Delivery [Naraku]

[Aiko]

No matter how hard the warm winds tried, spring could never be brought into the Fuzen Forest. It wasn’t allowed. Here, it was always winter, and it was always snowy, and there were always heavy, unnatural, snow-laden clouds crowding the sky above the trees, turning the sky to a permanent black. The clouds and the snow had been ordered to stay, and so they had, out of fear. They feared the power of the one demon who had the power to keep them here, who had cursed this forest beyond repair.

Everything, from the clouds to the snow to the very trees, feared and obeyed Lord Keiran.

The very tree on which he sat trembled out of terror. The demon lord was inconspicuous, though. His clothes, while made of fine silk, were dark, colored red and black with gold designs on his shirt front. Black hair was tied off his forehead with a strip of silk the color of dark wine. The pallor of his skin nearly made him blend in with the snow that crowded his wintry forest. Only his stillness, how he crouched catlike without even the flicker of an eye or the rise and fall of his chest, betrayed that he was not merely a human in a very strange place. That, and the way the branch of the tree shook in fear at his touch.

Lord Keiran had been sitting there for an incalculable amount of time before he moved. His ash-gray pupils flicked suddenly towards the snowy forest floor, where a dark shape sliced its way through the drifts like a black knife. From the shape’s jaws hung a bundle of cloth. As the great black beast cut through the snow, the demon lord in the trees above rose fluidly out of his crouch, as smoothly as if he had only just settled there. Without a sign of stiffness that would be expected from the cold and the stillness he had displayed, he leapt like a ripple of fabric from his tree branch to the snowy forest floor. The tree seemed to heave a sigh of relief behind him.

A panther the size of a pony, for that was what the shape was, walked straight for Lord Keiran, where he waited at the base of the tree. The huge feline stopped roughly three feet from the demon lord and inclined its front half in a supple bow. The panther moved forward to deposit the bundle of cloth at Lord Keiran’s sandled feet, then stepped back and sat as fluidly as oil.

Lord Keiran stooped and picked up the bundle in his long-fingered hands. Deftly, and misleadingly gently, he unwrapped the bundle until he exposed the face of an infant to the cold winter air. A twitch of the corner of the demon’s mouth, which might have been a smile on any other face, and he raised his eyes to the massive panther. [white]“Well done, Mitsku,”[/white] he said, his voice slick like grease. [white]“You will be rewarded for this.”[/white] With that, Lord Keiran replaced the bundle of cloth on the ground before him. The great panther stood with a ripple of muscle, and moved around to stand behind his master, near the base of the tree, looking more like a shadow than ever.

And Lord Keiran waited for Naraku to appear, as Lord Keiran was sure that the lesser demon would.

[Naraku]

Naraku remain in his castle, til one of his samuyasho came in. The bee demon rested onto his hand before Naraku stood to his feet. Naraku kept his calm appearance about him, but something happening against him and done so easily angered him greatly. Naraku steps outside as his barrier took place and lifts off into the air and vanishes.

'I swear if Kagura or Kanna doesn't return, I shall kill them both myself, to go missing at a time like this.' He lightly growls as he moves down into the forest, before the man landing onto a fallen log. "So what is this a man,m who took up abducting children?" He knew this was not the case, he knew the man knew who the child was or wouldn't of took the trouble of taking that certian child But he refuse to admit a weakness of his.

Naraku eyes gleam as every second his calm appearance almost wanted to erupt in anger towards him. He has not felt such anger within himself since the time he bidded Kikyo and Inuyasha on one another.

[Aiko]

Lord Keiran was not kept waiting long, as he knew he wouldn’t be. All the while he stood utterly still, stiff like a statue of ice in the middle of the snow, betrayed only by the way the wind tore at his oil-black hair and his silken garments. He didn’t look up as Naraku approached, encased in his usual turtle-shell barrier. There was no need to look up, since the lord of the southern lands could sense the disturbance in the air caused by Naraku’s bubbled shield. Mitsku, however, lifted his massive square of a black head to watch Naraku’s descent. Lord Keiran stared calmly ahead, and as accurately as if he had been directed, the lesser demon landed in the space where the lord was staring. It wasn’t until Naraku landed that Lord Keiran moved at all. He smiled a crooked smile, a smile that had no effect on his cold, steady eyes.

