The Way of the Hero
Disclaimer: Perhaps it's obvious, but for those of you who don't get it, I don't own Ranma 1/2. I don't own Sailor Moon. Heck, I don't even own whoever else I decide to steal-*cough* use. I only own the situations I put these wonderful characters in. If you feel the need to use any of the text/ideas below, I'll either gladly give you permission, or kindly tell you no.
Prologue
"There are some things villains just shouldn't do. It causes them no end of grief whenever they break these 'rules' of villainy. Don't gloat. Never set up the hero in an unnecessarily slow torture device. Don't hold their girlfriend or boyfriend hostage. And, most importantly, NEVER kill their best friend. Every time you do so, the hero finds a way to beat you down." -Unknown
---
If there was an Olympic event for getting lost, Ryoga would've taken the gold for 8 years running. He wouldn't even be able to find the starting line. The problem with Ryoga wasn't that he ignored his instinct. Just the opposite. In martial arts, going by your instinct is sometimes the only way to win, and it saves you from many an unexpected attack. However, the lost boy's instinct was also the equivalent of a broken compass.
That's how he found himself in Juuban, in the middle of a youma attack.
---
"Excuse me, but which way is it to the Tendo Dojo?"
The youma froze in shock. Here it was, transformed in all its evil glory, and this boy with ridiculously powerful life energy emanating from him was asking it for directions.
"I shall steal your energy!" The youma crowed.
"I'm sorry Miss Hinako, I didn't mean to be a delinquent!" Ryoga bleated on reflex, looking up from the useless map in order to search for the teacher. As soon as he spied the youma he calmed down considerably. "Oh. Just a demon."
The martial artist had run across enough of them in his travels. They seemed to be drawn by his immense aura of depression. However, most of them couldn't handle him trying to give his depression away in short bursts via Lion's Roar Bullet. Heck, some of them couldn't even handle the Breaking Point. Especially the ones made of rock.
"Go away," Ryoga muttered in irritation as he motioned with his free hand. He didn't have time to be fighting demons. He had to find the Tendo Dojo and destroy Ranma Saotome once and for all!
The youma paused. It wasn't used to irritation from humans. Fear, yes. Horror, on a good day. But irritation? Not while it was in its True Form!
Well, this WAS the youma's first time out in the Real World in its True Form. What the Senshi didn't know was that there was a training program for youma. They didn't come up with their attacks on the spur of the moment. Every youma spent time in the mortal realm, stealing small bits of energy which they craft, individually, their own True Form. Youmas are famous for having Bad Taste.
This explains the lame attacks.
"Die! I shall steal your life energy from your corpse! CD BURNER!"
Youma are also famous for Not Being Very Smart.
This youma had set up it's base of operations in a computer store. It had heard of it's fellow's attempt at stealing energy through computers. It also figured that it was a good plan, just gone about in the wrong way. Instead of being dependant on disks, the youma figured if you infected the entire computer, whatever the person was doing, it would steal tiny bits of energy. Over time, the energy would build up, and eventually be transferred back to it's home base. However, his boss Kunzite hadn't checked up on it for a while, so it figured it'd better store up energy until his eventual return.
By now, it had stored up a lot of energy for its employer.
Its form was, predictably, a humanoid computer. An evil looking computer, but a computer none the less. Hence the computer-like attacks.
From first hearing the word 'Die' Ryoga was fully prepared in a martial arts stance. This was a very familiar situation to him. Normally, however, he wasn't on the receiving end.
The youma threw a CD-shaped hand forward from which many smaller glowing disks emerged, forming a shotgun like pattern. The martial artist ducked and rolled away from the attack, nearly knocking over a couple of stunned young women in VERY short skirts. Only his incredible reflexes and aversion to anything female showing skin enabled him to stop at the last possible moment. Fortunately, he was facing away from the girls when he stopped. Otherwise, he'd have gotten a nosebleed large enough to fill up the local blood bank.
"What are you doing here?" Rei asked in mild irritation. "Are you too stupid to run away from a youma attack?"
Ryoga jumped up in a twisting maneuver that transferred his body from a crouching position to facing both girls with one hand behind his head in an embarrassed gesture.
