Two Hearts
Chapter 9

Copyright© 2009 by J. Smith

A Plea For Help

Elisana and Saria sped as fast as their wings could carry them towards the estate of the Demon Lord of the West. Kagome lay nestled in Elisana's arms, the cursed arrow head Kikyo injured her with still glowing faintly in the wound in her chest, an evil aura pulsing from it. Elisana looked down at the small priestess. Kagome's eruption of power had clotted her bleeding and purified some of the evil but that did little to calm Elisana. If she didn't get the arrow head out, the Gods only know what would happen to Kagome, what she would become.

"Lady Elisana?"

Saria's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She looked up at her long time companion. His face a mirror of the concern that she felt.

"What is it Saria?" She said.

"Are we sure that the Demon Lord, Sesshoumaru, will help us?" He asked.

"Perhaps..." She said, "We will have to see when we get there."

Elisana thought hard about what she would say to Sesshoumaru. Years before she had helped him, he had wished to locate a certain object, and she had provided him information on where it may be. She only hoped that reminding him of this would be enough to convince him to aid her now. Though, she doubted it would be so simple, Sesshoumaru was not known for his kindness or generosity. Elisana had heard tales that he had adopted a human child. A young girl. And she hoped that perhaps he had changed somewhat, and would agree to help them when he saw what had happened to Kagome, but that hope was dulled by the fact that she was a companion of Inu Yasha. Sesshoumaru's hatred of his younger half brother was widely known. She just prayed that it did not cloud his judgment in this.

"Look My Lady! I can see the home of Lord Sesshoumaru!" Saria's said.

Elisana looked forward and could see the large castle like home of the Demon Lord looming ahead. Elisana steeled her will and flapped her scaled wings faster.

"Let's not waste anymore time, Saria, Kagome needs help." She said.

Saria nodded and the two of them pushed themselves to the limits of their speed. Rushing towards the one place in this world Elisana had hoped she would never have to see again.

-- Elisana's Cave --

Inu Yasha stood on the large ledge that lead into an even larger cave opening. He could smell Kagome's sent faintly, like it had been gone from this place for some time, lingering in the air like a forgotten memory. Frustration welled in the half demon. This place was pointless. Kagome wasn't here any longer.

"She's not here. Let's go." He said.

"Wait a minute, Inu Yasha, we should at least look around and see if there are any clues!" Sango protested.

"What's the point!?" Inu Yasha fumed.

Miroku gently placed his hand on Inu Yasha's un-injured shoulder.

"It won't hurt to look around and see if we can find out why Kagome was here." He said, "Maybe then we can figure out where she may have gone."

Inu Yasha couldn't think of any reason to argue with what Miroku had said. He grudgingly agreed to search the cave. Maybe he could follow Kagome's sent and find out if she was hurt or not. He could also smell the sent of whatever it was that had attacked him and his friends in the fog. But there was another sent as well. One that smelled like honey and spices. It also had a strangely reptilian quality to it, the underlying sent of scales and earth. Inu Yasha clenched his jaw tightly. That sent wasn't the only strange thing about this cave. He could sense some kind of power from it, ancient, strong, a kind of magic all but lost to this world. He looked over at his friends, and could see that both Sango and Miroku felt that power too, he could see it on their faces and in their eyes. Sango tightened her grip on Hirikotsu, she wasn't going to give up now, no matter how strange the feeling she got from this place was.

"Alright, let's go." She said.

As Sango stepped forward towards the cave, Miroku could see a slight shimmering in the cave entrance, it seemed to be a barrier.

"Sango-sama! Wait!" Miroku grabbed her arm.

"What?" She said.

"There is a barrier here. I don't know what it will do if you walk into it." He said.

Sango's heart sank. How were they going to find Kagome if they couldn't get into the cave? All sorts of horrible thoughts of what may have happened to Kagome began playing through Sango's mind. She could be hurt or worse. Miroku gently took Sango's hand. She looked up into his face. He wore a small smile but his eyes were worried.

"Don't worry, Sango-sama." He said, "I'll try and think of a way to get past that barrier."

"Screw that!" Inu Yasha yelled, "I'll just cut it down with my Tetsuiga!"

"That wouldn't be wise Inu Yasha." Miroku said.

"Why the hell not?" He replied.

"Because, what happens if you cut the barrier down AND the entrance to the cave?" Miroku said.

