The Demon's Love

XIX

Kael gently ran his fingers over the nearly healed cut going down Naevia's back. Not even two days after being cut by Byakuya, and already the deep gash was nothing more than a mere scratch.

"See, I told you I'm fine." Said Naevia stubbornly, pulling her top back on. "You worry too much, which is surprising, coming from you."

"Is it not natural for a demon to worry about his mate?" asked Kael.

Naevia smirked. "Worrying doesn't suit you."

"Then I'll stop."

Rin giggled. "Silly, Lord Kael. You can't stop worrying about someone you love. Right, Lucretia?"

The demon slayer blushed. "Um, yeah, I guess so." He was feeling uncomfortable with this subject and decided to change it. "You know, if Byakuya was around here, then Naraku might be close by. And I doubt he'll be able to make any more incarnations any time soon."

Naevia nodded. "That's true. He'll need to absorb more demons before he can create anymore. Byakuya must have taken a lot out of him."

"He still has Kanna, Hakudōshi, and Mōryōmaru." Lucretia reminded her. "Naraku will protect Hakudōshi at all costs. Kanna will most likely be with him, to warn him of any danger, and though Mōryōmaru is basically a puppet, he is still the strongest of them. Finding them won't necessarily mean finding Naraku. But I guess that's ok since we need to kill Hakudōshi before Naraku can die."

"That Naraku is such a coward." Said Jaken. "Always using others to do his dirty work. What a coward!"

"Not really." Said Lucretia. "Naraku will fight when necessary, but he mostly enjoys using other people."

Naevia nodded. "That is most likely a trait he acquired from Onigumo. But I am curious about what he will do now. Kanna will definitely have informed Naraku of Byakuya's death, which means that he'll have to resort to something else. He always has something up his sleeve."

Kael didn't reply. He knew that Naraku was up to something. In fact, whatever the half-demon was planning had already taken affect. Not long after he had killed Byakuya, he had sensed an abnormally powerful demonic aura for a brief moment. The amazing power had vanished after a few seconds, but he had still sensed it. But he had been too concerned about Naevia at the time to worry about it.

Now he was worrying about it. And what worried him the most was before the extreme power had suddenly vanished, it had rapidly been close to his own, and he had no idea how strong it got after the aura vanished.

Right now he was seriously considering sending his companions to his castle while he dealt with this new threat, but he knew that Naevia would be too stubborn to wait at the castle while he hunted down her tormentor and whoever or whatever Naraku had spawned. Besides, as much as he hated to admit it, he may need… help defeating this new foe.

He glanced at Tenseiga. Should anything happen to his companions, he could always bring them back to life. In fact, if it wasn't for his Healing Sword, he wouldn't allow Naevia, Rin, or Lucretia accompany him any further.

'It looks like Father knew what he was doing after all.' He thought.

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Mōryōmaru's wings flapped rapidly as he flew through the air. His victims were close. The part of him that was Hakudōshi, was really looking forward to finally being allowed to able to kill Naevia. And he was curious about how Kael would fare against him. He wondered which one was superior.

'It doesn't matter.' He thought with an evil sneer. 'I can't die.'

They were close now. His scrying ability that he inherited from Kanna allowed him to see without using his eyes. They weren't that far off. He saw that Kael looked deep in thought and seemed unaware of the approaching danger, another technique he received from Kanna.

Mōryōmaru dove, coming in for a sudden aerial attack. His hands changed into scythes as he dropped down from the sky, slicing through the air. Kael reacted at the last possible moment. In one fluid motion, he unsheathed Toukijin as he spun around to block Mōryōmaru's attack. The ground beneath his feet cracked as he held off Mōryōmaru's massive weight.

"I thought as much." Said Kael.

Mōryōmaru just smirked and swung with his other scythe. Kael jumped away, landing out of the mutant demon's reach.

Naevia's eyes widened. "Mōryōmaru." She whispered.

Lucretia looked terrified. "Not him."

