Part 2: ...Into Nerima
For a disclaimer, I refer people to look at the first chapter posted. I do not want to repeat myself. They-are-not-mine! Well, mostly. The same goes for part one.
--I----------*-
Koja wasted no time in assessing the boy's skill in case of a threat- after all, the lich might have any sort of minions to finish them off- and saw one of the greatest opponents he had ever met in front of him.
Even as the boy looked at Koja's face, the half-elf was grimly calculating his chances to beat this kid (So young, perhaps he is not a minion?) and looking for escape routes from the immediate area. There were plenty for him, but none that his companions might use. He saw, to his surprise, that the boy's eyes widened at the sight of his ears. Good though the kid was, he seemed inexperienced- after all, how rare is a half-elf? For someone as good as this kid, he'd have to have met some other races and fought a good share of monsters- no one got this good from simple exercise.
He glanced quickly at his companions, and saw to his dismay that they had barely begun to recover. He'd have to see wether the kid was a threat, and eliminate him if necessary.
All these mental calculations took about three seconds. Koja was trained to act quickly, and excessive thought got in the way, so he thought quickly. Simple.
He noticed the boy was stunned at the sight of Badbreath's wings- the sorcerer was good for something, after all- and spoke to the kid in the common tounge. Best do so now, while he had the chance.
"Where are we?"
Short and to the point. Much like Koja, in fact.
--I----------*-
Ranma was beginning to realize that this day was going to be one of the weirdest ever in Nerima, and that was saying a lot.
First of all, a guy with scars all over his face had popped out of thin air, along with a bunch of... People... and looked at him as if he were some sort of an experiment, or possibly a bug.
Then, there were those guys dressed in armor behind him, as well as one dressed in some sort of robes, all with wepons ready.
Then there was that black guy with the pointed ears- which the scarred guy and one of those in armor had too- who had huge, black wings coming out of his back.
[Ravh mure ðiv?]
Oh, and the scarred guy spoke to him in some weird language, to top it all off. He heard Shampoo, Ukyo and the rest of the gang coming up behind him, so going to them for help was not really an option- most of them were out for his blood or his hand in marriage.
These guys, whoever they were, did not seem very friendly and, knowing his father, they were probably after him as well.
He wasn't sure what to do, so he fell back on the one thing he was sure wouldn't fail.
Martial arts.
--I----------*-
Koja noticed that a lot of people were coming this way, all shouting something. He thought he recognized a few sentences in the language of Kara- Tur, so he decided to switch to that language.
Before he could say anything, though, he saw the fighting stance the kid took, and immediately leapt into action.
"You take care of the rest, I'll take this one!"
He pushed his blade out of it's sheath with a thumb, making a small * Click * and drew it even as he kicked at the kid. Unsurprisingly to him, the kid dodged easily, and attacked back. But when Koja decides that he does not want to be hit, he won't be hit. He drew upon one of the many special techniques of his school to defend himself from the fierce assault- Leaf On The Breeze.
--I----------*-
[Ðiþ ðiájs mu anitser, gé éjs mu nanneþ!]
* Click *
Ranma dodged the first kick easily, and immediately went on the offensive. But then, the guy shifted his stance somehow, and Ranma, try as he might, simply could not hit him. The guy simply floated away, as if by coincidence, from all of Ranma's attacks. Sometimes it even seemed as if he flowed with some wind only he could feel!
Ranma backed away, looking at his opponent as if in a new light, not even noticing what was going on around him. Ranma suddenly noticed that the guy had drawn a sword from somewhere. He realized, even as the guy prepared to attack, that he hadn't noticed it earlier because the guy wielded it as if it was a part of his body. Then Ranma suddenly felt a strong wind, and was blown away by it.
--I----------*-
The kid was good, true enough. He nearly got him a couple of times there. Koja prepared his most effective attack- the Lightning Of Three Prongs- in order to finish this as quickly as possible when he was suddenly blown away by a fierce wind. He twisted in the air to see Estefan pointing a hand in Koja's general direction and chanting. Gust of Wind was a useful spell, but someone had to teach Estefan to use spells only on enemies. They had lost more than one travelling companion due to his lack of care.
He then tumbled in the air, and prepared himself to land when his head collided with the head of a young lavender-haired girl holding a huge painted pair of Bonbori, and all went black.
