Ranma 1/2
Ascension
Cologne took a deep breath, and look to the sides of her. On one side, Tofu stood firm in his support of the former matriarch, while on the other side, Happosai sat in lotus position while smoking his pipe.
The Elder Amazon didn't relish having to tell everyone gathered their findings, which happened to be none, but it had to be done in order to move on.
"Greetings, everyone, I thank you for your attendance. As you all know, a trajedy had befallen the Saotomes, and we have since been in search of their murderer," Cologne paused a bit, before continuing, "We had reason to believe that it was Ranma himself that had done it; thankfully, this wasn't the case."
"I thought you said that the ki signature was definitely Ranma's, and that it couldn't be faked?" Nabiki asked with a slight irritation in her voice, as she had spent the last couple of days trying to get in contact with powerful potential allies. Herb claimed that there were some... issues he could not leave his kingdom for reasons he would not state, but would assist in any way possible, due to the debt he owed Ranma Saotome.
Ryoga was once again lost, but Akari had promised that she would bring him by, once he was home. The Pheonix Tribe refused to recognize any 'debt' owed to the Tendous, stating that when their affairs had crossed, while unfortunate, were of nessesity. Only the couple in the back of the room; the recently wedded Rouge and Tarou, were in attendance. And that was only because the former felt some gratitude towards Ranma, insisting that her and her husband lend a hand.
"Well..." Cologne started with a chagrinned voice, and then turned to a calm and reserved looking Happosai, "I have been disproven in that respect, accept my apology for my assumption."
"So, we still don't have a murderer to name?" Ukyo enquired with a barely contained anger, while gritting her teeth.
Shampoo got up from where she was sitting, and walked over to the other woman, "Great Grandmother is not to blame for this, so do not even think to be irritated with her."
"Why not?" Ukyo growled back, obviously not happy with seeing the other former Amazon and rival's return, "She got our hopes up, and said that she was absolutely right! That there was no doubt!" Ukyo did an admirable job of holding back the choke in her voice, "We thought we would at least be able to find Ranma alive, even if we had to..."
The lavender haired woman spared Ukyo from continuing, possibly out of sympathy, "Even Great Grandmother is not infallible," Shampoo replied, slightly subdued, "It was a mistake that was easily made."
"Yeah, like the mistake you made with Mousse? Where is he, anyhow?" Ukyo made a show of looking around, and acting like she didn't notice the murderous expression on the other woman's face.
"THAT IS ENOUGH, BOTH OF YOU!" someone shouted in a ki enhanced voice that rumbled throughout the Cat Cafe. Everyone turned to him to see Happosai, still peacefully sitting and smoking his pipe, as if he had nothing to do with what just happened.
"As my great granddaughter defended, it was indeed a mistake on my part. But we now need to move on, and find the one who committed this terrible crime."
"And how do you suppose we do this?" Nabiki once again interjected, "Right as of now, we have no other leads to the culprit, exept that it could possibly be one of Ranma's, or the Saotome's in general, numerous enemies."
"We do know one thing," Cologne replied, "We know that whoever it is, knows Ranma..."
"Is here..." Soun almost whispered emotionlessly and sternly, as he stared at the entrance to the Cat Cafe. Cologne blinked, before gasping in disbelief. Both Tofu and Happosai were concentrating on what lay at the entrance, both braced for a confrontation of some sort. Everyone else remained confused, until they heard his voice....
"Hello, everyone."
"RANMA!" Cried out Ukyo and Shampoo in unison. Everyone's eyes fell on Ranma Saotome, dressed in the red and black ensemble he usually favored, with his hands in his pockets.
"Bu-bu-bu... how...?" Nabiki breathed, not believing who was standing before her.
"I missed you all," The pigtailed young man whispered in a meloncoly voice, before striding into the restuarant.
"Impossible!" Cologne exclaimed, "at least *ONE* of the methods we used to attempt to locate you would have succeeded! You couldn't possibly have evaded them!"
