It seems there's already a fic called Dragonghost out there. So I changed the title slightly.

The Dragon and The Ghost

Part 2

The Staff of Elders.

--------------------

Ranma stood on a hillside with Ryu beside him. They overlooked a great valley with the city of Alta in its center. The bustle of the town was evident even from where they stood. Caravans entered the large gates in the great stone wall that surrounded the village. The setting sun in the distance made the scene quite breathtaking. However, the pair ignored the scenery for the most part and planed their next course of action.

"So, someone wants you to steal the staff of elders from the elven village near Koran?" Kumon frowned and scratched his chin in thought.

"That's what she said," confirmed the pigtailed boy lazily.

"I don't like it, this smells like a trap."

"It could be internal politics. She might be starting some sort of coupe or something. Besides, you always say that when somebody hires us."

"I've been right before."

Ranma sighed and shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, twice, big deal, and so what if it is? That's never stopped us."

"It doesn't seem like something the elves would do though. Drow maybe, but not elves."

"Hmm, you're right, but then again, everybody has a few bad apples."

"So why are we helping her then?" snorted Ryu angrily.

"She paid us well. We've done things like this before, even if she is some sort of megalomaniac, someone always comes along and stops them. It isn't our concern."

"Yeah, I suppose. Something about this doesn't sit right with me though. I get the feeling we might end up playing the hero in this one Ranma. You know I hate that."

"Well don't come then, this is more my style anyway. Lots of magical traps and stuff I'm sure."

"I don't see what you're so worried about. We haven't done anything to piss any elves off. Lots of wizards and mages, but not elves." Ranma smiled and pat his companion on his back.

"So we do it then?"

"We've already been paid," noted Ranma as he produced the bag of gold and tossed it to the ground at Kumon's feet.

"Well, that settles it then. The Dragon Ghost strikes again." Ryu shook his head and smirked. "Come on, let's start setting up camp."

-------------------

The next day Ranma and Ryu started out early, they were well into the wilderness by the middle of the day and made their way into the great forest that was the home to the elven city.

"I didn't know they were so close to Alta," commented Ryu lazily.

"Hmm," Ranma nodded in agreement and took a flask of water off of his belt. He poured it over his head and changed into his female form. "Two humans wouldn't arouse much suspicion, they get a lot of traders here. We'll draw less attention this way though."

"You've been here before?" commented Ryu lazily.

"Once or twice on business, they pay good money in some of these shops for magical items. They love novelty spells, no hardcore stuff here though. Elves don't really need black magic or healing spells."

"You would know," grumbled Ryu as he glanced around. After a moment of silence he spoke up again. "Any idea who our mysterious elven client is?"

"Not really no," Ranma cocked her head to the side and thought about it. "She could be a disguised Drow, but I didn't get much menace from her. She could be some sort of low level noble looking to up her position with this somehow. I'm not real good at stuff like this, I don't see any reason to worry though."

"Why is that?" snorted Ryu casually.

"From what I've heard, the staff doesn't have any sort of magical power. It's a sort of symbol for the leaders of the tribe."

"Sacred artifact eh?"

"More or less, elves don't talk about it much. It's not really all that important. It may be valuable though."

"Maybe she's going to ransom it, if it's a political symbol."

"Who cares? Let's get this over with," snorted Ranma as she turned with the path.

The pair came upon a wide path with torches hanging on a few of the tree trunks. It was getting late and they had been lit recently, a few lazy looking guards stood up in the tree branches on tiny wooden platforms watching the forest intently. Travelers like them could pass unmolested for the most part, especially with Ranma's curse. Soft music floated across the air towards them as they neared the village.

The path ended suddenly and Ryu looked up at the town. He raised his eyebrow in slight surprise at the sight. All of the buildings were suspended from the branches, wooden and grass huts with hanging walkways between them; a few of the homes were even carved into the trunks of the gigantic trees. The plants inside the village were hundreds of times larger than those in the rest of the forest. "Impressive."

Ranma nodded her agreement and pointed to a particularly large tree in the center of the village, it was as large as a palace and rose thousands of feet into the air. "That's where it will be."

"Looks like a party," commented Ryu as he nodded towards several large bonfires on the forest floor with elves dancing around the flames. There were several large tables of food as well. It seemed as if the whole village was present.