"But how?" cried Jaken. "He came right out in the open and didn't even bother to hide his attack. We should have been able to sense him."

Mōryōmaru laughed evilly. "It's a new ability." He said.

Naevia and Lucretia gasped. "He can talk now?" the former cried.

"I thought he was just a puppet." Said Lucretia.

Mōryōmaru sneered at him. "I'm the new and improved Mōryōmaru, and I'm no longer a puppet, but a full-fledged demon."

Kael's face displayed no emotion. "Interesting. So you were the source of power I sensed."

Mōryōmaru rubbed his scythes together, making a sching noise, and sending off sparks. "Probably. But you can't sense me anymore, can you?"

"No, I cannot. But it matters not. This Kael will still defeat you."

Mōryōmaru laughed. "Foolish dog, you can't defeat me. I'm invincible, as is Naraku." He turned around, showing them the spider mark on his back. "I am the new holder of Naraku's heart."

Lucretia didn't like the sound of that. "How are you the holder? Hakudōshi holds Naraku's heart. How did you get it?"

"Foolish boy, I am Hakudōshi." He smirked at their stunned expressions. Even Kael raised an eyebrow. "I am also Kanna and the original Mōryōmaru. Just like Onigumo and a vast amount of demons fused together to give birth to Naraku, the three of them became one to create me."

Naevia growled. "Well, that explains why we couldn't sense him."

"And why the aura I sensed vanished." Kael added. "One of Kanna's abilities?"

Naevia nodded. "And I guess we can assume that he inherited Hakudōshi's powers as well."

"And personality." Mōryōmaru replied. "The original Mōryōmaru had no will at all, and Kanna barely thought for herself either."

"Meaning he's mostly Hakudōshi." Said Lucretia. "And we're basically fighting him in Mōryōmaru's body."

"Great, just what we need." Naevia muttered.

Mōryōmaru gave her a curious look, noticing something different about her. "It seems I'm not the only one who has changed. You scent is different, Naevia, as is your aura. If I'm not mistaking, I would say that you've mated with another demon." He reached out with his own demonic aura and sensed Naevia's mating mark. "It appears I'm correct. And who's the lucky demon."

Naevia's eyes unconsciously shifted to Kael. Mōryōmaru followed her gaze. He also sensed a mating mark on the dog-demon. Looking further into this, he sensed what seemed to be a non-existing thread connecting the two demons.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here." he said in amusement. "The daughter of Naraku and the brother of Inuyasha have become mates. You've been a naughty girl, Naevia. What would you're father say if he found out."

"I don't give a damn about Naraku's opinion!" Naevia snapped. "He hates anything to do with love; hates it so much that he relinquished his own heart."

Ignoring her, Mōryōmaru smirked, looking from Naevia and Kael, to Lucretia and Rin. "It appears that Byakuya was correct; there has been quite a bit of romance going on with the four of you. It's disgusting, but I do look forward to seeing the looks of horror on your faces when I strike down your loved ones."

Rin clung to Lucretia, terrified of the demon mutant. "Lucretia, I'm scared."

Mōryōmaru chuckled. "As you should be, child." He bent down. "Look into my eyes."

His eyes began glowing with white light. Rin became fixated on his eyes as her own glazed over.

"Ko…ha…ku.." she murmured, as Mōryōmaru attempted to suck out her soul; another technique from Kanna.

"Rin, what's wrong?" the slayer asked worriedly.

Rin struggled to speak. "Something's… pulling at Rin…"

Kael's eyes widened as he realized what Mōryōmaru was doing. Naevia had told him of Kanna's ability to suck out people's souls. And if Mōryōmaru was made partially of Kanna, it was safe to assume that he could do the same.

Kael threw Toukijin, hitting Mōryōmaru square in the face. The mutant demon howled in pain and fell backwards, Toukijin buried to the hilt in his face. Rin blinked and came out of her trace before she buried her face in Lucretia's chest, sobbing.

"Picking on Rin." Jaken muttered. "How low. You got what you deserved, you giant freak!"

