Author's note:
Phew… Well I've been trying to catch up in the story so I haven't had the chance to thank all of my wonderful reviewers. I'm glad you are enjoying it and I hope you'll stay for more.
I feel that at this time I should warn all of you. I am a computer scientist who writes for fun. That pretty much means that my grammar and spelling are about as good as whatever the current version of word's checker is. So I apologize for all the mistakes and I'll try to make sure that they're fewer in number…
* * *
Mousse tumbled onto the ground, losing neko-Shampoo in the process. He spun a few times on the floor and suddenly found himself toppling over the edge of an unknown platform. He quickly grabbed the ledge and held on tightly with both hands.
As soon as he stopped swinging, he cautiously began to take in his environment. Much to his surprise, he found himself facing a blurry, starry sky. All to quickly, he realized what a mistake it was to do so. Dizziness overwhelmed him and he started to lose his grip. Suddenly he felt a strong arm grabbed his and lift him up over the precipice.
"Carefully there," Ukyo said as she deposited him on the ground.
"Thanks," he muttered.
Ukyo nodded and tried to fight back her own dizziness. But the environment was very disorienting. The night sky seemed to envelop them completely and it appeared that all they had to stand on was a platform of marble suspended in space.
"Oh man," Mousse said putting a robed hand onto his mouth, trying to fight back nausea. "This is the Arcane Sanctuary?"
Ukyo shook her head. "I don't know, I thought I was going through a town portal."
"No such luck," Mousse said.
"Yeah, kind of realized that when I took a good look at the place," Ukyo said. "So how do we get out of here."
Mousse shook his head. "I don't know. I had to close the portal before we got in here…"
"Wait a minute," Ukyo interrupted. "You closed the portal without knowing if there was a way for us to get out of here?"
Mousse paused and realized the type of danger he was in. "Ah… ah… hey, where's the rest of the group?"
Ukyo glared at him but let it drop. "Akane's still out. P-chan is watching her. Shampoo managed to land right on Ranma-chan so she froze solid and dropped to the ground."
"Meow," neko-Shampoo said as she joined the group. It's not my fault had been what she was aiming to say but the disgruntled meow passed on the message fine.
"So is there another way out of here?" Ukyo asked.
Mousse nodded. "There should be, only I don't know where it would be."
"Well, you stay here and guard the rest of this sorry lot," she said motioning to the collapsed pile of adventures, "and I'll go look for the way out."
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Mousse asked. "I have a feeling this place is very dangerous."
Ukyo walked away. "I'm used to facing danger by myself."
* * *
"I don't understand. Why did Ranma leave?"
A seven-year-old Ukyo looked pleadingly at her father. But the older man could only shake his head. "I'm sorry, Ukyo," he said with a shrug, "it just didn't work out."
Ukyo's lower lip quivered and she quickly left their small house, letting her cup of juice splatter on the ground as she did. Why didn't Ran-chan want her to come along? Why did they just leave her behind?
A group of girls watched as she entered the school. She heard them laughing but it never occurred that they would be laughing at her until one of them called out, "Got rejected didn't you! Now you'll never get married."
Ukyo stopped in her tracks and turned to face the older girl who really couldn't have been more than nine. "What?" Ukyo asked.
"Everyone knows," the girl said, trying to sound older. "And my mom said that now that you've been rejected no one will want you."
"That's not true," Ukyo said.
"I guess it's not a surprise," the girl continued. "After all, your mother rejected you already."
Ukyo's anger flared. "Take that back," she said.
"Reject!" The girl called out. "Reject! Reject!" The other girls started to follow. "Reject! Reject!"
"STOP IT!" Ukyo cried as she advanced on them.
She never remembered what happened next. She only remembered that five minutes there was a lot of screaming, some one was pulling her away and her hands were covered with blood.
* * *
Ukyo carefully crawled up the stairs. Looking cautiously over, she saw a small group Dark Lords drifting in the air. A head on attack would be futile, she needed to use stealth. Slowly she leaned over the stairs towards the infinite sky below her. Pushing off with her feet, she quickly flipped around so that she was grabbing the ledge with the back of her head lightly touching it.
Slowly and carefully, she turned herself around and moved slowly past the stairs until she reached the area where the monsters were. Prepping herself mentally, Ukyo began to swing a bit until she had enough momentum to flip back on top of the ledge.
She landed in a crouch but didn't stay there for long. Leaping forward, she gripped tightly onto her dual blades and began to decimate the group there.
* * *
"Get rid of her."
"Are you crazy? She's my daughter!"
"She'll be sent to prison and you'll follow her."
"No one died, they just were a bit hurt."
