Knight of Blaze

by Yoruko Rhapsodos

Kagome Higurashi was reincarnated as Kagome Strider, Dave Strider's twin and only daughter of the Strider family. Like her brother, she plays Sburb with John, Rose, and Jade. How will the adventure go, and how will the trolls react to a human that isn't surprised by the fact that they're aliens? The strilonde family just gets crazier and crazier. pale Kagome/Sollux, Kagome/Kurloz

4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I think I keep forgetting to add this but no, I still don't own anything readers recognize from elsewhere.

Chapter Four

When Kagome was almost at Dave's planet suddenly there was a flash, and Jade was finally through. This was obvious in the way that a fourth planet suddenly appeared. Kagome decided that she may as well check on Jade before tracking down John, though she would save the 'knight assisting the damsel' cliche to Dave. Kagome was sure that she would be more useful keeping John on track. He may have been one of her first genuine friends in this life despite having yet to meet in real life but the goof was ridiculously absent minded sometimes. Besides, she was sure there would be plenty of time to hang out with Jade later, it wasn't like they were about to get tickets for the same destination through different airlines or something similar that was more applicable to the game. Checking on how much mischief her brother was getting into and catching up with him came first.

twinArmageddon [TA] began trolling electricSunset [ES]

TA: Hey, KG. What are you doiing?

ES: I'm going to check in with Dave before I see if John's on LOWAS

TA: ... As iin youre goiing pretty 2oon? You miight want to see iif iits not two late two find Ro2e on her planet iin2tead.

ES: Do you mean John isn't there anymore

TA: ... You know what ju2t keep your brother on track or have a party or whatever youre up two. Iif you deciide two be an iidiiot and iignore my adviice ju2t try to keep iit together.

twinArmegeddon has ceased trolling electricSunset

ES: Sollux wait, are you keeping something from me? Sollux! Answer me please

ES: Damn iit. I mean damn it

Shaking her head at how weird that was Kagome continued her journey to find her twin brother. If he was lucky he had an idea where Bro was. Before long she found him just standing around, wearing a suit. He just seemed to be standing around, but the consorts were saying something about money so she figured that it might actually be the local stock exchange.

"Nice clothes, Dave. Didn't take you for the formal type but the look suits you." Kagome complimented.

Kagome swore Dave nearly jumped ten feet. "Shit, Kagome! When did you get he- Whoa those are some pretty sweet godtier jammies."

Kagome giggled. "Thanks. So have you been up to anything besides overthrowing the economy?"

Dave shrugged. "Just time loop shenanigans, I guess a Knight of Time's work is never done."

Kagome perked up. "Wait you're a knight too? That's pretty cool. I wonder if it's a twin thing?"

"What are you even supposed to be anyway like a Knight of Flame?" Dave asked.

"Close, I'm the Knight of Blaze." Kagome corrected, "Do you have your turntables so we can have a jam after we eat if you're up for it?"

"Hell yeah that would be sweet." Dave agreed, "What kind of food are we talking here because I'm starving and these nakodiles don't have anything but this weird stuff I don't want to touch."

Kagome shook her head, "You really are hopeless, aren't you?"

Half an hour later found the twins just sitting around after having composed an impromptu duet that they felt turned out pretty nicely. The whole time they'd been trading notes on their planets and the trolls that had decided to make their progress in the game their business.

"You know, I saw Jade entering on my way here. Do you think she'll need help?" Kagome asked.

"Nah, she's pretty tough after growing up alone on an island with nothing but that devil dog of hers for company." Dave assured, "I gotta take over some things for John, though. From the time loop I found out that he's not able to or supposed to help after he makes sure she's safe in the medium. And if she needs it I guess I can keep an eye on her."

Kagome raised an eyebrow. "What, are you going to try to charm her? I thought you had a thing for John."

"What no we're just bros!" Dave protested, "Don't even joke about that, he's made it clear he doesn't swing that way anyway."

Kagome hugged her twin reassuringly. "Aw, don't fret. We're only thirteen; I bet his hormones haven't even kicked in. Besides, there's going to be plenty of time to get John to explore or at least think about stuff like that later."

Dave raised an eyebrow. "We're teenagers now, shouldn't he at least have a clue?"

"I'm saying that he could be a late bloomer, or else living in the suburbs probably got him too used to certain stereotypes and expectations." Kagome elaborated, "Bro's anime might not be shy about alternative sexuality and genders but non hetero sexuality is still something of a taboo in Japan."

"That's what I still don't get, why do you know so much about Japan and stuff like religion?" Dave asked.

