First Blood

The rain was the first thing that was noticeable in the grayened glow that was the skies last ray of light fading away. Putting little flickering droplets all around the visual field it was making sure that the sounds of its presence were only to be the second element of sensation that was put to use. Trees were all over in a messy sort of way not following any pattern at all. Along the ground the last little ray of undying light coming from the deadened for the day sun worms were crawling against the flow of the rainwater streaming in the direction of the depths to which they belonged once more. Only the worms were there making it a very desolate scene for those that were there. Not that there were that many there though…

Hunched crying or more like whimpering in the rain the slight figure that huddled in the protective spot underneath that of a great oak tree hid his fears and thoughts from himself. Not much was visible of his face the way that he had folded his arms in front of himself as a shield. His fists hidden under his arms just like his face they were trembling with a level of fright not supposed to exist for one so young.

There were no birds flying in the skies the rain pouring to heavily to take that chance even the hawks were gone not daring to do anything in the face of the thunderous downpour that was steadily streaming down from the clouds above nearer to the ground than ever before. There was a kind of ominousness to the darkened skies as if they were threatening to burst forth an even greater downpour than what was already there. The trees buckling in the sheer weight of the water that was the skies failing to take to keeping the distance to the earth that was its antithesis. Even the great oak was whimpering in the strain that was imposed upon it by the storm. Even though it held its way better than the majority of greater trees in the woods. Splinters of its bark were crackling giving of a sound that was eerily similar to that of limbs shattering under the weight of blows of a more mortal nature. Not that the effect of the storm would be that much different…

Feeling the tremors from the tree in a muted form carrying through the trunk of the tree Ranma scrunched his eyes open and ignored the grime that was one his arms pushing at his eyes. Using skills that he was not born with he shed off the emotions that were running their course through his immature frame his arms fell limply to his sides giving him a clear view to appreciate the shadows of the lightning colouring the sky. Three major gashes were thrombosing on his right cheek straining at his chin even almost digging deep enough to reach his gums. Like whisker marks. Leaning forward he disengaged himself from the trunk of the tree his shadowed eyes gleaming in the never ending lightshow of the thunderstorm a lack of purpose to them the one thing that bore to be noticed.

A little twistch to that of his shoulders was what made the figure that he cut stand once more. Paler than even whitened pus that was lingering on his shoulders from the infected cut that rested there that was the colour of his skin. No emotions there sides' a laxness that wasn't born from ones own volition. Botoxed they were that his chins. His clothes a mess clung to his skin revealing the state of nourishment to be not satisfactorily digging into his sides at every shallow breath that he took. Still he stood there not moving from his spot just yet the thoughts that were not able to form in his head forcing him to remain immotile staring emptily ahead.

He couldn't remember what had made him hide under the tree or what hade taken away his ability to think coherently past the point where he would be able to make conclusions based on the present in conjunction with whatever had happened in the past. Thinking hard thoughts came to his mind reminding him more of whom he was rather than what he had been doing. Frustrated as he was by the not so encouraging progress that he was making getting his head under his own control he still nodded along with every little piece of information that came to him about himself as he drew upon the thoughts of who he was to sort of find a focus for finding out the status of things. Still even that came with a price.

Wincing at the unbidden announcement of pain that came from his shoulders only to radiate as if inversely, to his minds eyes that is, along his entire back to reach his legs making him stumble for the first time taking a step forward failing to keep his balance a light splashing sound tearing through his once more closed eyes with the images of the water streaming into the muddy grasses. Feeling the weight of his eyelids from that of the rain that was falling in a steadily increasingly potent manner he felt the reiterance of pain claim his physical self once more as the crampings struck him like a lightning bolt searing through his spine. His face a mockery of the state of emergency that he was in flapped with his cheeks wobbling about with little tone in the musculature at all speaking of a far more dangerous level of damage being dealt somewhere to that of the youth. Arching his back even more in a silent shudder cracks were heard his spine not withstanding the duress that was imposed on him as he spasmed the muscles failing to hold the hypercontractile state any longer.

Splattering to the ground his listless frame convulsed slowly with little freedom of movement his breathing somehow miraculously spared the treatment that the rest of his body was given. Still it was the end phase to the seizure that he had endured. Slight as he was he was easily fatigued from the strain on his physique. Bubbles forming from the spittle that remained on his face from the mixture that was growing on the ground his face covered from view once more sinking into the ground below.

Sleep would take him there and then. What had been dealt to his little body was the inhumane punishment that he himself had wished for. How that had to come he would never ever come to remember when under conscious control of his own state of mental awareness level.

If he wouldn't have fallen there and then he would have appreciated the scar in the clouds that was growing to the south of his point of … sleeping? Or something like that since the rain wasn't there anymore. The way that the strongest storms are the hurricane abated to leave the mountain ranges visible as giant sun-catchers getting the warmth of the once again omnipresent sun daring its way back. As if the idea of life was something that drove it to its greatness it was reflected in the way that the vegetations were making themselves known as if immortal in their flaring in the direction of the sun completely opposing the weight of the rainstorm that had been there not so long ago.

Still in the birth of something new the pains that had been claimed by the storm were apparent all over. Tree flung across trees dug out by their roots trunks of trees decimated by the thundering strikes from the heavens more frequent than what was comfortable to the human psyche. Still the animals were making their best attempt at a vanishing act upon it birdsong and other sounds hacking away at anything that could have been interpreted back to the sorrows that the storm had harvested.

Empty looking was the gaze that Genma bore. He wouldn't be the one to let his son know. He had never born the ability for such a task. Snorting lightly he paused in front of the mess that his son was. He could discern the gentle breathing that signified life so he wasn't that bothered anymore. Still he would have to make sure that they would get on with things once more. He had been chasing his son for the longest time. After Ranma had let off he hadn't been able to catch him for the longest time. Initially that hadn't worried him…

No worries were on his face now as he flung Ranma over his shoulders once more. "We go, we go, and we go…" Almost whistling Genma wasn't in the least attuned to the changes that had taken place to that of his son in the aftermath of that last little training 'experiment' that he had sent his son on. 'The death of an innocent.' The thought silenced him though. Lying to himself had never been that forced an exercise of keeping the mind at bay from the horrors that insanity brings. He would never think back to the occasion that was the origin of that latest of mishaps in the years to come either. The virtue of his sons mind was a brittle thing that he cared not for in the least. The aptitude of his physical reactions was one thing that he would praise over a quick mind and a healthy soul any time any day over it. A slight smirk for the first time there once more on his face he made his way towards civilization once more. He needed to find a doctor to take care of the deep infected gouges in his sons back. "A five year old can only take that much abuse." 'Weak! Hah!' The smile on his face was belying the true intents that his actions had taken upon.