Angel's Tale [3/? | R]

[Leia Avenrose]

<center>Disclaimer: I don?t own Inuyasha, nor do I own the characters. I only own the storyline.
Dedication: Ice Princess, it?s because of you that I?ve gotten the next chapter out so soon. Enjoy it, m?dear!


Angel?s Tale
By: Leia Avenrose
Rated: R




Chapter Three ? To Know Not Peace Is To Know Death</center>

?My Lord!? a tiny green demon cried, scurrying forward at the immediate appearance of him. ?My Lord, there?s trouble towards the North.?

The imposing figure paused in step. He looked towards the small being before him, eyes narrowing ever so slightly. ?Explain.?

Jakken gave a quick bow, his hand tightening on the gnarled staff. ?Your brother, Lord Sesshomaru. Naraku is pursuing Inuyasha. The human is near death; they have no means of healing her. My Lord, without her??

Sesshomaru, the Great Lord of the Western Lands, brought up a hand, cutting him off. ?I know of how much value she is to us. I?d advise that you do not mention it again.? Jakken nodded, and Sesshomaru continued. ?How long has Naraku been onto them??

?Quite some time now, my Lord.?

?Exactly how long, Jakken??

?They have been in hiding for almost a year. That has given Naraku enough time to carefully plot out his plans further and seek them for the remaining Shards. My Lord, the Shards and the human, they are?.?

?What did I tell you earlier, Jakken?? Sesshomaru began to walk towards the manor. Inside the young female slept soundly, unaware of her master?s return. He wanted to keep it that way.

?My Lord, forgive me!? The tiny imp cowered, clutching desperately to his staff as he went down onto his knees. ?It is imperative that my Lord hears this and knows the true story behind the human. Please, my Lord, allow me to speak.?

Sesshomaru stopped, turned back to glance at him. His expression was blank. He gave a curt nod, not moving, his eyes still on him. ?Speak then.?

?Thank you, Lord Sesshomaru.? Clearing his throat, he slowly rose, and leaned forward into his staff for support as he began to walk forward. ?My Lord, the Shards that remain are those that the human hold close. There is a reason for why she keeps them around her neck, for why she has never engaged a fight without them.?

?Go on.?

?The Shards are what preserve her life as whole, my Lord. Without the Shards, the human, this Kagome, will not survive.? He furrowed his brow. ?From my knowledge, the light within those exact Shards is failing. Ever since the last battle against Naraku and his minions, she has grown to be weak, and with the venom still lingering within her veins, Naraku may very well have full control over her.

?That is exactly where he wants her.?

Sesshomaru nodded, looking up at the night sky. The moon was in its crescent stage that night, not lighting up nearly enough as it would when within its full stage. Thinking through the situation, Sesshomaru looked back to the little demon. Large, round yellow eyes watched him, waiting for his reply, for perhaps a possibly solution that might rid them all of this menace known as Naraku who plagued their lives non-stop. For so many years, they have done nothing but fight against Naraku; it was a constant power struggle.

Naraku wanted everything as solely his. He wanted claim to everything and everyone that came with the lands of the Japan.

?In order for the human to be rid completely of the venom, the Shikon Jewel will need to be complete,? Jakken was saying now, frowning. ?It will purify her just as she will purify it once it has been pieced back together and out of the hands of Naraku. There is an old prophecy, my Lord. Your brother and the humans have battled Naraku for the past three years and are now in hiding; almost a year. That equals to four years altogether.

?Kagome?s life could very well end tonight. The moon is crescent. The prophecy deems her death to be true on the night when the crescent moon hovers just over the Northern Mountains, near the last remaining village. It is the one last village that Naraku has not yet vanquished.?

?What if they manage to find a healer at that village? Then what will become of the priestess?? Sesshomaru absently stroked his fingers over the soft fur trailing down the front of his chest.

Jakken shook his head, his face sad. ?The healer will die the moment they touch her. The venom within her is too strong to be healed by any normal village healer, my Lord.?

?Then how is it that she is still alive??

Jakken sighed heavily, shuffling forward more slowly now. He sat down on the edge of the makeshift fountain, both hands resting on the head of his staff. His eyes searched the ground a moment before he came to answer his Lord?s question. ?She carries the soul of her late incarnation, the priestess Kikyou.?

?That?s impossible!? Sesshomaru unexpectedly exploded, his fingers gripping the fur tightly. How could this possibly be? How could it be happening? If Naraku had the human where he wanted, and with her already as weak as she was, she had no chance against him the moment he took control over her. Sesshomaru already knew what was to come next; he needed to hear no more from the tiny demon to understand what Naraku planned to do.

Jakken shrank away, his voice timid. ?My Lord???