--I----------*-
And in the Nekohanten, an old matriarch of the Joketsuzoku tribe of amazons felt the distinctive tang of magic in the air, and knew that, somehow, Son- in-law had gotten himself into trouble again.
--I----------*-
Nodrog was the first to speak when the wind had blown the incoming horde of fighters away.
"Right, let's skeedaddle like mice from Cormyr!"
The rest of the party simply looked at him blankly. Nodrog sighed, then spoke again.
"Run you sons of a motherless goat!"
Now, it may seem strange for a party of highly experienced adventurers to run from a fight they might have won quite easily, but the fact was that if one voice spoke up, the others tended to follow it to the end without really thinking. This usually had dire and uncomfortable consequences, but that didn't stop them from doing it. The party had no designated leader: whoever took charge at the time was usually the one who was in the leading position. It was a strange version of calling dibs, but it worked.
And thus, the party ran.
--I----------*-
The assorted Nerimians picked themselves up off the ground, with one or two notable exceptions of course, and as was usual when something was off, everyone blamed Ranma for everything.
"Curse you, foul Saotome! How dare you use your sorceries against the noble Blue Thunder? I shall smite thee were you stand, cur!"
"PREPARE TO DIE, RANMA!"
"Who the heck were those guys, Ranchan? Answer me, you jackass!"
"How dare you allow my Shampoo to come to harm?"
"OOOHOHOHOHOHOHO! Oh, Ranma dear, how incredibly forceful you are!"
Ranma only counted his blessings for the fact that Akane wasn't there at the moment, then groaned as he remembered why- she was cooking dinner tonight. This was not one of his better days.
Everyone stopped shouting, however, when a groan sounded behind them.
The Nerimians looked around, and saw the stranger, his sword back in it's sheath and his head held with one hand, kneel next to Shampoo, checking her pulse. Most of them were stunned by his strange appearance. Not only did he have unnaturally slanted ears, he also had four large scars on his face – one down the right side of his face, one running along his left jawline crossed by another and the last sloping between the eyes. And that wasn't even considering his unusual appearance.
He wore a simple tunic, which looked thouroughly antiquated, and a dark green cloak on his back. A pair of simple breeches and well-made boots of some unidentifiable material completed what looked like a medieval costume. And on his arms were tied twenty multicoloured ribbons, none the exact same colour, ten on each arm, which obviously signified a rank of some sort. And to the eyes of the martial artists, he was not only an experienced fighter but also a man who had killed and would not hesitate to do so again. And if the beautifully made, if plain, sword he wore at his side was any indication, he wouldn't be lacking the tools to do it with either.
Seeing him examine Shampoo for injuries like an experienced doctor was not really an image that fit him.
Koja had learned the art of survival, which not only included wilderness lore and hunting, but also many medical skills, such as a little herblore and basic surgeon's knowledge. It didn't hurt that knowing where the body's weak spots were was a definite advantage in a fight. Some thought this strange, but Koja thought it practical, and he had saved many lives using his abilities.
He had, a moment before, been ready to kill all of them, but he never attacked a downed opponent and rarely one that wasn't actively attacking him. It was a certain code of honor he had developed, and it had never failed him yet.
Koja, satisfied that the girl would be alright in a moment, got up on his feet and stared straight back at the assorted fighters in front of him. He saw no sign of his companions, which meant that Nodrog had taken command. The man never was willing to fight without having something to drink first, which was why they always brought along a few bottles of something stiff. Amazingly, facing the lich seemed to have sobered him up a bit.
Koja opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a guy dressed like... one of his old associates... holding aloft a wooden sword and babbling something which sounded like Elminster high on Black Lotus in the language of Kara-Tur. Koja knew that language, and was unfortunately able to listen to the insane boy.
"Ah! So the foul Saotome has conjured forth a demon, so that he need not face me in combat! But this foul creation, much like it's master, is no match for" – and he raised the practice sword into the air, and thunder sounded in the air – "The Blue Thunder of Furinkan high! I shall smite thee, demon! En guarde!"
--I----------*-
Kuno slashed at the lowly peasant in front of him, who simply seemed to disappear, as if by some foul sorcery, in a blur, and the next thing he knew, his bokken had been sliced – along the edge – in twain, he had been forced onto his knees and had a very sharp sword at his throat. This was, if nothing else, enough to shut him up.
