Kyuuketsuki
(Vampire)
A Ranma 1/2 fanfiction by Zorknot (W. Brad Robinson)
DISCLAIMER: Ranma 1/2 is the property of Takahashi
Rumiko, Viz Video, Kitty Films, and Shogakukan.
The prologue to this fic and all of my other fics can
be found here:
Or here
Chapter 1: Ta Ro Ichi Kon
~~~~~[START]~~~~~
Sometimes at night, the house spoke to Kasumi.
Sometimes it would squeak with glee for being so
clean and full of loving people. A lot of times it
would groan about the mess still left over from
Akane-chan's latest creation or the hole in the roof
from grandfather Happosai being punted into the
stratosphere. Late at night, while she stared at her
ceiling, Kasumi fancied she had entire conversations
with the house. She would often hum a soothing melody
to it to make it feel better as she drifted off to
sleep. She even took to calling it "Uchi-chan." The
house seemed to like that.
She and Uchi-chan had been through a lot. Dojo
destroyers, mischievous oni, gigantic
yeti/bull/crane/snake/octopus hybrids, and most
recently a wedding that was more like a small war.
Kasumi sighed. Poor Uchi-chan barely had enough time
to recover from one disaster before another one
happened right on its heels, but it was still her
ever-present friend and confidant. It still was her
family's protector...and the Saotomes' protector too,
especially now that Auntie was living there as well.
So many loved ones under one roof... and all only a
few days after such an uproar...It was nights like
tonight that Kasumi would wake up in a cold sweat and
short of breath, worrying. It was nights like tonight
she calmed herself by listening to Uchi-chan's
squeaks and groans. Despite the chaos that
Ranma had caused over the past year, things were a
lot less strained. In fact, Ranma's problems seemed
to be a stinging salve for the Tendos' own
difficulties. Kasumi had been having her nightmares
less and less, and Uchi-chan, despite its
complaining, seemed happier...more alive.
Kasumi's eyes found her alarm clock. The glowing
green digits told her it was 12:40. Her tired mind
debated for a moment whether that was early or late.
Tonight's nightmare had been bad... something to do
with blood...and her family's sword, but even so her
eyes were already drooping, and Kasumi almost fell
back asleep without listening to Uchi-chan's sounds
much at all. Kasumi didn't feel right about going to
sleep without saying hello to Uchi-chan though. So,
just for a minute, she listened...
Kasumi suddenly felt uneasy. There was something
different. The house's noises seemed more strained,
more insistent, like it was trying to tell her
something... Then the house started screaming.
"Wait," Kasumi spoke softly, half awake, "that's
not Uchi-chan that's..." Kasumi sat up in bed, her
eyes wide "Nabiki!...?" Kasumi listened closer. It
was most definitely a human scream, and it was most
definitely her sister. "Oh my!" Kasumi said as her
fingers touched her lips.
Kasumi paused to think... Maybe Nabiki-chan was just
acting, she had done that before... Kasumi only
listened for a second more before she was out of bed
and in her slippers. No actress could scream like
that. No actress would want to. She couldn't wait for
Ranma or Akane. If they hadn't gotten up by now
something was wrong. She had to do something...but
what? "Ohhhhhh!" She paced hurriedly around the area
by her bed as she tried desperately to think of
something. All the while, her younger sister was
screaming. Nabiki-chan was screaming!
Attracted by the glint of moonlight off the silver,
her eyes found the cross necklace on her nightstand.
It had been her mother's. It was a plain, silver
cross, not all that different from any other such
necklace. It had no obvious decoration. In fact,
there was only one thing odd about it. On one side of
the cross, four kanji characters were inscribed. They
read, "Many paths, one soul."
She grasped it and held it to her chest. "Oh
Mother! What am I going to do?" This wasn't the first
time Kasumi had awakened to the sounds of an intruder.
The night Ryoga challenged Ranma she had thought Ryoga
was a burglar. But, even though she had felt a sense
of danger then too, she somehow knew that everyone
would be okay.
This was different. Nabiki was SCREAMING. She was
HURTING. Someone or something was hurting her. Now,
unlike that night with Ryoga, there was a terrible
urgency intertwined with the fear. If she tried to
wake up Akane or Ranma... she might be too late.
She might be too late anyway.
Kasumi held the cross in front of her in cupped
hands, hoping to find some answer in the smooth,
reflective metal.
"Protect them all, Kasumi-chan" the cross seemed to
say, "Protect your family, and yourself... I love
you. I always will"
Those were the last words her mother said to a
puzzled Kasumi before she left her the cross and
breathed her last breath. Slowly, Kasumi fastened the
necklace around her neck. "I'll try mother. I'll
try."
Resolved, but not at all calm, Kasumi opened the
door. Looking down the hall she saw a bluish glow
emanating from Nabiki's room. "Oh my!" Kasumi's
fingers touched her lips as she quickly jumped back
in her room and closed the door. Her heart raced.
Maybe she could just wait for Ranma or Akane anyway.
They had to have heard the scream by now, and they
were used to this sort of thing.
They were supposed to stop the bad people and
Kasumi was supposed to clean up afterwards. That's
the way it always was and that was the way Kasumi
liked it. She could deal with dirty floors. She could
deal with holes in the ceiling. She could even deal
with puddles of congealed ectoplasm provided the
poltergeist that created them was properly
exorcized...
There was something glowing and attacking her
sister. She had no idea how to deal with that, and...
she was afraid to see it. "I'm scared, Mother!" tears
came freely from Kasumi's eyes as she clutched the
cross necklace.
Ranma...what would he do in a situation like this?
Kasumi smiled in spite of herself at the thought.
Ranma would just burst through the door and start
attacking without so much as second spent wondering
whether or not he could defeat what was beyond it. He
would never do something so cowardly as hide in his
room crying while his sister screams...
Akane and Ranma were taking too long. Kasumi glanced
at the clock. 12:42. Her sister had been in pain for
nearly two minutes! She had to go. Now.
Kasumi opened the door to the hall again. Nabiki's
screams were more raw now as they echoed through the
hallway. Kasumi had to do something. She would never
forgive herself if she didn't.