?Naraku plans to use the priestess in a plot to kill my brother. It is just as it was more then fifty years ago with the priestess Kikyou. He longs for the death of Inuyasha. Without Inuyasha, Naraku is free to take over all of the Lands, but my own. Once Inuyasha has been defeated, Naraku will then strike out at the Western Lands in hopes as claiming them as his.

?He will not stop until he has captured all four Lands as his, even if that means killing everyone who dares defy him in the process.? Sesshomaru was seething inside, his eyes showed his anger, having turned from their natural pale gold to a sinister orange, closing in on transforming to a blood red. He spun in a whir of white and red robes, heading for the steps that would lead up onto the back mahogany hallway deck. ?Rin is to be kept inside until I return, am I understood??

Jakken stumbled after him, confused as to what he was planning to do now. He scrambled up the steps, his staff echoing off the wooden walls of the hallway, as he tried to keep up with his master. ?My Lord, what do you plan to do? You can?t possibly go after Naraku on your own!?

?Rin, Jakken. Am I understood??

Jakken nodded quickly, gulping. ?Y-yes, my Lord!?

?Excellent. Keep her busy the moment she awakens. I don?t want her wandering the courtyards anymore until I see to it that this insanity is put to an end. I will be gone at the first crack of dawn. At this moment, I am stepping out into the Northwestern Lands to gather knowledge. You are to keep your eye on the moon, and also the care of the young priestess. If she passes ? you know what becomes of us and these lands.?

?You are to do all that is within your power to keep her alive, do I make myself clear??

Jakken stopped in his steps, staring after his master. All he could do was nod, his eyes wide in disbelief. The moment Sesshomaru was swallowed up by the darkness, Jakken slowly sank to his knees, his forehead pressed heavily into the shaft of his staff. The tiny being wanted nothing more then to hide himself away; they were doomed no matter how hard Lord Sesshomaru fought and no matter how large the army he gathered.

<center>* * *</center>

?That?s not going to work!? a voice burst out angrily. The words echoed through the tunnels, dirt coming loose and falling to the rocky ground. ?You can?t expect us to take the left fork, monk!? the voice continued.

?Then what would you rather have, Inuyasha? Kagome?s death on your hands?? Miroku countered, his anger just as deep. He wanted nothing more then to just grab the damned hanyou by his hair and slam his head into the rocky walls. Maybe that would knock some common sense into him.

Such an image caused the monk?s lips to twitch in a smile.

Inuyasha scowled, baring his fangs. ?What?s so damn funny? Wipe that fucking smile off your face, you look like an idiot!?

?Not as half as much of the idiot that you?re going to look like if you get her to open that door!? Miroku shot back heatedly, the smile totally wiped off with an angry glower.

Sango sat with Kagome, both resting against the rounded wall, huddled close together. Sango absently brushed her fingers soothingly through Kagome?s hair, hoping to disengage the tangles and knots plaguing what once used to be long beautiful ebony locks of silk. Kagome sat with her eyes closed, half-listening to what the two men were discussing. At this moment, she didn?t care what happened; she was already dead.

She wondered how long it would take for them to even realize this.

Fatigue seeped deep into her limbs. She had grown so tired and weak over the past month, she was almost certain that her time was drawing near. They were fighting a losing battle; even hiding was proving to go wrong for them. They didn?t stand a chance against Naraku, and what he had was what they needed the most. She didn?t understand why Inuyasha continued to think and hope that they?d survive and get out of the hole they had dug themselves into. She didn?t understand why he didn?t just give up. Couldn?t he see that she had given up months ago? Couldn?t he see that everything they were doing, Naraku was ten steps a head of them, already anticipating their next move; their every move, never mind next move.

She longed to just shut everything away and not have to deal with it anymore. She longed to be released from the constant pain that tormented her emotionally and physically. If only she were strong enough to shatter the vial hanging around her neck, then maybe, just maybe she?d finally get to rest peacefully and not have to deal with such nonsense anymore.

Inuyasha ran his fingers through his hair, his ears flattened to his head. They were getting nowhere, and with each passing minute, Kagome was getting closer and closer to death itself. He was a failure; he was always failing her. Why couldn?t they just understand that he was trying his best to save her and keep her breathing?

He didn?t care if death took him; he only wanted Kagome to live.

Kagome was everything to him, and despite the long last four years, he had yet to make that clear to her. He feared tonight might even be the last night he had with her. He feared he would never get the chance to tell her just how much he felt for her, how much he cared, how much he wanted her to be by his side forever.

They had to complete the Shikon Jewel, he knew that much, but it wasn?t looking too good for them, especially if they continued to remain holed up underground, terrorized day in and day out by the hordes sent out by Naraku. He wasn?t even sure if it was daylight or night outside above. What did it matter? They had more important things to worry about then what time of the day it was above.

