To Foreign Lands [Private]

Mika made a very not womanly snorting like sound of contempt when she spoke of her brother, but her irritation fled her as she took in a deep meditative breath before slowly letting it out. "Men. Food and physical pleasure seem to drive all of them. Your brother seems rather innocent in the last thing, so obviously its food." She bought the two oils she needed and thanked the woman that sold it to her before looking at Keiko. "Other than doing repairs on my bow, nothing. Not until Lord Marius returns. I hope he got there safely."

- - - - -

Akemi rode the entire way back to the castle, her hands crossed and laying firmly over InuGenki's heart, both listening and feeling the heart as it worked, counting beats, letting everything else fade into the background. When they arrived, she was uncharacteristically quiet as she ed the way to their room. she curtly dismissed the guards and shut the door. Turning, she watched him for a moment before reaching up and removing her headdress with a sigh, placing it on its holder by the western window. "Much longer than it should have been." It was clear in her voice that she held much anger for Totosai. Walking over, she put her hands on his lower arms, giving him a look that clearly was one of a woman not going to take any shit at the moment. "Let me help you." The woman helped him remove the heavier, more cumbersome parts of his armor, a smirk showing for a moment at his last words. "Of course you are and don't you ever forget it."

- - - - -

Mika paused when she heard the word 'sake' brought up, and she frowned, setting her bow down on a white cloth. Reaching into her left sleeve, she pulled out a small white bag and inside she pulled out two little dense cotton tubes. "Honestly." She muttered, pushing them halfway into her ears before she went back to working on her bow. "In every city... where there is a noble... there is an Oikan...." She muttered, as she carefully wrapped the bow up, before starting to work on her bowstring. For just a second, the end of the string caught on her left sleeve, pulling it up just far enough to flash some rather harsh looking burn markings that covered her whole arm, all the way up in the sleeve to her elbow. Mika did not need any reminder of those dark days, what seemed so long ago.

Outside there was a loud rumble and crackle, but the mountains shielded that village from most of the destruction. A boy ran inside shouting, "Elder! Come quick! There's strange lights in the sky!" he shouted. The two men both ran outside, and they were in horror. "What happened to the forest in the mountains!? There's nothing!" the elder shouted. Aiko smirked at knocked his shoulder into the priest. "My father has returned" he said smugly. Keiko ran past them and followed Mika. "Hey! Wait!" she shouted. When she finally caught up to her, she smiled at her. "Hey, don't let my brother get to you. He gets stupid when he hasn't ate. He's not an ass all the time" she said before she trailed off looking up at the aurora in the sky. "Um, what are you planning on doing now?" she asked. She was hoping to hang out with her and be around another female for a change. Everyone was transfixed on the lights in the sky terrified for what it signified.

InuGenki looked up towards his wife stroking his face, and he sighed happily. "Don't worry, I'm not close to dying" he said before he tried to stand up. Toki helped her mother keep him down. "Papa please...let us help you" she said before she transformed into her giant dog form. She was between the size of Kirara and Sesshomaru in his giant dog form. She was big and strong enough to ferry her family back over to the castle. InuGenki and Toga both climbed onto her under their own power, but they both looked like they were going to fall off. Everyone who was able, formed a convoy escorting Toki during the trip. InuGenki leaned back resting the back of his head against his wife's natural set of pillows. Toga held onto his mother resting his forehead into her back. For the whole journey, the two slept.

Once they arrived at the castle, Toki landed on the roof were the guards carried her father and brother into their rooms. InuGenki was awake, but he was very sluggish and clumsy. He looked up at his wife and sighed heavily. "It's been too long. I've missed your company. Being away from you has shown me just how much I can't cope to be without you" he said as he struggled to remove his armor. His armor and the way he tied up his hair made him look like his father. The only difference was his dog ears on the top of his head, and he was younger. He blushed gazing at her beauty, which even as a mother she was very blessed. "I'm lucky to have you as my wife" he said.

Over in the village Keiko was in a room with Mika while she oiled up her bow. In another room, she could hear the Oiran that was hired to entertain them throughout the night had requested her brother stay the night with her.
"Comfortable?" She asked. It sounded like she was pouring liquid some cups. The stench of sake wafted into their room.
"Uh, Sure" he said as he drank the sake. The oiran got behind him and touched his broad shoulders beginning to massage him.
"Oh, you're so very tense. You should drink some more" she advised him.
After a couple more rounds of drinking, he did not realize that her massage got more southward until she reached in to grope his crotch. He flinched and gasped. "What are you doing?" he asked with somewhat slurred speech.
"Relax, you're going to love this" she said before he groaned uncomfortable.
She untied his pants and her jaw dropped. "Oh wow...that's actually pretty big" she remarked.
He looked at her worried. "Is that bad?"
She big her lip and brushed a strand of hair from her face. "Well, No...I just need to be a little more careful. You can't help it" she said as she laid him back and started to give him a blowjob.
"Why are you putting that in your mouth?" he asked as she started using her tongue.
She pulled away and giggled. "First time huh?"
Keiko was laughing on the other side of the wall.

