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A Fool's Redemption	By : Grumblebear Category: InuYasha > Het - Male/Female > InuYasha/Kagome Views: 23728 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, nor make money from this story.

Chapter List
- 3
- 4
- 5
(Note – Updated to version 3 on 08/02/11)
A/N: This chapter contains a lot of setting, but most of it is necessary for later chapters. Enjoy!
Chapter 4 – Throughout the Halls of Wonderland
Kagome awoke the next morning to bright sunlight streaming in through the windows. She'd forgotten to close the blinds the night before, and when pulling the blankets over her head failed to help her get back to sleep, she gave up and retreated into the bathroom for a quick shower. She emerged a few minutes later, dressed and wringing her hair in a towel. It was great to have a bathroom of her own now, one she didn't have to share.
A thumping sound drew her attention to the windows, and as she walked over to them, a helicopter suddenly rose into view. It hovered there for a moment, then turned and headed toward the ruins in the distance. Glancing down, she saw that the ground far below had opened up to reveal a large bay, containing several more helicopters. She watched as one by one, they lifted and flew off in different directions.
Must be more security, she thought. Alduray was a well-guarded fortress out of necessity. Without its security, it could have been an easy target for the gangs of marauders that roamed the wastelands left over from the war. Try as the government may, it hadn’t quite managed to reestablish complete law and order within its borders, and with the military still rebuilding its ranks, most outlying communities were responsible for their own safety.
A knock at the door pulled her attention from the window. Opening it, she found Sango standing outside.
“Ready to go?” the other girl asked.
Kagome nodded and stepped into the hall, closing the door behind her. They exchanged pleasantries while they headed downstairs, stopping at a small café on the third floor for breakfast. As they ate, Kagome looked out across the atrium, noticing only a few people roaming about. “I’m surprised there aren’t more people around. It’s ten-thirty already,” she said.
Sango swallowed a mouthful of pancakes before answering. “Most everyone is at work by now, or sleeping. Our schedule is a little different from what you’re used to. We work in shifts here. The hours vary a bit, but as a general rule the first shift starts at 7am and ends at 1pm, the second shift runs from 1 to 7pm, third shift is 7 to 1am, and the fourth runs from 1 to 7am. There's a separate shift that runs from 8pm to 3am, but that’s just for the people who work underground.”
Kagome raised an eyebrow. “Underground?”
Sango gave a tiny, secretive smile. “You’ll find out about that tonight. The shift you get depends mainly on the type of job you take. You’re going to have a morning shift. Is that alright?”
“You already have a job for me?”
Sango nodded. “I think you’ll like it.” She pointed out the tall window that stretched up the length of the atrium. “You’ll be running soil samples in the dome and greenhouses. I figured it would be fitting with your background in biology.”
Kagome chewed thoughtfully on a bite of scrambled eggs. “That sounds good.” It sounded really good, in fact. She'd acquired her love of science from her father, and at one time, had wanted to devote her entire life to it, just as he had. But then her experience in the lab changed all that, and she'd begun to question whether she had chosen the right path. Now, it seemed, she would finally get the chance to use her knowledge to help, rather than to harm.
Sango gave her a relieved smile. “I'm glad you approve. We’ll go down there later so you can see where you’ll be working, after I show you around the towers.”
They finished their breakfast and headed down to the ground floor. “I suppose you already know the history of this place, given your family ties to its founders,” Sango said as they walked.
Kagome nodded. At one time, the area that Alduray now stood on had been known as Norcross, a small resort town that made its wealth off tourists whose cruise ships docked in the nearby coastal city of Redan. It had been badly damaged in the war, abandoned and left to rot once rumors began spreading that radiation had leaked into the water supply. Once the war was over and the country began rebuilding, it was discovered that the rumors of radiation were false, and the land was put up for sale by the government. But no one was interested in buying, despite the low asking price. The war had turned the city into a field of waste, its ground parched and ruined by the destruction of its ecosystem. For a long time the entire area was thought to be completely barren and incapable of supporting life.
Then her father and uncle had arrived with their ambitious plans. Her father, a biotechnologist, had been developing a new kind of technology he called Phaetasentic greenhouses, that would make the land fertile once again, utilizing special pads that were placed beneath the soil and an enclosure overhead to purify the air. He'd been looking for just such a place in which to put his invention to use, and once he'd determined that the soil, while badly damaged, was still recoverable, the two men pooled their substantial resources and bought the land. They'd immediately set to work, her uncle engineering and constructing the towers, while her father managed the production of the greenhouses that would provide the food sources the city needed in order to survive on its own without having to rely too heavily on outside support.
