The small creature was careful to be as quiet as possible, to spy and to search, to see what its master could not. As the light circled around it, and new surroundins flashed from all directions, it held fast to the floor. And then, as the unknowing targets moved forward, it crawled, one of it's six legs at a time, wings folded in, and watched....

00000

Inuyasha: The Six Spirit Mission Begins!

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For a good ten minutes, the group quietly strode forward, the slight, unnatural wind the only noise other than their footsteps. The cavern's brightness faded into a calmer, darker sort of beauty the further they went, and the ground, most noticed by Inuyasha, became stiffer, rougher.

"My feet feel scratched up... this had better be worth it." He mumbled under his breath.

"Somehow I don't believe your feet to be the most important thing right now, Lord Inuyasha. " Myoga's nasal tone came from his shoulder, his proportionally large eyes moving left and right frantically. "This cave emits an unusual energy, and the scent of moreso unique blood can be found every few steps.."

"I noticed." The dog demon remarked, turning to his longest-known comrade. "Is there anything different, Kagome? Did something from your giant bag dissapear?"

"What? Why would it?" She asked, confused.

"If Myoga's telling the truth (and he must be, to have come so far into the path of danger), then Fune would have had to Confine himself to an object to take physical form." Miroku noted solemnly. "Whatever he used to appear would have vanished into his being, not to appear again until he is Removed from the item."

Kagome blushed slightly, and turned her head forward again. "Maybe... but if I try and check now, we'd have to stop to rest." She frowned as the backpack seemed to gain another pound.

"When you next turn, the reason for the seal will be in your sights." The voice said again as a cruve in the thinning wall came to their eyes. "This may be of a surprise..."

"Feh. Whatever it is, we can handle it." The half-demon scoffed, stepping on a slightly smoother stone to turn. "It can't be any more stunning than-"

Whatever the red-clothed warrior had planned to say, it remained silent. He, along with his 4 allies, gasped in unison at the sight before them.

The chamber had grown back to a large, spacious area immediately, the walls and floor smoothened out to be a room of diamond-tiles all around. In the center, however, a large, circular sort of altar stood, surrounded by six massive statues.

From where they stood, it was faintly evidant that a golden, topaz dragon was behind the platform, it's wings fanning high into the air. Directly southeast of that was an emerald woman with wings coming from the sides of her arms, her hands and feet more like talons than anything: a harpy.

In front of the feathered one was a bright amber shape; a wild-haired man surrounded by shields and weapons. Directly in front of them, as well as the podium, was an amethyst sorceror, with recognizable, though strangely shaped armor, a cape, and a long, emerald-wrought sceptar.

To the mage's northwest, a sapphire-made statue of a strange sort of shaman was there, with flowing robes, uncontrolled hair, and an imposing mask. Above that was a large, terrifying ruby beast, bulky and gruesome, with a cage fastened to it's stomach.

Finally, above the altar, a large, blue, oval-like shape floated in midair, unmoving, staring down at them as if emblazed on the forehead of a giant. The altar itself was round, many leveled, with clear water slowly flowing around it. At it's top was an open dome, and a single set of stairs led to the empty, circular center.

"I take it back." Inuyasha said meekly.

"This is beautiful..... who could have made such incredible works?" Sango said, her voice soft and filled with wonder. She turned to smile softly at Miroku, but suddenly grew enraged at the eager look in his eyes. "You're not stealing a single piece of the ground, monk."

"Does no one trust the honor of a holy man anymore?" The endigo-robed one sighed, kicking the small stone hidden under his wooden sandel to the side.

"In this chamber, the six elemental spirits were sealed away by the greatest sorceror of the ancient deserts." The feminine voice explained. "Each of these statues once glowed with a powerful light, as the contained spirits finally found peace in each others' presence. When the Great Demon Lord of the Western Lands was of age, he was handed the means of reinforcing or unlocking the seal. Fune sought the power of the elements, and stole them from Inu-no-taisho several centuries later."