"A bit? The healers are still trying to mend the bone of the Boyd girl. Your daughter is a menace."
"She's all I have. It was a mistake. We'll move away, start over…"
"They'll find you."
"I'll go someplace where…"
"Kuonji-san…"
"NO! I will not loose her. Not like I lost her mother."
"It's the only way. Give her to me. I'll take her somewhere safe…"
"And I'll never see her again."
"We will take care of her, teach her and you will be safe."
"I don't want to be safe if it means being alone."
"I'm sorry, there is no other way. You must realize that"
* * *
Ukyo's feet crossed as she moved towards the edge of platform. This place was more confusing then a maze but it allowed for moments like this. It was a two-story platform and looking down she could make out a large group of red cloven beasts with an assortment of Dark Lords.
She was outnumbered at least a dozen to one but she knew how to level the odds a bit. Silently she began to lay the traps, arranging them in an organized pattern which she had been taught was the most effective when dealing with a large group.
As soon as she was ready, Ukyo stood up and walked down the stairs. When the monsters turned to face her, she pretended like she was caught unaware and took off, dodging a few fireballs as she did.
Her movements were like a dance as Ukyo evaded her traps. She didn't stop when she had cleared them but kept moving until she felt the first explosion behind her.
* * *
"Good!" the teacher said as debris from the explosion settled to the ground. "Your knowledge of traps is masterful. You'll be a full Assassin in no time."
"Yes she will."
A sixteen-year-old Ukyo looked quickly behind her. Both she and the teacher bowed deeply as the robed woman approached them. The woman was Aiko, the current head of the Assassins. "Her fighting skills are unsurpassed as well," she said with smile. "Or so I have heard."
"She is our best student," the teacher said. Ukyo struggled to keep her cheeks from burning too deeply.
"Then it is time. Come with me Ukyo," Aiko said. "I will teach you one last lesson."
Ukyo quickly fell into step behind the older woman. There was no indication of where she was going or what she was going to teach. As Ukyo looked back, she realized it would be the last time that she saw any of her teachers or fellow students again.
If she felt any remorse with losing the connections she had made over her nine years at the school it didn't show. Ukyo was ready for whatever lay ahead.
"Come inside," the woman said, motioning into a small room. As Ukyo walked inside she realized it was bare save for a large mirror that hung on the back wall. "This is our greatest secret. One that we only reveal to those who have been welcomed into our order.
"For many centuries," the woman continued, "we have fought a war against darkness, seeking out the corrupted mages and destroying them. It is a fight, however, that we do not fight alone. Come closer."
Ukyo moved closer until the mirror came into view. As it did, she realized that only Aiko's reflection was present. Scared she started to step back but was caught by Aiko's firm grip.
"Don't be afraid. It is time to call forth your second self." Ukyo looked at the woman with confusion but realized that it was no joke. "Touch the mirror."
Ukyo's hand went out slightly and her finger grazed the surface of the mirror. It rippled like water and Ukyo stepped quickly back. As the image stilled, she suddenly saw herself, staring back from the other side of the mirror.
"Now, you are ready."
* * *
Ukyo looked at her arm and cursed as the blood continued to ooze from it. Taking off her belt she quickly wrapped it around the wound, hoping to stop the flow. It was a stupid injury. She should have been more careful but they had caught her by surprise.
Now she was alone, injured without a potion in sight. She didn't know where the exit was and worse, she didn't know how to get back. She didn't know if she could take any more damage.
She was afraid.
* * *
"It's a simple job," her handler was telling her. "You sneak into the palace and place this mixture in the king's chalice."
Ukyo looked at the small sack. "Is it poison?"
"Never mind what it is," the handler said. "Just do your job."
Ukyo nodded and left the tiny hut. This was her first assignment since she left the Assassin's school. They told her it would be an easy job, to ease her into her new life. A corrupt king had taped into the powers of an ancient evil and was attempting to raise him to help rule the world.
She had arrived here less than a day ago, found her contact and gotten her final orders. Sneaking into the palace would be easy and in fact, it took her less than the time from when the sun set to time the stars shone in the sky to position herself in a dark corner of the hallway from the kitchen to the dining room.
She waited until one of the servants passed her by carrying a bottle of wine. Quickly, she subdued him and took his clothes, masking herself as a boy and stealing into the dining room without being detected.
There she found the king, laughing at a jester who performed in front of him. To his right, sat the queen with a small child on her lap. Ukyo felt a pang of regret for destroying the family but her resolve was steeled by years of training.
