Ranma's eyes squeezed shut before slowly opening, his sight temporarily blinded by the bright light of day. It took him a second to realize he was alive, that he wasn't lying on the hard ground but in the arms of another. He tilted his head to see the face of the one holding him.
'Mom?' Ranma thought to himself, his mental tone weak.
It took Nodoka less than a second to see Ranma was awake. Her eyes widened with joy, joy that her son was alive, no longer caring as to how he had survived the fall. But then her joy dimmed when she saw it, the empty look in his eyes, so dark…so alone.
"Ranma…you're awake" Nodoka choked out, tears streaming down her cheeks, eyes reddening.
'Great…even my own mother hates me…' Ranma thought to himself, his expression becoming consumed by one of depression.
"Ranma, who did this to you?" she asked her voice shaking in as she continued to struggle to contain her sobs. Her son had died, she had seen it, she had heard of his rivals yes, she knew about the fights. But someone actually tried to do it and succeeded. Ranma turned away, not wanting to face his mother; he didn't want someone else to lecture him on being nice to Akane, especially after what she did to him.
"No one" Ranma replied, his voice void of all emotion.
'She hates me…then again what else is knew…everyone hates me, they either want to kill me or possess me' Ranma's thoughts continued to circle in dark places within himself as his heart sank deeper and deeper into the vast pit of depression that had been growing since his father took him on that training journey and made him feel a little more worthless the more training he undertook.
"Tell me Ranma…who did this to you?" Nodoka continued, her tone hardening in rage.
"Why?" Ranma choked out, diving out of his mother's arms and falling down into the crater, rolling down the slope, rolling to a stop at its centre, the stench of blood still fresh and thick. Ranma slowly stumbled to his feet, he felt strange, his body…it felt stronger, he felt no physical pain from the mallet or the fall.
"Why?" Nodoka mimicked, confusion infiltrating her tone.
"Why do you care?" Ranma yelled, memories of the contract of what his mother had said when he was Ranko, memories of her admitting to letting Genma take him.
"I'm your mother, of course I care when someone tries to kill my baby" Nodoka replied, physically hurt by her son's question.
"Mother? You threatened to kill me if I didn't become what you wanted, force me to commit ritual suicide, you abandoned me as a baby to that bastard and like all the others try to push me and Akane together" Ranma snarled, lashing out at his mother, a dark aura forming around him. The ultimate technique that only those who have truly suffered can master, the aura of eternal damnation.
Nodoka's tears increased and streamed down her face, the words struck her very core, she tried to deny them but knew she couldn't. No, what Ranma said was true, every word.
"Well guess what mom I wouldn't call this manly behaviour so go and get that katana and do what you've been waiting to do since you abandoned me, watch me commit seppuku!" Ranma continued, louder and louder whilst Nodoka could no longer see clearly and could only shake her head.
"No Ranma…I've lost you once…twice…I won't lose you again…I'm sorry…please, Ranma, I beg of you forgive me" Nodoka pleaded, falling forward, palms slamming on the ground.
"Tell me Ranma…who did this?" Nodoka continued when Ranma didn't reply, his bangs hiding his face.
"Who do you think? Who is the only one who has ever managed to hit me across Nerima like this?" Ranma spat, Nodoka thought for a second, she hadn't seen anyone do that to Ranma. Ranma took Nodoka's silence as an invitation to continue.
"Yeah, that mallet wielding tomboy did this…guess you want me to go apologise" Ranma sighed, his anger having been swallowed by depression.
'There's no point to this…arguing…no matter what I will go back and apologise to Akane…she will get off scot free and the same thing will happen tomorrow…and the day after…and the day after that' Ranma thought to himself, head bowed.
'Tomboy? But the only one Ranma calls a tomboy is…AKANE…she was the one who did this? But whenever I was at the Tendos she was so nice, a little angel in need of a little guidance in the traditional roles of been a wife, a tad aggressive at times sure…but never anything near this…and Ranma thinks I'm going to force him to go apologise to her for killing him?' Nodoka brought her hands up to cover her mouth as she realized that was what she and the fathers always did, they forced him to apologise, admitting he was always in the wrong, she hated to think how many times her little boy had to apologise to the girl because she hit him.
Ranma began to climb out of the crater, intending to make his way back to the Tendos.
"No" her voice was but a whisper but he heard it, Ranma heard it, he froze, his body stiffening, he slowly turned to face his mother once again. Nodoka's head shot up and she made eye contact with Ranma, fires blazing within her eyes, her hands becoming fists.
