Chapter 20:
Dragonia's Sealing
(Opening: Owaranai Yume)
- "Damn..." - said Gerardo trying to get up after Gabriela and Miko applied their respective healing abilities to him.
- "Gerar, you shouldn't move yet!" – said Gabriela to calm him down.
- "These wounds haven't healed yet!" – said Miko worried – "You hafta stay put a little longer!" –
- "Leave this to us for now," – said Kagome as she winked – "Rest up a bit, and then you can go back to the battle" –
- "Yeah," – said Yasha wiping his eyes from the tears he still had – "We can't lose you too… like what happened with Feltes-san…" -
- "Mwahaha… and what do you idiots think you can do?" – laughed Tenebross as he still looked at the Fragment of Shadows to then look at them.
- "So, you're still underestimating us, stupid shadow?" – laughed Inuyasha as he raised his sword. Yasha turned to Tenebross and followed suit – "Kaze no Kizu!" –
However, the energy waves only struck an illusion, and they were shocked to see that Tenebross was floating above them and preparing to shoot a large shadow beam at them.
- "Eat this! Shadowy Destroyer!" – roared he as he shot off the beam. Inuyasha and Yasha didn't have time to react and counterattack, while Gerardo was still too weak to place his barriers.
- "Uaghh!" – shouted everyone as they were struck by the beam, knocking them all out and returning Inuyasha to his child form because this drained him of the strength he still had. The Fragments of Shadows they worked so hard to gather dropped out from their pockets and out of the Satchels of Light containing them.
- "Ehehehe… finally, the time has come…" – laughed Tenebross upon seeing the evil glimmer the fragments emitted – "With this I'll be able to regain a large part of my power and destroy you all, idiots" -
Miko and Kagome were the first ones to stand up again. Both were shocked to see how things were now, and they looked in horror as the Fragments of Shadows that were scattered throughout the chamber now shone evilly, and rose in the air in Tenebross' direction.
- "No... this can't be…" – said Miko falling in despair. She saw all their friends lying unconscious on the ground, and the image of Feltes dying came back to her mind. Kagome had to hug her because she began trembling from fear and sadness.
- "Miko… calm down… we can still stop him…" – said Kagome to encourage her while she tried to prepare a Sacred Arrow. However, she apparently didn't have enough power to put into the arrow, as her medallion returned her to her child form the next instant. She fell to her knees gasping.
- "Onee-san…" – said Miko as she began crying.
Everyone on their side was unconscious, Feltes was dead, and neither Gabriela, Kagome nor herself were in condition of using any of their powers. They seemed to be done for…
- "Just give up, brats" – said Tenebross in a mocking voice – "You have no energies to try anything else, and with your friends out cold, you should just wait for your end to come" –
- "No… I won't accept this…" – said Miko crying as her mind filled with images of pain and despair: she was remembering all the sad moments both she and Kagome had witnessed ever since they started their journey – "I won't let you harm them!" -
And as if she was in a trance, she uttered the following words:
- "Zyacc Zattyac purophaserara thafzaael ical...!" –
She then began singing, surrounded by choruses and instruments that seemed to come from nowhere, and at the same time, from her herself…
(Song: Neptlude (short version) – Ciel nosurge)
古の共鳴 Inishie no Kyoumei
(Resonance of Antiquity)
Qia set, aprelia pourkan sos wirya kopaw!
Nyouhma, AlzaRa Cia Kialar Phaph Myya Zosph Rinmei Phiapz Ical!
Resonance, unite these feelings!
In this despair, open the gate to my true potential!
Now, I'll obtain the key for it to save my precious friends!
- "What the hell!?" – screamed Tenebross spooked as he saw how a magical circle similar to the ones used by Gerardo and Gabriela appeared under her feet – "She is singing in both kinds of Dragonian…!? But that's impossible!" -
- "Miko…" – said Kagome as she began sensing her thoughts and feelings. This allowed to synchronize her emotions with her, and knowing what they ought to do, they began singing together. Kagome stood at her side and took her left hand, while they both put their free hands over their chests. The magical circle they were standing over began shining more intensely…
Ist Atok, Phaph Gabriela, ShuxuaRa.Phaph Kagmi, Shumah Zosph Mahae.
For the sake of the shining flower, I shall sing.
For the sake of ourselves, I shall cast my magic.
想ひを込めてやこの唱に、
風に乗せさせて。
omoi wo kometeya kono uta ni,
kaze ni nosesasete.
Put your feelings into this song,
and let it ride the wind.
聖光（ひかり）を解き離つんや
（力で）、皆を助けて。
hikari wo tokihanatsun'ya
(chikara de), minna wo tasukete
Opening the road for the holy light
with all my power, I shall help everyone.
May this prayer reach the heavens.
聖なる弓弦を弾く、
勾玉は唱を奏づる。
seinaru gyuugen wo hiku,
magatama wa uta wo kanadzuru.
Plucking the holy bowstring,
the magatamas will play a song
黄泉の深淵を照らして、
神は光をまき散らして。
yomi no shin'en wo terashite,
kami wa hikari wo makichirashite.
Illuminating the depths of the Yomi,
the Kami spread their light.
Erga Lisf Nalrinca Dea CiaAael Kizfelt.
I plead to the Six Voices to help me,
even if I am unworthy of their attention.
四魂は一つに、その全ての欠片が光に、
壊れた結晶は集まり、純真無垢に満ちて。
shikon wa hitotsu ni yuugou, sono subete no kakera ga hikari ni,
kowareta kesshou wa atsumari, junshinmuku ni michite.
Unifying the Four Souls into one, all of its fragments bathed in light,
the shattered crystal will gather again, filled with purity.
その深き眠りから目覚めや、その固くな鎖を壊れや、
その掛金を開いて、想いを流れさせて。
sono fukaki nemuri kara mezame ya, sono katakuna kusari wo koware ya,
sono kakegane wo hiraite, omoi wo nagaresasete.
Awaken from that deep sleep, break these hard chains,
open up these locks and let the feelings run free.
Overflow, oh my unknown power...
希ひはこの心に宿す、
それで（全ての）影を清淨え。
negai wa kono kokoro ni yadosu,
sore de (subete no) kage wo shoujoue.
May this heart be filled with wishes,
and purge all the shadows with them.
Tenebross was shocked and couldn't react at all to what happened next: as the song progressed, a large wave of light went throughout the chamber; revitalizing all their friends and making them regain consciousness. On the other hand, this also invoked a series of white light beams and arrows that assaulted Tenebross repeatedly and greatly damaged him. They even caused part of the walls and roof to collapse, burying him under a large pile of rubble.
- "Uhh… what happened?" – asked everyone upon waking up.
- "Look everyone!" – said Shippou upon seeing how Kagome and Miko were singing within the magic circle.
- "No way…" – said Gerardo amazed – "Are they singing in Dragonian?" –
- "Light-elemental magic… but I was supposed to be the only who could…" – said Gabriela shocked.
- "And it isn't only Light… I can also feel a strong Water-elemental power coming from them…" – said Gerardo as they both looked at each other with saucer-sized eyes.
月は心の汐を導いてで、
もう迷はないや嘘を聴かない。
tsuki wa kokoro no ushio wo michibiite de,
mou mayowanai ya uso wo kikanai.
With the moon guiding the tides of my heart,
I'll never lose my way again or let myself be deceived by the lies of anyone.