"I get it... he planned to come here." Kagome nodded as she realized. "But why did they choose to seal him in here? Wasn't that dangerous?"

The voice might have smiled, by her tone. "The high priest who was called to aid Inu-no-taisho saw it as the most effective means of punishment, to seal Fune mere inches away from his goal, and so it was for years to come. However, on this day, the seal has been broken, and Fune released."

The son of the mentioned demon lord smirked. "Idiot. He ran off seconds before we were brought here."

"Because the spirits left, as well." Was the counter to his statement. The group looked at the statues in confusion as the presence continued. "The spirits sensed the outside world and their elements, and, after centuries of calm sleep, awoke. They vanished from this cavern, and are now freely roaming the countryside in the form of pure light. If they come into contact with something made from their element, they can take the physical forms you see represented before you; The Avatars of Light, Wind, Earth, Darkness, Water, and Fire."

Myoga squeaked in fear. "No! These creatures in crystal.... they are like the monsters the mage summoned, perticularly that dragon! If they are unleashed among the region, there will be complete destruction!"

"If not subjugation, or discriminate destruction." The voice added. "If they come into contact with living thing, they will be absorbed into that being, and a new Avatar will be made. Now, anyone who touches a spirit can recieve the forces of nature at their fingertips.... and Fune's new form can find them easily."

Kagome gasped again, letting her backpack flop to the ground. Odd as it was not hear a smash of the earth, she searched through it's containements, and found the binder Sota had put in; his rarest card-containing binder. She flipped through the plastic pages swiftly, images of creatures and spells passing before her eyes, before a pure white square caught her vision, bordered by a brownish-orange card, with text below.

"Spellcastor/Effect, Attack 1200 Defense 1100...." She read aloud, her expression growing fearful. "As long as this monster remains on the field, Dragon-type monsters are not..."

Her pupils faded, the binder falling from her hands. Inuyasha instictively caught her as she nearly fell over. "What is it, Kagome? What happened?"

"L....lu-lord....of Dragons...." She stuttered out. "Fune's Confined to the Lord of Dragons!"

Everyone else widened their eyes in fear as she stood up shakily, and then added," SOTA'S GONNA KILL ME! THAT TOOK A YEAR TO FIND!"

It was the thought that they were standing on the hardest, sharpest possible substance that caused the others to try so hard not to facefault. A twitch above his eyes, the halfbreed snarled, "Is that all? You're worried about your half-sized little brother killing you when a greedy, green-haired thief can control dragons!?"

Ignoring the sound of Sango clearing her throat loudly, the amber-eyed dog glared at the altar, as if the voice's body was sitting there, enjoying the spectacle. "So what happens now? Do we have to fight against these spirits and risk our lives just to stop a guy my dad was annoyed with?"

"I would think that, the seal's opening being your fault, that would be the kindest thing to do, if not the most obvious." The voice spat back, sounding angry. "The Elements are always closest to their opposites, so Fune can send out dragons of the opposite element to see out certain spirits, and even these creatures can cause great deals of damage to the country. And Fune is not able to sense the spirits through his Confined powers, but through his own; anyone with a great deal of power, human, demon, or inbetween, can sense the spirits."

"That means Naraku can find them, if he learns of them!" Miroku shouted, also catching on the anger. "If that happens, I believe Fune is the least of our problems."

"Please, whoever you are..." Sango called, worry etched into her face, "is there anything we can do to reach the spirits first?"

"They are attracted to their elements, as I have said, but also seek powerful, uncorrupted energy. The Shikon Jewel, if, at this time, is held by a righteous soul, would be a beacon for the spirits to head for."

Kagome stood up, pulling the bottle containing her few remaining shards from the backpack. "The jewel shattered, and is currently in pieces. We have a few, but an evil demon named Naraku has almost all of the others."

"Master Inuyasha, I believe we should leave, quickly, and try to find these spirits before anyone else!" Myoga shouted, which came across almost as a normally-speaking person in the echoing cavern. "This could also be a great source of strength for us!"

"How so?" The much younger demon asked, looking skeptically at his vassal.

