SessKag Week 2022 - Day 2
Prompt: Rise (Superfruit feat. Mary Lambert, Brian Justin Crum, Mario Jose)
..::**::..
"Rin!" Kagome's voice cracked as her scream echoed across the field, causing the rest of the group to pause in their movements, shoving their opponents away as they turned towards the outburst.
The young girl struggled against her captor's hold, clawing and biting as she tried to break free. Kagome shifted her position, discarding her bow for the twin blades attached to her waist. The arm tightened around Rin's neck.
"Her safety must mean nothing to you."
Kagome glared, blue eyes flashing, but held her position. "Put her down. She's not a part of this."
The mink smirked, unbothered. "On the contrary. She's the very reason we are here. Where else would we find the key to the West's downfall?" Rin whimpered, her eyes watery and pleading.
"Ya filthy swamp rat!" Inuyasha growled, his back still against Kouga's, the two of them working in tandem to hold back the swarm. "I'm gonna rip you—"
"Hold your tongue, mongrel." The mink pointed his spear at the pair. "For the East is next."
Kagome scoffed, still focused on Rin and how to get her free. "You're delusional."
"Am I?" The swarm shifted, causing a rift to form between him and the rest of the pack. "You accepted me so easily into your midst. What makes you think the same has not already happened to the wolf tribe?"
She gritted her teeth, berating herself for their current predicament. The bastard's illusions had fooled them all, the youkai having presented himself as a limping bear cub up until an hour ago. He'd been travelling with them for a month, going as far as helping them exterminate some lesser youkai that had been plaguing Jinenji's village.
All to gain Sesshoumaru's weakness.
She met Rin's gaze, wincing at the panic reflected in her soft, brown eyes. "It's alright, Rin. We're going to get you out of this."
"False promises, miko. Be sure to inform his lordship that we expect his full cooperation, or she will be sent back in pieces." Amusement soon gave way to hysterical laughter. Rin reached out a hand before disappearing, the hoard kicking up dirt and debris as they retreated.
Steeling herself, Kagome slung her bow over her shoulder. "Find Sesshoumaru and tell him what happened. I'm going ahead."
"What! No way! I'll—"
Kagome glared at Kouga over her shoulder. "We need your speed to find him—we have no idea how far south he is. I can track them. And Rin." She took off at full speed, reiki sparking around her fingers as the scent of mud and wet fur spurred her forward.
She wouldn't catch up, not until they decided to rest, but she'd be able to send out flares for the others to find. She'd rescue Rin.
No matter the cost.
..::**::..
It was well into the second day when she located the den.
Refusing to stop for food or sleep, she'd managed to stay close on their trail, though not a single village she'd passed through had witnessed the swarm. Their leader had his eyes set on conquering the biggest threats through blackmail and intimidation and hadn't given anyone the chance to render aid to their captive.
The castle looked deserted, but they couldn't conceal Rin's human signature even with their illusions. A large moat surrounded the building, water lapping at the ground as paws scuffled along the floors inside. All the windows were dark, but shadows still danced along the walls in the fading sunlight.
Kagome was no fool.
She'd kept herself hidden in the bushes, willing one of them to poke their heads out or go looking for food, but so far, nothing had gone in or out of the stone walls. Rin's aura hadn't moved, but it was blanketed in fog and fear.
She'd disintegrate them all if they'd touched one hair on her head.
Rin didn't deserve any of this. The only reason she'd been travelling with them in the first place was the negotiations for a peace treaty had been moved to the southern lord's home, and Sesshoumaru had asked Kagome to look after her.
Her thoughts were like a beacon, though she might have missed him if she hadn't been searching, his entrance cloaked and concealed. Sesshoumaru landed silently next to her, eyes focused on the castle.
"Where's everyone else?"
"There is a second den. One whose stench is far greater than this one," he replied. "They elected to search that one first."
"But not you?"
Golden eyes slid to her. "I know a diversion when I smell one."
If she wasn't so tired, she would've snorted. "Yeah, me too." Kagome turned back to the castle. "She's in there. On the top floor."