Phaph Kagmi, Shumah Zosph Mahae.
For the sake of the shining flower, I'll sing.
For the sake of ourselves, I shall cast my magic.
Ist Cielba, LyachhiAael Niyallei Oli Ochsmere...
Phahp Bialr CiaAael EoalreRia ZosphAael Kalia Sodia Burkei Ical
Concentrate in these feelings and wishes,
so they may lead us to the other side of the door.
Phiaphz E, Yall PhaelleRa Phiellar ThafzAael Ical.
Zelek E, Yall ZosphAael Vlasial CoulziaNal.
As friends, I'll always send you my love.
As sisters, our bonds will never break.
Inuyasha and the others couldn't believe what their eyes and ears showed them. The magic circle finally disappeared when the echoes of the song stopped, and both girls fell to their knees gasping, extremely tired. Everyone went at once to check them.
(End Song)
- "Miko, Kagome!" – shouted Inuyasha and Yasha – "Are you okay?" –
- "Yeah, but I'm very tired" – said Miko with her face covered in sweat, to then look at Kagome – "How're you, onee-san?" –
- "I'm okay," – said Kagome as she made an effort to smile – "But I'm exhausted too…" -
- "Do you think that was enough to finish Tenebross off?" – asked Sango upon seeing how the evil creature was now buried under the rubble pile thanks to the magic Kagome and Miko had invoked.
- "I don't think so. We've seen that horror is more resistant than a tank" – said Gerardo bitterly, but he then turned to look at Miko and Kagome with amazement on his face – "You were amazing, but… how you managed to pull that off? As far as I'm aware, you don't have any connection to Dragonia" -
- "I don't know," – said Miko as confused as them all – "I began feeling we were done for, and then I felt the urge to sing that. The words came by themselves from my mouth, as if I always knew their meaning" –
- "The same goes for me…" – said Kagome with her face showing a lot of confusion too – "When Miko began singing, I began feeling the same feelings as her, and I ended up doing duet with her" -
- "Maybe it has to do with the water and the medallions" – commented Sango.
- "Well, it's true these things are from Dragonia and could be the cause…" – said Gerardo deep in thought – "What I still can't understand is how you could do this without a Seirei Crystal or any other kind of access to the Nuclei"
- "Thought we did something like that when we first came to this world, Gerar" – said Gabriela.
At that point, Gerardo, Miroku, Sango and Shippou realized it: right… the battle they had with Sesshomaru little after their first coming to the Inuyasha world, but before Inuyasha and Kagome had come back from their world.
- "What Kagome and Miko say it's just like what happened to me" – said Gabriela with a serious voice.
- "Maybe that means I'm the only one who heard that voice…" – said he aloud. Was this some kind of sympathy or compassion from the Dragon Gods because they were about to die?
However, they couldn't continue dwelling on this, and they had to get away from the rubble pile, as Tenebross rose up from it, scattering rocks and debris all around. Now they had regained their strength, Gerardo and Gabriela, along with Miroku, placed a barrier to protect everyone from the shrapnel. The evil shadow was irate…
- "You… no… you both…" – growled him as he contained his breath with all the rage in the world – "Damned brats… these powers… that light… Is one of you the Priestess of the Dragon!?" -
- "Huh?" – replied Miko and Kagome confused.
- "What!?" – shouted Gerardo and Gabriela shocked.
- "What's that mean?" – asked Yasha confused.
- "The Priestess of the Dragon is the most important person in Dragonian society, and she is capable of using spells and songs with power far beyond ours!" – said Gerardo spooked. The others reacted in a similar way when they heard his explanation.
- "If one of you is actually that impudent luminous annoyance…" – roared Tenebross to then rise into the air – "I'll exterminate you right now!" –
He then tried to swoop down on them, but he was repelled by the swords of Yasha, Inuyasha and Gerardo. He screamed in pain after he got slashed.
- "You'll never get your claws on them!" – shouted the three at the same time.
Gabriela then went as fast as she could to the "twins" and began using her own healing song to alleviate their exhaustion.
- "Ist Altyyaok, ShuxuaraRa Illyusea Phaph Zyoskz Biousakatse Ical, Ist Altyyaok, ShuxuaraRa Phaph Kluceia Biousakatse... Healing Light!" – once she finished singing and her light waves enshrouded them, both Miko and Kagome got up again feeling like new.
Kagome put again her medallion in Special Separation to go back to her normal age, as she thought she'd need her usual height for this battle. Inuyasha noticed this and followed suit.
- "These accursed idiots are being a larger annoyance than I expected…" – growled Tenebross upon seeing how they were turning around the battle he had almost won a few moments ago.
At that point, everyone was up with their weapons unsheathed: Kagome and Miko prepared two arrows filled to the brim with spiritual energy; Inuyasha and Yasha were preparing to use the Kongousouha and Bakuryuuha; and Gerardo and Gabriela had summoned their armors again and began singing the best spells they had at their disposal.
- "However, that'll be of no use: it's time to end this… Zyacc Ikuak… ah... Pabut Dea Zosph, Cebali ThafzAael… DoneZa Nyouhma!" – chanted Tenebross.
At that moment, all the Fragments of Shadows that were scattered throughout the chamber rose up, and when the hail of attacks Inuyasha and the others prepared was released, the fragments floated in front of Tenebross, forming a barrier that blocked completely all the energy waves, diamonds, arrows and magic they used.
- "What the hell!?" – shouted Inuyasha upon seeing how the fragments had nullified their attacks completely.
- "Hmph, I have nullified all that paraphernalia you were planning to use against me" – laughed he evilly – "And it doesn't end here…" -
Then, the mass formed by the fragments shone in an unsettling black color, and the next moment, they fired off a shadow beam even stronger than the one Tenebross used against them previously.
- "Dragon Barrier!" – shouted Gerardo as he inserted his sword on his shield and drove both into the ground, forming again the energy dome with the dragon emblem drawn over it. This managed to nullify Tenebross' powerful attack, however, Tenebross flew after the beam and struck the barrier with his shadow claws, making it break and send everyone flying from the impact.
- "Aghhh!" – shouted everyone.
Fortunately, they managed to land in a way that didn't cause them much damage, but now they saw what they were against, the situation couldn't be any worse.
- "Damn…" – said Gerardo analyzing the battle – "As we're right now, we can't damage him with the fragments in the way of our attacks. The only way to get them out of the way would be with a very powerful light arrow… but if we do that… Gaby could collapse from exhaustion… and using so much energy could even kill her…" –
The others heard what Gerardo said horrified, and their moral dropped quickly. They couldn't allow Gabriela to spend her life in a single attack. Tenebross laughed at their predicament.
- "Mwahaha, what will you do then!?" – shouted he - "Will you sacrifice that light brat, or surrender and let me kill you!?" -
However, before they could reply or do anything else, a strange shadow came from behind them, and bypassing the fragment barrier, it managed to strike Tenebross as it left a greenish trail behind.
- "It can't be…" – said Miko amazed.
- "You gotta be joking…!" – said Yasha while he and the others recognized the shadow.
- "Sesshomaru!" – shouted everyone at the same time.
Sesshomaru looked as calm and proud as always, and impressively, he managed to get beyond Tenebross impenetrable defenses and attack him with his poison claws. Tenebross screamed from the pain and used the evil energies from one of the fragments to heal himself.
