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((LEGAL STUFF: Inuyasha and Co. are property of the sole ownership of the wise, witty, and wonderful Rumiko Takahashi, one of the Greats of manga! I am not making any profit whatsoever except my own enjoyment in writing this. I do not own nor claim any rights to her characters and concepts. However, the original characters in this story belong to me, so please do not copy them or use them without my express permission. Many thanks to the incredible Takahashi for bringing us another Great One!))

Chapter 1: The Cave

A demon dashing about in broad daylight is an unusual sight, even in an age when demons pop out of the dark and devour people almost weekly. Most average persons in the Warring States Period would drop whatever they were doing and flee in terror at the sight of one, whether it was coming in their direction or not. However, in a small village inside Musashi's Domain, the townsfolk have become accustomed to bizarre ocurrances. In fact, something odd seems to come to pass daily there.

That's not to say they still don't stare when it happens.

Most people, when confronted with the sight of a roaring monster chasing after a pretty young maiden, will either run screaming in horror or try to play the hero and save the girl. Here in the village protected by the Priestess Kaede, the villagers do neither. They stare after the rapidly-moving scene, then shrug at one another and return to their work. "There they go again."

"No, it's nary a problem," one townsperson might explain to a visitor. "Happens quite often, actually. Don't ye worry about it."

Indeed, having a snarling, white-haired dog-demon go barreling through the village hot on the trail of a girl in funny clothes on a metal contraption was a common occurrance in that village, unusual though it looked. The occasional shouts the girl threw over her shoulder that caused the demon to trip over nothing and crash to the ground only added to the bizarre quality of the scene. Despite this, few gave them a second look.

"Get back here, you!" Inuyasha roared for the umpteenth time, undeterred by the four "sits" he'd already received. "You are not leaving again!"

"I told you I'll be right back!" Kagome Higurashi shouted over her shoulder, swerving around a tree as she entered the forest. "It'll be three hours! Maybe a little more! I promise!" She pushed aside tree branches as she plowed a new path through the underbrush, many of which struck the dog-demon who ran close on her tail.

"Ouch! We have shards to find, wench! Argh! I am not waiting around--ow! Watch it!--for your pointless free time! If you think you can run off--"

"Sit!"

"--anyoof! Would you stop that?"

Kagome reached the edge of the well, skidding to a stop on her bicycle. Without bothering to carry the bike, she jumped for the rim of the well and had just cleared the edge when her descent came to a rapid halt. She felt sharp claws gripping the back of her shirt and wondered how Inuyasha had managed to pry himself off the ground so fast. She was lifted out of the well and turned about in midair until she came face-to-face with the dirt-smeared, angry-looking visage of her half-demon companion.

"Um, could you let go, please?"

"No I will not let go," Inuyasha growled, "and don't you dare sit me, either, or we'll both go down and I'll end up on top of you when we land. You're going to come back with me and we're going to the Hitai Mountain to get that shard."

"Yes, I will do that," Kagome sighed, rolling her blue eyes. "I just need to do something first. Hey, can I put my feet on the ground, at least? I promise not to bolt."

Inuyasha grumbled but set her back on her feet. "Let's go, then, wench."

"Excuse me? I just said I need to do something first! Haven't you been listening?" Kagome demanded, stomping her foot. She brought her face close to his and tugged on one of his triangular, white-furred ears. "I thought these did more than just make you look cute." Crap--that didn't come out the way I wanted! She blushed, drawing back. "Uh...I mean..."

Cute? Inuyasha reddened suddenly. "I-I was too listening--"

"Never mind, never mind!" Kagome wanted desperately to change the subject. "Inuyasha," she said quickly, preying on his malleable qualities while he was flustered, "please don't make me say the word. I just need to take some time at my house. I'm doing it for you."

"W-what could be more important to me than a shard?" He was almost imperceptably leaning away from her now, feeling cornered.

"Don't you know what night is coming up?"

The hesitation vanished from the golden, catlike eyes.

Kagome frowned internally. Oops, bad tactical error. Fluster just went bye-bye.