"Be silent Jaken." Kael ordered as he pulled his sword out of Mōryōmaru's face. "It is not over."

The wound in Mōryōmaru's face instantly healed and his eyes snapped open. "You're smarter than you look."

He swung his scythe arm. Kael jumped over it. As he came down, he swung Toukijin, beheading the mutant. The force of contact sent Mōryōmaru's head flying through the air.

"That won't be enough." Said Naevia, raising her fan. "Dance of Blades!"

Mōryōmaru's head was sliced to pieces. But each piece came back together, reforming his head, which neatly reattached itself to his body.

"That's impossible!" cried Jaken. "No demon can recover from something like that."

An evil chuckle escaped Mōryōmaru's mouth. "I told you," he said, getting to his feet, "I'm invincible."

Kael didn't appear to be intimidated in the least. "Then this Kael shall put your claim to the test."

Mōryōmaru smirked. "By all means."

His right arm seemed to liquidate and change into several tentacles, which shot at Kael, the pointy ends threatening to impale him. Kael sprinted backwards as each tentacle slammed into the ground where he had been standing just moments ago. Though he easily dodged each tentacle, he did not expect them to continue traveling underground and burst up behind him.

"Got you now." Mōryōmaru declared.

The tentacles shot forward to stab Kael from behind.

"Dance of Blades!"

Mōryōmaru's tentacles were sliced off. Surprise showed on his face as he was left open for attack. Kael seized the opportunity and unleashed a blast of demonic energy from Toukijin. The attack hit Mōryōmaru right in the chest increasing his surprise.

"You got him!" cried Rin.

The look of surprise on Mōryōmaru's face became one of amusement. "Wrong." He said. The blast of demonic energy Kael had unleashed was suddenly absorbed into Mōryōmaru's body, leaving the demon completely unharmed. "Sorry, Kael, but those kinds of attacks won't work on me. I can absorb them and send them right back at you." The arm that had turned into tentacles came together and reformed itself, becoming an arm again. "Like this!"

His hand burst open, unleashing the blast Kael had just sent at him. But Kael fearlessly leapt at Mōryōmaru, using his sword to cut through the blast. He then brought Toukijin down over Mōryōmaru's head, completely slicing the demon in half.

But the two halves immediately came back together as Mōryōmaru regenerated. Kael didn't wait until his opponent was whole as he unleashed another blast of demonic energy, this time succeeding in hitting his target. Most of Mōryōmaru's upper left side was blown to pieces.

It didn't work. The chunks of flesh molded back together and fused with the rest of Mōryōmaru, leaving him completely intact. But Kael could have sworn he saw something glowing that was mixed in with the pieces of flesh, though it happened too fast for him to see what it was.

"What are you looking at?" Mōryōmaru demanded.

His fingers stretched forward like spears. Kael dodged them and stabbed forward. But Mōryōmaru's wings burst from his back and he took to the sky. Kael summoned forth his dust cloud and went after the mutant. Mōryōmaru just smirked as several tentacles burst out of his stomach. Kael sliced off the tentacles, and a miasma seeped out.

Kael jumped off his dust cloud to avoid the miasma. Mōryōmaru swooped down after him, his arms becoming scythes again, making contact with Toukijin. Kael was faster than his opponent, but Mōryōmaru had two blades. Kael was quick enough to defend against both of them, but he didn't have time to do anything more than defend.

'He needs help.' Naevia realized, plucking her feather. "You guys stay here."

But Lady Naevia-"

"No buts, Rin!" The wind-demon snapped, taking flight. She flew up over Mōryōmaru's head and waved her fan. "Dance of the Dra-"

The spikes on Mōryōmaru's back shot out, nearly spearing her. Naevia stopped her attack and dodged the spikes, but they immediately turned into tentacles and sped after her.

'Now is my chance!' thought Jaken. 'I can prove my usefulness to Lord Kael.'

"Jaken, where are you going?" cried Rin. "Lady Naevia said to stay here!"