As she walked steadily toward the glowing door,
Kasumi thought of her options. There was no way she
could stop whatever was in Nabiki's room, but maybe
she could distract it long enough for her sister to
get away and then find Ranma or Akane. But she wasn't
sure if she could even distract it. She obviously
posed no threat...
Kasumi found herself at the door. Nabiki's screams
were lessening. Praying that somehow Nabiki was
alright and bracing herself for what lay beyond,
Kasumi reached for the knob and pulled the door open...
Nabiki was writhing on her bed. Her pajamas were
tattered and stained with blood. She and her attacker
were both glowing an intense blue- the source of the
light. The attacker was bending over Nabiki, its
mouth on her neck. It was also wearing pajamas, and
oddly, appeared female...with red hair in a pigtail.
"Ranma?" Kasumi asked in shock. The attacker
paused, then whirled around to face Kasumi with a
feral snarl. The hair was wild, the eyes were pupil-
less and glowing an actinic blue. Matching blue-white
fangs protruded out of the mouth, but it was Ranma-
chan's face. "W-would you like some tea?"
The fanged, demonic looking Onna-Ranma knitted
her brow in confusion for a moment. Nabiki's body
went slack on the bed, her head lolling to one side,
her eyes eerily open. "No," Ranma said, "I don't want
any tea..." She rose from the bed and glided rapidly
to Kasumi in the doorway. Looking up at the taller
girl Ranma-chan smiled cruelly, showing her glowing
fangs. "I would like some fresh blood though."
"Oh my!" Kasumi's fingers went to her lips again.
"You picked a real bad time to interrupt me."
Ranma-chan placed two hands on Kasumi's stomach. For
a moment Kasumi stood, looking down at Ranma in
confusion. Then it hit.
At first, all Kasumi felt was a severe pressure as
she was blown back into the wall behind her in a
flash of blue light. Then she felt the pain.
Excruciating, sickening pain. She looked down. There
was a wide, quivering, gaping hole where her stomach
once was. She wondered crazily what the long white
thing was.
She realized it was her spine.
"That's right, bitch," the terrible creature using
Ranma-chan's body said, "Just be a good girl and die
over there while I finish. And don't get back up
until I bring you back to life."
Kasumi was already growing faint, darkness
impinging on her vision, by the time Ranma-chan turned
back into Nabiki's room. Kasumi dully realized she was
going into shock. Not enough blood was getting to her
brain. It was leaving her, abandoning her. Life was
abandoning her. It was being burned by gastric juices
as it poured onto the floor.
Kasumi weakly brought her hand to her cross. She
grasped it with all her remaining strength. "I'm
sorry, Mother," she whispered through the blood in
her throat, "I'm...sorry." Her eyes closed. She had
failed....failed.... Nabiki in the
hands of a demon. Demon hands, hands of fate of God
of dying death a doorway pain the end remain here do
not die save her save her death pain mom's chocolate
chip cookies burning stomach pain love need....
~~~~~*~~~~~
Where am I?
Just below the ceiling.
Oh.
It's a good ceiling. Uchi-chan's ceiling. I can
feel its energy...
Hello, Uchi-chan!
There's a shiver in the energy. Something is
wrong.
Am I dead?
Oh yes, that explains a few things...
Nabiki is in trouble.
Where is Mother? Mother can handle it. Mother always
took care of everything.
No. Mother is...somewhere else. Heaven maybe. I am
still here.
Maybe I should wake Ranma up?
No, Ranma was the one that killed me.
Really? That's odd. She seemed like such a nice
girl... when she wasn't a boy. She was a nice boy too
of course... But she killed me. That wasn't very nice...
Something bad is happening...
Maybe Akane? She's a martial artist. She could
handle it maybe.
Didn't she almost die though? Who saved her?
Ranma.
Oh.
Something really bad is going on in the next room.
Father?
No time. Nabiki might be dying.
Not Grandfather Happosai,
Not Uncle Saotome,
Not Nodoka...
~~~~~*~~~~~
There were many paths, but Kasumi was only one
soul. As the idea that maybe, just maybe she could
still do something echoed through whatever she was
using to think, her way became clear. The various
parts of her came to the decision at more or less the
same time. Using Uchi-chan's energy as a guide, she
drifted into Nabiki's room. Ranma-chan was just
lowering her mouth to Nabiki's neck again.
~~~~~*~~~~~
No. Stop the pain. End it. Protect her.
But how can I do anything if I'm dead!
No. Not dead.
But...
~~~~~*~~~~~
Kasumi had to stop it. She had to stop Nabiki's
pain. She concentrated on Ranma, trying to pull her
away from Nabiki. She felt herself get heavier. She
felt herself... regaining feeling. She opened her
eyes and saw her hands on Ranma-chan's shoulders
right before they jerked backwards. Kasumi fell,
bringing Ranma-chan with her. Kasumi blinked. Somehow
she was alive, without any wounds, in Nabiki's room,
naked, except, she realized, she still had the cross
sandwiched between her hand and Ranma-chan's
shoulder.
Ranma-chan did not move immediately. She laid still
on top of Kasumi long enough for Kasumi to wonder
if she was ever going to move. Finally she spoke.
"So. You're the Kouken... I suppose it makes sense in
a strange way..." Ranma-chan leapt off Kasumi in a
blur and suddenly she was straddling her. She held up
her hand and made what looked at first like the sign
for victory or peace.
Then blue energy grew out of the two fingers. "Now
lets see... I just need to pierce one of your chakras
with my ki to kill you...which one will it be?" She
brought her hand over Kasumi's bare breasts. "The
heart? No, too dramatic. Besides, you're too well
protected there."
The hand drifted over to Kasumi's brow. "Your
forehead? No, as interesting as piercing your third
eye would be, it wouldn't be worth the effort."