Leaning forward, she pour the wine into the King's chalice, allowing some of the powder fall from her hand into his cup at the same time. She stood up and poured more wine, without the poison, for the queen and walked to the side of the room.
She had to be careful not to draw suspicion to herself, especially when the king started to feel the effect of the poison. Otherwise, they'd catch her and imprison her. So she watched, waiting for the first signs of poison knowing that in the chaos that followed she could make her escape.
But something went wrong. The prince began to struggle on his mother's lap. The king looked over with increased annoyance. The little boy finally began to cry and, despite the queen's best efforts, wouldn't stop. By now, a red color had risen in the king's face.
"Make it stop!" he screamed. "MAKE IT STOP!"
Before anyone could do anything, he had reached for the young prince and the cries suddenly were silenced. A small dagger fell from his hands a moment later and clattered to the floor. There was silence for several moments before the queen began to scream.
The king suddenly regained his senses and turning, he saw the scene next to him and began to cry out as well. He reached for his wife and knocked the glass of wine to the ground. As it did, Ukyo suddenly snapped out of her shock.
She watched the wine spread out on the floor and then looked down at her hand, shaking as realization dawned on her.
* * *
Ukyo limped over to the edge of next platform. It was another two-story one and from her vantage point she could see a faint blue glow on the horizon. With joy in her heart, she realized that it was the way out. She had found it!
A bit dizzy from joy and loss of blood she stumbled her way towards it, realizing all to late that it would be guarded. Arriving there, she saw the gruesome figure turn to face her.
* * *
"You don't understand…"
"I understand perfectly!" Ukyo screamed. "You did this to me. You put something in my drink when I was a child that made me act the same way that king did!"
"No," Aiko was saying. But Ukyo ignored her. She had ridden five days straight, galloping away from the castle with nothing else on her mind but this confrontation.
"Why?" Ukyo demanded. "Why would you want me? I'm completely worthless! Rejected by my mother, rejected by my fiancé. But… I was never a killer."
"You must understand…"
"Understand?" Ukyo yelled. "You took my life away from me! You left my father with no other choice then to give me away!!"
"Yes," Aiko said. "That's because there was no other way. He wouldn't have given you to me any other…"
Aiko paused. Suddenly the older woman's eyes glistened slightly. "Please, Ukyo-chan. I never wanted anything for you but to be happy. This was your path. It always had been."
Ukyo paused and looked at the other woman. Suddenly seeing her for something other than leader of the assassins. Seeing her as a normal woman with large brown eyes, long brown hair…
"No…" Ukyo said backing away. "No you can't be…"
"I wanted to tell you," Aiko said with a sad smile. "But the others… they decided that this was best."
"No, please," Ukyo was saying, not believing what was happening.
"The assassin who gave you the poison, she betrayed us all. If the king had been killed then we would be in no danger. But because of what has happened now, he will seek the evil lord in exchange for his child's life. And what's more is that you now know the truth. Don't let her victory be complete, please Ukyo-chan. The greatest evil will be unleashed on this world and we need you to fight along side…"
"NO!" Ukyo cried. "No more!" She fled from the room, down the stairs of the tower and back to her horse. Without a second thought, she steered away from the assassin stronghold and fled back to her hometown.
* * *
The Summoner's head whipped backwards as Ukyo landed a blow. But it resonated back in her as well and she was forced to take a step backward. She used her new position to lash out a kick, landing in his side. She felt a few ribs break on contact but the Summoner grabbed her foot.
With a sneer, he threw her backward. Ukyo hit the ground and looked up just long enough to see him casting another spell. The floor turned to ice beneath her. Trying to stand up, she slipped and fell hard on the ground. The ice provide no traction and she quickly slid backwards, making a desperate last attempt to grab the platform.
Her fingers screamed in agony as they tried to hang on, dealing with both the strain of her weight and the coldness of the ice. Looking down and seeing the infinite nothingness beneath her, she realized that this might be it. She would die out here alone.
Alone.
Her adrenaline kicked in and Ukyo swung upwards, landing on the platform, but falling quickly to her feet. The Summoner was right there and caught completely by surprise. He cast a fireball to push her back over the edge but Ukyo dodged, watching in amazement as the ice melted under the heat.
This was her chance. Standing up on the firm ground she attached, launching a series of attacks. She could feel her ki building as each blow landed. The Summoner was falling back, not by his own volition but by the impact of her kick and punch.
Finally, when she felt she could not take it anymore, Ukyo released the ki that had been swirling around her. It hit her opponent hard and he screamed in agony as he fell to the ground.
She followed suit, falling to her knees, completely exhausted. Looking over, she saw the light slowly fade from her enemy's eyes.