"Let's just say, I've been rather unaccessable," Ranma said with a ghost of the smirk everyone used to recall decorating his face in what seemed like a lifetime ago.
"Ranma," Tofu asked in an even tone that did well not to sound accusing, "Did you kill your family?"
The young man blinked, and then sighed, "Geez, I try to add some leveity, and you guys are all serious." Ranma himself became stone severe in his expression, "But yes, I did... remove them from life."
Many let out a breath they didn't realize they were holding, and allowed themselves to feel the hold that shock held on their hearts like a loose grip that massaged them on the inside. "Why?" Tofu asked next, looking at Ranma intensely for any signs of deceit, or of not being in right mind.
"I didn't want them to be among the faceless that will never know what happened. I loved them, they deserved better than that," Ranma replied, somberly.
"That doesn't tell us a reason, Ranma," Nabiki stated, trying to keep herself calm, and barely able to do so.
"I visited your village, Cologne-sensei," Ranma continued, giving Nabiki a scathing glance for her comment, and sitting down to a table that was just off to the side of everyone.
"Then you...?" Shampoo replied, with an incredulous expression on her face. Her blood was already boiling for release, before she got the answer she wasn't truly prepared for.
"They had the information I needed to locate the greatest treasure of the world, of this very part of the universe. I only did what was nessesary."
Shampoo launched herself at the cavalier and almost indifferent young man, and was barely restrained by Tarou and Ukyo, "YOU MURDER THEM ALL! YOU KILL WHOLE VILLAGE!!!"
Ranma diverted his eyes and bowed his head, "I'm... sorry."
"SORRY?!?!?" Shampoo faught even harder to make an attempt at Ranma, "YOU KILL SHAMPOO FRIENDS AND FAMILY FOR WORTHLESS TREASURE, AND YOU JUST 'SORRY'?" Tofu came to assist with restraining Shampoo, but didn't feel inclined to sedate her with a pressure point. Her rage was quite justified.
Cologne herself was ready to join her Great Granddaughter in an attempt for Ranma's blood, but she had to find out what Ranma's agenda was, "What is this treasure you were seeking? What is it that was important enough for you to sanction a WHOLE... DAMNED... VILLAGE?!?"
"I had to admit, that I was surprised to find it back here, though I shouldn't have been. I had even already defeated the twin guardians of this treasure previously while he wasn't at his full abilities, fortunately." Ranma seemed to pause in thought, "Pretty interesting, that a dragon and Pheonix would be the representing guardians, but I'm sure that wasn't by accident."
"Saffron?" Shampoo ventured, but not truly knowing where this was leading.
"Yeah, Saffron. And Herb."
"But what would Saffron have to do..." Cologne was suddenly attacking Ranma before she had even finished the last syllable uttered. Everyone blinked in unison, as they watched the former Matriarch fight harder, more unrestrained, and more vicious, than she ever had before. The peculiar thing, was that it wasn't a fight of total anger and rage, it was a fight of complete and absolute desperation and fear.
Happosai hadn't missed the sudden spike in Cologne's ki before she attacked. The old woman was afraid, VERY afraid suddenly; beyond a terrified he hadn't suspected her capable of. With that in mind, the ancient master crossed the room in a blink of an eye, and sent Ranma flying though a wall, and out into the street. Both ancient fighters chased the flying body out, both readying death blows. Happosai knew that whatever had Cologne spooked like she was, was definitely something that had to be taken care of in the most final way.
Ranma rolled out of the way of the cane point that caused the ground in a eight meter radius to erupt, while Happosai launched a ki attack at Ranma before he could get any further. The pigtailed young man turned and had yet to recover, just in time to see the massive sphere of angry energy bear down on him. Both Cologne and Happosai recovered, and both knew that nothing could have survived the blast, and Ranma could not have even raced away from it.
"WHAT WAS THAT ALL ABOUT?" Ukyo shouted at the two elderly martial artists, as she ran up to confront them.