Ranma-chan brought the ki-extended fingers down on
Kasumi's neck. "Yes, of course. Visuddha, the throat
chakra. Seat of consciousness and the ability to
communicate what you know and feel...My favorite." The
ends of the extension of each finger dug deep into the
wood on either side of Kasumi. "And of course I won't
have to worry about you turning into kasumi again and
getting away, because I'm using my legs to cover your
lower chakras with my ki." Ranma's face came nose to
nose with Kasumi's as the fanged demon smiled, "In
other words...You're trapped."
"What do you mean 'turn into Kasumi?' I'm Kasumi
now."
Ranma-chan managed to look confused for a moment,
then she smiled again allowing full view of her fangs.
"That's right, that's your name too isn't it? Your
parents named you Mist. How cute! Too bad they hadn't
trained you better. As I said, you won't be turning
into your namesake again any time soon. You failed,
Kouken."
Kasumi stared into the awful creature's glowing
blue eyes in shock She realized something she was
only dimly aware of before: there was no way this
could be Ranma. "Who are you?"
The creature backed off a bit "I am a vampire. A
kyuuketsuki. I am going to kill you. Nothing else
matters beyond that." Kasumi frowned. Something else
about this creature... It wasn't stupid, or without
emotion. Although it controlled Ranma now, Kasumi
could see it had lived its own life once.
Suddenly she felt sharp pain on either side of her
neck. The kyuuketsuki was bringing her fingers
together...
"This is going to be slow, and extremely painful."
The kyuuketsuki smiled even wider. "I for one am going
to love every second of it."
The razor sharp ki extensions from the vampire's
fingers bit deeper into Kasumi's neck. Any time now
they would cut through the Jugular vein and Carotid
artery. In desperation, Kasumi clutched the cross,
still in her right hand, close to her heart.
The vampire who wore the face of Ranma laughed
mirthlessly. "How quaint! If this were some idiotic
horror movie you might actually be lucky." The
kyuuketsuki's features turned serious. "But it isn't,
and you're not." The vampire's fingers bit deeper.
Kasumi gasped. She felt the blood spurt out from her
neck. "Heh, religion...false comfort for the weak and
perverse instrument of the powerful." The vampire
brought her fingers closer...
"It was my mother's." Kasumi said softly with tear
filled eyes. She was delirious from all that had
happened in such a short time. She was going to
die... again. For a moment she thought... but there
was no way she could protect her family now. There
never really was. She was going to die for real this
time... She would join her mother soon. All the pain
would soon be over. She relaxed. The
corners of her mouth curled up slightly as she
thought of how the cross she held had kept her alive for
almost eleven years after...it... happened. She
looked straight into the unnatural eyes of the
kyuuketsuki...and spoke, even as her vision began to
fade "The only belief that I have is that she is
somewhere, watching over me. I...cherish... that
belief more than anything, and I will not allow it
to be taken from me...or dismissed."
The vampire snarled and brought her fingers still
closer together. "I dismiss it. And after I kill you
and make you my slave, I'm going to destroy your cross,
and your stupid belief along with it."
Kasumi suddenly felt an invading presence. At first
it was vague, intangible, but gradually, she became
aware of dark emotions, of greed and bloodlust and...
hunger. Then, there was something else, a tiny
glimmer of light in a dark tunnel. Kasumi started to
pursue it, but that was when the pain came.
The cuts on her neck were minor trifles. This was
true pain. White hot molten metal burned through
Kasumi's veins. Sandpaper rubbed against her eyes. Her
fingernails were pulled off her fingers. Her teeth
were twisted in their sockets. A terrible keening
shrill sound filled her ears. "Ah, you feel it now,
don't you?" the vampire's voice came from far away.
"The exquisite pain of my energy subverting yours.
Soon you will be nothing more than an empty husk with
no will of your own. Then again, that's more or less
how you've been living, anyway."
~NO~
The thought wasn't a plea, but a command. Kasumi
felt her own presence, her own aura, gather around
the center of her being. She was dimly aware that the
area around her physical body had gotten brighter,
almost as if she herself were glowing...
She felt the vampire's aura hesitate, like a
nocturnal creature in a sudden light, before it
lunged at her. Seconds went by like hours as their
two auras fought each other. Each time the vampire
came close to reaching her exposed center, she would
think of her mother, her family, and her promise, and
she gained new strength, pushing the vampire back.
Slowly, Kasumi gained ground. The vampire's aura grew
weaker and Kasumi's grew stronger until suddenly, she
realized she was no longer defending but attacking.
She could destroy the vampire once and for all! She
could utterly obliterate it...
...and Ranma as well.
~It feels good doesn't it, Kouken?~ It was the
vampire! ~Go ahead, go that extra step, assimilate me,
gain my strength. Your little martial arts friend is
here too, he has a lot of strength, very tasty. It's
not like anyone would miss him either, after all he's
just a freeloader.~
Kasumi's aura stopped whipping out against the
vampire's. Kasumi kept it from going any further, but
it was like containing a flame, or damming a raging
river. Desperately she called out mentally to Ranma-
chan hoping that maybe she could keep from destroying
her if she could just separate Ranma from the
vampire. There was just the slightest reaction. It
was miniscule compared the tempest raging between the
two auras, like a the movement of a baby's little toe
amidst a battle of giants. Kasumi saw it though and
pulled, trying to tug it loose from the vampire's
grasp.
~This is pointless~ the vampire projected suddenly,
relinquishing her hold on Ranma.
Kasumi was snapped back into her body. She blinked,
not believing that she could suddenly be laying on the
floor of her sister's bedroom once again.
The vampire inhabiting Ranma stood unsteadily, its
face half illuminated by the sodium streetlamp through
the window, and looked down at Kasumi with half-lidded,
dimly glowing eyes. "Point goes to you, Kouken. Are
you happy? Do you realize how little this victory
matters?" The bloodsucker squinted Ranma's eyes. "No.
You don't know anything do you? You don't even
realize what you are." Crossing Ranma-chan's arms, the
kyuuketsuki said one final word: "Pitiful."
An intense glow emanated from Ranma's body for a moment
and then abruptly it was gone. Like a marionette with its
strings suddenly cut, Ranma collapsed, unconscious.
