First off a small word of warning, this fic returns to its dark
roots with this chapter. I've been taking it kind of light over the
past few chapters, more as build up than anything else. This chapter
was written to the Escaflowne soundtrack, the dark gothic chorus of the
first CD fit it well; anyone who has heard it can pretty much
understand what's coming. This part of the tale will be very violent
and have some dark demonic undertones to it, you will also see the
return of the serious and dangerous Ranma those who have read this from
the beginning will remember. Now that you've read the warning on with
the fic...

Permanent.

Part 18

The rising.

++++++++++

Ranma Saotome stood in the streets of Nerima watching the large
mansion with a calm and serious gaze as she watched the pitch back
clouds swirl and spread covering the starlight from above and replacing
it with pitch-black darkness. The streetlights gave minimal light as
they flickered under the influence of a much darker energy.

Ryoga stood behind her with Kuno at his side staring at the
phenomenon in disbelief. "My god, Ranma, what is she doing in there?!"

The girl stood silently as thunder rumbled through the air
creating flashes of light inside the dark clouds. She ignored her
companions shocked expressions and strode forward with a calm face that
sent chills down the two boy's spines. "You have a choice boys, come or
go, this is more than a simple rescue mission now. Akane will just have
to wait I'm afraid."

"What?" gasped Kuno in shock. Ranma strode forward silently and
walked directly up to the front gate, she frowned as several black and
gold colored wards flashed creating a barrier in front of her.

"Clever girl," whispered the sorceress as she raised her hand
and touched the field. A strong ozone smell filled the air as energy
crackled and snapped in reaction to her touch, Ryoga and Kuno stepped
back and watched as she pushed her arm through with a grunt of pain
finally pushing through the barrier and stepping onto the grounds. She
collapsed to her knees and sat still for a moment before standing and
moving forward again. "The barrier has been weakened, I'm not the first
one to come through it."

The two boys nodded to one another and dashed forward jumping
through the field and screaming in pain as the energy surged through
their bodies stopping them cold in the center of the protective
barrier, they both crawled through the rest of the way on their hands
and knees and collapsed on the ground next to Ranma. She waited
patiently for them to recover and lifted Ryoga to his feet.

"Kuno I can understand, but you should know better than that."

+++++++++++

Akane Tendo struggled to her feet, she had wisely avoided the
front gate and had climbed the wall to enter the grounds,
unfortunately, she had run into some kind of protective barrier and
could barely move now. Her foot was still caught inside of the field
and she grunted using all her strength to free herself, finally
successful she sprawled out on the ground for a moment. After taking a
moment to recover she stood and felt her world spin violently around
her as she staggered almost backing into the shield again. She lurched
forward and relieved herself of her dinner, splattering it onto the
neatly cutgrass of the Kuno family's private garden. She fell forward
unable to remain standing and whimpered as she realized that she had
fallen in her own discharge. She rolled onto her back and wiped at her
shoulder weakly in an attempt to remove the larger chunks from her
body. Finally she willed enough strength to stand her ground and
methodically plodded forward towards the house with a dangerous snarl
appearing on her lips.

+++++++++

Ranma stood before the doors of the massive home and pressed
her hand against the doorway, it opened slowly as she whispered several
complex words quietly. The main hall was empty save for a few
flickering candles that lit the corridor. There were no lights on in
the house and Ranma frowned when she noticed that all of the electric
lamps in the home were shattered and mangled. A blast of cold air met
the three intruders causing the two boys to shrink back as a cold fog
rolled out at their feet. Ranma stepped forward into the home, her feet
crunched as she walked over the frost beneath the mist that was thick
enough to hide her feet.

"Ranma, what's going on here?" said Ryoga with a worried
expression crossing his face. Kuno was silent and kept a hard and
serious face that revealed no fear or emotion.

"There is no way Kodachi could have done all this herself,"
said Ranma calmly as she glanced around the room almost casually. A
small light formed in her hand and she revealed the shadows that the
candlelight had kept hidden. Kuno wished she had not done it. Portraits
of his ancestors took on a demonic appearance; the once proud and rich
looking home looked as if it had not been lived in for centuries. The
statues were cracked and dusty and the walls were damp and torn
revealing large holes. He could hear strange creatures crawling around
inside of the plaster and noticed several wet and red stains that
seemed to be spreading onto the floors despite the freezing
temperatures.

"You think someone helped her? Another mage?" Ryoga looked
hopeful and Kuno merely looked at him in a daze.