"She said 'anyone', did she not? If our group can become the new Avatars of these spirits, then, before we return them to this cave, we can finish our foes, gather the remaining shards of the jewel, and end this needlessly dangerous quest at last!"

After a short moment of thinking, the half-demon nodded, an oddly eager grin on his face. "Now THAT's something I can understand. And if you're ready to use the term 'our' foes, that must mean we have a good chance."

Kagome nodded as well, smiling at the other two. "I'm in. Sango? Miroku?"

"If it will help the innocent, and end these turbulent events, I offer my services fully." The monk stated, his eyes closed and his staff-less hand in it's normal prayer stance.

"If they're seeking out jewel shards, then Kohaku is in danger, as well." The slayer said quietly, before a resigned look came over her face. "Yes, I'm all for it."

"Thank Ra this group is smarter than it looks. This will be of use to you." Kagome held out her hand as a bright light suddenly lowered from the blue shape above them, and faded to form a small, crystal tablet, with an eye-like emblem, which made her palm oddly warm as it landed. "This is the Key to the World.... hold it up, and say 'Return', and the user, as well as anyone, immediately or by extension, touching him or her, will be teleported back to this cave. To leave this cave, raise it and say 'Release', and think of place you are welcomed at."

"Thanks." The highschool student said, looking at it as the others crowded around her, quickly adding," Inuyasha, hold my shoulder. Miroku, hold Inuyasha's."

Another resigned sigh came from the amorous monk as she raised the small item. "Release!"

00000

Shippo had finally been forced to admit it; he was bored. Even though he'd normally be hiding on the sidelines, cowering behind Kagome or Inuyasha, or maybe just avoiding Inuyasha altogether, he would rather be wherever his friends were than just sitting around in Kaede's house. The old priestess herself was out gathering herbs, the nature of which she had informed Shippo was one that was 'not to be handled around children.'

The only other source of entertainment was Kirara, who, most of the time, preferred sleeping over following him in his random walks through the village. Earlier, she had warmed up to playing a game with Shippo, though the outcome was not exactly fun. Sure, she was likely thousands of years older than he, but, man, did the cat demon play a mean game of Go!

He was just about to give in, and join his friend in an afternoon snooze, when the tall portion of the group appeared in midair, forming a pile in the center of the room as they fell. "Whoa! What happened to you guys?"

"A lot..." Kagome grumbled. " A WHOLE lot...."

00X00

His head turned, almost lazily, for his piercing eyes to look toward the horizon. Behind him, a short, toadlike creature looked up on instinct, carefully trudging over thin sticks on the ground, to avoid breaking them and possibly waking the girl sleeping on the two-headed dragon nearby.

"Lord Sesshomaru?" The small one asked quietly, his raspy voice cutting the air. "Is something wrong, mi'lord?"

A good minute passed before a response came, though Jaken's experienced patience kept him from asking again. The tall, white-clothed demon stood, the setting sun making the markings on his face a few shades brighter.

"Something's different. The wind smells thicker, suddenly. Stronger."

"Stronger?" The imp repeated, before frowing and looking up, moving his head to check the sky. "Is it that pesky wench that serves Naraku, again?"

Sesshomaru's usual frown merely twitched to show the answer was no. "There isn't a demonic aura attached to this wind. Something has happened...or altered... that caused this unknown change." He paused again, smelling the wind with sniffs too quiet to hear.

"Sand... there's a faint smell of sand."

XXXXX

The faint buzzing sound accompanied it in it's long journey. It traveled speedily through forests, across meadows, coming near the clouds, until the castle came into sight. An open window provided space for its unusually large body to fly in, until its master was in view.

It served what appeared to be a lord in his mid to lower twenties, tall and with long, pitch-black hair, which fell into dirty-looking strands. The lord wore a dark purple hakata, the emblems of its former owner, a pattern of green and yellow strips, marking places here and there. His skin was pale, from the calm, yet slightly cold expression expression her wore to the hand which offered two fingers for the creature to perch on, but this was natural for those who were rarely in the light.

