25

"My lord! Your mother requests your presence," a guard announced outside of the door. Half a day had passed and while Satomi looked to be stable, he found it difficult to leave her. Having half a notion to kill the guard crossed his mind. Luckily, the guard took his leave before Sesshomaru could fulfill that notion.

Putting his haori and armor back on, he found himself glancing at her more and more. A part of him hoped she would awaken, the other part found peace watching her sleep. This admiration for her still confused him, however he couldn't deny that peace in a place that knew only war. This land, his soul, his mind, and body all knew war and battle too easily. Rin gave him solace, a person worth protecting. Satomi gave him peace, the quiet peace of a sunset and sunrise as the world stood still for even a moment. The peace of a slow rain that washed away the dirt and blood after battle. A life worth dying for.

A life. That's what he wanted with her. He never wanted Rin to go, that pained him to know that some day she would pass on as all humans do. The notion he would ever have to let her go was one thing. However, Satomi made him want to live a life where he could fulfill her wants and desires with just a request. Oh, how he had changed in the years that had passed since pulling the pearl from Inu-Yasha's eye, meeting Rin, going through his father's trials, and now this. A life he didn't ask for was now one he didn't want to let go.

Walking out of the room, he gave one last glance before turning forward and seeing Yaken scratching his ear. Tilting his head up, he cocked it to the right as if waiting for orders. "Watch her. If anything happens to her, I'll kill you," he said leaving the area with Yaken giving a confirming bark in response. That was one less thing to worry about as he passed guard after guard who bowed to him. He sensed the others were waiting with his mother. Never did he think Inu-Yasha and his mother would meet. Honestly, it was a strange notion he never thought he wanted to happen. However, given the circumstances it seemed unavoidable.

The doors were slid opened for him as he approached. A grand throne was in the middle of the room where his mother resided. Rin and Kohaku were behind Inu-Yasha and Kagome on one side. Jaken was on the other side of the throne. They all looked to Sesshomaru with worried emotion, and he didn't understand.

"We have little time to explain but that demon you are hell bent on killing is on his way, it seems," his mother said with her usual calm nature. "Your divine friend seemed to have caught his attention. Being as you took responsibility to the danger coming to our people, I will let you handle the situation as I warned you against this."

"Have it your way," he said matching her tone. Did Jiro somehow know of Satomi's nature? Perhaps Jiro was more sensitive to divine power levels than himself. Either way, there was little point in wondering. He was coming here, so there wouldn't be much time to prepare. "Inu-Yasha, if he brings reinforcements, I will need you to fight them off. Kagome do what you can to heal. Kohaku and Jaken, protect Rin. I will face him on my own. Mother, I will need our elite guard."

"If they die, it is on your hands. As a leader you must accept this," his mother said warningly as a guard approached her.

"They know what it means to be in our guard. I accept death is inevitable in battle, I can only hope they do as well unless if things have changed that much," he responded annoyed that she would doubt his knowledge of battle and death. He caused too much of it to back down now.

"So be it, they will be assembled at the entrance for your orders, my son." Taking her leave, she stood and walked from the room. "I will be with the women and children in the central compound." Leaving no room for debate, the doors slid shut firmly.

"Well, this should be interesting," Kagome said with a shaky tone to her voice. "Can't help but wonder how he knew she would be out of commission. His message was very cryptic and unsettling." Holding the scroll in her hand, Sesshomaru looked to her as he extended his hand out. Snatching it away as she offered it, he opened and read quickly as his eyes narrowed.

Dog Demons of the West

Well well, it has been fun getting to toy with the new Dog Demon Lord, but I'm getting tired of sitting on the side lines.

I wish to see if he's really all that is rumored about him considering his manor was easy enough to burn down.

As for his lovely goddess, she slumbers now so it shall be fun to see what he's made of without her interfering and ruining the fun.

If he dies, then the West shall bow to me.

Let's see if the dog has a bite as bad as his bark.

His hand started to glow green as it disintegrated the scroll down to the floor. "Who delivered this?"

"It was on the chair when your mother called on us. Given the message, that's when we called you," Kagome said quietly as she stepped behind Inu-Yasha as Sesshomaru's eyes flashed a red glow before returning back to normal.

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'Well, that was interesting. Turns out this is progressing faster than I wished it to.' Tsukuyomi watched in the distance. He was letting her have his power, but the human side was always a problem. As a full-fledged god he could live forever if he wished to. Her human side was realizing its mortality as more power grew inside of her. He wondered if perhaps she would choose to be a goddess and embrace that part of her fully. Maybe that would be the one way to avoid the death. Toss away the humanity to live forever bound to a purpose. However, that didn't seem like her way to live. Her soul needed rest, and he sensed that now more than ever.