"Of course I do! And I'll thank you to shut up about it!" Inuyasha snarled.

"Please, let me go for just a couple hours." Kagome tried her best semi-tearful-eyes expression, praying it would work. "I wanted to say goodbye to Mom before I left. I hardly see her any more..."

That did it. Lately the "Mom" thing had been a sure-fire way to get the half-demon to bend. Probably left over from feelings for his own mother. "Well, if it's just for an hour or so...then..."

"Yes!" Kagome hugged him impulsively, earning a surprised "huff!" and a statuelike dog-demon standing there dumbfounded as she dove into the well. "Thanks! I'll be back soon!"

"Huh...she even left her metal cart." Inuyasha managed to loosen his tongue from where it was stuck to the roof of his mouth. "She must've been serious about coming back."

Footsteps sounded in the duff behind him. "Methinks you pursue the lady Kagome a little too earnestly to truly hate her." A familiar Buddhist priest with an eye for beautiful girls came up beside Inuyasha. "Perhaps in truth it is...separation anxiety?"

"I am not asking you!" Inuyasha clobbered Miroku reflexively with a single fist to the top of the head. Leaving the unconscious youth on the forest floor, he stomped off to his tree to await Kagome's return.

Cat-slitted dark amber eyes watched the exchange from the safety of some overhanging branches. Gleaming white fangs became visible in a grin among the mottled shadows. "Hmmm...let's see; red kimono, long white hair, distinctive ears, bad temper..." The soft, whispered voice took on a dreamy quality. "...really strong...gorgeous eyes...ahem! Daddy was right--that must be him. Lord Inuyasha...I found you!"

There was a flash of silver from among the branches as the figure vanished into the upper canopy.

Hitai Mountain seemed pretty harmless on the outside. Benign, even. The hike up the side was very pleasant, with birds cheeping and deer grazing calmly on its forested slopes. The peak was rocky, but otherwise it looked like a typical mountain. The only indication that things were not as they seemed was the bright-black aura Kagome saw and the thick stench of demon that Inuyasha picked up.

"If this place didn't feel so evil, I'd want to have a picnic here," Kagome commented as she hid her bike in the woods outside the entrance cave. She hitched her bow and quiver up against her shoulders where they would be the most comfortable for her.

"It is quite beautiful," Sango commented, scanning the surrounding trees.

"But beauty often hides great evil underneath," Miroku observed, watching Inuyasha sniff warily at the entrance of the cave. Both priest and demon-huntress secured their weapons and prepared themselves.

Kagome came alongside Inuyasha as he tested the air within the great opening. He gave an odd, doglike snort and shook his head, his expression both angry and pensive. "Something wrong?" she asked him softly, concerned.

"I don't like what I think I'm smelling," the half-demon replied absently, golden eyes staring fixedly into the darkness. "It doesn't bode well."

"I don't smell anything wrong," Shippo said with a shrug. "Just smells like cave and critters. And whatever demon's hiding in there."

Kagome knew better than to doubt Inuyasha's acute senses, but they'd faced dangers for the shards before. "We'll be careful," she assured him, then nodded to the others and led the way in.

Inuyasha hung back for a moment, then shivered and hurried to catch up to Kagome. The girl from the future was proudly displaying the bright flashlight she had brought for just this occasion, flashing its cheerful beam across the damp, dark stone. Inuyasha just snorted at the use of such "toys" and continued on.

The tunnel into the mountain was so broad and easy that the small party began to feel more confident. There were no pits, traps, or monsters, so the procession continued without a hitch.

Until they came to a fork in the tunnel.

"Great. Just great. This is convenient," Inuyasha grumbled, dropping to all fours to carefully inspect the scent trails on both paths. "No one's been by here recently, although both are well-traveled."

"One goes up, the other goes down," Miroku said, pointing towards the ascending tunnel on the right. "Which way would a demon hide?"

"Could be either way, depending on what kind he is," Sango informed them. "Kagome, do you feel anything?"