The pair walked into the crowd and put smiles on their faces as they wandered through. There were several humans present, as well as a few dwarves. Ranma took Ryu by the hand and forced a blush onto her face as she led him through the crowd towards the palace. A few of the elves noticed this and gave knowing smiles at what appeared to be an embarrassed couple sneaking away to be alone. They weren't bothered.

Finally the pair moved away from the crowd towards the great tree. Several windows were carved into the wood and lights could be seen from a few of them. The pair stopped and nodded towards one another silently as they slunk into the shadows.

"How do you want to handle this?" asked Ryu as he pulled off his traveling pack and set it down before removing a few grappling hooks and some rope.

"My way of course, we can't just barge in there shouting. The whole village is out here right now. We need to be as quiet as possible."

"So, I'll stay here then?"

"For now, I want you to stay nearby. I'm not sure what kind of security they put around this thing, or if there are any spells protecting it. Give me a couple of dispel wards, I'm betting they have some kind of tracking spell on the damn thing."

"Right, I'll stand watch over there." Ryu pointed to one of the hanging walkways that came particularly close to the large tree. "If this is a trap, they won't take long to move in. If that happens I'm getting us out of here in a hurry Ranma. We don't need another screw up."

"We got away clean didn't we?"

"Shut up. That was far to close for my liking, and that damn dwarf is still after your hide!"

"Whatever," grumbled Ranma as she faded into the shadows.

"Damn careless wench!" snarled Ryu as he started to stalk away. A moment later he was lying on his stomach, there were several tears along the back of his shirt. "Damn you Ranma!"

"Who's a wench?" teased a ghostly voice from the shadows.

--------------------

The elder of the elves walked through the hallway and smiled as she saw the party down below her through the windows. It was the festival of the moon, a harvest time tradition that had existed for thousands of years. She remembered most of them herself. She continued her walk and came upon a young elf girl with violet hair that fell down to her waist.

"Ah, Shampoo, how are things going?"

The girl smiled. "Everything is going as planned Great Grandmother."

"Excellent. Walk with me a ways child."

Shampoo frowned; she hated when the old woman called her that. She was almost two hundred. However, she complied and walked with the woman through the darkened hallways.

"I see that you felt it as well child."

"What is that great grandmother?" said the woman cheerfully. "The festival is going well."

"That's not what I mean child. A presence has vanished from existence. It seems someone has died, one of our own. She is not familiar to me though. It saddens me to see life ended so prematurely, she was young."

"A murder?" the elven girl's eyes went wide.

"No, I sensed no violence in her passing, it was most unusual. Quite sudden really."

Shampoo nodded at this. "Tragic."

"Well, I'm off to bed, at my age these parties don't last as long as they did once."

"Good night great grandmother."

The woman paused slightly as she moved towards her chambers near the top of the stairs. She spoke in a hushed voice. "Shampoo, alert the guards, there is a thief among us."

"What?" said the girl in shock.

"Quickly child, I shall attempt to locate her. She cannot hide from our magic."

------------------

Mousse stood patiently at the entrance to the small shrine. The doors were opened and he was staring at the staff in front of him. It was thrust into a simple wooden pedestal; the crystal on top of it glowed in the flickering torchlight. "It would be so simple to take it. I would be accepted again." He clenched his fists and growled slightly. "No." He turned away from the temptation. "I promised I would not. I cannot break that oath, not to her." He placed his glasses on his face and sighed as he hung his head. Guard duty sucked; there was no way around it. It was made worse by the party going on outside, and the temptation of taking the damnable staff. It really would be easy; he knew all the traps that filled the room. At least he thought he did, it would be just like that old hag to hold out on him. That thought ended the debate. He turned towards the hallway again and waited for his relief to come.

Suddenly the crystal around his neck glowed brightly. A voice filled the hallway suddenly that almost filled him with joy.

"Mousse! There is a thief, be on guard."

"Yes Shampoo! No one will get by me!" he cried excitedly.

--------------------

"Elder, I detect nothing." Another of the aged ones sat over her crystal ball and stared deeply inside. There is one with larceny in his heart, but he stands outside. He has not moved for some time, I doubt if he is foolish enough to try anything.

Cologne narrowed her eyes. "Impossible, I know what I felt. A presence outside vanished as if in death, then reappeared for a moment inside the halls."

"Perhaps your age has made you jumpy?"

"You'd like that wouldn't you? No, the life force within her was too strong for me to be jumping at shadows."

"As you say, but there is still nothing. Perhaps a spirit with a strong bond to this place has been visiting?"

"Perhaps, but I still want us to be on guard."