Koja looked at the rest of the group, and spoke to them with only a hint of accent in his voice.
"Anyone else want to try that?"
He looked menacingly at the group, but Mousse ignored him and ran over to his beloved Shampoo,calling her name, to see if she was fine when she groaned slightly. Koja let him, seeing the care the boy so obviously held for her, and swiftly sheathed his sword.
"Thought not. My name is Koja, I need some information, and I do not mean to test your fighting skills in any way. Who of you can provide that service?"
Mousse spoke up behind him, a hint of gratefulness and relief passing his face when the girl-Shampoo-sat up.
"I can take you to elder Cologne. It's the least we could do for you in return for your help."
With those words he bowed in thanks, making Shampoo a bit confused as to what he was doing.
"Mousse- why you bowing to outsider man?"
Koja answered, bowing as well, before Mousse could answer her.
"Thank you, but my help was not needed. She was simply knocked out for a moment."
Just then, Ryoga spoke up, not happy about not knowing what was going on.
"Just what do you want here anyway? You'd better not be looking for the Tendo dojo, or..."
"What's so special about this Tendo dojo that I should be aware of? And where did that boy in the red shirt go?"
And indeed, Ranma was nowhere to be seen.
"RANMA, YOU COWARD!"
The gang, excluding Mousse, Shampoo and Koja, instantly ran off in search of Ranma.
Koja then looked at the strange wall (All of one stone!) and spoke up.
"You can come out now, boy. I assume your name is Ranma?"
Ranma jumped up onto the wall, a bit surprised that Koja had noticed him.
"Yeah, that's me. You're not after me or my pop?"
Koja slowly sheathed his sword, and looked up at Ranma.
"No, I do not have any business with you or your... pop," he said, unsure of just what the word meant. "I'm simply stuck here for now. Where is here, anyway? I have never seen streets or buildings such as these before."
Mousse, still doting over Shampoo who had turned out to be too dizzy to glomp Ranma, answered the question for Ranma, both of whom were looking at Koja strangely.
"You are in the Nerima ward of Tokyo."
Koja blinked a bit, then sighed. He had never seen these sort of buildings before, the people were strange here- that girl with the spatula was hopelessly trying to pass off as a guy, for some reason- and he had never heard of either Nerima or Tokyo, which meant that he was not on his world.
"Could you take me to this elder you mentioned earlier? I have a feeling that I'm not going to get home anytime soon."
"Yes, I can. Just follow me."
Ranma shrugged, then nodded at the group.
"Yeah, well, see ya later. And Koja?"
"Yes?"
"If ya ever wanna spar a bit, just come to the Tendo dojo, okay? You're pretty good – though not as good as me, of course."
Koja grinned at the implied insult, and decided that he liked this kid.
"I expect you to put your money where your mouth is, Ranma. Be seeing you."
Mousse attempted to pick up Shampoo, who immediately knocked him on the head with a bonbori.
"Shampoo can walk herself, stupid Mousse! Shampoo not need your help!"
She got up, only a little unsteady, and jumped on the rooftops, in the direction Ranma had gone earlier, shouting something about an 'airen', whatever that was. He checked Mousse's scalp for damage, but the boy just got up and sighed. He turned around and spoke.
"She always has to go after that casanova, Saotome. When will she realize that he's not the right person for her?"
"I have no idea, Mousse, and I think that post you are talking to isn't going to be of much help, either."
Mousse adjusted his glasses, and saw that he was, indeed, facing a lamppost. He hung his head, then looked at Koja.
"Well, I better keep my promise. Can you roofhop?"
"As in, jump across the rooftops? I suppose so, though it's not my preferred method of travel."
"Good. That way we'll be a lot quicker."
Mousse jumped up on a nearby roof, and looked behind him to see Koja rising impossibly high, gracefully flipping and twirling in the air, before landing on a roof three houses away from Mousse. He couldn't believe his eyes! Koja had used his chi to increase the distance threefold from what would have been normal!
"You coming, boy?"
Mousse closed his mouth, which had been hanging open, and jumped after Koja, showing him the way. He'd have to find out how he had done that!
--I----------*-
The rest of the fowlblades ran on for a while, before Blackbite noticed something.
"Where's Koja? And where are we, for that matter?"