"And you haven't led an attack yet?"
"I'm by myself," she argued, "and you didn't see him when they took her. They mean business, Sesshoumaru. We have to be smart about this, or Rin will get hurt."
He cracked his knuckles. "They cannot harm her if their heads are not attached to their bodies."
"Save that for after." She removed her bow and quiver, knowing she'd have to rely on short-range attacks and hand-to-hand combat. "I'm going in to get her."
"Not alone."
"Yes alone!" she hissed. "We have to make sure she's safe first."
Golden eyes narrowed. "She is not your ward, miko."
"But she's my responsibility. She wouldn't be in there if I'd seen through—" Kagome bit the inside of her cheek, cutting off a sob. Sesshoumaru didn't give out his trust to just anyone, and now she'd broken the bond she'd worked so hard to cultivate.
He'd never see her as anything else now.
Her downward spiral was interrupted by his hand on her shoulder. "You are not to blame for this. They utilize the gasses in the swamp to block the senses."
Was he trying to reassure her?
Kagome nodded, then squared her shoulders. "Wait for my signal; then you can start going all whip crazy." A raised eyebrow was his only response, the expression warming her heart as she steeled her nerves. Gripping the hilts of her blades, she slunk through the underbrush, quickly slipping inside the stronghold.
..::**::..
She'd underestimated their power.
Rin held fast to the back of her robes, whimpering as Kagome slashed through another underling. Her blades were infused with reiki, disintegrating each of her attackers, but the hoard was large, and the illusions numerous.
It had taken three different rooms and four different girls before she'd found the real Rin.
Kagome wanted to blame it on the exhaustion, but truth be told, their illusions were just that good. Luckily, they hadn't seemed to use any of them on Rin, the girl jumping into her arms as soon as she'd unlocked the door.
"What are we going to do?" Rin whispered. Kagome backed up a little more, trying to figure out the best strategy for escape. All the current exits were blocked, and they were still on the top floor.
"What indeed?" The leader appeared out of the swarm like a ghost, and Kagome pushed Rin further back.
"I won't let you take her."
"You don't appear to have much choice." He motioned to the lone window behind them. "Unless you can fly."
Kagome glanced over her shoulder, then down at Rin, the girl's trembling fingers turning white.
There was only one option.
"Rin, you trust me, right?"
Rin nodded her head, no hesitation in her response. Sucking in a deep breath, Kagome delved into the recesses of her being, pulling every last ounce of reiki to the surface. The mink seemed to realize what she was planning, or at least that something was wrong, and lunged for her, but Kagome twisted out of his grasp.
Flaring her power, she sent out a warning, then grabbed Rin and ran to the window. "Get as far away from here as you can, okay? Don't let him come back." She didn't give the girl a chance to process her words further, throwing her out the window.
She didn't need to hear Rin's relieved wail to know Sesshoumaru had caught her—he would always be her saviour. Turning to the swarm, she brought her blades up again.
"What was the point of that? We'll just get her back—"
"Not if you can't get out." Kagome's eyes glowed an iridescent violet, the pink of her power leeching into cold, calculating indigo. The violet encompassed her blades, the minks closest to her scattering as she sunk the tips into the floor.
Sesshoumaru would be far enough away to avoid it, leaving every other creature trapped within its walls. None of the hoard would be able to go after them.
"You fool! You risk yourself for a mere child? For a youkai who hates your kind? You should've joined us!"
"You have no idea about the kind of person Sesshoumaru is," she bit out before collapsing. Using her weapons as a conduit would ensure that the spell couldn't be broken, even if she wasn't conscious.
She raised her chin in defiance even as the leader's clawed hands wrapped around her throat.
Rin was safe. That was all that mattered.
..::**::..
A/N - BEFORE YOU GRAB YOUR PITCHFORKS AND ROTTEN FRUIT there will be a sequel! On Thursday! Come on, did you REALLY think I'd leave it there? The sequel is called "The Only Exception".