Kasumi sat up and felt both sides of her neck. There
were the raised ridges of scars... But no blood. How
was it possible? She looked out of the doorway into
the dark of the hall. She could barely make out the
outline of her clothes and slippers in a depression
in the wall. How was any of it possible?
She looked at Ranma's unconscious body for a moment
trying to figure out what had just happened. Was the
vampire gone? Was everyone safe now? Kasumi wanted to
believe so but it just happened too soon, and what
the vampire had said...She felt adrenaline seep out of
her, leaving only fatigue. She realized with some
surprise that someone else was standing in the room.
Slowly, she turned and looked up. It was Nabiki. She
was leaning against the wall, a robe now covering her
tattered pajamas. Dried blood was visible on her neck,
arms, and calves, but as far as Kasumi could tell,
there were no open wounds. Yet another mystery.
Kasumi then became aware of another fact: Nabiki was
wielding a baseball bat.
Kasumi quickly got in between her sister and Ranma.
"Nabiki, she's Ranma again. Ranma-chan is innocent in
all this."
"How do you know that 'neechan?" Nabiki's voice was
hoarse and weak.
"I ...I guess I don't. But why would the vampire
pass out like that?"
Nabiki shook her head and raised the bat in her
shaking grasp "I don't care." She swallowed, "I still
want to hit her. Him. Whatever. The bastard can't even
pick a gender and stick with it."
"Oh my! I don't think you should say that!"
Kasumi's fingers touched her lips.
"Why not, Kasumi?" Nabiki demanded. "Don't you know
what that...bitch did to me?"
"Gomen nasai, imoutochan," Kasumi apologized to her
sister, "I'm not quite sure... I just got the feeling
when you said that, that it was going to come back to
you."
"You got the feeling..." Nabiki repeated apparently
finding Kasumi's response a little odd. "Kasumi, what
the hell happened?" Nabiki shuffled unsteadily to the
light switch and flicked it on. "What was with that
light show between you and Ranma? And why are you... in
your birthday suit?"
Kasumi looked out in the hall at her clothes. She
looked at the cross still in her right hand. "I'm
afraid I really don't know, Nabiki-chan. I wish I
did." There was an awkward pause. Then Kasumi spoke
again "Do you want some tea?"
Nabiki laughed, though there wasn't much mirth in
it. "Tea. Your miracle cure. Helps with everything
from colds to bad moods to...whatever the hell that
was." Nabiki sighed and relaxed, propping the bat up
on her shoulder. She rubbed her throat with her free
hand "Maybe it's not such a bad idea, though... Here,"
Nabiki took off her robe and handed it to Kasumi, who
accepted it with a weak smile "no charge... I've...got
to think for a bit...I...Meet me downstairs, okay?"
Nabiki started to walk out of the room.
Kasumi was just about to think of getting up and
getting dressed when Nabiki turned around. "Wait a
minute, where is Akane? Shouldn't she be bashing Ranma's
head in with a hammer by now? In fact... Kasumi, is
everyone else still asleep?"
Kasumi nodded. "I think so, Nabiki."
"Now why is that do you suspect?"
Kasumi felt a chill pass down her spine as the answer
came upon her. "I think... there are more of the
vampires...here."
Nabiki took a large, unsteady step toward Kasumi.
"Nani?! There are more of these things?" Nabiki kicked
Ranma for emphasis.
"I'm afraid so."
Nabiki gripped the bat tighter. "G-great. I've got
the perfect plan. I'll wave this bat around
ineffectually, and you can offer refreshments."
There was a rustling sound and Nabiki and Kasumi watched
as Ranma's arm jerked and then relaxed. It moved again
slowly pressing against the floor. Ranma's torso rose
up unsteadily. Out of her mouth there issued forth a
terrible moan...
Kasumi saw Nabiki's eyes narrow as she prepared to swing...
Ranma sat up and rubbed the back of her head, eyes
squeezed shut, confusion readily visible on her face.
"Ack! My head feels like Akane cooked it! What's goin
on?"
Nabiki lunged past Kasumi and swung at Ranma with the
Bat. She connected with Ranma's head.
Ranma fell to the ground.
"Nabiki!" Kasumi crawled over to Ranma and shot a
accusing glare at Nabiki. "How dare you hurt Ranma-
chan like that! Can't you see she's been through
enough?"
"Kasumi, I'm sorry," Nabiki's eyes snapped their
focus to Kasumi, "but I don't fucking care whether
that's Ranma, a vampire, or Amateresu come out of her
fucking cave. Whoever it was that...hurt me... used
that body...and that body deserves to be damaged."
Ranma sat up holding a hand to the side of her
head. "Kasumi, she's right. I mean, thanks for carin
and all, but even if it wasn't me, even if there was
nothin I could do ta get Lili ta stop, I feel guilty.
I need the pain as much as she needed ta hit me."
"Wait a minute," Nabiki crouched next to Ranma and
grabbed her by the collar of her spiral decorated
pajamas. "You know that bitch's NAME?"
"Yeah. I know her name...Feng Lili." Ranma got to
her feet and Nabiki followed, still grabbing Ranma's
pajamas. Kasumi could see Ranma's fists were clenched.
She was almost shaking with rage. "And if she ever
does come back ya gotta let me help ya kill her."
Kasumi felt a sad, uneasy, unclean feeling come over
her. The same feeling she had felt for more than a
decade. All she would have to do is give Uchi-chan a
good thorough cleaning and it would go away, but Kasumi
wondered. She wondered why, when she had thought of Ranma
killing Lili, she had smiled.
Kasumi realized her fingers were at her lips, her
mouth almost open. "Oh my," she murmured softly and
brought her hand to her side.
~~~~~*~~~~~
Sometimes at night
When cold winds moan
I sit and wonder,
All alone.
Am I really living?
A hidden hate within me burns
A hidden heart within me yearns
I must be strong
I must smile through the pain
But sometimes I want to run away
Sometimes...
I feel things I can't explain...
-Fr. Kasumi's Book of Recipes
~~~~~[END]~~~~~
The following people have helped me with this chapter:
Nemesis Zero
Edward
Dracos
KpJam
Akraen
Any mistakes are my own.
As always C&C is most welcome.
