Entwining of Destinies ~ Dragonia - Epilogue

 

Epilogue

- "Hmm, our two chosen didn't result as strong as we expected" – said Kiols. The six Dragon Gods were floating above a mountain covered in clouds at midday, and they seemed to be deliberating over something.

- "And what did you expect?" – said Pyrazsyec annoyed – "Only two beginner-level elementals that didn't even go through the Elemental Baptism, and to make matters worse, they didn't even have the complete elemental set" –

- "Though I would normally disagree with Pyrazsyec, I must say he is right" – said Iadlast saddened – "Not only we hurried too much with choosing only two people instead of the six necessary to at least complete the six Seirei, we also are lacking now the two Priestesses that are necessary to unlock their complete potential" –

- "Certainly, but the circumstances were dire and we didn't have many other options available" – said Phinambrea in a disappointed voice – "And besides, we misjudged the inhabitants of that world: of the ones we gathered, only two had the necessary potential to make use of our powers, and despite that, they had other powers that were incompatible with ours" -

- "That last problem could have been solved by using modified versions of the Seirei Crystals" – said Iadlast irritated as he noticed how poorly thought out this plan turned to be – "However, I have to say that it is still unforgivable to me that we separated these two children from their only family to bring them to our world, with them having no home to come to there and not even knowing the language" –

- "Did you become fond of them, Iadlast?" – asked Kiols in a mocking tone.

- "It isn't that" – said Iadlast in a soft voice – "As one of the Wills of Dragonia that rule over emotions and feelings, it is obvious that I cannot help but feel pained upon seeing others suffer. Besides, one of our laws has always been that children must never be separated from their parents, or if they lack them, from the people the closest to them, as long as they are treated well. What we did would be an act comparable to other world trying to take away any of our creations… our Children" -

- "You are correct, Iadlast, and it was very painful for me having to do that too" – said Illyusea in an understanding tone – "However, Miko holds a great potential she would be unable to develop if she stayed at her world. Even though the fragment of my Nucleus is not within her body and thus we cannot give her the role of Priestess of the Dragon, I am sure that she will become a magnificent Assistant Priestess when the time comes. Likewise, Yasha could end up being an excellent warrior or knight if he dedicates himself to improve not only his swordplay skills, but also to learning magic" -

- "And why couldn't we send Inuyasha and Kagome with them?" – asked Kiols – "These two are the older halves of the souls Miko and Yasha were born from, and therefore, they have their same potential and abilities. Besides, they wouldn't have to deal with the separation anxiety and depression over losing their memories they are suffering right now, which is only going to be an obstruction in their training" -

- "Because it is possible the seal we formed could end up breaking if we had sent more beings from other worlds to Dragonia. Remember we were unable to give them innate understanding of the Dragonian language as we took them away due to a lack of time, so I am afraid they will have to learn it the hard way" – said Tiarrashe – "However, I wish to add that it would have been a good idea to have brought Gerardo and Gabriela with them, as they are the only Seirei candidates we have now. Given Dragonia's current state of affairs, none of our Children want to assume that role due to how dangerous it is, aside of other factors. However, that alone is enough to make their mental waves unable to synchronize with the ones our Nuclei emit, which discards them by default as Seirei candidates" -

- "True…" – conceded Iadlast – "And if that wasn't enough, the few times Gabriela used her songs, I could feel something aside of the waves all Light elementals can emit… it is possible she could end up being our next Priestess of the Dragon…" –

- "However, that is no more than conjecture…" – said Phinambrea in a thoughtful voice – "That fragment has been missing ever since our last Priestess and her friends, the former Seirei, perished in the middle of their mission. And as the access to the other dimensions is closed, we have no way to ascertain that by ourselves" -

- "And it would be idiotic for us to break the seal after all the work it was to put it up" – said Pyrazsyec as he snorted.

- "In that case, we only have two options: hope Tenebross never manages to break out from his dimensional prison and leave things like this, which seems very unlikely to me…" – said Iadlast thoughtfully - "Or we could wait until Tenebross escapes, breaking the seal we placed and allowing us to call both siblings to Dragonia. That way we can also choose at least four more people that will become the Seirei candidates to the elements that are missing at the moment…" -

- "Only time will tell which option we will have to choose, as also shall the Will of Kiockse…" – said Illyusea closing his eyes – "Well, I am afraid this discussion will go to nowhere if we continue it like this. We shall finish this meeting for today, so everyone please go back to your respective Layhallialia, and devote yourselves to monitoring everything that happens on our beloved planet" -

And then, everyone disappeared to go back to where their respective Nuclei slept.

On the other hand, in the middle of an infinite darkness, located in an unknown place…

- "These damned pseudo-rei from hell, and that sextet of idiotic wills sealed me here again…" – said Tenebross enraged – "And besides, that traitor Feltes backstabbed me… but it doesn't matter… I've already recovered a great part of my power… It is just a matter of time until I can leave this disgusting prison… and follow the designs Caellicauts left me… yes… return the world to the absolute Nothingness… and also all other worlds… that way there won't be any more hatred or suffering… or any reason for these things to exist…" -

(The End)

Entwining of Destinies ~ Dragonia - Chapter 20

 

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, risha, lathlia tuia millial!
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.

Ist Cielba Bialr Lyacchi Shull Lika Zelc Ical.
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.

Cebalire 6 Sieshu, Baprou SatplSa Zosph Ical,
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.

Ist Cielba SiescalSa, CozNal Pawatz...
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.

Ist Atok, Phaph Gabriela, ShuxuaRa.
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)

Entwining of Destinies ~ Dragonia - Chapter 19

 

Chapter 19:

Revelations

(Opening: Still Time)

A little after Kouin finished treating everyone with his magic, most of the group had again their eyes back to their normal state, and began blinking in surprise due to the sudden change from near-absolute darkness to the light that was filtering through the door, windows and damaged roof of the abandoned temple.

Gerardo immediately hugged Gabriela, who tried getting away from him with a scared expression on her face. Sango and Miroku hugged each other as they muttered incomprehensible things right before Shippou leaped into them. Miko tried getting close to Yasha, but he went away from her and the others in fear. However, when they noticed who was with them, they stopped their initial reactions and unsheathed their weapons.

- "You!" – shouted Gerardo as he walked to Kouin with Ryuuga on his right hand and shield-form Fuuinryuu on his left – "What are you doing here!?" –

- "Hmm, I expected a less aggressive reaction," – sighed Kouin – "After all, I'm who just saved your lives" -

- "What!?" – shouted everyone spooked.

- "Just as you heard, as I was who rescued you from that horrible mirror" – said Kouin as he pointed to the remains of the Mirror of Shades, which had completely shattered by now. Everyone stared at him with their jaws dropping to the floor.

- "Then, what was all that we saw while we were inside?" – asked Miroku as he checked his Kazaana was like before, and amazed to see himself and the others safe.

The others reacted in a similar way, while Yasha was looking at the others confused: they didn't seem so bad in comparison to how they were within the mirror, while Miko was examining herself and noticing her appearance and clothing had gone back to their usual state.

- "Everything you saw, heard, touched and sensed in that place was a mere illusion" – said Kouin as he looked at the mirror with a sad gaze while the others looked at each other in embarrassment – "That artifact is called the Mirror of Shades, and after it traps its victims, it relentlessly assaults them with their worst nightmares and fears, to the point it completely destroys its minds and spirits. And there is no possibility of escape: the mirror is also capable of perceiving the hopes of those it has imprisoned and turning them into more despair" -

- "But then… how did you get us outta there, and why?" – asked Miko rolling a hand into a fist and putting it over her chest. She didn't think Kouin was so bad, but still didn't fully trust him.

- "For now, I don't think it'd be prudent for me to explain it, little one" – said Kouin as he knelt for their faces to be at the same height, and then turned to look at Kagome and Inuyasha – "Unfortunately, it seems two of your friends were left in a grave condition from having gone through this" -

In fact, Kagome and Inuyasha were still in the state everyone was when Kouin got them out of the mirror, even though he had also used the same magic he applied to the others to get them out of that. Apparently it had no effect on them, as they kept trembling while the jewels on their medallions were twinkling in a strange way.

- "What's happening to them?" – asked Gabriela worried as she and the others went to check them. Shippou and Sango tried moving their hands in front of their eyes and calling them, but it was useless: they didn't show any reaction.

- "Looks like their minds are on the verge of collapsing" – explained Kouin saddened – "They were already in a delicate situation because they still haven't gotten fully used to having half of their souls missing, and I'm afraid this has caused them a severe mental damage. This is beyond the reach of my healing abilities…" –

- "Oh no…" – said Sango biting her lip – "There's nothing we can do for them?" –

- "Probably, the medallions could also be the key to this…" – said Miroku as he pointed to the medallions' gems, which were still twinkling.

- "But how?" – asked Yasha, who had been very quiet after they got out from the mirror – "Returning to them won't be of any use now, and we've already separated from them…" –

- "There's a function we haven't tried out yet…" – said Gerardo looking at the medallions, and the others noticed what he was talking about when they remembered the positions they had.

- "We'll have to seal their memories?" – asked Miko turned around to look at Kouin when she realized what they would have to do to save them.

- "I'm afraid that is the case," – said Kouin as he stood up and looked at the group with a serious face – "The memory sealing also serves as a preservation mechanism to keep their minds from getting destroyed upon receiving an unbearable shock, so it'll be necessary for you to leave them like that at least for one day so they can recover" -

- "I didn't want something like this to happen…" – said Yasha shaking his head as his gaze sank to the floor, feeling guilty about the joke he said when they had met with Kaede a few hours ago. Miko put a hand on his shoulder and smiled.

- "It isn't your fault. We didn't know Tenebross had such a horrible trap prepared" – said she in a calming voice.

- "Well, I think we really don't have other choice…" – said Miroku as he walked to Inuyasha, but Shippou jumped on his shoulder and stopped him.

- "Miroku, shouldn't we let Yasha and Miko do this?" – asked he as he signaled to them with the head - "After all, they're the closest to Kagome and Inuyasha, if you get me" –

- "Okay, we'll do it" – said Yasha as he walked to Inuyasha and grabbed the medallion's ruby needle with his hand – "Nii-san, please get well soon…" –

- "Onee-san… please… don't leave me again…" – said Miko as she looked at Kagome's empty expression with a great sadness.