- "If you think you will save yourself with such trickery, pathetic shadow, you are sorely mistaken…" – said Sesshomaru inexpressibly.
A few instants later, an arrow covered in purple energy was shot behind them, which struck the fragment barrier and made them fall again to the ground completely inert. Then, an ofuda flew from the same direction as the arrow and affixed itself to Tenebross' head, creating an energy cage around him that imprisoned him, leaving him unable to attack or move as he groaned and roared enraged.
- "Amazing… only Kikyou could have pulled off something like this…" – said Inuyasha shocked.
- "It makes me happy to know you have my power in such high esteem, Inuyasha" – said Kikyou's voice from behind them as she entered the chamber – "I saw Sesshomaru entering this portal, and having the feeling Naraku could be inside, I decided to follow him" -
- "I just entered due to feeling Naraku's disgusting essence here" – commented Sesshomaru – "I didn't expect to cross paths with you, miko, nor with any of you" -
- "Even so, your arrival is quite opportune" – said Gerardo joyfully – "Thanks to what you just did, we have a chance again" –
- "Hmm, though I have to say it's very strange to see your child forms at your side now" – commented Kikyou as she eyed Yasha and Miko – "And as I see, they can be considered their own persons rather than pieces of your souls now" -
- "Though the hanyou boy doesn't look any different from his older form: both have the same dimwitted expression" – said Sesshomaru as he showed a sarcastic smile.
- "Shut it, Sesshomaru!" – shouted Inuyasha while Yasha just lowered his gaze. Kikyou went to him and leaned to match his height.
- "You shouldn't mind his words" – said Kikyou as she smiled – "Even though you have Inuyasha's same appearance, I see your personalities are very different" -
- "Ki-kikyou…" - stuttered Inuyasha as he heard how she was cheering Yasha up. Yasha was left agape, not knowing how he should reply back. Kikyou then looked at Miko…
- "From what I sense, your powers are very similar not only to Kagome's, but also to my own…" – said she as she checked Miko with a curious gaze – "However, it seems you also can wield another kind of power: one more similar to the one these two can handle…" -
Kikyou said this as she looked in Gabriela and Gerardo's direction.
- "What does that mean… Kikyou…?" – asked Miko in an untrusting voice as she frowned. As she saw what Kikyou did to Kagome in her memories, she had a hard time believing her words.
- "It means it's possible that you could carry out even grander feats than we both…" – said Kikyou as she smiled kindly – "And if you and Kagome join your powers, it's very likely you will unleash a power unlike anything this world has ever seen" -
- "Is she talking about the song they just sang?" – asked Gabriela intrigued.
- "Ah, so that was the strange energy I could feel from afar" – nodded Kikyou upon hearing what Gabriela said.
She then gestured Gabriela to get close to them both, and once she did, Kikyou closed her eyes and placed her hands in front of herself, with the palms in direction of both girls. She then opened her eyes with a smile – "Now I have examined your auras more closely; it seems both have some kind of power that complements the other. Yes… surely you and Kagome have something no other miko in this world has… not even myself…" -
- "Kikyou… why are you telling us this?" – asked Kagome as she walked to her.
- "I'm on your side, regardless of the differences we might have had in the past" – said her with a severe gaze – "My only interest right now is destroying Naraku and that being you call Tenebross" -
- "About Naraku, he is frozen over there, so feel free to strike the finishing blow" – said Gerardo as he pointed to the place where they left Naraku frozen.
- "That can wait until we have eliminated the menace this shadow poses" – said Sesshomaru walking at their side and cracking his claws with a simple movement of the knuckles – "Now that scum is immobile, making him disappear from this world will be child's play" -
- "Besides, I also have something pending with him, given the dirty form in which he began polluting my mind with his cursed aura, amplifying my negative emotions so I would eliminate Kagome" – said Kikyou as an enraged expression appeared on her face.
- "Hmph, I say the same" – said Sesshomaru as his eyes flashed briefly in red – "He attempted to make me dishonor myself and my father by trying to make me kill a human girl twice, and to also kill that fool Inuyasha while he was defenseless. That is unforgivable to me…" -
- "So that was what happened back then…" – said Sango when she heard their words. She then turned to look at Miroku – "Houshi-sama, are you okay?" –
- "I'm a bit better, Sango" – replied Miroku with a smile, though it was a bit twisted from the pain – "It's just that I'm in no condition to join the battle… what a shame… the most important of our fights and I can't even help on it…." –
- "You did enough already…" – said Sango as she smiled gently – "If it wasn't by the great risk to which you exposed yourself, most likely we'd be dead by now" –
- "And that's why I want you to leave me and join them" – said Miroku closing his eyes – "Go and fight for us both" -
However, Sango slapped him.
- "Sango…" – said Miroku shocked – "Why did you…?" –
- "How can you think of asking me that now!?" – said Sango as her eyes filled with tears – "I know this battle is important, but what'd I do if you get killed due to an attack coming this direction!? Do you think I could go on if that happened!?" –
- "Sango…" – said Miroku.
- "I'll stay here until the end, to make sure nothing happens to you" – said Sango as she showed a decided smile, and she then raised her face to look at the others, which were getting ready to continue fighting – "Let's have faith on them. I'm sure they will win this" –
- "You're right… Sango…" – said Miroku cheered up. He then began praying silently to ask Buddha to illuminate them with the shine of victory. At that moment, the ofuda Kikyou had placed on Tenebross began ripping apart.
- "That seal is reaching its limit. Once it breaks, that energy cage will disappear and he will be able to move again…" – said Kikyou in a warning tone.
- "In that case, we better finish up getting ready" – said Gerardo to then turn to look at the others – "I know I'm in no position to order you around or anything, but I want to request something from you all: we have to make the next attack the one that finishes him off, so let's use our best techniques and eliminate him for once and all!" -
Almost everyone replied with a thundering "Yes!" Inuyasha just limited himself to snorting a "Keh!" while Sesshomaru let out an almost inaudible sigh and Kikyou showed a concentrated expression on her face.
They then prepared to attack: Gabriela and Gerardo took their Half-Dragon forms and began emitting their elemental auras with more power so Yasha and Inuyasha could have a cutting place they could use to execute the Bakuryuuha. Kagome and Miko, on the other hand, infused all the power they could in their next arrows, so they would finish off this hard battle.
- "These damn imbeciles… and these meddling idiots…" – growled Tenebross furious in extreme.
The next moment, the ofuda and the energy cage broke to pieces, and they all launched their attacks: Gabriela and Gerardo invoked together a series of white and silver light beams, and a large water torrent; while Yasha and Inuyasha launched a double Bakuryuuha and Kagome and Miko shot two Sacred Arrows, which fused as they spiraled with the other attacks.
- "Filaria-nova!" – shouted Gerardo and Gabriela as all their attacks formed a large sphere of white light, which detonated immediately after. Tenebross let out a shrill scream, but then Sesshomaru shot a Souryuuha at him and Kikyou an even more powerful Sacred Arrow. These attacks wounded Tenebross gravely and made him collapse again over the chamber's floor.
Everyone contained their breath in the silence that ensued. Everyone but Sesshomaru was looking expectantly at the result of the battle…
- "Do you think it was enough...?" – asked Kagome in a cautious voice a few minutes later.
- "We're not sure about it yet" – said Gerardo wary as he and Gabriela returned to their normal forms.