Kagome sighed, and lifted the left side of her shirt slightly. "You know this birth mark?"

"What that starburst that Bro said looks like a scar from a bite to get under your skin? What about it?" Dave asked.

Kagome fixed her shirt.

"The thing is... it's not like Bro was wrong. In my last life I was dragged into a well by a centipede demon. I wound up five hundred years in the past. After some shenanigans she found me by a gigantic tree that would come to have huge significance by the time the shrine I grew up on was built. She bit my side, and a magical jewel fell out of where the resulting wound was and onto the ground..." Kagome started, proceeding to tell as brief a version of her old life's story as possible.

"Shit, that's just like an anime. It almost makes this shit look sane and understandable." Dave commented, "No offense but while the ending sucks I'm kind of glad that things happened the way they did, since it means I get you as the coolest sister ever. Did you keep your cool powers?"

Kagome shrugged. "If spirit energy exists in this reality I have normal amounts, at least for now. All I can say is I am not letting myself get mistaken for a priestess or whatever the English word for miko is."

Dave frowned. "Yeah that bullshit you went through because of that undead chick was so uncool it could make this place look like Antarctica. There'd better not be some human or troll version of that Inutasha dude or he's in for the strife of a lifetime."

Kagome hugged him. "At least I have you now, right? That lifetime is nothing but dreamlike memories, the drama with Inuyasha doesn't bother me. Besides the 'date your incarnation's lover' trope is lame. I'm worth more than a replacement."

"Damn straight." Dave agreed, "Anyway this is cool but now I should get back to the apartment so I can be Jade's second server player."

Kagome looked at him from the corner of his eye. "Don't forget to pester me if you find something I need to help with, okay?"

"Sure thing, Sis." With a fist bump he was off.

The moment Dave was out of sight, Kagome was trolled by Gamzee.

terminallyCapricious [TC] began trolling electricSunset [ES]

TC: HEY, SIS. I'VE GOT A MOTHERFUCKING QUESTION FOR YOU.

TC: youre blasphemous brother won't treat the insult me made to my faith seriously like it's more of a motherfucking joke than the one he thinks he pulled.

TC: HOW DO I MAKE A MOTHERFUCKER REPENT?

ES: Whoa, hold on Gamzee. How exactly did Dave insult your faith

TC: he sent me a video of heretical motherfuckers that dare to pretend to be juggalos citing a slam poem making fun of the miracles I up and believed in.

TC: THAT SHIT WON'T MOTHERFUCKING FLY, NOT LIKE I UP AND WOULD'VE LET IT WHEN I WAS AN OBLIVIOUS MOTHERFUCKER SPACING OUT ON SOPOR SLIME.

ES: Wait, is sopor slime some kind of drug or medicine? Gamzee are you saying you've been going through withdrawal

ES: How long were you using this slime stuff

TC: nobody up and told me it was motherfucking poison when i was a pupa so i've been eating that motherfucking poison as long as i can remember.

TC: AS FOR YOUR QUESTION I HAVE NO MOTHERFUCKING IDEA WHAT A DRUG IS, BUT SOPOR SLIME CLOUDED MY THINKPAN SOMETHING FIERCE AND MADE ME SPACEY AS FUCK.

ES: That would be a yes, I think. Okay, Gamzee, listen to me. You need to find a way to keep calm. The more I talk to trolls the more it sounds like rage effects trolls like it does youkai. Are you willing to take advice

TC: why the fuck not, it's not like it can hurt to hear a motherfucker out.

ES: If you don't have something to distract you from your anger or calm yourself down, you need to turn to you friends. Not somebody that would rile you up now that you don't have something dampening your reactions to negative things

TC: YOU MEAN A MOIRAIL? THAT WOULD BE BETTER THAN UP AND LISTENING TO THESE MOTHERFUCKING VOICES SCREAMING IN MY THINKPAN.

TC: except i don't have one to up and have a feelings jam with

ES: Okay, I'm sure that Karkat told me about that... The pale quadrant, right? As in the one that deals with balance and pacification. Do you have a pale crush, or someone you just haven't become official with yet

TC: THAT WOULD BE KARBRO. THE SHOUTY BROTHER'S MY BEST MOTHERFUCKING FRIEND.

TC: only the motherfucker won't admit that i don't annoy him as much as he motherfucking likes to pretend. his denial has never stopped him from hearing a brother out even when he claimed what i said was stupid, though.

ES: Okay, this is good. Try to tell him you need help without freaking him out

ES: As for the Dave problem you'll have to try to make him realize his mistake when you're sure you won't blow up in the process

TC: I THINK I'LL UP AND GIVE IT A MOTHERFUCKING SHOT. THANKS, KAGSIS.