Kagome closed her eyes and concentrated, but no particular concentration of evil called her. The shard simply seemed to be forward. She could not discern which direction. "No. I can't tell where it is."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "Fine. Let's split up. Miroku, you and Sango and Shippo go right. Kagome and I will go left."

"B-but why do I have to go with them?" Shippo whined, suddenly nervous.

"You have demon-sight, you little moron, and with Kagome's magic lamp you can help them better," Inuyasha growled. "I can see fine without that thing."

Kagome gaped at him. "Now wait a second--I'm not going off without my flashlight--!"

Inuyasha's furious scowl cut her off. "They need it more. Stop worrying; I'll guide you."

Reluctantly, Kagome relinquished her flashlight to Sango and showed her how to work it. Shippo complained once more about having to go with the humans, but a few thumps from Inuyasha convinced him it was safer with them. With an agreement to turn back if they came to another fork or dead end, the party split into two and began their journeys.

Miroku's party had an easy time of it. The tunnel continued broad and unbroken, on an easy incline that curved gradually, as if they were on a gigantic spiral staircase within the mountain. No one complained--except Sango, who whacked Miroku every time he tried to feel her up in the dark. Shippo took to riding on her shoulders and warning her when the priest came too close. Other than that, they found no problems.

Meanwhile, Kagome and Inuyasha began to regret their choice. The tunnel narrowed and steepened, becoming winding and treacherous. Footing was unsure and even Inuyasha slowed his pace.

"Are you sure you can see?" Kagome asked softly, feeling stifled by the darkness. Utterly blind in the pitch blackness, Kagome had to trust in Inuyasha's supernatural sight to lead her through. "I mean, even the best eyes need light, and I'm sure we're way too deep to--"

"There's some kind of glowing moss on the rocks," said Inuyasha's voice out of the darkness. "It's very dim, but it's enough. You can't see it?"

"I can't see anything," Kagome whispered, feeling her way along the walls.

"Great." Inuyasha could see her well enough in the dim, faintly blue luminescence of the lichens. Her eyes were wide and dilated but did not focus on him, and she was feeling about blindly along the walls, completely helpless. Only his eyes were sensitive enough to make use of the faint light.

The tunnel was filled with rocky protrusions that Kagome would hit her head on, trip over, or bump into if Inuyasha didn't warn her about them. She moved slowly along, feeling about, waiting for his sharp voice to bark out instructions or warnings.

She was quite suprised to feel his hand take hers and pull her off the wall, leading her along the safest path. She could move a bit faster that way, trusting in his eyes.

"This is too slow," he said. Unable to see him, she couldn't read his expression and could only hear the rustle of cloth as he moved closer to her. He placed her hand on his shoulder. "Climb on," he instructed. "And keep your head down."

Obediently, she climbed aboard like she normally did, with her legs around his waist and her hands clinging to his shoulders, head resting on his back. He dropped to all fours and began a steady trot. It was somewhat rougher than usual. Although he could move about easily on four limbs--because of his dog-demon heritage, his arms and spine were slightly longer and his legs slightly shorter than an average human's--his legs were still longer than his arms and made his center of gravity more difficult to maintain while traveling on a downward incline, especially with the added weight of a passenger. It was a rough ride anyway, because of the necessity of twisting and turning through the difficult tunnel, dodging stalacmites and jumping small chasms.

They seemed to have been traveling for hours, the continuous darkness and silence making time seem to drag on. Kagome became aware of an increasing tension in her companion, especially as close to him as she was. She wasn't sure if it was proximity to her that was causing it, or if something was wrong, but she didn't want to interrupt his concentration to ask him about it.

Inuyasha abruptly slid to a halt, skidding in the dust, and Kagome could feel his focused listening. There were tiny muscles that traveled from his skull to his neck and shoulders, and she could feel them twitch and flutter as his ears flicked about and his head tilted slightly. She could hear him scenting, the light, puffing breaths he took when sampling the air, his ribs expanding in short spurts. His muscles quivered beneath her. Everything about him broadcasted nervous alertness, and she wondered what on God's green Earth could put him into that state.

Her voice made him start. "What's wrong?" she whispered.

