Send e-mail here: oddball22@hotmail.com
DISCLAIMER: All Ranma 1/2 characters are owned Rumiko Takahashi, Viz,
and someone else I think. But mainly the goddess Takahashi. I'm only
borrowing them to use in a limted non-profit avenue, strictly for
entertainment purpose only. Did I get that right, Bob? (He's my lawyer)
Good. I guess I'll use this same disclaimer in the next chapter!
And here we go...
Ranma 1/2: New Challenges
Winds of Change
Chapter 9
Sitting in his study, the Fire Lord was looking over his magic
books when the twin explosions rocked the ground and the alarm was
sounded. Looking up, he allowed himself a slight smile. They're here!
he thought delightfully. And it sounds like they mean business. Well,
the least I can do is greet them like a good host! He slowly rose from
his sitting position, taking time to mark the page he was on with a
bookmark. He casually moved around his desk and opened the door.
Stepping outside, he caught the sounds of shouting and movement
as his commanders took charge of the battle unfolding outside. Well,
one thing I need to obtain, then I'll see about our guests. He grinned
and whistled a tune while he headed down the hall.
After a couple minutes of pawing, Kenji had managed to bend the
wire cage open enough to slip out. He was bleeding from several cuts
where the sharp edges had grazed him, so he also had to steady himself
from the minor rushes of dizziness that entailed. I guess that fall
wasn't as good idea as I thought. He attempted to shake his head which
only made it worse. Gah! Better not try that again. Steadying himself,
he ran out of the room.
Picking paths at random, he galloped down the torch-lined
passgeways as fast as he could. The exit's gotta be around here
somewhere! he thought desperately. But all the hallways looked
identical to him.
Passing one archway, he stopped suddenly and backtracked to it
as something inside got his attention. Looking around inside the fairly
large room, he took note of several large cabinets, water barrels, food
stores, tables, a single chef busily preparing food... and a large
cauldron of boiling water sitting over an open fire.
Okay, hot water reverses this curse thing... He warily eyed
the steaming and bubbling cauldron. I don't know how hot the water
needs to be, but something tells me this will definitely work.
Making his way inside as stealthily as possible, he maneuvered
towards the pot, but was stopped by the flames surrounding it. Too far
to jump up from here, but maybe if I jumped from a table... Kenji found
the perfect launching spot.
The chef's back was to the wolf, as he was hunched over a
counter and humming to himself while he preparing meals. Kenji found his
table and leaped to the surface via a nearby chair. He glanced over at
the chef, who was still oblivious to his actions. Ok, here goes!
Getting up some running room, he gauged the distance and leapt
off the table.
Outside, the battle was not going well. Even with the initial
surprise, the attacking group was rapidly finding themselves outnumbered
as more mages and golems joined the fight. The water mages were the
highest priority and they had mostly been eliminated, but a few still
remained. There were quite a few times that Jusenkyo curses had been
activated, but the group had managed to fight well enough to turn them
back to humans.
Ryoga was using his umbrella to shield himself and therefore
had avoided transforming at all. Ranma had become female awhile ago, but
didn't see the need, nor take the time, to change back. His female form
was faster, if not as strong, and he felt the added speed was better.
Genma had stayed a panda, too, after the second transformation. The
extra bulk didn't slow him down, and the claws came in handy.
Ranma-onna twisted away as a fireball zoomed past him. That
brought her face to face with a mage who looked almost as startled as he
was. Ranma was quicker to recover and delivered a few powerful punches
to her opponent's midsection, doubling him over. A quick kick finished
it and she was on the move again. She felt movement to her right and
ducked as a kick sailed over her head. She grabbed the outstretched leg
and twisted it before using the helpless wizard's momentum to fling him
into one of his brethren.
Nearby, Ryoga continued to make the golems his priority since
his breaking point technique was ideally suited to the task. He had long
ago lost count of how many of the rock monsters he had destroyed, but he
knew it had to be above 30. That's not to say he was working exclusively
on the golems; any mage who happened to wander into Ryoga's path was
beaten senseless before he knew what hit him.
On the other side of the battle, Shampoo and Mousse were
working closely together and watching each other's backs. Chains and
bonbori struck together as the two Amazons instinctively coordinated
their efforts.