"Ah, aren't you girls a little underdressed?" The martial artist muttered as he blushed and quickly looked away from the two fuku-clad females. From the glimpse he got, they were both wearing nearly identically stylized clothing, the only major difference being one's color seemed to be red, while the other's was blue. The girl in blue had a slight resemblance to Akane, thus even more embarrassment was added to the lost boy.
Rei stared at Ryoga in surprise. Was it possible that he didn't recognize the Sailor Senshi? They were only the most publicized group of warriors fighting evil this side of Tokyo!
"HARDRIVE CRASH!"
Instinctively, both the martial artist and Senshi dived for cover. A large explosion with flying bits of computer chips detonated in the middle of where they were standing the moment before.
Ryoga was not happy.
"You tried to harm innocent little girls. Prepare to die!" The lost boy yelled at the hulking piece of techno-junk. He stood for a moment, letting the memories of Ranma and Akane wash through him. A dark, greenish glow enveloped him.
"Hey, get away from the youma! You can't possibly hurt it! Only the Sailor Senshi can defeat youma like this!" Rei shouted at Ryoga, more worried than angry. He was pretty cute, even if he was glowing green.
"The energy readings are astonishing. It's almost as if we can see his emotions with the naked eye." Ami, always the studious one, was busy typing away at her Mercury Computer. From time to time, she would glance up to as if to confirm her readings were indeed accurate.
Ryoga focused all his depression into a sphere of flickering green light. The current worries that Ranma would forever be married to Akane. That Akane might never love him. That he was probably doomed to wander the earth forever, a lonely martial artist with no one to love.
"SHI SHI HOKODAN!"
Perhaps his thoughts would explain why this attack was particularly powerful today.
Most people would wonder, since ki attacks were life energy, why couldn't the youma just absorb them like they steal from other people? Picture this: Life energy as the equivalent of water. You can drink water at a certain rate of speed. You can fill yourself up with only so much water. And, when someone freezes that water and hurls it at you at high speeds, it hurts. If someone freezes the water sharp enough, and throws it fast enough, it hurts a lot.
Ryoga was throwing the equivalent of a spear of ice at speeds close to 90 miles an hour. With predictable results.
The youma staggered back in pain, its left arm missing. Its inactivity was mostly due to shock. A puny human had just hurt it severely. At least, it thought the martial artist was human. It hadn't been up in the Real World long enough to really tell the difference. Maybe this is why so many of it's brethren had fallen?
The Senshi were also staring at the lost boy in shock. Well, Ami was staring at her computer. The readings couldn't possibly be true, could they? It almost appeared as if he took all of his emotion that he had built up, and used it as a weapon. That was impossible. Wasn't it?
Rei was staring at Ryoga with hearts in her eyes. At last, she thought, a cute guy that could hold his own against youma. Who knows? Maybe they were 'destined' to be together. Why else would he have shown up and saved the day? It worked for Usagi, right? Her face fell. She knew what it probably was. Another enemy trying to get on their good side. She resolved not to let her heart get in the way of deciding weather or not they should go out. And if he DID turn out to be evil, it would have to be only one date. The fact that she had died once already without a love had no influence on her feelings and resolve at all. Really. It didn't hurt that the boy didn't just hide in the shadows and throw wimpy roses barely managing to help at all. Here was a boyfriend prospect that was also a front-line fighter!
The martial artist was exhausted emotionally. Now he remembered why he didn't use that attack often. At least when he was fighting Ranma, there was no end to the depression that boy could cause.
Ryoga placed himself in a martial arts stance just as both the Senshi and youma seemed to shake themselves out of self-induced trances.
In its severely weakened state, the youma figured, it wouldn't be a match for even two of the Sailor Senshi. Especially with this young boy to help them. It was taking most of its extra energy it had collected to keep itself together. It had better leave.
The Senshi, however, had other plans.
"SHABON SPRAY FREEZING!"
"FIRE SOUL BIRD!"
The combination of hot and cold attacks proved too much for the weakened youma, and he vanished in a cloud of... frozen ash.
"A Champion of Justice, I'm Sailor Moon! On behalf-"
"Cool it Moon. The youma's been dusted," Rei smirked.