[white]“Perhaps I am,”[/white] he conceded, his voice smooth as the silk clothing that he wore. The smile froze on Lord Keiran’s ice-cold features. [white]“A child easy to abduct, as well, this one was. Did you believe that a mere temple and spells to prevent me from finding it would keep me from getting what I wanted?”[/white] At the end, Lord Keiran’s voice lost its silky quality, a harsh and serrated edge creeping into his tone instead. A tiny twitch of the demon lord’s index finger, and the giant panther rippled forward, picking up the bundle of cloths in his huge jaws. The behemoth feline pulled back his lips to reveal unnaturally long fangs pressing against cloth that looked suddenly more fragile than paper.

[white]“You see, Naraku,”[/white] Lord Keiran stated, his voice a frozen razor’s edge, [white]“what I want is what I receive. You have not been giving me what I want. What shall be done?”[/white] With a slowness that seemed to contain all the patience of eternity, the demon lord raised his arm, his hand open, as he began to signal to the panther black as darkness who still held the infant in his maw. Mitsku watched the signal with one eye, while the other eye, which was black as the rest of him, stayed on Naraku, for Naraku’s making a move forward would cause Mitsku’s jaws to close more quickly than any signal from Lord Keiran would.

[Naraku]

Naraku doesn't move nor look at the child. "If you wish to only make threats don't waste my time, even you know that your beloved pet would die before harming that child, If you want to prove something how bout doing it yourself." Naraku would of normally one answered with one statement, but the fact he was being played at one of his own games made his blood boil, and he did all he could to hide it. "Now what do you want demon and answer quickly, my time is short?" The barrier around him fades as the tenticles begin emurging from his back, along with the moving eye within his chest.

[Aiko]

Had Lord Keiran not been so accustomed to standing still and silent, he might have laughed at Naraku’s bantering. It was truly amusing, how the lesser demon seemed to believe he was still a part of this little game of Lord Keiran’s. Amusing and foolish. Naraku had lost this game the very first time he died. How many times had he needed to be resurrected after that first death? Once or twice at least, which was more than normal mortal beings could enjoy. Lord Keiran had raised Naraku from the dead, and he could surely send him back. But the demon lord voiced none of these thoughts, nor hinted at them in any way or form. Rather, he allowed his colorless eyes to drift away as he turned his head to the side, so clearly bored with the lesser demon as his smile flattened.

[white]“Your time is short, you say. I can only wonder how short,”[/white] Lord Keiran commented. While the words themselves were contemplative, the voice that carried them held all the menace of a threat. The demon allowed this threat to freeze in the icy air for a moment, allowing Naraku to come to the appropriate conclusion. Meanwhile, the panther beast remained still, though its black flanks rose and fell with breathing. Its fangs still pressed against the fabric that encased the infant. [white]“I wonder also how it felt to die the first time. Will it be the same a second time?”[/white]

Finally, Lord Keiran returned his flint-colored eyes to Naraku, and his expression was as blank as it had been at first. [white]“I want the shards,”[/white] the demon lord said flatly. [white]“Thus far, you have been incompetent in delivering them to me.”[/white] A growl from the black-eyed demon panther punctuated this, and the behemoth cat lifted his jaw suggestively.

[Naraku]

The tenticles within his back begin extracting more, as he wanted nothing more to strike him done. 'Not even this demon frozen like this could do anything about it, the question is would the panther react even after his master is gone.'

His eyes widen for a moment before he smirks looking back down towards Keiran. "And what do you plan to do with the shards, Free yourself then what?" The tenticles now was completely retracted into his back, as he no longer had reason to fight. "You never know, I may like your cause enough to actually help."