They both then looked at each other straight in the eyes, nodded, and changed the position in the medallions of their counterparts to "Seal". The next instant, Kagome and Inuyasha closed their eyes and fell unconscious in the arms of their younger counterparts. The jewels in the medallions then stopped twinkling and began filling with light, as if they had some kind of gauge inside.

- "Very well, that will be enough" – said Kouin nodding at them – "It would be a good idea that you seek a place they can use to rest. I also have to warn you that as long as they have their memories sealed, which will be until the jewels in their medallions are filled with light, you must treat them in the same way as a person that drank the Water of Restart" –

- "Let me guess: otherwise they will go insane because their real memories are disconnected, for lack of a better term" – said Gerardo as he looked at them.

- "Exactly. However, you will see by yourselves what will happen once they awaken" – said Kouin in a mysterious voice – "And if you agree, I wish to accompany with you from now on" –

- "Ehh?" – said Gabriela recoiling back with surprise written all over her face while Miroku saddled Inuyasha on his back and Sango did the same with Kagome – "And that?" –

- "We're all wondering the same thing" – said Yasha as he looked at him with an eyebrow raised – "What reason do you have to join us if you're Tenebross' henchman?" -

- "I have my reasons, and I'll explain them as soon as your friends have recovered" – said Kouin in a firm tone – "I'm sorry about this, but I don't like repeating explanations and I'd like to give them only once" -

- "At least it doesn't like he's gonna set us a trap or something" – said Miko as she looked at Kouin with her hands joined behind herself while the others put their weapons away.

- "In that case, okay. You can come with us" – said Gerardo with arms crossed after he returned Ryuuga and Fuuinryuu to his obi – "But we'll have to off you if you try anything weird. Is that clear?" -

- "Understood" – nodded Kouin – "After all, I can't ask you to trust me after the actions I took during our first encounter" -

- "But it's thanks to that we're here now, Kouin-san" – smiled Miko. Kouin blinked at her a couple of times surprised, and then smiled back at her.

They left the temple and followed again the road to the village. When they finally got back, they went to Kaede's hut and left Inuyasha and Kagome lying in two separate futon while they waited for them to wake up. As for Kaede, she was on the outskirts of the village gathering medicinal herbs, so they didn't meet her.

- "This brings me back to when we brought Kagome and Inuyasha here after they drank the Water of Restart for the first time" – said Sango with some nostalgia in her voice.

- "True that, it's very similar to what happened back then" – said Miroku thoughtfully – "Though at that time we didn't get any new allies, nor did we imagine that it would bring so many novelties to our world" -

- "But it's still pretty weird that something like that happened again" – said Yasha crossing his arms.

Then, Kagome and Inuyasha began moving, and they woke up at the same time. However, far from having the same reaction they had when they woke up for the first time after drinking the water, they just sat up and smiled at the others.

- "Hi, Sango-nee, Houshi-sama" – said Kagome cheerfully as she and Inuyasha each let out a little yawn and stretched. It looked like they both just had gotten up from a little nap.

- "Are you okay?" – asked Miroku with a worried face.

- "Of course, why wouldn't I be?" – said Kagome with a smile.

- "Onee-san, I was so worried for you…" – said Miko as she walked to her and smiled at her in relief.

- "Huh? Miko, why're you calling me that?" – said Kagome tilting her head – "We're twins after all…" -

- "What?" – said Yasha confused upon hearing that, while Miko was left agape and couldn't reply back. The others were looking at each other confused and shocked.

- "Yasha, what's up?" – said Inuyasha as he got up and walked to him – ""Don't tell me you were distracted and you got hit on the head or something, bro!"-

Everyone continued looking at each confused, while Kouin was laughing in silence.

- "But come on! What's up with you all today?" – asked Kagome in an amused voice. She then giggled, thinking they were trying to pull a joke on them – "Even Gerar-nii and Gaby-nee are acting weird!" –

- "What!?" – said both Gerardo and Gabriela at the same time, thinking the situation was only getting weirder with every passing second.

- "Keh, it doesn't matter. Let's just let them continue with their joke, Kagome" – said Inuyasha snorting – "Let's go play already, before Kaede-obaasan comes and makes us train again!" –

- "Miko, Yasha…" – said Kagome as she turned to them with a large smile in her face – "Wanna come with us?"

Miko and Yasha looked at each other, not knowing what to do, until Miroku decided to intervene.

- "They'll come with you in a second" – said he gently – "For now, we have to tell them something important. They'll go play with you after that" –

- "Okay!" – smiled both, and after Kagome put her zori on, they ran out of the hut.

- "Okay, Kouin" – said Gerardo after they got far away enough to be unable to hear them – "Can you explain to us what just happened?" –

- "That was so weird… it looked like they had their memories and like they didn't at the same time…" – said Gabriela puzzled.

- "It's something like that" – explained Kouin – "When they use the medallion's sealing functions, it makes up a basic group of memories based on the identity and personality of that person, as well as giving them some background story so their caretakers won't have to come up with one" –

- "So it means…" – began Miko with a hand over her mouth, but Yasha then put a hand on her shoulder.

- "We'll ask them directly later," – said he as he smiled – "I don't think we should make guesses and act differently from how they expect us to be" –

Miko just answered by smiling at him and nodding.

- "About that," – began Sango smiling at them – "Why don't you go play with them?" -

- "Huh?" – said both confused upon hearing her.

- "Sango is right" – said Miroku nodding in agreement – "So far you had to act more like adults than like children due to all the battles and dangers we have been through so far. It wouldn't bad for you to play around until they both have recovered, especially after the horrors we just witnessed" –

Both kids then smiled at them.

- "Gerar, it's okay if go play with them too?" – asked Gabriela brimming with joy.

- "Go ahead," – said Gerardo as he smiled and softly stroked her head – "Besides, you deserve it, sis, as you've also fought hard and long" -

- "And me too!" - said Shippou in a singsong voice as he ran behind Inuyasha and Kagome. He was thinking this would give him another chance with Kagome, and he wasn't willing to let it go to waste.

- "We'll use this afternoon to rest up, and we'll tell Kaede-sama about this to get her up to date" – said Sango as she left her weapons in a corner of the hut.

- "And I think I'll stay here and chat with Kouin, as there are some things I want to ask him" – said Gerardo as he sat down again – "Oh, and Gaby… I want you to be my eyes and ears out there, to make sure nothing bad ends up happening" –

- "Okay!" – said Gabriela in a singsong voice as she, Miko and Yasha left the hut.

After a few minutes, they met with Kagome and Inuyasha, which by the looks of it, had been waiting for them under a tree near the river.

- "How weird…" – said Miko looking at the tree as they got closer – "This is the same tree we used to meet up at before" –

- "You're right…" – said Yasha puzzled – "It's as if this place had gotten pretty important for us four" –

When they saw them, Inuyasha and Kagome ran to greet them.

- "Miko, Yasha, Gaby-nee!" – said Kagome as soon as they had gotten close to them – "At last! We thought you'd never come!" -

- "Keh, and what was that Houshi-sama wanted to tell you?" – asked Inuyasha crossing his arms – "We lost lotsa time 'coz that" –

- "Yeah! Miroku loves making us waste time!" - uttered Shippou.

- "Just a few things about the training they're giving us" – said Yasha quickly to not make it seem suspicious.

- "Yup… Kaede-obaasan's giving archery lessons to Kagome and me later…" – said Miko joining her hands before herself – "While Yasha and Inuyasha'll get some fencing lessons, and Gaby-nee's gonna tell us some stories about her journeys" -

- "Hihi, I hope you like them when you hear them" – said Gabriela smiling, thinking it wouldn't be hard to change up a few things that happened recently to tell them as stories – "Well, we're gonna play now or what?" -

- "Yeah!" – said they all as they ran off to a nearby plain. Once there, Miko got out a ball from the Dragtemn she shared with Kagome and threw it to Yasha.

- "By the way, Kagome-chan" – said Gabriela as they continued playing by passing the ball to each other – "Can you tell me about how you came to this place? I forgot some things about it" –

- "Huh?" – said Kagome tilting her head as she got the ball from Yasha and threw it to Miko – "Okay, but Miko could tell you that too, Gaby-nee" –

- "Hehe, I think it'd better if you did it instead…" – said Miko as she thought to herself she didn't really know what kind of memories Kagome had now: the memory sharing link they used to have was closed at that moment, as also was the one between Yasha and Inuyasha. She then threw the ball to Gabriela.

- "Oh… okay" – said Kagome as she breathed in – "Miko and me are twin sisters, and we were born in a land very far away from here. Some months ago, our relatives sent us here with our tutor, Kaede-obaasan, so we could learn how to be mikos, and here's where we met you all: Houshi-sama, Sango-nee, Shippou, Yasha, Inuyasha, Gerar-nii, and you, Gaby-nee" -

- "It was similar for us" – said Inuyasha as he caught the ball Gabriela had just thrown and he threw it to Kagome with a smile – "After our mother died, Yasha and I were wandering for a long time, running away from humans and youkai, until Kaede-obaasan gave us a home here. She and Totosai-sensei have been friends for a long time, so they gave us the swords our father left us, and we also made our first friends here" -

- "Hehe, we've been through a lot, right Inuyasha?" – asked Yasha a bit surprised about all the stories the medallions made up for them.

- "Yeah, that's right, Yasha" – said Inuyasha with a smile – "But at least I'm glad we got friends and people looking out for us now" –

- "I miss my family a little, but I'm still glad to have friends as good as you!" – smiled Kagome.

- "I'm the same, onee… I mean, Kagome" – said Miko correcting herself at the last second. She still hadn't gotten over how used she was to call Kagome "onee-san".

- "By the way, Kagome" – said Shippou as he feigned timidity after they had stopped playing to rest a little – "I've got a gift for you" –

- "I hope it isn't a flower crown, Shipou" – said Miko angry. That was in fact what Shippou was going to give Kagome.