"It will be done," said the crone as she turned away from her crystal and walked out of the room.

----------------------

Ranma stood watching the elven boy for a moment in the shadows. The boy seemed well adjusted to the darkness; he was also very alert at the moment. His gaze shifted up and down the hall searching for intruders.

"My such a diligent guard," she thought to herself before backing away from the scene. The staff could be seen inside a small room behind him. There were several magical traps she could see, and probably a few more she could not. "That's a little much for a staff that does nothing. Unless..." She faded back into the shadows.

---------------------

Ryu frowned as two more guard appeared at the entrance to the palace. "Changing the guard?" He paused and noted that a few more appeared on either side of him watching him intently. "No, they're bulking up security." He narrowed his eyes and leaned against the trunk of the tree he was standing in. "It seems they're on to something, but is it us?" He chuckled slightly. "Well Ranma, it seems that you've underestimated them. I'll wait a little longer too see if anything else happens first."

---------------------

Ranma entered a large darkened chamber and smiled. There was almost no light in the room, not even enough to see with. She knew that any light within the room would attract attention. Especially with it being an elf palace. They wouldn't even need magical detection to know something had changed in the room; the flow of nature would be enough to alert them. She slunk silently across the room to where a large bed sat along the wall.

Her instincts told her all she needed to know. Silently she fell at the foot of the bed where a large chest lay. She knelt down beside it and opened the lid carefully. A few robes and some small jewelry could be seen inside, she carefully removed them and smirked to herself as she pulled out a small hidden panel out of the bottom. A long golden handle glinted slightly in the tiny ray of moonlight that shone through the curtains. She smiled to herself and placed one of the wards across the staff. "There, now to get out of here."

She jumped up into the shadows of the ceiling and smiled as the doors burst open. Several elven men entered brandishing torches. In the center an old elven woman rushed forward and shoved those in front of her aside with a gnarled wooden staff. "That box, open it!" she commanded.

Ranma slipped through the doors behind them without a sound and once again took to the shadows.

Inside the room the chest was opened, the clothing within was undisturbed. "Nothing mistress."

The woman snorted and started to toss the contents around carelessly. She pulled out the hidden panel and frowned. "It is as I feared. Go now, alert the village. The staff of elders has been stolen." She turned around and rushed out of the room again.

-----------------------

Mousse waited patiently, word had not yet reached him. The thief was apparently still inside the palace. "If I took it now, they would believe that the thief succeeded. He slowly stalked towards the open doors that beckoned him ever closer. "Do I really want to go back though?" He paused as an image appeared in the back of his mind. "Shampoo... I'm sorry, I can no longer live in shame. I shall come back for you though." He slowly rubbed his chin and reached out for the golden staff.

"Mousse!" The elven boy jumped in alarm.

"Shampoo! What's going on?"

"You have failed me? The Staff of Elders has been stolen!"

The crystal around his neck glowed as the telepathic link came to life. He fell to his knees as pain laced through his body. A blue energy crackled around him. "Failed? The staff has not been stolen! I'm looking at it right now!"

Another voice entered the boy's mind. "Enough, Shampoo release him. He has not failed his duty." Mousse felt the pain slowly subside and struggled away from the doors again.

---------------------

In another part of the palace the violet haired girl stood with her great grandmother and stared at her in shock. "You mean?"

"Yes child, the real staff has been stolen."

"No! How could this be?"

The elder who had tried to discover the intruder stood in the room as well. "Nothing, the human thief still stands where he was before. He has not moved, nor invoked any magic. He is not the culprit."

"I know," said Cologne sadly. "The one we seek cannot be of this world. It has the ability to erase all signs of its existence."

"You mean?"

"Yes, Shampoo, you have done well. Too well."

"I understand Great Grandmother." The girl bowed and walked out of the room.

"What do you speak of?"

"You will understand in time," said the old woman cheerfully.

"Mousse almost betrayed us tonight."

"No, he did not. I can see deeper into his heart than anyone else, he would not have gone through with his plan. The deception is still there, but it is weak. I wonder what it was he did to come to such an opinion of himself? He will grow stronger, perhaps one day he will tell us what this secret he hides away from us is."

"I doubt that, it is buried far too deep."

"In time, we shall see. His foolhardy love for my Shampoo is far greater than even she imagines. I can only hope time erases it, for I see only tragedy if it is allowed to grow."

--------------------

Ranma stood with Ryu and smiled. "We have it."