The only things even hinting that he was an immensely powerful demon were his eyes; two molten red orbs, demonic and blazing with memories of malicious acts, and an unwanted lust.

The large insect landed on the two fingers of its summoner and hastily buzzed what it knew. The cold look remained to the humanoid's face, but added to it was a cruel sort of smirk.

"So, that explains this stange sense.... have you any thought of which spirit is closest to this area?" His voice asked of the insect, low, dark, with a kind of beckon behind it. The bug's pincers clicked, wings buzzing a short, slow reply. The smirk widened. "No need to apologize."

A loud crunching sound rang through the room, and an oversized, mishapen bug fell from the open window to the cliffs below. The lord stood, casually saying, "Kagura."

In an instant, a dark-haired woman with a white attire and slightly lighter eyes appeared, her ponytailed hair held with two small feathers, and a fan in her hand. "Yes?"

"Begin searching for any stange, moving lights that are not recognizedly souls. Take a small number of Saimyosho with you, and do not, under any circumstances, come into contact with these lights, understand?"

A deep frown etched on her face, Kagura nodded. She calmly plucked a feather from her hair, and in a small, pink burst of wind energy, was riding one several times larger out of the same window, following the same path the insect had.

He sat back down, merely making a motion with his hand, and small, emotionless girl appeared at his side, her hair, clothes, and skin a pale white, and a large, silver-framed mirror in her hand.

Watching his other servant fly through the mirrors magic, he pulled a long hair from his head, and removed a wooden block from his clothing. His fingers began to emit a small, purple gas, and with it he began whittling the block into an arcane, doll-like shape.

In a twisted way, it would seem to be a quiet man's casual night at home. If that man's deepest desires were the world's darkest possibilities.

00000

Kaede's solemn look remained, undaunted, through the explanations from the four who had been away earlier, and the dreaded things that had happened during their short stay away. "So it seems ye are drawn into a second search, and another foe has appeared in your path."

"And, once again, we've got only one person to blame..." Inuyasha started. "Kagome, do you have a thing about shooting things that will cause us trouble if hit?"

The girl frowned at her friend, before turning away, eyes closed, a casual, uninsulted look on her face. "Sit."

SMASH!

The elder priestess sweatdropped, sighing deeply at the hole that appeared in her recently repaired floor. "I know not what this entails, but something tells me it will be a greater challenge than merely seeking the shards of the Shikon Jewel."

"That's because these spirits can be used by anybody, and demons can sense them as much as they can the shards. And if they touch certain things, they take on destructive forms." Miroku agreed, looking around. "And to seal that thought, Myoga has vanished again."

"I'm still confused..." Shippo whined, rubbing his tired eyes. "I'll bug Inuyasha about it tomorrow."

"I heard, that, runt." The half-demon growled, pulling a splinter out of his chin.

"Another race begins tomorrow..... and, if we aren't careful, both could end in disaster." Sango noted, stroking Kirara, who was purring contentedly. "We should get some rest."

Mutual agreement met at all sides, and before long the small candle went out, leaving the hut in darkness. But Kagome would still be up, late at night, the card binder in one hand, and the bottle of jewel shards in the other.

"The Shikon Jewel... the Six Elemental Spirits.... and a card game hundreds of years after these events will happen...."

Quietly, with a sad, almost pitiful look, she removed every textbook in her backpack, pushed them to the side, and fell into a tense sleep.

"Farewell, highschool.... I knew thee well.... before I knew nothing at all."

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Kagome: Well, my back feels a lot better, but that doesn't change the fact that now Sota AND my mom's gonna tear me alive when I get home. The first spirit makes its fiery entrance, and Inuyasha's special robe gets a resistance workout. Miroku can't use his Wind Tunnel or we'll lose the spirit, we have to deal with these water-spewing dragons, too! Too bad they don't want to help with the damage cleanup...

Next time: Fire Spirit, and the First New Avatar!

Inuyasha: I can take-ACK! I can't hold Testusaiga!

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