He snorted faintly, but it was as if to clear a bad smell from his nose, not his usual disdainful huff. "Nothing. Be quiet," he growled.

Rebuffed, she settled her head back on his shoulder as he continued on, more cautiously this time. A growing dread filled her as she tried to imagine what might await them, things that he could hear and smell and see and she could not. Things that were faceless and silent in the darkness, things she would not detect until they were upon her...

Undetermined minutes later, Inuyasha stopped again...and this time, Kagome could hear it.

Faint, distant, echoing. Rustling, squeaking, scratching. Whispering sounds. Intense, though far away, as if there were many of...whatever it was. Kagome felt chills fill her, and she shuddered. "What is that?" she whispered, barely mouthing the words though she knew he could hear her.

"Rats," Inuyasha replied, his voice tight, almost choked. "Thousands of them."

"Where?"

"Up ahead...somewhere."

"Rats..." Though the sound was faint, it seemed to grow more and more intense in her ears, as though her mind were magnifying it. If the sound was thus to her, what was it doing to poor Inuyasha's ultra-sensitive ears? No wonder he was on-edge. The sound was pervaisive and mind-numbing, even frightening.

"And the light," Inuyasha said softly. "The moss is getting dimmer as we go. It's difficult to see...even for me."

Another thrill of fear went through her. What could they do in this black pit, if Inuyasha became as blind as she? They could be lost down here, or worse, set upon by the demons that inhabited the caves. A sudden thought struck her. "Inuyasha...are they...demon rats?"

"I don't think so. I hope not." He scented again. "They don't smell like it. There's no demon-smell here, just rat. It's so thick I can't smell anything else here but you."

"Let's go back. Maybe we can wait until I get more flashlights, or--"

"There's only one time for this," Inuyasha said, his voice strange and rough. "And it's now. I'm not running away from a pack of lousy rats!"

He plunged forward, ignoring Kagome's startled cry, loping through the growing darkness at almost top speed. He disregarded Kagome's frightened pleas for him to slow down, continuing his headlong dash, sometimes missing stone protrusions by mere millimeters. It grew darker and darker until he could barely see his forelimbs beating the ground beneath him, but whatever pressing urgency had gripped him would not let go.

There was almost no warning when the ground dropped out from beneath him. He uttered an embarassingly frightened canine yelp when the floor seemed to open up beneath his feet; he couldn't jump, he couldn't stop--and then they were falling into blackness. Kagome cried out as well, realizing what had happened, gripping Inuyasha ever tighter.

Nothing prepared them for the plunge into dark water that awaited them at the bottom. Both were bruised by the impact, inhaling water unintentionally. Inuyasha instinctively paddled for the surface, Kagome still locked to him in a death-grip. He gasped and choked when he broke free of the water, automatically reaching for Kagome and making sure her face was clear and that she was breathing. She clung to him, coughing, attempting to tread water at the same time.

"I-Inuyasha..."

"Swim, girl," he coughed. "Quit dragging me down."

"I can see you!"

He looked at her, seeing her staring straight back, and realized how much brighter it was in this cavern. However, that didn't matter as much as finding some ground did, so after glancing briefly about, he settled on a direction and started swimming--instinctive dog-paddle, of course--towards a spur of shore. Gasping, he finally touched bottom, and dragged Kagome with him towards the dry land. Once they climbed out to the rock, dripping and coughing, they were able to get their breath back--and realize their situation.

The chittering, rustling, scraping noise was all around them. Loud, echoing in the cavern. Intense enough to make them flinch. And with the brighter light, they could see them all around.

Kagome crowded up against him, gasping in fright. "The rats--they're everywhere!"

"Urk." Oh, my God... Inuyasha stood rigid as a great tree, staring about at the thousands of tiny red eyes that darted and dodged about. The giant cavern's floor and walls seemed alive with small, black, crawling shapes. The sounds of so many rats pressed in on his ears, flattening them to his head, and the sour scent smothered him. There was nowhere to go; the lake stretched on into the darkness ahead and only twenty feet of shore stretched between the water and the wall. Oh no, oh no...which way?