[Aiko]

Should he tell Naraku of his plans? Lord Keiran actually considered for a moment. Moments later, he discarded the consideration. Such a lowly demon as this one was not deemed worthy enough to know of a demon lord’s plans. While it was true that Naraku had garnered significant power over time, the fact of the matter was that, technically speaking, he had already died once. Did that not in itself reveal a weaker being than Lord Keiran? This thought took only a half-second to complete, though the demon lord drew out the silence a few heartbeats longer before finally saying, [white]“That knowledge is unnecessary to your completing your task.”[/white]

While Lord Keiran was well aware that Naraku was not bound by honor, he nevertheless decided to remind the lesser demon of his debt. With exceeding care, the demon lord withdrew a dagger, which had been bound to his sash by folds of cloth to the point that it disappeared against his garments. Even in the gloom of Fuzen’s eternal night, a scarlet blade gleamed brightly. Little flecks of crimson light, reflected from an unknown source, danced on the snow like tiny hell-born flames. Lord Keiran was not completely sure, though he would never let on this, whether or not Naraku recalled the face of he who had resurrected him from his first death. Surely, though, he would remember the blade.

As if it had been his intention from the beginning, though Lord Keiran knew that it would be clear to all that it was not, the demon used his shirt sleeve to shine the jewel-like blade of his dagger. All through this, his ashen eyes never blinked, nor shifted from Naraku’s face. He wanted to see reactions, read every twitch of a cheek muscle that would pass over the lesser demon’s countenance. [white] “Rest assured that I do possess sufficient power without the shards,”[/white] he said quietly. He spoke of, of course, a power with which Naraku should have been familiar with, but no longer truly possessed. Lord Keiran held the power over life and death. [white]“You once possessed a similar power, though naturally I now hold that power over you. That is the information you should possess. You might call it an incentive to bring me the Shikon no Tama.”[/white]

[Naraku]

Naraku steps towards Keiran and his blade as his face did not waver of any expression. "Well from where I am standing demon, You need me, or you would not have went trhough any of this to bring me back here." Naraku looks down towards the sitting Keiran. "I shall bring you your precious jewels, but I would like to hear that story before I handle over all of them."

Naraku open up his hand, holding out 2 shards. "I have a few more but their still in the game pulling other shards in." The shards within his hard was already pitchblack and shrouded. "I would over these two shards to you know, Keiran, I already believe I would like nothing better then that plan of yours to become a reality."
Naraku smiles before tossing the shards in his direction. 'The ball is in play, lets see if you do what I expect of you, Keiran, besides even you don't know about my new help.'

[Aiko]

Lord Keiran was very careful to mask the intense lust that suddenly urged his hand to abandon his dagger and take the shards. As it was, the demon lord paused in his “cleaning” and his eyes moved from Naraku’s face to his palm. While the demon had a very practiced façade of disinterest, and his expression maintained the majority of its flatness, the best he could manage rather than the look of ravenousness was a mask of only interest. When Naraku tossed the pieces of the jewel, Lord Keiran’s free hand flicked up and caught them in a perfect reflexive move. His fingers closed around them, and they bit into his flesh like angry little teeth. The dark power inside their fractured bodies pulsated against the demon’s palm, and Lord Keiran closed his eyes, sucking in a breath as the power swamped his veins.

Like a drug, their tainted power swamped through the demon’s veins. Hard and fast. The craving for their power was satisfied for the moment.

The demon lord’s eyes flicked open, and Naraku’s face came sharply into view. Lord Keiran was aware of every line, every strand of hair, every pore on the lesser demon’s skin. His colorless eyes were wider than before, and his mouth was stretched in a smile. [white]“Well done,”[/white] he whispered, his voice smooth and supple. [white]“Your work has earned your reward. You desired knowledge? Then knowledge you shall receive.”[/white] Before he began, Lord Keiran flicked his finger at Mitsku again, and the panther padded smoothly to his master’s side. He put the infant on the ground, then placed a massive paw, the size of a dinner plate, over the cloth. The beast stared up at Naraku with his onyx eyes, prepared to crush the infant should Naraku do anything that was threatening.

For a moment, Lord Keiran contemplated Naraku’s earlier words. ”You need me,” he had said. However, Lord Keiran found that he could have used some lesser demon to retrieve jewel shards. They were simply less efficient, and the demon lord preferred Naraku’s work. His assistance might not be a necessity, but it was more to the demon lord’s liking. For now, though, Naraku might as well go on believing he was needed, and even privileged.

