Fist, Sword, and Staff

by Dorin

A spell gone wrong rips Ranma and all those tied to his destiny into a dangerous struggle for domanance in a world not their own. Bereft of their formidable power, can they adapt while not losing their very souls to ancient evil? Relationship undecided

Author's Foreward: After reading pieces of Realms, this story popped into my mind. It is in no way intended to compete with, or emulate Realms or similiar stories beyond the basic premise. That is, one or more characters from Ranma 1/2 are transplated into an alien world, specifically with a medieval style setting.

This is a custom creation I've tinkered with on and off for more than a decade, pulled from elements of my favorite stories and myths. If you catch things from King Arthur, various other western stories, and even Hindu, Chinese, and Japanese ties, kudos . Anyway, the entire setting is a combination of High Middle Ages, High Fantasy style setting, with some kungfu and Eastern stuff in the background.

The new elements should introduce themselves steadily through the course of the story, hopefully in a manner that doesn't overwhelm with unknown details.

Reviews are welcome. Hopefully it will come across as well written and enjoyable. I hope you enjoy.

---

It was a wonderful day! Perhaps the single greatest passage of a single unit of solar time in the entire life of Hikaru Gosenkugi. The planets had aligned perfectly. The stars had passed into just the right wheels. All of the celestial bodies arranged in the most divine manner possible. The gods were not only smiling, they were shoving the boy into action with all the blessings of Heaven a mortal could receive. All of his waiting and toil at last answered with the greatest chance eternity could offer.

The beginning had been stormy, ruin for his love life he'd thought. The marriage of his beloved Akane Tendo to the foul Ranma Saotome. Just hearing the news, from a friend, who'd heard it from a friend, who'd actually been invited to the wedding. Actually, his mother had heard something about it from a group of girls buying Akane a wedding gift. She'd been so ecstatic about that piece of gossip she'd shared it to everyone she could find. While Hikaru's ONLY friend was likely to be his mother, she hadn't even told him directly, just passed it to his father while he happened to be in the room.

Upon that piece of information passing through his auditory nerve and striking his brain, with ten minutes of actual time lapse for proper processing, he had nearly suffered a massive three-way death spell. Aneurysm, heart attack, and lung failure at the same time. Only a last minute stroke of fortune had granted him the will to try a desperate ploy.

An act of desperation drove him to try the one real spell he'd actually managed to lay his hands on. Really it was just some kind of old puzzle box he'd picked up from the freaky guy at the Ancient Magical Bazaar, the same nut who'd sold Kuno the phoenix egg. This was one object the old man had no idea was anything more than some kind of elaborate Chinese child's toy. The previous incident with Kuno and the phoenix egg should have hardened the merchant's heart and made him more cautious in what he peddled. A wiser man would have known everything possible about the items in his shop, this one most especially, not that the greedy old fart would care even if he knew the danger. It was caged lightning, the genie that should be kept in the bottle, but Hikaru had lucked into a nice wad of money, and it was a harmless old puzzle after all. Ignorance was bliss to some, and hell to everyone else.

While browsing one-day months past, the voodoo-boy had tripped over a stepladder, crashed headlong into the shelf holding the item, and then it had bounced off his skull and into his lap. The signs, as ridiculous as they had been, were not to be ignored. The gods had slapped Hikaru into the head to purchase the thing, although it had since gone to rest on a shelf since no moment had come to make proper use of it, not to mention the fact he didn't even know what it did. But now was the time to unleash it! All the signs were right, and patience was to be rewarded.

Sneaking to the Tendo household and waiting for the most opportune time to strike had been a stroke of wisdom, of which Hikaru was not capable of creating in large quantities. Only his cowardly nature and lack of physical ability had groomed the behavior of slinking and sneaking into his normal make up. He'd slipped into a tree to watch, getting tangled in the branches and quivering from fear of heights for more than an hour before the dams of Heaven had burst and poured out their blessings upon him.

First the fanged beast Ryoga had smashed into the dojo, then the myopic circus clown. The two of them would surely create trouble enough to give Hikaru time to enact the box. Then wonder of wonders, Ukyo and the China girl showed up. Could it get any better? Where the boys would cause trouble, a pair of jealous women would destroy the entire event!

And lo, the Kuno siblings crashed into the wedding! The entire band of maniacs, the suitors for Akane's hand, and the foul whores that threatened Akane's life were all in one place at one time! He quickly slipped closer to get a good point of attack. The gates were knocked wide from Tatewaki Kuno's entrance, and with all the chaos inside no one noticed the stick figure that was Hikaru move close to the dojo.

Within was a scene of unbridled rampage. Men fighting one another, women throwing explosive cooking. Even the fathers and the ancient troll were involved in the melee! It was all so perfect. While some innocent people might get caught in the blast of whatever was to happen, this was a sure sign from the gods that he was to act. There would never be a greater chance to remove all of the obstacles for Akane's heart. If an innocent bystander was in the way it was simply their misfortune.

Cackling like a madman, and completely ignored by those who were involved in the myriad struggles, Hikaru furiously worked the puzzle box. There had been no instructions and he had no knowledge of the Chinese characters scrolled in fine gold work over the cube's surface. All he knew was to act with no thought for the consequences. This was the time, the chance. It was all that mattered.

The combat and madness within died down quickly enough with Ranma taking several explosive foodstuffs to protect Akane, and Happosai becoming enraged and unleashing a more massive than normal volley of his Happodaikairin (patent pending) firecrackers. People were blown everywhere, knocked senseless from the blast. Nabiki, Kasumi, and Nodoka were the only ones left out of the immediate fray.

Silence reigned for a second, while everyone became aware of a very bad feeling in the air. A thick smell of ozone and a crackle of power. It was only in this lull that people began to take notice of the boy who was lost in his own personal delusion. Really it was just the order of the day; another laughing loon was nothing new in the previous insanity.

The black light glowing in his hands, which emitted snarls of energy was a bad thing, however. Bodies frozen in place as they watched, stunned into inaction, the people in the dojo were silent witness to a looming doom. The voodoo kid just continued muttering to himself, laughing at times while his hands furiously fought to solve the puzzle box. The air filled with a low hum, the darkness in his hands grew, and lightning arced and scorched the grass. A dark touch of magic crept up the spine of every person in the dojo, giving them a tingle that was fast building into a painful jolt felt right down in the marrow of their bones.

An intense pressure built making it difficult to breath. Heat suddenly filled the area of the backyard, making it even more oppressive and malevolent to the soul. The non-martial artists trembled, huddling together for mutual protection, all three of them that there were. Nabiki might pretend she wasn't terrified, but her body was aching from the power spreading through her home, and whatever was generating it gripped her soul with a hand so hot it froze the core of her being. This was not a good thing, not good at all.

No one thought to try and get the object from Hikaru, not that it would have mattered. The very nature of the spell locked its targets fast, paralyzing muscles. Even Happosai, a master of manipulating ki and filled with countless unknown techniques, found himself dazed by the spell.

Finally, the last piece of the puzzle was solved. The last key turned and the tumblers of the lock fell into place. What had started as a harmless seeming box was now a crude triangle with new dimensions, both narrow and thin dimensions that should have been spatially impossible to achieve. With magic such things did not matter. The normal rules of science didn't apply.

The item flew from the hands of the one who had unleashed it. Paths of power now opened unhindered, fueled by the will of its holder, it acted. Only the desires were interpreted, and the command received simple. Enemies were in the dojo. The enemies kept the holder from its heart's desire. The enemies were to be removed. No complexity could be added, that the object, or woman, that Hikaru desired was amongst the listed enemies was not a factor to be considered.

Too much power had been summoned with no strong force of will to control it. Gosenkugi knew as much about real magic as Ranma knew about advanced calculus. Nothing.

"This is it! No one can stand between me and Akane now! No one! All of you are about to be taken out of the picture!" Hikaru crowed with delight, having to grab onto a support beam that kept up the roof of the walkway leading to the dojo as wind sudden tore into the yard. Gusts that could rip trees from the ground and deposit them miles away began to rage. The device of the spell flickered a dark purple, then suddenly exploded into activity.

A great maw blew open, energy snapping from around its edges only to vanish into the middle. It was a gods' honest black hole in the middle of the sky, and it did precisely what black holes were thought to do. The space that wasn't created a powerful vacuum that sucked in the air and pieces of the dojo with it. In seconds the very fabric of reality seemed to rip apart. The dojo roof was turned into so many splinters and pieces of tumbling debris that vanished into the darkness.

The walls followed, offering virtually no resistance to the powerful pull of the spell. All of the marital artists struggled mightily, but managed only feeble clawing at the floorboards. The boy who'd damned them to whatever hell lay beyond gave a laugh, shaky at best given the maelstrom of destruction he'd just caused. Akane was going to kill him for this. He could worry about that later though; she'd accept him in time. He was the only man for her! He'd be the only one left anyway.

Soon the walls were gone, and then the floor went with it. Who began to fly off first wasn't really important. Almost like the base of the dojo had been built on a mobile flatbed, it just tore from the foundations and rose as one piece into the sky. They were mute to their doom, only capable of flashing personal horror in their eyes.