Mika's entire posture and expression turned wooden, the very air around her dropping in many degrees, causing a faint dusting of snow to cover her form, turning her eyelashes and even her eyebrows white. "That would be a very good idea. I will find you two later." She walked forward, pushing past the priest and village elder. She needed to get away from such a brash... idiot, and besides, she needed to find a good oil for her bow and she also needed to replace the string.

Stopping by a small outdoor shop that actually had what she needed, she was looking over the selection of oils, chatting pleasantly with the woman selling the wares, when a massive invisible power slammed into her back, sending a sharp feeling through her body. Was that... them? Have they finally returned?

- - - - -

Akemi stood tall, even as everything was destroyed around her, people dying and cowering in fear for their lives. Everyone here understood the risks. Even herself. She did not care if she was hurt in the storm that kicked up around her caused her body any kid of physical harm. She had been waiting for over fifth years now, no thanks to the old fool, and a little pain wouldn't be a problem. Watching as the gate grew in size, she felt a sense of massive pride well up in her chest. The size of the exit could only mean that not only had her husband grown in power, but that her son had as well, and it made her extremely happy and proud in her child. Her gaze locked onto her husband's, and she felt a little... worried. She closed her eyes when he finally reached her, smiling faintly but the smile quickly leaving him when he collapsed like that. She dropped quickly to her knees, reaching out and stroking the side of his face. She looked out of the corner of her eyes, her rage rolling under the surface. "They would have, with the pearls under your care, you old fool!"

Aiko watched Mika closely, but his arrogance got the better of him, and he was horrified that her sutra was more potent. "Hey! What gives!?" he shouted as he dropped his weapon feeling his hand go numb. He was about to reach over with his other hand and grab the sutra before he hesitated believing that the sutra might be designed like a sticky barb and stick to his other hand. He smirked and reached down with his non-dominant hand picking up the weapon. "Yeah? Well they better tell us where our stuff is, or their very fragile insides are going to strewn out onto the floor" he grumbled. "Aiko, just let it go...we can always get more" Keiko mumbled. Aiko looked back at her and snarled at her. "No! They stole from us! You're just going to let them get away with it!? I don't give a damn about what hardship they might have! We all have our problems! I don't use mine to justify stealing their food. I do it the right way!" he shouted. Keiko scowled at him and crossed her arms over her chest. "This is about food isn't it?" she asked before Aiko paused and shook his head. "N-n-no! It's about my principles!" he stuttered before his rumbled in disagreement.

The elder was very afraid of Mika's power, and he gulped. "Yes, milady" he said bowing to her. The priest was very skeptical with Mika's claim. "Hanyo are just as capable of producing vast amounts of yoki. I remember sensing the yoki from the Yokai of ten-thousand deaths, and I can tell that they are his offspring!" he said. Aiko grinned evilly. "You're damn right we are! I want my stuff back!" he shouted before Keiko punched him in the back. "Shut up will you! You're not helping anymore!" she scolded him. The elder and the priest both froze with fear, and Aiko and Keiko both gasped. "Wait! For real? Our father's coming back?" he muttered. The elder looked towards the priest sternly. "This isn't good, If Lord InuGenki finds out we've mistreated his daughter, our village will be wiped out with a flick of a finger! Just like that one village" he said. He bowed to Keiko. "Please forgive us! We don't want to incur your father's wrath" he said. Aiko rolled his eyes. "Yea, that sounds real genuine..." he mumbled. The elder froze but remembered that Aiko was famished. "As compensation for our transgression, food will be served to you in your honor!" he said before Aiko snickered. "Throw in a place to stay, and I'll consider letting it slide" he said. "Done...please don't tell your father!" He shouted bowing down to them repeatedly.

InuYasha glanced back at Kagome and gave her a weird look. "You have no idea what she's like. Sesshomaru's personality is warm and sunny compared to her cold and hostile personality. She'll freeze you solid if you look at her the wrong way!" he said before he trailed off remembering the comfort she gave him as a boy. "She loves kids though..." he mumbled more to himself but Kagome was able to hear and the cold wind stopped.

Totosai shivered as Toki snatched the pearl and jumped off before she formed ice wings and immediately took flight towards the center of the valley where there was a lake with a maelstrom spiraling in the center. She walked across the ice that spontaneously formed under her feet and stopped at the edge of the whirlpool looking down to see a light in the bottom, which she pulled out two pearls and dropped them into the mighty vortex. A huge jet of light shot forth from the bottom of the lake startling Toki, and the sky grew dark swirling above. The pearls floated in the jet before electricity arched between them as they parted away from each other, and they separated almost the entire width of the valley. Myoga stared in disbelief. “I’ve never seen them separated so far apart before!” he shouted.
Totosai gulped. “You shouldn’t be so surprised that the gate has to compensate for my his enormous size…After all it runs in the family doesn’t it? I wonder how much his son has grown?” he asked as a line of light spanned between the pearls, and the line became two dimensional a rectangle expanding out in width wise. A powerful wind blew from the portal and leveled the villages in front as the height of the gate grew to the size of a mountain. Toki's heart raced as she flew back to safety as the wind only grew stronger. The lake drained out, and the bay was pushed out to sea exposing the silt and mud. The grass and soil on the shoreline nearest to the gate were stripped down.