ES: No problem, Gamzee. I'm leaving LOHAC now; I'll talk to you later

electricSunset has ceased pestering terminallyCapricious

Kagome leapt into the air so she could fly to the portals above Dave's planet to make the trip quicker. On her way there she pestered Jade to check how her entry into the medium went, but she just said something about her sprite and that she was having trouble with an imp before ending the conversation. Though disappointing and confusing, Kagome knew that for most the game would be quite an adjustment. She just hoped that John would be able to hang out or need help. Maybe he would be willing to explore LOLAC with her if he wasn't busy. Kagome needed to check on Shipposprite anyway. Not knowing which portal she needed, Kagome picked the fifth one since John was the first one through. Instead, she wound up back on LOLAC. Shrugging, Kagome just headed back to the apartment. At the very least she could finish building up Dave's copy of the apartment building.

"Kagome you're back!" Shipposprite cheered, immediately latching onto her for a hug.

"Heh, yeah. I meant to go to LOWAS to see if I could find John but I figured that since I'm here I would get back to building up Dave's version of the apartment." Kagome said.

"I see... but shouldn't you have done that already?" Shippo asked.

Kagome shrugged. "I figured it could probably take being bigger, I'm not sure I even made it high enough anyway."

"I think you have a point, but not for the reason you think if anyone ever even told you a reason." Shippo confirmed, "Plus, here... This can call on me, at your level you won't need to come back her to talk to me anymore."

"Hm... Honestly I think I'd rather just let you go wherever you'd like." Kagome replied, "Anyway before you head off could you point out which portal here leads to John's planet?"

"Third portal from the bottom." Shippo said, "Since I'm not stuck here I'm off! I want to explore."

After ten minutes of building up Dave's version of the apartment building and ensuring that Dave would have little choice about cleaning up his room Kagome was off. Bro wasn't at the apartment or within sight so she had little reason to stick around. When Kagome got to LOWAS, there wasn't anyone immediately in sight. She picked a random direction... and the moment she came across something more noteworthy than LOWAS' strange postal system and glowing mushrooms, she regretted coming to LOWAS instead of just pestering John to figuring out where he was... Or maybe that she hadn't come earlier, maybe she could have done something if she had.

Bro was on the ground, his own katana run through his heart and pinning him to the ground. Almost half of his shirt was stained varying shades of red from his blood, and even more was pooled under him. His hat, shades and Lil' Cal were even missing. Kagome tried to pull his katana out of his corpse to try and make the sight just the slightest bit less wrong, but it barely gave and she sunk to the ground in a heap when she let go because in her grief she just didn't have the strength to regain her balance. She grabbed his arm, hugging it to her chest briefly before holding his hand to her cheek with both of her hands as she lost the struggle to hold back her tears.

Finally she lost the battle and let a sob loose. "Why Bro...? This isn't fair!"

Kagome didn't know how long she sat there crying, or why she didn't try anything else so she could lay Bro to rest properly. But she was brought out of her stupor far sooner than she would've left it on her own by the familiar ding of Pesterchum.

twinArmageddon [TA] began trolling electricSunset [ES]

TA: KG why are you ju2t siittiing there with a corp2e liike a wriiggler?

TA: Waiit wa2n't thii2 guy liike a human lu2u2 or 2omethiing? 2hiit 2orry, Iim 2uch an a22hole. Are you goiing to be okay?

ES: I... don't know. Maybe eventually

ES: I mean in my last life I got over my dad's death enough to joke about his goofier side after a couple of years. But I had my mom and grandpa there for me, and I had to be strong for my little brother

ES: This is different. Our mom died when Dave and I were babies and our dad either became a workaholic or abandoned us or something. We didn't have any other family so even though at his age he should've been just getting on his own an enjoying independence as a young adult Bro stepped up and raised us all on his

ES: He knew I was different, I know he did. I've lost count of how many times he hinted at it. But I never felt like it was a time where I could tell him about the whole reincarnation thing and have him believe me, and now I've lost my chance

TA: 2hiit, IIm 2o 2orry. II lo2t Biiclop2dad but he wa2 ba2iically a mon2ter II alway2 had two 2edate 2o he wouldn't go on a rampage. II mii22 hiim but not haviing two look after hiim wa2 liike a weiight off of my 2houlder2.

ES: Sollux, do you know what happened? You trolls use an instant messenger with a feature that lets you watch us humans right

TA: We can only watch hiim when he2 around one of you player2 but from what liittle II do know iit wa2 the archagent, Jack Noiir.