Their goal had been to create a new kind of city, one that was free from the post-war banality that seemed to grip the rest of the country. They wanted to create a place where people could live peacefully with the freedom to express themselves in whatever way they chose without the fear of persecution, where everyone was held in equal status, and where all were able to work and provide for themselves. It had been a huge financial risk. Friends and colleagues alike scoffed at the men's audacious vision, and more than a few tried to talk them out of it. But her father and uncle had proven to be charismatic leaders and excellent businessmen, both bringing to the table the skills and leadership needed to make such a monumental task possible. After enlisting every contact they had, signing off on a few sizable loans, and nearly exhausting the whole of their bank accounts, they managed to build the first tower, the dome and the first greenhouse within two and a half years. At first, the city's only residents had been mostly the small army of people who'd been part of the construction crew, but within four years the population began to steadily grow, and production on the second tower began.
At that time, the country was having difficulty providing enough food for its inhabitants, due to the damage the agricultural industry had sustained during the war. Like Norcross, the eco-system in many places had been nearly wiped out, not only by constant ground fighting, but also by chemical weapons that had seeped into the ground, destroying the ability to cultivate the land. But Kagome's father's greenhouses solved that problem. They could be built in any size and shape, on almost any kind of terrain, and most importantly, they sped up the production abilities of the soil. Crops could be grown twice as fast and twice as big as they could using normal methods, and since the buildings were climate controlled, they could remain in use year round.
It was through the lucrative contracting and construction of these greenhouses that her father and uncle truly began to make Alduray thrive. Soon, massive food producing structures were appearing all over the country, revitalizing the struggling economy. Her father was hailed as a national hero. Within eight years, the two men had recovered all of their losses incurred in the building of the city, as well as established a tremendously profitable trading business, selling exotic produce that was hard to come by, and which her uncle still held a monopoly over. Now entirely self-sufficient with the exception of meat and some grains, Alduray was one of the most prosperous cities in the entire country.
“We’ll start at the beginning,” Sango said, leading Kagome back into the elaborate statued foyer she'd passed through the night before. “Normally there’s a holding period for people who are new here. They stay at Belle Drift, which you came through yesterday, for two to three months, where we make sure that they’re right for this place. We do a background check and watch them closely to make sure we don’t have any criminals or militia coming in. It’s kind of a smaller version of Alduray, with the same kind of lifestyle. If people are going to decide that this isn’t the life for them, we’d prefer they do it there rather than waiting until after they’ve already settled in here. Because of your situation and the need to get you out of Eona as quickly as possible, we decided to let you skip that part, especially considering you’re the king’s niece and all.”
She pointed to the corridor on the right, the one with the statues holding authoritative looks. “You’ve already been back there. That’s where all of the administrative offices are: your uncle’s, his two assistant’s, as well as a few others.” She then turned to the opposite corridor with the solemn looking statues. “That’s where we conduct legal matters. The rules for living here are simple. Cause no harm, and never break an oath.
“The first one is self-explanatory. The second one refers to our oath system. We use oaths for a lot of things. Deals, contracts, settling disputes, things like that. Pretty much anything where an agreement must be reached and then acted upon is dealt with by making an oath.
“For example, if someone feels they've been wronged by another, the situation is mediated, and if it’s found to be a valid complaint, an agreement for some kind of compensation is made. Then both individuals have to make a public oath before a small three-person tribunal, stating the reason for and expected outcome of the oath. It’s a legal, binding contract. Once it's been made, it can’t be broken until the terms of the agreement have been satisfied. If the person on the compensating end doesn't follow through, the other person may choose further mediation and a new oath, or they can have that person removed from the city.”
Seeing Kagome’s shocked expression, Sango smiled. “Don’t worry. It’s a very solid system, and it’s nearly impossible to abuse. Most cases are mediated before they even get to the oath stage. Only a handful of people have ever been asked to leave.”
Kagome nodded and looked again at the unwavering expression of the statues that framed the door, wondering if she would ever have cause to step beyond them.
“Moving on,” Sango said cheerfully, as if anxious to lighten the mood as they walked back into the atrium. By now it was almost noon, and the mid-day sun was just beginning to peek through the glass dome high overhead.
“This is the West tower,” she continued. “It's sixty stories from the ground level up. There are three pairs of elevators: south, east and west.” She pointed to each in turn. “Here on the ground level is our cafeteria, the entrance to the eco-dome and greenhouses, the entrance to the middle tower, our engineering labs, and our medical center. The second story is our galleria; it's mostly clothing shops, but there are a few other things up there too, like home furnishings and jewelry. Almost everything they sell is made by our residents.
“On the third floor is where all our services can be found. Anything that doesn’t count as retail. That’s where the cafés are, as well as the public kitchen, which is huge and has pretty much everything you’d ever need for cooking. The services desk and workshops are there, too. We have people who make all kinds of things here. All you have to do is ask at the desk and they can find a craftsman to make whatever it is you need.