- "Yeah… remember what happened to Feltes…" – said Gabriela as she looked at Tenebross' body with a bitter gaze. Unfortunately, their suspicions were well-founded: The Fragments of Shadows rose in the air again, and this time they flew right to Tenebross…
- "No! We can't let these things reach him!" – shouted Gerardo spooked. Everyone tried to catch the fragments as they shot off like bullets from below their feet, but it was useless, as they went by too fast.
Gabriela tried to use her powers to place a light barrier, but it didn't serve of much: as she never had placed a barrier before, and her powers still hadn't developed enough, the barrier broke as the fragments touched it.
Similarly, Gerardo, Miko, Kagome and Kikyou tried to place their own barriers to stop the fragments from advancing, but it was for naught: the evil crystal pieces broke through them as if they were made of butter.
The fragments finally reached Tenebross, and releasing a horrible black glow, they began fusing with him… Everyone, excepting Sesshomaru, looked on scared as a black bubble enshrouded Tenebross. They tried attacking it, but every time they did, they were repelled by a black shockwave, so they could only continue looking on powerlessly…
The bubble finally burst a few minutes later, and Tenebross rose from it into the air. Instead of a shadow, it now resembled more the monstrous creature from the legends: a large black dragon of evil appearance, whose scales absorbed the light instead of reflecting it, emitted a powerful black and evil aura, and had bloody red eyes that only reflected hatred and wishes to destroy everything… However, part of his horns, wings, claws and tail were still transparent.
- "At last, I've regained a large part of my body and my power…" – said he as if he were waking up from a long slumber – "Now, is time for everything to come to an end…" -
Then, everything around them began trembling…
- "What's happening!?" – asked Yasha.
- "From what I'm feeling, that bastard is trying to use his magic to dissolve this dimension…" – said Gerardo gritting his teeth – "If we don't stop him now, he won't only destroy this world: next he'll do the same to Dragonia, our world, and all others!" -
He then took his medallion and did something he had never tried before: he inserted the key on it, spun it three times to the right, and one to the left…
- "Iadlast Pawatz, Dragon!" – shouted Gerardo. However, instead of the magic circles or any other demonstration of power showing up, an alarm began sounding in his Dragtemn – "What the hell is it!?" -
The others ran to him, and they were shocked to see his Dragtemn had a warning written on large red letters on its holographic screen: "Transformation Command Rejected"
- "Why did this happen!?" – shouted Gerardo as he pressed the warning to see the explanation. It showed up at once: "As you haven't received the Elemental Baptism, you are forbidden from accessing the maximum Dragon Power level and using the Mahazzats"
- "But Lord Iadlast and the others never told us anything about this!" – shouted Gabriela. She tried executing the same transformation as Gerardo, but the result was the same: the error message and alarm. She turned to look at Gerardo horrified – "What're we supposed to do now!?" -
- "Your turn is over" – said Illyusea's voice, which appeared near the roof of the chamber along the other Dragon Gods. They all were initially overjoyed to see them, but upon sensing the feelings they emitted, they noticed something was off – "We didn't bestow the Elemental Baptism upon you because we estimated that with this power level it would have been enough for you to defeat Tenebross as he was at the time, as well as not having a Dragonian priestess on this world that could carry that ceremony out. Needless to say, our predictions were sorely mistaken" -
- "Therefore, we have decided to put our last resort in motion" – said Phinambrea with a bitter voice – "We shall seal Dragonia" -
- "Wait a moment, what is that supposed to mean?" – asked Gerardo dismayed. They hadn't just failed in their mission, but there also was some kind of horrible fate awaiting Dragonia?
- "The world of Dragonia will be sealed and isolated from the rest of the dimensions" – explained Kiols – "Everything that came from Dragonia will return there, as also will be all that came from your world returned to it. Anything belonging to this world will remain here" –
- "Likewise, that means all the memories you and all the inhabitants of these worlds built up ever since they drank from the Water of Restart will be erased" – said Tiarrashe.
- "WHAT!? You can't do that!" – shouted Gabriela saddened and enraged – "We won't be able to remember anything we lived so far?" -
- "That's unfair!" – said Kagome angry – "We've all made a lot of effort not only to carry out this mission, but also to make our friendship last as long as possible… None of that matters at all!?" -
Miko and Yasha fell to their knees and began bawling upon hearing this. Gabriela and Miko hugged each other, the former beginning to cry herself. Inuyasha then walked to Yasha and let him hug him, while he just stayed looking at the floor in silence.
Upon seeing him like this, Kikyou began feeling the sadness and despair this was causing him, and began shedding tears as well. Sango helped carry Miroku to them, while Shippou went by himself and just stayed looking at them with faces filled with sadness.
Gerardo then went and hugged both Miko and Gabriela. Kagome joined them shortly later. They felt they would never meet again, and they knew they wouldn't be able to remember the times they shared either.
- "I really wish that things didn't have to end this way" – said Iadlast in an apologetic tone as large tears appeared on his eyes – "But ensuring the safety of Dragonia and the other worlds is our greatest priority. It's due to it that we had to take these drastic measures. I hope you can someday forgive us for this… if you ever manage to remember it…" –
- "May the sealing commence now!" – shouted Pyrazsyec. Then the six dragons began intoning a song that sounded similar to a Gregorian chant:
- "Ist Khallhialmyu, ZosphAael CletphRa Malkeia Dea ZosphAael Mountyoudour Ical. Ist Ciella, ShuxuaraRa Phaph KiarraTes Myallade Dragonia Zia, Oli Cletph Cia Burkei Myallade Zia. Ist Khallhialmyu, WaspiarlRa Myalla Demorie Dea Ilg, Oli Phaelle Shillea Myallade CiaAael Felal Mountyoudour Ical…" -
Then, a large black and purple rip opened behind them and began sucking in everything that was in the room as if it was a giant vacuum cleaner. The only ones that didn't seem to be affected were the people native to the Inuyasha world, but the others: Gabriela, Gerardo, Miko, Yasha and Tenebross, began being pulled away with great strength, as if it was telling them it was time to bid farewell to this world.
- "NO! Accursed six! You'll never take me back there!" – said Tenebross scared and furious as he affixed himself to the floor of the chamber.
- "What!? No!" – shouted Kagome and Inuyasha as they grabbed their younger counterparts by their hands.
Gerardo had driven Ryuuga into the ground and held onto it with a hand, while he used the other to grab Gabriela. When he saw the portal was trying to also take Miko and Yasha away, he remembered the ending of the inscription he read in the medallion cave…
- "…And when Dragonia is sealed, these essences will be called back to the Eternal Cycle of Life of that world by the Six Great Voices…" – he repeated, and then he realized it and began screaming at the Dragon Gods enraged – "No! Why are you taking them away too!? Miko and Yasha are both essences born in this world, and thus belong to it! What the tablet in the medallion cave was talking about was the medallions themselves, not their users!" –
- "Gerardo…" – said Kagome as she saw how he was trying to confront the Dragon Gods, even though he was about to be swallowed by the vortex and sent back to his world.
- "It pains me to say this, but we have decided they both are now essences belonging to Dragonia because Miko can use powers that reach the level of the ones used by an Assistant Priestess, and Yasha has some affinity for the Power of the Dragon" – replied Illyusea – "Additionally, due to the extensive use you gave to the Medallions of Link, we have deliberated this with the Will of this world, and it has allowed us to take them" -
- "You've got no right to do that!" – shouted Gabriela enraged - "They must stay here with their siblings and family! You can't separate them!" –
- "I'll never let you take Miko away!" – said Kagome as she held her with all her strength.