ES: Where. Is. He. WHERE IS THAT BASTARD NOW

TA: Oh 2hiit KG plea2e don't lo2e your cool II dont want two 2ee any heroiic or ju2t death2 twoday.

ES: II'm sorry, Sollux but it's two late for that. I thought I was calming down but knowing that the reason we originally weren't supposed to be able to salvage our session is the reason I lost my big brother really burns me up. If I find him I will show this Jack character exactly what happens when you play with fire

ES: Besides, there's nothing 'just' or 'heroic' about getting killed while trying to get revenge

electricSunset has ceased pestering twinArmageddon

TA: Kagome waiit- oh 2hiit. Fucking hell, II alway2 2ay the wrong thiing iin tiime2 liike thii2.

Kagome took flight and left LOWAS as fast as she could. How would she find him? How would Dave react... Suddenly, she stoped. Dave, her twin brother. She still had him, only... he didn't know. She tried to pester him so she could find him to relay the news in person, but he didn't answer. Then she tried Rose again.

electricSunset [ES] began pestering tentacleTherapist [TT]

ES: Rose, do you know where the archagent that stole the black queen's ring is

ES: Rose? Rose are you there

TT: I apologize for the delay, Kagome. I have been otherwise preoccupied. It also seems that I owe you an apology on a more important matter.

TT: You and John, as it turns out, were right to worry about the darker and more foolhardy path I had been following.

ES: What happened? You're okay, right

TT: In a manner of speaking. Using my newly awakening powers as a Seer of Light I've been using objects akin to the stereotype for psychics.

TT: With one such object, I discovered that my mother and John's dad have both been murdered by the very fiend you asked about. In a reckless move, I fell too deeply into the darker magic I've been perusing and attempted to fight him.

ES: Did you get hurt? Do I need to come find you to help you or for comfort

TT: It's a bit of a moot point, really. I lost, and he killed me. But it doesn't matter because John revived me through my dream self. I really cannot allow you to make the same mistake as me, so forgive me if I deprive you of the knowledge you seek for your own protection

ES: Oh Rose, all of that is just awful. Talk about one hell of a way to douse the flames of my temper. :-( You didn't answer me, though- do you need me to come find you? Or at least to help you with whatever the current plan is

TT: I appreciate the offers, but for the moment I prefer my solitude and John and Dave have my part of our plans covered. But I do have an idea that could be worth persuing if you feel up to the task.

ES: Well, unless Jade asks for my help I don't have anything to do besides going back to my quest on LOLAC. So I may as well give it a shot; if it's a challenge I may be able to burn up this excess rage constructively

TT: Very well, then. Go through your seventh gate for an audience with your denizen. I do not believe the others are aware, but if you face your denizen either prematurely or in a manner defiant of the story arc of your planet, he or she will already be awake. You will be given a choice.

TT: As rumor has it, when you pay attention to the offered alternative to a fight the result of accepting what your denizen has to offer can be quite essential.

ES: That actually sounds quite promising, Rose. I may not be able to make that kuso teme pay for what he did to Bro but killing his murderer was never going to make the world any less wrong

ES: I've seen what revenge does to people, and human or otherwise it never fixes or changes anything positively. So if I can't deal out justice or ensure he won't hurt anyone else I'll make sure I can protect those within my reach

TT: Oh dear, he even got the eldest Strider sibling? We five seem to have been dealt such a high amount of misfortune it is strange, and almost suspicious.

ES: What, do you mean you think there's some diabolical plot at work? Like some evil genius treating the realm of this game and the people playing it like a chess board or either a crony or group of cronies acting out the will of some psychopath

ES: Because I've already had far more than my fill of multiple variations of both types in my last life

TT: Hm, if there is such a culprit or group of culprits they might think of themselves that way but given the way the game works and how things have progressed for our session thus far I would imagine that the truth of the matter would fall quite short.

ES: Yeah, I've had that happen a lot too

TT: Well regardless, we both have work to get done. Good luck, Kagome. Do message me again if you feel you require assistance dealing with your grief.