* * *
"He must have died a few days ago. No one really comes up here. He always lived alone."
Ukyo placed a hand on the cold face of the dead man. Fighting back a sob, she carefully closed his eyes. Looking at the elderly villager, she pulled a sack of money from her side and handed it to him.
"I want a proper ritual," she said softly. The man nodded, took her money and left Ukyo alone with the body of her father.
By sunset, it was burning on a funeral pyre while a priest gave the final prayers. When he finished he gave Ukyo a soft grab on her shoulder and left her there.
The fire burned for several hours and it wasn't until the last embers had gone out that she stood up once more.
* * *
"Ukyo!" Mousse called out. He ran over and managed to catch her just as exhaustion set it. He reached for a potion and forced the liquid down her throat. The skin began to heal but Ukyo would not up wake.
"She's exhausted," Mousse said to no one in particular.
"Meow."
Mousse looked down at neko-Shampoo and realized she had something in her mouth. Leaning over, Mousse gently took it from her and examined it. It was a red thread nad looking back… it appeared to go on into the horizon.
"She left us a trail!" Mousse said.
"Ooooh, what happened…"
Mousse's head whipped around and watched as Ranma-chan began to shake the sleep from her head. "Stay here," he said to neko-Shampoo.
"Meow meow," she replied with what could only be a cat sigh.
* * *
"You may hate me but you have to know what your destiny is."
Ukyo stood by her horse, cursing the fact that Aiko had finally caught up with her. "I know what my destiny is. Revenge. First on the Saotomes for their part in this. Then…"
"Then me," Aiko said. She paused, suddenly realizing the name Ukyo had just spoken. "Find the Saotomes. You are right. Your destiny lies with them."
Ukyo turned red, not wanting Aiko to agree with her. But rather than say anything more, she jumped on her horse and turned away, charging off into the horizon.
Aiko watched her go and bowed her head, trying to hide the tears. "Good bye, daughter."
* * *
"Ah ha! She found it!" Mousse said, as she gently placed Ukyo's body on the ground.
"Yeah, and it looks like she destroyed whatever it was that was guarding it," Ranma-chan said, pointing to the corpse on the ground as best she could with Akane still on her back.
"Wait," Mousse said, looking around. "Wait just a minute…"
"What's wrong?" Ranma-chan asked.
"This is it!" Mousse said running forward and examining the walls. "This is the last part of the puzzle!"
"Meow?"
"The puzzle," Mousse said. "The location of Tal Rasha's temple!"
"Tal Ra what?" Ranma-chan said.
"Owwww…"
"Akane??" Ranma-chan asked, feeling the other girl stir on her back. She gently put her down on the ground and watched as Akane opened her eyes.
"Ow," Akane said. "What happened??"
"There are six symbols here," Mousse was saying. "That means that…"
P-Chan started to squeal. He began to pull at the robe of Mousse with his teeth. "That means… hey, hey! Stop that!!" Mousse cried, trying to push P- chan away. Ranma-chan walked over and grabbed the squealing piglet.
"Just stop it!" she said. "Geez… what's your problem?" P-chan continued to squeal but Ranma-chan unceremoniously shoved the yellow bandana from around his neck into his mouth.
"Right," Mousse said looking at the pig with puzzlement. "As I was saying, there are six symbols here. I bet that they represent the temples in the desert."
Akane's mind was still muddled. She was trying to clear it when Ranma-chan knelt next to her. "Are you okay?"
"But the legends said there were seven," Mousse said. "Seven temples in the desert, six symbols on the wall…"
Akane looked over at P-chan as he writhed in Ranma-chan's hand. It looked like he was trying to tell her something…
"That's it! The missing symbol must be the one that marks the temple will Tal Rasha is!"
Suddenly, Akane's face paled. She remembered. She remembered what had happened. "Oh no," she said, turning away from P-chan. Had she looked at the wall? Had they seen what they needed?
"Akane, what's wrong?" Ranma-chan asked.
"We need to go," Akane said, covering her eyes. "Right now!"
"What?" Ranma-chan asked.
"I'll explain on the way, just don't let me see that wall."
Confused but ready to give her the benefit of the doubt, Ranma-chan shrugged at Mousse and began to lead Akane to the portal as she gripped tightly onto P-chan. Mousse made sure to memorize the six symbols and then picked up Ukyo to follow Ranma-chan with neko-Shampoo in tow.
Even as she felt the air change from the stuffy stale on in the Arcane Sanctuary to the clean, crisp one of Lut Gholeim, Akane already knew it was too late. They had seen the wall through her eyes and would be riding to free the lesser evil, Tal Rasha.
