Chapter 20

"In the beginning, before Gods descended, before there was earth or sky, fire or water, before there was life; there existed that which is nameless. It was the void, the nothingness, the dark. It had no purpose, nothing but the endlessness of the dark and the madness of eternity. That was until the Gods called the universe into existence, and the first glimmer of light was cast into the darkness. Then the Nameless one found purpose, found something that could fill the void of its solitude. Purpose gave it drive, drive gave it focus, focus gave it strength, strength gave it power, and power it used to destroy.

It was the anathema, the darkness to the light brought by the God's love. It had no heart, no love, no life. It was only the carnage, the destruction. The merciless one. The destroyer. The ender of life. It was the sin of all sins. It was destruction, madness, pain, suffering, and anguish unimaginable.

It was Evil.

So terrible and monstrous was this darkness, that when its shadow fell upon the God's light in the beginning of creation, when its corruption threatened to smother the new life being born in the wake of such love; even the greatest of the Gods would not look upon its face.

Repulsed by the presence of Evil in their midst, the Gods turned on it, banishing it forever to a prison of fire. Locked within, the dark one howled its fury, shaking the restraints that bound it with the hideous vibrations. It tore and clawed through the flames, eternally searching for a weakness, for a means of escape. And when it found it, it would unleash its fury against all who had bound it to that place.

The Gods could hear the howls of vengeance, and they knew that should ever the darkness escape, all of light and life and hope would be lost. So, in their place, as they could not walk upon the burning land that held the fires of destruction, they sent their children to watch over all life.

As all children do, they grew and prospered. Time passed, new lives were made, new hopes and dreams formed in the eyes of children long gone from their parent's strong embrace. But without the guidance of their parent's love, soon the children grew forgetful. They forgot their purpose, forgot the duty that had been their sacred trust. And as they strayed from their guard, as they moved on with life as it seemed only right, the Nameless one watched and waited.

A time finally came when the hold of the fires grew weak with the children's neglect. In that time, unbeknownst to those living above, the one below began to grow strong again. The darkness, once kept sealed, locked forever in the pits of fire, found that it could reach out beyond its prison and touch the children of the Gods with its dark hands.

Hatred, greed, corruption; those things dark and tainted, they spawned from the touch of the damned, turning those innocent children into something no longer of the Gods. They were filled with the darkness, were fed by the flames of eternity, given power by the Dark Lord. They turned on their brothers and sisters, bringing chaos and destruction and death to the land.

So terrible was the carnage, so great the loss of life, that the Nameless one found purpose once more. No longer was it lost, trapped within the binding flames. No longer was its prison strong enough to hold back its fury. From the fire it emerged, darkness suffocating the land of life. Its roar of triumph thundered through the heavens; and when the Gods heard it, even they felt fear.

But there was one, one child left who had not heeded the dark voice, who had not fallen to its terrible call. She, and she alone, stood against the rising of the darkness, a light apart from the world of shadow. Surrounded by fire, enveloped by the hand of Death, she made the ultimate sacrifice. Her very soul, the light of the God's love given to every one of their children, she offered it up the darkness, gave it of herself in faith and trust.

Horror sounded in the terrible cry unleashed by the Nameless one, for in that light it saw the truth of its being, all of it hideousness and monstrosity. It fell away from her, from this child of purity and light; clawing and scraping its way back into the fires, away from the horror of truth.

When it was over, the Enlightened one fell. But not to death would the Gods cast their most precious daughter, but to new life, to new hope. No longer an immortal, no longer one with the First Children, no longer with the power over the land or the skies; She became the Mother, the First of all mankind.

From her many children were born, and from them many more. In each rested a tiny spark that was once her light; and as they grew in number, as their life spread over the land, that light forever would keep the dark one imprisoned in his fiery cage of fear.

Nameless it would be no longer, for these children would never forget the sacrifice that brought them life, and which in turn would ultimately take it away. To forget would be to condemn their mortal souls to the fires, to smother their light with the suffocating hand of the dark. They gave it names that would invoke fear, told stories of its hideousness and its monstrosity.

Never forget, they warned their children, lest you fall victim to the fires of madness as well. Be not like the First Children. Do not forget the sacrifice of our loving Mother. Stand against the dark; let our light give life not death. For only the light may conquer the dark.