A rat shrieked behind him, making him jump away. When he turned, he saw Kagome finishing a kick that sent an adventurous rat sailing back to his fellows. "It was getting too close, so I--" She leaned closer to him. "Inuyasha, are you okay?"

Kagome was instantly concerned. His ears were pinned down, flattened against his head in a way she'd never seen. She could tell even in the dim light that he was trembling, and his breath came in tight gasps. His eyes were wide and wild, darting about--like those of a frightened, cornered animal. "Inuyasha...?"

Those wild eyes focused on her, and he seemed to gain some control. He swallowed hard, and when he spoke, his voice was creaky and almost weak. "Let's go, Kagome. We've g-got to get out of here." Taking her hand, he led her quickly down the shore, the stretch where the rats seemed to remain the thinnest.

"Inuyasha, are you afraid of rats?" Kagome asked breathlessly, dragged along behind him.

"Shut up and look for a way out," he said, his voice equally breathless but for a different reason.

"How about that tunnel right there?"

Inuyasha paused, looking where she was pointing--a place he hadn't even glanced at, not with the rats there. Through the rats, halfway up the wall, was a small tunnel that looked just the right size to walk through. The vermin were thick everywhere, so there didn't seem to be any clear way to it. To even reach it, they'd have to plow through a dozen feet of rodents, to say nothing of climbing the wall. Oh, no...great...

"I-Inuyasha, what's that those rats are eating?" Kagome asked, taking his attention from the tunnel.

Inuyasha looked where she pointed; not twenty feet from them a pack of large rats gnawed on what was obviously a humanoid rib cage, not too freshly dead but recent enough to have some leftovers on it. Feeling queasy, an unusual sensation for him, he shrugged. "I dunno," he lied, seeing no reason to alarm her. "Some poor animal that fell down here and starved to death, maybe. Let's go." Don't lose it in front of her... He took a deep breath, and, steeling himself, stepped forward into the rats. Hold steady...this is nothing like before...

Indignant vermin squealed as tails or limbs were trod upon, even though they tried to step carefully. Wriggling bodies pressed around their ankles, and rats hissed and growled at them as they passed. Inuyasha's innards churned, fearing rat bites on his bare feet. What if one of the rodents was rabid? He didn't want to imagine what a maddened, foaming half-dog-demon might do to Kagome and the others, so he forced himself not to think about it. He was shaking so hard he was sure Kagome could see it, but she said nothing. He was certain the rats were going to swarm up and bite him at any moment. They reached the wall after what seemed like an eternity to him.

Kagome slid onto his back so he could carry her to the tunnel above. When she did, she felt again the tension, the quivering of his muscles, so much more than before. What was making him so nervous? Was there somthing in here he wasn't telling her about?

Halfway up to the tunnel, Kagome suddenly sensed something dark and putrid approaching. She turned her head to look down the lakeshore and saw three pairs of big red eyes in the dimness. They were much too large to be rats. "I-Inuyasha..."

"I smell them," he whispered, voice tight. Just what I need. The Rodent Squad from Hell. "Shut up and hang on. If we keep going maybe they won't find us." Please, oh please, don't let them see us... The fluttering in his abdomen was growing worse every moment with the stench of the rats pressing in on him.

Kagome frowned. Inuyasha not wanting to stand and fight? Now that was odd. And there was the added problem of Inuyasha's demon blood--he stood out like a beacon in both aura and scent, especially to other demons--demons like these.

The red-eyed things were closer now, and Kagome gasped when she realized that they were rats as well--big, ugly, black demon rats with jaws like crocodiles and tails like braided whips. The largest, in the lead, stopped on the lakeshore a hundred yards away, its followers pausing behind it.

It looked at her.

Kagome later swore that the thing grinned at her. It uttered rapid chuffing, squeaking growls that echoed in the cavern. Inuyasha froze beneath her, trembling.

The normal rats' noise ceased, and they stood at attention to the demon rats like tiny soldiers. They appeared to be receiving instructions and, after a moment, focused on the pair climbing the wall. Suddenly, like a furry tide, they charged.