The party stopped, and everyone decided that they had no idea about either of those questions. The buildings and streets were all made of solid stone, there were strange, foul smells in the air and the streets were a complete maze. Wherever they were, they were not home. And they had left Koja, generally considered by the rest of the party to be a short-tempered, barely controlled homicidal maniac who had once been a very successful professional killer, alone to fend for himself. That meant that this place was not likely to be a good place to stay pretty soon. Koja had an annoying habit of going a bit insane every now and then, and was hunted throughout the cities of Faerûn for what had been termed "Massive Manslaughter" by a particularly nasty bard. He hadn't killed too many people himself, but it all got blamed on him anyway.
"Oh, damn and blast! That bloody maniac had to be the one we left behind! Why couldn't it be crybaby here?"
Quarion did not like being insulted by an alcoholic priest, and it showed.
"Oy! Look who's talking! It was your idea to run in the first place!"
Estefan had had enough of both of them, and acted upon that thought.
"Shut up, both of you! Look, see that building over there?"
The party looked at a rather large building, which happened to be Furinkan highschool, and decided that this was some sort of a town hall.
"You guys will split up and look for Koja, and I'll be here to see if I can scry on him. We'll meet back here at sunset, allright?"
Blackbite didn't quite think that sounded right.
"Why are you the one who gets to stay behind?"
"Because I am the most intelligent and refined person in this party. I deserve a little rest from your idiocy."
The party ignored his insults completely. They had become immune to the haughty elf early on, which was why he was still alive.
Blackbite simply growled, then looked worried for a moment before flying into the air, his great black wings beating, and turning himself invisible. Nodrog went to comb the bars – purely for informational purposes, wink wink- and Quarion walked off into a random direction for all of two minutes before getting distracted by the smell of food.
He sniffed the air, and headed towards a small resturant, named "Ucchan's" in Kara-Tur. A little snack couln't hurt, and besides, Koja was sure to be hungry as well. He just might run into him!
--I----------*-
A/n: And that's it for this chapter! Next, Quarion eats a lot of food and gets into trouble- How likely is it that Ucchan's accepts Cormyrian golden lions as currency, after all? See you there!
For a disclaimer, I refer people to look at the first chapter posted. I do not want to repeat myself. They-are-not-mine! Well, mostly. The same goes for part one.
--I----------*-
Koja wasted no time in assessing the boy's skill in case of a threat- after all, the lich might have any sort of minions to finish them off- and saw one of the greatest opponents he had ever met in front of him.
Even as the boy looked at Koja's face, the half-elf was grimly calculating his chances to beat this kid (So young, perhaps he is not a minion?) and looking for escape routes from the immediate area. There were plenty for him, but none that his companions might use. He saw, to his surprise, that the boy's eyes widened at the sight of his ears. Good though the kid was, he seemed inexperienced- after all, how rare is a half-elf? For someone as good as this kid, he'd have to have met some other races and fought a good share of monsters- no one got this good from simple exercise.
He glanced quickly at his companions, and saw to his dismay that they had barely begun to recover. He'd have to see wether the kid was a threat, and eliminate him if necessary.
All these mental calculations took about three seconds. Koja was trained to act quickly, and excessive thought got in the way, so he thought quickly. Simple.
He noticed the boy was stunned at the sight of Badbreath's wings- the sorcerer was good for something, after all- and spoke to the kid in the common tounge. Best do so now, while he had the chance.
"Where are we?"
Short and to the point. Much like Koja, in fact.
--I----------*-
Ranma was beginning to realize that this day was going to be one of the weirdest ever in Nerima, and that was saying a lot.
First of all, a guy with scars all over his face had popped out of thin air, along with a bunch of... People... and looked at him as if he were some sort of an experiment, or possibly a bug.
Then, there were those guys dressed in armor behind him, as well as one dressed in some sort of robes, all with wepons ready.
Then there was that black guy with the pointed ears- which the scarred guy and one of those in armor had too- who had huge, black wings coming out of his back.
[Ravh mure ðiv?]
Oh, and the scarred guy spoke to him in some weird language, to top it all off. He heard Shampoo, Ukyo and the rest of the gang coming up behind him, so going to them for help was not really an option- most of them were out for his blood or his hand in marriage.