"No. Not a mage," replied Ranma as she moved forward into the
home.

++++++++++++

They entered a large dining hall and stopped cold as a pillar
of ice stood proudly on top of the table, the place settings were
strewn about the floor shattered and broken across the once polished
wooden floor. A crumpled brown figure could be seen hanging out of the
center of the ice halfway buried inside of it. Kuno stepped forward and
frowned deeply at the sight. "Is this?"

"This is why the house is so cold," said Ranma mechanically
with a nod. She walked past the pillar of ice and held the light up to
the brown mass. Kuno stopped cold with a look of terror on his face.

"Sasuke?" tears started to fall down his face as he looked on
the body of his faithful servant. The ninja's torso remained outside of
the ice and his arms hung limply at his sides, a look of agony was
frozen onto his features. The boy walked up to the fallen shinobi and
he reached out to touch him. Ranma's hand shot out and grabbed his just
before he made contact, she shook her head softly and he stepped back.

The group started towards the doors with Ranma in the lead, "M-
master?" said a small voice from behind them. Kuno stopped cold and
slowly turned around to see Sasuke was staring at him from his frozen
pillar and clutching his chest in pain.

Ranma placed her arm across his chest keeping him from rushing
towards the fallen man. "But..."

"He's dead Kuno," said the girl calmly.

"Master, help me please..." pleaded the man. "She put something
inside of me, a light...I don't know what to do." Sasuke's eyes were
wild and another bolt of pain rushed through him causing him to scream.
The ice pillar grew visibly and crackled as a blue light rushed from
the shinobi's chest.

"My god Ranma, it's using his soul!" Ryoga stepped forward and
looked the man in the eyes.

"Yes," said the girl as she moved between the group and the
trapped man.

"Can't you do something?!" screamed Kuno as he grabbed her and
shook her violently. Ranma's hands became a blur and Kuno found himself
sprawled out on the ground with a warm sensation in his mouth, a
strangely familiar copper taste burned at his tongue and he spit out a
mouthful of blood as he lifted his face from the ground.

"No," she said simply before turning away from the man.
Methodically she opened the doors that exited the room and walked
further into the home.

Kuno stood as Ryoga followed her and rushed after the pair with
a desperate fear in his eyes. The ninja screamed as he watched them
leave the room in terror and shock.

"Nooo! Don't leave me! Please master Kuno! Don't..." Ranma
turned to face him and frowned again. Kuno was on his knees just behind
the still opened doors holding his head and sobbing uncontrollably.

"Ryoga," commanded Ranma.

The boy nodded his head silently and removed a bandana from his
forehead. Kuno looked on in shock as he tossed it into the room. A
single scream came from the doorway as the boy closed the doors, Kuno
heard something roll across the ground and impact against the door, and
then silence.

Ranma looked at the kendoist with a gaze of complete ice. "It
was all we could do for him Kuno." She turned and continued onward into
the house.

The boy stood up and raised his claws to her neck, she watched
him calmly as tears fell down his face and a look of complete rage took
him. "And what of my sister? Do you intend to be as merciful with her
as well?"

Ranma looked him directly in the eyes with out a single
flinch. "She's already lost Kuno, there is nothing we can do now but
stop her."

The boy's face went from rage, to confusion, to fear, and then
finally a calm understanding. "My sister could not have done all this
with that book could she?"

Ranma nodded her head slowly and turned away. Ryoga stepped up
beside her with a look that now mirrored her own. "So, any idea what
we're up against?"

"A powerful one, old, strong, and at least one willing servant."

"Gosunkugi?" asked the boy calmly.

"If properly motivated he could be turned easily, but I was
referring to Kuno's sister. Gosunkugi may still be salvageable if she
didn't turn him into a walking trap like the ninja was supposed to be."

"What do you mean?" asked Kuno with his saddened look gone for
a moment.

"Sasuke was probably planning on double crossing her and
helping us once he realized what was going on here. She implanted him
with a spell that would have gone off once he came into contact with
us. It might have worked if he hadn't tried to leave the building."

"You sound like you've done this sort of thing before," said
Kuno a little bitterly.

"It's not usually this bad, but on occasion yes," replied Ryoga
with a shrug.

Ranma started to jog ahead of them, "Come on, we're running out
of time."