- "Come on, Miko. Don't be so hard on him" – said Kagome in a tranquilizing voice – "I know he was mean once to Yasha and Inuyasha, but he's sorry about that" -

- "Yeah, yeah!" – exclaimed Shippou upon seeing how Kagome was defending him – "I'm really sorry about that!" –

- "Okay…" – said Miko as she sighed with some exasperation upon seeing how Kagome accepted the flower crown and put it on her head.

- "It looks great on you!" – said Shippou, to which Inuyasha nodded.

- "Yeah… you look pretty with it…" – said he as he blushed.

- "Thanks!" – said Kagome as she went and hugged them both. Yasha, Miko and Gabriela were left agape from this.

- "But, Shippou" – said Kagome once they separated and continued playing – "We're still only friends. I don't want you to misunderstand things" -

- "Ugh…" – groaned Shippou as he felt the ground sinking around him – "Okay, got it…" –

The others just laughed upon seeing him sulking, and decided to continue playing. Kagome took off the flower crown and put it away in Miko's Dragtemn so it wouldn't get damaged. The next moment, Gabriela got bored from them only playing to pass the ball, so she showed them how to play volleyball.

- "It's like this," – said she as she threw the ball over her head and hit in Miko's direction with the tips of her fingers – "Then the ones on the other side have to hit it, and the one who makes it hit the other team's side without them getting to hit it back gets a point" –

- "Sounds fun, Gaby-nee!" – said Kagome as Miko shot off the ball in Yasha's direction – "These games the people make in the place you're from are things I've never seen before!" –

- 'She actually knows, but doesn't remember it' – thought Miko as she laughed to herself – ''Hehe, maybe that's what everyone thought of me before we got connected' –

They began playing, so Gabriela, Miko and Kagome teamed up; while Shippou, Yasha and Inuyasha formed the other team.

- "So, Gaby-nee" – said Inuyasha as he sent back one of Kagome's shoots – "How've your last journeys been? What things didja see? What evil beings you've beaten?" –

- "Hihi, well," – said Gabriela as she began remembering some of the recent happenings and began telling them with a smile – "Among other things, we got into a volcano, defeated a fire monster, and made a couple that wouldn't stop fighting marry" -

- "Wow! Cool!" – said Kagome as she bounced the ball in Miko's direction and she shot in the boys' direction – "And you found more of the things you were searching for? The Fragments of Dark or something?" –

- "Kagome, these are the Fragments of Shadows" – said Miko puzzled from Kagome misremembering the name – "And yeah: they supposedly have gotten a lot, and are pretty close to completing the crystal" -

- "Congrats!" – said Inuyasha as Yasha passed the ball to him, and he shot it to Kagome and Miko – "You've progressed a lot!" –

- "Hihi, I wish it was like that. But we've still got a long way ahead before we finish this" – said Gabriela in a humble way.

- "And you still gotta fight Tenebross, right?" – asked Yasha a bit more relieved, as apparently they wouldn't have to keep all their conversations secret so nothing bad happened to Kagome and Inuyasha.

- "Yeah, but as he's such a coward, I don't think it'll be easy to find him…" – said Gabriela as she made a serious face.

- "Why ya say that?" – asked Inuyasha, but his distraction ended costing him because he couldn't send back the shoot Gabriela sent him – "No!" -

- "Okay, point for us!" – said Gabriela cheerfully – "And I say that because it's like that. We've been searching him for a long while, but he only appeared a couple of times before Gerar and me" -

- "And probably it's going to be harder to find him now…" – said Yasha deep in thought as they all took their positions again to continue playing.

- "Don't be so pessimistic, Yasha" – said Kagome from the other side of the plain they were using as playground – "I'm sure they can do it, like Houshi-sama and Sango-nee are with their search for the Shikon Pearl…" –

- "But aren't ya wondering why they gave ya that shard, Kagome?" – asked Inuyasha a bit disconcerted while Shippou made the next shoot.

- "Not really" – said her shrugging her shoulders as Miko received the shoot and prepared to send the ball back – "Anyway, it's a souvenir they brought me from their journeys, and if something happens, we can take care of it ourselves" -

- "So, you know how to fight well already?" – said Gabriela amazed upon hearing these words.

- "Not as much as we'd like" – replied Inuyasha as Kagome received Yasha's shoot – "But at least we can defend ourselves from weaker youkai" -

- 'What a surprise…' – thought Yasha surprised while Inuyasha responded to Kagome's shoot – 'But I'd say Miko and me know how to fight pretty well now…' -

- "It's just a question of practice" – said Miko cheerfully as she responded to Inuyasha's shoot – "Anyway, we should just relax and play today. Let's stop worrying about trainings, and fights, and all that!" -

- "You're right in that, Miko!" – said Gabriela with a smile, though she sounded very similar to her brother. The next instant, Inuyasha responded to Miko's shoot and ended getting a point for the boys.

They continued playing and laughing for a while, and the game ended when the boys scored three points, while the girls ended with two. The girls congratulated them for their win, and after having taken a little refreshment Miko and Gabriela took out from their Dragtemns, they decided to begin playing hide-and-seek.

On the other hand, Gerardo and Kouin were absorbed in a conversation that compared the structure of Dragonia's universe with that of Earth's.

- "And as you can see, our universe is formed from the duality of the waves and particles emitted by Kiockse, or the Nucleus of Chaos" – explained Kouin as he showed him a diagram made from luminous lines – "These waves and particles formed for the first time in what we know as the Song of Origin, and their flow throughout the universe dictates the rhythm of the melodies of everything that exists on the universe, which is what we know as the Grand Melody" -

- "Hmm, I see" – nodded Gerardo with a smile – "Dragonia's universe sounds pretty musical from the terminology they use over there" -

- "That's right" – smiled Kouin – "Dragonians give a great importance to the music and songs in their society, as it is the most powerful form they have for using their magic, and it also is what links them directly to the world and its creator Wills" –

- "Got it. On the other hand, my universe is much more technical: its origin was an explosion called the Big Bang, and all the explanations are given directly with no poetic or metaphoric shades. And as far as I see, these waves and particles are also what make up Dragonia's planet, correct?" -

- "Yes, but only a part of the infinite wave and particles kinds Kiockse created" – explained Kouin – "In total, only 18 types of these waves and particles exist in Dragonia: six that give form to the elements and the wills controlling them, three that have no wills of their own but are controlled by the wills of the six previous ones, three that come from external entities, one that is bestowed by Kiockse as a fusion of all the previous ones, two that are created by the same force as Tenebross and me, and three that permeate the entire universe and are known as the Elements of Creation" -

- "In other words, each element has a corresponding wave or particle" – commented Gerardo – "But if the Nucleus of Chaos is the one creating and maintaining everything, what is what creates and maintains the "inexistence"?" -

- "That would be the Nucleus of Nothingness" – said Kouin in a bitter voice – "And I can't tell you its name for now, as it is part of what I'm going to explain once your friends have regained their memories" -

- "Okay, I understand" – said Gerardo – "And going back to our conversation… well, my universe has a theoretically infinite number of particles and waves with all kinds of longitudes and frequencies, but they aren't organized in the same way as the Dragonian universe. Rather, they are named depending of their size, their electric polarity and their function in the context of the microcosmos. By the way, what difference is there when it comes to power and efficiency when the Dragonians chant their spells or weave them into a song?" -

- "It is very simple" – explained Kouin – "When you chant, the power of a spell is regular if it uses Common Dragonian. However, when you chant using Ceremonial Dragonian, the power gets multiplied by a factor of ten due to that language allowing the sending denser waves of feelings and communicating directly with the Nuclei without them needing to reinterpret these emotions from other languages or dialects. And if you add a song to the execution of a spell, the power triples because melodies and rhythmic patterns allow transmitting a greater quantity of and more complex emotions in an instant compared to just saying the words without any sort of accompaniment. Another difference is the speed: singing is more complicated because you must craft the song and the lyrics for it, and Ceremonial Dragonian is more complex and slow to pronounce than Common Dragonian" -

- "Hmm, I see. That world and everything on it is quite interesting" – said Gerardo enthusiastically.

- "The science from your world sounds very interesting too" – laughed Kouin – "I guess it sounds boring to you because you are used to it!" -

- "Yes, it's something like that" – laughed Gerardo – "I might not be a specialist on quantum mechanics or physics, and get terrified by mathematics, but the way my universe works is something that has always interested me. That's why I've studied on it ever since I was a kid, reading books of all kinds" -

- "Hehe, you're really good material for Investigator and Scholar" – said Kouin while he made the lights he drew vanish – "Actually, I wouldn't be surprised about you getting a royal scholarship to study those careers if you lived there" -

- "Let me guess, one is for theoretical research while the other puts these theories to practice?" – asked Gerardo. Kouin nodded in response – "Hmm, it really sounds like something I'd like to do for a living" -

- "You're really similar to a person I knew from that world" – said Kouin with some nostalgia – "Even though we were enemies, we used to meet up every now and then to exchange information about the researches we made" –

- "I guess it's because you were on Tenebross' side. But didn't you try using these meetings to try to spy on each other?" – asked Gerardo surprised.

- "No, as we made a truce expressly for that and agreed to not attack or spy each other during these meetings" – said Kouin in a serious voice – "Additionally, we both used special spells so neither Tenebross' demons or his friends could try spying on us" –

- "But why don't you use any of that here?" – asked Gerardo puzzled – "As I've always had the unpleasant feeling we're being watched" –

- "That's because that spell doesn't work in this world due to waveform interferences" – said Kouin in a bitter voice – "Besides, Naraku uses a kind of espionage that has principles I don't understand in full yet, and thus I haven't been able to counter it effectively" -

- "Hmm, I think you mean Kanna's mirror with that" – said Gerardo thoughtfully – "And what happened to that person?" –

- "…He's dead…" – said Kouin saddened – "Unfortunately, he fell in a trap Tenebross laid for him, and this caused him to get corrupted with the power of Shadows. Due to this, he ended up killing his own friends, girlfriend and sister, and when he regained his senses and saw the atrocity he was forced to commit, he couldn't bear the pain and stabbed himself with his own sword… and I had the horror of bearing witness to that, as Tenebross showed it to all his demons as he celebrated his victory…" -

- "My God… how horrible…" – said Gerardo as his gaze dropped to the floor, horrified from Kouin's story.