(Vampire)
A Ranma 1/2 fanfiction by Zorknot (W. Brad Robinson)
DISCLAIMER: Ranma 1/2 is the property of Takahashi
Rumiko, Viz Video, Kitty Films, and Shogakukan.
The prologue to this fic and all of my other fics can
be found here:
Or here
Chapter 1: Ta Ro Ichi Kon
~~~~~[START]~~~~~
Sometimes at night, the house spoke to Kasumi.
Sometimes it would squeak with glee for being so
clean and full of loving people. A lot of times it
would groan about the mess still left over from
Akane-chan's latest creation or the hole in the roof
from grandfather Happosai being punted into the
stratosphere. Late at night, while she stared at her
ceiling, Kasumi fancied she had entire conversations
with the house. She would often hum a soothing melody
to it to make it feel better as she drifted off to
sleep. She even took to calling it "Uchi-chan." The
house seemed to like that.
She and Uchi-chan had been through a lot. Dojo
destroyers, mischievous oni, gigantic
yeti/bull/crane/snake/octopus hybrids, and most
recently a wedding that was more like a small war.
Kasumi sighed. Poor Uchi-chan barely had enough time
to recover from one disaster before another one
happened right on its heels, but it was still her
ever-present friend and confidant. It still was her
family's protector...and the Saotomes' protector too,
especially now that Auntie was living there as well.
So many loved ones under one roof... and all only a
few days after such an uproar...It was nights like
tonight that Kasumi would wake up in a cold sweat and
short of breath, worrying. It was nights like tonight
she calmed herself by listening to Uchi-chan's
squeaks and groans. Despite the chaos that
Ranma had caused over the past year, things were a
lot less strained. In fact, Ranma's problems seemed
to be a stinging salve for the Tendos' own
difficulties. Kasumi had been having her nightmares
less and less, and Uchi-chan, despite its
complaining, seemed happier...more alive.
Kasumi's eyes found her alarm clock. The glowing
green digits told her it was 12:40. Her tired mind
debated for a moment whether that was early or late.
Tonight's nightmare had been bad... something to do
with blood...and her family's sword, but even so her
eyes were already drooping, and Kasumi almost fell
back asleep without listening to Uchi-chan's sounds
much at all. Kasumi didn't feel right about going to
sleep without saying hello to Uchi-chan though. So,
just for a minute, she listened...
Kasumi suddenly felt uneasy. There was something
different. The house's noises seemed more strained,
more insistent, like it was trying to tell her
something... Then the house started screaming.
"Wait," Kasumi spoke softly, half awake, "that's
not Uchi-chan that's..." Kasumi sat up in bed, her
eyes wide "Nabiki!...?" Kasumi listened closer. It
was most definitely a human scream, and it was most
definitely her sister. "Oh my!" Kasumi said as her
fingers touched her lips.
Kasumi paused to think... Maybe Nabiki-chan was just
acting, she had done that before... Kasumi only
listened for a second more before she was out of bed
and in her slippers. No actress could scream like
that. No actress would want to. She couldn't wait for
Ranma or Akane. If they hadn't gotten up by now
something was wrong. She had to do something...but
what? "Ohhhhhh!" She paced hurriedly around the area
by her bed as she tried desperately to think of
something. All the while, her younger sister was
screaming. Nabiki-chan was screaming!
Attracted by the glint of moonlight off the silver,
her eyes found the cross necklace on her nightstand.
It had been her mother's. It was a plain, silver
cross, not all that different from any other such
necklace. It had no obvious decoration. In fact,
there was only one thing odd about it. On one side of
the cross, four kanji characters were inscribed. They
read, "Many paths, one soul."
She grasped it and held it to her chest. "Oh
Mother! What am I going to do?" This wasn't the first
time Kasumi had awakened to the sounds of an intruder.
The night Ryoga challenged Ranma she had thought Ryoga
was a burglar. But, even though she had felt a sense
of danger then too, she somehow knew that everyone
would be okay.
This was different. Nabiki was SCREAMING. She was
HURTING. Someone or something was hurting her. Now,
unlike that night with Ryoga, there was a terrible
urgency intertwined with the fear. If she tried to
wake up Akane or Ranma... she might be too late.
She might be too late anyway.
Kasumi held the cross in front of her in cupped
hands, hoping to find some answer in the smooth,
reflective metal.
"Protect them all, Kasumi-chan" the cross seemed to
say, "Protect your family, and yourself... I love
you. I always will"
Those were the last words her mother said to a
puzzled Kasumi before she left her the cross and
breathed her last breath. Slowly, Kasumi fastened the
necklace around her neck. "I'll try mother. I'll
try."
Resolved, but not at all calm, Kasumi opened the
door. Looking down the hall she saw a bluish glow
emanating from Nabiki's room. "Oh my!" Kasumi's
fingers touched her lips as she quickly jumped back
in her room and closed the door. Her heart raced.
Maybe she could just wait for Ranma or Akane anyway.
They had to have heard the scream by now, and they
were used to this sort of thing.
They were supposed to stop the bad people and
Kasumi was supposed to clean up afterwards. That's
the way it always was and that was the way Kasumi
liked it. She could deal with dirty floors. She could
deal with holes in the ceiling. She could even deal
with puddles of congealed ectoplasm provided the
poltergeist that created them was properly
exorcized...
There was something glowing and attacking her
sister. She had no idea how to deal with that, and...
she was afraid to see it. "I'm scared, Mother!" tears
came freely from Kasumi's eyes as she clutched the
cross necklace.
Ranma...what would he do in a situation like this?
Kasumi smiled in spite of herself at the thought.
Ranma would just burst through the door and start
attacking without so much as second spent wondering
whether or not he could defeat what was beyond it. He
would never do something so cowardly as hide in his
room crying while his sister screams...
Akane and Ranma were taking too long. Kasumi glanced
at the clock. 12:42. Her sister had been in pain for
nearly two minutes! She had to go. Now.
Kasumi opened the door to the hall again. Nabiki's
screams were more raw now as they echoed through the
hallway. Kasumi had to do something. She would never
forgive herself if she didn't.
