Beyond the fallen gate was a scene of fiery mayhem.
It was one thing to have watched from a distance; quite another to be standing here in the middle of the fray. Amidst the brimstone and bedlam, the death and destruction, Kagome paled, shaken to the quick of her soul.
In harried bands, soldiers strove against the relentless youkai assault—and the flames which had driven them back toward the high stone walls like a tide of crashing fire. Shielding her face against that scorching heat, Kagome pushed forward, waving and shouting to them in vain. The dead lay all around her—men and beasts and demons lumped together in a tangle of carnage—their staring eyes like gruesome mirrors, their blood and bile blackening the earth that sucked up around her ankles, hot and rank as pitch.
Kagome sweated, wept. Her eyes streamed from the sting of the soot, scalded from the glare. Her throat choked, desert dry. Bloody screams resounded in her ears. The hem of her thin robe weighed her down, wet and heavy with gore. Impossibly heavy…
Smoke filled her lungs and she felt tired, so very tired. The urge to sink to her knees, to curl up and shut her eyes to it all nearly overwhelmed her. Through this hellish wasteland, she trudged on, in agonizing, dreamlike slowness. Drowning deeper with every breath she took.
Lost…everything—
Everything was lost.
The bow dangled from her hand. She wasn’t moving anymore when suddenly she felt herself wrenched up from the muck of her despair by a pair of strong hands clasping at her shoulders.
“Kagome-sama! Thank the gods…”
“…Uetsugi,” she said slowly, blinking to bring his haggard, visored face into focus.
“What should we do, my lady?” the burly man beseeched her, the rest of his ragged regiment looking at her with such desperate hope that Kagome felt gutted and galvanized all at once.
“Fall back to the castle,” she said, his question spurring her into action once again. “You’ll be safe there. Command everyone you can to do the same.”
“Hai, Kagome-sama—it shall be done.”
Rising from his bow, Uetsugi bellowed out orders which carried over the commotion: three great blasts of an ox horn that sent men running from all directions. “To the castle, you lot! To the castle!”
As the men dispersed, fleeing to safety, Kagome forced her eyes away from the devastation she’d wrought. Swallowing back her smothering grief, she turned away from the flames and into a swathe of untouched wood uphill. The steep ascent toward the edge of the ravine was treacherous and fatiguing. Pine needles and slippery shifting slate made the going arduous and slow. But eventually through the thinning trees, she found a promontory of jutting rock that gave her a clear view of the river that roared and frothed far below.
In the pocket of her robe, Kagome felt the bump of that smooth little summoning shell. She hadn’t placed it there, but the thing had a way of sticking to her. Such was its enchantment, she supposed.
Taking the shell from her pocket, Kagome eyed it wrathfully a moment before reiki flared into her palm and she closed her fist, grinding the talisman into dust.
“Fuck the shell—I know you’re here,” she called out into the brisk, empty air. “Show yourself, Hirokin!”
Inuyasha © Rumiko Takahashi
Someone pick up that phone, cuz I called it!
Haha yepp! <3
Yesss that shady bich Hirokin is gunna make an appearance! Knew it, get those waters goin bby 🌊
Hahaha! Love it, mim!! <3
Never thought I’d be excited to see Hirokin, but damn I’m pumped! We need some of his bad bitch energy with how maudlin and desperate the situation has become. I’m very curious how much Hirokin knows/predicted. Has he been watching from the sidelines eating bonbons? Will he be horrified to see all of his plans crumbling before him? And what will he ask in return for his services? Does he still want Kagome to be “his lady” (in any sense of the term)?
Speaking of mating, I’ve been rereading some of the side stories to try to piece it all together and I have a question (though maybe answering it would constitute a spoiler). In one of the side stories (I think In relation to Touga and Izayoi) that the mating mark can only be given once. Does that mean that, because it was given once and she died, Sesshoumaru and Kagome can never truly be united in that way again? Is their relationship doomed before it even begins? Any hope of a happy ending? 🙏
” We need some of his bad bitch energy with how maudlin and desperate the situation has become. ” – lol ain’t that the truth! <3
"Does that mean that, because it was given once and she died, Sesshoumaru and Kagome can never truly be united in that way again? Is their relationship doomed before it even begins? Any hope of a happy ending?" - intriguing question there 🙂 all i can say is that I promise it'll be answered! 😉
Delightful comments, Alex - thanks for sharing as always! Happy Thanksgiving Eve <3
“Fuck the shell” 😂🤣😂 I love how she destroyed it because she knew Hirokin’s slinky minx ass was lingering around all of that chaos. Hirokin’s reaction to the death and destruction = *insert Michael Jackson eating popcorn in the movie theater GIF* He’s enjoying his own Feudal version of Netflix and Kagome is the main character. I’m rolling out the red carpet for my favorite asshole in this story. #Hirokin ❤️
“I love how she destroyed it because she knew Hirokin’s slinky minx ass was lingering around all of that chaos. ” – bahaha! sure enough XD
Also “Feudal version of Netflix” – you got me dying XDDDD
<3
Mannnn I agree with everyone who said that Hirokin is one shady demon. He clearly planned allllll of this and I honestly would love to know how he knew this would happen according to plan. He’s the one who started the flood to push Ren toward Edo. Now he’ll be the one to save Edo now that everything is burning as a result of his own actions??? This seems like the most outrageous form of matchmaking I have ever witnessed 🤣
Thank you for the fast updates! Happy Thanksgiving Char 🦃 ~
Thank you, Lee!! – yeah Hirokin’s a dirty schemer, all right! 😉
Hope you enjoy how things go down from here! Have a very Happy Thanksgiving!! <3 <3 <3