Plotforge
AN: New idea time! This one came from a dream I had after paying a new Chinese martial arts style MMO called Swordsman, and working on the next chapter of my Ranma fic Matchmaking. Enjoy!
Ancient Obsession (Ranma 1/2)
Centuries ago, there lived a girl in China named Yè Jīng. Although born into a clan of assassins, as she grew, she was considered a beauty beyond compare, from her lush figure, to her perfect face and hair the color of freshly spilled blood. However, what made her truly stand out was her prodigious still in the arts of combat.
Even in her mid-teens, Yè Jīng was considered one of the most powerful members of the Wúshēng Clan. Whispers even began to spread that she may be more powerful than their supposedly immortal leader, Yǒnghéng Kǒngjù. Rather than take insult to this, Kǒngjù laughed it off, having confidence in his own power. However, it did cause him to keep an eye on her, and as he watched, desire grew. Soon, Kǒngjù decided that he would take her as his bride.
Yè Jīng had no desire to marry, just yet, and politely refused him. Denial was not something Kǒngjù was familiar with, and he did not take it well. Thinking that she had denied him for another man, Kǒngjù targeted the man closest to her, her childhood friend, Xūjiǎ Mèng. Kǒngjù challenged the young man to a duel, but while Yè Jīng was a prodigy, Mèng was nothing special. He was dead before his friend could even reach the dueling ring. Arriving just i time to see her friend's corpse fall to the ground, Yè Jīng was blinded by rage, and attacked Kǒngjù.
It turned out that the rumors were not unfounded, and it was with shock that the watching clan members saw Yè Jīng strike a mortal blow on their leader. However, Yè Jīng had not come out of the fight unscathed, and knew that she would be branded a traitor for attacking their leader without formally challenging him to a duel. So she fled, leaving behind the village she had known her whole life, and eventually even China itself, fleeing all the way to Japan in her efforts to escape the reach of her powerful clan. Eventually, she found a native man she could be happy with there, and started a family of her own, content to forget about her bloody past.
However, Kǒngjù was not so willing to let things be. Even as he lay dying, he swore, "Yè Jīng... Even if it takes 108 generations, I WILL make you mine!" For Yǒnghéng Kǒngjù was not considered immortal for his incredible martial ability, but rather for a more monstrous power. As his body died, his spirit left it. But it did not move on to the next world. Instead, it possessed the youngest child in the clan, destroying its young mind, and replacing it with his own. Kǒngjù would hold true to his oath, scouring China for the target of his obsession, throughout the passage of time.
Yè Jīng had no such immortality, however, and passed from the world, as all mortals do. Her bloodline continued, though, producing some of the greatest warriors in Japanese history. Her descendants continued on, undisturbed by the Wúshēng Clan, until Yè Jīng's one hundred eighth descendant, one Ranma Saotome, was taken to China on a training trip. Or more specifically, when Ranma, in a cursed form nearly identical to Yè Jīng, was seen leaving China by an agent of Kǒngjù.
As soon as he heard of this, Kǒngjù sent a command out to the entire clan: to locate Yè Jīng, or at least her reincarnation, at any cost.
After finding out the name of Yè Jīng's reincarnation, Wúshēng assassins targeted the Saotome home. Only finding Nodoka there, they attacked her to test her skills, and see if she is the one they seek. However, while she did possess some skill with her family sword, she was not the prodigy her ancestor or child were. Ranma happened to arrive just as Nodoka was defeated, and saved her, but unfortunately was in female form at the time. Recognizing their true target, the assassins retreated to report their success. Remembering the name 'Yè Jīng' from an old family legend, Nodoka tells Ranma the tale, rightly believing it to be connected to the attack.
Thus, another foe targets Ranma, this one more ancient and skilled than any before, and seeking not to kill Ranma, but to claim 'her'. An enemy all too willing to kill anyone who stands in the way of his goal.
AN: That's what I have so far. I really like this idea, but don't really have time to write it myself, right now. I may later, but hopefully someone will adopt it first. *wink, wink* This idea could work with any pairing, or no pairing, though a Ryoga x Ranma-chan pairing could work well, especially if Kǒngjù saw Ranma and Ryoga together, and targeted Ryoga like he did Yè Jīng's childhood friend.
What do you think?