Disclaimer: Hey there lawyers, I don't own the characters in this story except Kamiya, the young phoenix, any reference to other works by that name are purely coincidental. Seeya!
In the mists, two people were walking, one was bigger than the other, and both seemed to be carrying something extremely heavy on their backs. As they came closer to the border of mist that separated them from the clear morning air, the shorter figure seemed to be listening closely to the bigger one.
"So, where were you planning on going now?" asked Ranma, "We're going to Jusenkyo. They say it's an ancient training ground, but that it is composed of thousands of small springs. Each of these springs has a curse, so we don't want to be falling in the wrong one. Got that son?" "Sure pop. So, do you know anymore about these curses?" "When I went to a tourism guide in one of the small towns that we passed through, I asked for any and all training grounds in china, so I got directed to a section about it, and I found this. (Taking out the Jusenkyo pamphlet.) Everyone seemed afraid then; said they didn't want anything to do with Jusenkyo, so I got nothing more from them. The pamphlet says that there's a man who lives there and acts as a guide to those who cross into Jusenkyo. So we might as well go see him for more information." "Ok, that's settled so what are we waiting for! Let's get out of these mists!"
And so Ranma and Genma ran off towards Jusenkyo hoping to find what they were looking for: A physical, and historical challenge. The mists were gone by the time they reached a small house by the side of a great mountain. There was smoke in the chimney, suggesting that the inhabitant of the house was cooking breakfast. So the two travellers went and knocked on the door.
"Hello? Is anyone there?" said Ranma, tapping on the door loud enough to be heard, lightly enough not to break the door. "Yes. I is making my food. You come, door not locked." And so the pair opened the door, to find a nice little house with two rooms which they assumed to be the main and the bedroom, and as they looked around, a short man came up to them. "Hello. What is you looking for?" "Me and my son are travellers, and we were looking for Jusenkyo here. I read a few books, and they all described this place as a nightmare to mankind. They mention something about curses, and we were wondering if you could tell us more about it." "You is LOOKING for Jusenkyo! My word, never in all the time I have been here, has anyone that has appeared been looking for the place. You shall be the first." "I see, anyways, perhaps you could tell us more later, you are having breakfast?" "Oh no, please join me, I am bored all alone, there is nothing to do but wait for the next poor traveller to wander off here." "All right Food!" And they sat down to eat.
Later, the three sat down drinking tea, and once again Genma asked if the guide could tell them more about the springs. "Well, the springs of Jusenkyo have not always been there. A very long time ago, it is said that the very sky was bored and it lost its colour. The gods who were just sitting there because humans could handle themselves, decided to bring some fun back to the world, so one of them came down in a whirlwind, and raised up four mountains around this area, and made a deep spring in the earth, then he opened the ground at the top into different springs, and then he Called forth a magic that would attract three different, antagonistic tribes to settle near the springs, and then out a protection spell on the place, so that, to restrict damage in world conflicts, no one people could claim it as their own and raise armies of monsters. The curse in the springs, was that anything that fell and drowned in the spring, would imbue that spring with the essence of their being, hence creating one of the cursed pools. Throughout history, thousands of people have come and gone from here, and many have drowned in the pools, so now, there are thousands of different essences locked in the pools ranging from alien landings, to the common rat. I have created an anthology of records of all that has drowned in these pools, and I know every one of them well enough to tell which one a person will fall into. This is the story of the springs, and now you know what is implied by the curse in the books you had read." "Astounding, this is the most amazing place we have been to so far, it has a complex history, as well as a challenge to overcome while training here. I assure you, we will make sure not to fall into the pools. You wouldn't happen to have some waterproof soap would you?" "As a matter of fact, I do, lucky for you. Watch out though, if you want, I can accompany you around the place and warn you if there is any danger." "That sounds like a good idea." "So what are we waiting for? Let's go!" And the three of them went outside to the side of the pools. "Alright, what are your names?" "Ranma, and Genma sir." "Thank you. Alright, the springs you should avoid are…" and the guide listed several pools with curses that the two travellers would do well to keep away from.
