A Demonic Love Story

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha...mwah...tear!

The soul stealers are hugh grotesque shadowlike youkai with massive yellow fangs, hugh blood red claws, and big beady looking silver eyes that hypnotize their prey through false illusions. These youkai are feared even by other youkai themselves for they can read even their elusive minds and have proven themselves to be ruthless killers.

As a warning one should never look into the eyes of a soul stealer unless you wish to sign your own death sentence and have your soul taken. Since you cannot look directly into their eyes this makes fighting them even more difficult because you are unable to anticipate what their next move will be. Your greatest weapons against fighting these types of youkais are your natural instincts and/or reflexes for survival to make you aware when danger is present.

Ways in which you must kill a soul stealer is to remove its heart from its body or decapitate its head. Any other method of killing these youkai runs the risk of having the souls it took lost forever without the possibility of rebirth. This is extremely dangerous due to the fact you have to be able to get close enough to its grotesque body and evade their lightening fast movements and illusions without having your own innards ripped out of your own body.

Upon setting forth towards the inevitable battle with the soul stealers the whole group of companions, with the exception of Kagome, silently took a moment to plead with Kami-sama that this time they finish off Naraku for good. Once they settled their lot with Kami-sama they set off with grim faces into the dreary forest of the soul stealers.

The group pasted the clearing prior to entering the forest with no attack, which was rather unusual considering that the Jaki surrounding the area was almost overwhelming. The group was on their guard for they knew that although you couldn’t see the soul stealers their presence was very much within the area. The group’s greatest protection against the soul stealers is to always remain on guard and suspicious of your surroundings plus the barrier Kagome placed over them to protect them from any unsuspecting attacks made upon them if they by any chance got caught up in an illusion.

Kagome knew that the impeding threat to the whole group lay a good 100 yards into the dark forest itself. She could see with her mind’s eye exactly where they were and she knew that they could see her coming towards them. Kagome unlike the rest of the group was able to hide her thoughts from the soul stealers and this irked them somewhat. Sensing that she was the most powerful of the group and different from any other being they ever came across they felt it wise to wait and attack her in a group after they had dispensed with her so-called weaker bodyguards.

The group had just entered the outskirts of the forest when Kagome informed them in a hard commanding voice that the soul stealers were a good 100 yards in front of them and were hiding and ready to attack from all sides. Everyone was placed further on guard they were also slightly shocked and utterly grateful that she informed them of where the beasts where hiding. Although the soul stealers do not have a great sense of hearing they did hear the unusually powerful miko give away their position. Angered that she alarmed the others in her company as to their presence they began to advance upon them rather then wait for them to walk into their trap. Kagome pleased that she ruined their plans sensed their advancement unto the group. Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha, Kouga, and Kiarara could also sense the movement being made in all directions towards them. So to better hold off the attack Kiarara took to the sky with Sango; Sesshoumaru took a defensive fighting stance to the west; Inuyasha took a defensive fighting stance to the east; Kouga took a defensive fighting stance to the south; and Miroku along with Kagome took a defensive fighting stance to the north.

In a matter of seconds one of the soul stealers appeared within 10 feet of Kagome. It was then that she released a powerful strange blue energy and directed it towards the creatures’ heart. Within seconds the creatures’ body turned to dust and you could see hundreds of white glowing orbs fleeing towards the sky. The souls where now free from the clutches of that despicable youkai. Upon the death of the first soul stealer 10 more appeared before the group. Each member of the group was being ganged up my two soul stealers with the exception of Kagome. None dared to advance upon her as of yet. Kagome was aware of their intentions to fight her after they fought off all of her companions first. Knowing of their intentions allowed Kagome the time to concentrate on her surroundings and pinpoint Naraku’s location within the forest. Being a coward as usual he was located further up north and a good 25 miles away from the soul stealer’s forest. Knowing that Naraku was watching their group valiantly fight against the soul stealers through his all seeing mirror Kagome smiled cruelly and voiced to him in a hard tone “Naraku, tu arbitrium certo atque exstinguor solus proprius manus” (Latin for: Naraku, you will fail and die by my own hand).

The strange foreign words Kagome spoke were not lost on her friends. It did not take them too long to realize that the soul stealers would attack Kagome as a whole group if they failed to kill them off. Angered by their cunning intent the group struck out at the soul stealers with a vengeance.

The battle with the soul stealers did in fact prove to be most tiresome and grueling for the group. Although the Inu-tachi did prove to be victorious over the battler it was not without some casualties. Sango-chan was now sporting a dislocated shoulder that came out of joint after a particularly violent throw of her bone boomerang at a soul stealer that almost nearly slashed Miroku in half. Miroku is suffering from the poison he unavoidably sucked into is kaazana (wind tunnel) in his attempt to rid the group of the persistent and bothersome soul stealers along with Naraku’s hell insects. Kouga-kun’s legs were very nearly slashed to ribbons to the point where his bone could be seen protruding out from its protective encasing flesh. Inuyasha’s arm was rendered useless towards the end of the battle when a soul stealer snuck up from behind him and shattered his sword arm but he did not let that stop him and continued to fight his hardest.

During Inuyasha’s fight he unwittingly earned the respect of his aniki by proving to him that he would fiercely fight to the very end if he had to so that he could protect the one’s he truly cares about. Sesshoumaru, although loathe to admit it out loud to his brother was very proud of his brother and his companions valiant efforts to rid the world of Naraku and his disgusting minions. Sesshoumaru himself was not without injury. For most of the battle he was fairing well, until he noticed a soul stealer advancing his way closer to his mate for the kill from behind while she was currently occupied in killing off the two in front of her. Sesshoumaru noticing what was about to happen quickly decapitated the one in front of him and faster than the speed of lightening raced to his mate Kagome’s side and took the blow that was intended for her. The immense pain he felt as the creatures’ hand pierced his abdomen and teared his intestines was excruciating. His only comfort was that he saved his mate from this pain and protected his unborn child from certain death were this creature to hit his target. Before succumbing to the overwhelming darkness of unconsciousness Sesshoumaru made sure to thrust his claws into the creatures’ breast plate and violently removed its grotesque heart and let his acidic poison eat away at the despicable muscle in his bloodied hand. Not to long after that all was a blur for him until everything went black.

Kagome sensing her mates’ agony then all of a sudden sensed nothing was worried beyond belief. When she turned around and saw her mate’s body lying in a puddle of his own blood with a huge gaping hole in his abdomen and a vile soul stealer near him did she realize what had happened. Sesshoumaru rushed to her side and took the blow that was aimed at her. Kagome was beyond grief stricken and incensed. Those vile creatures hurt the demon she loved unconditionally they would pay for their horrible acts. Kagome’s grief and anger was so potent that Mother Nature itself waged war with the remaining soul stealers and slowly ripped their vile hearts from their monstrous bodies and tearing both organ and body to tiny innumerable pieces. There screams could be heard all throughout the forest even so far as to Naraku’s hiding place. Naraku was immensely intrigued as well as slightly worried he may have angered the miko a little too much. Little did he know he had signed his own death warrant. Kagome would seem him dead for what he had done to her mate and her faithful companions.