Mousse had to admit that the old ghoul was right. The wizards
were strong at a distance, but weak up close. That didn't make them any
less dangerous, however. They were poor martial artists, nowhere near as
good as the six that assaulted them. He absently noticed he would be out
of weaponry in another 10 to 15 minutes. Something had to give before
then.
[How're you doing, Tendo?]. Genma-panda signed, then used it to
bonk a nearby opponent. He winced at the pain in his side where he had
taken a fireball.
"Could be better, Saotome," Soun replied, planting his spear
into the ground then swinging around to land a powerful kick into his
current advesary. He wasn't doing as well as his long-time friend, since
he didn't practice as much Genma. He was bleeding from multiple cuts and
burns and he could feel his strength ebbing. "If this doesn't end soon,
I feel I may not last much longer."
[Come now Tendo, are you telling me you may not be worthy of the
Musabetsu Kakuto-ryu?] he taunted Soun, in the hopes of boosting his
friend's sagging performance. It worked, but Genma couldn't help but see
a new wave of troops leave the entrance and take up ready positions.
Yes, something has to give soon, Ranma-onna thought as the
group withdrew further into the forest and away from the mountain
entrance.
He was not pleased.
The Fire Lord had arrived in the room and a quick glance around
told him all he needed to know: An empty cage on the floor and a slowly
recovering guard.
And a missing wolf.
His anger flared for a moment before he regained his composure.
He couldn't have gotten far, I will find him. Then he noticed the
blood spots and smiled. Yes, it should be no problem tracking him
down. A scathing glance sent the remaining guard running out to the
battle while the Lord of Fire went hunting.
"Where did Cologne go?" Akane asked as the three wound their way
through the endless passageways.
"I do not know, she was right behind me," Konatsu answered,
adjusting his faded and patched dark, red ninja suit. They had abandoned
the disguises since the halls were mostly empty and the cloaks inhibited
movement and fighting. .
"No time to worry about that, we have to find Kenji-kun," Ukyo
reminded them. She noticed Konatsu wince as she mentioned Kenji's name.
She stopped the group. "Alright, what is it Konatsu-kun?"
The ninja seemed taken aback. "I-I well, I just think caution
is warranted, Ukyo-sama."
Ukyo shook her head. "That's not it. You've had some sort of
problem ever since we started this." She cocked her head as she sensed a
twinge of jealousy in the ninja. "It's about Kenji-san isn't it?"
Konatsu nodded. "I just don't think this is such a good idea."
"Then why'd you come?" Ukyo asked.
"To protect you, of course."
"Look, I know you care about me," Ukyo started, "and I care
about you too, but you have to realize I care about Kenji as well. You
are both my friends. I would do this for you if your position was the
same as his. Okay?"
Konatsu just nodded glumly. "Just know that I will protect you,
Ukyo-sama."
She nodded in return and Akane suggested they keep moving.
The fools, Cologne pondered as she stood in front of a metal,
double door. It was locked, of course, but that wasn't enough to stop a
matriarch of the Amazon nation. To her wizened eyes, there were also
numerous magic wards on the door as well. This fire lord really thinks
these weak magical protections will stop anyone? She laughed and spread
a fine powder over the door. One by one, the magic wards vanished and
the door opened.
Cologne pushed the door further open with her staff and hopped
inside. She gazed around in glee at the hoard of magic tomes, potions,
and artifacts scattered around the room. If she could, she would've
liked to have take everything with her, but she was only one person.
No, there was only one particular object she wanted. She just
had to find it.
Bouncing around the room on her staff she flipped through books
and sorted though cabinets. Surely he wouldn't leave it in China? An
object that powerful he'd most certainly bring with him. She glanced
around the room in frustration. Then a smile slowly crept to her lips as
she saw it.
The 8 spell books of the wizard, Gionu. As every good wizard
knows, Gionu only wrote 7 books. Cologne reached for the eighth book and
pulled.
With a groan, the bookshelf pulled away from the wall,
revealing a simple safe built into the wall behind it. Such primitive
protection methods. How is it we Amazons nearly lost to these mages all
those years ago? She used a simple ki blast to open the safe, revealing
a small statuette inside. Cologne grinned in anticipation and reached
for her prize.