Cologne turned a haunted and saddened expression towards the young woman, "Child, Ranma's much more dangerous than *ANY* being or God has ever been. We did what had to be..." Both the ancient martial artists, Soun, Tarou, and Tofu's eyes went wide.
Ranma pushed himself out of the molten tar that the street had become. And as he stepped from it, it just seemed to melt from his body, leaving him clean. "This is how you treat me," Ranma started, while barely holding his anger in, "When I set out to explain myself. You guys never change!"
Cologne and Happosai remained standing in total shock; as if frozen to the spot, much to everyone's amazement. Ranma huffed, and his glare became softer and morose, "I'd doing this, because Akane needs me to do it. Because it's the only way for us to be together, for good."
"Ranma, Akane's dead," Soun replied with not a tinge of emotion.
Ranma smirked, and let out a chuckle, "No, there is no good way to correct what you had said." Everyone recieved an even bigger shock, as the last person the ever expected to stride down the street, approached them.
Akane walked up to Ranma, her cloak dragging on the ground as she moved, and stood by him, "Now, I wanted all of you to know my reasons, so that even if you do hate me for what I am about to do, you'll at least understand my motives."
"Do what, Ranma?" Tofu asked, being the only one able to get his facilties together. He knew, he knew right after he asked the question, he should have rushed at Ranma, to prevent whatever was about to happen. It didn't matter if he instinctively knew that it would not make a difference.
Ranma didn't vocally answer; instead preferring to reply by holding his right hand up in the air, allowing the sunlight to reflect off of the charming and ornament ring adorning his ring finger. He looked directly into everyone's eyes, it seemed, before finally speaking, "I cannot ask you for your forgiveness, but I'm sorry," he then balled his hand into a fist. At the action, an overwhelming wave of energy surged from it, and in a heartbeat, pulsed throughout the universe...
"No, oh Ancestors, no..." Cologne whispered, for the worst possible thing she could ever possibly imagine...
Ascension
Cologne took a deep breath, and look to the sides of her. On one side, Tofu stood firm in his support of the former matriarch, while on the other side, Happosai sat in lotus position while smoking his pipe.
The Elder Amazon didn't relish having to tell everyone gathered their findings, which happened to be none, but it had to be done in order to move on.
"Greetings, everyone, I thank you for your attendance. As you all know, a trajedy had befallen the Saotomes, and we have since been in search of their murderer," Cologne paused a bit, before continuing, "We had reason to believe that it was Ranma himself that had done it; thankfully, this wasn't the case."
"I thought you said that the ki signature was definitely Ranma's, and that it couldn't be faked?" Nabiki asked with a slight irritation in her voice, as she had spent the last couple of days trying to get in contact with powerful potential allies. Herb claimed that there were some... issues he could not leave his kingdom for reasons he would not state, but would assist in any way possible, due to the debt he owed Ranma Saotome.
Ryoga was once again lost, but Akari had promised that she would bring him by, once he was home. The Pheonix Tribe refused to recognize any 'debt' owed to the Tendous, stating that when their affairs had crossed, while unfortunate, were of nessesity. Only the couple in the back of the room; the recently wedded Rouge and Tarou, were in attendance. And that was only because the former felt some gratitude towards Ranma, insisting that her and her husband lend a hand.
"Well..." Cologne started with a chagrinned voice, and then turned to a calm and reserved looking Happosai, "I have been disproven in that respect, accept my apology for my assumption."
"So, we still don't have a murderer to name?" Ukyo enquired with a barely contained anger, while gritting her teeth.
Shampoo got up from where she was sitting, and walked over to the other woman, "Great Grandmother is not to blame for this, so do not even think to be irritated with her."
"Why not?" Ukyo growled back, obviously not happy with seeing the other former Amazon and rival's return, "She got our hopes up, and said that she was absolutely right! That there was no doubt!" Ukyo did an admirable job of holding back the choke in her voice, "We thought we would at least be able to find Ranma alive, even if we had to..."