As she walked steadily toward the glowing door,
Kasumi thought of her options. There was no way she
could stop whatever was in Nabiki's room, but maybe
she could distract it long enough for her sister to
get away and then find Ranma or Akane. But she wasn't
sure if she could even distract it. She obviously
posed no threat...
Kasumi found herself at the door. Nabiki's screams
were lessening. Praying that somehow Nabiki was
alright and bracing herself for what lay beyond,
Kasumi reached for the knob and pulled the door open...
Nabiki was writhing on her bed. Her pajamas were
tattered and stained with blood. She and her attacker
were both glowing an intense blue- the source of the
light. The attacker was bending over Nabiki, its
mouth on her neck. It was also wearing pajamas, and
oddly, appeared female...with red hair in a pigtail.
"Ranma?" Kasumi asked in shock. The attacker
paused, then whirled around to face Kasumi with a
feral snarl. The hair was wild, the eyes were pupil-
less and glowing an actinic blue. Matching blue-white
fangs protruded out of the mouth, but it was Ranma-
chan's face. "W-would you like some tea?"
The fanged, demonic looking Onna-Ranma knitted
her brow in confusion for a moment. Nabiki's body
went slack on the bed, her head lolling to one side,
her eyes eerily open. "No," Ranma said, "I don't want
any tea..." She rose from the bed and glided rapidly
to Kasumi in the doorway. Looking up at the taller
girl Ranma-chan smiled cruelly, showing her glowing
fangs. "I would like some fresh blood though."
"Oh my!" Kasumi's fingers went to her lips again.
"You picked a real bad time to interrupt me."
Ranma-chan placed two hands on Kasumi's stomach. For
a moment Kasumi stood, looking down at Ranma in
confusion. Then it hit.
At first, all Kasumi felt was a severe pressure as
she was blown back into the wall behind her in a
flash of blue light. Then she felt the pain.
Excruciating, sickening pain. She looked down. There
was a wide, quivering, gaping hole where her stomach
once was. She wondered crazily what the long white
thing was.
She realized it was her spine.
"That's right, bitch," the terrible creature using
Ranma-chan's body said, "Just be a good girl and die
over there while I finish. And don't get back up
until I bring you back to life."
Kasumi was already growing faint, darkness
impinging on her vision, by the time Ranma-chan turned
back into Nabiki's room. Kasumi dully realized she was
going into shock. Not enough blood was getting to her
brain. It was leaving her, abandoning her. Life was
abandoning her. It was being burned by gastric juices
as it poured onto the floor.
Kasumi weakly brought her hand to her cross. She
grasped it with all her remaining strength. "I'm
sorry, Mother," she whispered through the blood in
her throat, "I'm...sorry." Her eyes closed. She had
failed....failed.... Nabiki in the
hands of a demon. Demon hands, hands of fate of God
of dying death a doorway pain the end remain here do
not die save her save her death pain mom's chocolate
chip cookies burning stomach pain love need....
~~~~~*~~~~~
Where am I?
Just below the ceiling.
Oh.
It's a good ceiling. Uchi-chan's ceiling. I can
feel its energy...
Hello, Uchi-chan!
There's a shiver in the energy. Something is
wrong.
Am I dead?
Oh yes, that explains a few things...
Nabiki is in trouble.
Where is Mother? Mother can handle it. Mother always
took care of everything.
No. Mother is...somewhere else. Heaven maybe. I am
still here.
Maybe I should wake Ranma up?
No, Ranma was the one that killed me.
Really? That's odd. She seemed like such a nice
girl... when she wasn't a boy. She was a nice boy too
of course... But she killed me. That wasn't very nice...
Something bad is happening...
Maybe Akane? She's a martial artist. She could
handle it maybe.
Didn't she almost die though? Who saved her?
Ranma.
Oh.
Something really bad is going on in the next room.
Father?
No time. Nabiki might be dying.
Not Grandfather Happosai,
Not Uncle Saotome,
Not Nodoka...
~~~~~*~~~~~
There were many paths, but Kasumi was only one
soul. As the idea that maybe, just maybe she could
still do something echoed through whatever she was
using to think, her way became clear. The various
parts of her came to the decision at more or less the
same time. Using Uchi-chan's energy as a guide, she
drifted into Nabiki's room. Ranma-chan was just
lowering her mouth to Nabiki's neck again.
~~~~~*~~~~~
No. Stop the pain. End it. Protect her.
But how can I do anything if I'm dead!
No. Not dead.
But...
~~~~~*~~~~~
Kasumi had to stop it. She had to stop Nabiki's
pain. She concentrated on Ranma, trying to pull her
away from Nabiki. She felt herself get heavier. She
felt herself... regaining feeling. She opened her
eyes and saw her hands on Ranma-chan's shoulders
right before they jerked backwards. Kasumi fell,
bringing Ranma-chan with her. Kasumi blinked. Somehow
she was alive, without any wounds, in Nabiki's room,
naked, except, she realized, she still had the cross
sandwiched between her hand and Ranma-chan's
shoulder.
Ranma-chan did not move immediately. She laid still
on top of Kasumi long enough for Kasumi to wonder
if she was ever going to move. Finally she spoke.
"So. You're the Kouken... I suppose it makes sense in
a strange way..." Ranma-chan leapt off Kasumi in a
blur and suddenly she was straddling her. She held up
her hand and made what looked at first like the sign
for victory or peace.
Then blue energy grew out of the two fingers. "Now
lets see... I just need to pierce one of your chakras
with my ki to kill you...which one will it be?" She
brought her hand over Kasumi's bare breasts. "The
heart? No, too dramatic. Besides, you're too well
protected there."
The hand drifted over to Kasumi's brow. "Your
forehead? No, as interesting as piercing your third
eye would be, it wouldn't be worth the effort."
Ranma-chan brought the ki-extended fingers down on
Kasumi's neck. "Yes, of course. Visuddha, the throat
chakra. Seat of consciousness and the ability to
communicate what you know and feel...My favorite." The
ends of the extension of each finger dug deep into the
wood on either side of Kasumi. "And of course I won't
have to worry about you turning into kasumi again and
getting away, because I'm using my legs to cover your
lower chakras with my ki." Ranma's face came nose to
nose with Kasumi's as the fanged demon smiled, "In
other words...You're trapped."