Only the light."

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"That was sweet."

Toga blinked in confusion and turned to get a better look at the smiling priestess. "I do not believe you were hearing the point of the story," he told her slowly.

Giggling softly, Kagome shook her head. "No, I understand. But it is the same story that has been told countless times. A battle of good against evil, light against dark. We all know who will win in the end, but we just can't help but be drawn into the story, to hold our breath until that moment where good overcomes."

"Kagome…" He couldn't understand. He was telling her of the past, of the war that had changed life for all time. He was telling her that now that the battle had come again it would be she that would have to stand against the dark, her light that would be sacrificed to seal away the nameless one once more. And she was laughing, brushing it aside as though it was nothing?

"Shh," Bringing a finger to her lips, Kagome stopped his protests. She shifted herself carefully, mindful of the slumbering princess that was curled up at her side, and brought herself to her feet. "Come with me," she whispered once she was standing. "I want to show you something."

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Moonlight bathed the land below the mountain in a silvery curtain of light, but that light was nothing compared to the brilliance that streaked through the sky in a radiant beam of magic and power.

Kagome lifted her head to watch the path of her arrow, her face reflecting joy as the light of her powers spilled down over the land. "Pretty, isn't it?" she asked the youkai by her side.

Toga spared a glance at the sacred arrow, but it was the young priestess that had his attention. He couldn't understand her smiles, couldn't find anything for which she should be so happy. For a moment, he wondered if perhaps she had been so overwhelmed with the knowledge the story he told had given her that she had literally lost her mind.

Kagome could see the look he was giving her, and it was one she knew all too well. "You're thinking I'm crazy, aren't you," she laughed.

"The thought had crossed my mind," he replied honestly.

"Hey now!" she huffed childishly, her lips pulling into a pout. "I didn't actually want affirmation on that one. But," smiling disarmingly, she gave him a wink, "If people didn't think I was crazy, I never would have gotten to meet you."

"Hn." He eyed her suspiciously, thinking yet again that the stress of the impending battle had become too much for her mortal cognitions to function properly.

But Kagome blatantly ignored his dubious look, instead focusing on drawing and setting another arrow. Once it was set securely in the draw of her bow, she looked over to him. "What are you waiting for?"

Looking at her blankly, Toga asked, "Am I supposed to know to what you are referring?"

Kagome rolled her eyes. "You really are impossible. Seriously, you're starting to sound like a broken record."

"Record?"

Scowling at the response that she had totally seen coming, Kagome huffed elaborately. "Just draw your sword before my arm falls off."

Though still speculative, Toga decided just to go along with whatever the miko had planned. He reached to his side and drew out Tetsusaiga.

"You ready?" she asked. A passive shrug was her only response; but figuring that was the best she was going to get, Kagome loosed her arrow to cut in a brilliant stream through the night sky. Once it was loosed, she turned quickly to Toga. "Hit it, quickly before it looses strength."

He blinked and lifted an eyebrow in curiosity, but the scowl beginning to form on the miko's lips spurred him into action. Lifting the blade of his fang, he brought it down in a great arch and released the cutting winds of fire. The wild inferno tore through the distance between him and his target, a terrible wave of crimson fury.

As the blast approached the brilliant stream of her arrow, Kagome bit her lip in eager anticipation. She snuck a quick look at Toga from the corner of her eye, and she could see even through his intent focus that he too was watching expectantly. Her lips lifted in a wry grin. She knew he wouldn't be expecting what was to come.

There should have been an explosion, some horrible fallout from the clash of demon fires and a priestess' light. It should have been destruction, chaos, all those things that became of the bringing together of ancient enemies. But it was not as it should have been. There was no explosion, no destruction; there was only the meeting and blending together of two separate entities to create one of power unimaginable. Where there had once been her power and his, now there was something so much beyond that it defied description, defied explanation.

"Incredible," Toga whispered in bewilderment at the sight. He finally understood how she could smile even though his story had been so daunting. She did not fear having to make the final stand, because never once did she think she would face it alone. Maybe what he thought was impossible was possible after all, maybe her faith wasn't so unjustified. Maybe they really stand a chance against Memnon if they were to stand together.