Inuyasha looked across to Kagome, watching as she clung to the vial again. Sango had stopped her futile attempts at brushing the younger girl?s hair and sat in silence, her head tilted back against the wall, her eyes closed. Miroku was running his hands over his face in frustration, muttering to himself as Inuyasha finally let his eyes rest on him.

?There?s no other way,? he said in a low voice, leaning back on his palms. Kagome looked over to him, her eyes hooded. Inuyasha looked towards her, catching her watching him and sighed softly, seeing how glazed her eyes were getting.

Miroku looked to him, then followed his gaze to Kagome. His heart fell at the mere sight of her. ?It?s either we use her to open the door, thus killing her immediately, or else we dig. And even then ? if we were to use her to open the door, Inuyasha, she wouldn?t be strong enough to even move it as far as an inch. It would prove to be an ineffective attempt.?

?Then we dig.?

Miroku blinked, taken aback by the abrupt response. ?What??

?You heard me, monk.? Inuyasha looked to him, his face hard.

?Yes, I heard you, Inuyasha. But how do you expect us to dig? And to where??

Inuyasha pointed upwards wordlessly, looking bored. Miroku opened his mouth to speak, but closed it, knowing that arguing with the hanyou at this moment was useless. Kagome lifted her eyes to where Inuyasha was pointing. She winced, putting her strength into giving Sango a weak nudge and nodded to where the men were when she felt her friend?s eyes on her.

?I don?t get it,? Sango whispered, frowning.

?Digging,? Kagome faintly answered, slumping back into the wall. Her hands fell into her lap. Her head tilted to rest on Sango?s shoulder.

Sango looked over, her eyes first landing on Kagome?s face, then to the vial. Her eyes widened and she sucked in a sharp breath at the sight. The sight took her breath away. ?M-miroku!? she cried, shifting feebly to shake Kagome?s weight.

Miroku spun on the ground where he sat. Inuyasha leapt past him, swearing loudly. He reached Kagome first, Miroku coming up behind him. ?It?s gone out,? the monk whispered, trembling at the sight of death in his friend. ?The light?s gone out??

TBC

[Iron Dog]

Keep writing girlfriend. You have a couple of days left of solitude so get those fingers flying over the keyboard. Good tension going on here. Big time WTF moments on what Sesshy is planning/able to do. You're killing off poor Kagome again are you? Does the angst queen strike again?

[Leia Avenrose]

*chin stroke with a devious smile*

[ice princess]

0_0

;_;

>_<

^_^ (wait...that one doesn't fit...)

@_@

Firstly, thank you for the dedication again! ^_^ (there, now it's appropriate) Glad I could finally put this new Zippo lighter to good use *waves fire under Leia's butt*. Did you take my advice and make those clones? 'Cause this chapter sure was quick! And lo, just as excellent as all others! Obviously you're on a roll right now. This chapter is just one more puzzle piece that keeps me stumped for hours trying to figure out where its jagged edges fit into the grand scheme of things. Now you've got Sesshoumaru involved? And ANXIOUS??? Now I KNOW they're screwed. Of course, you've crafted an amazing narrative voice with this particular fiction that lets us know she died already. The quick transitions between events is exhilarating, but harrowing. What in the world is happening to them?!?!?!? My brain is a swirling mass of gelatinous pudding!!!!! There's too many mind-numbing twists and turns!!!! AAUUGHH!!!!!! Apparently, I enjoy having my neurons rapid-fire themselves into oblivion because I loved this chapter and am always anxious for more!!!!

*PSA for works of fiction by Leia Avenrose*

AN: This is your brain --> @ (egg)

AN: This is your brain after reading one of Leia's fics --> @#$#^$W!Q$@^&*(*$@#$!@$!... (scrambled egg!)

~ice *over easy* princess

[Leia Avenrose]

I made LOTS of clones! Despite my warnings on how it wouldn't be the best idea in the world either. >:] I'm determined to finish this story; the ending is already written out and ready to be posted, but ... you know ... have to ... well, TELL the WHOLE story first, eh?

And oh yes... fluffy IS involved, it all works out. MOWHAHAHAHAHHAHAH!

[Mellie]

;_; oh my word! You don't end things like that! You...you just can't do it! Leia!!! *wails* I was all into it and it stops. Just like your other fics. You're going to kill me one day, you know that?

Dang! I want to see how Sesshy is involved so bad! You make him even more likable to me! What is he planning and just how much is he involved?

Too many secrets for my brain to process!

You truly excel at crafting excellent story lines with so many hidden truths. I love to read and see what I can get out of your works. They are something wonderful to read.

[Lady Casper]

Ah! No! What happened!? Ek Kagome! Ohhs you evil leia. Oh so evil. And what is going on with Sess. Interesting...


*jumps for the next chappie*