Hikaru gave only one scream of denial at seeing the last bits of the dojo; occupants and all fly up into the portal and vanish inside. They could be dead! He'd just killed all his rivals, his lover, and her family! What had he just done? How could he have been so foolish? This wasn't what he wanted. How could the gods have set him up so falsely? What sin had he committed to allow some demon to set this up?

The threat removed, the intent fueling the spell spent itself out and the swirls of power died away. Collapsing in on itself, the black hole he'd generated exploded outward with a shock wave powerful enough to cause the whole of the Tendo house to shudder. Hikaru was blown skyward from his post and landed hard into the wall. He was not a Ryoga or a Kuno; impacting stone was not something he could take. His breath blew from his lungs, his bones creaked, and he blacked out from the shock of pain.

Wedding guests, lead by Hiroshi and Daisuke, Ranma's best friends at school, walked through the gates with worry in their eyes at the fireworks display seen for blocks. Maybe it was some weird celebration thing they'd never seen before. As it was, they came just in time to see Gosenkugi's epic splash to the ground near the gates.

They found the dojo gone, just plain not there. A few signs of the heavy beams that elevated it from the ground were the only visible expression of a building at all having occupied the space. Charred patches of grass, wood splinters, the explosions that had rocked the building, and Ryoga's new side gate were the only other clues.

In the middle of the former dojo's space lay a burned husk of wood. Smoke slowly curling from the triangular shape that had fueled the end of the many martial artists of Nerima and the two families that called the dojo home. A mystery that no one was likely to solve.

---

Blackness, nothing but endless darkness from the center to the edge of perception. Every sense shouted the impossible, absolute nothingness. Nihilism, a word Ranma didn't know, but certainly applicable to the situation. He, or rather she in actually thanks to the fools at the wedding, floated in a void where all physical sensation was meaningless. At least it would have been wonderful to float, alone in the emptiness of...Hell, if these was such a place, this was certainly it. But there wasn't really floating, she couldn't be sure she was doing anything. However, she was keenly aware of warping, being pulled every which way like a piece of rubber. Body parts extended and retracted, filling her self with contradicting information.

There was pain, as if she were being ripped apart. Worse than a Shampoo-Ukyo tug of war. Yet, she felt so disconnected. Her eyes, if she still had them, saw nothing. Her hands felt nothing. Somehow, through all the nothing, she knew she was moving, caught in some current that broke her to pieces and swept her along, trying to scatter her in the stream of whatever force guided her through this oblivion. She was twisting, spinning at high speed, feeling dizzy; but parts of her knew there was no stomach or source of balance to be spun. It was all so confusing, but it was something. And as maddening as all the conflicting input was, it gave her what she needed.

A something she could fight.

The bleak whereever she knew was beyond her wanted her to fade away, cease to be. Had there been no sense of pain, or whatever she was feeling, she'd have been powerless against surrender. To allow her will to live fade and the many million components of her being scatter into the unknown. But she felt some form of suffering, at one moment overwhelming the next so distant she couldn't sure it someone else wasn't experiencing this. At the very least, it shocked her mind into action. She let the pain bring her awareness as close together as possible, give her the most important thought to grasp, the vital piece of information that no amount of vertigo could wash away.

Akane. She had to fight through this and save Akane.

At times, her own identity was cast into doubt. She felt a tug on her mind that insisted she simply wasn't. There was no conscious drifting through this ether named Ranma, just a scattering of electrical impulses that should break apart because they simply weren't.

Akane, though, that kept enough of her soul intact. Akane gave enough strength to endure. Akane was all.

Now if only she wouldn't drift forever in this terrible cosmic emptiness and get some sense of three-dimensional physics she understood.

In the depths, amid the swirls of endless dark and eternal void, an intelligence saw, perhaps even heard. Fortunately, it was benevolent, moved to pity for the unfortunate souls not of this place that were caught inside. They would drift for eons on these streams if not rescued. Doomed to fly apart and become the proto-matter from which creation sprung. A cruel fate no one should endure. Despite the weakness that would result, the entity acted.

Closing what can only be called hands about the travelers flung far a field from their native existence, they were pulled out of the depths of the endless river that flowed just beyond the borders of defined existence. They were too far gone from their own home to be returned. The being had not the strength to return them, and time was of the essence. Every moment they lingered, the greater the risk they were lost

It sent out his senses to their limit, there must be a safe haven for these infant spirits. A swift scan, understanding that this had to be with all haste, even in this place where time had little true meaning in relation to their mortal understanding of it. Something had to be...ah, yes that would do. Very different from their world in a great many ways, but they would have a fighting chance at least. Their fortunes thereafter would be in their own hands.

With power no mortal could hope to match, the being cleft a road through the void in much the manner everyone in the dojo had been deposited here to begin with. The entity attempted to make the ride smoother, and by comparison it was, but the action stirred up the current of this place, an eddy struck the group and despite the best efforts of their benefactor, they were scattered even as they broke away from this place. The being was saddened, but there was nothing left for it to do. Their fortunes were in the hands of other powers now; good or ill was all up to Fate.

Wearied from its charity, the being withdrew back into the ether. It needed rest now, to hide itself from those others of like nature but malevolent intent. A final good wish for those displaced mortals is had rescued, and the being was lost from detection into the depths of an endless sea where nothing existed.

---

The first thing she was aware of, was pain. A stinging pain she could easily identify as taking one of Ryoga's punches dead in the chest. Her ribs ached, and breathing was hard. That must've been it, she'd taken a hard knock from P-chan while she was distracted with...The world came crashing in on Ranma-chan with all the weight of a flying Pantyhose Taro. She'd been scrambling to get the Nannichuan water from Happosai, while fighting off Ryoga, Mousse, and her father. The old pervert had downed the cure thinking it sake, and then she'd been aware of Akane being in danger.

Akane! Where was the tomboy? Was she all right? Ranma'd never live it down if she let her fiancée take a serious injury. By no means was her gorilla armed love interest fragile, but exploding dumplings and okinomiyaki were wildly different from twisted ankles and a few bruises. First order of business, tough, was to get her bearings.

Sitting up proved to be a very bad idea. The action brought awareness to a whole series of injuries she hadn't noticed. Not just her chest, but also her spine protested any kind of motion, feeling battered and stiff. Every muscle from her calves up to her biceps let out little whines. She probably looked like an apple that'd taken a long roll down a rocky hill, bruises everywhere. At least nothing felt broken or torn, no lacerations or serious injury. Just some bumps and scraps. She'd been through worse many times before.

Of course, the throbbing headache everywhere in her skull, and the sudden wave of nausea that followed rising too quickly was defiantly the worst part of her self-evaluation. Almost tempted to just curl up and sleep a couple weeks, she let the urge to empty her stomach pass and swallowed down the bile that rose in her throat. God she felt like crap, but after all the chaos at her, failed, wedding, what else was new?

She gave a shaky, dry chuckle. "Those guys hit me good. Destroyed my day of happiness. Stole my cure, and could've killed the woman I...could'a hurt that tomboy bad." She viciously beat down the depression that rose in the wake of remembering Jusendo and the battle that had nearly cost Akane and Ranma their lives. She wasn't much into praying, but she was thankful to whoever granted that miracle and gave back Akane. Never again would she entertain the thought of losing the uncute chick. There was no pain in the world like that. No beating at the hands of her foes, not even being locked as a girl for the rest of forever could hurt her that much, scare her that much. Ranma had a newfound respect for the power of emotion; maybe girls weren't quite so sappy as she thought. Well, real ones anyway, she was a part-timer, and really a guy.

For the first time since she'd been knocked unconscious, or at least she assumed as much--the memory of being sucked into a black hole and drifting through empty space was gone from her mind, a blessing indeed, Ranma-chan opened her eyes. Expecting to at least be in the dojo, more than likely in her room. Someone would have taken pity on her and put her there. What filtered through her retinas was most certainly not her bedroom, the dojo, or any place she ever remembered visiting.

In fact, the world seemed entirely wrong. It was too dark to be daytime, but too bright to be nighttime. The sky wasn't blue either; it was almost a shade of rust. Tiny pinpricks of light that could have been stars filtered through the blanket, barely. There was no moon she could see, but there was a small ball up in the sky that defiantly not a star she was familiar with. A blue-white thing that hurt her eyes to look at, but was far too small to be the sun, heck it was too small to the moon! Someone had decided to install a high-powered glowing golf ball in the sky and not bother to give a warning.

Then there was the immediate surrounding. A collection of haphazardly arranged trees, too random to be anything but natural. Must've been on the edge of a forest, and by the looks of the branches overhead she'd taken a splash down through one of them. Would explain some of her injuries, especially the knock the to the head that she didn't remember taking. Whatever happened, and whoever did it, they sure did a number on her. Getting knocked out and drug off to some unknown place without being aware of it. She'd hiked all over Japan, the interior of China, and even skirted the borders of Tibet, Nepal, and India; and not one of those rugged places had trees like these. Large, gnarled things, far rounder than any tree in Japan, but nowhere near as tall as it's girth would normally support.