Meanwhile at Kaede's village, a rumble could be heard off in the distance and everyone looked towards the north having and seen the column of lights in the distance, and the rapidly approaching roll cloud. Kaede's eyes grew wide having traumatic flashbacks. "Run to shelter! Quickly! The gate has opened!" she shouted. The village went into a panic and bells were rang to alarm the men in the rice fields. The violent storm arrived and bent the pine trees to the point where they snapped, and some of the roofs where ripped off and thrown into the paddy fields. Lightning struck the bell tower and set it ablaze. What was seconds seemed like hours, but once the storm ceased, Everyone inside ran outside looking for anyone who was hurt and saw a great number of casualties. Sango ran out in a panic screaming, “Jun! Kei! Where are you!?”
They could hear crying in the mess hall, which Shippo had the twins clutching onto him with the tables piled on top of them. He checked himself to see if he was injured before he looked at the twins assessing their well-being. InuYasha rushed over to remove the tables helped the twins climb over the wreckage. Sango looked to see the northern lights overhead as she picked her daughters up. "That had to be a hundred miles away...I hope nobody was killed" she muttered before she brought her daughters inside to treat their wounds.

In the present, the ground began to shake violently at the Higurashi shrine, and the roof to the well house exploded with a jet of light soaring into the sky. Splinters of the roofing showered on the shrine and the nearby streets. The glass shattered and car alarms and sirens echoed throughout the streets, and Sota and his friends ran to the window seeing the roof to the well house completely gone. “Whoa!?” his friend shouted looking up at the light towering over the city. Helicopters were already circling around the column of light and continued to do so as the light faded.
Sota and his friends ran downstairs where his grandfather stopped them. “What are you doing!? It’s too dangerous!” he shouted. There were power flashes, and the lights went out inside, which the three ran outside anyway.
The grandfather chased after them, and he fell to his knees seeing the well house screaming, “It’s gone! It’s all gone!”
Sota looked into the remains, and he smiled. “No look! It’s still here!” he shouted.
The grandfather rushed over to the well house and saw that the well finally stopped glowing. “At least that’s over” he mumbled before he looked up at void where the roof used to be. “It’s going to take weeks to repair everything” he said.
Hitomi frowned. “Do weird stuff like this always happens around your family?” she asked.
Sota shook his head. “There was only a couple things that happened but nothing like this” he said.

Meanwhile at the portal the wind died down, and Toki rushed over to see something coming out from the gate. The silhouette of two men in armor grew larger before they took a step past the threshold. The men were ants compared to the door, which one of them looked up and gasped. “Father! Why is the gate so big?” he asked. The father kept walking not saying a word, and his son growled at him. “Look!” he shouted.
The father looked at the woman who smirked at him and sighed. “Never look back, Toga! There’s always something to look forward to” he said.
Toga scowled at him. “What is that supposed to mean?” he shouted.
Toki ran up to the father and embraced him. "Papa!" she shouted before she looked over at her brother and blushed. "Wow. You look...so different!" she said although she was not going to tell her brother that he had become very handsome and more buff. Everyone who was not blown away in the aftermath quickly bowed down to InuGenki, which he approached Akemi with his daughter still hanging off from him, and he touched his wife's chin. A smirk crept up on his lips before he quickly fell to his knees. He was significantly weaker, and Toki was horrified to see her father in this state. "Papa!" she screamed but she looked over at her brother who was in a very similar condition. "I'm fine...I just need...a little rest" he said sternly but with a very weak voice. Totosai smirked and was genuinely impressed. "I can't believe they both survived inside the realm of spirit and time for fifty years. Any longer, and they would have perished" he muttered.

Coming upon the sight, Mika let out a low sigh, her hands tucked away into her sleeves as she watched the little interaction take place. She smiled faintly when the priest looked at he, and she glanced at the scattered papers on the ground, before she looked back at him, stepping up to stand even with Aiko's outstretched arm. "No, no. I come from beyond the border to the south. I have never seen them before in my life." Her hand moved quickly, placing a thin black paper scrawled with her own personally created sutra on Aiko's inner elbow, causing him to lose strength and feeling in the arm and hand bearing the weapon. She turned to face him, her expression similar to one, that you might give a child when you are scolding them. "Humans are very fragile creatures on the inside. Their fears and negative emotion far outweigh their calm and positive emotion in times of strife. The yoki that is creating this, it brings out that fear. These two are leaders in their community. Not only have they probably lost people in their own family to this, but they are powerless to stop the loss of life of the people they are sworn to protect."

