirara let the hanyou lean on her as he caught his breath. He knew Shippou was on his shoulder, but he couldn't feel anything at the moment.
" Kami, you can dance with the devil and make him back down!" Koga said as he approached and inspected the hanyou. Whispering low enough so only Inuyasha could hear, he said. " You are in no shape to continue. Let me lead them." His hand snaked its way carefully and quickly to the new sword Inuyasha had received from Midoriko. He knew that the Tetsusaiga was protected from youkai like him, so he avoided it.
Inuyasha grabbed the wolf demon's hand and held it rock steady away from the sword. Baring his teeth in a warning, the hanyou threw Koga to the ground and drew Midoriko's sword. The blade had a blue tint in the worked metal. An undecipherable message ran down the blade and onto the hilt. The golden guard curved elegantly around the hanyou's hand as he pointed the weapon at Koga's throat. Every one fell silent as they watched the spectacle in front of them.
" Can you read what this says? If you can, you are allowed to lead them. If you can't back down!" Inuyasha hissed angrily.
Looking at the sword blade and hilt, the wolf prince tried to make out what the writing said, but could make no heads or tails out of it.
" I… I can't," Koga said.
" Midoriko told me that it meant 'the power of good is the victor, and that power is from an inu hanyou'," Inuyasha stated as he sheathed the sword Midoriko gave him. " I'm an inu hanyou, I'm fighting for good, and hence Midoriko gave it to me, not you, you wimpy wolf."
Inuyasha looked around for a moment before he spoke again. This time his voice lowered in pain and sadness. " I was chosen for a suicide run against a black demoness, like my parents told me when I was very young. They knew my fate before I ever did."
Kagome lifted her head in pain as she regarded Nianniai. The demoness had sat by the window of her chambers all evening on a stool. Today was the second day that the miko had been brought up from her cell for torture, but had been mostly questioned instead. Surprisingly, not much had been done to her, except for a few bruises and cuts on her face, but she knew that they wanted her to look as if she hadn't been through hell and back again so she wouldn't be unwanted.
" Tonight is the night when your hanyou is supposed to come," Nianniai said, turning away from her watch at the window. It was the first time she had spoken that evening. Her voice was calm for one who would face a vengeful hanyou in a little while. It was strange. She felt confident that she would win against the hanyou when the battle commenced.
" I hope he kills you slowly," Kagome said as she wiped blood from her lip, brown eyes burning in hatred.
" Oh, so you wish it that much," Nianniai said. " But let me tell you something that you might not know about. There is a tale of a silver-haired hanyou fighting against a black demoness with extraordinary powers of sight. Turns out, he dies in the long run after a long battle."
" No," Kagome whispered, horrified that maybe the hanyou Nianniai was talking about was Inuyasha.
" Yes, I suspect that it is your hanyou as well," Nianniai said as she turned back to the window. Midnight was approaching fast. " He is coming and soon he will be here to get you back and die."
At her words, a war cry sounded from outside the wall. Wolves howled, a fire cat screeched and humans yelled. Glancing out the window, Nianniai saw what she needed to know.
Inuyasha was leading the attack. He held two swords: one she had seen when she had first encountered him, the Tetsusaiga, the other a new one. It was a beautiful weapon and she would take it when the hanyou was killed. She knew not to touch the fang from his father, seeing as it was protected against full demons like her from taking it and wielding the power.
" Guard!" Nianniai shouted. As soon as the demon had entered, she turned to it. " Bring her."
Complying with the order, the demon guard brought Kagome down to the main room and attached the chain to another floor ring. The guard left to join the battle as Nianniai drew a sword and stood guard in front of Kagome.
Meanwhile, the sounds of the battle grew louder and louder as each second passed with agonizing slowness.
A wall guard watched from his tower, sounding the alarm as he fended off a couple of wolves as they entered his tower. Nianniai would kill him if he let any of the intruders in to attempt their rescue attempt. He saw a silver-haired demon come towards his tower. This was not a demon. What was he thinking? It was the hanyou, Inuyasha. The guard noticed the two swords in his hands. He had heard about the Tetsusaiga; its powers were legendary. And the new sword he held was a beauty. Too bad that its beauty held deadly consequences. Fumbling with his own sword, he felt, actually felt, the new sword as it cut him in two.
Inuyasha waited as Kirara landed at the tower, letting the taijiya, the monk and the young man off her before she went back to the battle. Shippou still clung to his shoulder; he hadn't left the post since the avalanche of stones and the encounter with the snake demon. He was scared of the battle, but at least he knew that if he stayed on Inuyasha's shoulder, he was safe from any demon's attempt to get him.
Sango, Miroku and Kohaku followed Inuyasha as he fought his way through an endless mass of demons to reach the castle. At least with two swords, many more of the enemy were slain, leaving that bit little for the wolves to take care of. Sango's hiraikotsu thundered through demon flesh as if it was paper. Miroku's staff wrecked havoc on them and Kohaku's chained sickle cut down any demons that tried to get them by blindsiding them.