Well, whatever the case, the where wasn't important at the moment. She had to find Akane, and then she could worry about the other details. Ten years of life on the road foraging in the forest made survival second nature. Once she had the tomboy in hand, or at least was certain Akane was all right, and then she could get around to worrying about everything else. Despite the protests coming from every inch of her body, Ranma forced herself to rise. Swaying a little as she tried to reorient her balance, which was shaken thanks to the bump on her skull.

It'd be a wing and a prayer that trouble didn't find her, in this shape she'd be a sitting duck, but somehow 'fun' times always came knocking. At least whatever alien sky she was under, with its strange source of light, provided enough illumination to find her way without further injury. Last thing she needed would be stepping in a hidden hole or tripping on an exposed root. Her muscles trembled a little from bruises, sending little pangs into her brain. That was nothing compared to her torso, which was nearly stiff as a board, and sent daggers of pain through her nerves. Breathing hurt, twisting hurt, even walking hurt. If she pushed it, she could give a few short minutes of all out work. If she injured an arm or leg, she'd be screwed.

A scan of the scenery confirmed what she'd already guessed, on the edge of a large forest. The trees steadily became thicker to what she could only assume was the east, and thinned to the west. Whether or not she had her directions right, open ground meant a better chance of a road, or any signs of habitation. Unless this placed was filled with people like the Amazons, isolating themselves in the most rugged terrain possible to detour outside contact, then open plains were her best bet.

She was surprisingly calm given the situation, but then how often was she thrown into some kind of craziness? Panicking never solved anything, except to make her rush headlong into trouble. She'd run right into traps set by Pantyhose Tarou and Saffron by not thinking her situation out more clearly. A villain resorted to kidnapping because they wanted you running around half-cocked and emotionally on edge. Of course, being ruled by emotion more than logic was part of Ranma's nature, and something she couldn't do much to control.

For now she had to keep her head as collected as possible, she could do the super on-edge hero stuff when she found her family and friends. Her search took only about a minute and a half to locate one of them. Lying half buried in a bed of moss, a white patch of cloth peaked out. A flower decoration beside it, one of Akane's hairpieces! Heart suddenly hammering, she did her best to hobble to the spot and check on her fiancée without breaking her neck. The terrain wasn't very friendly to walking in general, much less someone with a near limp. The trees grew a lot of surface roots, with knots and twist that made everything uneven. Miniature topography maps were around every plant, with rises and dips of two to three feet common place. This might be a fun training ground to try out, but right now it was a serious pain.

Akane was buffeted by whatever had dumped them here. Face and arms sporting scratches from small rocks and debris. Yet, she was breathing slow and deep, each rise of her chest even and unhindered. At least there was a spot of good news. Leaning down, Ranma couldn't bite back a pained sign. She was still beautiful, peaceful as she slept. Maybe...maybe the wedding wouldn't have been so bad. If it hadn't been crashed. Parents hadn't been breathing down their necks. And the date was at least five years down the road. The girl had been coerced, Ranma knew that now. Why would Akane, who was strongly vocal, and sometimes strongly physical, against this whole mess want to marry her? It didn't make any sense.

Didn't help that she was a coward when it came to her feelings. Akane'd asked, in privacy before the whole affair, how she felt. But could she do anything but deny so much as whispering those words? Nope. Life was too complicated. Shaking her head to clear it, this wasn't the time for moping; she gave the tomboy a light shake.

It took a moment to rouse her, but Akane finally came around. Mumbling some and opening her eyes, wincing at the very strange illumination. She'd had such a weird dream. A wedding, and stuff blowing up, oh there'd been a cure for Ranma! She was so close! So close to making an ultimate sacrifice to show how much she actually loved Ranma. Oh sure she'd wanted to give her father a good whack or ten with a blunt instrument, but they'd convinced her. While she didn't like the idea of being forced into this so soon after the disaster at Jusendo, she knew her father couldn't hide the Nannichuan indefinitely. Uncle Genma was too selfish; he'd steal it in a heartbeat. Not to mention Mousse, or even Shampoo who'd gladly try using it as blackmail.

The proposal her father had arranged was badly timed with other events, but there hadn't been a whole lot of choice given to either of them. Her father wanted the wedding, and had the cure. Akane lo-liked Ranma, and nothing would make the pig-tailed perverted happier than being cured. Being married would probably be terrible to bear, given all the madness in their lives, but she could bear it. Ranma needed to be educated like a six-year-old, plenty of strikes from a shinai, but she could manage.

Eyes locking on the redhead, she let out a sigh. Nice dream, but her fiancé was going to be a girl at least half the time for the rest of their lives. Living with the curse for a year or so, they'd both been able to adapt, if not quietly accept that fact. The charred tuxedo took a moment to register, followed by that very...ugly tree they were under. And why did she smell fresh dirt? Were they in a greenhouse or something?

"Ranma...what..." she whimpered as she tried to sit up. A sharp pain flaring in her belly, it felt like something was torn. The grimace on her face caused a worried glance from Ranma, which touched her heart a little. She was about to try doggedly pressing for answers despite the pain, but a soft hand covering her mouth brought silence. It was amazing how the transformation changed hands roughed by calluses from a lifetime of training to a silken smoothness.

"Akane, you gotta rest. Let's see if anything's broken, then worry 'bout movin'." The redhead then began a systematic inspection of her fiancée. Akane grimaced at times, likely the bones in her legs were bruised, but nothing seemed broken. However, she was having a harder time than Ranma when it came to sitting up and moving. Having torn an abdominal muscle as a child, only a near microscopic thing that still hurt like hell, she empathized and knew how dangerous it was to do much of anything. Move too much and a tear could become a rip, then they'd be in a real pickle.

Working carefully to help Akane up, and trying to talk the girl into letting herself be carried, she didn't want to risk the the tomboy walking if it could be helped. A few days of rest were in order from them both, but away from here. If they couldn't find civilization, then fresh water and food were in order. Tossing the charred tuxedo jacket over Akane's shoulders, she was about to collect the girl in piggyback fashion when Akane began stuttering, eyes wide in fear. Ranma frowned, and then sensed something strong, close behind her. She was careful to try and protect Akane from sight, rising gingerly while covering the extent of her wounds.

It looked human, but apart from the basic similarities of structure, it ended there. The being looked male, with well chiseled features and defined muscles, powerful muscles, but he was coated in collection of reddish-yellow scales that glimmered in the weird light from the sky. Making the powerful figure all the more intimidating was the fact he towered over the majority of humanity. While not as imposing as Tarou's cursed state, he was easily the better part of seven and a half feet. A huge spear in hand, it was good-sized tree supporting a crescent blade with a central point longer than Ranma's head.

Kuso she muttered in her head, this was bad. The big fella' looked like he was a solid fighter, who knew how to swing the weapon with some skill. In normal form, she might be able to take him on, given her incredible speed as a girl, but as she was. This would be a one-sided fight. Might be able to dodge a little, but I'm too tired. Kami, please don't let it come to a fight.

Curling up her fist, she took a stance and prepared to react. A decade of training had finely tuned her awareness of her body, able to know her limits intimately. A quick review in stance revealed she was in trouble if this came to blows. The pains she could ignore, but too much effort would wear her out in a hurry. She was just too banged up, and drained as a result of the spell that dropped her here. The ki in her body and that of the planet felt strange, out of synch. Something was off, she just couldn't tell what. There was no time to meditate on it, a possible threat was right in front of her.

The thing, if it was a man, stood out of easy striking distance and pointed. It spoke, but Ranma couldn't make out the words. The deep voice was surprisingly smooth, despite the rumble. However, the tone didn't sound very pleased. Whatever he was saying, the redhead was unable to make sense of it. She relaxed stance a little, staying close to Akane, trying to get across that she was just defending the two of them.

The man-beast continued to gesticulate and speak in its rumble, but didn't back down or become any clearer in its intent. Finally, with a growl, the thing planted its spear and stood its ground. Obviously meaning to stay until Ranma complied, or something happened. This was just great, here she'd found some form of intelligent life, as unusual as it might be--on revision, some kind of dragon man wasn't really all that weird considering magical, water induced curses, half-dragon/half-humans, and bird people who lost their wings when doused with water--but there was no way to communicate.

Their situation only became worse when a second appeared from the tree line off to the Ranma's left. The two conversed, and heatedly at that. Obviously the first didn't like Ranma and Akane being here, and the other was downright opposed to the idea. If the way he pointed at the only two humans and growled in a very displeased sounding tone was any indication of his opinion. Her troubles were only compounding, and the tension could only build for so long before it erupted. Fighting off one would probably be next to impossible, two and she was doomed. She couldn't play a defense game trying to protect Akane, or trying to take out one and risking Akane.