+++++++++++++

Akane staggered into the window on the second floor of the Kuno
Mansion, she touched the floor gingerly and looked around waiting for
someone to notice her there. She slowly crept across the empty room an
pulled the door aside slowly revealing a long hallway with several
doors that flashed occasionally as a lightening bolt crashed outside
the home. The noise was good because it gave her more cover for her
movements. Quietly she tiptoed out into the corridor glancing left and
right for signs of life. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck
stand on end as she crept forward with a strange terror gripping
her. "I'm starting to think this was a bad idea."

In front of her a
strange red light formed in what looked like an ellipse. She moved
towards it and saw several more, they lined the walls on each side of
the hallway, she turned and saw several more behind her along the
ceiling. The light fixtures were round and gold colored, she shuddered
slightly at the strange appearance of the emergency lights and
continued forward. Behind her several of the fixtures slowly floated
away from the wall and followed closely behind her growing brighter
with each passing moment.

Akane slowly turned as she noticed the bright lights behind
her. Around ten of the strange balls were floating just behind her
moving in sharp jerking motions as they jumped around each other
excitedly. She sucked in a breath of air and could not find the
strength to scream. She started to run, slowly at first dashing through
the doors only to find more corridors and hallways like some sort of
sick fun house. The balls stayed stationary for a moment; hovering
while watching her run desperately away from them. Suddenly they
lurched forward in a unit, picking up more and more of them as they
rushed forward towards her. Akane jerked a quick glance behind her as
she shoved the doors open and twisted through the rooms and hallways in
a desperate attempt to escape the creatures. One of the thing's eyes
flashed and Akane fell forward rolling across the floor as her face
exploded in pain, she felt a warm wet sensation cover her hand as she
touched the intense burning that the left side of her face had become.
She staggered back to her feet as the creatures gained on her rushing
just ahead of them and turning into rooms slamming doors behind her.
The creatures simply shattered the doorways as if they were glass and
continued their relentless pursuit of her.

She felt the heat of the eyes as the creatures moved in closer
to her. Desperately she turned into another room, she sucked in a quick
breath as she stopped cold and looked at her surroundings desperately.
There were no more doors, she was trapped. She turned slowly around and
saw the things waiting just outside the doorway, there had to be forty
of them now. She fell to her knees and sobbed as she looked at them,
just below the eyes on the creatures a small slit opened revealing rows
of shark like teeth. The things slowly moved towards her with the red
glow in their eyes dying down revealing a small pupil that collectively
focused on her.

+++++++++++++

Ryoga and Kuno stopped as a muffled scream floated down from
somewhere in the house followed by a crash and the sound of many things
moving violently around on the floor upstairs. "That could be..." said
Kuno as he looked at his companions desperately.

"It could be a trap Kuno, wandering around this house will only
get us all killed," said Ranma calmly as she continued forward. "If it
was someone, there is nothing we can do for them now."

+++++++++++

Kodachi smiled as Gosunkugi lifted the knife into the air and
sliced her hand pinning it to the center of the magic circle she had
created. So many wonderful things had happened since she started, a
small laugh escaped her lips as she watched the red liquid slowly turn
black under the light of the torches. "It is almost finished..."

The boy merely looked on with terrified eyes as his hands moved
by themselves and his lips spoke the incantations slowly and
methodically. He had tried several times to destroy himself using his
magic since Kodachi had tricked him into enslaving himself with that
key. By freeing his bonds he had become her slave, unable to do
anything but obey her word. "Let me die!" he begged desperately trying
to shove the knife into his heart, his hands would not listen and
continued the ritual without him.

+++++++++++++

Ranma frowned as Kuno opened the door that lead down into his
sister's maze. "This will take us to her laboratory."

"The traps won't get any less dangerous down here," warned
Ranma as she stepped forward and pushed between the two boys creating
another ball of light in her hands to illuminate the dark wooden
hallway.

"I am very well aware of that," said Kuno angrily.

Ranma felt a tinge of guilt in her heart. The boy had seen too
much already and would no doubt have nightmares for the rest of his
life about this nights events, if he kept his sanity at all.

Kuno frowned at her gaze and spit on the ground. "I have no
need of your pity! I have been insane before and have no intention of
going back!"

Ranma nodded and led the way down the stairwell. Several golden
ellipses appeared in front of them and Ranma raised her hand with a
vacant look taking over her features again. "Here they come, be ready."
Hundreds of small floating eyeballs rushed forward from the darkness
towards the party. Ryoga and Kuno took up defensive stances and
prepared for the impact of the creatures. Looks of complete fear
crossed their faces, as rows of sharp teeth became visible under
Ranma's light spell. A dark smile crossed the girl's face as they
finally closed in on them.