The guard that had been watching Ryu left a short time ago into the palace. The place was swarming with them. The festivities had long since ended and now guards walked among the guests.

"Good let's get out of here."

The pair walked towards the path that would lead them out of the village and started walking.

"You caused quite a commotion."

"Yeah, I used that ward to seal away the spell placed on the staff. It isn't anything but a tracking spell, but it was enough to alert the elves inside that something was wrong."

Ryu nodded and they left the light of the bonfires and walked into the darkness. The woods seemed alive at night as the bushes and branches shifted in the wind. "So, we bring this thing to the elven wench and she pays us the rest of the money?"

"That's right, we'll be able to take it easy for a while." Ranma looked quite proud of herself at this announcement.

"You two! Hold! No one is permitted to leave!" cried a voice from in front of them.

The pair stopped and noticed the guards standing in front of them. There were five of them, all armed with spears.

Ryu looked at Ranma and smiled. "What should we do?"

"Don't look at me, your the strong arm remember?" quipped the girl as she hunched over. She seemed to fade completely out of existence.

"I guess I earn my part of this now eh?" said Ryu with a grin appearing on his face. He charged forward and screamed at them.

"Don't move!" The guards paused in surprise and he rushed into them. "Fierce Tiger Opening Gates Blow!"

The guards were sent reeling by the blow, at least two of them were down for the count and a third would not recover in time to stop his escape.

Two of the guards he missed completely though. They quickly regained their senses and charged him with their spears held low. Ryu shifted allowing one of the pikes to pass by him. His hand lashed out and cut through the wooden handle snapping the blade off, his free hand met the guard's helmet creating a dent and sent the man to the ground out cold. He shook his hand off and frowned. Iron helmets really hurt.

The other guard was already lying on the ground; he was stripped down to his shorts with bruises running down the sides of his back on both sides.

"Thanks for the assist."

"No problem, it wouldn't do to have my partner get killed for his own carelessness," commented Ranma as she appeared beside him.

"Or mine for running her mouth," snorted the boy as he started walking away.

"Oh come on! Don't be such a jerk!"

"Who's a jerk?"

The pair happily argued their way out of the woods.

------------------

"I've brought what you want," said Ranma as she stood in front of the elven girl again. They were once again inside the Guild King's chamber alone together.

"My, but you have," said the violet haired elf with a small frown on her face. She fiddled with the staff lazily as she spoke.

"Great, now pay me."

She tossed another bag of gold at her feet and Ranma cheerfully picked it up.

The woman smiled. "So tell me, which one are you? Dragon, or ghost?"

Ranma froze and slowly looked up at the woman.

"So, it is true? I never would have guessed that the famous thief of sorcerers was actually a duo. Our guards reported you and your companion leaving the village."

"Who are you? What do you want?"

"I am Shampoo, the Princess of the Forest Elves. I wanted you to steal the staff of elders, but I never expected you to steal the real one. None of us did. We are quite impressed."

"Is there a point in this?"

Shampoo narrowed her eyes. This elf was being quite cheeky for someone who just found out she was speaking with royalty. She sighed and pushed it aside. "Of course there is. This was a test. We have a job, if you complete it, you will be rewarded with enough money to retire on permanently."

"Retire? Why would I want to do that?"

"I see, then there is more to you than the value of a gold piece is there?"

"Maybe." Ranma didn't like this. She wanted to leave, but the situation would leave too much danger for her and Ryu.

"Moving on, the job is very difficult, hence the difficulty of the test. I want you to steal something else for me."

"No."

"Pardon?"

"I don't like people toying with me. If my partner was in here he'd kill you for what you know. Pray I don't tell him." She turned to leave the room.

"Ten million gold pieces."

Ranma stared at her again. "What?"

"That is the reward for completing this task. Think it over, you know where to find me." Shampoo stood up and walked past the young girl with a smirk on her face.

"Do you really think I can be bought?"

"Anyone can be bought if you offer enough."

"You're wrong," said Ranma.

"If you can't be bought, then how did I come into possession of this?"

"It was a challenge. People have died for less than what you tried in here."

"Oh, then this is a challenge more worthy than this staff could ever hope to be."

"What is it then?"

"I cannot tell you."

"... I'll think about it."

After that Ranma stood alone inside the chamber. She clenched her fist and stared at it. "Damn."

-----------------------

TBC...

Next time: The impossible dream.


C&C to Carrotglace@juno.com