" Ok so Ranma, this is what we are going to do. Last dojo we battled the master at, you did fairly well, but you lost some speed after every time you evaded his strikes. You also lacked in height when you went into the air. So, I plan to stay here for at least a month, if you don't mind mister?" "Not at all, some company will do me good." "Wonderful, so Ranma, we will work on maintaining your speed after you evade attacks. For this, no sense using the poles, we can do that on land." "Right pop, let's do it!" And the two of them started sparring, slowly at first then with gradually increasing speed. Genma kept coaching Ranma on how he should let the air flow around his body, so that he didn't loose speed when evading attacks. Finally, the two stopped to rest. "Good work son, you still need to practice it, but I see a lot of improvement." "Wow, you two are very good, we shall make something to eat and then I will show you something interesting that I think will appeal to you." The three went into the house and started cooking dinner, when there was a knock on the door. "I'll get it," said Ranma and he went to the door and opened it. Outside there was a small girl standing there and so Ranma moved over to let her come in. As she came in the guide said "oh yes I forgot to mention her, this is Plum. My daughter." Pleased to meet you Plum." Said both Ranma and Genma. "Daddy, who are these people? You don't usually have visitors." "Ah, this is Ranma and Genma, two travellers. They plan on staying here for a while. They are both good martial artists. Perhaps we could help them with a few things ne?" "Ok, hello Ranma and Genma, I am Plum, I know a bit about the arts and I can help you with some things. I can see already what could be improved." And she ran off to the other rooms. "So, I guess we will cook for one more ne?" Finally, the dinner was ready and the four sat down to eat. "So, you said there was something that you had that would interest us?" "Oh, yes, well, since you are planning on staying, I will give it to you and tell you about it in the last week of your stay. It will be better that way, so that you can discover more about it, and that way, you can concentrate on your training while you are here."
So after their meal, they went to sleep, Ranma and Genma outside, for there was not enough room to accommodate all four people. While Ranma lied there, he was thinking about everything that they had done so far. He remembered Ryoga, from when they were still in a permanent residence and hadn't seen him since. He wondered if Ryoga had been able to get to school without him. (He had gotten into the habit of picking Ryoga up at home to help him find his way to school.) Then he thought of his mother…How long had it been since he saw her in person…Every few months they would send postcards back to tell her how they were doing, and sometimes an odd photo as well. Genma had decided that it would be a good idea to teach Ranma martial arts, being a martial artist himself, and he believed that the best way would be to take him on a 10 year trip where he could discover the countries around him all the while learning the various styles of fighting and self-defence. 'Boy, I'm really glad to be on this trip, but I wouldn't mind seeing a few people again. Thinking of Ryoga and Nodoka, then Ukyo popped into his head. He had spent some good time at their house before he and Genma had to continue their trip. They would probably meet again in a while. Thinking of all these things and then of what awaited him the next day, Ranma promptly fell asleep.
When Ranma woke up, he was shocked to see that the bedroll next to him was empty. "Where did Pop go?" he thought. "Well, maybe they're outside, the guide could be showing him around." And at that, Ranma went into the next room. On the table, he found a note in his father's handwriting. "Ranma I went somewhere with the guide. We will be gone for most of the day, sorry, I didn't want to wake you up, so I guess you can hang around. But be careful, you don't want to go and fall into one of those springs, without the guide, you'd have no idea what you'd be getting yourself into." -Genma-
'Alright then, that's that! Let's see, what could I do all day while pop is gone? I guess I'll just walk around and stay away from the springs. After all, it would be no fun to wreck my trip by falling in there and turning into a pig or something.' So Ranma went for a walk around the valley. "There sure are a lot of pools out there, its no wonder so many people think this is an area of disaster. To think that each and every one of these pools is full of some long dead person's appearance, and that one dip could have devastating effects…Brr, gives me the chills." And he went on past a rather long outcropping of rock. On the other side, he stopped suddenly. "Oh no, what am I gonna do?" right there on a stone, a beautiful creature was washing herself. She had shining white wings that reflected the sunlight as they moved to and fro creating a dazzling display of shadows of light on the side of a cliff. Ranma saw that she was washing herself with what appeared to be water from a spring. "Oh no, she's touched one of the pools, what'll I do, I have to warn her that they're dangerous." 'Hey there, you should be careful which water you use to wash, these pools are dangerous.' And in calling out, he realized his mistake and tried to hide. 'It's alright don't be afraid.' said the girl, and she moved towards Ranma. Ranma peeked out of his hiding place and was met with the prettiest face he had ever seen in his entire life. 'Hey, uh, I wasn't peeking ya know, uh, please don't hit me…' The winged girl giggled. 'You're so funny!' And Ranma was astonished that the girl wasn't in the least bit angry at him for walking in on her while she was bathing.