Own spear in hand the more aggressive of the two glared with open hostility in her direction. Ranma could swear he would charge in any second, given the body language. She didn't know what was so wrong about two injured teens that needed some food and rest. Unable to relax anymore, she just ran through possible battle plans. Long odds were nothing new and she'd pull another victory out of her pants if she had to, no chance in hell she'd let Akane down. Especially not after her battle with Saffron, literally coming within breaths of either dieing or losing Akane, or both.

A voice cut through the tension with a sharp command. Again, it was beyond understanding to the pair of humans, but had intense meaning to the two creatures. The more violent fell to its knees, head going to the ground in a kowtow. The other relaxed, although remained on guard. He was good, appearing loose but aware of her every move, ready to snap into action in a moment's notice. He'd be a good challenge, in much more relaxed, and clear sparing conditions.

From the same patch of trees that the two had come, or so she surmised, perhaps one of the greatest sights for sore eyes she'd ever behold. On the back of a large horse, coal-black save for splotches of white on its chest and sides, a man in what seemed silk robes. Just as dark as the mount he rode, with silver lines forming odd geometric patterns and symbols the meaning of which was lost to the martial artist. The horse easily picked its way over the uneven ground, trotting right up to the side of the first beast-man.

With an easy motion the man dismounted and thumped softly to the ground, thick robes flowing about him. The true height of the creature was hammered home as the man stood beside him. Probably the same height as her father, give or take an inch, and was towered over by the other, nearly two foot difference between them. He looked to the towering figure, spoke in a clipped tone, and amazingly the towering figure withdrew. Something so imposing would simply bow to the will of a frail human, unreal. It retreated a few yards and took up guard once more.

The man rolled his eyes, which Ranma noted for the first time were a deep molten-gold. There was intelligence in those orbs that would put Nabiki to shame, not so shifty but constantly calculating. His hair had a mix of electric-blue streaks in a pale-silver braid. She might've thought he was gorgeous, if she wasn't really a male. All the window dressing was nice, rather disarming, but she was looking much deeper. What she saw didn't help ease her worries. The aura around the guy was glowing, pure power. Saffron was a candle by compare.

Hands present the entire time, he approached Ranma slowly. Her eyes kept watch of him, not being fooled if he was trying a trick. She could track the fastest motions, especially from the ones who would try to deceive her. The ready stance didn't relax, but she didn't radiate any hostility, just as he didn't. Hopefully, he'd try to foster some means of communication, it would just be nice if he weren't so close. Right in her space! Alright, he was trying to be Mikado Sanzinen, the pervert ice-skater that stole her first kiss! Like hell she was going to let someone pull that again.

A good slap would make clear she wasn't interested. Nothing too bad, just clean his clock a little. She had rights after all. Just one problem, she found. Her arms wouldn't move. In fact, her body refused to budge. Not even a twitch. What'd he done? Nothing obeyed, only her eyes. A spell bound her fast, keeping all but the most important electrical impulses--her lungs, heart, and brain--from functioning.

The creep stepped right up to her, cupped her cheek in both hands, and leaned forward. She was so going to smash him when she figured out how to undo this. Break him into about ten or fifteen different pieces would be good to relieve her anger, both caused by this pervert and the impotent rage at her situation. A fight with the big, green dudes would be more fun. Both at once, and one arm tied behind her back.

Only able to shoot him an evil glare, which she did with full intensity, willing his eyes to burst. Catching the look caused a grin to break out on his face, and he leaned in fully. She just wanted to scream, cuss and spit with every fiber of her crude being. His forehead touched hers, the pervert! Wait...forehead? His lips were nowhere close, although they did share the same breath because of proximity. He smelled of a very soft fragrance she couldn't place. It was actually kinda nice, if she ever went on a date, this would be on her male persona.

An electric jolt shot down her spine. Akane gapped and called her name, but it was a buzz in the background. Unable to place exactly what was going on, she just knew it dominated her thoughts. There was an exchange of information; she knew that one for sure, just happening on a level that defied conventional description. The connection broke only seconds later, but the unusual method used left her frozen in place as she tried to assimilate the data.

"Ranma!...Ranma!" Akane was getting frantic. In the middle of nowhere with huge snake-demons and their pervert master. Gah, now she was starting to sound like Kuno. This was a dream, a very bad dream! She was in a wedding dress; Ranma was girl in a tux. This must've been the bad part of the dream, where all her worries over getting married manifested themselves in a single personification, or some such psychobabble. The man hadn't hurt her fiancé, at least it seemed that way. Although, Ranma was still paralyzed from whatever he'd done.

Now he was coming her way! No pervert was going to defile her brain, dream or otherwise. Sitting up caused a fire to rage through her stomach, the possible tear in her muscle didn't like the idea of stretching. Running didn't seem to be an option. If she couldn't get up and run, then she'd crawl! About to try rolling over, her eyes flicked up to the face of her assailant. What she saw froze her in place, not like Ranma though. She could move, she was just too awed to do so.

He was so handsome, and not in a Ranma kind of way, but a lot like Tofu-sensei. There was a kindness and maturity there no other man in her life possessed, even her father. Not knowing exactly how, but simply knowing, her gut shouted he wouldn't hurt her. So it was, trusting in her intuition, and unable to get away anymore, she allowed the same process to take place. The current didn't hurt, not like a pop of static, but something actually rather nice. There was no way to sum it up, and it broke off too quickly to quantify. Like Ranma, she was left stunned for a minute.

"There, that should solve the biggest hurdle."

Japanese?! He spoke flawless Japanese? Since when? And in their dialect no less. It defied comprehension; at least their problems with speaking were solved. To Akane, he sounded as handsome as he looked, putting her instantly at ease. His voice was a song of such harmony the spirit couldn't help but carry with his emotions.

"How did you...you're...you're..." Ranma was so confused, here she had a question and a name popped right on the tip of her tongue. Now if only she could. "Kathadan! You're Issac Kathadan!...How do I know that?"

Her answer was a laugh, a rich chuckle with all the texture of silk and chocolate. "Yes, that's my name. And you're Ranma." He pointed to the redhead, "and you're Akane." Indicating the other. Somehow, the latter girl found herself just as baffled, but likewise understanding his name. "And to answer your question, no, I am not speaking Japanese anymore than you are speaking Oissie, the common tongue spoken in this area. What I did was a very basic telepathic exchange. Our names, and the core understanding needed for language. We aren't speaking to each other any differently; our minds are simply able to process and understand the sounds. A handy little trick, as long as you are near me for the next few days, you will be able to freely communicate in the common tongue. Well see about more permanent solutions soon."

The man remounted the steed, turning the animal to face the green creatures. "Odrion, Gaiz, bring them to our camp." The far-flung teens were still coming to terms with the shock of all this unfamiliar oddness, and then blanched at the implication. Both man-beasts were grinning viciously. Ranma wasn't going to have Akane hurt even worse because these two were feeling vengeful.

Just as she was about to protest, and carry her more injured fiancée, a sharp hiss cut from the throat of their host. "Gently. They will be handled as carefully as your tribal nurse-mothers care for your own young. Should they have a rough trip, I will not be pleased." He turned back to shoot a look over his shoulder. Gold eyes taking on an eerie glow. The power bubbled up, a demonstration of his control. The muscle bound guards didn't seem phased, but Ranma was sure they were trembling just as she was.

There was nothing overtly frightening about the gaze, but something in his aura overrode strength of will and made the body behave on its own. She wondered if it wasn't a spell, Ranma was sure he was using some kind of magic. Like Mousse and his stupid 'Invincible Mask' a thing that had caused Ranma no end of embarrassment. One look, no matter how much one resisted, caused the body to fall to its knees and cry, begging forgiveness. This was something like that, no doubt. With a glance he caused a response that she couldn't ignore.

Holding the eyes of his guards for a few seconds to make his point, Kathadan broke into a very Tofu-like grin. Instantly throwing the Nerimans off balance. That shift in expression was unsettling. Was he a good actor, or mentally unbalanced? Both certainly hoped it was the former, because they weren't in any shape to fight some madman that commanded walking walls of muscle and turned people to puppets.

The more composed, Odrion, Ranma assumed, collected Akane in a bridal carry. He whispered something too soft for Ranma to hear, whatever it was seemed to relax the dark-haired girl. A pang of jealousy struck her heart. Some indeterminate time ago that would be Akane in her arms, newly wedded and ready to go do...things. Ranma-chan shuddered; no way she'd go do that stuff with the tomboy! Well, she was mostly sure of that. A part of her mind whispered, ever so faintly, that it was what she really wanted all along.

Next thing she was aware, she was tossed over a shoulder like a sack of the flour Ucchan used in making okinomiyaki. Grumbling under her breath, she let it go, her own fault for not paying attention. Ucchan, Shampoo, Mom, Pops, Tendo-san, Ryoga, were they all okay? In good straights or bad? So many questions, and no answers.

In reply to the thinking, her stomach rumbled. Kami would a fresh okinomiyaki be good. Heck, anything would be good about now, even Akane's poison. Okay, strike that. There was never a time for Akane's cooking. That which actually made it past the throat wounded the stomach. No, even if she were in the middle of the desert and starving, she'd start hunting scorpions and munching sand before she even gave her fiancée's attempt a food more than a pained memory.

