From Deep Within

An InuYasha fanfiction by Jacquelyn J.M. Fisher

Chapter 9:  From Deep Within

     Tora's heart skipped a beat and the thundered loudly. A surge of power and strength like nothing she ever experienced rushed through her. It began deep in her abdomen, a warmth that continually grew until she felt as if she was burning.  Excruciating pain ran from her head down to her fingertips and toes as she felt her body changing. The world around her came into sharper focus. The sights. The sounds.  The smells.  The sensations on her skin.

     Then an intense hatred flared into her mind. A murderous craving to kill. No other thoughts could take form as this one desire overwhelmed her, and she lashed out at her enemies. With new strength, she wielded the katana with one hand, severing a yōkai's arm with one slice. At the same time, she blindly struck out with her other hand, sharp claws ripping through exposed flesh. A horrible, animalistic snarl burst from her as she mercilessly slaughtered everything that moved around her.

     Kill. Kill.

     A cry sounded on the air that sent a sharp, painful ringing through her ears. Tora doubled over as pain gripped her heart.

     Rin.

     For a brief second, the pain and hatred waged a ferocious battle within her mind, each trying to take complete control.

     Rin... The childish laughter danced on the air as Rin beamed with joy.  She ran across the small meadow, disturbing a group of butterflies into flittering into the lazy afternoon sky.  In her hands were small red and yellow wildflowers.  She was breathless when she finally stopped and held the flowers up.  "Do you like these, Tora-san?  I picked them just for you."

     With a ferocious snarl, Tora fought through the yōkai. Her need to reach the little girl, to save her, victorious over the desire to kill. Using her blade, her claws, and even the fangs that appeared, she pushed through the ring of creatures surrounding Rin. The girl was lying on the grass, one arm hanging limply and at a strange angle. Her eyes were closed and fear was written all over her face. A yōkai was standing over her, his clawed hand raised to strike.
     
     "RIN!" The agonized cry seemed to be ripped out of her.

     Tora threw herself on top of the little girl, her hands digging into the dirt on either side of Rin's shoulders. Then she felt her chest explode in pain, and her eyes barely registered the tips of claws protruding from the front of her kimono. Blood dripped down on to the grass and on to Rin.

     The little girl felt the warm, sticky substance on her face and stirred.

     "Rin... don't... move..." Tora ordered through the pain.

     Even though she had used her body as a sheild, the sharp claws were just a hairs breadth away from Rin's face. Tora used all of her strength to keep them from touching the girl. Her hands dug deeper into the soil, her body shook from exertion, and sweat beaded her grimacing face.

     The pain was searing.

     Eyes closed, she fought against the yōkai pressing down on her. All of her senses were dimming. The sounds of the battle was merely a dull roar in her ears, barely audible. She could not smell anything with the strong scent of her own blood filling her nose.  Even the superhuman strength that had moments ago enveloped her was slowly ebbing.  

     Something damp and salty ran down her face and touched her lip. Sweat. Her eyes fluttered open, but she could not even focus on Rin's face.  Her vision was too blurred.

     Everything was so heavy. She did not think she could hold on much longer. But she had to for Rin. If she gave up now, the little girl was as good as dead.  

     Suddenly, the sensation of weightlessness hit her. The pressure of the yōkai was gone. Nothing was pressing down on her. There was a strange feeling as the claws slide out of her back, and then she could feel nothing. Not even feel the ground beneath her. She was being pulled backwards. No. She did not feel anyone's touch. She must be falling. The blue sky was suddenly above her. It was so clear though everything else was blurry. There were no yōkai. Just a blurry dark spot that could only be Ah-Un.
     
     Had it all just a dream?

     She landed on something solid and tremendous pain shot through her torso. Her senses returned to her, pain blazing its way through every inch of her body. She could see clearly again. Silvery hair. Crescent moon. Golden eyes. Oh, he was here.

     She stared up into his solemn face. With her last bit of strength, she forced the only clear thought in her mind from her dry lips.