She then turned that very gaze towards the two men, surprisingly seeming to stand much taller than her 5' 5" frame allowed for. "As for you two. As the village elder, you should have listened to all she had to say first. As for you priest, you obviously need to be replaced, or have more training. Any priest or miko could tell you that whatever is causing this widespread sickness is pure yoki. Lady Keiko does not possess pure yoki, and neither does her brother. Now..." Her expression changed from stern to a smile that held a hint of mischievousness and a bit of ice. "Lord InuGenki will be returning soon, I hear. Will you apologize to the lady, or will I have to inform her father of the mistreatment she had come under when all she was trying to do was help? Oh, I bet he'd love to know two men under your orders to drown her also behaved rather inappropriately towards his beloved daughter."

- - - - -

Kagome shook her head with suppressed laughter, walking over and patting Inuyasha on the shoulder. "You know her far better than me. I do have a feeling that she is exactly aware of what you are saying about her. Winter is carried on the wind... just like your voice."

- - - - -

Akemi turned her gaze from the valley, she glanced at the demon that came to report, before looking back to the point where her husband and son were sure to emerge from later. "Stay out of the way." She said in a tense voice, her body humming with irritated energy. She turned her attention suddenly when the two arrived, and she turned an icy, angry gaze towards Totosai. "You better hope my husband is fast enough to stop me when he returns. I am suffering because of you!" She turned her shoulder towards him, now ignoring him as best she could. "Hurry up, you fools! My husband and son have been waiting long enough!"

Keiko started to nod her head slowly as the villagers ran passed them. She sighed heavily and started walking towards the village. "I am aware with what time it is, but...yes, for us certain times of the year either our Father's side or our mother's side is the more dominant power" she said before she laughed while covering up her mouth. "Why no, I don't have many suitors thanks to being what I am. If they were attracted to me my dumb brother is also another reason why not a lot of men try to flirt with me back" she said before they came around the corner with Aiko holding his naginata extended out towards the village elder and the priest. The priest's sacred sutras lying on the ground inert. "What!? My sutras aren't working on him!?" he shouted. Aiko glared at him. "How dare you treat a Goddess this way!? Don't you realize yet that your pathetic sutras won't work on the children of the Inu Kami!?" he shouted. The elder got onto his knees and bowed to him. "Please forgive us! Please to smite our village!" he shouted. The priest looked at him skeptically before the elder tugged at his shoulder. "What are you doing? Are you crazy!?" he shouted. The priest cleared his throat looking towards Mika, which he could sense Keiko and Aiko's youki, but he could sense Mika's spiritual power. "Are you the caretaker of these gods?" he asked.

Miroku caught Kagome's strength giving out on her, which Sango had already mentioned about Kagome's changes in behavior. He pushed his thoughts about it for a later time, which he began to think about Lady Akemi, and he chuckled at InuYasha calling her a cow. "Now that's very rude of you. I'm sure that Lady Akemi is a very gorgeous and beautiful attractive woman as all Yuki Onna are" he said. InuYasha rolled his eyes and scoffed at his idea. "Yea, if you consider huge udder tits as being attractive!" he scoffed. "What an idiot!" Shippo remarked. InuYasha looked over at Kagome pretending to be unaffected by the cold. "Feh! She can't kick my ass anymore...not with my Tetsusaiga with me" he said. "I wouldn't be so sure about that, and besides that, doesn't Tetsusaiga not work properly when you turn human?" Sango chimed in. His back was growing more cold, and he gulped. "Nah, she wouldn't waste her time with me...would she?" he said before he grew a little paranoid. Miroku cleared his throat closing his eyes with a good idea of the rumors of Lady Akemi's powers being confirmed. "Well, I think your brother has fine taste in women" he said before he trailed off.

Meanwhile in Sadogashima, there were a many daiyoukai on the mountain range looking down at a valley. Youkai were moving human motionless bodies towards the mountains. In charge was an extremely beautiful pale skinned woman with long shiny black hair fitted with an elegant headdress asserting her Noble status. She was watching the operation carefully. She wore dark purple lipstick and had a loose ruby red kimono exposing the cleavage of her firm overly well-endowed chest. A giant wolf youkai approached her grinning with pride. “We’ve cleared the path of all innocents as you requested, what is your next command, milady?” he asked. Totosai had just arrived before Myoga hopped onto her shoulder. "I have brought you Totosai just as you asked, milady" he said before he bowed to her. Totosai glared at him. "Myoga, you no good double-crosser!" he said.