Sitting up a little, and finding she could easily sit on the giant fellow's shoulder without disrupting his balance, or his patience. She hollered ahead to the man on the horse, now well ahead and winding through the scattering of trees.

"Yo, Kath'. Watcha got ta eat?"

That brought another chorus of laughter, sending tremors of excitement down the spines of the females despite themselves.

"Plenty of good food, even if you happen to want the weight of an horse about now. I promise, you'll be able to fill your bellies, rest your bodies, and heal your wounds."

Ranma was almost drooling now, imagination running wild at the prospect of an all she could eat buffet. Didn't know what they had around here, but if it could be palated, at which Akane's cooking continued to fail, then Ranma Saotome would eat it and the pot it came in.

---

Holding court was such a tedious duty. The long lines of supplicants both domestic and foreign that formed up in the wee hours of the morning, hoping to gain an audience with the person representing the highest authority in the land. The problems ran the gamut, from matters of international politics, to the most inane of requests. To them all, the Lady Marisaan bid an appropriately long-winded string of curses in all the fanciful language nobles liked to use. Perhaps she'd have the scribe compose such a list of colorful metaphors to use in her constitutional this afternoon. When all the stress had passed, she could enjoy her rose garden, a nice cup of tea, and a long rant against social norms.

Currently she was faced with one of the previous matters, something of great importance to the peace of the region in a hundred miles for decades to come. Two visiting dignitaries were throwing heated words, sneers, and obscene gestures at one another, both close to the boiling point. It was all she could do to keep them from coming to blows here in the middle of the throne room. It was an issue with profound significance to their respective nations. Which country would be providing the dessert at the upcoming spring banquet? Neither wanted to provide appetizers, and both wanted to present the dish that would be the conclusion of the meal.

It was these compound problems that made her despise the title 'Queen.' Life was nothing but one foolish complication after another. There were other functionaries she could substitute in her place, but some matters would inevitably jump even the most talented of her courtiers and advisors to tumble into her lap. Such inane and pointless drivel as this were the normal culprits. Ambassadors didn't travel dozens or even hundreds of leagues, with their important business, just to be intercepted by some court lackey.

For better or worse, these stresses were hers to bear for the remainder of her natural life. Just grin and bear it, which was the way of royalty. This situation wouldn't be so bad if her lover hadn't gone on sabbatical for some reason or another she couldn't remember. Was she under so much stress lately she couldn't even remember why her bed was empty of the warm comfort of his body? A wonderful memory of their last coupling, ere' his departure, was just fluttering through her mind and warming her skin when her thoughts were interrupted abruptly.

While she was distracted with far more interesting daydreams, one of the opposing visitors had taken the opportunity to slap a prominent speaker for the other party. The sound was only just dieing in the vast arched roofs of the chamber when another incident immediately followed the first, right before weapons could be drawn and challenges hurled to defend abused honor, pride, and other quaint notions.

The air between the two dignitaries and their attached entourages blew open violently. A harsh wind ripping through the hall, taking many from their feet with the force of the gust. Had she not already been sitting, Marisaan would have been among them. As it was, the cushion backing her throne was the only thing saving her a nasty bruise on her spine. She hadn't felt such spell driven power for some time, actually not in some years.

Intense air pressure kept the crowd back for several seconds while the rent in reality discharged its burden into the room. Likely some form of beast ripped from its eternal prison in the endless depths of the Abyss, summoned forth to wreak havoc on some poor soul in the room. It could easily have been her, or someone else just as easily. Royal courts were so full of intrigue on a division of levels only an immortal mind with infinite time could appreciate. Anything from grand schemes of treachery against the Crown to petty vengeance, although such a summoning as this would require incredible amounts of money, or personal power. That would rule out minor disputes. Either she was on the receiving end of another assassination attempt because her pet wizard and bedmate was away, or someone in this room had committed a terrible wrong.

A twisted abomination scarred by flame and brimming with hate for all mankind was what she was expecting, the exact configuration of dark powers was irrelevant as she'd seen and survived battles with a score of the beasts. From the minor to the true terrors, there was little left to truly frighten her. In fact, she was curious to see just what would come out to face her, or her courtiers, not everything revolved around her, but most of it did. Her fingers clasped on a slender shaft of wood hidden between the seat-cushion and arm of her great marble throne, a "just-in-case" gift from her lover. Using its power wasn't desirable, it was hard to make such weapons of magical power, but if it was needed, rarity be damned.

The great beast she was eagerly waiting to smite did not come forth. Instead, the portal spewed forth three women, none of which looked more dangerous than stray kittens. One or two of them might have been capable of inflicting a guilt-inducing stare, certainly uncomfortable but hardly lethal. Although, the one in the strange, formal clothing was carrying a sword.

All three spilled to the floor while the door that had so rudely deposited them on their rumps fizzled out in the most boring manner. The hall broke into chaos only seconds later. Guards, used to sudden intrusion by way of means other than the front door created a ring of deadly steal with flawless precision. The wicked points of their spears driving home the, well point. The women hadn't even collected their dignity before being surrounded on all sides with no avenue of escape, unless they were capable of either flight or intense burrowing.

The goodly 'Queen' simply watched with aloof detachment, a trademark she was well trained in presenting. Three sets of brown, almond eyes gave bemused blinks and blank stares. It was the most cunning trap Marisaan had ever been given the privilege of witnessing, or these three were the subject of a very cruel prank. She could appreciate both, actually. Who would expect the two matronly looking ones to be capable of terrible acts of violence? That made a potential trap all the more insidious.

At the same time, what better method of eliminating rivals? Whisking them away from their native habitats and depositing otherwise harmless individuals into the middle of a deadly situation. Truly devious, whoever was responsible for one case or the other. This individual would present a wonderful new threat for a few months, Marisaan would happily trade moves with this person in the complex games of court politics. However, she had to deal with the three before she could get to the fun of a new challenge.

Kasumi, Nabiki, and Nodoka found themselves standing in the middle of a great hall of some type. The roof rose well past twenty or thirty feet, high arched windows lining it at even intervals, stained glass of dawn colors casting the room in beautiful glow as the sunlight beamed through. Rich blue carpet under their feet, and large tapestries lining the walls showing beasts and men they could not recognize in artistic relief. High columns of pale marble rising floor to ceiling, gold vine curling around them the entire way. Master hands had made this place; it was too stunning to be anything less.

Their surroundings were awe inspiring, but the awareness of suddenly being watched broke their the daze to take in the long spears poised close enough to turn each into a pincushion. All three women huddled together until their backs were tight, eyes wide with worry. Even Nabiki was uncomfortable with the lethal looks she was getting from the men on the other end of the weapons. Akane, or one of the other fiancées, was supposed to be the one who got kidnapped and threatened. Everyone else, or almost, could take care of themselves; these particular women were only dangerous to dust-bunnies, or those with no spine.

These were men ready to kill, no questions asked. Even sweet Kasumi wouldn't be able to talk her way out of this. For whatever reason, the three of them were a threat that should be dealt with harshly. Nodoka, thinking to protect the girls and herself did the only thing she could think, drawing the family honor blade. Unfortunately, and contrary to popular opinion, she was no more a swordswoman than Akane was a chef. The one weapon at hand flashed out of the scabbard, causing the guards to flinch and ready a charge, even at the sake of their own lives, only to have the sword go flying over their heads and clatter to the floor.

"Oh my..." Kasumi's knees shook and she clung to Nabiki, who returned the hug in earnest, something neither sister had done since childhood. Nodoka was just as fearful, but her maternal instincts were still strong despite being rusty from lack of use, and her arms threw wide to protect the girls as long as she would be able. They would run her through, but she might buy them an escape.

Fearing a spell, the guards gripped tighter on their weapons, and as one surged forward...

---

The damned dog was at it again, barking at the animals picking around the field. While it was the reason for the thing, to keep pests from eating the crop, it didn't help the beast never shut up. A farmer's life wasn't easy to begin with, rising before the sun; bedding well after it set. The few hours of blissful rest that followed a hard day's work were supposed to be the gift of hard labor. With good dreams and deep sleep to recharge the body in order to move on. However, the blasted mongrel hadn't allowed much peace in the planting and growing seasons since Johnson had bought it two years go. The only reason he didn't pour boiling liquid down its throat to burn out the infernal vocal chords was due to his grandchildren loving the beast.

Couldn't break their hearts, so he'd just let it go. With a sigh he looked to the gray head of his wife, her hair splayed out in wild wisps she couldn't contain. Fifty-seven years they'd been married, and not a day of it did he regret. Ah well, maybe the animal's incessant barking wasn't wasted after all. He didn't get a great deal of time in the day to be sentimental, thinking about the good in his life. Three good, strong boys, long since well married with children and grandchildren of their own. Yes, his legacy was intact and he could die happy.

If only that damned dog would shut up! With a grunt, his joints stiff and creaking with the motions, he pushed out of bed and grabbed the worn robe that had been one of his wife's first endeavors into sewing. None of the original material remained, having been patched and repaired through the decades by simple need. Never were their means very great, so clothing came with a lifetime of service.