[white]“Influence,”[/white] Lord Keiran stated simply. [white]“Or, in simpler terms, power.”[/white] Lord Keiran considered for a moment, then decided that Naraku would be more likely to continue lending assistance freely if he thought it would benefit himself. That did not mean flattery, however. [white]“None can stand against me, not so long as I continue on my destined course,”[/white] he said calmly, still staring into Naraku’s eyes. One might have imagined he was discussing something as matter-of-fact and nonchalant as the weather. [white]“The more power I have, the fewer fools will try to defy me.”[/white] He paused to allow Naraku to respond before continuing, for he knew if he talked for too long without allowing to see how his words were affecting Naraku, all might be lost on the lesser demon and he might end up needing to kill him, after all. That would be a true shame.

[Naraku]

Naraku held his smile as he knew this demon wouldn't tell him of any use, but He knew whatever it was the corruption of the shards will continue to spread, so he can play his game for now. Naraku looks down towards the panther for a second and smiles. 'Soon I will be able to destroy that heart myself. And once I am able to go on without that heart, Keiran will no longer have any bargaining chip over him.

"Is there anything else I could help you with now, Lord Keiran." Naraku smiles back towards him, as he once again, had mutiple ideas, all that could benefit him, but now all he needed was time for his own power to grow. "Ah yes I forgot, unlike the last time we spoke, it seems that mostly demon lords are in possesion of the shards, making round up much more slowly then last time, even worse is that they pitt themselvies together and fight back. So if you don't
mind I shall begin my search."

[Aiko]

Lord Keiran smiled at Naraku, much the way he’d been smiling ever since he’d gotten the shards into his grasp. He looked quite pleased by the lesser demon’s apparent willingness to help. Of course, the demon lord was not pleased about this. On the contrary, Naraku’s outright helpfulness was making Lord Keiran suspicious. This was such a change from Naraku’s initial suspicious, contrary behavior. Naturally, the demon lord showed none of his suspicions, carefully concealing them behind his mask of satisfaction. It was the perfect poker face, hiding the demon lord’s thoughts. Why should the lesser demon suddenly be so helpful? Lord Keiran had offered him nothing, not even a new threat. It was much too sudden a change, so it must have been less than sincere. At that moment, though, Lord Keiran did not know what Naraku might be planning. This was a frustrated thought.

Meanwhile, the demon lord was saying, [white]“Excellent work, knowing where the shards are.”[/white] Skilled actor that he was, Lord Keiran flattened his smile and lowered his voice to a menacing note. [white]“However, I will not tolerate delays. I expect more before the springtime ends in the outside world.”[/white] It was best, after all, if Lord Keiran did not stoop to Naraku’s poor acting. That was, seeming overly pleasant to conceal true motives. The demon lord had not acted overly pleasant thus far with his underling, and if he started now, it would surely tip his hand. With dagger in one hand and shards in the other, Lord Keiran stared with his apparent lack of emotion into the lesser demon’s face, not revealing anything of his own thoughts but nevertheless hoping that, perhaps, Naraku would reveal his.

After a moment, Lord Keiran inclined his head, just barely. [white]“If that is all, then you are dismissed.” [/white] Still, Lord Keiran nor his panther moved, waiting for Naraku to leave.

[Naraku]

Naraku smiles and lightly nods. "I await to see your true strength, if you are as strong as you claim, The ones who gathered against me and finished me lat time will be nothing but an annoying fly. So I am they will try to stop you, so their demise will be enough for me. For I never cared much for loosing, and I will do whatever it takes to make them pay." Naraku voice flaired in anger before taking his leave.

Once out of sight his face was once again calm. 'Yes, lets see if you really are as powerful if you say, if so those shards wil no doubt darken the rest in no time.' Naraku kept walking, til he reaches outside the forest where and hanyou, who seem to have follow him out of the forest leaps down beside him. naraku didn't more nor look towards the half-demon, that was oddly producing more demonic powers then most full blooded demons could even dream.