- "I say the same thing!" – shouted Inuyasha enraged – "If you wanna take Yasha away, it'll be only over my dead body!" -
- "They are so decided to not let them be taken away… how pathetic…" – said Sesshomaru as he looked at the scene with an immutable expression.
- "Would you say the same thing if they were trying to take away the girl that always accompanies you, Sesshomaru?" – asked Kikyou with a sarcastic smile. Sesshomaru glared at her – "And honestly, I feel bad for them, but their effort is doomed to fail: these creatures are divine entities of the highest class, and opposing their designs is impossible" -
Then the vortex began absorbing with more strength, and the first thing it sucked in was Tenebross.
- "Aghhh! NOOOOO!" – screamed the evil entity as it disappeared within the vortex
Next, Kagome's Dragtemn spat out her baggage, as also did Gerardo's and Gabriela's. The bottles containing the Waters of Restart and Normalization were extracted from Kagome's backpack, and the Dragtemns they all were wearing detached from their wrists, as also did the Seirei Crystals and Elemental Medallions Gerardo and Gabriela wore around their necks, and they all disappeared within the vortex. Gerardo and Gabriela's baggage also got absorbed by the vortex.
- "No, I don't wanna go yet…" – said Miko as she cried while she felt her energy was running out – "I wanna be with you for much longer, onee-san! I wanna be with my family, go to school with Souta, play with you all, and visit Kaede-obaa-san! I don't wanna go!" -
- "I don't want you to go either, Miko!" – shouted Kagome. She was gathering all the strength she had remaining to not let them take her away – "You're now my dear little sister! That's why I can't let them take you away!" –
- "Onii-san…" – said Yasha as he felt he was about to give in – "Even if it was for a short time… I'm glad I could fight with you, and meet such great friends… but I still don't wanna go either! I want to continue learning things from Totosai-sensei, Kaede-obaa-san, Gerar-nii and you! I want us three to practice fencing together, and play with Miko and Gaby-nee, and be with Kagome-nee!" -
- "Who said I'm gonna let them take ya away, Yash!?" – shouted Inuyasha – "They'll have to kill me if they wanna do that! Like Miko and Kagome, you're a very important part of me!" –
- "…As a part of your soul…?" – asked Yasha as he got sad. Inuyasha headbutted him in punishment for saying that.
- "Ow! Why didja…?" – asked Yasha, but he then noticed Inuyasha had tears on his eyes.
- "How can ya think and say that!?" – shouted Inuyasha – "You're the only family I've got now! How I can let them take you away!?" -
- "Onii-san…" – said Yasha as he smiled.
- "If you have finished saying your goodbyes, it is time to put an end to this" – said Phinambrea's voice.
The next moment, the Medallions of Link Inuyasha, Yasha, Miko and Kagome were wearing broke in half: the left half of the ones Inuyasha and Kagome had vanished in the air, while the right half of the ones Miko and Yasha wore vanished.
Both children were then pulled away from the grip of their "older siblings" and dragged to the vortex. They both moved to try to get away and go back to them, and Kagome and Inuyasha tried to grab them again, but it was impossible.
- "NO! ONEE-SAN!" – cried Miko as she disappeared inside.
- "INUYASHA-NII!" – cried Yasha. A few seconds later, their figures had vanished within the vortex.
- "NO!" – screamed Kagome and Inuyasha as they fell to the ground.
- "Damned dragons of shit!" – screamed Inuyasha so strongly that it echoed through the entire chamber.
- "Damn everything!" – shouted Gerardo upon seeing this and as tears of sadness, rage and powerlessness ran through his face. Then, Gabriela's hand slipped from his grip - "No! Gaby!" –
- "GERAR!" – screamed her as she was dragged to the vortex and disappeared in. Gerardo stopped holding his sword and ran to her, ending up sucked up by the vortex as well. Ryuuga was sucked in as well after both disappeared.
- "NO!" – screamed everyone but Sesshomaru upon seeing this. The vortex closed up immediately after…
- "They're gone…" – said Kagome as if she couldn't believe it, while tears still ran through her face – "They're… really gone…" –
- "Time for us to go as well…" – said Tiarrashe.
- "There is just one more thing we ought to do…" – said Illyusea. The next instant, he began shining with a strong light, blinding them all and leaving them unconscious…
When they woke up, they found themselves in a grassfield, with several forests far on the back.
- "Umm… where am I?" – said Kagome as she got up, having her backpack at her side, and then she saw Inuyasha and the others lying around her. She noticed she had tears in her eyes, as also did the others, but didn't mind it and instead just wiped them from her eyes with her sleeve – "Uh, Inuyasha? Everyone, wake up!" –
When they woke up, they were surprised to find themselves covered in scratches and cuts, as well as the state of their clothes. However, they were even more surprised to find Kikyou, Sesshomaru and Naraku on this place too. Everyone but Sesshomaru and Naraku wiped off the tears they had on their eyes.
- "What happened?" – asked Shippou upon seeing this.
- "I don't know…" – said Kagome confused – "But I'm feeling like I've forgotten something important… but I don't know what…" -
- "Houshi-sama!" – shouted Sango upon seeing how weak Miroku was – "What happened? Why are you in such bad condition?" -
- "I don't get it either, Sango…" – said Miroku in a weak voice – "Like you all, I found myself in this state when I woke up…" –
- "The last thing I remember is that I went to pick up Kagome at her home, and then we were going back to Kaede's village again" – said Inuyasha confused, and then he noticed Kagome had something around her neck – "Where didja get that from, Kagome?" -
- "Huh?" – said Kagome confused. She noticed she was wearing what seemed to be the half of a medallion around her neck: it was silver in color, but it seemed to have gotten broken in half, and it had a rhomboidal hole near the place where it was broken – "I don't know… I already had it on when I woke up… and besides, you're wearing one like it too" –
- "What the hell!?" – said Inuyasha upon noticing he had the half of a golden medallion around the neck. When they began examining them, they noticed Kagome's had the following inscriptions: Kago-, Special Separation and Unsea-, while Inuyasha's had: Inuya-, Special Separation and Unsea-… the inscriptions were incomplete and thus they couldn't read them.
- "What use could they have?" – said Kagome as if she was asking herself. However, Naraku broke off from the ice prison where he was imprisoned in.
- "I don't know why, but I'm feeling weakened right now…" – said Naraku with his annoying overconfident voice – "I'll return to get rid of you all later…" –
- "Wait there!" – shouted Inuyasha as he unsheathed Tessaiga and launched a Kaze no Kizu at him, but it was a vain effort: Naraku repelled it with his barrier and left. Kikyou and Sesshomaru ran after him as they shot him arrows and energy blasts.
- "Let's just leave it at that, look that we're not in condition to be fighting him now" – said Kagome to make them realize how beaten up they were – "For now we should go back to the village and rest a bit" -
- "Agreed" – said Sango as she helped Miroku get up – "Houshi-sama needs to be checked as soon as possible" –
- "I'm sorry for causing you so much trouble, Sango…" – said Miroku as he got up with difficulty and leaned on Sango.