Phew… Well I've been trying to catch up in the story so I haven't had the chance to thank all of my wonderful reviewers. I'm glad you are enjoying it and I hope you'll stay for more.
I feel that at this time I should warn all of you. I am a computer scientist who writes for fun. That pretty much means that my grammar and spelling are about as good as whatever the current version of word's checker is. So I apologize for all the mistakes and I'll try to make sure that they're fewer in number…
* * *
Mousse tumbled onto the ground, losing neko-Shampoo in the process. He spun a few times on the floor and suddenly found himself toppling over the edge of an unknown platform. He quickly grabbed the ledge and held on tightly with both hands.
As soon as he stopped swinging, he cautiously began to take in his environment. Much to his surprise, he found himself facing a blurry, starry sky. All to quickly, he realized what a mistake it was to do so. Dizziness overwhelmed him and he started to lose his grip. Suddenly he felt a strong arm grabbed his and lift him up over the precipice.
"Carefully there," Ukyo said as she deposited him on the ground.
"Thanks," he muttered.
Ukyo nodded and tried to fight back her own dizziness. But the environment was very disorienting. The night sky seemed to envelop them completely and it appeared that all they had to stand on was a platform of marble suspended in space.
"Oh man," Mousse said putting a robed hand onto his mouth, trying to fight back nausea. "This is the Arcane Sanctuary?"
Ukyo shook her head. "I don't know, I thought I was going through a town portal."
"No such luck," Mousse said.
"Yeah, kind of realized that when I took a good look at the place," Ukyo said. "So how do we get out of here."
Mousse shook his head. "I don't know. I had to close the portal before we got in here…"
"Wait a minute," Ukyo interrupted. "You closed the portal without knowing if there was a way for us to get out of here?"
Mousse paused and realized the type of danger he was in. "Ah… ah… hey, where's the rest of the group?"
Ukyo glared at him but let it drop. "Akane's still out. P-chan is watching her. Shampoo managed to land right on Ranma-chan so she froze solid and dropped to the ground."
"Meow," neko-Shampoo said as she joined the group. It's not my fault had been what she was aiming to say but the disgruntled meow passed on the message fine.
"So is there another way out of here?" Ukyo asked.
Mousse nodded. "There should be, only I don't know where it would be."
"Well, you stay here and guard the rest of this sorry lot," she said motioning to the collapsed pile of adventures, "and I'll go look for the way out."
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Mousse asked. "I have a feeling this place is very dangerous."
Ukyo walked away. "I'm used to facing danger by myself."
* * *
"I don't understand. Why did Ranma leave?"
A seven-year-old Ukyo looked pleadingly at her father. But the older man could only shake his head. "I'm sorry, Ukyo," he said with a shrug, "it just didn't work out."
Ukyo's lower lip quivered and she quickly left their small house, letting her cup of juice splatter on the ground as she did. Why didn't Ran-chan want her to come along? Why did they just leave her behind?
A group of girls watched as she entered the school. She heard them laughing but it never occurred that they would be laughing at her until one of them called out, "Got rejected didn't you! Now you'll never get married."
Ukyo stopped in her tracks and turned to face the older girl who really couldn't have been more than nine. "What?" Ukyo asked.
"Everyone knows," the girl said, trying to sound older. "And my mom said that now that you've been rejected no one will want you."
"That's not true," Ukyo said.
"I guess it's not a surprise," the girl continued. "After all, your mother rejected you already."
Ukyo's anger flared. "Take that back," she said.
"Reject!" The girl called out. "Reject! Reject!" The other girls started to follow. "Reject! Reject!"
"STOP IT!" Ukyo cried as she advanced on them.
She never remembered what happened next. She only remembered that five minutes there was a lot of screaming, some one was pulling her away and her hands were covered with blood.
* * *
Ukyo carefully crawled up the stairs. Looking cautiously over, she saw a small group Dark Lords drifting in the air. A head on attack would be futile, she needed to use stealth. Slowly she leaned over the stairs towards the infinite sky below her. Pushing off with her feet, she quickly flipped around so that she was grabbing the ledge with the back of her head lightly touching it.
Slowly and carefully, she turned herself around and moved slowly past the stairs until she reached the area where the monsters were. Prepping herself mentally, Ukyo began to swing a bit until she had enough momentum to flip back on top of the ledge.
She landed in a crouch but didn't stay there for long. Leaping forward, she gripped tightly onto her dual blades and began to decimate the group there.
* * *
"Get rid of her."
"Are you crazy? She's my daughter!"
"She'll be sent to prison and you'll follow her."
"No one died, they just were a bit hurt."