"Whaaat? But I couldn't even get in my cool speech!" Usagi whined. "Mercury's computer said you didn't have enough power to do it alone, how did you beat it?"
"Well, this guy came and-" Rei paused as she looked around. The mysterious stranger looked as if he had vanished. The Senshi of Mars muttered, "Why do the good ones always get away?"
---
"Hmmm. That one is strong. And all his own strength. I deem him worthy of my attention."
There was a distant sound of evil laughter carried by the wind. All who heard it felt cold shivers run down their spines.
---
Ryoga looked around in confusion. This was a familiar sensation. He wondered where those girls went. And why was he surrounded by cars?
"Where on earth am I now?" muttered Ryoga in frustration.
---
Author's Notes: Phew, my first prologue on my first REAL fic. I felt the urgent need to do something constructive. Instead, I started writing. ^^;; Anyhow, I hope you enjoy. ^_^ I have a lot planned. This, like most prologues, is an unnecessarily short set-up piece to entice you to read the rest of my story. ^___^ Please, please, PLEASE send C&C. I know I'll probably ask you this every time I write something, but I'll most likely never get to the point where I DON'T need it. =) Now, I know I'm not the most knowledgeable person on the subject of Sailor Moon. I think I have the base characteristics down of each Senshi, but I KNOW I don't have the sense of timeline that I need to accurately place this fic. So, in order to cover up as many mistakes as possible, I'm making this an Alternate-Universe Sailor Moon/Ranma fic. ^^;; I know it's cheating, but I'm also going to introduce home-made villains, so it's okay. Any ideas, encouragement, even *gasp* criticism is greatly appreciated.
You know, I have a new respect for titles. I wrote this bit before I had a title down. For a half an hour I agonized what title to use to set the tone of the fic. In fact, I'm certain the title I eventually picked changed where this fic was originally going to go. ^^; I'm kinda flexible that way.
Just a word of warning: This is a TRUE crossover fic, with no fusion elements. No "Reborn Ranma" or "Sailor Ranma" or "Tuxedo Ranma" around here. Everyone just happened to meet one day. ^_^
Disclaimer: Perhaps it's obvious, but for those of you who don't get it, I don't own Ranma 1/2. I don't own Sailor Moon. Heck, I don't even own whoever else I decide to steal-*cough* use. I only own the situations I put these wonderful characters in. If you feel the need to use any of the text/ideas below, I'll either gladly give you permission, or kindly tell you no.
Prologue
"There are some things villains just shouldn't do. It causes them no end of grief whenever they break these 'rules' of villainy. Don't gloat. Never set up the hero in an unnecessarily slow torture device. Don't hold their girlfriend or boyfriend hostage. And, most importantly, NEVER kill their best friend. Every time you do so, the hero finds a way to beat you down." -Unknown
---
If there was an Olympic event for getting lost, Ryoga would've taken the gold for 8 years running. He wouldn't even be able to find the starting line. The problem with Ryoga wasn't that he ignored his instinct. Just the opposite. In martial arts, going by your instinct is sometimes the only way to win, and it saves you from many an unexpected attack. However, the lost boy's instinct was also the equivalent of a broken compass.
That's how he found himself in Juuban, in the middle of a youma attack.
---
"Excuse me, but which way is it to the Tendo Dojo?"
The youma froze in shock. Here it was, transformed in all its evil glory, and this boy with ridiculously powerful life energy emanating from him was asking it for directions.
"I shall steal your energy!" The youma crowed.
"I'm sorry Miss Hinako, I didn't mean to be a delinquent!" Ryoga bleated on reflex, looking up from the useless map in order to search for the teacher. As soon as he spied the youma he calmed down considerably. "Oh. Just a demon."
The martial artist had run across enough of them in his travels. They seemed to be drawn by his immense aura of depression. However, most of them couldn't handle him trying to give his depression away in short bursts via Lion's Roar Bullet. Heck, some of them couldn't even handle the Breaking Point. Especially the ones made of rock.
"Go away," Ryoga muttered in irritation as he motioned with his free hand. He didn't have time to be fighting demons. He had to find the Tendo Dojo and destroy Ranma Saotome once and for all!
