Disclaimer: I do hereby disclaim all rights and responsibilities for this absurd adventure... especially for the one who's in a dangerous position. A nod of recognition is bent towards Rumiko Takahashi for her creative prowess.

Chapter 81: Step Up

"This is crazy," Kagome called over her shoulder. "Can you believe Sesshoumaru set this all up?"

"No denying the guy's got time on his hands. And money to spare."

"Normally, I'd be impressed by the customer service. Talk about personal touches." She placed her boot on the exact center of the next log, careful not to look down. As long as she didn't, this was a cinch. Easy as climbing steps. "I can't imagine the manpower this must have taken."

"Yup. Would have taken a while. If it was humans doing the work."

Kagome couldn't imagine imps felling trees of this size. Giving a little bounce, she remarked, "Seems sturdy. Although, I'd feel better if there were a harness. Or a safety net."

"Avoid falling, and there's no problem." Kouga gruffly added, "If you slip, I'll catch you."

Kagome kept talking, mostly to distract herself. "The woman I've replaced. Odds are good she's afraid of heights."

"Looks that way."

Upon arriving at the next battle zone, they'd found a manmade—well, youkai-made—wall of posts. Between the cryptic clue on the map and the rough arrow hacked into bottommost stump, it was pretty obvious what Kagome was meant to do. Climb.

Each post was a tree trunk, and each was set a little higher than the one before. Like a stairway leading up into the jungle canopy. Once up amidst the leaves, Kagome could hardly tell how high they were, but the poles were getting farther apart. If this kept up, she'd have to jump. Not fun.

"You're fine." Which was encouraging until a few moments later, when Kouga said, "Huh."

Kagome stopped and half-turned. Kouga had been following a little ways behind, calm as if he were out for a stroll. But he'd traded boredom for wariness. She followed his gaze toward the west, where the sinking sun had set fire to the sea. "Problem?"

"If we don't make it to the other end before sunset, I foresee an issue."

"You mean my not being able to see my next step before I take it?"

"That, too." Kouga thrust his chin in the direction they were headed. The wall of tree trunks was leading toward a pitted ridge, half-hidden by dense foliage. "I'm more worried about those."

Kagome squinted. "Are they caves?"

"Yup."

"Is there something inside?"

"Yup." He tested the air, and his tail puffed and switched. "Bats."

Original Posting Date: September 19, 2019
Prompt: Sunset, suggested by sylv
Words: 400