"A bit? The healers are still trying to mend the bone of the Boyd girl. Your daughter is a menace."
"She's all I have. It was a mistake. We'll move away, start over…"
"They'll find you."
"I'll go someplace where…"
"Kuonji-san…"
"NO! I will not loose her. Not like I lost her mother."
"It's the only way. Give her to me. I'll take her somewhere safe…"
"And I'll never see her again."
"We will take care of her, teach her and you will be safe."
"I don't want to be safe if it means being alone."
"I'm sorry, there is no other way. You must realize that"
* * *
Ukyo's feet crossed as she moved towards the edge of platform. This place was more confusing then a maze but it allowed for moments like this. It was a two-story platform and looking down she could make out a large group of red cloven beasts with an assortment of Dark Lords.
She was outnumbered at least a dozen to one but she knew how to level the odds a bit. Silently she began to lay the traps, arranging them in an organized pattern which she had been taught was the most effective when dealing with a large group.
As soon as she was ready, Ukyo stood up and walked down the stairs. When the monsters turned to face her, she pretended like she was caught unaware and took off, dodging a few fireballs as she did.
Her movements were like a dance as Ukyo evaded her traps. She didn't stop when she had cleared them but kept moving until she felt the first explosion behind her.
* * *
"Good!" the teacher said as debris from the explosion settled to the ground. "Your knowledge of traps is masterful. You'll be a full Assassin in no time."
"Yes she will."
A sixteen-year-old Ukyo looked quickly behind her. Both she and the teacher bowed deeply as the robed woman approached them. The woman was Aiko, the current head of the Assassins. "Her fighting skills are unsurpassed as well," she said with smile. "Or so I have heard."
"She is our best student," the teacher said. Ukyo struggled to keep her cheeks from burning too deeply.
"Then it is time. Come with me Ukyo," Aiko said. "I will teach you one last lesson."
Ukyo quickly fell into step behind the older woman. There was no indication of where she was going or what she was going to teach. As Ukyo looked back, she realized it would be the last time that she saw any of her teachers or fellow students again.
If she felt any remorse with losing the connections she had made over her nine years at the school it didn't show. Ukyo was ready for whatever lay ahead.
"Come inside," the woman said, motioning into a small room. As Ukyo walked inside she realized it was bare save for a large mirror that hung on the back wall. "This is our greatest secret. One that we only reveal to those who have been welcomed into our order.
"For many centuries," the woman continued, "we have fought a war against darkness, seeking out the corrupted mages and destroying them. It is a fight, however, that we do not fight alone. Come closer."
Ukyo moved closer until the mirror came into view. As it did, she realized that only Aiko's reflection was present. Scared she started to step back but was caught by Aiko's firm grip.
"Don't be afraid. It is time to call forth your second self." Ukyo looked at the woman with confusion but realized that it was no joke. "Touch the mirror."
Ukyo's hand went out slightly and her finger grazed the surface of the mirror. It rippled like water and Ukyo stepped quickly back. As the image stilled, she suddenly saw herself, staring back from the other side of the mirror.
"Now, you are ready."
* * *
Ukyo looked at her arm and cursed as the blood continued to ooze from it. Taking off her belt she quickly wrapped it around the wound, hoping to stop the flow. It was a stupid injury. She should have been more careful but they had caught her by surprise.
Now she was alone, injured without a potion in sight. She didn't know where the exit was and worse, she didn't know how to get back. She didn't know if she could take any more damage.
She was afraid.
* * *
"It's a simple job," her handler was telling her. "You sneak into the palace and place this mixture in the king's chalice."
Ukyo looked at the small sack. "Is it poison?"
"Never mind what it is," the handler said. "Just do your job."
Ukyo nodded and left the tiny hut. This was her first assignment since she left the Assassin's school. They told her it would be an easy job, to ease her into her new life. A corrupt king had taped into the powers of an ancient evil and was attempting to raise him to help rule the world.
She had arrived here less than a day ago, found her contact and gotten her final orders. Sneaking into the palace would be easy and in fact, it took her less than the time from when the sun set to time the stars shone in the sky to position herself in a dark corner of the hallway from the kitchen to the dining room.
She waited until one of the servants passed her by carrying a bottle of wine. Quickly, she subdued him and took his clothes, masking herself as a boy and stealing into the dining room without being detected.
There she found the king, laughing at a jester who performed in front of him. To his right, sat the queen with a small child on her lap. Ukyo felt a pang of regret for destroying the family but her resolve was steeled by years of training.