The guard who had brought Kagome down to the main room with Nianniai saw Inuyasha fighting his way to the castle. He hid by a niche in the wall, waiting until Inuyasha neared and passed so he could surprise him.
Inuyasha hurried past the niche. His nose was clogged with the scent of demons and couldn't detect the demon guard waiting in the niche for him to pass. He saw the sword and tried to get out of its way, but was a little too slow. The blade found the flesh of his leg. Whipping Midoriko's sword at the demon, he waved the others onward to find Kagome.
Shippou started when the demon guard slashed at Inuyasha. He leapt off and onto Miroku's shoulder with a couple of leaps. The monk never said anything as he continued on his way to find Kagome and bring her home.
Inuyasha kept his sword held level in front of him as he faced the demon guard. His leg felt like lead at the moment, but he couldn't take the chance to look at it, even for a second. It would cost him his life if he did. Though the blood slowly congealed on his hakama, the hanyou knew that he had to hurry up. This battle could not go on until tomorrow night; that was the night of the new moon, the only night in a month when he turned human. With a sudden lunge, the half demon slashed back at the offender, Midoriko's blade biting deeply into the demon guard's chest, the Tetsusaiga swinging in from the other side. The fang drew blood, bone and flesh as it bit into the demon's head, ending its suffering.
Other demons ran in, trying to subdue the half-inu youkai as he tried to get inside the castle. Wolves rushed in, their fangs biting deep into demon flesh, claws furrowing gashes in the hides of the demons. Inuyasha helped them destroy them, the swords swinging into torsos, limbs and heads alike. The wolves followed Inuyasha as he made his way to the castle. He finally reached it, meeting with his friends, who were waiting by the door that led to the main room. Shoving the door open, the hanyou led the small group of wolves and his friends. Darkness greeted them as they made their way deeper in the room.
" Welcome, the hanyou, Inuyasha," A female voice said. " Have you come to your doom?"
The cones flared with bright fire, revealing Nianniai holding a sword, and Kagome behind her, her legs bound with chain that was attached to the ground.
Kagome listened to the sounds of battle. Roars and cries of the injured and dying reach her ears, but she tried to block out the sounds that brought back painful memories, including the one of her father dying in front of her. They were reminders of past battles where many innocent people had died because of demons that were after the shards of the Shikon no Tama. She knew that they had wanted the power of the jewel for their very own, but at the time she wondered why it had to be her. Why she had to be the one who was the reincarnation of Kikyo. Why she had the power of the Shikon no Tama inside her and why she had to shatter it. Ever since her fall down the well, she had wondered these questions, wanting to know the answer, but now she finally knew them. It was the love that she would know when she had met Inuyasha. It wouldn't have been the same if she had loved Hojo, married him and have his kids.
Inuyasha, son of Inutaisho and Izayoi. His name brought the image of his face, the feel of his silky silver-white hair. She could almost feel his lips on hers; hear the way he talked to her when they shared the same bed. Closing her eyes, she could see his face, the only thing that kept her from losing her mind. And now she was going to have a child of her own. She would go back when she felt that it was almost time to give birth. Not that she hated it here to give birth, she wanted to make sure that she would live using the implications of modern medicine from her time.
Opening her eyes, one thought ran through her mind as she remembered the fact that Nianniai wanted her body for Kaguya. ' If I get out of here, I'll get Kaede to help me learn more about my powers so I can protect myself.'
The door slammed open, revealing a backlit inu hanyou, her friend and wolves, both in human form and in normal wolf shape. She wanted to cry out to them to tell them that she was here, but the look Nianniai gave her paralyzed her. Unable to make a single move or noise, Kagome could only watch as they made their way into the dark room, unaware of their presence.
" Welcome, the hanyou, Inuyasha," Nianniai said. " Have you come to your doom?"
The cones flared to life. The demoness watched as their facial expressions revealed their surprise as they took in the sight. She smiled as the wolves rushed to her. Her gaze swept over them, stopping them in their tracks. She held her power as Inuyasha approached her, ignoring the cries from his friends to stay away from her, that she might attack him right then and there.
" You want me to come to my doom?" The hanyou stated as he stopped roughly twenty to thirty feet away, His gaze slid to Kagome, who was still paralyzed, but able to understand what was being said. " But if you want me to die, you'll have to earn my death." Drawing Midoriko's sword, he went to Kagome, roughly shouldering Nianniai aside. He swung the sword with all of his might, severing the chain that held his love to her spot. He carried her to Miroku and Sango, where they immediately knelt beside her and started to treat the cuts on her face.
Shippou gasped when he saw Kagome. The miko was hurt, but at least she was alive and her child wasn't harmed. The cuts on her face were a bit ghastly, but they would heal with some time. He went to her, patting her hair gently, like she did to him whenever he had a nightmare. He talked to her as he stroked her hair.
" Kagome, wake up, please," The kitsune whispered, pleading with his surrogate mother as she lay in front of him, unable to move or acknowledge that she heard him. He sat there, staring at her, tears welling up in his eyes.