“There are a total of 1,960 residential rooms on floors four through fifty-nine, with thirty-five rooms per floor. On the fifteenth floor there’s an outside deck overlooking the dome and greenhouses. The sixtieth floor is where the king and princes live. One of the few perks they get with the position is getting a loft on the top floor—nothing too fancy, but they are big. There are also lofts that the public can rent out, kind of like vacation suites. And there’s also an observatory up there that has an amazing view of the night sky.”
Turning to the right, she motioned to a large open room full of tables and chairs and said, “That's the cafeteria. It's open twenty-four hours, and pretty much the only place to eat once all the cafés upstairs close down for the night, unless you choose to make your own food. To the right of the cafeteria is the entrance to the medical facility. Any problem you have, they can take care of it there.”
She pointed ahead to where the long window that ran the length of the atrium met the ground in a set of large sliding glass doors. “That's the main entrance to the greenhouses and the dome. We’ll go there later, through another way.”
Sango started toward the left side of the atrium, but Kagome paused for a moment, looking back at a passage that the older girl hadn’t mentioned. Unlike most of the other entryways on the ground floor, this one was square shaped, and about ten feet wide. She couldn’t see very well from their distance, but it appeared to be decorated around the edges with some kind of dark, sparkling foliage. A velvet rope blocked off the entrance, and beyond that the corridor was lost in shadows.
Sango caught her gaze and smiled. “Later,” she said, a hint of mischief in her voice. They continued to the far side of the atrium, and Sango pointed toward an entryway on their left. “That leads to the engineering labs, where they plan all the new building projects for the city. And this is the passage to the Southwest tower.” She led the way into a wide, well-lit hallway that sloped downward, then leveled out and stretched before them for a few yards before rising again. As they reemerged, Kagome found herself standing at the base of an atrium nearly identical to the one they had just been in, with the only difference that this one looked to be a bit shorter.
Nodding at a woman in a guard's uniform sitting behind a nearby desk, Sango said, “This is where all our families stay. Nobody wants kids to see the kinds of things that go on in the main tower, so in this one,” she motioned up, “people can raise their children without having to worry about exposing them to anything inappropriate. It also allows the rest of the community to exist the way it wants without the hassle of kids being around all the time.
“We have a guard here to keep anyone under the age of eighteen from going into the main tower, because kids will be kids and try to go places they're not allowed. This building also houses our entire school system in its first six stories as well as two underground stories, starting at the preschool level and going all the way up to college prep. We focus a lot on sciences and the arts here, with a huge music school, a concert hall for our orchestra, and recording studios.”
“They’ve thought of everything, haven’t they?” Kagome said, a little overwhelmed.
Sango smiled understandingly. They crossed the atrium and headed down into another hallway, this one a bit longer than the last. As they stepped out, Sango said, “And this is the South tower, where our older residents live if they prefer a more quiet lifestyle. When your uncle and father built this place, they realized that as the population aged, they would need to provide somewhere for those people to live, apart from the rowdier crowd. They wanted to make sure that our older citizens would still feel there was a place for them here. This tower was built about three years after the second one was completed and houses any adults who choose not to live in the other two. The atmosphere here is much more laid back. Most of the original construction crew live here now.”
Turning, Sango headed back into the hallway. “Now to the eco-dome. All the towers have their own separate entrance for it, but I like the middle one the best.”
They walked back into the middle tower and Sango veered to the left this time, toward a passageway that looked like the mouth of a cave. It was darker than the other halls they'd passed through, and the air felt strangely humid. Slowly, Kagome became aware of a dull roaring sound, and as they rounded a corner, they emerged into sunlight that was almost blinding after the darkness of the passage behind them. The roaring now filled her ears. She looked up, blocking the sunlight with her hand, feeling a gentle mist on her face, and found herself standing at the base of a magnificent waterfall, cascading its way from one tier of rocks to another, crashing into a wide pond with water so clear she could see the orange and blue hues of several large fish swimming within its depths.
She sucked in an awed breath.
“Watch your step. It can get slippery here,” Sango cautioned.
Kagome nodded mutely and followed her further into the eco-dome. As they walked along the flagstone path, trees that appeared to be hundreds of years old towered over them, their foliage looking wild but somehow well kept. A small river snaked its way throughout the dome, flowing gently and quietly in some spots, while in others it spilled loudly in swirling rapids through gorges and around massive boulders, churning up clouds of rainbow-hued spray. The sweet smell of rain and ground moss hung in the air. Sango remained quiet, letting her take in the wonder of the place on her own. When they came to a bridge overlooking one of the gorges, Kagome ventured to the rail and looked down into the rushing water below.