'To tell you the truth,' said Ranma as he got a hold over himself, 'I was taking a walk, my pop's gone for the day and I ain't got much to do.' This elicited a laugh from the girl, which made Ranma really confused "Did I say something funny? Why is she laughing at me?" 'Oh don't worry, It's just so nice to see someone my age around here.' 'Huh? Whaddaya mean?' 'Well, back at the mountain, there's only old guys who think about nothing else but Their books and King Saffron.' 'King Saffron?' 'He's not really a king…not yet anyhow, hes only about, my age, but he's the son of the great phoenix king who just decided to leave for no apparent reason. Perhaps he was tired of ruling, and wanted to leave the responsibility to someone else, who else better to do this but his own son?' 'Oh well, that's interesting. So you're from the mountain? Is everyone there winged like you are?' 'We are the phoenix people, one of the three tribes that were brought into this valley long ago, and we have been living well because the mountain is abundant in water and we can find all we need to eat in this valley.' 'Oh you're one of the three tribes, what are the others?' 'They are the amazon people, and the dragon kin, led by their respective rulers. I don't know that much about the other tribes, only that I'm not supposed to go near their villages, because it's dangerous. It's so boring though, I wish I could just go and see what the places look like.' 'Hey I don't mind. I'm not busy, and I could protect you from any harm.' 'Ha ha, that's so cute, my own bodyguard.' She proceeded to tell Ranma all about her home, and how she was learning from the old and wise people of the mountain. 'I need to know a lot so that I could one day help the king.' 'Right, so where shall we go first?' 'Well, the amazons are all women, so I don't think you should go there…' 'Pff, not to worry, I'm not a pervert.' 'Oh no? You seemed to like watching me back there.' '…eh! It's not like that it's not as if I wanted to look at you, I just walked by and…' 'Oh, so you don't like me?' 'What! NO that's not it I…' the girl was laughing her head off at Ranma's protests and Ranma, who just realized that she was teasing him started pouting. 'ha, ha, ha, I'm sorry, it was just too good an opportunity to pass up.' "Oh man, she had me freaking there, what am I gonna do about her…" 'Alright, let's go already' said Ranma. So the two headed off along the edge of the cliff, to avoid all the springs, and when they were finally on the outskirts of the valley, they spotted the amazon village. It was in a big clearing outlined by trees, and the entire side was fenced off. There was one gate in the front, where two armed amazons stood, watching guard. There seemed to be a lot of screaming coming from the village. 'How are we going to get close Ranma?' 'Hmm, let's go around, to avoid the guards, and we'll climb in the trees around the fence, then we can see what's going on.' 'Alright.' And the two headed off into the trees, up there, they saw a huge ring, where there was a girl in battle gear standing with two bonbouri, screaming out something in chinese. 'What's she saying?' 'She says: Does anyone dare challenge me? The crowd seems to be recoiling slightly, maybe they're afraid?' 'Oh, so she wants a challenge? Then I'll give her one.' 'Hey wait…' But he had already jumped down and so the winged girl was left sitting in the tree to watch. 'Hey there, I'll fight you' yelled out Ranma in Japanese. 