"You will not apologise to her…I had no idea she could be this violent and get the impression this isn't a single isolated incident…as of now the Saotome Tendo agreement is null and void. There is no honour in abusive behaviour. I will go and tell them this and if they object I will get the authorities involved for abuse, attempted murder and theft" Nodoka spat, the last one more for Genma than the others.
Ranma stared at his mother, about to say something, do something, anything to reassure himself that the nightmare he had been living daily was finally over, not really believing that this would really be happening, before the gate opened, boots treading up the path. A European man with one raised eyebrow stood there, grinning with some kind of machine in his hand.
"Well, it does look like we have a Gallifreyan in our midst!" he announced cheerfully. Nodoka gaped.
"Captain Jack Harkness?" she asked, looking dazed. The man winked towards her in a decidedly flirtatious manner.
"Why, if it isn't Miss Nodoka Saotome! I haven't seen you in some years. Not since we got the little ones – of course, they aren't so little anymore! And they've missed you!" He turned to Ranma as he said this, who frowned.
"Who?" Ranma asked, confusion slightly infiltrating his tone.
Jack blinked.
"You" Jack replied, tilting his head to the side. "I mean, your genetics are a perfect match. Don't you remember the others?"
Ranma frowned. "I don't…I don't know what you…"
"Of course you do!" Jack replied, but Ranma's expression merely altered into one of confusion.
"Oh…you really don't, do you?" Jack said, eyes widening in realisation. "Well, you were quite small…Damn, only four, no wonder you don't remember…"
"What are you talking about? I've been in training since I was three, right Mom?"
Nodoka nodded, but Jack shook his head after his eyes went wide.
"Nodoka, that...he is not your son. He's a Timelord, brought to life from the Doctor's hand – hah, that was actually a little bit my fault, I let go of the jar, if you remember…The flash of light was the cloning. Some Hath tech got mixed up with the Timelord stuff…" Jack rubbed the back of his head.
"You mean…but that's not possible…Genma took Ranma from me…we reunited…he's my son!" Nodoka argued, rising to her feet, brushing some dirt ineffectively off the soiled kimono
'But if what Jack says is true…it would explain…' Nodoka wasn't even willing to finish this thought. No. Ranma was her son, her baby, if he wasn't her son…
"I'm sorry Nodoka but according to my equipment…Ranma here is a Timelord…see, two heartbeats" Jack argued turning the screen on the devise so Nodoka could see it. Her fists turned white when she saw the readings.
"Ranma is my son Jack…please don't take that away" Nodoka begged, her voice dropping to a near silent whisper. If Ranma wasn't her son, then where was her baby?
"Perhaps we should have a talk with Genma…Ranma here went missing, years ago…perhaps he can shed some light on the subject." Jack proposed.
"Fine" Nodoka spat. "Genma, just wait until I get my hands on you" she hissed, her voice lower than a whisper, she ducked into her house before coming back out, katana in hand, eyes narrowed with a killer gleam within them.
Ranma looked up at Jack in horror. "What do you mean?"
"My Japanese is a bit rusty…Oh, fortunately, Jack Junior speaks it well, as does Vida. Well, the thing is, Ranma…you're a member of a small group of beings who were cloned from the DNA of a Timelord, you went missing when you were four. We were never sure how you got out of the base but it looks like Nodoka's husband has the answer to that." Jack explained.
'So I'm not a…Saotome?...But then what am I? Some alien clone? A crime against nature…maybe that's why I have had to endure this life…because I deserve it…I don't deserve to live' Ranma thought to himself, tears brewing in his eyes, the dark aura around him flared for a brief second before he reabsorbed it.
"Your name isn't Ranma. We called you Cadfan, from what I have heard. But it looks like you have grown up with that name, so you can keep whichever name you want." Jack smiled. "It's actually pretty amazing – Timelords are virtually extinct, but you and your kind are some of the last!"
"Cadfan?" Ranma muttered, the name sounded so alien to him, yet somehow familiar. But he wasn't Cadfan, no, he was Ranma Saotome. He had to be, because the only one meant to go through what he had by Fate's reasoning was Ranma Saotome.
"Ranma…after we have spoken to Genma we will have to take you back to base, Ranma when you die you won't die you'll regenerate and each time it becomes more destructive with each regeneration cycle…you're a time bomb Ranma but when we get you back to base you won't be dangerous and you will be with your family" Jack continued, not hearing Ranma's mutter.
'Family?...ha, like I need another family, my mom threatens to force me to commit suicide and my father abused me and has forced me to fear any member of the feline family, like I need any more family!' Ranma thought to himself bitterly, memories of his past, his past as a Saotome flashing before his mind eye. A lot of it seemed to involve pain and angry women.