Kagome lay in what seemed to be a fair approximation of hell. She could hear Shippou pleading with her to wake up, but she couldn't even say his name. She wanted so much to reach out and hold the kitsune, but with Nianniai's spell still in effect, she couldn't even lift an eyelid.
' Kagome,' a voice called to her in her mind. It was familiar.
' Midoriko?' Kagome replied in kind by thought.
' Get up. A priestess with your powers should be able to move, even with a paralyzing spell upon you. Inuyasha did the same thing when Nianniai came and tried to capture him, ending with his half brother's death. Get up,' Midoriko told her via thought, almost shouting at her.
' How? She is so strong, her youki so strong. It is hard to move,' Kagome said.
' You must. Inuyasha will fight to his death if you do not help him. Remember how he saved you when your father was killed? He had survived, and that means that you had moved, broken the spell. That was the only way he could save you five hundred years later. You had went through the well those five centuries ago, and he knew that you needed to be saved.' Midoriko said. ' And your child, who will protect her if Inuyasha is killed and your body is given to Kaguya?'
' My child? Yes, I should at least try, but what will I do if I succeed? I don't know how to control my powers yet. I need help,' Kagome said.
' I will help you, but first you must get up and face the demoness,' Midoriko said, fading as she spoke.
Shippou stared in amazement as Kagome's eyes turned to him. He saw her get up, ever so slowly get up, but it was enough. She was fighting the spell that Nianniai cast on her. It was a struggle, but she was doing her best to win it.
" Kagome!" Shippou screeched, unable to stop himself from running into her arms as she tried to get up. All eyes turned to him, widening as they saw Kagome getting up.
" That can't be. First the hanyou is able to withstand my power, and now a mere human," Nianniai told herself, but it was happening, the proof was in front of her.
" I am not a mere human, Nianniai," Kagome said as she got to her knees. She was sweating from the exhaustion and strain that fighting the spell caused her. " I am a miko, the reincarnation of not Kikyo, but Midoriko, but my powers are much stronger than hers were ever. I know that Midoriko will help me and she will help Inuyasha." Looking at the hanyou, she shot him a startling smile. " I will help him the way he helped me when a man tried to kill me after he had murdered my father. Thank you for showing me the memory that would help me, bitch."
Sango gasped. To have her father murdered in front of her when she was just a girl was as similar to her life. But to have the hanyou save her, and then meet him again, would she have remembered? No, shock would erase any memory connected to it.
Shippou jumped up on Kagome's shoulder, He knew how it was to lose his family. His father was the last to go, killed by the Thunder brothers. When he met Kagome and Inuyasha, he felt as if his prayers had been answered. But what had turned from an ordinary friendship had turned to the fact that Kagome and Inuyasha were now his parents.
Miroku thought back to the time when his mother and father had died. The curse that Naraku had placed on his family was at its worst, the black hole eventually sucking up the monk's father. It was a sad time, learning how to use the wind tunnel and protecting others from it. He always wanted some attention, but never kept his promises, afraid that the girls would become pregnant and bear a child who had a black hole in their hand. It would have been his nightmare-come true.
Inuyasha smiled at Kagome's words. Yes, he had lost his family as well when he was very young, but being a hanyou, his youkai heritage prevented him from mourning the loss forever. When his mother had died, he felt the loss overcome him and he had spent a few days going without food, until when the kids a bit older than him came to beat him up, he had snapped. Going berserk, he reaped them, leaving only minor damage. After that no one bothered him. They were afraid of him. They had always thought that he was like his mother, gentle and weak, but when Inuyasha had cracked a few limbs, they steered clear of the hanyou, giving a bit of food if he asked for any, which was very rare. Slowly, they learned that mourning the loss of the final family member had done this to him, and tried to become friends. By that time, he had left, not to be seen by them ever again.
Kagome walked over to Inuyasha and planted a kiss on his lips. She looked up into those golden eyes of his.
" Are you ready for this?" Inuyasha asked, sheathing the Tetsusaiga, holding only Midoriko's sword.
" Hai," Kagome replied.
Midoriko appeared before them. She gazed at Kagome and at Inuyasha. They made a great couple.
" Kagome, concentrate. Think of you weapon and tendrils of your power wrapping around it," The dead warrior said.
" I don't have my arrows," Kagome said.
" It doesn't matter. Concentrate. When you feel your power rise, shape it with your mind. It will conform to your desire. Use it wisely," Midoriko said. " Don't worry if you have trouble grasping it, it will come to you. You are very powerful; it may take some energy, but you will over come it."
As Kagome concentrated, Midoriko disappeared. Slowly, she felt her powers fighting against her tentative control, but she concentrated harder, thinking of her arrows. When she opened her eyes, there was a surprise.
There in her hands, was her arrows and her bow, glowing pink, marking it as her own pure power. Raising the bow, armed with an arrow, she smirked and turned back to Inuyasha.
" Lets do it," She whispered to him, and fired.
Youki—magic
Youkai—full demon
Taijiya—demon exterminator
Hanyou—half demon
Hai—yes
Miko—priestess
Inu—dog
Kitsune—fox