Unbeknownst to her, two crystals in the opposite corners of the
room had begun to glow. As Cologne was about to grasp the statue, they
emitted twin blue beams that converged on the old woman, encasing her in
a blue bubble. In surprise, Cologne dropped her staff. Curses! I
should've realized that this seemed too easy!
She was now floating in a spherical blue bubble that bobbed up
and down slowly, a few meters off the floor. A few tentative pecks on
the sphere confirmed that she wasn't getting out of this trap anytime
soon. She tried a small ki blast, but the spherical cage held firm. Any
larger blast could fry her. She tried another and Cologne detected a
very small fluctuation in the shield.
This could take awhile, she thought dejectedly.
The chef turned around after hearing a splash and... a yelp? At
first he didn't see anything, then a very red and naked young man sprang
out of his cooking pot and attacked him. The cook was so stunned, he
didn't even move to defend himself and Kenji was able to render him
unconscious with a few well placed hits.
The amnesiac then took the opportunity to dance the `I just
dunked myself in scalding water' dance.
"YEOW! Hot, hot, hot, hot, HOT!" He then stopped, looked down,
and shivered. "Suddenly it seems to be a tad drafty in here. I guess it
wouldn't look too good if my rescuers saw me like this."
Sifting through the spare clothes closet, he managed to find a
spare pair of pants and a brown cloak that was similar to what most of
the other mages wore. After getting dressed, he decided it was time to
leave.
"Where do you think you're going?" The voice froze the young
amnesiac before he could move too far. "You don't need to leave quite
yet. After all, that would be rude to the host." Kenji swallowed down
some bile and tried tro control his suddenly trembling body as he turned
around to behold the Fire Lord standing in the doorway.
"Look, just let me go and we'll call this even, okay?" Kenji
knew that probably wasn't going to happen, but he could at least try.
"I'm afraid not," the fire lord confirmed it. "Now, submit
yourself to me, and I will make this as painless as possible."
"As opposed it what?" Kenji tried to keep him talking as he
called upon his ki. He felt the wind began to gather as he concentrated.
The Fire Lord shook his head. "Now, now, don't try that those
wind tricks with me!"
He snapped his fingers and a flame wall sprouted up around
Kenji. What concentration and ki he had gathered quickly dissipated as
the fear set in. His attention was so intently rooted on the flames,
that he failed to take notice of the rather large golem as it disengaged
from the wall. The rock creature grabbed him through the flames and
squeezed him until blackness filled his vision.
Kenji tried to scream, but even that was denied him.
"We're not getting anywhere!" Ukyo complained as the small group
stopped to get their bearings. "All these passageways look the same. How
are we supposed to find him?"
"Well, we have been making progress," Akane offered. "But you're
right. Maybe they built this place like a maze to confuse outsiders."
She sighed, then leaned against against the cave wall. Strangely, she
felt her hand sink into the wall after placing it there. "What the...!?"
She quickly pulled her hand out.
The other two turned to see a small, square section of the wall
get pushed inward by Akane's resting hand. Almost immediately, a large
section of wall next to it slid open, revealing a new passage.
"Alright, Akane-chan!" Ukyo complimented. "You found a secret
passage!"
"Well done," Konatsu added.
With a shrug, Akane joined the two as they entered the dark
passageway after grabbing a burning torch off the wall to light the way.
They continued down the downward sloping path for a couple minutes
before reaching a dead end.
Ukyo sighed. "Now what?"
"There has be a another secret switch around here," Akane
reasoned.
Konatsu held the two girls back while looking around. "Allow
me."
After about a minute, Konatsu stepped foreword and placed his
hand on a section of wall, giving it a small push. Just like before, the
wall in front of them slid open to reveal a large cavern that was lit
with a multi-colored pulse, emanating from the crystal in the center of
the room. As they stepped inside, Ukyo gasped and pointed to three non-
moving forms lying on the ground. She immediately ran over to one.
"Ukyo-sama, wait!" Konatsu cautioned. "We don't know what we're
dealing with!"
"It doesn't matter, if they are like this then they must be
enemies of our enemies," she reasoned while kneeling down next to one of
them. "And you know what they say about the enemy of my enemy..." The
other two joined her as she rolled the man over onto his back and
checked his vital signs.
"Is he dead?" Akane asked tentatively, to which Ukyo nodded.