"It will collapse." Sango said, "and then we won't be able to enter."

"Precisely," Miroku said, "We have to think this one through."

"Feh." Was all Inu Yasha replied.

Sango turned back to the cave entrance. They were so close. Concern for her friend welled up inside her. Who was it that was trying to keep them from Kagome? Shippo clung to Sango's shoulder, his eyes once again filling with tears, he was just as worried as everyone else, even if he was still a kid. Sango hugged the little fox gently. It would be okay, they would find Kagome, she knew it.

"Kagome-chan..."

-- Elsewhere --

Maya wandered almost aimlessly through the forest. She shivered slightly from the breeze that blew across her naked body. Night was rapidly descending upon the landscape. She would need to find shelter soon and something to cover herself with. Up ahead, Maya could see an opening in the dense forest around her, there were small lights there. Quickening her pace, Maya reached the opening in the trees, she could see a small village just outside the line of forest. It was a human village. She could see them moving about in the fields and houses. Scampering about to complete the mundane tasks that occupied their daily lives.

'Like ants.' She thought.

Slowly, and with purpose, she left the safety of the tree line. The closest of the humans working in the fields looked up, they watched her with slack jawed expressions, unknowing of the things she intended to do to them. Scenes of horror and death flashed through her mind as she drew closer to the first human. An older man, his black hair touched with gray at the temples and pulled up in the standard top knot of peasants, he wore a simple blue tunic and pants, a rake held limply in his hands. His dark eyes were wide as they roamed over her exposed form. Maya had taken on her human form, so the draconic features of her normal appearance that marked her as a demon were not visible, she looked as human as the rest of the people here. Except for her beauty and the cruelty that flashed in her amethyst eyes. As she drew closer, she began to focus her power, muttering an ancient incantation as her heart began to quicken its pace.

"Eternal darkness, brinier of silence and death ... Come forth to claim the souls of my victims ... Shadows of hate, bring forth-" Her words were cut off by a sudden exclamation.

Maya turned to see and older woman, rather portly, with a smudged apron tied over her plain gray working dress. Her hair was a dark brown and she had surprisingly bright blue eyes. She was carrying a large basket filled with freshly cleaned laundry.

"My Goodness!" She said, "What on earth are you men doing!? This poor girl needs some cloths!"

Maya faltered. Who was this woman? Didn't she know that Maya intended to kill them all? Muttering to herself, the woman rummaged around in the large basket until she produced a blanket. Without hesitation she came over to Maya and slung the blanket around her shoulders, covering her naked body, before turning back to the men.

"Did you think to let this poor thing freeze to death? Or where you to busy thinking with your loins to help her?" She said.

The man Maya had been about to kill coughed.

"Well, you see, she surprised us. She just came walking out of the forest like that." He said.

"Oh I see. So instead of helping a lost naked girl, you stood there fondling yourselves while she froze." The woman said, giving them a reproachful look.

Turning to Maya she said, "Now don't you worry dear. I have plenty of clothes, and a nice warm bed and hot meal at my house."

Maya only nodded dumbly. So taken aback, she was, by this simple human woman.

"I'm called Taki," she said with a gentle smile, "And what's your name dear?"

"M ... Maya." She stammered.

"Maya? Well, isn't that just a lovely name!" Taki said.

Taki bent down and retrieved her basket. Turning she took Maya gently by the arm.

"Well, come along then, Maya dear." she said, "Let's get you some clean clothes and a nice hot meal."

Maya nodded, her eyes wide. Taki turned back to the men, who stood staring dumbly at the two women, her expression became on of exasperation.

"An you!" She pointed at them, "Get your work finished and go home! You'll be lucky if I don't tell your wives about this!"

The men instantly snapped out of their stupors and went back to their field work. Taki gave a satisfied nod. She turned back to Maya and her gentle smile returned.

"Let's go, dear." She said.

Maya allowed herself to be pulled along by this strange and kindly human woman.

 
There is more of this chapter...
The source of this story is Storiesonline

To read the complete story you need to be logged in:
Log In or
Register for a Free account (Why register?)

Get No-Registration Temporary Access*

* Allows you 3 stories to read in 24 hours.

Close
 

WARNING! ADULT CONTENT...

Storiesonline is for adult entertainment only. By accessing this site you declare that you are of legal age and that you agree with our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.