Ch. 15 – Separated

-Shift.-

-What?- Kurama starts to regain consciousness from the fall.

-Shift now Suichi.- Youko takes over and he shifts to his demon form. He opens his eyes slightly and immediately unleashes a dozen man-eating plants with thorn-filled vines. Several demons are killed immediately. Youko opens his eyes, gets up and looks around, but it is pitch dark. He pulls some seeds out of his hair and throws them on the ground, within seconds lighted plants sprout, brightening the room. Ravenous plants are still chomping away; the other members of the team have been left unharmed. "…Where's Kagome?" The miko is nowhere to be found. "Head count!"

"Yusuke you fell on me! That hurt!"

"Shut up and take it like a man Kuwabara!"

"Hn. Shita, Daihoushi, Raihoushi and Kagome are missing." Hiei appears at Youko's side. "They left us with the two idiots."

"I heard that you jerk!" Kuwabara runs over and tries to punch Hiei. Hiei side steps, Kuwabara misses, and falls over. "I'll get you!" He tries again and fails.

Ha. You're wasting your time."

"We'll see about that when you're on the floor crying your eyes out!"

"Unlikely. Baka."

"Kuwabara knock it off. We have other things to worry about right now!" Yusuke grabs the back of his shirt, stopping him from trying to punch Hiei again.

"Work on finding a way out of here. We have to find the others as soon as possible or we will not survive very long in this castle. Shita and Daihoushi were awake before we fell, so look for signs of a fight. Raihoushi was apparently knocked unconscious as a bird and Kagome was still unconscious from before we entered this place. They are vulnerable so let's move quickly." The guys spread out and search the dirt walls for a hidden door." Those demons had to get down here somehow." Youko states.

(Meanwhile)

"She's still standing!" A demon exclaims.

"Get the bats then!" Another yells.

"Do…your worse…I will…not lose." Shita slowly stands up, blood dripping down the side of her head.

(Elsewhere)

What's in that bag? It's starting to move." A demon asks.

"Leave it alone." Another answers.

"It's moving!"

"Get away from it."

"Why would Boss give us a bag and tell us to watch it?"

"Because it's probably dangerous."

"Doesn't look dangerous to me."

"What is wrong with you!?" The demon reaches over and smacks the one near the bag.

"I want to know exactly what we're watching!"

"I will not be held responsible if you get us in trouble!"

"He'll never know!" The demon opens the bag and reaches his hand inside. Something snaps, his face turns red and fills with pain. He flings the bag across the room and pulls his hand back with a small, vicious creature with it's teeth sunk into the demon's flesh still attached. "AAA!" He yells out in pain.

"GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!"

"I got him!" The other demon tries to pry the threatening creature off of his buddy. But the animal slips out of his finger and attacks his face, biting down on the demon's nose. "OW! You stupid little weasel! I'll kill you!" The demon flails around trying to rip Raihoushi off his face.

(In a Different Room)

"How shall I kill him?" A demon asks.

"Why are you asking me?" Another responds.

"Cause the boss talked to you, not me."

"He just said to kill him. He never said how."

"So we get to choose?"

"Apparently."

"Which torture device do you think we should use?"

"We could throw him in with the lions…"

"That's fun for the lions, not for us."

"The spike pit?"

"Nah…something else."

"Why aren't you coming up with any ideas?"

"How about this then!" The demon reaches over and presses a button on the wall. Two beds of spikes come out of the walls, crushing the demon in the torture cell between them.

(In a higher room on the castle)

"Explain to me why you need this human. What importance could this woman possibly be?" A demon with medium length blonde hair with two bangs coated in red asks.

"This is no ordinary human."

"A miko." A demon with long red hair and blue marks on his face states as he walks over to the other demons who are watching the unconscious girl. "She could purify all three of us if her power grows."

"Precisely." A demon with long black hair and dark eyes speaks up. "This is why I wanted her." An evil smile spreads across his face. "Just think what she'd be like if she was tainted with darkness."

(Back in the Ditch)

"Well I'm sick of waiting." Hiei takes off, using his speed to scale the wall.

"There's no way I'm letting you get up there before me!" Kuwabara uses his spirit sword like a sling shot and flings himself up into the air.

"I guess that leaves just us Youko." Yusuke walks over to the wall and starts climbing. "You coming?"

"I have a better idea." Youko pulls a seed out of his hair and throws it on the ground. A giant lily pad grows ad Youko steps onto it. A stem grows underneath it and begins growing up towards the ceiling. Youko grabs hold of Yusuke's shirt and pulls him onto the giant lily pad as it passes Yusuke's climbing spot on the wall.

"I found the door out of here." Hiei states as they reach the top of the ditch and step off the lily pad.

"Where's Kuwabara?" Yusuke asks. Hiei points to the wall near the door where Kuwabara's head is stuck in the dirt. Yusuke runs over and pulls his friend out of the wall.

"Let's get moving." Youko suggests. "The others might be in serious danger and need our help." The group starts walking down the hallway. After several minutes of not hearing anything or encountering any demons, out of nowhere a demon comes crashing through the wall in front of them. The demon lands in a pile of broken bones. The team freezes as they hear something coming toward them on the other side of the wall. In minutes they get into position and are prepared for battle. A being, cloaked in darkness with glowing red eyes, steps through the hole in the wall. It looks over at them slowly, a sly smile spreading across its face.

"Did I scare you?"