"Well, let's check the other two."
Ukyo went through the first man's cloak, looking for clues,
while Akane and Konatsu checked the other two. She gave up when she
didn't find anything.
"This one's dead, too," Konatsu said while leaning over another
body.
Akane called the other two over. "Hey, this guy's still alive!"
Ukyo and Konatsu rushed over to see. Sure enough, the ancient
looking man was still breathing, though it was coming it shallow and
ragged gasps. His eyes were closed and he appeared to be trying to save
his strength. His eyes slowly opened when he realized there were people
looking at him.
"Are you all right?" Akane asked.
He motioned them closer. "Wh-who... are... you?"
"I'm Ukyo, this is Konatsu, and this is Akane," Ukyo made the
introductions. "Who are you and what happened to you?"
"No time..." he sputtered. "Are you friends... of Kenji-san?"
Ukyo's eyes went wide. "Yeah! Do you know where he is?"
The man coughed spasmodically, his body seemingly racked with
pain. He reached inside his cloak and pulled out a small pendant on a
chain. The pendant was a spherical blue crystal, framed by gold outline
that was attached to the chain. "Give this to him, it will explain. I
can't..." He violently coughed some more.
"Hold on, we'll get you out of here!" Akane told him but the man
motioned her away.
"No!" he forced her hands away. "I... don't have... much time
left. Go, save Kenji!"
As if it had taken all his energy to speak, the man's breathing
slowed and his eyes closed again. Then his breathing stopped. Konatsu
checked his pulse.
"He's gone," he informed them.
"Who was he and how did he know Kenji?" Ukyo wondered out loud.
Akane stood up. "I don't know, but we better find him!"
She pulled Ukyo up and the three made their way out of the
cavern and back the way they came. Ukyo fingered the pendant and could
feel it stay quite cool despite her attempts to warm it with her hands.
What could it all mean? she wondered.
"Ryoga, duck!"
The lost boy immediately dropped to the ground just as Ranma-
onna sent a ki-blast hurtling over his head. It smashed into a mage who
had a sword poised to strike the lost boy in the back. Ryoga immediately
jumped back to his feet and continued his attacks.
"Better watch your back, P-chan!" Ranma taunted.
"You watch your own!" Ryoga countered.
Ranma was really starting to get worried. She had lost sight of
her dad a few minutes ago when Genma had leapt to assist Soun, who had
gone down. Mousse and Shampoo were also nowhere to be seen.
"I think we're the only ones left, Ranma," Ryoga came to the
same conclusion. "I should've known you'd be the death of me."
Ranma grinned. "Funny, I was thinking if you were even half the
martial artist I am, we would be through this by now!"
Ryoga face contorted. "Ranma! I-"
"ENOUGH!"
The voice echoed forcefully through the battlefield, freezing
everybody in place. Ranma-onna gulped when she recognized the voice.
Turning, she saw the Fire Lord he had faced before, standing atop a very
large golem. Clutched in the golem's hands, a young man hung limp.
"Surrender now, or this one dies!" He commanded.
Ranma crossed her arms across her chest. "We know you plan to
kill him anyway, so why should we listen to you?"
"Because of you don't, I kill your barnyard animals." He pointed
to where a cat, a duck, a panda, and Soun lay on the ground. None of
them were moving.
Both boys, well, one boy and one boy-currently-girl, felt large
pangs of fear. Ranma was glad Akane was on the sneak team, though he
desperately hoped she was okay.
"How do we know they're not dead already?" Ranma asked.
The fire lord simply grinned and snapped his fingers. One of
the nearby mages kicked Soun and then slapped him a few times. Ranma
could see him stir and attempt to get up, but was stopped by the mage.
"As you can see, they are very much alive," the Fire Lord
pointed out. "They'll stay that way if you cooperate. If not... well, I
can't say what would happen."
Ryoga growled and started foreword, but was stopped by Ranma's
hand on his arm.
"No, Ryoga," she said quietly. "I feel the same way, but he's
won this battle." Ranma could see Ryoga war with himself for a few
seconds before nodding slightly. "We can still beat him, but it wouldn't
matter much if we were the only ones left to celebrate."
Ranma then turned back towards the fire lord. "All right," she
said slowly. "You've got us... for now."