These guys, whoever they were, did not seem very friendly and, knowing his father, they were probably after him as well.
He wasn't sure what to do, so he fell back on the one thing he was sure wouldn't fail.
Martial arts.
--I----------*-
Koja noticed that a lot of people were coming this way, all shouting something. He thought he recognized a few sentences in the language of Kara- Tur, so he decided to switch to that language.
Before he could say anything, though, he saw the fighting stance the kid took, and immediately leapt into action.
"You take care of the rest, I'll take this one!"
He pushed his blade out of it's sheath with a thumb, making a small * Click * and drew it even as he kicked at the kid. Unsurprisingly to him, the kid dodged easily, and attacked back. But when Koja decides that he does not want to be hit, he won't be hit. He drew upon one of the many special techniques of his school to defend himself from the fierce assault- Leaf On The Breeze.
--I----------*-
[Ðiþ ðiájs mu anitser, gé éjs mu nanneþ!]
* Click *
Ranma dodged the first kick easily, and immediately went on the offensive. But then, the guy shifted his stance somehow, and Ranma, try as he might, simply could not hit him. The guy simply floated away, as if by coincidence, from all of Ranma's attacks. Sometimes it even seemed as if he flowed with some wind only he could feel!
Ranma backed away, looking at his opponent as if in a new light, not even noticing what was going on around him. Ranma suddenly noticed that the guy had drawn a sword from somewhere. He realized, even as the guy prepared to attack, that he hadn't noticed it earlier because the guy wielded it as if it was a part of his body. Then Ranma suddenly felt a strong wind, and was blown away by it.
--I----------*-
The kid was good, true enough. He nearly got him a couple of times there. Koja prepared his most effective attack- the Lightning Of Three Prongs- in order to finish this as quickly as possible when he was suddenly blown away by a fierce wind. He twisted in the air to see Estefan pointing a hand in Koja's general direction and chanting. Gust of Wind was a useful spell, but someone had to teach Estefan to use spells only on enemies. They had lost more than one travelling companion due to his lack of care.
He then tumbled in the air, and prepared himself to land when his head collided with the head of a young lavender-haired girl holding a huge painted pair of Bonbori, and all went black.
--I----------*-
And in the Nekohanten, an old matriarch of the Joketsuzoku tribe of amazons felt the distinctive tang of magic in the air, and knew that, somehow, Son- in-law had gotten himself into trouble again.
--I----------*-
Nodrog was the first to speak when the wind had blown the incoming horde of fighters away.
"Right, let's skeedaddle like mice from Cormyr!"
The rest of the party simply looked at him blankly. Nodrog sighed, then spoke again.
"Run you sons of a motherless goat!"
Now, it may seem strange for a party of highly experienced adventurers to run from a fight they might have won quite easily, but the fact was that if one voice spoke up, the others tended to follow it to the end without really thinking. This usually had dire and uncomfortable consequences, but that didn't stop them from doing it. The party had no designated leader: whoever took charge at the time was usually the one who was in the leading position. It was a strange version of calling dibs, but it worked.
And thus, the party ran.
--I----------*-
The assorted Nerimians picked themselves up off the ground, with one or two notable exceptions of course, and as was usual when something was off, everyone blamed Ranma for everything.
"Curse you, foul Saotome! How dare you use your sorceries against the noble Blue Thunder? I shall smite thee were you stand, cur!"
"PREPARE TO DIE, RANMA!"
"Who the heck were those guys, Ranchan? Answer me, you jackass!"
"How dare you allow my Shampoo to come to harm?"
"OOOHOHOHOHOHOHO! Oh, Ranma dear, how incredibly forceful you are!"
Ranma only counted his blessings for the fact that Akane wasn't there at the moment, then groaned as he remembered why- she was cooking dinner tonight. This was not one of his better days.
Everyone stopped shouting, however, when a groan sounded behind them.
The Nerimians looked around, and saw the stranger, his sword back in it's sheath and his head held with one hand, kneel next to Shampoo, checking her pulse. Most of them were stunned by his strange appearance. Not only did he have unnaturally slanted ears, he also had four large scars on his face – one down the right side of his face, one running along his left jawline crossed by another and the last sloping between the eyes. And that wasn't even considering his unusual appearance.