He was confronted by young teenage youkai bearing similar markings of a crescent moon on her forehead like her uncle and grandmother. She had the same black hair as her mother and she was already very well-endowed for a girl her age. Her gaze upon him was chilling, which she acquired from her father. She giggled covering up her face with her fan. “Did you bring it?” she asked. Totosai shivered handing her the yellow pearl, which she gazed into it. "Is this the thing that supposed to open the gates of spirit and time mother?" she asked. She was very amused that such a small delicate thing was capable of such great calamity and destruction. Totosai glanced over at the woman and narrowed his eyes upon her. "Aren't you a little under-dressed for the occasion?" he asked noticing that she was not layered up before he felt his leg freeze up. He gasped and grabbed it. "Err, I mean, aren't you a little cold?" he asked before the ice advanced even more. The teenage girl laughed and looked towards her mother amused. "Don't you forget my mother is a Yuki onna? The most powerful ever!?" she asked with pride.

Mika hated seeing her reactions to his odd behavior, and she was going to say something when she heard the screaming, then seeing the fleeing people. "I take it your brother does this a lot?" She said in a light voice before placing her bow into the quiver on her back. "We should go stop him, then. Before he does something really brash, yeah?" She chuckled under her breath, heading against the fleeing crowd towards town. "Lady Keiko, I do not mean to sound... rude but... are you aware of what time it is? Not the time of day, but of what time it is for you? I remember many stories about your mother, and your father. Both were very powerful, I heard. That translates down to their children, and a bit on the unfortunate side, well... that means your aura and scent during certain times of the year are equally powerful. I'm surprised you do not have trouble with men all the time. Lord Marius' people are very respectful and protective of their women. Couple that with their demonic levels of senses and... drive, well..."

Rin shifted and stood closer to Kagome, seeing the woman's posture sag slightly. This allowed her to steady herself on Rin when her strength gave out on her for a split second. "Thank you, Rin." The young woman nodded. "I will go prep these herbs, and make a tea for our guest." She said in a low voice, and Kagome watched as the young woman ran off, smiling sadly. It had been quite some time since he had come to visit her, and with news of this spreading sickness, she found herself wondering if the young woman was worried about him. Pulling herself from her thoughts, she frowned slightly at Inuyasha's comment about Lady Akemi, almost laughing when she saw his body give that shiver. "Let me guess, you got the chills. You really shouldn't speak ill of her, you know. She just might show up here and kick your butt on the way to greet her husband."

Keiko clutched her hand over her heart feeling sympathy for the people who has succumbed to the illness already. "That's just terrible, so people are starting to die from this?" she asked. She looked at Marius oddly, and she took offense to the looks he was giving her. "I see he's a bigot like the other yokai" she muttered once he left. She looked towards Mika skeptically and huffed. "Hmph, not used to people huh? What happened to your story about him treating villagers like his own?" she said as she crossed her arms over her chest, but that was soon interrupted by villagers screaming and running out of town. "Damn it Aiko!" she growled.

Meanwhile at Totosai’s home, Myoga was sitting on the rim of a large pot looking at the lava lake bubbling and belching toxic gasses. He sneezed and fell into the pot, which he grumbled, “Someone is talking about me.” He noticed that there was a faint yellow glow inside the pot, and he squirmed about through the dust and cob webs to get a box. He opened the box to unveil a collection of many colored pearls. “Hey Totosai…one of Hosenki’s pearls are glowing!” he called out.
Totosai walked up to the pot and reached in for the box. He pulled the box out with Myoga on top coughing from all the dust, so he jumped onto his shoulder to escape the cloud of dust before Totosai managed to open the box. “Now…which one was this supposed to tell us?” he muttered while stroking his beard. Myoga looked at the yellow pearl glowing, which he hopped onto the padding seeing an old piece of paper peering out of the seam of the lining. He tugged on it and managed to pull out a folded piece of paper. Totosai looked to Myoga and gasped. "Bwa! Where did you get that!?" he shouted in anger instead of relief. The begrudgingly snatched the paper and opened it. “Hmmm, what does this say?” he muttered.
Myoga jumped onto his hand, before he shivered after he examined the note. “The yellow one is supposed to be for the Realm of Spirit and Time!?” he shouted.
Totosai scratched the top of his head. “No one was in it were there?” he asked before he looked outside.
Myoga paused before he glared at Totosai. “You know full well who were in it…You have to go over there to get them out” he said.
"I don't know who were in there" Totosai rambled.
"Did you try to hide this from me!? How long have you been ignoring this!?" Myoga shouted.
Totosai shook his head. “Are you nuts? That’s hazardous to my health! Why don’t you do it!?” he shouted.
Saya appeared out from a scabbard that was set on top of a pot, and he cleared his throat. “I thought you were on good terms with him? Or did you forget to let them out?” he asked.
Totosai looked at him confused. “Forget about what?” he asked before he saw that a jet of lava burst from the lake. Myoga and Saya both glared at Totosai, which Totosai took the yellow pearl grumbling, “You are both sending me to my grave” he shouted.
"Why are you afraid of him?" Saya asked.
"It's not him I'm afraid of! It's his wife!" Totosai shouted back.
"But it was his idea! Why would she have any grievances with you!?" Myoga shouted.
"I was supposed to make a naginata for her son when he finished his training, and...I've been having trouble with finding the materials to her specifications" he said as he scratched at the back of his head nervously.
“Do you think she will find you here?” Saya asked.
“Well, let’s get going then” Totosai finally said before he grabbed Saya and climbed on top of Momo is flying three eyed bull.