A quick grab of his walking stick and he was out the door to see what had set the animal off. It was yipping even harder now, snarling. Must've cornered something big, or heaven's forbid a bear had wandered out of the forest seeking food. Perhaps a wolf, or something of the like. He hadn't moved much out the door and looked when he almost ran back into the house.

His wife mumbled a soft curse at her husband as he made a clatter, going through the old beureu holding their possessions. Why did he have to make such a fuss over matters? It didn't help when he ripped away the blanket from her and gave her an awful shake. Her bones creaked in protest to the motion, little padding remaining through the years of her life. She gave him a weak backhand to the wrist for the offense and stirred slowly. Poor Edward could get worked up, he could, over little things. Rabbits nibbling the crops? He'd pitch a fit from sunup to sundown.

Just about ready to get about seeing what he needed, his frantic face filtered through her sleep-fogged mind. Something horrible must've happened. She prayed one of her precious grandbabies wasn't sick, there was a terrible pox going around somewhere off in the East. Disease could carry quickly on the spring winds; move fifty miles a day with no time wasted in rest. Last word had been a week back, there were three dead off in a village a few days walk from their home. Had it jumped the distance to them so quick?

With a sudden rush of adrenalin in her blood, she was girded in her night robe and out the door with her lover of near to six-decades. Yes, he could carry on, but her Ed didn't pitch such worried fits as this unless something had happened. He was passionate in his hate of problems, but not taken to spreading panic. They stomped their way barefoot across the dirt path from house to field. Her gasp was terrible.

Lying at the edge of their little field, used for growing household crops, two girls in the strangest dresses she'd ever seen. One was crying over the other, caught up in a panic the likes of which Lizza hadn't seen in ages. The other girl, gods' save her was in terrible condition. Her eyes were rolled back in her head, her breathing shallow as a dry-pool. The worst of it was in her limbs. One arm twisted and turned at an angle not even the most flexible person could bend, both legs showing the same. Just below the right knee, pale bone came out from redskin. The thing was almost completely smashed through!

The crying girl sported cuts and abrasions, but otherwise seemed intact. Her eyes looked to the elderly couple with such love and pain it broke Lizza's heart, were they sisters? Whatever the case, that pleading gaze said it all. They couldn't make out a word of her babbling tongue, but the condition of her friend was clear enough. Lizza bolted to the house quick her as feet could carry her, going for fresh bandages and water. Ed scrambled his way to the road, whistling and hollering at the top of his lungs, trying to summon his boys and their families. He'd go beat down every door for ten miles if he had too, someone needed to help him bring the girl inside before she bled to death.

Konatsu slowly broke out of his shock. He'd suddenly come awake in this strange place, hurting all over, to find his mistress in a state that took him to wailing. Despite his training as a kunoichi, seeing the love of his life limp on the ground, soaking the soil with her lifeblood had broken him in a way his stepfamily had never accomplished. This was a pain unlike any he'd felt in his young life, and blew away his logic. Dear Ukyo-sama was cold, listless, and going to die in this strange place. No, she wouldn't die, not here! Those kind people were going to help, his beloved mistress needed him to be strong. She would be for him, he had to be for her.

Without thought to the cost of his beautiful kimono, he ripped off strips of cloth to begin tying her legs. The gender-confused boy set about quickly staunching the worst of the bleeding, and checking her for bruising. Thankfully her chest was wrapped, as always, so he didn't feel quite so ashamed as he opened her clothing and began to look for bruises. The inside of her kimono was almost soaked through with blood, so much blood! No wonder she was cold, likely in shock, and fading from him. He whispered a prayer to Kami-sama, to anyone who would listen.

The old man returned with a gaggle of strong men far younger, with them a very tired looking teenager probably no older than Konatsu himself. The girl paled at the blood and mumbled something he didn't catch. She began snapping out orders to the men, who rushed to comply. The girl wasted no time shooing the ninja away, double checking the tourniquets, and nodding. Then going over Ukyo with all the care and detail of a doctor. She mixed up some herb in water and poured it down Ukyo's throat, then double-checked her family to make sure they were getting what she needed. Stiff wood of various lengths and anything to pass as a rope.

Konatsu could only shut his eyes and grit his teeth at the sickening popping and grinding sounds of bones being reset and splinted. Despite being dead to the world, Ukyo let out a shriek, so great must've been the pain. Tears dripping from his eyes, Konatsu prayed, prayed like he never had in his life. Even when his parents had passed and left him in the hands of his cruel stepmother and stepsisters. He'd always wept for himself in those days, the terrible treatment he'd received, but now came a grief of such pure pain it would make Evil smile in glee.

"Someone. Please, good gods somewhere, help Ukyo-sama!" A mantra he muttered over and over. He wasn't even aware when he was collected and guided into the house. All he could think was for Ukyo and her well-being. Seeing someone he loved so overwhelmingly, who as so strong, broken like a doll was humbling. It would take a miracle to save her, he was sure. Somewhere in the vast expanse of the sky, in the stars beyond the blanket of pale-red cast by the alien sun, a figure smiled softly. Perhaps the boy's loyalty and love deserved such a miracle.

---

Ranma and Akane had been expecting exactly what their strange host, and his even stranger bodyguards, had promised, a camp. Perhaps a two or three tents, a fire, and some food. After all, there was nothing new in the concept for either of them. How many were the training journeys to the wilds about Tokyo? Roughing it they could do, with a little rest and something to eat. Well, Ranma needed a little rest and a lot of food.

Akane needed a lot of rest and whatever she could stomach. The thing carrying her, Odrion she thought his name was, had been extremely gentle, but her muscles wouldn't stop aching. She was certain now it was more than a pulled abdominal, it had to be a tear. It would take days, if not weeks of staying off her feet or extremely light movement before she would be better.

She'd been so bitter over it, she'd almost missed that they were not in fact going into a camp, not the kind they expected at least. Rather than a tent for the three men, there were instead two dozen or more. Another four or five of the massive green-creatures, or at least of their species were present. They weren't all green either; in fact they ran the gamut of colorings. With one being a light rust to his scaled-flesh, another something of an ashy gray, yet another somewhat blue, and yet even another somewhere between bronze and gold. They were far more diverse in coloring than humans, and Akane was beginning to appreciate the strong beauty about them. These weren't the monsters she thought, but noble and proud beings that seemed every bit as sharp as any person she'd met in her life.

Akane's opinion had been changing due to the lengthy conversation she'd carried on with her beast-of-burden. He was witty to the point of absurd eloquence. His speech was cultured, precise, and gentile. With the most respectful of tones he'd been sharing information about himself, this place, and his master. They were somewhere in the borders of a kingdom called Keldar, along Kymvale, a thick patch of forest that had few inhabitants and even fewer visitors. It wasn't so much a dangerous place, as too rugged for development and usually ignored by settlers as a result.

Odrion was of a race called the 'Naga' beings supposedly descended from dragons; she could believe it given the size of the ones she'd seen, along with their scaled hides and powerful bodies. His service to Kathadan was by choice, as a sworn guard. While it never reached his voice, there was a fanatical devotion in his eyes whenever he spoke on the man who commanded his loyalty. There was nothing but zealous adoration and respect, and she was convinced he'd jump headlong off a cliff if Kathadan commanded.

Seeing as he seemed far too noble to be evil, she supposed his master had to be a great man, and not just because that was all Odrion ever said concerning him. Not in so many words, but in a variety of articulate praises about the greatness of the man. Hopefully luck was with them, because there was no doubt she and her fiancé were in an alien world, with no way of knowing how to get back.

And as it turned out, their host's camp came attached with dozens of people. At least a hundred human souls. Some in polished breastplates and creaking leather, armed with well-maintained spears, swords, and shields. Professional soldiers each. The rest were so many servants and courtiers with nothing better to do with their time. Akane could only watch in wonder as they passed, the other naga carrying Ranma on his shoulders a little behind, and trailing close to their horse-riding savior, everywhere the hum of activity stopped as Kathadan approached. The soldiers breaking flawlessly apart to either side and coming to immediate attention, while the servants and courtiers dropped into kowtow. The Emperor of Japan didn't receive so much respect, she was certain.

The man commanded such fear and awe that she was beyond belief. To the whole thing he was cold and aloof, as if it was granted he should be shown such deference. The displaced teens didn't know what to make it. All this bowing and scraping was on a level beyond even their fathers' mutual fear of Happosai. Heads remained almost to the dirt until they were well past, and then people rose in a steady wave of motion, going back to their business without seeming to mind paying such tribute. Akane was shocked, Ranma was, well also shocked. This would bear investigating.

Kathadan guided the little troupe into the heart of the camp where it was assumed his own personal tent and closest attaches were residing. Servants were waiting by the handful, one taking the reigns of the man's horse when he stopped. A small team of boys and young men, five in all, were quick to begin relieving the animal of saddle and carry bags the moment Kathadan was dismounted, then lead the creature away to tend it. Akane took in the sights quietly. Torches were scattered throughout the camp with braziers and fires all about. Odrion pressed straight ahead, going right into the central tent. For all the pomp and ceremony, it wasn't the ostentatious thing she was expecting. Rather large perhaps, but not on the scale she would've thought.