To which the Fire Lord grinned.
DISCLAIMER: All Ranma 1/2 characters are owned Rumiko Takahashi, Viz,
and someone else I think. But mainly the goddess Takahashi. I'm only
borrowing them to use in a limted non-profit avenue, strictly for
entertainment purpose only. Did I get that right, Bob? (He's my lawyer)
Good. I guess I'll use this same disclaimer in the next chapter!
And here we go...
Ranma 1/2: New Challenges
Winds of Change
Chapter 9
Sitting in his study, the Fire Lord was looking over his magic
books when the twin explosions rocked the ground and the alarm was
sounded. Looking up, he allowed himself a slight smile. They're here!
he thought delightfully. And it sounds like they mean business. Well,
the least I can do is greet them like a good host! He slowly rose from
his sitting position, taking time to mark the page he was on with a
bookmark. He casually moved around his desk and opened the door.
Stepping outside, he caught the sounds of shouting and movement
as his commanders took charge of the battle unfolding outside. Well,
one thing I need to obtain, then I'll see about our guests. He grinned
and whistled a tune while he headed down the hall.
After a couple minutes of pawing, Kenji had managed to bend the
wire cage open enough to slip out. He was bleeding from several cuts
where the sharp edges had grazed him, so he also had to steady himself
from the minor rushes of dizziness that entailed. I guess that fall
wasn't as good idea as I thought. He attempted to shake his head which
only made it worse. Gah! Better not try that again. Steadying himself,
he ran out of the room.
Picking paths at random, he galloped down the torch-lined
passgeways as fast as he could. The exit's gotta be around here
somewhere! he thought desperately. But all the hallways looked
identical to him.
Passing one archway, he stopped suddenly and backtracked to it
as something inside got his attention. Looking around inside the fairly
large room, he took note of several large cabinets, water barrels, food
stores, tables, a single chef busily preparing food... and a large
cauldron of boiling water sitting over an open fire.
Okay, hot water reverses this curse thing... He warily eyed
the steaming and bubbling cauldron. I don't know how hot the water
needs to be, but something tells me this will definitely work.
Making his way inside as stealthily as possible, he maneuvered
towards the pot, but was stopped by the flames surrounding it. Too far
to jump up from here, but maybe if I jumped from a table... Kenji found
the perfect launching spot.
The chef's back was to the wolf, as he was hunched over a
counter and humming to himself while he preparing meals. Kenji found his
table and leaped to the surface via a nearby chair. He glanced over at
the chef, who was still oblivious to his actions. Ok, here goes!
Getting up some running room, he gauged the distance and leapt
off the table.
Outside, the battle was not going well. Even with the initial
surprise, the attacking group was rapidly finding themselves outnumbered
as more mages and golems joined the fight. The water mages were the
highest priority and they had mostly been eliminated, but a few still
remained. There were quite a few times that Jusenkyo curses had been
activated, but the group had managed to fight well enough to turn them
back to humans.
Ryoga was using his umbrella to shield himself and therefore
had avoided transforming at all. Ranma had become female awhile ago, but
didn't see the need, nor take the time, to change back. His female form
was faster, if not as strong, and he felt the added speed was better.
Genma had stayed a panda, too, after the second transformation. The
extra bulk didn't slow him down, and the claws came in handy.
Ranma-onna twisted away as a fireball zoomed past him. That
brought her face to face with a mage who looked almost as startled as he
was. Ranma was quicker to recover and delivered a few powerful punches
to her opponent's midsection, doubling him over. A quick kick finished
it and she was on the move again. She felt movement to her right and
ducked as a kick sailed over her head. She grabbed the outstretched leg
and twisted it before using the helpless wizard's momentum to fling him
into one of his brethren.
Nearby, Ryoga continued to make the golems his priority since
his breaking point technique was ideally suited to the task. He had long
ago lost count of how many of the rock monsters he had destroyed, but he
knew it had to be above 30. That's not to say he was working exclusively
on the golems; any mage who happened to wander into Ryoga's path was
beaten senseless before he knew what hit him.
On the other side of the battle, Shampoo and Mousse were
working closely together and watching each other's backs. Chains and
bonbori struck together as the two Amazons instinctively coordinated
their efforts.