Back at Kaede’s village, InuYasha and the others noticed a young man on horseback burst into town in a full gallop, and he stopped his horse feet away from Sango. He seemed to be panicked and scared, but he was also looking ill. “Is the priestess in this village here!? I need to speak to her!” he shouted.
Kaede came out of the house. “I am the head priestess here…” she said. InuYasha ran over to figure out what all the ruckus was all about.
The young man dismounted his horse only to fall off and twist his ankle. He grabbed his ankle and winced. “I came from Niigata, and I was the fastest rider to get here. We need your best exorcists to come quickly…almost everyone in the area is sick and weak” he said.
Kaede frowned. “Is this the same sickness going around?” she asked.
The young man cringed. “It started out when my mother and the villagers were complaining about headaches a couple days ago, then more people were complaining about the same thing, but the children and elderly felt malaise and fatigued. It went to vomiting, fainting spells, and seizures…When the priest traveled to Sadogashima…he said everyone disappeared” he said.
"What do ya mean they just disappeared!?" InuYasha shouted at him.
"Easy InuYasha" Miroku said as he walked up to the man.
Kaede looked towards the northern lands. “This is much worse than I expected” she said before she sighed. “If the youki there builds up any more or the people are exposed to it for a couple of more days at its current state…they will surely die” she said.
The young man growled. “Mother…” he muttered before he stood up. “What do we do? Nothing much could be done. The priests and priestesses could only hold up a barrier but once the gates of spirit and time are unlocked. Then it'll be too much for even” he asked.
“Gates of spirit and time? What’s that?” Shippo asked.
“I've heard that the Realm of spirit and time is a place where youkai can visit their dead ancestors, but it only able to open once every 50 years around this time. Though from what I heard was the realm takes a toll on the body of the living, and it’s very dangerous for even the strongest of youkai. I have not heard of a youkai stayed inside for a whole 50 years…” she said.
"Is this the source of the youki, milady?" Sango asked.
Kaede nodded. “The gate is only unlocked, and that is why youki has been leaking out for these past months” she said.
Shippo gulped. “So, What happens when that gate is opened?” he asked.
Kaede paused before she sighed. “The last time it opened, there was a great light and a great wind. That is all I remember…” she said before she gulped. "I don't remember the youki ever being this strong though, it's like...someone is in it" she muttered before she had an epiphany. She was starting to have flashbacks.
"When you say it opened 50 years ago and someones still in it? Who do you know who couple possibly survive in the realm of Spirit and time for that long?” InuYasha muttered before Shippo gasped and shivered to what he was alluding to and stared up at him in disbelief. “Lord InuGenki!? Didn’t he die in the great war?” he asked.
“Is it possible for someone from the netherworld to get to this world using the gates of spirit and time?” InuYasha asked.
“Hmm, it’s quite possible, but the Shinigami would place a bounty on whoever tried something so stupid. I’ve never heard of a spirit successfully escaping the Netherworld through those means. The Shinigami know these gates well and they place their strongest to prevent the spirits from passing into here and the living from passing into the netherworld…Although…if he's anything like you, that's probably what he's planning" she said.
InuYasha scowled at her. "Come again? Just what are you implying you old hag?" he grumbled.
Shippo shivered. "My father told me that Lord InuGenki could turn into a demon the size of a mountain!"
Miroku and Sango both thought back about the size of InuYasha's father when they visited his grave. "Is this true?"
"Feh, I never saw him do it. His cow of a wife would get pissed off at me whenever I asked him to do it" he said before he felt a freezing cold breeze hit his back.
The young man gritted his teeth and shivered. “Do you have a place for me to stay? I don’t have much mon left to afford an inn” he asked.
Kaede looked at the couple of mon on his necklace before she walked away telling him, “Come…I have room for you to stay the night” she said.

Mika watched Marius as he picked some leaves from the bush he had walked over to, noting the tenseness of his shoulders. "The sickness has reached our own town in the South." She said in a low voice, turning to look at Keiko. "It isn't very severe, but it has killed some of our eldest villagers, and several children under two years old. Lord Marius lives in the mountains to our west. Despite never asking anything of our villages, he has taken a liking to us. He sees the villagers as... his people so to speak, and so we were on a journey to find the source ourselves." "Mika, I need you to help me with the wound on my back. I will take that village leader's package to Lady Akemi myself. Stay near those two until I return." Do not argue with me, Mika. I cannot stay around this female. He spoke directly to her mind, and she nodded.