"Yeah," Kagome agreed with a soft giggle at his expense. "Betcha you never thought you'd see the day a little human girl would know how to use your sword better than you…" Her words died on her lips and her eyes drew wide in shock when her mind finally caught up with the words that had spilled out of her mouth. Her cheeks instantly flushed scarlet when she saw him look back to her and lift a curious brow. "Tetsusaiga!" she corrected shrilly, pointing emphatically towards the fang in his hand. "That sword! Not…I didn't mean…It's not like that!"

Kagome took a nervous step back from the youkai when he turned fully to face her. There was something highly disturbing in the glinting golden surface of his eyes, and she was liking less and less the idea of sticking around to find out what it was.

"How was it you knew that Tetsusaiga's blast would not react adversely to your arrow?"

Toga's question had Kagome releasing a heavily grateful sigh. Whether he had done it purposefully or not, he had just saved her from a world of embarrassment. "Inuyasha and I used that trick countless times," she replied. "I never thought much about it until you told me that story about Memnon. It was like you were saying that we were so different, you know? Me with the power of light, and you, well, not. But really, we're not all that different. If we were, then not only would it be impossible for our energies to combine into one like that, but I could never have held back my powers from taking over yours again after…" She trailed off in embarrassment, but quickly recovered herself when she saw an amused smirk working its way onto his lips. "Oh, come off it! Do you really think that you're so all powerful that you could manipulate my powers if I wasn't helping you out?!"

"If this is so," Toga continued questioning her, heedless of her little outburst, "if you so readily accept the fires, then why would you fear Tenseiga?"

"I never did," Kagome replied with a shrug. "You were the one that stopped me from using it. I just thought it was best not to press the issue. I do sorta like living and all."

"Hn. Well then," he mused slowly as he re-sheathed Tetsusaiga and shifted to draw the Fang of Heaven, "Perhaps now would be the most opportune time to determine the truth of how Tenseiga will affect you."

When he lifted the blade, Kagome took a small step back from him. It wasn't exactly like she was afraid; it was just the whole idea of having a sword pointed at her by someone that had her a little freaked out. Toga, however, had obviously seen her discomfort, and he quickly shifted his grip on the fang so that he was presenting her with its hilt rather than the point of the blade. Understanding that he was giving her the freedom to test this little theory herself, Kagome send him a grateful smile before reaching out to take hold of the fang.

Holding it securely in her right hand, she brought her left up to rest tentatively against the gleaming surface of the blade. She breathed out a long breath to steady herself, then, in one quick motion, she tightened her grip on the fang and pulled it hard against her hand.

Even with the sword removed, her hand remained fisted tightly. Kagome held her breath, her rational mind telling her that any second now she was going to feel the pain or see the crimson of her blood dripping through her fingers. But the seconds ticked past, and still there was nothing. Slowly, tentatively, she began unclenching her fist.

When her eyes were finally able to see the smooth, unmarred skin of her hand, she gasped. "Incredible," she whispered in awe. She had always known that Tenseiga was a blade that could not cut, but to feel it pass through her flesh, to know that even with her blood charged with sacred energies that she could accept him as easily as he did her; it filled her with wonder and new hope.

"Indeed," Toga remarked casually as he collected his fang from the awed miko. "And I must say, Kagome, you handled my sword expertly."

Squeaking in shock and outrage, Kagome was pulled jarringly from her more endearing thoughts. She leveled the smirking demon with a hard glare. "Just for that, you're sleeping on the floor!"

And with that, Kagome wheeled away from Toga and stormed her way back into the Keep. He watched her go, his amusement over her eccentricities plainly obvious. However, the amused smirk that had been gracing his lips fell away when he realized exactly what her threat entailed; and he was left gaping at the spot where she had disappeared, the only thought running through his head being, 'But it is my bed!'

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Kukukuku and that's what the old dog gets for being naughty ;P

Memnon – I tried to fit this in somewhere, but failed miserably. So, I'm just telling everyone now, that in my little world, Memnon means Nameless.

Well, I guess that's all. I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter. It didn't exactly go as I had planned it, but I think I like it better this way. The first version was too stuffy, the second too miserable, and though I missed out on a bit of mush because I went with something more comical, I'm sure I can make up for it later.

So, later all. And please remember to review. They are like candy to my muses, they gobble them up and pop out inspiration in return ;P Pretty good trade, don't ya think?

TaTa

Shadow