The toad-demon ignored her as he went up behind Mōryōmaru. "Feel the power of the Staff of Two Heads!"

Flames shot at Mōryōmaru. The moment they touched his back, his flesh began to shift. The flames were absorbed as a mound of flesh flew at Jaken. The toad-demon cried out and retreated, but was unable to escape. The mound of flesh wrapped around him and pulled him to Mōryōmaru.

"Help me!" Jaken cried, as Mōryōmaru absorbed him. "I don't want to die!"

Lucretia pulled out his sickle. "Rin, stay with Ah-Un."

"But Lucretia-"

There was no time to argue. He ran towards Mōryōmaru, throwing his sickle. He sliced the demon's back open, freeing Jaken enough to allow the toad-demon to escape. But the flesh that Lucretia's blade had cut through flew at the demon slayer, turning into spear shaped tentacles to impale him.

A blast of demonic energy disintegrated the tentacles before they pierced Lucretia. Ah-Un roared loudly as he unleashed another blast of demonic energy at Mōryōmaru. But this time Mōryōmaru was ready. He absorbed the attack and launched it right back at them.

The attack would have killed Rin and Lucretia, perhaps even Jaken, but Kael suddenly appeared in front of them, slicing through the blast with Toukijin.

"It would be wise for you to stay out of the way." He told them.

Mōryōmaru laughed as he turned to face Kael again. "You are a fool, Kael." He said, sounding amused. "You care so much for those two humans, like they were your own children."

Rin was not surprised by this, but Lucretia looked shocked at Mōryōmaru claiming that Kael actually cared for him. "Kael?"

The demon lord ignored him. "And why do you say this?"

Mōryōmaru laughed. "Hakudōshi could read minds, as can I. You cannot hide your thoughts from me, no matter how good you are at masking your emotions."

Kael growled. Great, that was just what he needed, an enemy that could see beyond his emotionless mask.

"Read my mind if you choose." He said. "It will not help you."

He charged at Mōryōmaru. The mutant demon prepared for him to strike with Toukijin, but was surprised when Kael tossed his sword in the air. While he was caught off guard, Kael used the opportunity to bury his claws in Mōryōmaru's gut, injecting him with a vast amount of poison.

Mōryōmaru gave no reaction to either his wound or the poison. He smirked and swatted Kael away, his wound healing immediately.

"Your poisonous claws have no affect on me, Kael. I simply cannot be destroyed."

"Dance of the Dragon!" Naevia had appeared behind him and trapped him in her mighty tornado of death. "Get out of that if you can, freak."

The tornado became thinner and the unpleasant sound of flesh being torn was heard as Mōryōmaru was sliced to pieces.

"She did it." Jaken murmured.

"You beat him, Lady Naevia!" Rin cried happily.

When the tornado dispersed, it seemed that Naevia had indeed won the battle. Mutilated pieces of flesh and balls of glowing energy were all that remained. But alas, the fight was not over. The pieces of flesh and orbs of light all came back together, reforming into Mōryōmaru again.

"Miss me?" he mocked.

Naevia growled. "Damn you."

Kael, having retrieved Toukijin, came up beside his mate. "Naevia, what were those glowing spheres within his body?"

"Haku." She replied.

Rin looked confused. "What's haku?"

Jaken gave her a look that clearly stated that he couldn't believe she had asked such a ridiculous question. "Honestly, Rin. Haku is a person's life force. Without haku, your soul can't remain earthbound and you'll die."

"That's how Mōryōmaru was created." Said Lucretia. "Hakudōshi used the haku of others to animate the flesh of demons and create him."

"Correct." Mōryōmaru growled in amusement. "My body is nothing more than animated flesh."

Kael raised an eyebrow. "So, you were originally a golem, a puppet, a creature without a soul or will of his own."

Mōryōmaru smirked, revealing his sharp teeth. "Not anymore, but I'm still just as indestructible as I was before."

Kael nodded. "You have indeed done a good job in proving this, but this Kael will still destroy you."