After she was done, she stepped back as Marius took the package in hand and then launched himself into the air, turning into his dragon form as he went, higher and higher until his disappeared above the clouds. Mika shook her head with a sigh, looking back at Keiko with a faint smile. "I am sorry, Lady Keiko. Lord Marius has spent many years alone in the mountains. He told me of how he came to be here, from halfway across the world. People are not his strong point."

- - - - -

Kagome let out a low sigh at his agitated reaction, and she smiled faintly at him, having a pretty good idea as to what exactly was making it so bad. She turned her attention to Miroku when he spoke to her, and her expression turned a little hard as she thought about the oppressive feeling she had been sensing at the edge of her mind for a while now. "It could be a corrupted spirit. Something that has festered for a long time, and with... his absence stretching on for so long, the spirit is stretching out. Corrupting others so it doesn't suffer alone... maybe." Rin watched Kagome in silence, her long black hair obscuring her face for the most part. It felt really weird being just slightly taller than the woman now. She felt lanky and uncoordinated now that she was... maturing, but she was glad for Kagome's guidance.

Keiko and Aiko were both hanyo children of a highly respected daiyokai and legendary miko. Their mother died protecting their village while they were very young, but their father frequented the village bringing them gifts and teach them how to tap into their powers. Keiko grew into a beautiful young woman, and Aiko grew into a handsome young man. Thanks to their heritage, they have immense yokai powers from their father's side, and thanks to their mother's spiritual powers, their human side was highly resistant to it. They had a lot to be grateful for, and they felt blessed that their father would accept them being hanyo.

Something happened to their father. He was popping out, in, and back out of existence, and they could not get an answer to what happened to him.
It has been 50 years since their father last disappeared. Recently strange things have kept on happening. First, the Shikon jewel appeared. broke, and was scattered into hundreds of pieces. Second, Rumors spread about a girl in strange clothes with miko powers appeared. Third, their hanyo uncle was resurrected. After a great battle with Naraku and the destruction of the Shikon jewel, they thought that things would go back to normal but...years past, and there was a great sickness spreading throughout the region. It started in Sado and Echigo Province and fanned out in every direction, and it was now affecting their village. Their chieftain told them they must find a way to bring relief to their village since they were no being affected.

Keiko and Aiko traveled around the region trying to find the source. They made it up into Tohoku, which they quickly discovered something disturbing about the sickness. The more villages they encountered the worse the severity and symptoms were. When they got to Echigo and Sado it was not just children, elderly, and the frail, but even grown men were falling ill. They thought they found the source, but it turned into a dead end. They were on their way towards Lady Akemi's Castle in Mutsu province hoping she could help them.

They were running low on necessities, so Akio left his sister to do some trading in the village while he gathered valuable resources for additional trades. Keiko was quite the attractive sales woman, and she set up her trading post on the outskirts of the village not afraid to use her sex appeal to manipulate her customer. Everything was going a well as she could hope before she was surrounded by a group of men. The village elder and a priest was with them accusing her of being the source of the jaki, which she had to point out it was just really strong yoki. They did not listen. They tied her up and confiscated her goods before they dragged her off intending to drown her in a lake.

She did not blame them for being scared. She planned to break free and get away, but she screamed feeling one touch her butt then started fondling her breasts. "Eek! Let go of me you perv!" she shouted. "Hey! Help! They're going to rape me!" She called out more for her brother to chase them off. What she got was a little more trouble than what she anticipated. Horrified, she was not expecting the poor men to be slain in the manner she would hope. She got really quiet and gritted her teeth. "Thank you for rescuing me, but..." she said before she stared at them in shock. "Wait, did you say escort me to my home?" she muttered in confusion . She wiggled around in the ropes that bound her and finally she managed to cut them with her claws. "Look, you don't understand! I don't live in my father's castle" she said before she looked away rubbing her shoulder. "It would cause too much drama with Lady Akemi" she muttered.

Just then, Aiko suddenly appeared from above the trees. He looked around at the carnage and the torn rope at his sisters feet and put two and two together. "Okay, what happened this time? Did you get tied up again?" he said more out of annoyance than actually wanting the question to be answered. "Did you at least get supplies? or food?" he asked. Keiko glared at him. "Do I look like I have food stupid? They took everything I had!" she raised her voice. Aiko growled and turned towards the village. "Those damn bastards! I'm going to teach them a lesson! Stealing our stuff!" he shouted. Keiko sighed heavily looking towards Marius and Mika. "He won't kill them...don't worry" she told them before she dusted herself off. "My name is Keiko and that was my older brother Aiko. We're the children of the great miko, Mitsuko. We're on a journey to help stop the Great Sickness spreading around. We've figured out that its coming from a great yoki, but...its so vast we can't figure out where its coming from. All the older villagers in the north say this kind of event happened fifty years ago, and that was when a great calamity happened. Do you have any ideas what may be happening?" she asked.