Gently, like a mother with a newborn, she was laid on a rich carpet. Ranma was given similar treatment, put directly beside her. The two naga turned as one and left the tent; on the outside they parted to either side and took up a guard of the entrance. Their master flowed between them, with a squad of people following in his wake. Men and women alike, young and old all dressed in fine silk clothing of soft blue, with a pair of embroidered birds in flight on the chest. They looked rather like flying peacocks in their shape, but the stitching was done only in white thread with no colorful decoration, so she couldn't be entirely sure what they were, but they looked like peacocks. Only, those birds couldn't fly, could they? At the least, those clothes must've been worth a fortune.

"Prepare baths and fresh clothing for our guests, and have the meal ready to be served." They bowed as one and broke off into pairs, darting every which way. They seemed to each know their role, as they departed with a well-timed precision without any hint of confusion. That tended to, the man came forward and knelt before Akane. "Lie back, we need to see about healing this before it gets any worse. You don't strike me as the type of person who would want to lie around on her back for days on end getting better."

Without any real reason to protest, Akane complied, although Ranma shot suspicious glares at the man while he began to softly move his fingers along Akane's stomach. With all the talent she would equate to Tofu-sensei he probed her injuries with great care. Right in the middle of her abdominal region came the sharpest pain from only the slightest touch and movement; she became even more worried about this fact. While her benefactor seemed skilled and concerned, did these people have any kind of medical care that wasn't herbs and berries? Oh the horror of being with any kind of modern, for her, medicine. With a frown, he confirmed what she suspected, a break or tear of her muscle or other tissue under the skin, it would be just great if she had internal bleeding.

"Akane, I'm going to ask you to bite down on this. It won't hurt for more than a second, but believe me it will be terrible." He pulled a silk handkerchief from one his sleeves and handed it to her. With more than a little worry in her eyes, which Ranma returned in earnest, she put the cloth in her mouth and clamped down tight.

"What're you gonna do?" Ranma tried hard to keep the worry out of her voice, but some strange person was about to hurt her fiancée. Much as Ranma hated confronting her feelings, she still put Akane's safety as the highest priority.

Without looking up, their host put his hands together and began rubbing his palms in opposite directions as if he were praying. "Healing the tear in her stomach. Unless you'd rather I leave her to heal on her own, which would take days of complete bed rest to be safest. Which is no way an option, seeing as I have other places to be in the coming weeks, and I am certainly not going to leave the two of you here to fend for yourselves. So, seeing as I cannot spare the time to move slowly for her, and I'm sure she'd rather be on her feet than laid out in some sick bed, we'll cut to the root of the problem and solve everyone a great deal of stress.

"Ready?"

Ranma's jaw snapped shut, she was fully ready to argue against whatever it was he was going to attempt, but her mouth refused to obey! Damnit, the slippery jackass had done it again, somehow, whatever the hell it was he was doing! Somehow he wove a spell, or hypnotized her, something; it was incredibly effective at causing her body to disobey her instructions. His logic was rather infallible in this case as well. Ranma couldn't very well leave Akane alone to go hunting for food if they were to try independent survival. Both of them were too banged up, the smarter and safer option was to trust in this total stranger. Now if only their luck would hold and it didn't turn into another disaster, like nine-tenths of all the other situations Ranma tended to find herself in.

At Akane's nod, Kathadan mumbled something neither of them caught, much less understood. His hands took on a pale-white glow that was painful to look at, so Ranma didn't watch too close. His palms pressed on either side of the affected area and the strange luminescence flowed into Akane. The moment it did, she sucked in a breath and whimpered. It hurt! Like someone had dropped a load of fresh coals on her skin, she was sure if she took a whiff she'd be assaulted by the stink of burning flesh. Her jaw tightened on the cloth, while her cries were muffled. So intense was the feeling of being torched her throat refused to let out the shriek her lungs so desperately wanted to throw out.

Then as quickly as it had begun, it faded into a soothing cool. She took labored pants, beads of sweat having formed on her forehead in the sudden shock that had invaded her nerve endings. A cool rag rested on her head before she was aware it was possible to even open her eyes. Her whole belly was sore, like she'd gone one too many rounds with Shampoo. Her eyes opened to meet deep-blue orbs and red bangs. Ranma was leaning over her, worry written all over her face, while wiping down her forehead and cheeks with the cloth she'd tried to bite in half.

With a grunt, and far more ease than she expected, she sat up and took stock of herself. Despite being sore, she was otherwise fine. Kathadan was still in the same place, watching her patiently. From the look on both of their faces, she assumed she'd only been unaware for a few minutes. With a soft whisper of thanks to Ranma, she stretched herself out and took deep, even breaths. She felt like crap, but at least she could move now. A few cautious twists to either side, carefully leaning back and then forward confirmed her abdominal were whole and healthy.

"I apologize, my skills with healing are quite good in mending injury, but I don't have the healer's touch when it comes to preventing pain. It's an intense shock to the system, having the immune system and natural healing functions sped up by several factors. There are slower methods I could have used, but those are much better for broken bones and injuries that aren't likely to be further aggravated by mild activity." With a soft smile, which reached deep into his golden-eyes, the fellow who'd made her better went into a brief explanation.

"Did...you just use magic on me?" This opened up a whole new realm of frightening possibilities. Magic was rarely a good thing in the little world of Ranma Saotome and Akane Tendo. It was magic that turned Ranma into a girl, Shampoo into a cat, and Mousse into a duck. Magic that had locked Ranma as a girl, and could have done so forever if not for Ranma's incredible ability to overcome all odds. Magic had not so long ago sucked all the, she guessed water, out of her body and left Akane as a dehydrated doll that came painfully close to death.

No, magic was a horrid force whenever they encountered it. Magic mirrors that spat out doppelgangers, split evil personalities off from her fiancé, possessed would-be samurais, and a whole host of problems too numerous to mention. If Kathadan could use magic, and it was obvious he could given the demonstrations he'd performed, then others could use it here as well. Other people causing her body to disobey sent shivers down her spine. How many people were out there that could wield a potent force with limits she had no idea how to conceptualize, and use it for malevolent intent? Oh, she didn't like this one bit.

The wizard only smiled softly and rose, smoothing down his clothing as he walked to the tent opening and looked out at the red sky. "I did, and you're right to be afraid of it. In the wrong hands, arcane forces are very potent and oft times dangerous. Given the look both of you hold, this is something you know from first hand experience." He didn't have to look over his shoulder to see their solemn nods. "Worry not, though. While close to me, you are safe from those who would do you harm by way of spells. And, depending on where our journey takes us, I'll see to helping teach you how to avoid those dangers.

"Now, you should go relax and enjoy a good soak. You can enjoy the full range of comforts, my attendants are well versed in every form of physical comfort. From massage, to skin treatments, all the little luxuries that can be had for relaxation. I encourage you to partake freely, after you are suitably relaxed, we will share a meal. You can relate your story, and I will relate some of mine."

He turned back to them, smiling all the more. It was disarming, and Akane couldn't help but feel her heart flutter. Somehow, she just got the feeling she could trust this man. Ranma-chan wasn't so put at ease. This was all just too convenient, this camp in the middle of a kami-forsaken forest that would fit perfectly in a horror movie. Still, there was no obvious sign of a trap yet. Didn't mean she was going to let her guard down, but no point in being rude.

"That sounds nice...but umm...I'd rather not leave Akane."

Her fiancée broke into a blush at that announcement, while there was an initial second to accuse him of being a pervert; she knew that wasn't the case. As it was, she was absolutely terrified at the moment, but these situations had a way of popping up on them so while the fear was very real the panic was at a minimum. Being alone, though, was not an option if she could avoid it. Ranma was the only attachment she had at the moment, it was the only thing keeping her sane.

With a nod, their host smiled and summoned a servant, ordering him to set up a privacy screen in the bathing tent. Then the man bowed to them and departed through the entrance, claiming he had things to tend to in the camp itself. Holding her hand tight, Akane walked with Ranma-chan out into the alien sky, found the servant in question and followed him to an almost room sized tent at the side of the central, a bath would be really good about now, and they could put themselves in order.

---

When she came to, she found herself dripping wet and floating. Whatever she was on top of was soft, rather downy like feathers. It also happened to be breathing. With a start, Shampoo launched herself quickly into the air to put distance between the living thing that had been her bed and herself. She landed on all fours and hissed, it wasn't much bigger than herself, as a cat at least, so she could take it, even if she was decidedly less lethal in this compact form.

The white lump gave an irritated quack and began to rear up, the fight was on! Wait, a quack? Sure enough it was a duck she'd been resting on, a very familiar duck at that. Mousse stood upon his webbed feet and shot her cursory look. Everything was slightly out of focus, which caused him to draw the conclusion his glasses were off center. With a quick adjustment, how exactly he did that with his wing was a mystery science would be unable to solve for decades, the world was clear once more.