Mōryōmaru got into a fighting stance. "I can't be destroyed. That's what you don't seem to understand. I can not die!"

He charged at Kael. The demon lord easily jumped over Mōryōmaru's head, but the mutant demon just kept going, heading right for Naevia.

"Dance of Blades!"

Mōryōmaru smirked as he absorbed the blades of wind and blasted them right back at Naevia. The wind-demon waved her fan, dispersing her reversed attack. She then created a powerful gust of wind, one strong enough to knock Mōryōmaru off his feet. His wings burst from his back, stopping his fall, but Kael was suddenly right over him. His foot collided with Mōryōmaru's giant head, sending the demon crashing to the ground.

"This time, I'll pierce your heart." He declared.

Dropping from the sky, Kael buried Toukijin to the hilt in Mōryōmaru's chest, right where his heart should be. The ground beneath the giant demon gave in from the force of the attack, leaving Mōryōmaru lying in a large crater.

"And just for good measure…" Said Kael.

With Toukijin still buried in Mōryōmaru's chest, he unleashed his demonic energy. Mōryōmaru's torso burst open, leaving a large gaping hole where his chest once was.

Kael jumped out of the crater, landing over by Naevia as he looked down at Mōryōmaru. Being unable to sense Mōryōmaru's aura, he couldn't tell if the mutant demon was dead or not, and he couldn't rely on his nose either since Mōryōmaru already smelled like dead flesh.

"Splendid work, milord!" Jaken cried, running over to his master, the others close behind. "You put that miserable creature in his place!" He looked down at Mōryōmaru, kicking some dirt on him. "That will teach you to mess with Lord Kael!"

Mōryōmaru's eyes snapped open. "Fool." He growled, that sadistic smile still on his face. "Did you think that I could be defeated by something like that?"

The hole in his chest closed. He was on his feet a minute later, climbing out of the crater. Jaken quickly hid behind Kael, who remained where he was, as Naevia and Lucretia took on fighting stances, the latter standing in front of Rin protectively.

Mōryōmaru shook his head. "Go ahead, keep coming. You'll eventually wear yourselves out, and that's when I'll kill you. It doesn't matter what you do, I'll just keep coming. You can't kill me. Not now, not ever."

Jaken poked his head out from behind his master. "L-Lord Kael, how does he keep reviving? No demon should be able to survive the onslaught you've given him, no one. How is it he's still alive?"

Lucretia's eyes widened with realization. "He's not." He whispered.

Jaken gave Lucretia a confused look. "What do you mean, he's not? Of course he is! Just look at him! He seems pretty alive to me!"

Lucretia shook his head. "No, he's not. He's dead. He's the soul of Mōryōmaru inhabiting animated dead flesh. That's he won't die, because you can't kill what's already dead."

Mōryōmaru chuckled. "So, you've finally realized it."

Jaken was shaking his head. "It still doesn't make sense. Even if his body is dead and his soul is still earthbound, he should pass on to the other world once his body is destroyed, and Lord Kael just destroyed it several times."

"That's what the haku is for." Said Naevia. "No matter how much we damage his body, it will keep moving."

"At last you get it." Mōryōmaru sneered. "I was getting rather tired of waiting for you to figure it out. Now that you know the truth, you must realize that you can't possibly win against me."

Kael was silent. He showed no emotion, but the wheels in his head were turning rapidly. He stepped forward and sheathed Toukijin. "I shall defeat you." He looked over his shoulder at the others. "Remain here while I deal with them."

"But milord!"

"Idiot." Mōryōmaru growled. "You just found out that you can't kill me, and yet you still think you can win."

Kael clenched and unclenched his hand, as if he were getting ready to strike. "I do."

He charged at Mōryōmaru, who looked very amused at the demon lord's oncoming attack. "So, you want to go to hand-to-hand combat?" He charged as well. "Well that's fine with me! I'll break you in half!"

The two mighty demons came at each other. Mōryōmaru's arm stretched forward, reaching for the demon lord. Kael jumped over it, unsheathing his sword. He slashed Mōryōmaru across the chest, landing a short distance away.