The lavender haired woman spared Ukyo from continuing, possibly out of sympathy, "Even Great Grandmother is not infallible," Shampoo replied, slightly subdued, "It was a mistake that was easily made."
"Yeah, like the mistake you made with Mousse? Where is he, anyhow?" Ukyo made a show of looking around, and acting like she didn't notice the murderous expression on the other woman's face.
"THAT IS ENOUGH, BOTH OF YOU!" someone shouted in a ki enhanced voice that rumbled throughout the Cat Cafe. Everyone turned to him to see Happosai, still peacefully sitting and smoking his pipe, as if he had nothing to do with what just happened.
"As my great granddaughter defended, it was indeed a mistake on my part. But we now need to move on, and find the one who committed this terrible crime."
"And how do you suppose we do this?" Nabiki once again interjected, "Right as of now, we have no other leads to the culprit, exept that it could possibly be one of Ranma's, or the Saotome's in general, numerous enemies."
"We do know one thing," Cologne replied, "We know that whoever it is, knows Ranma..."
"Is here..." Soun almost whispered emotionlessly and sternly, as he stared at the entrance to the Cat Cafe. Cologne blinked, before gasping in disbelief. Both Tofu and Happosai were concentrating on what lay at the entrance, both braced for a confrontation of some sort. Everyone else remained confused, until they heard his voice....
"Hello, everyone."
"RANMA!" Cried out Ukyo and Shampoo in unison. Everyone's eyes fell on Ranma Saotome, dressed in the red and black ensemble he usually favored, with his hands in his pockets.
"Bu-bu-bu... how...?" Nabiki breathed, not believing who was standing before her.
"I missed you all," The pigtailed young man whispered in a meloncoly voice, before striding into the restuarant.
"Impossible!" Cologne exclaimed, "at least *ONE* of the methods we used to attempt to locate you would have succeeded! You couldn't possibly have evaded them!"
"Let's just say, I've been rather unaccessable," Ranma said with a ghost of the smirk everyone used to recall decorating his face in what seemed like a lifetime ago.
"Ranma," Tofu asked in an even tone that did well not to sound accusing, "Did you kill your family?"
The young man blinked, and then sighed, "Geez, I try to add some leveity, and you guys are all serious." Ranma himself became stone severe in his expression, "But yes, I did... remove them from life."
Many let out a breath they didn't realize they were holding, and allowed themselves to feel the hold that shock held on their hearts like a loose grip that massaged them on the inside. "Why?" Tofu asked next, looking at Ranma intensely for any signs of deceit, or of not being in right mind.
"I didn't want them to be among the faceless that will never know what happened. I loved them, they deserved better than that," Ranma replied, somberly.
"That doesn't tell us a reason, Ranma," Nabiki stated, trying to keep herself calm, and barely able to do so.
"I visited your village, Cologne-sensei," Ranma continued, giving Nabiki a scathing glance for her comment, and sitting down to a table that was just off to the side of everyone.
"Then you...?" Shampoo replied, with an incredulous expression on her face. Her blood was already boiling for release, before she got the answer she wasn't truly prepared for.
"They had the information I needed to locate the greatest treasure of the world, of this very part of the universe. I only did what was nessesary."
Shampoo launched herself at the cavalier and almost indifferent young man, and was barely restrained by Tarou and Ukyo, "YOU MURDER THEM ALL! YOU KILL WHOLE VILLAGE!!!"
Ranma diverted his eyes and bowed his head, "I'm... sorry."
"SORRY?!?!?" Shampoo faught even harder to make an attempt at Ranma, "YOU KILL SHAMPOO FRIENDS AND FAMILY FOR WORTHLESS TREASURE, AND YOU JUST 'SORRY'?" Tofu came to assist with restraining Shampoo, but didn't feel inclined to sedate her with a pressure point. Her rage was quite justified.