Mousse had to admit that the old ghoul was right. The wizards
were strong at a distance, but weak up close. That didn't make them any
less dangerous, however. They were poor martial artists, nowhere near as
good as the six that assaulted them. He absently noticed he would be out
of weaponry in another 10 to 15 minutes. Something had to give before
then.
[How're you doing, Tendo?]. Genma-panda signed, then used it to
bonk a nearby opponent. He winced at the pain in his side where he had
taken a fireball.
"Could be better, Saotome," Soun replied, planting his spear
into the ground then swinging around to land a powerful kick into his
current advesary. He wasn't doing as well as his long-time friend, since
he didn't practice as much Genma. He was bleeding from multiple cuts and
burns and he could feel his strength ebbing. "If this doesn't end soon,
I feel I may not last much longer."
[Come now Tendo, are you telling me you may not be worthy of the
Musabetsu Kakuto-ryu?] he taunted Soun, in the hopes of boosting his
friend's sagging performance. It worked, but Genma couldn't help but see
a new wave of troops leave the entrance and take up ready positions.
Yes, something has to give soon, Ranma-onna thought as the
group withdrew further into the forest and away from the mountain
entrance.
He was not pleased.
The Fire Lord had arrived in the room and a quick glance around
told him all he needed to know: An empty cage on the floor and a slowly
recovering guard.
And a missing wolf.
His anger flared for a moment before he regained his composure.
He couldn't have gotten far, I will find him. Then he noticed the
blood spots and smiled. Yes, it should be no problem tracking him
down. A scathing glance sent the remaining guard running out to the
battle while the Lord of Fire went hunting.
"Where did Cologne go?" Akane asked as the three wound their way
through the endless passageways.
"I do not know, she was right behind me," Konatsu answered,
adjusting his faded and patched dark, red ninja suit. They had abandoned
the disguises since the halls were mostly empty and the cloaks inhibited
movement and fighting. .
"No time to worry about that, we have to find Kenji-kun," Ukyo
reminded them. She noticed Konatsu wince as she mentioned Kenji's name.
She stopped the group. "Alright, what is it Konatsu-kun?"
The ninja seemed taken aback. "I-I well, I just think caution
is warranted, Ukyo-sama."
Ukyo shook her head. "That's not it. You've had some sort of
problem ever since we started this." She cocked her head as she sensed a
twinge of jealousy in the ninja. "It's about Kenji-san isn't it?"
Konatsu nodded. "I just don't think this is such a good idea."
"Then why'd you come?" Ukyo asked.
"To protect you, of course."
"Look, I know you care about me," Ukyo started, "and I care
about you too, but you have to realize I care about Kenji as well. You
are both my friends. I would do this for you if your position was the
same as his. Okay?"
Konatsu just nodded glumly. "Just know that I will protect you,
Ukyo-sama."
She nodded in return and Akane suggested they keep moving.
The fools, Cologne pondered as she stood in front of a metal,
double door. It was locked, of course, but that wasn't enough to stop a
matriarch of the Amazon nation. To her wizened eyes, there were also
numerous magic wards on the door as well. This fire lord really thinks
these weak magical protections will stop anyone? She laughed and spread
a fine powder over the door. One by one, the magic wards vanished and
the door opened.
Cologne pushed the door further open with her staff and hopped
inside. She gazed around in glee at the hoard of magic tomes, potions,
and artifacts scattered around the room. If she could, she would've
liked to have take everything with her, but she was only one person.
No, there was only one particular object she wanted. She just
had to find it.
Bouncing around the room on her staff she flipped through books
and sorted though cabinets. Surely he wouldn't leave it in China? An
object that powerful he'd most certainly bring with him. She glanced
around the room in frustration. Then a smile slowly crept to her lips as
she saw it.
The 8 spell books of the wizard, Gionu. As every good wizard
knows, Gionu only wrote 7 books. Cologne reached for the eighth book and
pulled.
With a groan, the bookshelf pulled away from the wall,
revealing a simple safe built into the wall behind it. Such primitive
protection methods. How is it we Amazons nearly lost to these mages all
those years ago? She used a simple ki blast to open the safe, revealing
a small statuette inside. Cologne grinned in anticipation and reached
for her prize.