- "I know… it was really terrible…" – said Kouin saddened – "I know we were enemies and we were destined to end up killing each other at some point, but I didn't wish for things to end the way they did…" -

- "Horrible and cruel deaths are going over the line, right?" – asked Gerardo.

- "Exactly. If I have to eliminate someone, I'd rather do it swiftly and in a way that doesn't cause them much suffering" – said Kouin. Gerardo noticed they seemed to share the same moral code – "Seeing my victims suffer only makes things much worse for me. And the face he had when he committed suicide it's something that still causes me nightmares… In fact, it even brings me to tears from the sadness and horror whenever I remember it…" -

He covered his face with his hands…

- "At least you've already switched sides, and you're gonna help us to avoid such horrible events from repeating" – said Gerardo putting a hand on his shoulder – "We'll do everything on our power to stop Tenebross. I swear that over my life" -

Meanwhile, Tenebross was infuriated: he had destroyed the few decorations that were in the hideout and had gotten so aggressive that Naraku had to enclose himself into a barrier to not get injured from all the blows and attacks he was releasing like mad.

- "DAMN KOUIN!" – shouted Tenebross like a madman – "HOW COULD YOU BETRAY ME LIKE THAT!? HOW!?" -

- "Hmm, I see that the betrayal of one of your creatures has affected you deeply" – said Naraku to mock him – "If one of mine had done it, I would already have killed it for its disobedience" -

- "HE WASN'T JUST ANY OLD CREATURE!" – shouted Tenebross, releasing an indescribable hatred with each syllable – "THAT DAMN TRAITOR! I DID SO MUCH FOR HIM, AND THIS IS HOW HE PAYS ME BACK!?" -

- "Hmph, and you have no power over him" – said Naraku to mock him again.

Tenebross shot him a large shadow beam from the mirror, which didn't get to make contact with Naraku due to the barrier. Tenebross himself knew it was useless, but he needed something to vent his rage.

- "You should control that temper of yours" – laughed Naraku – "At this rate, you will end up killing yourself" –

- "Close that filthy mouth!" – roared Tenebross – "And about what you said, no. He was the only one of my demons over which I have no power, but I'll settle the score with him once I meet him again" –

- "In any case, we should move" – suggested Naraku – "That traitor must have told them where we are by now" -

- "You are a cowardly imbecile" – said Tenebross – "We'll wait for them here and face them directly. I want to personally slay them…" –

- "As you wish, but it's very possible you will end regretting that decision later" – said Naraku with a false smile.

A few hours later, when the dusk began setting in, Kagome, Inuyasha, Miko, Yasha, Gabriela and Shippou had gotten tired of playing and decided to go back to Kaede's hut with the others. Once there, they were surprised to see Gerardo practicing with his sword and Kouin looking at the setting sun with melancholy.

- "Gerar!" – said Gabriela to her brother as they ran to him – "We're back!" –

- "Ah, welcome back!" – said Gerardo as he stopped practicing and put away his sword and shield – "Did you have a nice day?" -

- "Yeah, a lot!" – said Kagome – "Gaby-nee taught us a game called volleyball, and told us about your latest journey!" –

- "Yeah!" – said Inuyasha excited – "About how ya went into a volcano, defeated a monster in a cave filled with lava, heat, and other things!" –

- "Eheheh, yeah, but it was pretty hard too…" – said Gerardo a bit embarrassed – "If it wasn't by Miroku and Sango, we'd surely couldn't have done that" -

- "Hehe, right" – said Yasha laughing at Gerardo's face – "Anyway, I think Kaede-obaasan should be back by now, so we should go greet her" –

The others agreed and entered the hut together. Once there, Kaede greeted them.

- "Hi, everyone!" – said Kaede with a smile – "Did you have a nice afternoon?" –

- "Lots!" – said Kagome cheerfully – "But I was wondering why you didn't call us for our lessons, Kaede-obaasan" –

- "I decided it would be better to shake up things a little and give you a free day" – said Kaede as she laughed – "Anyway, we'll start making dinner in a bit" -

- "Okay then, what should we do meanwhile?" – asked Yasha – "I don't think we can do much now it's getting dark" –

- "You can't be serious, Yasha!" – said Miko – "At the least we could go see the setting sun, and how the first stars show up!" -

- "We really don't have anything else to do" – said Inuyasha crossing his arms – "So let's go see them!" –

- "But before that, wouldn't you like to hear a story?" – asked Gerardo remembering he had that pending from the time they went to Ryuusei. He also thought: – 'Too bad neither Rin nor Kikyou are here to hear it…' -

- "Yay! Yeah!" – said Kagome excited to know what kind of stories he was going to tell them.

- "But I wonder what kind of story that's going to be" – said Inuyasha walking to Gerardo – "Gaby-nee already told us about yer latest journey" -

- "Oh, I know. But there's another story I want to tell you, as it's one from the place we came from" – said Gerardo smiling at Inuyasha, and then he winked to the others.

- "It'll be interesting to hear it then" – said Kaede understanding what that gesture meant.

- "Okay, let's hear it!" – said Yasha as he and the other children sat down around him.

- "Okay then, let me begin" – said Gerardo as he cleared up his throat – "A long time ago, in a faraway land in which fairies inhabited the forests and the dragons flew through the skies, there was a small kingdom" –

- "This kingdom was governed by a gentle and beautiful queen, and a strong and wise king. However, the peaceful days they enjoyed came to an end when a great and evil ice demon appeared and covered with its cold mantle the entire kingdom. The strongest and most courageous knights and warriors of the kingdom fought against this evil threat during many days and nights but they could do nothing against it" –

- "However, when everything seemed lost, a great and beautiful golden dragon descended from the skies and faced the demon. Both fought during many days and nights, and in the end, the demon was defeated and the kingdom saved. However, the dragon disappeared shortly later, and everyone found out the queen had fallen into a sleep from which no one could wake her up" -

- "The king fell in a great sadness over this, and had to raise his little son, the prince, who was just a baby when the demon appeared, making him believe that his mother had died shortly after his birth. The years passed, and the kingdom returned to its former peace. Many years later, when the prince's tenth birthday came, he discovered his father going to a forbidden tower, and brimming with curiosity, he followed him" –

- "Once there, he saw his mother for the first time, still trapped in that endless sleep, but before his father could explain what was happening, the castle was attacked by an evil wizard that came to steal the king's crown. The wizard put the king to sleep with his magic, and while the prince fought to keep the wizard from stealing the crown, he couldn't do anything" -

- "The next morning, the prince departed for the wizard's castle to recover his father's crown, and on the road, a little witch that lived in a nearby forest and a brave knight wearing a white armor joined him. Together, they managed to defeat the evil wizard and his servants, and recover the crown" –

- "Shortly later, the king explained him everything that happened to his mother ten years ago, and gave him his permission to search for a way to revive his mother. So the prince and his friends began a long journey that took them to deep caves, to a ghost ship, a deserted island, a city floating in the skies and even to the world of the dead to bring back his mother's soul. Even the evil wizard decided to help them, moved by their noble mission, and accompanied them on this endeavor despite still hating the prince and his father" –

- "However, these attempts to free the queen's soul ended up bringing back the ice demon to life, so after crying a lot in regret over it, the prince regained his courage, and accompanied by his friends, he ventured into the cold northern lands, discovering his mother was actually the dragon that saved the kingdom ten years ago, revealing his own hidden powers, and defeating the ice demon for once and all. After these hard battles, the prince and his mother embraced each other for the first time, the entire kingdom celebrated the return of their queen, and peace and harmony returned to the land. And everyone lived happily ever after" -

As soon as Gerardo finished telling the story, which was accompanied by voice tone changes, hand gestures and changes in his face's expressions, everyone present there applauded him.

- "It was a very pretty story, Gerar-nii!" – said Kagome.

- "I wanted to hear another of yer stories since a while ago!" – said Inuyasha.

- "You weren't joking when you said it was like a fairytale!" – said Yasha.

- "So this was the story you wanted to tell us!" – said Shippou.

- "It was great!" – said Miko – "I've wanted to hear a fairytale like that ever since we came here!" –

- "Yeah, but the stories mom and grandpa told us were nothing like this one" – laughed Kagome – "These were things like the princess that was born in a bamboo and returned to the moon, or the lovers that meet amongst the stars" –

- "And talking about that, what do you say about going to watch the stars now?" – suggested Yasha to keep the conversation from heading into dangerous territory.

- "Okay! It hafta be dark enough to see 'em by now!" – said Inuyasha as he saw how Kaede was revolving the pot she had over the hearth to make the stew they would have for dinner.

- "Just don't get too far away from the hut, understood?" – said Kaede with a bit of seriousness in her voice.

- "Okay!" – said all the kids, and they left the hut as they cheerfully talked between themselves about the story.

- "So this was the story you wanted to tell us that time. Wasn't it, Gerardo-kun?" – asked Kaede with a smile as she continued revolving the pot.

- "Yes, the one and the same" – said Gerardo with some sadness in his face – "Actually; I was thinking I was a little saddened that neither Rin nor Kikyou could listen to it" -

- "Anyway, my sister has never been a fan of such stories" – said Kaede to not make him worry – "And it was a good idea that you told it to keep them entertained for a while" -

- "Yeah, it's because I thought that just playing music wouldn't be enough this time, and I don't think they would understand any of the books Kagome and I brought with us" – said Gerardo.

At that moment, Sango and Miroku came in. It looked like they had been enjoying themselves wherever they had been.

- "Good evening to both" – said Gerardo with a smile – "Looks like you had a nice day" –

- "Something like that," – said Sango – "We were actually going through the skies around to see if we could find anything strange, but there wasn't anything" -

- "Weren't you going to use today to rest?" – asked Gerardo a bit puzzled.

- "Well, our little flight could have been taken as a rest in itself" – said Miroku with a smile – "There are times in which the best way to relax is simply flying between the clouds and meditating in the stillness of the heights" -

-"Whatever you say…" – sighed Gerardo. As soon as dinner was ready, they called the children and told them to come eat. After they finished eating and cleaning, they went to sleep.