He wore a simple tunic, which looked thouroughly antiquated, and a dark green cloak on his back. A pair of simple breeches and well-made boots of some unidentifiable material completed what looked like a medieval costume. And on his arms were tied twenty multicoloured ribbons, none the exact same colour, ten on each arm, which obviously signified a rank of some sort. And to the eyes of the martial artists, he was not only an experienced fighter but also a man who had killed and would not hesitate to do so again. And if the beautifully made, if plain, sword he wore at his side was any indication, he wouldn't be lacking the tools to do it with either.
Seeing him examine Shampoo for injuries like an experienced doctor was not really an image that fit him.
Koja had learned the art of survival, which not only included wilderness lore and hunting, but also many medical skills, such as a little herblore and basic surgeon's knowledge. It didn't hurt that knowing where the body's weak spots were was a definite advantage in a fight. Some thought this strange, but Koja thought it practical, and he had saved many lives using his abilities.
He had, a moment before, been ready to kill all of them, but he never attacked a downed opponent and rarely one that wasn't actively attacking him. It was a certain code of honor he had developed, and it had never failed him yet.
Koja, satisfied that the girl would be alright in a moment, got up on his feet and stared straight back at the assorted fighters in front of him. He saw no sign of his companions, which meant that Nodrog had taken command. The man never was willing to fight without having something to drink first, which was why they always brought along a few bottles of something stiff. Amazingly, facing the lich seemed to have sobered him up a bit.
Koja opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a guy dressed like... one of his old associates... holding aloft a wooden sword and babbling something which sounded like Elminster high on Black Lotus in the language of Kara-Tur. Koja knew that language, and was unfortunately able to listen to the insane boy.
"Ah! So the foul Saotome has conjured forth a demon, so that he need not face me in combat! But this foul creation, much like it's master, is no match for" – and he raised the practice sword into the air, and thunder sounded in the air – "The Blue Thunder of Furinkan high! I shall smite thee, demon! En guarde!"
--I----------*-
Kuno slashed at the lowly peasant in front of him, who simply seemed to disappear, as if by some foul sorcery, in a blur, and the next thing he knew, his bokken had been sliced – along the edge – in twain, he had been forced onto his knees and had a very sharp sword at his throat. This was, if nothing else, enough to shut him up.
Koja looked at the rest of the group, and spoke to them with only a hint of accent in his voice.
"Anyone else want to try that?"
He looked menacingly at the group, but Mousse ignored him and ran over to his beloved Shampoo,calling her name, to see if she was fine when she groaned slightly. Koja let him, seeing the care the boy so obviously held for her, and swiftly sheathed his sword.
"Thought not. My name is Koja, I need some information, and I do not mean to test your fighting skills in any way. Who of you can provide that service?"
Mousse spoke up behind him, a hint of gratefulness and relief passing his face when the girl-Shampoo-sat up.
"I can take you to elder Cologne. It's the least we could do for you in return for your help."
With those words he bowed in thanks, making Shampoo a bit confused as to what he was doing.
"Mousse- why you bowing to outsider man?"
Koja answered, bowing as well, before Mousse could answer her.
"Thank you, but my help was not needed. She was simply knocked out for a moment."
Just then, Ryoga spoke up, not happy about not knowing what was going on.
"Just what do you want here anyway? You'd better not be looking for the Tendo dojo, or..."
"What's so special about this Tendo dojo that I should be aware of? And where did that boy in the red shirt go?"
And indeed, Ranma was nowhere to be seen.
"RANMA, YOU COWARD!"
The gang, excluding Mousse, Shampoo and Koja, instantly ran off in search of Ranma.
Koja then looked at the strange wall (All of one stone!) and spoke up.
"You can come out now, boy. I assume your name is Ranma?"
Ranma jumped up onto the wall, a bit surprised that Koja had noticed him.
"Yeah, that's me. You're not after me or my pop?"
Koja slowly sheathed his sword, and looked up at Ranma.
"No, I do not have any business with you or your... pop," he said, unsure of just what the word meant. "I'm simply stuck here for now. Where is here, anyway? I have never seen streets or buildings such as these before."
Mousse, still doting over Shampoo who had turned out to be too dizzy to glomp Ranma, answered the question for Ranma, both of whom were looking at Koja strangely.
"You are in the Nerima ward of Tokyo."