The cat and duck were on an unknown strip of sand, the bank of a very small pond. In fact so small it was likely a manmade pool that was used as a garden attachment. That would make sense, one of the old man's bombs must've blown them out of the dojo and into the koi pond, although this compound was similar to the Tendo yard, it was far too different to be the same place. The only true similarity was the fact there were buildings. There was no perimeter wall as far as either could tell, and the standing structures were terribly dilapidated. Weeds and grass had overtaken almost everything, save a few well-worn paths that must've existed only because of frequent human crossing. Had that old pervert blasted them into someone else's yard?

Before Mousse could inquire further on this puzzle, the ground beneath him shifted and he rolled off his pedestal. Which resolved itself into a small, black piglet. Which took one look around, saw the familiar curse bodies of the Chinese teens, and gave an inquisitive 'Bwee?' As if either of the three could understand the animal speak of one another. They couldn't even communicate on more than the most basic terms with other animals, higher level thought transfer would be difficult at best.

Whatever had happened, it had landed a serious whammy on them. Not one of them recalled anything of that type taking place. Happosai had thrown his Happodaikairin, but they didn't carry that much explosive power. Shampoo knew for a fact her exploding dumplings hadn't carried so much force behind them, and she was certain Ukyo would use roughly the same concentration of gunpowder in those meat buns she'd been hurling. Which raised the question, how on earth did they wind up here?

The matter soon degenerated into absolute chaos. Ryoga's bag was in the bottom of the pond and would require a combined effort to retrieve. From there, it wouldn't be so difficult to produce the gas heater and a quick splash of hot water so the three could begin working out a solution to their location. Or at the very least, break apart and go their separate ways. Of course, given the natural animosity between the three such cooperation was difficult to achieve without a moderating personality. Lacking that, and under extreme stress, they fell into all our bickering.

Mousse, mourning for the lost chance to regain his manhood and begin a proper courtship of Shampoo, launched himself into at the cat to give it a warm embrace. Certainly she needed comforting, being in this strange place and having seen her true fiancé lose yet another chance for curing his curse. Unfortunately for Mousse's deluded mind, the cat wanted nothing of the sort, from the duck at least. She was more interested in picking which direction would be the most direct route back to the Tendo household before the foul Kitchen Destroyer stole away her Airen.

When the duck caught her up, she let out a growl and quickly smacked him away. His trajectory reversed and carried him right back at Ryoga, who had been looking in the pool of water, which might as well have been a lake to his perspective, seeing what would be the best way to get to his belongings. The duck smashed right into his back, bowling the two of them over into the water. Assuming an attack was upon him, Ryoga retaliated, launching Mousse right back onto the shore. This caused the myopic-teen to shift his attention, and frustration, back onto Ryoga. Naturally, the two generated into an all out brawl. With Mousse quack and flapping his wings, trying for altitude, and Ryoga trying to pin him down. They ended up in something of a knot, with Mousse's beak clamped onto Ryoga's curly tail, and Ryoga's little fangs locked onto one of Mousse's legs.

They mutually shouted in pain, and then went into more struggling and tussling, kicking up a cloud of dust as they rolled, darted, and dodged at one another across the rim of the pond. Shampoo shook her head and snorted at the pair of idiots. She shook dry and turned to the buildings, wondering if one of them had either an inhabitant or some source of hot water. The sooner she was certain of the address of this place, the quicker she could get back to breaking up the unlawful wedding Akane had staged to steal Ranma away.

Her inattention cost her as the two halftime men brought their struggle to her. Soon there was a rolling ball comprised of one pig, one duck, and one cat fighting all out. Rather comical from the perspective of a spectator who knew nothing of the true nature of the animals, that weren't animals at all, or not by birth at least. People were normally so unaware of the cursed induced disposition of the three, that they were always assumed to be exactly what they appeared to be. As the expression says, "looks like a duck, sounds like a duck, walks like a duck, it must be a duck, ne?"

The current observer to the event just watched with a scowl as the three went rolling across the ground. The songbirds that he loved listening to this time of the day had taken flight the instant the three had begun their struggle, which was causing him no small amount of consternation. There were few things he demanded of the world, the freedom to listen to sounds of the world, both beautiful and irritating, while eating his lunch was one of them.

When it seemed there was no end coming soon to the conflict, he decided it was time to act. Setting his bowl, with contents of nothing but pasty rice, to the side of the large rock he had been occupying, the fellow rose smoothly and strolled the short distance to the pond. He hadn't noticed where the three animals had actually come from, only a powerful distortion in the environment that had been painful to his senses.

The fabric of reality had cried out in pain suddenly, and he'd been forced into a deep meditation to shut it out. That was some hours ago, and it had taken him that long to sort it all out. His inspections into the ether to discover the source of the problem had yielded no answers of any satisfaction. Giving up on that angle, he finally decided to see to his body's needs and enjoy a peaceful time for contemplation on what he'd sensed.

Sadly it was not to be, as the local environ had been intruded upon by foreign animals. Very strange animals at that, their auras were twisted with smatterings of an alien touch he had never seen in his life. A magic of chaos fashioned into a very unusual matrix, again a type he was unfamiliar with. These were certainly not your everyday cat, duck, and pig. Given how the three continued the pointless struggle, all three animals not prone to being antagonists of such a level, bespoke of something far more complex.

He coughed, which caused no reaction. With a deeper frown, he coughed again, louder. Still nothing. Wiping the length of his face with a frustrated gesture, he decided upon a more forceful approach. He hadn't been given an excuse to cause fright in man or beast in sometime, so playing the role of irate old badger would be rather fun. He reached into his store of tricks, the simple little weavings of spells and effects that could be produced with only a little concentration.

"Enough!" His voice was like thunder, the world rumbling and sky turning black. An impressive display, if he did say so himself. That got their attention, causing their huddled mass to fall apart and stare at him like they'd each been slapped. "Do the three of you care to explain yourselves?" His voice now taking on an earthy tone, like rocks grinding their way downhill. It had the desired result, each animal in turn giving a slow shake of its head, eyes locked tight with his own.

Where the man had come from, they had no idea. Simply crack and there he was, more imposing than Cologne and Happosai combined. He wasn't really all that frightening in appearance. Somewhat squat, no taller than Shampoo, with impossibly hard eyes of chestnut hue, almond shape, and a slight upward slant. All the hair on his head was shock-white, and thin with the look of age. Braided in the back, spilling out of view, with a beard dropping well below his chest, sporting several smaller braids knotted together in one mass.

His head tilted back slightly, but his eyes never left them. This was a scary individual, if what of his aura leaked out was a sign. Happosai level trouble. The angle allowed them to catch the pointed ears, combined with his other features, were they in the know he would look very much like an elf.

Two birds winged their way down from a tree to alight on either shoulder. They were beautiful creatures, and all three curse victims couldn't help be a little jealous why couldn't they be blessed with a curse of such magnificent forms, if given a choice in the matter anyway second to no curse or a human form being like one of those birds wouldn't be so bad. Heads crowned with a rich crest, and beautiful plumage flowing behind them. One was colored in reds and golds, like the most beautiful of sunrises. The other was cast in blues and greens, sapphire and emerald, arrayed in a layer upon layer of color on his feathers. Majestic creatures, but peafowl couldn't fly could they?

The red bird chirped, a sound like a crystal chime, and it carried on like the music of a rhythmic bell. It was almost like melodious laugher. Then, doing the impossible, it spoke. In very clear and precise language at that, sound very stately and educated all at once.

"What have we here, Master, that could cause you such displeasure? Certainly these little ragamuffins are simply lost and their owners will come along to collect them?" It was a clearly feminine tone, a voice of sophisticated beauty that entranced the two males despite themselves, and caused a surge of jealousy to climb up Shampoo's spine, exactly why she couldn't explain.

"Leanna, what we have here, in the form of a cat, pig, and duck, is a rich banquet. I believe these three will make a wonderful lunch." Spoke the elfin looking fellow, which suddenly turned all three of the cursed ones to go wide-eyed. When the man stepped forward, clucking and calling to them like common house pets, they quickly scattered each in a different direction.

The old man just grinned, while his birds took to wing and away from him. It was over in all of three seconds. His hands darted out and caught all three before they could make any progress in their flight. Shampoo and Ryoga in one hand, held by scruff of neck and bandana respectively, and Mousse in the other. They each tried clawing, biting, anything to escape. It worked for naught, however, as the old man toyed with them. He proved incredibly adept at releasing, dodging, and catching the three of them. For variety he even juggled them hand to hand.

"Ah, such feisty creatures. Most fun I've had in some years. You'll all make a fine supper." Then the world went black for each of them.

---

A/N: For those of you who have no idea what the story of Kuno and Phoenix Sword is about, I suggest going to youtube and hunting down the OAV if you can find it. It's rather funny, but in no way has a bearing on this story except for a little background on where Hikaru got the puzzle box. In short, the shop owner has a store full of dangerous objects, and it willing to sell them to whoever hits him with money.