During that night, Kagome had a strange dream: she was floating all alone in a dark void, and in front of her there was another girl identical to her. She was curled up and was crying endlessly…

- "Hi!" – greeted Kagome to the girl as she floated to her with a worried face – "What happened? Why are you crying?" –

- "Because…" – sobbed the girl while making a lot of effort: she seemed to have been crying for quite a while because her voice sounded dry and cracked – "Because… my sister hates me… the person I love loves someone else instead… and all my friends and family are dead…" –

- "Huh?" – said Kagome puzzled – "Really? Are you sure about that?" -

- "Yeah…" – said the girl still sobbing – "I saw all that… and I couldn't do anything to stop all that from happening…" –

She then began crying much more loudly. Kagome just took one of her hands, made her float to her height and embraced her to try consoling her.

- "There, there" – said she as she softly patted the girl's back – "I'm sure that was just a nightmare. A bad dream" -

- "But… but…" – said the girl, even though her sobs were softer now. Kagome separated a bit from her and looked at her face: it was as if she were looking at herself in a mirror.

- "All these bad things couldn't have happened at the same time just like that, right?" – said Kagome gently as she smiled. She then let her go and extended her hand to her – "That's why it must be only a nightmare. Come now, let's go see them. I'm sure they're all okay!" –

- "Yeah… maybe… no, I'm sure you're right…" – said the girl as she took Kagome's hand and used it to raise herself up – "Thank you… Kagome…" –

- "Huh?" – said Kagome confused upon seeing how the girl knew her name – "How do you know me?" –

- "That isn't important…" – said the other girl as she wiped away the tears she had on her face and showed her a sincere smile. She then began shining intensely – "Thank you for saving me… from all that pain…" -

She then vanished.

On the other hand, Inuyasha was having a similar dream in which he was floating in the middle of the darkness, and met face to face with a boy identical to him. For a moment he thought he was Yasha, but the boy didn't respond when he called him by that name, and simply continued looking at his hands as he cried with a horrified face.

- "I killed them… I killed them…" – repeated he to himself as he continued looking at his hands.

- "Come, what's up?" – asked Inuyasha irritated as he looked at the other boy acting like a zombie – "Stop actin' like an idiot and get up!" -

The other boy instantly reacted and straightened himself up at once.

- "Who're ya callin' an idiot, stupid!?" – shouted the other boy – "Ya don't know anythin' about what's like losing everyone ya love for havin' killed them with yer own hands!" -

Inuyasha then punched him on the face:

- "Don't come with these idiocies to me!" – roared he – "I had enough with losin' my mother to have someone like ya excusin' himself about being an idiot! And besides, how're ya so sure they're really dead and it wasn't just a bad dream!?" -

The other boy then opened fully his eyes, as if he had realized something, and turned to look at the darkness…

- "A bad dream… yeah… it musta been that…" – said he as he began laughing, but not like a lunatic: it was a laugh filled with joy and relief – "Yeah, I think yer right…" –

- "Of course I am!" – said Inuyasha putting his hands on his hips and smiling satisfied – "And ya should go back to your friends. I'm sure they miss ya a lot"-

- "Yeah, I guess I should thank ya… see ya later" – said he as he vanished in a flash of light.

As soon as their counterparts disappeared in their dreams, Kagome and Inuyasha woke up at the same time, and after looking around confused, they looked at each other.

- "Kagome? Did sumthin' happen?" – asked Inuyasha worried upon noticing he and she were the only ones that were still awake: it was still dark outside, and the others were still fast asleep.

- "Yeah, I just had a very weird dream…" – said Kagome remembering what she saw before waking up – "I saw a girl that looked like me, and she was crying because she saw some horrible things…" –

- "I dreamed something like that too…" – said Inuyasha weirded out – "A boy that looked the same as me was kneelin' on the ground, crying and looking at his hands…" -

- "Huh? Really?" – asked Kagome – "And what did you do?" –

- "The only thing that came to my head," – said Inuyasha shrugging his shoulders – "Makin' him angry to get him outta that funk and hit him to make him react" -

- "Don't you think that was a bit extreme?" – asked Kagome as she covered her mouth with both hands – "As for me, I hugged the girl and consoled her" –

- "It's 'coz yer too gentle, Kagome" – said Inuyasha blushing – "Remember I'm not very tactful when it comes to other people" -

- "It's okay, don't worry" – said Kagome laughing upon seeing the embarrassed face Inuyasha put – "But it's so weird we both had dreams so similar… what could they mean?" –

- "We better ask Gerar-nii, Miroku-sama and Kaede-obaasan tomorrow" – suggested Inuyasha smiling – "I'm sure they will know what that's all about" -

- "Okay" – said Kagome to then tuck herself on the futon over which she had been sitting – "Good night, Inuyasha" –

- "You too, Kagome" – said Inuyasha as he tucked into his futon, and after a while, both went back to sleeping soundly.

Next morning, after breakfast, Inuyasha and Kagome walked to Kaede, Miroku and Gerardo, all of which were doing some chores: Kaede was picking up the bowls they had used to eat while Gerardo was preparing the baggage he thought Gabriela and he were going to use shortly, and Miroku was cleaning his shakujou. Gabriela, Miko and Yasha were talking a bit about their special powers, while Sango was busy checking her Hiraikotsu and other slayer weapons.

- "Gerar-nii, Miroku-sama, Kaede-obaasan" – said Kagome as she timidly walked in front of them – "There's something Inuyasha and I wanna ask you" -

- "Hmm, what is it?" – asked Gerardo as he took away his eyes from the items he was checking in his Dragtemn to look at both children.

- "It's 'coz we had a very weird dream last night…" – said Inuyasha tilting his head.

- "Hmm, what kind of dream was it?" – asked Miroku a bit intrigued. Then, both Inuyasha and Kagome told them everything they saw last night.

- "I see," – said Kaede thoughtfully after they finished telling them about the dream – "It really sounds like an unusual dream" –

- "Hmm, I think it has to do with your powers" – said Miroku deep in thought, and it was then that the three noticed the medallions both were wearing had their jewels shining brightly again: they were ready.

- "With our powers?" – asked Inuyasha leaning his head to the side.

- "Yes," – said Kaede with a smile – "As you have them partially sealed by the medallions you're wearing right now. Do you see the position in which they are?" –

- "Huh? This?" – asked Kagome as she took it out from the collar of her kosode and checked it, noticing then it had a needle pointing to the "Seal" position. Inuyasha noticed it right after she did.

- "That's right" – said Gerardo with a smile – "Try putting them in the "Unseal" position. That will break the seal" –

- "Okay, Gerar-nii!" – said Inuyasha as he and Kagome smiled. Both then changed the dials of their respective medallions to the "Unseal" position. Their eyes blinked for an instant, and their smiles changed into sad faces right as their medallions changed position by themselves to "Separation".

- "Maybe we're asking this too often," – said Gabriela as she, Miko and Yasha walked to them. They noticed what was happening when Inuyasha and Kagome began talking about the dreams – "But are you okay?" -

- "Yeah, we are" – said Kagome with a little smile on her face –"It's just that I feel a bit weird after having spent a day with our memories sealed and having met ourselves like that in our dreams. Not to mention I'm still somewhat shaken up from what we saw in that horrible mirror..." –

- "I still can't believe I fell so easily for an illusion as that…" – said Inuyasha angry with himself.

- "Well, it's not like it was your fault" – said Miroku in an understanding tone – "According to what Kouin told us, it's impossible to not fall for these nightmares" -

- "And now your friends have gotten their memories unsealed, it's a good time for me to explain everything" – said Kouin as he stepped in and put himself at the center of the hut for everyone to hear and see him – "You all know me as "Kouin", but that is only the name I took on upon reaching this world: in Dragonia my name was Yallusyert, and when I was still a dragonian, my name was Feltes Lysfelt" –

- "What do you mean by "when I was a dragonian"?" – inquired Gerardo.

- "To put it on your terms, it'd be "when I was human" if you said it. Currently, I'm no more than a creature that keeps existing due to a corrupted version of the essence of the Nucleus of Light, or in other words, of Illyusea" – explained Kouin.

- "Then, you're not just any old monster like the other ones we beat?" – asked Yasha surprised.

- "That's correct: the other five demons Tenebross created were just corrupted essences of each of the elements to which he gave form" – explained Kouin saddened – "When I was still a dragonian, I used to work with Tenebross, and we were best friends" -

- "Tenebross was also a dragonian!?" – asked Gabriela shocked from hearing such an evil being could have been a dragonian, or in other words, Dragonia's version of humans. The others looked at each other from this revelation.

- "Yes: his original name was Tenebross Lusyabrirt, and back in the time, he was considered one of the greatest Investigators Dragonia had the pride of having borne" – said Kouin in a regretful voice – "Initially, his researches were focused on improving the lives of all those who lived in Dragonia, and thanks to him, the theories behind many of the items the Dragonians enjoy today, such as the Dragtemns or the Seirei Crystals, were established" –

He then pointed to the crystals Gabriela and Gerardo wore on their necks, as well as the wristwatches they were all wearing.

- "But if he used to be such a good person, what made him become such an evil being?" – asked Kaede astonished.

- "I'm just about to reach that part," – said Kouin as he made gestures with the hand indicating everyone to be patient – "During several years, Tenebross and I worked together in the Royal Research Institute, making these theories and many other things to improve the lives of the Dragonians. However, all these years of happiness and peace came to a terrible ending when King Krelios Pyraze Drackma assumed the throne. Krelios ended up being a true tyrant, and under his despotic administration, he led wars to force all other lands in Dragonia to relinquish their autonomy and get them under his rule, centered in the Old Royal Capital Seleila. In fact, he was also who instated the cruel policies of enslaving those that were born without the gift of using magic, and treating those that were born capable of handling the element of Darkness as if they were animals" -

Kouin breathed in for a moment to then continue his narration.

- "Now well, back then, Krelios hired Tenebross and me to research and develop artifacts, but these ended up being completely the opposite to the reason we became Investigator and Scholar: he ordered us to develop weapons, torture devices and extermination tools, all to eliminate those that opposed him" – said he as his gaze sunk down to the wooden floor.