"What do you mean 'turn into Kasumi?' I'm Kasumi
now."
Ranma-chan managed to look confused for a moment,
then she smiled again allowing full view of her fangs.
"That's right, that's your name too isn't it? Your
parents named you Mist. How cute! Too bad they hadn't
trained you better. As I said, you won't be turning
into your namesake again any time soon. You failed,
Kouken."
Kasumi stared into the awful creature's glowing
blue eyes in shock She realized something she was
only dimly aware of before: there was no way this
could be Ranma. "Who are you?"
The creature backed off a bit "I am a vampire. A
kyuuketsuki. I am going to kill you. Nothing else
matters beyond that." Kasumi frowned. Something else
about this creature... It wasn't stupid, or without
emotion. Although it controlled Ranma now, Kasumi
could see it had lived its own life once.
Suddenly she felt sharp pain on either side of her
neck. The kyuuketsuki was bringing her fingers
together...
"This is going to be slow, and extremely painful."
The kyuuketsuki smiled even wider. "I for one am going
to love every second of it."
The razor sharp ki extensions from the vampire's
fingers bit deeper into Kasumi's neck. Any time now
they would cut through the Jugular vein and Carotid
artery. In desperation, Kasumi clutched the cross,
still in her right hand, close to her heart.
The vampire who wore the face of Ranma laughed
mirthlessly. "How quaint! If this were some idiotic
horror movie you might actually be lucky." The
kyuuketsuki's features turned serious. "But it isn't,
and you're not." The vampire's fingers bit deeper.
Kasumi gasped. She felt the blood spurt out from her
neck. "Heh, religion...false comfort for the weak and
perverse instrument of the powerful." The vampire
brought her fingers closer...
"It was my mother's." Kasumi said softly with tear
filled eyes. She was delirious from all that had
happened in such a short time. She was going to
die... again. For a moment she thought... but there
was no way she could protect her family now. There
never really was. She was going to die for real this
time... She would join her mother soon. All the pain
would soon be over. She relaxed. The
corners of her mouth curled up slightly as she
thought of how the cross she held had kept her alive for
almost eleven years after...it... happened. She
looked straight into the unnatural eyes of the
kyuuketsuki...and spoke, even as her vision began to
fade "The only belief that I have is that she is
somewhere, watching over me. I...cherish... that
belief more than anything, and I will not allow it
to be taken from me...or dismissed."
The vampire snarled and brought her fingers still
closer together. "I dismiss it. And after I kill you
and make you my slave, I'm going to destroy your cross,
and your stupid belief along with it."
Kasumi suddenly felt an invading presence. At first
it was vague, intangible, but gradually, she became
aware of dark emotions, of greed and bloodlust and...
hunger. Then, there was something else, a tiny
glimmer of light in a dark tunnel. Kasumi started to
pursue it, but that was when the pain came.
The cuts on her neck were minor trifles. This was
true pain. White hot molten metal burned through
Kasumi's veins. Sandpaper rubbed against her eyes. Her
fingernails were pulled off her fingers. Her teeth
were twisted in their sockets. A terrible keening
shrill sound filled her ears. "Ah, you feel it now,
don't you?" the vampire's voice came from far away.
"The exquisite pain of my energy subverting yours.
Soon you will be nothing more than an empty husk with
no will of your own. Then again, that's more or less
how you've been living, anyway."
~NO~
The thought wasn't a plea, but a command. Kasumi
felt her own presence, her own aura, gather around
the center of her being. She was dimly aware that the
area around her physical body had gotten brighter,
almost as if she herself were glowing...
She felt the vampire's aura hesitate, like a
nocturnal creature in a sudden light, before it
lunged at her. Seconds went by like hours as their
two auras fought each other. Each time the vampire
came close to reaching her exposed center, she would
think of her mother, her family, and her promise, and
she gained new strength, pushing the vampire back.
Slowly, Kasumi gained ground. The vampire's aura grew
weaker and Kasumi's grew stronger until suddenly, she
realized she was no longer defending but attacking.
She could destroy the vampire once and for all! She
could utterly obliterate it...
...and Ranma as well.
~It feels good doesn't it, Kouken?~ It was the
vampire! ~Go ahead, go that extra step, assimilate me,
gain my strength. Your little martial arts friend is
here too, he has a lot of strength, very tasty. It's
not like anyone would miss him either, after all he's
just a freeloader.~
Kasumi's aura stopped whipping out against the
vampire's. Kasumi kept it from going any further, but
it was like containing a flame, or damming a raging
river. Desperately she called out mentally to Ranma-
chan hoping that maybe she could keep from destroying
her if she could just separate Ranma from the
vampire. There was just the slightest reaction. It
was miniscule compared the tempest raging between the
two auras, like a the movement of a baby's little toe
amidst a battle of giants. Kasumi saw it though and
pulled, trying to tug it loose from the vampire's
grasp.
~This is pointless~ the vampire projected suddenly,
relinquishing her hold on Ranma.
Kasumi was snapped back into her body. She blinked,
not believing that she could suddenly be laying on the
floor of her sister's bedroom once again.
The vampire inhabiting Ranma stood unsteadily, its
face half illuminated by the sodium streetlamp through
the window, and looked down at Kasumi with half-lidded,
dimly glowing eyes. "Point goes to you, Kouken. Are
you happy? Do you realize how little this victory
matters?" The bloodsucker squinted Ranma's eyes. "No.
You don't know anything do you? You don't even
realize what you are." Crossing Ranma-chan's arms, the
kyuuketsuki said one final word: "Pitiful."
An intense glow emanated from Ranma's body for a moment
and then abruptly it was gone. Like a marionette with its
strings suddenly cut, Ranma collapsed, unconscious.