"Oh, damn!" she heard Inuyasha exclaim--but his voice wasn't angry, it was something else. Suddenly, their climbing pace became much faster, stealth and caution thrown to the wind. She held on for dear life as Inuyasha took the vertical stone in leaps, barely catching himself each time, a sense of desperation evident in his ragged breaths.

They reached the tunnel only seconds before the rats did and sprinted down into the dimness. They were back into the darkness again, but this time it was just bright enough for Kagome to make out Inuyasha as a white-haired ghost running before her. The rats flowed down the tunnel like a hairy river.

It was too dark, and Inuyasha wasn't helping her. She tripped several times over unseen obstacles in the twisting course, barely managing to catch herself, but finally probability won out and she sprawled to the ground, badly scraping her hands, knees, and chin.

Inuyasha was brought around by the sound of her cry, and instinctively leaped over her, placing himself between her and the oncoming rats. The Tetsusaiga was out but not transformed--not against normal rats--and he didn't know what he was going to do. This wasn't one enemy, it was a thousand! And they were normal rodents, nothing the Fang would react to. Behind him, Kagome tried painfully to pull herself to her feet, the smell of her blood wafting to his nostrils and infuritating him.

The rats...God...they're coming--don't lose it, don't lose it... He glanced at the inert sword in his hands. Change, damn you, change! he thought at the weapon. How can I protect her when you won't help me? "Run, Kagome! Keep running!" God...the rats...

Her footsteps pattered away behind him, and he ran after her, the useless untransformed sword in his hand. He was propelled along by an emotion that seldom took a place in his mind.

Then the putrid aura of the demon-rats reached his senses. He looked back into the hundreds of glowing red eyes advancing on him and realized that they were, in a way, demonic, connected to the demon-rats as they were. If we come to a dead end or run out of strength, they're going to eat us alive--unless the Fang activates! Damn--Kagome, I don't want it to happen to you...not like it happened to me--

Abruptly, the Tetsusaiga hummed and throbbed, growing in a flash into a massive sword. Spurred by sudden hope, Inuyasha spun and swiped at the leading rats nipping at his heels, scattering dozens of little bodies in pieces and cutting gashes in the floor of the cave.

Cutting gashes...

Yes! Inuyasha threw back the Tetsusaiga, giving it all he had, and brought it down across the walls and ceiling repeatedly. The rats, sensing the danger of imminent cave-in, fought their demon masters and slowed their pace. Desperate, Inuyasha continued to whack away with the Fang, even as he heard Kagome's voice shouting at him to stop.

A sharp crack overhead alerted him to the collapse of the ceiling, and he dived back out of the way. Boulders rained down, crushing rats, sending the herd scattering in all directions back down the tunnel. Kagome screamed when a falling stone grazed her, ripping the shoulder off her blouse, and Inuyasha instinctively pulled her to him and pressed close to the wall.

The tunnel continued to roar down around them. Even as he tried to protect Kagome from the crushing boulders, something huge and hard and heavy slammed down into him, driving him to the floor, Kagome motionless beneath him. His head swam at the impact and before he could resist, the thunder of the cave-in faded to nothing as he slipped into unconsciousness.

"Whoa, did you feel that?" Shippo whispered into Sango's ear.

"I sure did," Sango replied, putting one hand out to steady herself as the mountain trembled briefly, then stilled. "What does it mean?"

"Inuyasha's probably having all the fun without us, that's what," Shippo groused, and got tapped lightly on the head with Miroku's staff.

"I don't think he's having fun," the priest informed them gravely. "Tremors such as these usually accompany rockfalls or cave-ins--not a good thing when you are deep underground."

"Do you think Kagome and Inuyasha got trapped in one?" Shippo asked, alarmed.

"It's a distinct possibility, considering the nature of these caves," Miroku replied.

"Let's go back," Sango said, her voice urgent. "We'll take the other tunnel and go see if they need help. They're obviously where the action is."

"Indeed."

"Hurry," Shippo whispered as they turned and started back at an increased pace. "Hurry."

To be continued...