Satomi remained in her dreams even as Sesshomaru disappeared. Tears continued to fall, but she didn't know if it was from the pain of her wounds or the sudden rush of emotion that overtook her. Her death was inevitable, but to see that she couldn't do anything was even more miserable. She was there in her dreams wondering when she would wake up. However, no end was in sight. The warmth was still there from his embrace, but she was left alone by the lake with the moon shining above it.

Looking up at the moon, she wondered if it felt as lonely as she did. Stars all around and yet its brightness seemed to dim them. Never truly thinking herself as a moon before, but it made sense even before she became the moon goddess. A loner with no cause but her own, changing her life so many times that she lost count with the different phases of her life, and always feeling the darkness around her no matter how bright she could shine.

Looking down at her hands, she could see how they were translucent. Satomi knew she would die at the end of these events, that was never an issue for her to face. However, that didn't stop the fear from shivering up her spine. All this time she thought she could face death and yet she was scared. Before, she could live with the fact that if Rin could just live her life out in peace then her death would have meaning. There was so much more now that was at stake. She had a life worth living.

Somehow, thinking that made her feel lighter and the pain ease away. A small smile graced her face as she realized she wasn't truly alone. Sesshomaru, always the protector even if he was gruff and stoic most of the time. Rin, her only family left who brought her back from the darkness more times than she could count. Kagome and Inu-Yasha for helping guide and train her and always willing to make her laugh. Kohaku for his few meetings with her made her feel as if her little sister would remain safe and he would do anything he could to protect Rin. These people made her life worth living.

"You are truly blessed by the gods, even if you don't see it," Tsukuyomi made his appearance to her as he floated down and inserted his hands in his sleeves with a coy smile as he nodded to her.

"Maybe just a little," she said as she looked down at her hands again and they were back to normal. Her clothes were not stained in blood as she looked them over. She was in her goddess form, but she felt different. More aware now and less held back. "Are you up to something again?"

"Not quite, this was all you. I gave you my power, you're just waking up and seeing its value I suppose. Typical human, always slow to grasp the severity of the situation until you have an emotional break," he teased as he reached out to touch her cheek. He didn't wish her to die, that much was certain. She was far too talented to be wasted on death. However, he had a plan. A plan that perhaps wouldn't benefit this life, but the next. "You are loved far more than you know. Take it from a god who sees everything you do not."

She nodded against his hand and smiled as tears started to well up again. His words meant more to her than she realized. "But I will die, won't I?" she couldn't help but ask as his expression said it all. "All I ask is when it happens, I won't be alone." A small hitch in her breath escaped her as the tears fell over her cheek and along his knuckles. To her surprise, she felt herself being pulled forward and embraced by the god.

"If I allowed myself to love you, that demon would have no chance in hell," he said as he brushed his lips against her cheek. Startled, she pulled away and touched the place he tenderly kissed. Her face turned so many shades of red her cheeks almost stung. He grinned like a cat who just had a bucket of milk and she sighed and laughed.

"Demons, gods, humans. I really am turning into quite the oddity," she said running her fingers through her hair in a nervous response. Everything felt so surreal and strange, and yet as if this was how it was supposed to be. A strange pull at her heart told her she wasn't imagining this feeling of familiarity.

"Not an oddity, it was your destiny set into motion a long time ago. Truly you are one of the very few to break the mold of all three. A demon fueled your energy because of your kindred connection, you are mortal, and I bestowed you with my abilities. You are on the brink of learning how to mold all three into your own instead of needing guidance. However, I pity the way you will learn how," Tsukuyomi said as his face turned from hopeful to pitiable.

Without warning, metal chains emerged from the ground and wrapped their way around her legs, arms, and waist. Pulling her to the ground, she felt as though they would break her bones if they could go any tighter. "What's happening?" she struggled to ask as her head was now pinned against the ground. Her fingertips and toes were the only parts of her able to move as she struggled to find some sort of weak point. There wasn't, and her hair turned from gold to brown. Mortal again and her body began to feel the change.

Crack. A lower rib fractured as the chain tightened as she struggled. Crying out in pain, she didn't understand what was happening. Looking to the god that was supposed to guide and help her, she didn't recognize the garb anymore. The aura had changed completely as if he was cast out. How was that possible? They were in her own mind and yet…

"Satomi, alone at last." The voice she wished to never hear again. Jiro was there in her mind. Closing her eyes, she tried to will him away and yet his steps grew closer. "Don't be afraid my dear, I am enjoying my time with your friends. However, I wanted to see you and enjoy our own time together. Your demon dog is particularly fun."