The youma paused. It wasn't used to irritation from humans. Fear, yes. Horror, on a good day. But irritation? Not while it was in its True Form!
Well, this WAS the youma's first time out in the Real World in its True Form. What the Senshi didn't know was that there was a training program for youma. They didn't come up with their attacks on the spur of the moment. Every youma spent time in the mortal realm, stealing small bits of energy which they craft, individually, their own True Form. Youmas are famous for having Bad Taste.
This explains the lame attacks.
"Die! I shall steal your life energy from your corpse! CD BURNER!"
Youma are also famous for Not Being Very Smart.
This youma had set up it's base of operations in a computer store. It had heard of it's fellow's attempt at stealing energy through computers. It also figured that it was a good plan, just gone about in the wrong way. Instead of being dependant on disks, the youma figured if you infected the entire computer, whatever the person was doing, it would steal tiny bits of energy. Over time, the energy would build up, and eventually be transferred back to it's home base. However, his boss Kunzite hadn't checked up on it for a while, so it figured it'd better store up energy until his eventual return.
By now, it had stored up a lot of energy for its employer.
Its form was, predictably, a humanoid computer. An evil looking computer, but a computer none the less. Hence the computer-like attacks.
From first hearing the word 'Die' Ryoga was fully prepared in a martial arts stance. This was a very familiar situation to him. Normally, however, he wasn't on the receiving end.
The youma threw a CD-shaped hand forward from which many smaller glowing disks emerged, forming a shotgun like pattern. The martial artist ducked and rolled away from the attack, nearly knocking over a couple of stunned young women in VERY short skirts. Only his incredible reflexes and aversion to anything female showing skin enabled him to stop at the last possible moment. Fortunately, he was facing away from the girls when he stopped. Otherwise, he'd have gotten a nosebleed large enough to fill up the local blood bank.
"What are you doing here?" Rei asked in mild irritation. "Are you too stupid to run away from a youma attack?"
Ryoga jumped up in a twisting maneuver that transferred his body from a crouching position to facing both girls with one hand behind his head in an embarrassed gesture.
"Ah, aren't you girls a little underdressed?" The martial artist muttered as he blushed and quickly looked away from the two fuku-clad females. From the glimpse he got, they were both wearing nearly identically stylized clothing, the only major difference being one's color seemed to be red, while the other's was blue. The girl in blue had a slight resemblance to Akane, thus even more embarrassment was added to the lost boy.
Rei stared at Ryoga in surprise. Was it possible that he didn't recognize the Sailor Senshi? They were only the most publicized group of warriors fighting evil this side of Tokyo!
"HARDRIVE CRASH!"
Instinctively, both the martial artist and Senshi dived for cover. A large explosion with flying bits of computer chips detonated in the middle of where they were standing the moment before.
Ryoga was not happy.
"You tried to harm innocent little girls. Prepare to die!" The lost boy yelled at the hulking piece of techno-junk. He stood for a moment, letting the memories of Ranma and Akane wash through him. A dark, greenish glow enveloped him.
"Hey, get away from the youma! You can't possibly hurt it! Only the Sailor Senshi can defeat youma like this!" Rei shouted at Ryoga, more worried than angry. He was pretty cute, even if he was glowing green.
"The energy readings are astonishing. It's almost as if we can see his emotions with the naked eye." Ami, always the studious one, was busy typing away at her Mercury Computer. From time to time, she would glance up to as if to confirm her readings were indeed accurate.
Ryoga focused all his depression into a sphere of flickering green light. The current worries that Ranma would forever be married to Akane. That Akane might never love him. That he was probably doomed to wander the earth forever, a lonely martial artist with no one to love.
"SHI SHI HOKODAN!"
Perhaps his thoughts would explain why this attack was particularly powerful today.
Most people would wonder, since ki attacks were life energy, why couldn't the youma just absorb them like they steal from other people? Picture this: Life energy as the equivalent of water. You can drink water at a certain rate of speed. You can fill yourself up with only so much water. And, when someone freezes that water and hurls it at you at high speeds, it hurts. If someone freezes the water sharp enough, and throws it fast enough, it hurts a lot.