- "Definitively… that was Dragonia's Dark Ages…" – said Gerardo lowering his gaze horrified, hearing how the beautiful world he saw in dreams and of which the Dragon Gods had given him glimpses was a true hell at one point. The others were also horrified in similar ways.

- "I guess that must have affected you both quite badly, correct?" – asked Miroku in a polite but serious tone.

- "Yes, it did," – said Kouin showing a face of deep sadness and disappointment – "We both suffered greatly from having to create these horrendous artifacts, and we had no other choice because they were holding our families hostage: if we disobeyed them, they would have killed us all" –

- "Damned bastards…" – said Inuyasha under his breath.

- "Finally, when we made the most terrible of our inventions: the Mirror of Shades," – everyone trembled when Kouin mentioned that diabolical artifact – "Tenebross finally couldn't continue handling it, and he broke down crying why the world had to be such a terrible place, and why the people had to be such a group of damned beasts… I tried to go and comfort him, but then… we were enshrouded by a black aura… and it talked to us…" –

- "It?" – asked Shippou confused.

- "Yes… the one we thought only existed in myth and legend… the being we were always told to be wary of, because it wanted to destroy everything… the incarnation of the Nothingness… Caellicauts…" – said Kouin in a low voice.

Even though they had never heard that name before, everyone felt shivers going down their spines and trembled when Kouin pronounced it.

- "That is the name… of the Nucleus of Nothingness?" – asked Gerardo scared, to which Kouin nodded with a serious expression on his face.

- "What happened then?" – asked Sango. She and the others were expectant to hear the rest of the story.

- "Well… Caellicauts told us it had sympathized with our feelings of sadness and despair, and it wanted to help us… it told that in exchange for serving as vessels to its will, he would give us the power we needed to change the world as we pleased, even being able to depose the king and restore peace to Dragonia" – said Kouin.

- "And what… did you do?" – asked Kagome having a feeling she knew how this all ended.

- "I refused, as I said I would never follow anyone who wasn't Tenebross. However, Tenebross accepted and gave up his body and soul to Caellicauts, transforming into the cruel and merciless creature you all know. However, that was all for naught" – said Kouin saddened – "As the king was killed shortly later: the Priestess of the Dragon at the time, Lilia Illyusa Drackma, who also was his first daughter, was horribly disappointed and saddened by her father's actions. She had finally reached the point in which it became unforgivable to her due to discovering everything her father did, and using her powers, she requested the Dragon Gods to put an end to this nightmare. The Dragon Gods were also furious upon seeing the mock Krelios had made of their world, and so they decided to show the dragonians the consequences of disregarding the laws under which we were all created: they caused a large earthquake that destroyed the old capital and several of the areas where Krelios had stationed his troops, and caused the loss of millions of lives" -

- "In other words… you sold your souls for nothing in the end…" – said Miko in a tone of pity.

- "Yes… and even worse, we ended up becoming a menace. Tenebross was fully taken over by Caellicauts' will, and we began spreading chaos, destruction and ruin throughout Dragonia, and that's when the Dragon Gods decided to intervene. They fought fiercely against us in the highest mountain in the planet, and even though I was felled shortly after the battle began, they couldn't defeat Tenebross due to him being consumed by a more powerful will than them all together. Therefore, they decided to seal him within a crystal and scatter its pieces about so no one could resurrect him. However, they couldn't avoid me storing his soul within a mirror to keep him from being sealed completely. That makes me responsible of all this disaster, and I'm very sorry about it…" –

- "Anyway, why didja abandon Tenebross and wanna join us?" – asked Inuyasha strongly suspecting Kouin after hearing the story.

- "As you all heard, I served Tenebross faithfully for many years, to the point of even being the responsible of his return to Dragonia and his coming to this world. However, when Caellicauts took possession of his body and soul, we made the solemn oath of never using the Mirror of Shades against anyone, no matter what happened" – said Kouin gritting his teeth – "However, he broke that oath when he used that cursed mirror against you. When I saw what he did, and the horrendous way in which he killed those that opposed him in Dragonia, I noticed how low he had stooped, and decided to rebel against him and help you. This isn't just to defeat him, but also to atone for the great sins I have committed" -

- "I see… You really have a great burden on your shoulders" – said Gerardo in an understanding tone – "But what happened to your families? After all, they were part of the reason you had to create the cursed mirror that made Tenebross fall for Caellicauts' temptations" -

- "They fortunately survived, and could relocate to Soleila together with the other refugees from the disaster" – sighed Kouin – "However, Tenebross and I were considered as dead from that time on, and it's no surprise: the people we were before that transformation indeed died at that moment. Despite that, I was very glad to know they were safe, even though we would have to eliminate them alongside the rest of Dragonia later on…" –

- "Talking about a hard existence…" – sighed Gabriela saddened.

- "And that aside, do you know the place where Naraku and Tenebross are hiding right now?" – asked Miroku to interrupt the depressing conversation, and to see if Kouin could give them any useful information.

- "But wouldn't that break the pact you had with the person you told me about yesterday?" – asked Gerardo shocked. The others were surprised to see him like that.

- "No, as that pact died with that person," – said Kouin in a tone that told him to calm down. He then turned to look at Miroku to answer the question he made – "About your question, Houshi-sama, I do know. In fact, I can even guide you there whenever you wish. However, I must warn you that should be prepared first, as it's very possible that you'll have to fight to death there, and once we get to that place, you won't be able to go back until you defeat him, if you can that is" –

- "Okay," – said Sango in a decided tone – "Give us a couple hours, and we'll get everything ready" –

- "Very well" – said Kouin upon seeing how they were all agreeing with the time Sango proposed.

Kagome and Inuyasha first used the medallions to join again with Miko and Yasha, and return to their normal ages; and they all then began getting ready.

They used this little time to give some last-minute adjustments to their weapons, plan out battle strategies, and finally to pray for their victory in their final battle while they asked their loved ones for strength.
While Kagome, Miko, Gerardo and Gabriela wanted to see their respective families a lot, they abstained from going to their homes, as it was highly likely they would end up getting worried about them getting wounded and wouldn't let them take part in this battle.

Gerardo also explained everyone about why he was so shocked, and the others understood when he told them about the truce between Kouin and Tenebross' former enemies, though Inuyasha was about to shout at him because he thought Gerardo would have ruined their chances to find Tenebross and Naraku.

Once they finished getting ready, they and Kouin went to the place where the Bone-Eater's Well was located, and there Kouin gave them a final warning:

- "Since you are ready, I want to ask you something: it's very possible this will be your final battle, and it's highly likely that you will be severely wounded or even die during it" – said he in a grave tone – "Even so, are you committed to go on?" –

- "We wouldn't be here if we weren't!" – said Kagome with a decided voice.

- "Right, onee-san!" – said Miko in the same tone.

- "Right, we haven't come this far to back out at the end" – said Gerardo as he closed his fist and put it over his chest.

- "Yeah! We'll beat these evil things and bring peace to our worlds!" – said Gabriela enthusiastically.

- "As a servant of Buddha, it's my duty to see these evil creatures receive the punishment they deserve" – said Miroku as he showed off his monk rank.

- "You're only saying that to hide your intentions" – said Shippou in a mocking voice.

- "You're wrong this time, Shippou" – said Sango in a serious voice – "I can feel he's being sincere this time. And I'm going to avenge my village here, too!" -

- "We're going! Right, nii-san?" – asked Yasha excitedly.

- "Yeah. It's time to settle the score with Naraku, and with that bastard Tenebross too…" – said he as he closed his hand tightly.

Kouin saw the determination brimming in them, and smiled:

- "I didn't expect any less from you. Maybe you really are the Seirei foretold in the Epitaph of Prophecy" – said he as he turned around and raised a hand.

- "Why did he call us spirits?" – asked Shippou confused. Gerardo just hit himself on the forehead from that failure of interpretation.

- "He said that word in Ceremonial Dragonian. "Seirei" means "Chosen One of the Elements" in that language" – explained he annoyed.

- "Then, we're the chosen ones?" – asked Kagome surprised.

- "I'm not really sure," – said Gerardo deep in thought – "As far as I know, the Seirei have much more power than the one Gabriela and me have exhibited so far. They are also allowed to carry the Elemental Nuclei within their bodies, but as you could see, we found the Elemental Nucleus of Water, but Iadlast didn't let us take it with us, and the Dragon Gods never mentioned anything on the matter either" –

But before they could say any other comments, they heard Kouin intoning a soft Dragonian chant:

- "Alt tok apreio iula purkan dat lusya paf gaivz kiesba mondour ika" –

At that point, a white-grayish light line appeared from the hand he raised, which began twisting until it formed a square of light of the size of a large door, which was filled completely by darkness once it was complete. Kouin then turned to the others.

- "The gateway is open. We can go in as soon as you wish, and I'll personally lead you to Tenebross' hideout" – said he with a serious face.

- "We're ready, so take us there at once!" – shouted Inuyasha.

The others just said "Yeah!" at the same time, so Kouin nodded in silence and led them into the darkness. For a little while, they didn't see anything but blackness, but after some seconds, they found themselves in a place that seemed like a large jail: it was a large chamber made from dark stone, though it was bright enough to allow a decent visibility.

Within this place, standing over an altar that seemed like a small tower with crenels, there were Naraku and Tenebross. Both smiled evilly upon seeing their visitors.

- "Well well, look at who just came" – said Tenebross narrowing his evil red eyes while looking at them with contempt – "The group of feudal idiots, the duo of inept pseudo-rei, and finally, the accursed traitor" -

- "Shut it, damn shadow!" – shouted Inuyasha enraged as he unsheathed Tessaiga. The others did the same thing with their weapons.

- "Lord Tenebross…! No… Tenebross…" – said Kouin as he looked directly at the eyes of his old boss as he unsheathed his weapons: a couple of long twin katanas – "You've gone too far! We swore we would never use that cursed mirror, and we have caused enough suffering and pain already! Stop now!" -

Kouin seemed to want to make Tenebross reconsider, given the long friendship they both shared before his evil transformation and that Kouin himself had faithfully maintained until shortly ago. However, Tenebross just laughed at him.

- "Mwahaha… you're a delusional stupid. You really think the perfect world can be attained without spilling any blood!? You really believe this rotten world and all others that exist have any possibility of salvation!? You're pathetic!" – said he as he laughed like a maniac.

