The Herald of Heaven and Earth

Chapter 22: Divine Judgment

Amongst the carnage that littered the battleground came a stirring. Warriors who had not been slain slowly climed to their feet and when they saw Kubaksuru and the Goddess's friends all staring up in rapt attention, a small group began to form around them. Soon every warrior, human and demon alike all gazed up toward the heavens. A collective intake of breath was heard at the the two very different beings that hovered above, one most decidedly good and the other the epitome of evil. All that the faithful could do was watch and pray as this angelic standoff unfolded.

“You are even more beautiful than I remembered,” Naraku said haughtily as he gazed at Kagome with appreciation. “Why do you continue to resist me? Your precious humans have been defeated, it is time to see reason. Why can you not understand that we were meant to be united? You will never forget that you loved me once.”

Kagome was silent as she stared at him and the angry golden aura surrounding her calmed to a silvery sheen. Absentmindedly she lowered a soft hand to her belly. She watched as Naraku fell quiet as he suddenly realized the significance of that small gesture and angrily he pulled the Sounga from his waist with a hysterical growl tearing from his throat. His long hair was wild and flowing in the violent wind of his beating black wings. Kagome looked into his eyes and saw two blood red tears streak down his lovely face. Suddenly an overwhelming sense of pity flooded over her.

“Naraku how can I make you understand that what happened between us was over a long time ago.”

He felt her compassion and it maddened him. It was nothing but a shadow of what they once shared and it was eating at his heart. His tear stained face raised and a crazed look passed into his eyes as he stared at her.

“It will never be over.”

Kagome’s eyes widened as Naraku dove toward her and instinctively she raised her blade and shielded herself from his blow but suddenly realized that he was not attacking her. She glanced behind her to see a glowing white portal open behind her and she beat her wings furiously, trying to stop him from pushing her backwards. She gasped as she turned her sights back to him and saw the desperate look on his face and could feel herself being enveloped by the light.

Sango screamed as she saw Kagome and Naraku disappear into the portal. Angrily she turned to Kubaksuru and grasped his armor. “What happened to her?”

“Look…”

Startled at the eerily soft voice, everyone turned to stare at Kanna, who held up her mirror. Worried eyes were locked onto the glass as they saw Kagome plummeting though a strange empty void. Kubaksuru was frozen in place and seemed to be oblivious to Miroku gently prying Sango’s hands away from his person. He stared at the heart wrenching images of the mirror and a lone crystal tear coursed down his cheek. His baby was beyond his reach and he could only hope that she could overcome this last trial.

*On the Other Side of the Looking Glass*

Kagome’s eyes darted around wildly. A moment ago she had been in the sweltering heat of a battlefield and now she was in the middle of nothing. All around her was was a void of white light. It was impossible to tell what direction she was falling and her wings were trying to capture a breeze that was non-existant. However, the most troubling thing about this, was the fact that Naraku was nowhere to be found. It seemed that he had disappeared and it unnerved her. All of a sudden the white that surrounded her faded into a light blue and cottony clouds patterned the sky. Before she could get her bearings and spread her wings once more to stop her decent, the ground came rushing towards her and in a split second, she found herself on soft green grass unharmed.

Warily she looked around as she clutched her sword closer to her and gasped at what was reflected in her vision. She stood in a beautiful meadow littered with a plethora of different flowers of every color. Blue and yellow butterflies flitted to and fro around her and in the middle of the vast meadow stood a magnificent tree. She heard the soothing sounds of water and saw that surrounding it was a lovely little brook. Somehow this strange place seemed familiar and she felt her body move as if in a trance. Mesmerized she slowly walked toward the crystal clear water and she looked down at her reflection. For a few moments she just stared into the depths and lost herself in the beautiful serenity of her surroundings. Suddenly she gasped when she saw another face that looked very much like her own peer into the water.