Chains tightened and her wrists started cracking under the pressure. Instantly she could see one turn purple as she opened her eyes to see him propped up on his elbow on the ground with his hand under his head. As if he was enjoying a peaceful day after working hard in the rice fields.

"Loss for words," Jiro said with an innocent shrug. "Don't worry, soon you won't have to worry about speaking ever again. Your demon dog will not last much longer at this rate. The others are useless. That demon slayer boy is as bad as a gnat and your sister… that was quite fun to figure out. Well, your sister will make for quite the prize. For all you and that dog put me through, you can bet she will be treated so well she will wish for death."

Her body started to jolt as he talked about hurting Rin. He continued on about all the things he would do to her as she screamed in agony as the chains tightened. Cracking and breaking surrounded her, but she would fight until she had nothing left. "… Oh but I won't kill her. That would be too easy, and you've been too much of a thorn in my side. Die now and I will prevent her from enduring this fate. Bow before me then die. That's all it will take."

Death sounded better. Her body gave into the darkness as her ribs cracked and blood filled her lungs. Suffocating wasn't pleasant, but she didn't see Jiro. Rin was there with her beaming smile. Death was now a pleasant dream as everything faded to black.

"SATOMI!"

Waking up from her sleep from Rin's voice, she looked around and saw nothing but the surroundings of an extravagant bedroom and she was alone. However, the energy from the outside was sickeningly familiar. Going out to the balcony, she saw them fighting. Sesshomaru still holding his own as the others seemed to be recuperating. Rin was with them helping Kagome as much as she could.

Looking beyond the fight, she could see what Jiro would be talking about from her dream. A lone long range archer aiming straight for Sesshomaru on the other side of the compound. Energy was wrapped around it, purified energy as Jiro kept Sesshomaru more than distracted. Feeling the release of the arrow, her heart sank as there was no time to think.

Flying, she was flying towards him at blinding speeds as she unleashed her battle axe and before it could graze him, she blocked the attack. Suddenly the focus was on her, everyone's eyes and Jiro seemed rather annoyed with this turn of events. Yaten was behind her now, looking to be out of breath and he caught a rather nasty look from Sesshomaru.

"You said that my demon dog annoyed you. Well, let me tell you this one is much worse," she said as Yaten barked and came to her side.

Jiro laughed with disbelief. "Are you stupid or just playing a game? That mutt would… oh! That is an interesting turn. The scent is unmistakable. Much like a relationship between sisters, wouldn't you agree? I may not have a dog sense of smell but I do have a way of making it work for me." He smiled as he fired an energy blast at his archer, killing them instantly. One way to say they failed him, she supposed.

"You've begun to annoy me," Satomi said as Yaten fed off her energy, it practically swirled around them and she didn't have time to think about it. This needed to end now. Lashing out in an attack, she could feel not just divine energy, but demon energy flowing through her. Yaten materialized into what looked like crystal fragments of dust as it washed across her skin and entered her body. A divine and demonic blast erupted from her as Jiro was thrown back. So, their battle had begun.

Rin looked at Satomi with fascination, her hair was silver like her favorite demon lord's. However, there wasn't much else to make out at the moment since Jiro and Satomi were moving so fast. Impossible to track with her human eyes, she had to blink as Kagome called to her.

"Rin, we have to stop the bleeding, focus," Kagome said as they tended to a dog demon soldier. Inu-Yasha transferred as many of the injured as he could out of harm's way now that Jiro was finally fully distracted.

"Kagome, you and Rin need to get inside and tend to the injured. Sesshomaru and I have it out here. Kohaku, we need you to protect them. Keep them safe for us or it's your ass!" Everyone nodded as finally they caught a break. Satomi couldn't have picked a better time, Sesshomaru was the only one able to keep up as he told Inu-Yasha to stand down. While that was fought out, more were injured. Survival was a victory at this point. So many dead, Inu-Yasha couldn't even fathom. The attack came so fast and hard that no one could have known the toll it would take on the dog demons and their compound.

As Kagome and Rin stopped the bleeding from the stomach wound for the soldier as best they could, they quickly ventured inside the compound. Kohaku standing guard just inside of the door, keeping an eye on things with a small crack he left open. Inu-Yasha would protect the outside as much as possible, but at the end of the day he knew Jiro was outside of his limits. It was up to Satomi and Sesshomaru to keep the real threat at bay as another wave of demons came into view.

Satomi knew what she had to do. Her body felt lighter than it ever had, her instincts were on point and her reflexes were so fast that she couldn't even keep track. Her breath quickened and her resolve took over. He would not hurt her family, not now or ever. She would destroy Jiro or die trying.