Leaning forward, she pour the wine into the King's chalice, allowing some of the powder fall from her hand into his cup at the same time. She stood up and poured more wine, without the poison, for the queen and walked to the side of the room.
She had to be careful not to draw suspicion to herself, especially when the king started to feel the effect of the poison. Otherwise, they'd catch her and imprison her. So she watched, waiting for the first signs of poison knowing that in the chaos that followed she could make her escape.
But something went wrong. The prince began to struggle on his mother's lap. The king looked over with increased annoyance. The little boy finally began to cry and, despite the queen's best efforts, wouldn't stop. By now, a red color had risen in the king's face.
"Make it stop!" he screamed. "MAKE IT STOP!"
Before anyone could do anything, he had reached for the young prince and the cries suddenly were silenced. A small dagger fell from his hands a moment later and clattered to the floor. There was silence for several moments before the queen began to scream.
The king suddenly regained his senses and turning, he saw the scene next to him and began to cry out as well. He reached for his wife and knocked the glass of wine to the ground. As it did, Ukyo suddenly snapped out of her shock.
She watched the wine spread out on the floor and then looked down at her hand, shaking as realization dawned on her.
* * *
Ukyo limped over to the edge of next platform. It was another two-story one and from her vantage point she could see a faint blue glow on the horizon. With joy in her heart, she realized that it was the way out. She had found it!
A bit dizzy from joy and loss of blood she stumbled her way towards it, realizing all to late that it would be guarded. Arriving there, she saw the gruesome figure turn to face her.
* * *
"You don't understand…"
"I understand perfectly!" Ukyo screamed. "You did this to me. You put something in my drink when I was a child that made me act the same way that king did!"
"No," Aiko was saying. But Ukyo ignored her. She had ridden five days straight, galloping away from the castle with nothing else on her mind but this confrontation.
"Why?" Ukyo demanded. "Why would you want me? I'm completely worthless! Rejected by my mother, rejected by my fiancé. But… I was never a killer."
"You must understand…"
"Understand?" Ukyo yelled. "You took my life away from me! You left my father with no other choice then to give me away!!"
"Yes," Aiko said. "That's because there was no other way. He wouldn't have given you to me any other…"
Aiko paused. Suddenly the older woman's eyes glistened slightly. "Please, Ukyo-chan. I never wanted anything for you but to be happy. This was your path. It always had been."
Ukyo paused and looked at the other woman. Suddenly seeing her for something other than leader of the assassins. Seeing her as a normal woman with large brown eyes, long brown hair…
"No…" Ukyo said backing away. "No you can't be…"
"I wanted to tell you," Aiko said with a sad smile. "But the others… they decided that this was best."
"No, please," Ukyo was saying, not believing what was happening.
"The assassin who gave you the poison, she betrayed us all. If the king had been killed then we would be in no danger. But because of what has happened now, he will seek the evil lord in exchange for his child's life. And what's more is that you now know the truth. Don't let her victory be complete, please Ukyo-chan. The greatest evil will be unleashed on this world and we need you to fight along side…"
"NO!" Ukyo cried. "No more!" She fled from the room, down the stairs of the tower and back to her horse. Without a second thought, she steered away from the assassin stronghold and fled back to her hometown.
* * *
The Summoner's head whipped backwards as Ukyo landed a blow. But it resonated back in her as well and she was forced to take a step backward. She used her new position to lash out a kick, landing in his side. She felt a few ribs break on contact but the Summoner grabbed her foot.
With a sneer, he threw her backward. Ukyo hit the ground and looked up just long enough to see him casting another spell. The floor turned to ice beneath her. Trying to stand up, she slipped and fell hard on the ground. The ice provide no traction and she quickly slid backwards, making a desperate last attempt to grab the platform.
Her fingers screamed in agony as they tried to hang on, dealing with both the strain of her weight and the coldness of the ice. Looking down and seeing the infinite nothingness beneath her, she realized that this might be it. She would die out here alone.
Alone.
Her adrenaline kicked in and Ukyo swung upwards, landing on the platform, but falling quickly to her feet. The Summoner was right there and caught completely by surprise. He cast a fireball to push her back over the edge but Ukyo dodged, watching in amazement as the ice melted under the heat.
This was her chance. Standing up on the firm ground she attached, launching a series of attacks. She could feel her ki building as each blow landed. The Summoner was falling back, not by his own volition but by the impact of her kick and punch.
Finally, when she felt she could not take it anymore, Ukyo released the ki that had been swirling around her. It hit her opponent hard and he screamed in agony as he fell to the ground.
She followed suit, falling to her knees, completely exhausted. Looking over, she saw the light slowly fade from her enemy's eyes.