Startled back into reality, Kagome looked up and stared at the being on the other side of the brook. The woman wore a long opaque gown that shimmered in a rainbow of colors in the bright sunlight. Framing her peaceful looking face were beautiful blue curls that cascaded down her back. Her blue eyes were glittering and a pair of soft white wings were tucked behind her. Staring at the woman, Kagome reached an unknowing hand up to her own blue tresses and her eyes widened in shock. This woman was her…

Kagome’s eyes grew wider as a rush of memories came back to her. This was her and her lover’s secret place. A place of beauty and solitude that he had offered to her. Uneasily she took a few steps backward until she came in contact with a muscular chest. She began to panic as she felt strong arms wrap around her, pinning her hands down so that she couldn’t raise her sword. Losing her composure she twisted wildly trying to escape the firm grasp but was held securely. She began to tremble with anger and fear as she felt his warm breath tickle her tapered ears.

“Do you remember this place my love?”

Kagome’s eyes narrowed as she watched her former self laugh softly when the Naraku of the past appeared from behind a tree and pulled her into his arms, much like how he held her now, except this time his touch filled her with loathing. She watched as the two past lovers who were oblivious to their prescense embrace and she felt Naraku’s arms tighten around her waist.

“Look at how we were…” Naraku whispered, sending tremors down her spine. His eyes were trained on the two figures as they laid down amid the flowers and explored each other with their lips. “You cannot tell me that watching this does not remind you of what once was. I belonged to you then just as you belonged to me.”

Kagome closed her eyes as he swept her long hair to the side and began to trace lazy kisses along the back of her neck. She could hear the soft moans and loving words coming from the couple across from them and she shuddered. She remembered this day when the Supreme One had given them his blessing. It was when Naraku first presented her with the meadow. He knew of her love of nature and had painstakingly planted every flower and every tree. From beneath her closed eyes, a tear rebelliously escaped and her cheek cooled with the breath of a soft wind.

“I loved you then,” She said quietly. “But you started to walk a different path than I.” She fell silent as Naraku whipped her around and tilted her head up to look at him.

“Why are you in such pain now if you do not harbor any feelings for me?” He demanded angrily.

Kagome stared up at him and they both were quiet. In the crimson depths of his eyes were anger, bitterness, and love. She continued to gaze at him until he reluctantly loosened his grip on her.

Naraku’s eyes turned hard as he stared at her. “I understand…” His eyes fell upon her stomach and his red orbs seemed to glow with hate. “That was supposed to be my child, my seed.” He looked back into her eyes and a mask of hatred settled on his face, marring his beauty.

Kagome felt Naraku’s anger bombard her and her hand instinctively tightened around her weapon. The sword up until now had been silent but now it began to pulse like two erratic heartbeats. She stared in surprise as it turned from its deadly katana form into an immense blade that was bathed in white and blue flames. In her head she heard the loving whispers of her mates encouraging her, and giving her strength.

The hatred in Naraku’s face grew darker as he watched Kagome draw on some inner power that gave her even more strength. His eyes narrowed into daggers as he studied the flaming blade. Suddenly he felt a madness over take him and the life in the meadow began to wither. The green of the grass and the flowers began to rapidly decay, turning black with death. The trees gnarled and curled in on themselves and the butterflies began shrivel and fall to the ground. The sky had begun to turn grey and the once white clouds melted into an ominous black.

Naraku stared at the two lovers who looked around in panic at the death that began to surround them and slowly they were the last to fade away. It was strange when the vision of Naraku gazed at him and seemed to realize that he was the one making the private Eden die and before the vision completely disappeared a tear of sadness rolled down his cheek.

A angry roar of thunder suddenly rang out and seemed to shake the earth as Naraku looked at Kagome. His eyes began to glow and a bright streak of lightening illuminated his menacing figure. He grasped the hilt of his sword, which had begun to drip red flames from the hot metal and bowed his head slightly as he continued to stare at her with hooded eyes.

“If I cannot have you… No one will.”