     "They were after Rin."



     Sesshoumaru stared at the unconscious hanyō supported only by his arm. Then his eyes shifted to his hand. It was covered with her blood. Her wounds were severe, and death would not be far from her. Perhaps he had been mistaken regarding the usefulness of a mere half-breed.He laid her down onto the grass, watching as her blood pooled beneath her.  

     Leaving her without another thought, he reached for Rin. The little girl stirred and opened her eyes.

     "Sesshoumaru-sama," she said softly.

     A weak smile formed on her face despite the blood splattered all over her. The hanyō's blood. Rin tried to sit up, and winced from pain. Her right arm hung oddly at her side, and the sleeve of her kimono was torn revealing a jagged, bleeding wound.

     "You came, Sesshoumaru-sama. I knew you would come."

     "You are hurt, Rin."

     The girl briefly glanced at her injured arm. "I... I will be alright. Where is Tora-san?"  

     Her eyes peered passed the furry mokomoko and took in the unconscious young woman. Her smile was gone as she pushed herself to her feet and stumbled next to Tora's body. Sesshoumaru kept his arm close to the girl as she leaned over to examine Tora's face. Her small finger traced a faint mark on the woman's cheek that had never been there before. Then she saw the strange, black dog ears protruding from her hair. Her eyes also quickly took in the fangs just slightly protruding from her lips and the sharp, blood-encrusted claws that had replaced Tora's hands.  

     "Sesshoumaru-sama... Tora-san saved me from the yōkai."  Rin's voice cracked slightly as she spoke.  

     Then she swallowed, and her lip quivered slightly as she took in the severity of the wounds to the young woman's chest. She did not even appear to be breathing. So still. So lifeless. Bathed in her own blood. Rin turned her head and peered up into Sesshoumaru's face. Her tearful eyes were pleading.  

     "Is Tora-san going to be alright?"

     The daiyōkai calmly shifted his gaze from Rin to the hanyō. Even though she was unconscious and hardly able to even draw a breath, he still sensed her yōki. It surrounded her body like an invisible cocoon. He no longer smelled fresh blood, which meant that her deep wounds were already beginning to heal. Interesting. Though it had remained buried deep inside of her for years, her yōkai blood had somehow broken free during the heat of battle. Sesshoumaru had sensed the explosion, a sudden surge of yōki, miles away.

     Despite the outburst of power, her yōkai blood had not entirely overwhelmed her. Perhaps it was due to the fact that her mother, Kasumi, had been a lesser Inu-yōkai and not very powerful herself. Strange. Almost as strange as the fact that she was still clinging to life. Even some yōkai would have been killed by such brutal injuries yet she stubbornly lingered in this world. What kept her here?

     Tell me, Sesshoumaru, have you someone to protect?

     The voice of his father faintly whispered in his mind. The memory of that night was still fresh despite of the centuries that has passed, and he recalled his reply. Protect? The answer is no. I, Sesshoumaru, have no need of such. In the second before the great Inu no Taisho sped off to meet his death, his disappointment has very clear. That was the last time Sesshoumaru had seen his father.

     The hanyō had been protecting Rin. She would have known that the instant she threw herself into the path of the claws, her life was over. Yet she chose to do so anyway. To give one's life to save another. Such foolishness was something only a human would do.

     Or was it?

     His eyes narrowed as he watched Rin stroke a strand of Tora's hair. The child's usually smiling face was wrought with a mixture of anguish and fear. This was not the first time he had witnessed her fear of death.

     He looked down at the hanyō. She remained in her transformed state, and her flesh was already mending itself. Her heartbeat was stronger in his ears than before and her breathing deeper.

     "Tora will not die," he said drily. "Rin, let me see your arm."

     "Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama."

     Rin immediately turned from Tora, and a smile had returned to her face. Even when he took her arm in his hand and pain shot up to her shoulder, that smile never wavered. The bone was not broken, but the wound was deep.

     "I... I can help with that," a voice hesitated.