* * *
"He must have died a few days ago. No one really comes up here. He always lived alone."
Ukyo placed a hand on the cold face of the dead man. Fighting back a sob, she carefully closed his eyes. Looking at the elderly villager, she pulled a sack of money from her side and handed it to him.
"I want a proper ritual," she said softly. The man nodded, took her money and left Ukyo alone with the body of her father.
By sunset, it was burning on a funeral pyre while a priest gave the final prayers. When he finished he gave Ukyo a soft grab on her shoulder and left her there.
The fire burned for several hours and it wasn't until the last embers had gone out that she stood up once more.
* * *
"Ukyo!" Mousse called out. He ran over and managed to catch her just as exhaustion set it. He reached for a potion and forced the liquid down her throat. The skin began to heal but Ukyo would not up wake.
"She's exhausted," Mousse said to no one in particular.
"Meow."
Mousse looked down at neko-Shampoo and realized she had something in her mouth. Leaning over, Mousse gently took it from her and examined it. It was a red thread nad looking back… it appeared to go on into the horizon.
"She left us a trail!" Mousse said.
"Ooooh, what happened…"
Mousse's head whipped around and watched as Ranma-chan began to shake the sleep from her head. "Stay here," he said to neko-Shampoo.
"Meow meow," she replied with what could only be a cat sigh.
* * *
"You may hate me but you have to know what your destiny is."
Ukyo stood by her horse, cursing the fact that Aiko had finally caught up with her. "I know what my destiny is. Revenge. First on the Saotomes for their part in this. Then…"
"Then me," Aiko said. She paused, suddenly realizing the name Ukyo had just spoken. "Find the Saotomes. You are right. Your destiny lies with them."
Ukyo turned red, not wanting Aiko to agree with her. But rather than say anything more, she jumped on her horse and turned away, charging off into the horizon.
Aiko watched her go and bowed her head, trying to hide the tears. "Good bye, daughter."
* * *
"Ah ha! She found it!" Mousse said, as she gently placed Ukyo's body on the ground.
"Yeah, and it looks like she destroyed whatever it was that was guarding it," Ranma-chan said, pointing to the corpse on the ground as best she could with Akane still on her back.
"Wait," Mousse said, looking around. "Wait just a minute…"
"What's wrong?" Ranma-chan asked.
"This is it!" Mousse said running forward and examining the walls. "This is the last part of the puzzle!"
"Meow?"
"The puzzle," Mousse said. "The location of Tal Rasha's temple!"
"Tal Ra what?" Ranma-chan said.
"Owwww…"
"Akane??" Ranma-chan asked, feeling the other girl stir on her back. She gently put her down on the ground and watched as Akane opened her eyes.
"Ow," Akane said. "What happened??"
"There are six symbols here," Mousse was saying. "That means that…"
P-Chan started to squeal. He began to pull at the robe of Mousse with his teeth. "That means… hey, hey! Stop that!!" Mousse cried, trying to push P- chan away. Ranma-chan walked over and grabbed the squealing piglet.
"Just stop it!" she said. "Geez… what's your problem?" P-chan continued to squeal but Ranma-chan unceremoniously shoved the yellow bandana from around his neck into his mouth.
"Right," Mousse said looking at the pig with puzzlement. "As I was saying, there are six symbols here. I bet that they represent the temples in the desert."
Akane's mind was still muddled. She was trying to clear it when Ranma-chan knelt next to her. "Are you okay?"
"But the legends said there were seven," Mousse said. "Seven temples in the desert, six symbols on the wall…"
Akane looked over at P-chan as he writhed in Ranma-chan's hand. It looked like he was trying to tell her something…
"That's it! The missing symbol must be the one that marks the temple will Tal Rasha is!"
Suddenly, Akane's face paled. She remembered. She remembered what had happened. "Oh no," she said, turning away from P-chan. Had she looked at the wall? Had they seen what they needed?
"Akane, what's wrong?" Ranma-chan asked.
"We need to go," Akane said, covering her eyes. "Right now!"
"What?" Ranma-chan asked.
"I'll explain on the way, just don't let me see that wall."
Confused but ready to give her the benefit of the doubt, Ranma-chan shrugged at Mousse and began to lead Akane to the portal as she gripped tightly onto P-chan. Mousse made sure to memorize the six symbols and then picked up Ukyo to follow Ranma-chan with neko-Shampoo in tow.
Even as she felt the air change from the stuffy stale on in the Arcane Sanctuary to the clean, crisp one of Lut Gholeim, Akane already knew it was too late. They had seen the wall through her eyes and would be riding to free the lesser evil, Tal Rasha.