Unbeknownst to her, two crystals in the opposite corners of the
room had begun to glow. As Cologne was about to grasp the statue, they
emitted twin blue beams that converged on the old woman, encasing her in
a blue bubble. In surprise, Cologne dropped her staff. Curses! I
should've realized that this seemed too easy!
She was now floating in a spherical blue bubble that bobbed up
and down slowly, a few meters off the floor. A few tentative pecks on
the sphere confirmed that she wasn't getting out of this trap anytime
soon. She tried a small ki blast, but the spherical cage held firm. Any
larger blast could fry her. She tried another and Cologne detected a
very small fluctuation in the shield.
This could take awhile, she thought dejectedly.
The chef turned around after hearing a splash and... a yelp? At
first he didn't see anything, then a very red and naked young man sprang
out of his cooking pot and attacked him. The cook was so stunned, he
didn't even move to defend himself and Kenji was able to render him
unconscious with a few well placed hits.
The amnesiac then took the opportunity to dance the `I just
dunked myself in scalding water' dance.
"YEOW! Hot, hot, hot, hot, HOT!" He then stopped, looked down,
and shivered. "Suddenly it seems to be a tad drafty in here. I guess it
wouldn't look too good if my rescuers saw me like this."
Sifting through the spare clothes closet, he managed to find a
spare pair of pants and a brown cloak that was similar to what most of
the other mages wore. After getting dressed, he decided it was time to
leave.
"Where do you think you're going?" The voice froze the young
amnesiac before he could move too far. "You don't need to leave quite
yet. After all, that would be rude to the host." Kenji swallowed down
some bile and tried tro control his suddenly trembling body as he turned
around to behold the Fire Lord standing in the doorway.
"Look, just let me go and we'll call this even, okay?" Kenji
knew that probably wasn't going to happen, but he could at least try.
"I'm afraid not," the fire lord confirmed it. "Now, submit
yourself to me, and I will make this as painless as possible."
"As opposed it what?" Kenji tried to keep him talking as he
called upon his ki. He felt the wind began to gather as he concentrated.
The Fire Lord shook his head. "Now, now, don't try that those
wind tricks with me!"
He snapped his fingers and a flame wall sprouted up around
Kenji. What concentration and ki he had gathered quickly dissipated as
the fear set in. His attention was so intently rooted on the flames,
that he failed to take notice of the rather large golem as it disengaged
from the wall. The rock creature grabbed him through the flames and
squeezed him until blackness filled his vision.
Kenji tried to scream, but even that was denied him.
"We're not getting anywhere!" Ukyo complained as the small group
stopped to get their bearings. "All these passageways look the same. How
are we supposed to find him?"
"Well, we have been making progress," Akane offered. "But you're
right. Maybe they built this place like a maze to confuse outsiders."
She sighed, then leaned against against the cave wall. Strangely, she
felt her hand sink into the wall after placing it there. "What the...!?"
She quickly pulled her hand out.
The other two turned to see a small, square section of the wall
get pushed inward by Akane's resting hand. Almost immediately, a large
section of wall next to it slid open, revealing a new passage.
"Alright, Akane-chan!" Ukyo complimented. "You found a secret
passage!"
"Well done," Konatsu added.
With a shrug, Akane joined the two as they entered the dark
passageway after grabbing a burning torch off the wall to light the way.
They continued down the downward sloping path for a couple minutes
before reaching a dead end.
Ukyo sighed. "Now what?"
"There has be a another secret switch around here," Akane
reasoned.
Konatsu held the two girls back while looking around. "Allow
me."
After about a minute, Konatsu stepped foreword and placed his
hand on a section of wall, giving it a small push. Just like before, the
wall in front of them slid open to reveal a large cavern that was lit
with a multi-colored pulse, emanating from the crystal in the center of
the room. As they stepped inside, Ukyo gasped and pointed to three non-
moving forms lying on the ground. She immediately ran over to one.
"Ukyo-sama, wait!" Konatsu cautioned. "We don't know what we're
dealing with!"
"It doesn't matter, if they are like this then they must be
enemies of our enemies," she reasoned while kneeling down next to one of
them. "And you know what they say about the enemy of my enemy..." The
other two joined her as she rolled the man over onto his back and
checked his vital signs.
"Is he dead?" Akane asked tentatively, to which Ukyo nodded.