'Who you?' Said the battle-clad girl. 'I'm Ranma Saotome and I accept the challenge!' And he jumped onto the ring. 'You are outsider, why you here?' 'well, since no one's gonna fight you, I will!' 'Ah, challenge for Xian-pu? Me accept!' And she ran at Ranma with her bobori held in the air, and slammed them down where Ranma was just standing. He jumped out of the way casually, saying: 'Is that all ya got?' Xian pu ran at him again, this tim whacking her weapons together like the ends of scissors. Ranma jumped into the air and landed behind her, tapping her on the back, and she swung her bonbori around aiming to knock him into the side of the ring, but ranma ducked, and went into a low kick which sent Xian pu tumbling down over herself and knocking herself on the head with her own weapon. 'I guess we're done here.' And as he was about to jump away, Xian pu jumped up and glomped him with a loud cry of 'Airen!' And Ranma not knowing wha that meant, tried to throw her off, but she wouldn't let go. 'Hey, leggo of me!' 'You no leave, you husband now, and she tried to give him the kiss of marriage, but he turned his face, and she kissed him on the cheek instead. 'What the…!' Ranma exclaimed. 'Aiyah! I give you kiss of death, now must kill!' Ranma ran off to the wall, jumped into the tree and joined the phoenix in hiding. 'You dummy!' said she and bapped him on the head. 'Hey, how was I supposed to know?' 'Let's get out of here! Trust me, we don't want to be found!' And the two jumped out of the tree and ran into the woods, then made their way back where they had first met. 'Well Ranma, I believe we should split here. Thank you for showing me around!' 'Hey, how do you know my name?' 'Silly, you yelled it out loud enough back there.' 'oh, heh, well, ok, see you around.' And she walked off. When she had gone, Ranma left in the direction of the guide's hut. "Pops should be back by now… Rats! I didn't ask for her name." He decided to come back the next day and ask her. As he neared the hut, the chimney was smoking, and sure enough, there was Genma standing outside. 'Hey pop! Are you gonna tell me what you were doing today or are ya going to keep it for yourself?' 'Curious are you, son? Well, I'll tell you one thing…' 'Yes! What is it?' '…It's supper time! Hahaa!' 'Arrghh!' and Ranma started chasing Genma around! 'Damn pop! I thought you were going to tell me about what you did today!' said Ranma as he, Genma, Plum and the guide were eating supper! 'Hahaa! I got you' and everyone but Ranma started chuckling, and soon they were all laughing at how gullible Ranma was. 'Sorry son, all I can tell you now is that what I did today has to do with the secret that our kind host has offered to give you at the end of your training here!' 'Oh well. At least that's something!' So they finished the meal, which consisted of rice and fish. They had various mushrooms and vegetables. 'I keep a large garden behind my house, that way, I have quite a bit of food to work with!' the guide had said. 'It's the end of the day Ranma, let's go relax our muscles so that we don't get tired tomorrow.' 'Alright, let's do it!' Ranma and Genma performed a special kata that concentrated on releasing the tension of their muscles and opening up their chi pathways, and prepared their mind for undisturbed rest. As father and son were doing this, Plum and her father watched. 'It was a good decision to pass over the power to this boy.' 'Yes, father, he will do well.' Plum agreed.