Meanwhile in Kaede's village, Miroku and InuYasha stood in the middle of the road looking towards the north his face cast a stern trouble look. It has been four years since the shikon no tama and Naraku were destroyed. InuYasha and Kagome had married, and Miroku and Sango had three kids, two of which are twin daughters age three and one baby boy. InuYasha and Miroku started a Yokai Exorcist business while Kagome took the responsibility to upkeep the shrine, and Sango enjoyed a quieter life with her children. Nothing major had happened since their fight with Naraku, and InuYasha had dropped his anxiety with regards to starting his own family, but today he was regretting letting his wife talk him into trying for a baby. Rin was walking with Kagome carrying a basket of herbs from the forest when she noticed the two. InuYasha looked at Kagome irritated. “Where the hell were you!? I thought you had gotten kidnapped or something!” he shouted. It was growing close to the new moon, and InuYasha was very easy to set off today as per usual, but something was making him extra pissy today.

Miroku turned towards Kagome with an ominous stern look. “Lady Kagome, have you sensed anything...strange lately? I've been noticing some very strange occurrences happening these past months during our travels, and I've also been sensing yoki. A strong yoki very far away, it's been growing since the past few days. I thought it would wane, but now it's making a lot of yokai nervous. I doubt it's a yokai. It's hard to explain. I can barely feel it, but it takes up a tremendous area. I can't even find an exact origin, it's almost as if it's leaking everywhere up north and not from one point either. I'm curious if what you think about it” he asked.

InuYasha growled lowly picturing what foe he would meet. "We have to get to the bottom of this before it becomes a Naraku sized problem!" he shouted.
"Hold on InuYasha, we first have to get ready. Let's gather our supplies and figure out where's the best place to start. I'm going to ask Lady Kaede if she may know what's going on" he said.

Mika yawned, stretching her arms high above her head. Rubbing at her right eye, she froze when she relied that she couldn't see anything but white. After a moment, she recognized the soft looking fluff of clouds around her. She was above the lower band of clouds that stretched over the land, a storm getting ready to rage. "Lord Marius?" She called out, and instantly became embarassed, as her left hand ran down over the smooth dark red scales on the dragon lord's back. She was warm, a result of being on the dragon's back, so of course she was riding on his back! "You are awake. You were sleeping so soundly when it was time to leave, I could not wake you. I just had the others tie the special package to my chest and had them put you on my back. Your weapon and travel package is tied securely to the spine spike behind your head."

After the miko recovered from her embarassment, she shifted into a seat position facing forward, placing her hands into her sleeves in order to keep them from getting cold. "It is very nice of you to do this for that village lord. Are you not afraid of the reception you might receiver when we arrive? The great Lord of these lands has been gone for some time no- Lord Marius?!" She yelped when he suddenly went into a speed banking turn to the right, dipping below the cloud level. He had heard a scream, a female scream, and his deep bred instint to protect females kicked in. Seeing a young woman accosted by three men, he pulled his wings into his sides. One of the men screamed, but an arrow went through his throat as Mika had retrieved her bow from the spike on Marius' back and had let loose an arrow. "Jump!" Just as Marius pumped his wings once to keep from slamming into the ground, Mika jumped and thankfully landed in a thick bush that left her with only minor tears in her outfit, shielding her bow made by the head priestess from back home with her body.

Landing, Marius changed back into his humanoid form in a single fluid movement, his nails turning sharper than any blade. Sinking them into the shoulders of one of the two remaining men, he tossed them to the side and froze, as the other man managed to get his hands on the young woman. The man looked at him with wide eyes, a slight shaking throughout his body. The demon that stood before him, claws covered in blood and those... reptilian eyes. He was powerful! The rage in his eyes, though... No one looked like that when a woman was assaulted. Mika hid in a bush, her eyes going wide when she finally could see the young woman's aura. "Lord Marius!" She called out as the other man had recovered quicker than Marius had expected, and slashed him across the back.

Moving with irritation, Mika flinched as Marius turned halfway, slamming an open palm into his attacker's back. Blood fell from the man's mouth and ears, just as he went flying. The man that had a hold on the young woman let go and took off running, having thrown aside his weapon. Marius muttered something under his breath and made a sharp movement towards his own body. The man was grabbed by the very air and yanked back, only for Marius' left hand to go through his back, grabbing his heart and crushing it, resulting in a very bloody and suden death. Tossing the man aside, he was going to speak immediately to the young woman but his words died when a strong whiff of the woman's scent completely obliterated his thoughts. "Mika. Take this young woman home. You are stronger than you think." He said the last past, seeing Mika's expression from the corner of his eyes. " I will stay here." He turned and walked over to where he spotted a bush filed with white berries. "I will keep the small village Lord's package safe. Please let the Lady Akemi know that I do not tresspass, but have come to deliver the tribute for the village Lord for her household." Mika hesitated for a moment, before looing over at the young woman, giving her a low bow. "I am Mika, a priestess from south of your Lord Father's domain. Please allow me to escort you the rest of the way home, my lady."