"Well, let's check the other two."
Ukyo went through the first man's cloak, looking for clues,
while Akane and Konatsu checked the other two. She gave up when she
didn't find anything.
"This one's dead, too," Konatsu said while leaning over another
body.
Akane called the other two over. "Hey, this guy's still alive!"
Ukyo and Konatsu rushed over to see. Sure enough, the ancient
looking man was still breathing, though it was coming it shallow and
ragged gasps. His eyes were closed and he appeared to be trying to save
his strength. His eyes slowly opened when he realized there were people
looking at him.
"Are you all right?" Akane asked.
He motioned them closer. "Wh-who... are... you?"
"I'm Ukyo, this is Konatsu, and this is Akane," Ukyo made the
introductions. "Who are you and what happened to you?"
"No time..." he sputtered. "Are you friends... of Kenji-san?"
Ukyo's eyes went wide. "Yeah! Do you know where he is?"
The man coughed spasmodically, his body seemingly racked with
pain. He reached inside his cloak and pulled out a small pendant on a
chain. The pendant was a spherical blue crystal, framed by gold outline
that was attached to the chain. "Give this to him, it will explain. I
can't..." He violently coughed some more.
"Hold on, we'll get you out of here!" Akane told him but the man
motioned her away.
"No!" he forced her hands away. "I... don't have... much time
left. Go, save Kenji!"
As if it had taken all his energy to speak, the man's breathing
slowed and his eyes closed again. Then his breathing stopped. Konatsu
checked his pulse.
"He's gone," he informed them.
"Who was he and how did he know Kenji?" Ukyo wondered out loud.
Akane stood up. "I don't know, but we better find him!"
She pulled Ukyo up and the three made their way out of the
cavern and back the way they came. Ukyo fingered the pendant and could
feel it stay quite cool despite her attempts to warm it with her hands.
What could it all mean? she wondered.
"Ryoga, duck!"
The lost boy immediately dropped to the ground just as Ranma-
onna sent a ki-blast hurtling over his head. It smashed into a mage who
had a sword poised to strike the lost boy in the back. Ryoga immediately
jumped back to his feet and continued his attacks.
"Better watch your back, P-chan!" Ranma taunted.
"You watch your own!" Ryoga countered.
Ranma was really starting to get worried. She had lost sight of
her dad a few minutes ago when Genma had leapt to assist Soun, who had
gone down. Mousse and Shampoo were also nowhere to be seen.
"I think we're the only ones left, Ranma," Ryoga came to the
same conclusion. "I should've known you'd be the death of me."
Ranma grinned. "Funny, I was thinking if you were even half the
martial artist I am, we would be through this by now!"
Ryoga face contorted. "Ranma! I-"
"ENOUGH!"
The voice echoed forcefully through the battlefield, freezing
everybody in place. Ranma-onna gulped when she recognized the voice.
Turning, she saw the Fire Lord he had faced before, standing atop a very
large golem. Clutched in the golem's hands, a young man hung limp.
"Surrender now, or this one dies!" He commanded.
Ranma crossed her arms across her chest. "We know you plan to
kill him anyway, so why should we listen to you?"
"Because of you don't, I kill your barnyard animals." He pointed
to where a cat, a duck, a panda, and Soun lay on the ground. None of
them were moving.
Both boys, well, one boy and one boy-currently-girl, felt large
pangs of fear. Ranma was glad Akane was on the sneak team, though he
desperately hoped she was okay.
"How do we know they're not dead already?" Ranma asked.
The fire lord simply grinned and snapped his fingers. One of
the nearby mages kicked Soun and then slapped him a few times. Ranma
could see him stir and attempt to get up, but was stopped by the mage.
"As you can see, they are very much alive," the Fire Lord
pointed out. "They'll stay that way if you cooperate. If not... well, I
can't say what would happen."
Ryoga growled and started foreword, but was stopped by Ranma's
hand on his arm.
"No, Ryoga," she said quietly. "I feel the same way, but he's
won this battle." Ranma could see Ryoga war with himself for a few
seconds before nodding slightly. "We can still beat him, but it wouldn't
matter much if we were the only ones left to celebrate."
Ranma then turned back towards the fire lord. "All right," she
said slowly. "You've got us... for now."
To which the Fire Lord grinned.