Kagome gasped as he opened his wings and flew at her. However, before she could recover from her surprise, the sword in her hand flared to life and she lifted it to shield herself. Sparks of fire flew from the blades and landed on the now dead grass and it began crackle and hiss with flame. Suddenly within seconds the ground was alight and trapping the two angels in a ever expanding circle of fire.

There was a insane rage that lit up Naraku’s eyes as he mercilessly crashed his deadly sword upon Kagome’s blade. He was relentless and every blow sent more sparks wildly soaring. There was only one thing that consumed his mind at this moment and that thought drove him to an even higher level of ruthlessness. He was refusing to give her an opening and he continued to beat down upon her, his lips twisted into a deranged grin. Finally, he forced her to her knees and as the flames were lapping around their bodies he smiled evilly at her.

Kagome held her sword horizontally, one hand on the hilt and one on the blade as Naraku loomed over her. Beads of sweat rolled down her face and she could feel the heat of the fire on her feathers. She looked up at her opponent in anger as she realized that he meant to let the flames consume them both and she felt a surge of power flow from her. With a great beat of her wings she knocked Naraku backwards and shot off of the ground. As she soared into the blessed coolness of the air away from the blazing inferno below her, she heard his enraged roar from behind. Turning her head back she saw that he had arisen from the ground and was hurtling toward her with incredible speed. He was catching up to her so quickly that she couldn’t turn around to back and face him. Instead she did a maneuver and flipped on her back as she raised her sword just when he reached her. He growled angrily at her narrow escape and violently sent his sword crashing down upon hers, making her momentarily lose her balance. Taking this opening he reached out to grab her by the shoulders and he sunk the flaming steel of the sword into her chest.

He stared at her agony filled blue eyes and time seemed to slow as he heard the soft wimpering that came from her blood stained lips. She was sputtering softly and was trying to form words that just wouldn’t come. Even in her death she was beautiful. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from her lips and with a rough hand intwined in her hair, he crushed her to his body in a kiss. He groaned when he felt her slipping from his arms and off his blade but he made no move to catch her. Instead he watched as she closed her eyes and began to fall to the ground, which had completely turned into a sea of flames. He was silent as he saw her body embraced by the fire and he hovered above the ground, staring at the place where she met her demise.

Dark spirals of smoke lifted from the burning ground and the air was thick with the heat. The once beautiful meadow seemed to have turned to the very furnace of hell itself. Naraku looked around and his red eyes seemed to dim. There was no trace of the woman he loved and he thought for a moment that he had only imagined the battle that took place between them. His eyes shifted when he heard the groan and split of wood and he saw that the huge tree he had planted for her had turned black with the heat and had snapped in half. As he watched it slowly fall into the flames and disappear, he clentched his fists in fury. It was the last trace of physical love between himself and Kagome and now just like her, it had succumbed to the flames of oblivion. A flush of rage came over him then. She was gone. No one could touch her now. Angrily he looked up to the heavens and his fist raised.

“Nothing will know happiness ever again, especially you…” He chuckled evilly as he thought about the humans on the other side of the portal. “You took my beloved… So I will take yours… After all, an eye for an eye…”

Suddenly a blaze of white light erupted from the middle of the fire and Naraku looked down in shock. Standing in the middle of a crater surrounded by white flames was Kagome. She was unharmed and adorned in the opaque gown that her former self had donned previously in this realm. Her eyes blazed as she stared at Naraku. Spreading her powerful wings she rose gracefully in the air, her sword pulsing ever brighter with the lifeforce of her mates.

“Did you seek to destroy me?” She asked Naraku softly as she watched his eyes widen with shock and glow with outrage. “The Supreme One has blessed me with worthy protectors, and the fact that I carry my unborn child within my body gives me all the more reason to defeat you.”