- "Hmmhmm…" – laughed Naraku – "Looks like these words you said were in vain, light idiot" -

Kouin closed his hands more tightly around his katanas as he gritted his teeth. Everyone in the group was enraged upon listening to the things Naraku and Tenebross told him.

- "If anyone's a traitor here, that's you Tenebross" – said Gerardo pointing to him with his sword – "That's how you pay Feltes for all the loyalty he demonstrated you for so many years?" –

- "Right, and he even tried to make you recapacitate because he still appreciates you!" – said Kagome enraged as she aimed an arrow to him.

- "An idiot like ya doesn't deserve any friends!" – said Inuyasha pointing Tessaiga to him.

- "You're even more pathetic than Naraku!" – said Yasha enraged.

- "You're no different from all other evil beings!" – said Miko.

- "Betraying a friend's trust is the lowest of the lowest" – said Miroku.

- "As also is breaking an oath you both made!" – said Sango.

- "Yeah, Feltes betrayed because you broke your own promise!" – screamed Gabriela as she prepared a Light Arrow – "That's unforgivable!" –

- "You're really disgusting… and we'll make you pay for all that!" – finished Gerardo.

- "Close these filthy mouths!" – shouted Tenebross as he made shadow waves rise from the floor, so they had to jump to avoid them – "I won't tolerate any more idiocies from any of you! It's time to die!" -

Then, the head of his shadow came out from the mirror and began shooting shadow arrows from the roof. Gerardo blocked them with his shield for himself and Gabriela while Inuyasha did the same thing with his sword for Kagome. Kouin blocked and cut them with his sword, but the others had to avoid them to not get hit.

- "Mweheheh, nice way to begin a fight, eh? Inuyasha?" – said Naraku as he floated in front of him surrounded by his barrier, so nothing could hit him.

- "We'll see how ya like this!" – smirked Inuyasha as he changed his medallion to Special Separation, making Yasha appear with his own Tessaiga. Both used the Red Tessaiga at the same time, creating a blue energy wave that broke Naraku's barrier.

- "What the hell!?" – screamed Naraku shocked.

- "You're very wrong if you think we haven't gotten any stronger!" – said Yasha.

- "Damn impudent brat!" – said Naraku as he tried sending his tentacles to him, but at that point he received a barrage of attacks: a couple ofudas, Sango's Hiraikotsu, and a couple Sacred Arrows from Kagome and Miko. From the looks of it, they had the same idea as Inuyasha to split up in order to have more firepower.

- "What is it Naraku?" – said Miko in a teasing voice – "Don't you plan to summon your attachments today?" –

- "I don't need these idiots to get rid of you, brat!" – shouted him enraged.

Meanwhile, after they avoided the shadow arrow rain, Gerardo elementalized his sword with water power while Gabriela did the same thing to her bow so her arrows would come loaded with the powers of moon and light. Kouin didn't do the same because his corrupted light power would just heal Tenebross.

- "Tenebross… I hope you can someday forgive me for this…" – said he as he ran to Tenebross, leaving a gray trail behind. He then slashed him as swiftly as the shine of a thunderclap – "Lightning!" –

Tenebross couldn't react quickly enough to avoid the attack, and ended receiving the slash on his "body" while Kouin just whispered "Hyu!" during the execution of his attack. Tenebross began groaning in pain.

- "DAMN TRAITOR!" – screamed he as he tried using his Shadow Claw attack, which Kouin avoided as fast as he could. Then, he received a Water's Scar from Gerardo and a Light Arrow from Gabriela.

- "Don't even think you're the only ones fighting here!" – said Gerardo triumphantly after the water wave and the light arrow struck Tenebross – "We came here specifically to defeat you!" -

- "Damn elementals from hell…" – said Tenebross as he gritted his shadowy fangs.

Back to Inuyasha and the others, apparently things weren't going as well as at the beginning: Naraku had stopped playing around and began fighting seriously, demonstrated by the fact he began releasing the thousands of youkai that formed his body to attack from all directions and not leave any escape chances to his enemies.

Miroku, Sango, Yasha and Inuyasha had their hands full cutting the youkai in pieces with their weapons, while Kagome and Miko had to alternate between firing arrows off and placing barriers to have even a chance of staying alive. Not even the Kaze no Kizu could help them in this case because the more youkai they killed, the more Naraku released.

- "I guess I'll have to speed things up a little" – said Miroku as he put his hand over the rosary sealing his cursed hand, and turned to look at Sango – "Forgive me, Sango, but I'd rather do this than let us get killed" -

- "What?" – said Sango confused as she cut off the heads from two youkai with her wakizashi and threw her Hiraikotsu through the air to destroy several others. However, her face changed to a terrified expression and paled upon seeing what Miroku was planning – "Houshi-sama, no!" -

At that moment, Miroku removed the rosary and pointed his cursed hand to Naraku:

- "Kazaana!" –

- "You're an imbecile, monk!" – said Naraku with a demented smile as he threw a saimyoushou hive into the air and the bugs it contained started swarming in Miroku's direction. Miroku managed to absorb most of the youkai surrounding the group, as well as many others, but he also absorbed many of the saimyoushou by doing this, which forced him to close off the hole.

- "Miroku, don't be stupid!" – shouted Inuyasha as he ran to him to check his condition and grabbed him by his cursed hand, while the others continued defending themselves from the few remaining youkai. However, Naraku decided to stop attacking them to savor their despair from the idea of losing Miroku.

As for him, Miroku had fallen to his knees, his face was covered in sweat and his skin began turning pale: apparently he had absorbed a lot of poison and didn't have much time remaining. Sango hugged him and began crying over his shoulder.

- "No… Houshi-sama… you shouldn't have done that…" – said Sango saddened.

- "Damn it!" – said Inuyasha as he ran to face Naraku again.

- "That happened because of your own idiocy!" – said Naraku as he sneered at him – "And all because you're scared you'll kill everyone with your techniques, Inuyasha!" –

Inuyasha noticed at that moment what he was talking about, as Yasha also did when they looked at each other in the eye: they had committed the same mistake Gerardo did during the battle against Douin of not using all their abilities to the max, and thanks to that, Miroku was now about to die.

- "Nii-san…" – said Yasha worried – "We gotta finish this fast, or Miroku-sama's gonna…" –

- "Don't dare finish that sentence!" – shouted Inuyasha, even though he was thinking the same thing as Yasha.

But then, Miko had an idea:

- "Ah! Why don't we call Gerar-nii or Gaby-nee to heal him?" – said her while she clapped her hands once – "I'm sure their powers could remove the poison from him, at least to the point of keeping him alive!" -

- "They're busy fighting Tenebross" – said Shippou as he pointed at them: at that moment, Gerardo and Gabriela were holding swords of light colored after their elements to attack Tenebross, while Kouin seemed to be using some kind of magic to make himself faster – "But if you want, I could go and tell them" -

- "Please, Shippou-chan!" – said Kagome as she prepared another arrow and aimed at Naraku, which was now receiving furious blasts of the combined Kongousouha of Inuyasha and Yasha. Shippou nodded and ran off to the other side of the battlefield.

- "I'll try to keep him alive…" – said Miko as she concentrated and put her small hands over Miroku's body, making a pink and blue glow appear over him – "I can make the poison take longer to affect him, but I can't slow it down forever… I hope they hurry…" –

- 'Maybe… you could be an even better miko than myself, sis...' – thought Kagome proudly as she saw how much Miko was focusing to keep Miroku alive.

Back with the others, Gerardo, Gabriela and Kouin had fallen back after giving Tenebross a few slashes, but the battle was beginning to leave its marks on them: Gerardo had several cuts and scratches on his hands and face, while the sleeves of his kimono were tattered; Gabriela's clothes were covered in dirt and the lower part of her sleeves and hakama were damaged and torn, as well as she having a few bruises and cuts. On the other hand, Kouin was beginning to show signs of fatigue: it was clear that his speed increase technique wasn't to be used over a long time period. They all were panting.

It was then that Shippou came running to them.

- "Gerardo! Gabu!" – said he with a voice volume that resounded throughout the entire chamber – "Miroku's dying! We need someone to heal him!" –

- "What!?" – asked Gabriela horrified.

- "How did that happen!?" – asked Gerardo shocked.

- "He had to use his Kazaana to free us from the countless youkai Naraku got out, but…" – said the little kitsune, which seemed very disturbed by the situation – "But he also absorbed many of the saimyoushous Naraku prepared for him…" -

His eyes filled with tears, but their chat had to be interrupted because Tenebross made several horrible black hands come out from the floor and they had to move away to avoid getting dragged into the shadows by them.

- "Damn!" – said Gerardo – "Trying to send us to the Yomiji or something!?" –

- "Possibly" – laughed Tenebross evilly – "But in any case, I won't let you heal that third-rate monk!" -

Gerardo turned to the others and looked at them seriously.

- "I know we're busy with Tenebross, but we can't just abandon a companion in need. Are you okay with going to help him?" – asked he.

Gabriela and Kouin agreed, and they and Shippou began running in the direction the others were at, though they had to do it avoiding the shadow blasts Tenebross was shooting them. He wasn't letting them get away so easily.

Inuyasha and the others seemed to have the situation controlled, and the fight with Naraku was more or less even now, as the thousands of youkai he released weren't around anymore, and they had cut off a good part of the bones and tentacles he used to attack them.

However, they weren't in a very good shape either: their clothes showed the damaged they had been receiving, and they had wounds in all the parts of their bodies that were exposed.

- "We've come to help!" – announced Gabriela as they arrived.

- "At last, some good news!" – shouted Inuyasha as he avoided the energy blasts Naraku sent him. At that point, Gabriela ran to Miroku and began singing. Miko stopped trying to keep him alive at that point.