Mōryōmaru skidded to a halt. "What was that? Was that really your attack? That was pathe-"

He stopped talking as terrible pain filled him. Before, whenever he had been damaged, he felt nothing, but now, all the pain that he would have felt from those attacks, was hitting him all at once.

"W-What?" He turned to Kael. "What did… you do?"

Kael turned to him. He held up the sword he was wielding, revealing that it was not Toukijin, but Tenseiga. "Tell me, how does it feel to be among the living?"

Mōryōmaru's eyes widened. "What?"

"It was simple enough to figure out. This Kael was unable to kill you because you were not alive. Well, you are now. Your body is now made of living flesh, the haku you used to animate your body is now your own life force, you are no different than me or any other demon now."

"Milord, that was brilliant!" Jaken cried.

"So simple, yet so amazing." Whispered Lucretia.

Naevia nodded. "As expected of you."

Kael sheathed Tenseiga and unsheathed Toukijin. "Now then, Mōryōmaru, I believe we have a battle to complete."

Mōryōmaru's eyes were filled with cold fury. "Y-You… you bastard!"

"I wonder how Naraku will take this." said Naevia. "He put his heart in you because he thought you couldn't be killed. What's he going to say when he finds out that you're as mortal as any other demon?"

Mōryōmaru turned to her, his eyes flashing. "Shut up, b***h!"

His arm turned into a spiky tentacle, which he swung at Naevia, but Kael moved quickly. He swung Toukijin, slicing Mōryōmaru's shoulder, causing the mutant demon to bleed for the first time. He hissed in pain, stumbling away from his target.

"Your blood flows, Mōryōmaru." Kael stated. "Just like that of any other mortal."

Mōryōmaru growled, rubbing the cut on his shoulder. He had never felt pain before. His flesh had been dead before, therefore he felt nothing. But he felt it now, and on top of pain, he was now feeling the other affects of being alive brought, such as exhaustion, hunger, thirst, and everything else that came with it. He had never slept, ate, or drank before, and was now in a very weakened state due to the lack of these things.

Naevia smirked. "What, nothing to say?" she mocked. "I know for a fact that the part of you that is Hakudōshi would normally have some smart ass remark to say."

"b***h!" Mōryōmaru snarled.

Kael's eyes narrowed in anger. "You shall not speak to my mate like that!" he seethed, swinging Toukijin and unleashing his power.

Mōryōmaru managed to smirk as he absorbed the attack. "Fool, now I'll destroy you all!"

He prepared to launch the attack back at them. But Kael had prepared for this. His eyes turned red as he tapped into the deepest reaches of his strength. He unleashed all his power at once in one mighty blast of demonic energy, just as Mōryōmaru was unleashing the attack he absorbed.

Kael's attack easily overpowered Mōryōmaru's, creating an attack similar to the Tetsusaiga's Backlash Wave. Mōryōmaru's eyes widened as a cry of rage erupted from his mouth as the attack consumed him. Slowly his body broke down until there was nothing left.

Mōryōmaru was dead.

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Elsewhere in Feudal Japan, Naraku gasped in pain, clutching at his chest, as he felt the remainder of his heart die. He realized at that moment that the impossible had happened. Mōryōmaru had been destroyed. He had died, taking Naraku's heart with him. Naraku was now no different than any other demon, or half-demon.

It was in that moment that Inuyasha's Adamant Barrage, combined with Kagome's sacred arrow, shattered his barrier and blasted him. The Shikon Jewel fell from the sky, where Naraku once had been, as the half-demon joined Mōryōmaru and Byakuya in the deepest depths of Hell.

Kagome slowly walked out onto the battlefield and picked up the tainted Shikon Jewel, purifying it with just one touch. She turned to her friends, looking at Miroku hopefully.

"Is it over?" she asked.

The monk pulled the covering off his cursed hand and held it up to reveal that the Wind Tunnel was gone.

"It's over."