Cologne herself was ready to join her Great Granddaughter in an attempt for Ranma's blood, but she had to find out what Ranma's agenda was, "What is this treasure you were seeking? What is it that was important enough for you to sanction a WHOLE... DAMNED... VILLAGE?!?"
"I had to admit, that I was surprised to find it back here, though I shouldn't have been. I had even already defeated the twin guardians of this treasure previously while he wasn't at his full abilities, fortunately." Ranma seemed to pause in thought, "Pretty interesting, that a dragon and Pheonix would be the representing guardians, but I'm sure that wasn't by accident."
"Saffron?" Shampoo ventured, but not truly knowing where this was leading.
"Yeah, Saffron. And Herb."
"But what would Saffron have to do..." Cologne was suddenly attacking Ranma before she had even finished the last syllable uttered. Everyone blinked in unison, as they watched the former Matriarch fight harder, more unrestrained, and more vicious, than she ever had before. The peculiar thing, was that it wasn't a fight of total anger and rage, it was a fight of complete and absolute desperation and fear.
Happosai hadn't missed the sudden spike in Cologne's ki before she attacked. The old woman was afraid, VERY afraid suddenly; beyond a terrified he hadn't suspected her capable of. With that in mind, the ancient master crossed the room in a blink of an eye, and sent Ranma flying though a wall, and out into the street. Both ancient fighters chased the flying body out, both readying death blows. Happosai knew that whatever had Cologne spooked like she was, was definitely something that had to be taken care of in the most final way.
Ranma rolled out of the way of the cane point that caused the ground in a eight meter radius to erupt, while Happosai launched a ki attack at Ranma before he could get any further. The pigtailed young man turned and had yet to recover, just in time to see the massive sphere of angry energy bear down on him. Both Cologne and Happosai recovered, and both knew that nothing could have survived the blast, and Ranma could not have even raced away from it.
"WHAT WAS THAT ALL ABOUT?" Ukyo shouted at the two elderly martial artists, as she ran up to confront them.
Cologne turned a haunted and saddened expression towards the young woman, "Child, Ranma's much more dangerous than *ANY* being or God has ever been. We did what had to be..." Both the ancient martial artists, Soun, Tarou, and Tofu's eyes went wide.
Ranma pushed himself out of the molten tar that the street had become. And as he stepped from it, it just seemed to melt from his body, leaving him clean. "This is how you treat me," Ranma started, while barely holding his anger in, "When I set out to explain myself. You guys never change!"
Cologne and Happosai remained standing in total shock; as if frozen to the spot, much to everyone's amazement. Ranma huffed, and his glare became softer and morose, "I'd doing this, because Akane needs me to do it. Because it's the only way for us to be together, for good."
"Ranma, Akane's dead," Soun replied with not a tinge of emotion.
Ranma smirked, and let out a chuckle, "No, there is no good way to correct what you had said." Everyone recieved an even bigger shock, as the last person the ever expected to stride down the street, approached them.
Akane walked up to Ranma, her cloak dragging on the ground as she moved, and stood by him, "Now, I wanted all of you to know my reasons, so that even if you do hate me for what I am about to do, you'll at least understand my motives."
"Do what, Ranma?" Tofu asked, being the only one able to get his facilties together. He knew, he knew right after he asked the question, he should have rushed at Ranma, to prevent whatever was about to happen. It didn't matter if he instinctively knew that it would not make a difference.
Ranma didn't vocally answer; instead preferring to reply by holding his right hand up in the air, allowing the sunlight to reflect off of the charming and ornament ring adorning his ring finger. He looked directly into everyone's eyes, it seemed, before finally speaking, "I cannot ask you for your forgiveness, but I'm sorry," he then balled his hand into a fist. At the action, an overwhelming wave of energy surged from it, and in a heartbeat, pulsed throughout the universe...
"No, oh Ancestors, no..." Cologne whispered, for the worst possible thing she could ever possibly imagine...