[Aiko]

Lord Keiran and Mitsku watched in silence as Naraku walked away. The demon lord wondered if there was a particular reason he simply did not float out of the forest in his little bubble of safety, as he typically did. Only when Naraku had left Lord Keiran’s field of senses, when the lesser demon’s dark aura could no longer be felt, did the demon lord turn to the huge panther that sat by his side. The beast stared back with its obsidian eyes, flicked an ear in the direction that Naraku had taken. The demon lord gave the slightest of nods, murmuring, [white]“Yes, that is your next task. You will receive payment when you have returned.”[/white] At this point, the demon lord leaned close to the panther’s massive square head, and as he did so, the scarlet dagger that he held flashed with a bloody light and expanded. [white]“You know the consequences for failure,”[/white] Lord Keiran whispered in one triangular ear, and felt a tingle of pleasure at the shiver that ran through the big cat. As the master leaned back, apparently satisfied, the panther removed his paw from the infant and slunk fluidly after Naraku, his black form twisting into a ropy shadow as he stalked.

When the panther had become insubstantial, Lord Keiran knelt beside the still-wrapped form of the infant. Fascinating. This little wretch was the heart of Naraku? Lord Keiran had never expected the heart of such a purely evil being to be a baby. It was ironic. Lord Keiran’s dagger shrank into its normal form as he sheathed it, and he tucked the shards in beside the blade. With a gentleness that bordered a caress, the demon lord scooped the infant into his pallid hands and took off through the forest, bounding over the ice-crusted drifts with feline grace and economic movement that wasted no motion but displayed a tireless energy that was unnatural, frightening, and beautiful. Deep in the heart of the forest, Lord Keiran paused before a singular tree. While it was still part of the forest, it carried the air of a lonesome beast. At its squat base, the wood had been splintered, shattered apart like glass, though the shards of wood had long since disappeared. The demon lord stared at the black space left within the trunk, and his face twisted. His lips pulled back in an animal snarl, his skin crinkling up, and his colorless eyes narrowing. It was a look of unadulterated hatred and rage. It was into this hated tree that Lord Keiran placed the infant. As his arms reached into the shadows, the demon lord felt the crackle of energy pierce through his muscle. Lord Keiran knew that he could leave the infant in this tree, and it would survive in a half-aware state for as long as Lord Keiran kept it there. The demon lord himself, after all, had been in such a state when he had been bound within this tree for five hundred years.

Now that the infant was taken care of, Lord Keiran withdrew his scarlet dagger and the two black shards of the Shikon jewel. He replaced the dagger, disinterested, while he stared at the shards that rest on his palm. Instead of glittering, like jewel shards should, they sucked at the light until any illumination disappeared into the lightless bowels of the pieces. Lord Keiran stared at the pieces, entranced. He could hardly bare to stop looking at them. They drew his eyes, and the demon lord was barely willing to resist. Then the demon lord seated himself in the snow, carefully facing away from the hated tree, and took a foot in his hand. Over the five hundred years of imprisonment, Lord Keiran had mastered his body as no other living thing had. As the demon lord watched, the skin on the sole of his foot split open in a short, narrow gash. Quickly, the demon pressed one shard into the cut, and the laceration was instantly healed. Lord Keiran repeated the process for his other foot. When the jewel shards were firmly implanted in his feet, the demon lord stood, and he felt power surge through his legs like a wave. His muscles quivered, and his very veins seemed to blaze with warmth. The inferno charged through his blood, and the demon tilted his head back, letting the raw power surge through him.

Then he collapsed.

At the edge of the forest, a large shadow flitted across glistening snow where no shadow should fall, until the shadow sensed an onslaught of power radiating from very nearby. The shadow paused, then slunk behind a fat tree to materialize into Mitsku, the giant of a demon panther. The feline watched as a hanyou leapt down to stand beside Naraku. Then, having discovered the source of the power, the panther returned to his formless shadow of a self, as he would to follow Naraku. This was his mission. If he carried it out well, Lord Keiran would reward him handsomely.