However, before Kagome climbed on Inuyasha's back to head off for the village, she tried putting on her backpack again and…
- "Hmm, how weird… my backpacks feels a little heavier than usual…" – said Kagome as she put it on the ground for a moment to check it.
When she opened it, she found the surprise that there were three more sets of clothes she didn't remember placing there: a light blouse with a yellow shawl and a light blue skirt, a white blouse and a pink skirt, and finally, a light green kosode ornamented with white flowers and a light blue obi. What really weirded her out was that they were of a size that would fit an eight-year old girl – "What are these clothes doing here…? We don't have any little girls with us, and…" -
However, she was paralyzed upon noticing they all had notes affixed to them. The first set had written:
To my beloved daughter Kagome,
I hope you enjoy your second childhood for as long as it lasts. Don't overexert yourself, and just let things happen as they do.
With love,
Mom
The second one said:
To my new friend Gaby-chan,
I hope you and your brother enjoy your time with us on this world, and that we can share as many times together as we can.
Kagome.
And finally, the kosode's note said:
To Kagome-chan,
I hope you have enjoyed a lot your visit to your village, and that you like the attire I gave you. I'll be praying for you to return soon to your natural form. Oh, and I also hope you will someday visit us again.
Orimi
- "What… what does this mean…?" – said Kagome shocked upon reading the notes.
They made no sense to her: who she had written the second one to, given it had her own handwriting and signature? And what was the meaning behind the other two? "Second childhood"? "Natural form"? And who was Orimi-san…?
However, when she began thinking and trying to remember these things, she got a strong headache…
- "Ugh!" – groaned her as she rubbed her forehead.
- "Kagome!" – said Inuyasha as he ran to her and grabbed her by the shoulders. The others looked at them worried – "Are ya okay…?" –
- "Yeah… it's just that I found some weird notes on these clothes…" – said Kagome with difficulty, though the headache began going away. Inuyasha went to check them, and just had the same reaction Kagome had when she read them…
- "Ah, Inuyasha! Are you okay?" – asked Kagome alarmed.
- "Yeah… but looks like we shouldn't be wondering what they're supposed to mean for now…" – said Inuyasha bitterly.
- "Yeah… I think I should just pay attention to the one mom wrote me, apparently, and let things happen as they have to happen" – said she a little more cheered up. However, she felt these clothes could be important in some way later on and decided to keep them. She closed up her backpack, and they all began going back to the village.
However, during their trip there…
Kagome heard the voice of a little girl, very similar to her own: - "Yeah… onee-san..." -, and then she began having a strong headache.
Inuyasha had a similar experience, but it was with a boy's voice saying: "Inuyasha-nii-san… This is pretty weird, but it's actually pretty fun too…" –, and also had a headache.
- "What happened?" – asked Sango when she saw their expressions – "Are you two okay?" –
- "Yeah, don't worry, Sango-chan" – said Kagome to calm her – "It's nothing" -
However,
both began wondering… Who did these voices belong to? Why they got
these headaches? Why did they appear in that place out of nowhere? And
what were these clothes that appeared in Kagome's backpack? Why were
them of such a small size? And what was the meaning of these notes?
Unfortunately, they had no way of knowing what had happened…
Meanwhile, Miko and Yasha were unconscious and lying over a plateau on top of a hill at the west of a large island in the center of a great lake, which was joined to firm land through bridges located in each of the four cardinal points.
In the island, there was a large city: it had a circular wall and another hexagonal wall surrounding it. The latter was divided in six parts, inside which there were buildings that seemed to be houses and other buildings surrounding a circular plaza. An even larger plaza was located at the very center of the hexagon, and a magnificent and great castle could be seen at the north of it. Each of the hexagon's points had a watchtower on it.
Yasha was the first to wake up, and opened his eyes completely confused:
- "Where am I? Who am I?" – at that moment, a word came to his mind: Yasha – "Yeah… that's right… my name's Yasha…" -
He then began looking around, and saw Miko.
- "She is…!" – at that point, Yasha remembered her name, and feeling she was important to him, he ran to her side and began softly shaking her to wake her up – "Miko! Come on, wake up! Don't leave me alone!" –
Miko began reacting, and after opening her eyes, she looked at Yasha with a confused and drowsy gaze:
- "I… my name… I'm Miko…" – said her as if she wasn't sure about what she was saying, but then her eyes focused and she glared at Yasha surprised – "Ya… Yasha?" –
- "Yeah, it's me Miko!" – said he as he hugged her relived – "I'm so glad you're okay!" –
Miko initially smiled at him and Yasha separated from her as he smiled. However, the next instant she seemed to have realized something, and it wasn't good: her face filled with horror and she fell to her knees while she began crying.
- "No… I can't remember anything!" – she cried as Yasha ran and embraced her again – "I don't know where we came from, or who we are! I can only remember our names!" -
- "I know… I can't remember anything either…" – said Yasha as he also shed some tears – "But we can't just stay here dwelling on that… We gotta see how we can keep ourselves alive for now…" –
- "But…" – said Miko as she hiccuped, and got even sadder, as if she knew how important these lost memories were – "I'm sure there's something or someone important on these memories! I don't want to go on like this!" –
- "Calm down…" – said Yasha to try to calm her – "We'll find a way to solve this…" -
Then, Yasha noticed the half-medallion Miko had around her neck:
- "Huh? Where did you get that?" – asked Yasha surprised. Miko began calming down and saw what Yasha was talking about. Did it have any connection with their lost memories?
- "This?" – asked Miko as she wiped off her tears, took it between her hands and began looking at it – "I already had it when I woke up… and you have one too" -
Yasha noticed Miko was right, and began checking his own medallion too. After a while, they noticed they had inscriptions on the front part, but as the medallions seemed to be broken in half, parts of them were unreadable. Miko's had: -me, Miko, Separation, Seal and –al; while Yasha's had: -sha, Yasha, Separation, Seal and –al.
As they looked at the medallions, Miko had a strange feeling, and felt like she heard a voice similar to hers, though more mature, screaming in sadness and rage: - "You're now my dear little sister!" –
- "Onee-san…?" – said Miko when she heard that echoing from the depths of her mind. However, she got a headache when she tried remembering anything else.
Yasha also heard a voice, with the difference the voice sound similar to his own said: - "You're the only family I've got now!" -
The headache began going away a few instants later, and upon noticing they both had similar experiences…
- "You heard that too?" – asked Miko.
- "A voice like yours but more grown-up saying something?" – asked Yasha.
Both nodded to each other.
- "Could they be our relatives?" – asked Miko.
- "Beats me…" – said Yasha saddened.
- "Hey, and can we try putting our two halves together to see if anything happens?" – asked Miko in a hopeful voice.
- "Well, we won't lose anything trying it" – said Yasha shrugging his shoulders.
However, it was useless: the points in which both halves were broken didn't match up, not to mention they weren't even made from the same material. However, before they could get sad over this, they heard some voices getting closer to them…
- "Yujio mhaku tast ieler, felanso?" – said a man's voice, which sounded doubtful.
- "Poil plia ieler, Elaer. Kelarga une lusya fissare hag!" – said a woman's voice, which sounded sure of herself and irritated.
- "Who could they be?" – asked Yasha.