“It's amazing,” she said finally. “I’ve never seen any thing like this before. It’s like another world. It feels ancient.”
Sango gazed up through the trees proudly. “This is one of my favorite places.”
“Incredible,” Kagome breathed. “You said I get to work here?”
“Yep.”
She couldn't help the excited grin that spread across her face. “I can’t wait.”
They continued on, passing multiple paths that forked off from the main one, but the trees and undergrowth were too dense to see where they led. Kagome decided that as soon as she got the chance, this was the first place she was going to come explore on her own. The sunshine was delightfully warm on her face and shoulders. Turning her eyes up toward the sky, she noticed several tall, thin spires rising high into the air around the far edges of the dome, curving inward over the forest. She knew enough about her father’s creation to understand that these were what formed the thin barrier between the harsh outside world and the delicate ecology inside. The barrier was invisible now, though it would change colors depending on what kind of weather was being produced inside.
Finally, they reached a pair of sliding doors that opened into a large hallway made entirely of glass, like a greenhouse, but more ornate.
“This is the conservatory, and it serves as a foyer for the dome and greenhouses. It leads into the main tower,” Sango said, pointing to the right at the large glass doors Kagome had seen earlier. Sango paused at a windowed door labeled Environmental Engineering. “This is where you’ll be working when you’re not in the field.”
Kagome followed her into the clean, spacious laboratory, stocked with expensive looking equipment. A small woman with blonde curls bounced over to them and cheerfully introduced herself as one of the lab techs, and after introductions were exchanged, Sango led Kagome back out and continued on into the greenhouses.
The first two greenhouses were, for the most part, completely identical; each one long and wide with a rounded roof. The first was used to produce vegetables, the second to produce fruit. The third greenhouse was used to grow grains and sugar. It was almost twice as big as the other two, one side run entirely with wheat and the other with row after row of corn. At the far end were stalks of sugar cane reaching up to the roof.
As they returned to the conservatory, Sango pointed to the farthest end of the glass hallway, where several people were wandering around in construction jumpsuits and hard hats. “Down there is where the entrance for the newest building will be. It’s about a third of the way done now, and will be used to house poultry, pigs, a fish farm, and…I can’t remember what else is going in there. It’s a pain to constantly have to ship in meat, so we're trying to handle some of it ourselves.” She let out a huge sigh and smiled. “The end. Boring part's over. Now the fun begins,” she said, heading toward the doors that led back into the main tower.
Kagome began to follow, then paused, looking again at the group of workers. A flash of white had caught her eye, and she stood for a moment searching the small crowd.
“What is it?” Sango called to her.
Not seeing who she was looking for, Kagome turned and hurried to catch up. “Nothing. Sorry,” she said, and with that, they continued on their way.
The ‘fun’ turned out to be shopping. As a surprise, her uncle had provided her with a card that could be used to purchase whatever she wanted from the galleria. She wasn’t really intending to buy much, but as they passed from one boutique to the next, she found herself becoming increasingly intrigued by all the different styles of clothing lining the store windows. From the traditional to the extremely eccentric, it seemed as if every type of fashion she'd ever seen or heard about—and a few she hadn't—had a representative in this place. But it was the more elegant styles that finally caught her eye.
“Where would I wear all of this stuff, though?” she wondered aloud.
“Don’t worry about that,” Sango assured her. “You’ll find out tonight.”
She ended up leaving the second floor with two bags full of brand new clothes, far finer than anything she'd ever owned before. After Sango helped her hang everything in her closet, she advised Kagome to get some rest. Evidently, they had a long night ahead of them. Kagome agreed without question and collapsed into her bed as soon as she was once again alone in the apartment. She was asleep within minutes, her dreams filled with images of this fascinating new wonderland.
Continued in Chapter 5 – City of Light and Illusion
FF and AFF A/N: So much freaking atmosphere and setting! It was an absolute bitch to write. But it’s mostly done, the setting has been…set, and now on to the fun part! I apologies for any mistakes in this chapter. I made several large changes after my beta had already read it, and I was absolutely sick to death of the whole thing by the time I was done and just wanted to get it out and be done with it, heh.
As always, thank you for your AWSOME and encouraging reviews. I Agree, your ‘ temper tantrum’ comment cracked me up, right in the middle of my Freshman Eng 2 class no less o.O! My professor wasn’t terribly happy, but I guess it serves me right for checking e-mail during class.
As for what other characters will make an appearance, I could spill it, but that would spoil a great deal of my fun ;D! Besides, even if others are here, it doesn’t mean they’re all immediately recognizable *evil cackle*
Influential music for this chapter
Loop – Sakamoto Maaya, Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle OP 1
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A Fool's Redemption