Koja blinked a bit, then sighed. He had never seen these sort of buildings before, the people were strange here- that girl with the spatula was hopelessly trying to pass off as a guy, for some reason- and he had never heard of either Nerima or Tokyo, which meant that he was not on his world.
"Could you take me to this elder you mentioned earlier? I have a feeling that I'm not going to get home anytime soon."
"Yes, I can. Just follow me."
Ranma shrugged, then nodded at the group.
"Yeah, well, see ya later. And Koja?"
"Yes?"
"If ya ever wanna spar a bit, just come to the Tendo dojo, okay? You're pretty good – though not as good as me, of course."
Koja grinned at the implied insult, and decided that he liked this kid.
"I expect you to put your money where your mouth is, Ranma. Be seeing you."
Mousse attempted to pick up Shampoo, who immediately knocked him on the head with a bonbori.
"Shampoo can walk herself, stupid Mousse! Shampoo not need your help!"
She got up, only a little unsteady, and jumped on the rooftops, in the direction Ranma had gone earlier, shouting something about an 'airen', whatever that was. He checked Mousse's scalp for damage, but the boy just got up and sighed. He turned around and spoke.
"She always has to go after that casanova, Saotome. When will she realize that he's not the right person for her?"
"I have no idea, Mousse, and I think that post you are talking to isn't going to be of much help, either."
Mousse adjusted his glasses, and saw that he was, indeed, facing a lamppost. He hung his head, then looked at Koja.
"Well, I better keep my promise. Can you roofhop?"
"As in, jump across the rooftops? I suppose so, though it's not my preferred method of travel."
"Good. That way we'll be a lot quicker."
Mousse jumped up on a nearby roof, and looked behind him to see Koja rising impossibly high, gracefully flipping and twirling in the air, before landing on a roof three houses away from Mousse. He couldn't believe his eyes! Koja had used his chi to increase the distance threefold from what would have been normal!
"You coming, boy?"
Mousse closed his mouth, which had been hanging open, and jumped after Koja, showing him the way. He'd have to find out how he had done that!
--I----------*-
The rest of the fowlblades ran on for a while, before Blackbite noticed something.
"Where's Koja? And where are we, for that matter?"
The party stopped, and everyone decided that they had no idea about either of those questions. The buildings and streets were all made of solid stone, there were strange, foul smells in the air and the streets were a complete maze. Wherever they were, they were not home. And they had left Koja, generally considered by the rest of the party to be a short-tempered, barely controlled homicidal maniac who had once been a very successful professional killer, alone to fend for himself. That meant that this place was not likely to be a good place to stay pretty soon. Koja had an annoying habit of going a bit insane every now and then, and was hunted throughout the cities of Faerûn for what had been termed "Massive Manslaughter" by a particularly nasty bard. He hadn't killed too many people himself, but it all got blamed on him anyway.
"Oh, damn and blast! That bloody maniac had to be the one we left behind! Why couldn't it be crybaby here?"
Quarion did not like being insulted by an alcoholic priest, and it showed.
"Oy! Look who's talking! It was your idea to run in the first place!"
Estefan had had enough of both of them, and acted upon that thought.
"Shut up, both of you! Look, see that building over there?"
The party looked at a rather large building, which happened to be Furinkan highschool, and decided that this was some sort of a town hall.
"You guys will split up and look for Koja, and I'll be here to see if I can scry on him. We'll meet back here at sunset, allright?"
Blackbite didn't quite think that sounded right.
"Why are you the one who gets to stay behind?"
"Because I am the most intelligent and refined person in this party. I deserve a little rest from your idiocy."
The party ignored his insults completely. They had become immune to the haughty elf early on, which was why he was still alive.
Blackbite simply growled, then looked worried for a moment before flying into the air, his great black wings beating, and turning himself invisible. Nodrog went to comb the bars – purely for informational purposes, wink wink- and Quarion walked off into a random direction for all of two minutes before getting distracted by the smell of food.
He sniffed the air, and headed towards a small resturant, named "Ucchan's" in Kara-Tur. A little snack couln't hurt, and besides, Koja was sure to be hungry as well. He just might run into him!
--I----------*-
A/n: And that's it for this chapter! Next, Quarion eats a lot of food and gets into trouble- How likely is it that Ucchan's accepts Cormyrian golden lions as currency, after all? See you there!