- "I don't know, and I can't understand anything they're saying…" – said Miko saddened. However, she had the feeling she had heard that language before, and even had spoken it at one point… Yasha also felt like he had heard it before…
Yasha noticed he had a sword on his hip, and drew it in case the unknown people were dangerous. Though he was a bit surprised to see its large size, he felt relieved upon seeing he had a way to defend himself.
- "Te…ssaiga…" – said he upon seeing the sword, as if he always had known its name – "Yes… that's this sword's name…" -
Miko was a little scared, but upon remembering Yasha was its wielder, she calmed down. She also noticed there was a quiver filled with arrows and a bow near the place where they woke up. She went back there and grabbed them. She then readied an arrow on her bow and prepared for anything that could happen.
A few moments later, the strangers appeared as they walked through the hill: they were a man and a woman.
The woman had green eyes and blonde hair, while she wore some strange clothes, both similar and dissimilar to Miko's kosode: the upper part looked like a green and blue kimono decorated with water droplets and leaves, while the lower part was a skirt with the same colors and decorations as the upper that went down to her knees. She wore elegant light blue shoes and had a sword and shield on her hands.
On the other hand, the man was tall and slim, had short black hair and blue eyes, and wore clothes more similar to Yasha's: the upper part was green with some purple touches, and it was decorated with whirlwinds and lightning-shaped marks. The lower part was a long pair of pants with the same colors and decorations as the upper part. He had brown shoes and carried a spear on his hands.
- "Yujio mhaku itnya bido nyelsaks risph ilg hallialia?" – asked the man.
- "Kahial miu ablia kustsaks... kustsaks finae refalka mya kaialmyu... thelf, ualg sos thar kyustsaks ika..." – said the woman as she looked at both children with pity. She left the sword and shield on the ground, kneeled down to put her face at the same height as theirs, and talked to them: – "Iuji utahe, mior tastsaks oullasaks?" –
However, Miko and Yasha didn't do anything but look at each other confused…
- "Eh… sorry… we can't understand you…" – said Miko embarrassed.
The woman didn't seem like she could understand them either, as she looked at them confused after Miko spoke. However, apparently she came up with an idea after thinking a little. She stood up, pointed to herself and said:
- "Fileia" -
Miko seemed to have gotten she was introducing herself, and repeating the gesture the woman did, she said her own name: – "Miko" –
Fileia nodded with a smile to then point to the man and say: - "Elaer" –
Then, Yasha did the same gesture as Miko and introduced himself – "Yasha" –
Fileia smiled at them again.
- "Alt tok, tast finae jaullware kustsaks, felanso" – said Elaer behind her. He put away his spear and walked to them.
- "Kahial myu nasez. Jaullwanasez, tiu Alt tok silea kosfialga kustsaks oullasaks" – said Fileia cheerfully. Yasha and Miko didn't think they were bad or dangerous anymore, and put away their weapons.
- "I can't understand at all what they're saying, but they don't seem like bad guys" – said Miko a bit more relieved.
- "Yeah… I don't think we'll need to fight for now" – said Yasha calmed down.
Fileia gestured them to go to where they were, and when they could see the city from where they were standing, she did this: she pointed to the city, then to herself and Elaer, and then to them. She finished by looking at them in an interrogative manner as she extended her hand to them.
- "I think she's asking us if we wanna go to that city with them" – said Miko to Yasha.
- "Well… I don't think we have any other options…" – said Yasha crossing his arms – "We don't remember where we came from… we don't know who we're… we don't even know where we are… and we don't have any money, food or place to spend the night…" -
- "You're right…" – nodded Miko. They walked to Fileia, nodded with a smile, bowed a little to express their gratitude, and took her hand. Fileia smiled kindly.
- "Alt tok quia nyelsaks... nasez, Miko yst Yasha vakrusra sossaks yien" – said Fileia as she turned to Elaer.
- "Iuji utahe yuse idefae... quia ablia nyelsaks necraisra e uknasez felcial kustsaks" – said Elaer as he crossed his arms and smiled.
Fileia picked up her sword and shield and put them away. They four then took each other by the hands and walked to the border of the hill. Once there, two large dragons appeared from the sky and landed in front of them: one being bluish-green and the other purple with green marks.
Yasha and Miko got scared and were about to draw their weapons again, but upon seeing how Elaer and Fileia were patting them, they noticed they weren't evil creatures. Then, they invited them to mount the dragons: Miko got on the back of Fileia's bluish-green dragon, while Yasha rode on Elaer's purple and green one. When they grabbed tightly on them, a small transparent bubble of these same color as each dragon formed around them, and they took off at full speed, flying in direction to the city in the lake.
- 'Maybe we don't who we're or where we came from… but at least… I'm glad we have somewhere to go until we find that out…' – thought Yasha as they continued their flight.
- 'Onee-san… whoever you're… or wherever you're… I promise I'll find you someday' – thought Miko.
Both she and Yasha could feel Fileia and Elaer radiated a great kindness, and while they couldn't understand their words, they sounded like they were filled with compassion and good intentions…
At least, and regardless of what the future had in store for them, there was someone who would take care of them until the moment in which the truth was revealed and they found a way to regain their memories…
Finally, on the other remaining world…
- "GABY!" – shouted Gerardo as he opened up his eyes scared. He was lying on his bed and wearing a blue and red pajama – "Huh? What's happening here?" –
He sat up and began looking around confused. He then began remembering everything: Feltes' death, the final battle with Tenebross, the sudden appearance of the Dragon Gods and finally… Dragonia's sealing...
- "Wait a second… how can I remember all that if Gaby and me were supposed to get our memories of these events erased?" – he asked confused. He then laughed – "Hmph, looks like their memories erasers aren't as good as we all thought…" -
However, he then remembered scared the image of his sister being absorbed by the vortex, and turned to the side alarmed. He saw her completely covered by the bed's sheets, and after removing the sheet over her, he saw she was there wearing a pink sleeping gown, asleep but about to wake up…
- "That's good…" – said Gerardo sighing softly – "At least she's fine…" –
Gabriela then woke up with a terrified expression, as if she was having a nightmare. She then saw Gerardo and hugged him:
- "Gerar! I was so cared… I thought I was gonna disappear in that whirlwind…" – said she scared.
- "So you can remember everything that happened?" – asked Gerardo confused.
- "You too?" – asked Gabriela shocked – "But weren't they going to erase our memories of all that?" -
- "I said the same thing… looks like they didn't do a good work with us…" – said he smiling. However, he was dismayed the next moment, as he noticed something – "No… I did forget one thing… I can't remember anymore how to speak either of the two Dragonian types, or what its glyphs looked like…" –
- "Eh?" – said Gabriela upon noticing she couldn't either. She then tried to concentrate to remember the song she had used so far to invoke her Healing Light magic, but she couldn't… the words weaving that song had disappeared completely from her mind – "I can't either… I can't even sing my healing song now…" -
They then saw the clock that was on the wall next to the bed. It was 5:30 am: the sun was about to rise and both had to begin getting ready to go to school.
With a great sadness and grief, not only for having lost all connection they had to the Inuyasha world and Dragonia, but also for knowing they failed in the mission they were tasked with, both took turns to enter the bathroom and put on their uniforms.
They wondered, what could be Inuyasha, Kagome and the others doing now? Would they remember anything about the adventures they lived together, or were their memories actually wiped away? And how could be Miko and Yasha doing? Would they be fine in a completely unknown world to them all?
After a while, their mother came to the room to wake them up, and she was very surprised to see they even had finished getting ready. They just told good morning to each other.