Ryoga was throwing the equivalent of a spear of ice at speeds close to 90 miles an hour. With predictable results.
The youma staggered back in pain, its left arm missing. Its inactivity was mostly due to shock. A puny human had just hurt it severely. At least, it thought the martial artist was human. It hadn't been up in the Real World long enough to really tell the difference. Maybe this is why so many of it's brethren had fallen?
The Senshi were also staring at the lost boy in shock. Well, Ami was staring at her computer. The readings couldn't possibly be true, could they? It almost appeared as if he took all of his emotion that he had built up, and used it as a weapon. That was impossible. Wasn't it?
Rei was staring at Ryoga with hearts in her eyes. At last, she thought, a cute guy that could hold his own against youma. Who knows? Maybe they were 'destined' to be together. Why else would he have shown up and saved the day? It worked for Usagi, right? Her face fell. She knew what it probably was. Another enemy trying to get on their good side. She resolved not to let her heart get in the way of deciding weather or not they should go out. And if he DID turn out to be evil, it would have to be only one date. The fact that she had died once already without a love had no influence on her feelings and resolve at all. Really. It didn't hurt that the boy didn't just hide in the shadows and throw wimpy roses barely managing to help at all. Here was a boyfriend prospect that was also a front-line fighter!
The martial artist was exhausted emotionally. Now he remembered why he didn't use that attack often. At least when he was fighting Ranma, there was no end to the depression that boy could cause.
Ryoga placed himself in a martial arts stance just as both the Senshi and youma seemed to shake themselves out of self-induced trances.
In its severely weakened state, the youma figured, it wouldn't be a match for even two of the Sailor Senshi. Especially with this young boy to help them. It was taking most of its extra energy it had collected to keep itself together. It had better leave.
The Senshi, however, had other plans.
"SHABON SPRAY FREEZING!"
"FIRE SOUL BIRD!"
The combination of hot and cold attacks proved too much for the weakened youma, and he vanished in a cloud of... frozen ash.
"A Champion of Justice, I'm Sailor Moon! On behalf-"
"Cool it Moon. The youma's been dusted," Rei smirked.
"Whaaat? But I couldn't even get in my cool speech!" Usagi whined. "Mercury's computer said you didn't have enough power to do it alone, how did you beat it?"
"Well, this guy came and-" Rei paused as she looked around. The mysterious stranger looked as if he had vanished. The Senshi of Mars muttered, "Why do the good ones always get away?"
---
"Hmmm. That one is strong. And all his own strength. I deem him worthy of my attention."
There was a distant sound of evil laughter carried by the wind. All who heard it felt cold shivers run down their spines.
---
Ryoga looked around in confusion. This was a familiar sensation. He wondered where those girls went. And why was he surrounded by cars?
"Where on earth am I now?" muttered Ryoga in frustration.
---
Author's Notes: Phew, my first prologue on my first REAL fic. I felt the urgent need to do something constructive. Instead, I started writing. ^^;; Anyhow, I hope you enjoy. ^_^ I have a lot planned. This, like most prologues, is an unnecessarily short set-up piece to entice you to read the rest of my story. ^___^ Please, please, PLEASE send C&C. I know I'll probably ask you this every time I write something, but I'll most likely never get to the point where I DON'T need it. =) Now, I know I'm not the most knowledgeable person on the subject of Sailor Moon. I think I have the base characteristics down of each Senshi, but I KNOW I don't have the sense of timeline that I need to accurately place this fic. So, in order to cover up as many mistakes as possible, I'm making this an Alternate-Universe Sailor Moon/Ranma fic. ^^;; I know it's cheating, but I'm also going to introduce home-made villains, so it's okay. Any ideas, encouragement, even *gasp* criticism is greatly appreciated.
You know, I have a new respect for titles. I wrote this bit before I had a title down. For a half an hour I agonized what title to use to set the tone of the fic. In fact, I'm certain the title I eventually picked changed where this fic was originally going to go. ^^; I'm kinda flexible that way.
Just a word of warning: This is a TRUE crossover fic, with no fusion elements. No "Reborn Ranma" or "Sailor Ranma" or "Tuxedo Ranma" around here. Everyone just happened to meet one day. ^_^