The next morning, Ranma awoke late, and his father was already gone. He went into the kitchen and found Plum sitting at the table. 'mornin' Plum, where are our pops?' 'Oh hi Ranma, my dad and yours went to finish the work they started yesterday.' 'What? Crap, I should've expected this… Of course, everyone knows except for me.' Oh! Ranma, don't worry, you'll find out in due time.' 'Whatever, so, did they leave any breakfast?' 'Yes, over there, on the stove.' Ranma filled his plate and started eating. He was finished in less than a minute. 'So Plum, what were you doing yesterday? Were you with those two as well?' 'No, I went out to gather some things that you'll need with what we're going to give you. What about you?' ' Um, well…' 'You can trust me, I won't tell anyone.' 'Alright, when I got up, everyone was gone, so I took a walk…' And Ranma told her all about what he had done the day before. 'There, that's it.' 'Yes, well, I know a lot about Jusenkyo and the valley. From your description of your friend, it looks like she's from Phoenix Mountain. They are mostly a very reserved people so I think you only saw her because she was young. If it had been any of the others, they would either have fled or attacked you !' 'Yeah, she said something about most of the people there being old.' 'Yes, that would explain why she was friendly, she must be extremely bored if what she told you is true. As for the other part, I have some important things to tell you.' ' Okay, I'm all ears.' 'First, don't tell either of our fathers about what you did yesterday.' 'Huh? I can't see why I shouldn't tell my dad…' 'Just trust me, if anything happens, you don't want them to know about all that.' 'Alright then.' 'As for my father, well, it's just because he might freak if you tell him about the amazons.' 'Right.' 'So, you say she sent out a challenge and you being a martial artist who will not back down from a challenge, decided that you should fight?' 'um yeah, that's about right. But the way you put it makes me look stupid!' 'Well, since you've already made that point, I won't repeat it!' 'What!' 'Well, admit it, it was pretty stupid to go and answer to a challenge from an amazon!' ' Does this have anything to do with that "Kiss of Death" thing?' 'Yes. Let me tell you a little about amazons.' 'Now, Ranma, did you see her kiss anyone else?' 'No.' 'That's because the rules apply for "outsiders". 'So they only kiss outsiders?' 'Okay, listen, here are the rules:
If the outsider is a male, and defeats the challenging Amazon, the Amazon must give him the kiss of marriage, thus incorporating him into the tribe. NOTE: The amazon is thew dominant partner in this "relationship".
If the outsider is female, and defeats the amazon, the defeated amazon must give her the kiss of death. This involves killing the outsider female at all costs.
If the outsider loses, they are sent away, regardless of their sex.
EXEPTIONS: Although those are the rules, if the kiss of death is given to an outsider male by accident, then the rules still apply unless decided otherwise by the council.
Important Notes: Applying to both outsider victory cases, the amazon is expected to pursue them until their duty is fulfilled. If they return without having fulfilled their duty, there is a series of consequences. The first time, they must undergo retraining, and they are given a second chance to fulfill their duty correctly. If they return again, duty unfulfilled, they will face exile and matters will be taken into the hands of the council.
'Well, now I understand…could you repeat the rules one more time?' Plum stared daggers at him. 'Waaa! I'm just kidding!' Plum relaxed. 'So I can't tell anyone else about this, and I have to watch myself if I don't want to die because of exceptions to a rule, right?' 'Yes, you did understand.' 'Of course I did. Now, what should we do?' 'Well, since I'm finished my gathering, we could spar a little. Does that interest you?' 'Yeah! Are you any good? 'Cause if your knowledge means anything, I'm sure you could be really good.' And so they went out to a clearing near the house and started to fight.
Meanwhile, Genma and the guide were going deeper into the cave they had cleared the day before, 'So, it's in here?' 'Yes, the ancients came to Jusenkyo a long time ago and they called forth two powerful entities. The immortal demi-god Phoenix called Saffron, and the colony of winged people. This people was to within the mountain at Jusendo. Then they summoned Herb and his dragon kin. They settled in another section of the valley. Then, as the ancients worked in threes, they called forth a people of the planet itself, a long line of amazon warriors, and gave them the blessing of life, which is why they have lasted so long. Now the ancients had created a trio of powerful people. As they were not going to stay there forever, they created a powerful artifact that would be passed down through the generations of the ancients. To this day, there has always been at least one of the ancients left. A new one of the line would enter the world every thousand years, he is fated to begin his training early on to prepare for the day when he meets his predecessor. On this day, all the accumulated knowledge of the ancients will be his to pass on to the next descendant of the ancients' line, this is the line passed down from the generations of the defenders of the valley.' Genma watched the man intently, wondering how on earth he had not been able to perceive the great knowledge of lore hidden within the mind of his guide. 'The ancients placed a blessing upon the generations of Jusenkyo's protectors which hides their great knowledge from view.' 'Oh! Now I understand. Hah! Even all my skill is no match for the power of these ancients.' 'We have made progress.' Said the guide, as both had been working at the cave while they were talking. 'Let us go back to my home, the final stage of the uncovering of the artifact must take place in two weeks.' 'Good, I will have time to train Ranma in preparation for his task.' Both men got out of the cave just as the sun was setting, and started their trek home.