- "Ist Altyyaok ShuxuaraRa Illyusea Phaph Zyoskz Biousakatse Ical, Ist Altyyaok ShuxuaraRa Phaph Kluceia Biousakatse... Healing Light!" – as Gabriela sang, her hands covered in a soft pearly white shine, and she began moving them over Miroku's body, who was beginning to have difficulties breathing. Slowly, his breathing returned to its normal rate and his face regained its color. However, as she was finishing, Tenebross shot a shadow arrow at her…

- "Gaby!" – shouted Gerardo as he summoned his dragon armor and flew off at full speed to block the arrow with his shield, which he did in the last second – "That was close… damned treacherous shadow…" -

He was furious due to what Tenebross tried to do, and the others were also indignated. Luckily, Miroku was out of danger now, so Sango got him away from the battlefield to then go back to the fray, while Gabriela also summoned her armor. Needless to say, she was enraged too from that attack.

- "This is a battlefield!" – shouted Tenebross as he laughed from their faces – "There are no laws or rules here, as the only important thing is exterminating enemies!" -

- "Don't come to me with the combat pragmatist logic now!" – shouted Gerardo furious – "I'll make you pay for that!" -

At his side, Kouin was also showing an expression of great rage and disgust, and some green marks appeared over his face. He then joined the blades of his two katanas and said a single word: - "ZielarZa!" –

Both blades then began vibrating like a tuning fork after being struck. However, the vibration increased in intensity with every passing second, and when they were vibrating strong enough to even make Kouin's own arms shake; he held them aloft and aimed at Tenebross:

- "Thundering Sword! I'll bestow eternal rest upon you!" – he said as he separated the blades of his sword with an X-shaped movement, forming a shockwave that caused great damage to Tenebross and cracked the mirror where he was sealed.

Tenebross let out a horrible scream of pain, which took everyone by surprise, and which Naraku tried to use to his advantage to try and kill Kagome and Miko with an energy beam. However, Kouin noticed this and ran to the place where Naraku was aiming at, to get both girls out of harm's way.

- "Thanks… Ah!" – said Kagome, but she had to raise a barrier immediately so Tenebross wouldn't hit them with his shadow claws.

From the looks of it, their battle, which so far had been divided in two parts, had become a single one. Naraku had lost several of the abominations forming him, while Tenebross had gotten quite wounded from the attacks Gerardo, Gabriela and Kouin landed on him.

However, Inuyasha, Gerardo and the others weren't very well either: aside of the strikes and wounds they sustained, exhaustion began also creeping on them.

- 'We're going to lose if this keeps up' – thought Gerardo bitterly upon seeing the state his companions and he himself were.

At that moment, Kouin rushed in to attack both villains at the same time: he stabbed the air in front of him with one of his katanas, and then…

- "Hyuuu!" – shouted he as he ran at an impressive speed, disappearing from sight and appearing behind Naraku and Tenebross.

- "Shattering Slash!" – said he, and the next instant, a triad of stabs and slashes fell over them: apparently he attacked them at such a speed not even Gabriela could follow with her eyes.

This gave the others a chance: Gerardo began casting his Healing Rain spell, while Gabriela began singing her Healing Light song to replenish everyone's energies. Obviously, Miroku was still weak from the poison, so he had to stay away with Shippou.

- "You're now paying for breaking our oath, Tenebross" – said Kouin in a severe tone upon seeing how the others had recovered after the spell and the song were complete – "I don't think you'll be able to defeat us at this rate, but just in case… can you even follow my pace? Godspeed!" -

He then disappeared from their eyes, but unfortunately Naraku and Tenebross had already anticipated to this: when he reappeared, he did so in the middle of two energy beams both villains had prepared for him.

- "No!" – shouted Kouin, but at that moment, Gerardo and Gabriela flew to his side while Inuyasha and Yasha showed up riding on Kirara.

Both brothers found the point to cut the energy beams to counterattack both villains, while Kagome and Miko prepared two Sacred Arrows filled with their spiritual power to the brim, and Gerardo and Gabriela casted the best spells they had prepared for the occasion.

- "Ist Ikuak, HalkeizaRa ThafzAael Beteat Uasfryat Dea Iadlast Iens! Tsunami!" – said Gerardo.

- "Ist Ochsmere, Filaria Dea Zosph Phiala Phiaphz Lay Illyusea oli Lay Saetsulia Iens! Twilight Arrow!" – said Gabriela.

- "Go!" – said Kagome.

- "Fly off!" – said Miko.

Three arrows whizzed through the air: two purple and one with a color similar to that of sunset, which purged the evil aura of both villains and struck Tenebross, causing a small orange explosion. They were then followed by the water wave and the backflowing energy waves used by Gerardo, Yasha and Inuyasha.

This left Naraku kneeling on the ground, knocked out cold and rendered motionless, so Gerardo took advantage of this to shoot him a water beam to then snap his fingers, freezing him over: he was left encased in an ice prison that only left his head free. Tenebross, however, floated again: he still wasn't done for.

- "Damned cretins… you really think something as pathetic as this will finish me off?" – said Tenebross in a confident voice, but at that moment, Kouin rushed him with his katanas in front.

- "Twin Slash!" – shouted he energetically. When he got to Tenebross, he cut him deeply in an X-shape where his torso would be.

He then turned around and rushed him again as the green marks appeared again over his face, leaving behind a trail of transparent crystal that ended up encasing Tenebross.

- "Delusory Destroyer! Follow the Yaoulma…" – said he as he slashed the air once, which destroyed the crystal encasing and wounded Tenebross so severely that it broke his mirror, and made his shadowy form collapse over the room's floor.

- "At long last… this is over…" – said Kouin relieved as he sheathed his katanas. Everyone was surprised… it was over… their journey had really come to an end… and they were victorious…

Everyone gathered and began celebrating their great victory, congratulating each other, hugging and laughing upon seeing how all their efforts bore fruits.

However, they turned their back to Tenebross and didn't notice the evil being was preparing an attack: he materialized a shadow arrow, and aimed it at Gerardo and Gabriela…

- "Die, you bastards!" – shouted he as the arrow was shot, and even though they heard the thundering scream, none of them both managed to move in time to get out of the arrow's way. Everyone in the group was looking at the scene horrified… until Kouin jumped on the arrow's way and received it in behalf of them…

- "FELTES!" – shouted everyone as they ran to see what happened. Kouin fell, but before he hit the ground, Gerardo caught him and tried to keep his head higher than the rest of his body.

- "No! This can't be!" – said Miko horrified and saddened.

- "Tenebross… damn bastard from hell!" – screamed Inuyasha as he punched the floor enraged upon hearing how Tenebross was laughing at them.

- "No… he can't die now… no…" – said Yasha as his eyes began filling with tears. Sango was doing everything she could to contain her own sadness, while Miroku went to them walking with great difficulty, and hugged her with the little strength he had. Shippou was bawling his eyes out.

Gerardo and Gabriela were with Kouin, having dismissed their armors and using the most powerful healing songs they knew, but they had no result. Kagome and Miko tried helping them, the latter with tears on her eyes, but it was useless: the arrow was cursed and it produced wounds that couldn't be healed. Kouin was doomed…

- "Damn, no! Restorative Water! Restorative Water!" – shouted Gerardo in rage and despair, with his eyes filled with tears as he did everything he could to keep Kouin from dying. Gabriela was at his side putting all her feelings into her Healing Light song, while Miko and Kagome were focusing all their spiritual power in keeping him alive.

- "Don't die, please!" – said Gabriela upon seeing her song wasn't having any effect.

- "This can't end like this!" – shouted Miko at the brink of despair. The next moment, Kagome stopped using her powers and gave up… there was nothing they could do…

- "No, Feltes!" – said Gerardo as he and Gabriela grabbed one of his hands. Kouin opened his eyes slightly, and gently smiled at them:

- "Agh… Gerardo… Gabriela… Kagome… Miko…" – said he with the little strength he could muster – "I'm glad… I could have met you all… it was great… I could have friends like you… even if it was for such a short time…" -

- "O-of course we are!" – said Yasha running to him – "And we'll continue being so! Please, you have to live!" –

- "Y-yeah… you have to get well…" – said Miko as she sobbed.

- "Please, you gotta go on…" – said Gabriela as she prepared to sing her Healing Light once more. However, Kouin raised a hand to stop her.

- "It's okay… this is my punishment… my atonement for all the sins I have committed…" – said Kouin in a satisfied voice – "Now I can… go back to the eternal cycle… of our mother… Dragonia… and meet again with them…" -

- "NO! It's still too early for that! Stay with us! We need you here!" – shouted Gerardo, who had already lost control over his emotions and his tears began overflowing from his eyes.

- "Thanks…. For considering me… as a friend… it was good to have someone that could believe on me after so many years…" – he then turned to see Miko and Yasha once more – "Again… please forgive me… for all the suffering I caused you… I hope your lives will be happy from now on…. I entrust you all… the happiness and well-being… of my world…" –

He then closed his eyes and stopped breathing… The hand Gabriela and Gerardo were grabbing of him went limp and fell to the ground…

- "No… no… no… NOOOO!" – shouted Gerardo as he began crying while Gabriela and the other children began crying at full intensity.

Gabriela and Gerardo hugged each other, as also did Miko and Kagome, while Yasha hugged Inuyasha, who turned his head in a way that his hair covered his eyes to not show anyone he was crying. Miroku and Sango couldn't do anything but contain their tears.

Kouin, or better said, Feltes' body turned into a bunch of light sparks, and after shining brightly, shot off into the roof to leave the chamber.

Gerardo fell to the floor, but after a few instants crying while hugging his sister, he raised his gaze to Tenebross, and glared at him filled with hatred:

- "You… YOU! How could have you killed him!?" – said he as he stood up again with his sword and shield on hand.

- "That was your fault and your sister's, imbecile!" – said Tenebross as he laughed – "If you died, he wouldn't have needed to leave for the other world!" –

- "Damn bastard! Aaaaaarrrrrgh!" – said Gerardo as he raised his sword and ran to Tenebross screaming like crazy. However, Tenebross repelled him with a shadow wave, making him fall backwards to where the others were, getting himself badly wounded with the stone floor.

- "Gerar!" – shouted Gabriela as she ran to him. The others did the same, filled with surprise and horror, while Gabriela hurried to heal his wounds.

- "But don't worry," – said Tenebross as he continued laughing. He then made levitate a small black crystal piece: a Fragment of Shadows, in front of him – "As you will now join that damn traitor!" -

(End of Chapter)

 

(Ending: Come)