Kasumi sat up and felt both sides of her neck. There
were the raised ridges of scars... But no blood. How
was it possible? She looked out of the doorway into
the dark of the hall. She could barely make out the
outline of her clothes and slippers in a depression
in the wall. How was any of it possible?
She looked at Ranma's unconscious body for a moment
trying to figure out what had just happened. Was the
vampire gone? Was everyone safe now? Kasumi wanted to
believe so but it just happened too soon, and what
the vampire had said...She felt adrenaline seep out of
her, leaving only fatigue. She realized with some
surprise that someone else was standing in the room.
Slowly, she turned and looked up. It was Nabiki. She
was leaning against the wall, a robe now covering her
tattered pajamas. Dried blood was visible on her neck,
arms, and calves, but as far as Kasumi could tell,
there were no open wounds. Yet another mystery.
Kasumi then became aware of another fact: Nabiki was
wielding a baseball bat.
Kasumi quickly got in between her sister and Ranma.
"Nabiki, she's Ranma again. Ranma-chan is innocent in
all this."
"How do you know that 'neechan?" Nabiki's voice was
hoarse and weak.
"I ...I guess I don't. But why would the vampire
pass out like that?"
Nabiki shook her head and raised the bat in her
shaking grasp "I don't care." She swallowed, "I still
want to hit her. Him. Whatever. The bastard can't even
pick a gender and stick with it."
"Oh my! I don't think you should say that!"
Kasumi's fingers touched her lips.
"Why not, Kasumi?" Nabiki demanded. "Don't you know
what that...bitch did to me?"
"Gomen nasai, imoutochan," Kasumi apologized to her
sister, "I'm not quite sure... I just got the feeling
when you said that, that it was going to come back to
you."
"You got the feeling..." Nabiki repeated apparently
finding Kasumi's response a little odd. "Kasumi, what
the hell happened?" Nabiki shuffled unsteadily to the
light switch and flicked it on. "What was with that
light show between you and Ranma? And why are you... in
your birthday suit?"
Kasumi looked out in the hall at her clothes. She
looked at the cross still in her right hand. "I'm
afraid I really don't know, Nabiki-chan. I wish I
did." There was an awkward pause. Then Kasumi spoke
again "Do you want some tea?"
Nabiki laughed, though there wasn't much mirth in
it. "Tea. Your miracle cure. Helps with everything
from colds to bad moods to...whatever the hell that
was." Nabiki sighed and relaxed, propping the bat up
on her shoulder. She rubbed her throat with her free
hand "Maybe it's not such a bad idea, though... Here,"
Nabiki took off her robe and handed it to Kasumi, who
accepted it with a weak smile "no charge... I've...got
to think for a bit...I...Meet me downstairs, okay?"
Nabiki started to walk out of the room.
Kasumi was just about to think of getting up and
getting dressed when Nabiki turned around. "Wait a
minute, where is Akane? Shouldn't she be bashing Ranma's
head in with a hammer by now? In fact... Kasumi, is
everyone else still asleep?"
Kasumi nodded. "I think so, Nabiki."
"Now why is that do you suspect?"
Kasumi felt a chill pass down her spine as the answer
came upon her. "I think... there are more of the
vampires...here."
Nabiki took a large, unsteady step toward Kasumi.
"Nani?! There are more of these things?" Nabiki kicked
Ranma for emphasis.
"I'm afraid so."
Nabiki gripped the bat tighter. "G-great. I've got
the perfect plan. I'll wave this bat around
ineffectually, and you can offer refreshments."
There was a rustling sound and Nabiki and Kasumi watched
as Ranma's arm jerked and then relaxed. It moved again
slowly pressing against the floor. Ranma's torso rose
up unsteadily. Out of her mouth there issued forth a
terrible moan...
Kasumi saw Nabiki's eyes narrow as she prepared to swing...
Ranma sat up and rubbed the back of her head, eyes
squeezed shut, confusion readily visible on her face.
"Ack! My head feels like Akane cooked it! What's goin
on?"
Nabiki lunged past Kasumi and swung at Ranma with the
Bat. She connected with Ranma's head.
Ranma fell to the ground.
"Nabiki!" Kasumi crawled over to Ranma and shot a
accusing glare at Nabiki. "How dare you hurt Ranma-
chan like that! Can't you see she's been through
enough?"
"Kasumi, I'm sorry," Nabiki's eyes snapped their
focus to Kasumi, "but I don't fucking care whether
that's Ranma, a vampire, or Amateresu come out of her
fucking cave. Whoever it was that...hurt me... used
that body...and that body deserves to be damaged."
Ranma sat up holding a hand to the side of her
head. "Kasumi, she's right. I mean, thanks for carin
and all, but even if it wasn't me, even if there was
nothin I could do ta get Lili ta stop, I feel guilty.
I need the pain as much as she needed ta hit me."
"Wait a minute," Nabiki crouched next to Ranma and
grabbed her by the collar of her spiral decorated
pajamas. "You know that bitch's NAME?"
"Yeah. I know her name...Feng Lili." Ranma got to
her feet and Nabiki followed, still grabbing Ranma's
pajamas. Kasumi could see Ranma's fists were clenched.
She was almost shaking with rage. "And if she ever
does come back ya gotta let me help ya kill her."
Kasumi felt a sad, uneasy, unclean feeling come over
her. The same feeling she had felt for more than a
decade. All she would have to do is give Uchi-chan a
good thorough cleaning and it would go away, but Kasumi
wondered. She wondered why, when she had thought of Ranma
killing Lili, she had smiled.
Kasumi realized her fingers were at her lips, her
mouth almost open. "Oh my," she murmured softly and
brought her hand to her side.
~~~~~*~~~~~
Sometimes at night
When cold winds moan
I sit and wonder,
All alone.
Am I really living?
A hidden hate within me burns
A hidden heart within me yearns
I must be strong
I must smile through the pain
But sometimes I want to run away
Sometimes...
I feel things I can't explain...
-Fr. Kasumi's Book of Recipes
~~~~~[END]~~~~~
The following people have helped me with this chapter:
Nemesis Zero
Edward
Dracos
KpJam
Akraen
Any mistakes are my own.
As always C&C is most welcome.