- "Wow, it's very rare to see you both up so early, and ready for school and all besides!" – said their mother as she smiled – "It's fine. I'll go make you breakfast now" -
- "Ok, we'll go in a moment" – said Gerardo as he saw how his mother went to the kitchen.
After a while, she brought two large ham sandwiches to them. She then brought them a glass jar filled with water and two glasses. Each of them served and began eating silently.
After they finished eating and brushed their teeth, the three boarded the car of Gerardo and Gabriela's mother and left for school.
- "By the way, is something the matter?" – asked their mother – "I've noticed you look somewhat sad ever since you got up today" –
- "No, it's nothing mom" – said Gerardo as he forced a smile.
- "Yeah, we're okay mommy" – said Gabriela – "And we didn't have any visits lately?" -
Gerardo was surprised to hear her ask that, but he guessed it would be a good way to know if she was also affected by the memory wipe.
- "Hmm… let me see…" – said their mother – "No, we really haven't gotten any visits this last month" –
- "And didn't... anything happen during the party?" – asked Gerardo trying to hide the anguish that reply was causing him.
- "No, we just went there, you went out to see the stars, and then we came back home" – said their mother calmly – "There really wasn't anything out from normal there" –
Both siblings felt dismayed upon hearing that, but they tried to pretend it was nothing the best they could.
First they went to leave Gabriela at her school, which was a bit less than two blocks away from their house, and then they went to Gerardo's school, which was about four blocks away.
Once in school, it was horribly boring and tedious for him due to how used he had gotten to being traveling around and fighting demons and youkai.
- 'I hate math with every bit of my soul, and I still have to continue seeing English classes even though I've already gotten a decent enough skill on it…' – thought he annoyed – 'If at least I could continue learning the things from Dragonia that Feltes was teaching me… Well, at least I can meet Henry and Roger again during recess… I need to know if at least they…' –
When the long first period ended and the bell signaling the beginning of the first recess rang, he was the first to leave the classroom. He then went to wait on the hallway that led to the classrooms where his friends were at.
- "Okay! It's just a matter of waiting a little now" – said he with enthusiasm.
A few seconds later, his friends came out from their classrooms, and waved to Gerardo when they saw him. They separated from the flock of students that were going to eat their mid-morning breakfast and sat down at a bench in the courtyard to talk.
- "Hey, pal! How're things going?" – asked Henry when they finally began talking – "We should begin scheduling another reunion, as it's been lotsa time since we last made one!" –
- "One on my house would be great, as I'm still the only one among us that has a PS2, I've still got some things I wanna show you" – said Roger cheerfully.
- "Ah, of course. To continue showing off you can play .hack while we can't" – said Henry as he laughed – "Well, at least I'll be able to buy one soon too!" -
- "Hehe, and I've got some plans to buy one for myself at some point too" – said Gerardo with a smile. While being with Kagome, Inuyasha and the others had been a nice experience, he was also missing these times with his friends, just making small talk without having to plan beating enemies or search for something if it wasn't in a videogame. However, these thoughts made a question come out from his mouth without him thinking – "By the way, haven't you had any kind of weird encounters or anything like that lately?" -
- "Hmm, what are you talking about exactly?" – asked Roger puzzled.
- "Yeah, I know Gisely can be a little weird at times, but she isn't a bad person or anything" – laughed Henry.
- "Then, nothing unusual has happened?" – asked Gerardo trying to hide the despair he was feeling.
- "No, nothing has really happened" – said Henry a bit confused upon seeing Gerardo's attitude – "Are you okay? You're acting weird today" –
- "It's just… well…" – said Gerardo as he tried to come up with a good way to explain what he was feeling without coming off as insane – "I had a dream in which I met some anime characters… and you told me you had met one too… and it was so realistic I thought that I should check with you to see if it actually happened…" -
- "Hmm, got it…" – said Henry – "But as you can see, it was just a dream" –
- "And you got me curious there. What character did we met in that dream?" – asked Roger intrigued upon hearing that.
- "Inuyasha…" – said Gerardo at once. Upon hearing that, both seemed to have gotten a headache, but it faded away after a few seconds – "Are you two okay? Do you need an aspirin or something?" -
- "No, we're fine…" – said Henry in a tranquilizing tone - "It's just that when you said that, I felt like I was tryin' to remember something, but I couldn't" –
- "You too?" – asked Roger – "That was so weird…" -
- "Okay…" – said Gerardo as he got up from the bench – "Well, we'll talk on the next recess, as I wanna be alone for a while… I've got a few things to ponder over…" -
He then ran off before either of the boys could ask him anything, and once he was out of their sight, he took the way to the stairs leading to the school's rooftop. He fell to his knees as he got closer to the border of the rooftop, and looked at the sky as the tears began spilling from his eyes…
- "Damn… damn it!" – screamed Gerardo with rage and despair. Even though he could remember the Dragon Gods' names, he didn't know what they meant as Dragonian words, and began pronouncing them with rage – "Illyusea… Iadlast… Tiarrashe… Phinambrea… Kiols… Pyrazsyec… Why in hell you had to this!? You didn't have enough with stripping us from our powers and sending us back here… you also had to separate Miko and Yasha from Kagome and Inuyasha, and make everyone except Gaby and me forget everything about it!? How cruel… it isn't fair… it isn't… fair…" -
(Ending: Waratteta – Gabriela Robin)
He then fell to the floor, punching it enraged as he began crying in sadness. He had never felt as useless and powerless as he did at that moment. However, at that moment, a girl identical to Gabriela appeared before him, wearing very similar clothes to the ones she wore in the Inuyasha world, though with a few differences: instead of a hakama, she was wearing a skirt that had some golden arches at the hem, lacked the cords to tighten the sleeves, had a a white and silver obi, and wore white slipper style shoes and white tights instead of the tabi and zori.
- "No way… it's that you, Gaby?" – said Gerardo as he wiped off his tears. When he got close to her, he saw she wasn't solid… she was like a projection or hologram… but she still spoke to him.
- "Hihi, I'm not her. However, I've brought you a message from your sister" – said the girl as she laughed just as Gabriela used to – "She says her friends don't believe anything she says, and that she feels very sad and alone about it. But also tells you to not give in to sadness and despair" –
- "Who are you, and why are you telling me this?" – asked Gerardo puzzled.
- "We could say I'm the last thing you'll see from Dragonia for now" – said the girl giggling – "But don't worry… someday that gate will open again… you and your sister are chosen ones, so that means someday you'll have to cross the barrier that separates the world, regardless of what kind of joy or pain might await you there… so until we meet again… Gerar…" -
- "Wait!" – said Gerardo, but the ghostly girl shone for a few instants and disappeared. However, Gerardo continued thinking about what she said… they were the chosen ones, and someday the gate between the worlds would welcome them again…
- "As many encounters as memories… stories connected to each other… worlds connected beyond the light… I guess that was the true magic we witnessed…" – said Gerardo as he looked at the sky a bit more cheered up. He then extended his hand up, as if he was trying to reach the friends he left on the other world, and he felt like he was seeing their transparent faces on the blue sky above – "Yes… I swear we'll meet again someday… and we'll complete the mission we left pending… but until then… please take care, Kagome, Inuyasha, Miko, Yasha, Miroku, Sango and Shippou… we'll do the same here…" -
(The End)