ES: Thank you, Rose. Please try to keep the risks to a minimum

electricSunset has ceased pestering tentacleTherapist

Kagome sighed, and then took a deep breath to try to reign in her emotions. There was still a heat within her veins urging her to find this archagent character, or to find Dave to either force him to hold her until she was ready to deal with the world the way she normally would or to check that he would be safe from the higher level enemies. And she wanted to send him pesters every fifteen or twenty minutes until he finally answered and she could break the news about Bro in person. But her talk with Rose had helped her cool down enough to think things through and control herself. She wanted to take down the reason their session was worse off than it had already been. Maybe once she was done or instead of that she could try to get a denizen or the horrorterrors Derse dreamers dealt with instead of prophetic clouds to direct her to what or who ever thought that the best possible timeline was one where two different sessions were supposed to be doomed to failure, death, or both in a variation of the worst possible scenario. In fact the only reason Kagome wasn't going to do the latter was personal experience that it could still get a whole lot worse.

Still, Kagome didn't know what the future held and the game had already deprived all five of them of their guardians. She wasn't about to take any chances. That was why she was doing exactly as Rose had suggested. So she returned to LOLAC as fast as she could. Within minutes, Kagome had flown through the portal that Rose had informed her was the quickest path to her denizen. She should have been nervous after the way her consorts talked about this mysterious figure. Especially knowing that in videogame terms it was one step below the 'final boss', or barring that equal in strength to the final boss at the weakest. But the closer she came the more her blood heated up all over again. She was too filled with the determination to protect to falter now.

Kagome had expected something like the hyenas' lair in Lion King or Mount Doom from Lord of the Rings when she approached the entrance and found the lair was cavern like. Or at least like a cavern-type dungeon from MMOs and RPGs. But instead the deeper she got the more it became reminiscient of the Mines of Moria with a theme somewhere between fire and lightning. The coloring actually reminded her of prospit, only there was almost as much orange and red as there were yellow. Her mind flashing to Dave and Bro, she decided that no matter what whoever had designed this place intended it was in reality Strider themed.

When Kagome finally reached the inner sanctum where her denizen dwelled, it was a yellow colored version of a typical cavern with a glowing pool in the back that she was guessing was filled with lava or something along the lines of plasma. But Kagome didn't pay much attention to it since she was focused on the creature she was sure was her denizen. It was so huge the only thing bigger she'd ever come across was the corpse of Inu no Taisho, Inuyasha's and Sesshomaru's father- which Kagome wasn't convinced hadn't been because they were in a separate dimension of sorts- and vaguely serpentine. Kagome couldn't say she was fond of snakes, but a reptilian denizen was way better than a worm-like one or something reminiscent of Mistress Cenipede so she considered herself lucky.

The sound it made was somewhere between a growl and a roar and yet somehow, it made just as much sense to Kagome as the strange script she'd somehow been able to make sense of. "I am Kaminari, and I am the one ultimately in charge of the fate of this planet and your personal quest. Do you realize what coming to this place early means?"

Kagome clenched her fists as a physical reminder to keep her cool, she probably needed the trademark Strider Poker Face more than ever. "I do, and that is why I'm here."

"Very well, then so be it. You have a choice to make." Kaminari boomed, "We can fight now, and if you are the victor you will level up a great deal and obtain powerful weapons. Or you can undergo a trial and should you succeed you will be granted a more flexible form of the ability that allowed you to so easily control you aspect."

Kagome frowned slightly. "Are you saying... I'll be a miko again?"

Kagome wasn't certain she wanted that. In her last life she had struggled so hard to be Kikyou's equal only for her effort to be in vain despite her improved aim and success in accessing her spirit energy. The last thing she wanted was to be pigeon-holed like that again.

"That decision would be yours." Kaminari denied, "By my reckoning mikos of true power are women who have trained for a young age both as Shinto priestesses and to use spirit energy in a very specific manner. I offer only to unlock your latent spirit energy; you may use it as you wish."

Behind her yellow shades Kagome's eyes gleamed. That meant that on top of being able to train to actively wield her spirit energy how she wanted she could train in the more passive uses of spirit energy. She could figure out how to actively use the more sensory aspect, how do disrupt energy or break curses, maybe even heal people. But more importantly she could be much more prepared for a fight, watching anime with Bro and playing videogames had taught Kagome just how diverse the options for how to fight using things like spirit energy could be.

She raised her already tilted head further to look Kaminari right in the eyes. "Then... I'll take this trial. What do I have to do?"

"The Witch of Space has already set plans in motion to perform the Scratch." Kaminari revealed, "Dealing with that is a tricky business. The key lies in ruins and memories. I shall send you on your way."

With a great roar and a wave of energy Kagome was engulfed in a flash of light that accompanied a use of great power. There was a sensation akin to using the portals located above the five planets and traveling through the Bone Eaters Well at the same time. When the light and sensation were gone, Kagome wasn't on LOLAC anymore, and the other four planets orbiting Skaia were nowhere in sight either.

End of Chapter