Naraku growled as he recovered from his shock and dove toward her once more. As he brought his sword down against hers he was startled as she parried his every thrust effortlessly. Every missed stroke seemed to enrage him and he gasped when she reached out a clawed hand backhanded him. In that moment of upset she began to slash at him. Her sword easily knocking back his. It seemed that not only her strength had increased, but also her speed and he couldn’t shield himself from her blows. In a surge of panic he tried to slash at her wildly but overshot his mark. He saw her dodge out of the corner of his eye and suddenly he felt a sharp pain shoot through his left wing. Slowly he was losing control over his flight and began to plummet to the ground. As he looked up at her retreating figure he saw the sky open to reveal the golden heavens behind her as she raised her sword. He was mesmerized as he saw a white light rush from behind her just when she brought her sword crashing down.

“Divine Judgment!”

It seemed a choir of angelic voices caressed words of the attack that sped toward Naraku. A powerful silver and gold energy intertwined with the light from the heavens as it wrapped itself around him. As his body was being ripped apart the last his eyes perceived was that of his beloved staring down at him with tear filled eyes.

*Back Through the Looking Glass*

Everyone stood silent as they stared into Kanna's mirror. Miroku was still comforting a sobbing Sango and tearfully she looked up at Kubaksuru, then at the expanse of the now cheerful sky.

“Is he really gone?” She asked uncertainly.

Kagura who had been silent nodded her head in shock. She couldn’t feel him anymore. He who had invaded her thoughts for so long. He who had forced unspeakable pain upon herself and others. He who was her master was gone. She looked over to Kohaku and saw that the the jewel shard that was embedded in his back was no longer tainted. They were free…

Kubaksuru continued to stare at the heavens and suddenly a white rip in the blue sky appeared and from the portal stepped Kagome. Everyone grew quiet as they watched her gently descend to the earth and her army knealt before her.

Kagome opened her hand and there in the middle of her palm was the almost complete Shikon Jewel. Smiling gently, she took in the sight of her warriors, her friends and her father. As she lifted her head in elation she raised her sword up to the heavens. Then suddenly it began to glow and the silver and gold orbs rose from the sword and settled on either side of her. However, before they could transform back to their original forms, a crack of thunder made every one look up into the sky.

There looking back at them was a being of unimaginable beauty and magnificence. His love and radiance washed over them and it was so powerful that no one could look upon him. Only Kagome and Kubaksuru continued to smile up at the all powerful deity.

*My daughter you have fulfilled your destiny and I couldn’t be more proud of you. With this threat of mankind dispelled you can now have your love restored to you.*

Kagome’s smiled wavered as she thought about her mates. Despite the fact that once upon a time they were of one essence, they were now two very different souls that she had fallen in love with. She turned pleading eyes up to the Supreme One and clasped her hands together.

“My Lord, I am pleased that I have done everything you required of me, but… I cannot ask you to separate me from either one of them. Perhaps I am being selfish but, my heart is filled with both.”

The magnificent deity looked down on his daughter and his smile grew ever brighter. *I think that is a rather small request in return for the deeds you have performed over the years. So be it my child.*

Kagome’s eyes glowed with happiness as the Supreme One send down a warm beam of light that spread around her and the two orbs, and when it dissipated she was enveloped in the arms of both Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha.

The Supreme One watched his children embrace in delight and his eyes fell upon Kubaksuru who was entranced by Kagome. *Well old friend, are you ready to return home?* He said with a mischievous chuckle.

Kubaksuru turned wide blue eyes up at the Supreme One and for the first time everyone saw the tiger Taiyoukai go sheepish. “If its alright with you my Lord, I would rather stay and keep an eye on my daughter and my grandchildren.”

The Supreme One laughed softly and nodded. *I thought as much. Continue to watch over and guide them. You have always done well.*

With one last enigmatic smile and a wink the Supreme One faded back into the heavens. The Northern Lord turned grateful eyes skyward and gave a deep respectful bow. After a moment he turned to gaze at his family and he placed his arms around Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha's shoulders as they embraced Kagome.

"Let's go home."


*author's note: Well there is just one more chapter after this one, and The Herald of Heaven and Earth will finally be completed. I hope you all enjoyed this story. Thank you to everyone who reviewed and those who will continue to review. You guys inspire me :)