Epilogue

The sky exploded and the remaining soldiers were forced to the ground, the winds driving them deeper into the dirt. There were howls of pain and everyone was momentarily blinded as the world exploded.

It started to rain, softly at first before drenching the world in a downpour. Snow, blood and dirt began to mess into a thick mud and the fallen fighters had to stand up quickly or risk drowning in the mess. The injured were helped to their feet and the army watched as the sky began to change again.

It started from Mt. Arreat, the thin beam of light from the summit shot up to the sky, the dark storm clouds swirling around it making it the eye of the storm. It opened up like a flower to the rain and slashed through the clouds, clearing them as it raced across the landscape, through the snowy mountains of Harrogarth, across the sea to Kurast, against the dunes of Lut Gholein, and finally through the green forest of the Rouge territory.

* * *

The rogue turned and fired a few more arrows, yelling at her comrades to close the gates of the fort. The approaching horde was huge. Casting a glance to another rogue, they both knew that it more than they could deal with. With most of their sisters off fighting in the north, they were barely enough to keep back a pack of zombies, let alone what was coming.

Climbing up to the ramparts, the dozen women held their bow strings taunt and watched as the demons approached them. They let their arrows fly, barely looking to see if they had hit their target as they pulled out the next one. It was a losing battle but none of them wanted to admit it. They had been pushed out of their land, and this small fort had become their only home. No one wanted it to fall.

The sky exploded in light and the rogues were thrown off the ramparts onto the ground. Screaming came from outside the wooden gate and the women had to cover their ears to block it out or risk going insane from the sound.

When it was over, they all looked hesitantly around before standing up. A few had hurt themselves from the fall but for the most part, everyone was fine. Slowly, they moved towards the gate, waiting for it to burst as the demons attacked. But time passed and when nothing happened, one of them finally opened the door.

The green forest of the Rouge territory stretched out in front of them, silent, save for the singing of birds, a sound that had not been heard in ages. Tentatively at first, they stepped outside of their small sanctuary, slowly spreading across the grounds and finding no trace of the demon hordes.

One of them broke from the group and began to run, across the fields, past the mountain until she reached the hill overlooking the Cathedral. It stood in the sunlight, pure as snow and untainted. Their holiest place had been restored, just like the rest of their lands.

* * *

The small group of soldiers approached the tomb entrance. Their sabers rattled softly as they looked at their captain. The man frowned, looking into the darkness and wondering how to proceed. Attacks on Lut Gholein had increased in previous days and they decided it was time to take action.

The captain nodded and they began to head towards the steps. None of them knew what was waiting for them in the damp recesses of the ancient tomb. But if they were afraid, they didn't show it. Even though he was gone, their leader's courage still inspired them.

They barely made it two steps when everything went to hell. A strong wind pushed them out into the sand just as the world exploded around them. The sounds that came from the tomb were monstrous but muffled and as soon as it was over, the soldiers ran down the steps to see what had happened.

There was not a single demon left in the sacred sanctuary of the dead. The air had settled and peace had settled into the hallways. Without another word, the soldiers left and ran back towards town to see what had happened there.

* * *

Kuno's arms were folded over his chest as he watched a couple of demons hurtle themselves at the barrier. Nabiki's magic was still as strong as ever but it didn't stop the demons from trying. He cast a look over his shoulder to the empty harbor with a sigh. Even if they could keep the demons out, they were reaching the end of their food supplies.

Before he could ponder the situation any further, he was thrown to the ground. He couldn't hear anything, the power of the shield muffling the sounds outside. But he forced his head up just enough to see the demons writhing in pain before disappearing.

It was over almost instantly and Kuno quickly stood on his feet, striding over to the barrier and looking out into the dense jungle. Suddenly, the shield started to flicker before it finally gave out. Panicked, he turned and ran towards town where a small group of people was gathering.

Pushing his way through, he took in the situation quickly. The Blade was gone and Nabiki was crumpled on the ground. He knelt down and turned her around, realizing the paleness of her face had been replaced with a healthy glow again.

She blinked suddenly, opening her eyes and looking right at him. She smiled slightly. "Hey Kuno-baby," she said with a laugh.

He looked at her with confusion, ready to question what had happened when he heard someone yelling.

Shinnosuke was the one screaming at them, a considerable feat since he still should have been injured. But his throat was restored, as was his voice. And he was yelling at them that something was coming from Travincial.

Thoughts of another attack were quickly extinguished as several humans came through on horses. Soldiers from Travincial coming to tell them the town had been restored.

* * *

Across the mountains, far away from all the fighting, the still remains of Tristram lay in the setting sun. The last fires had long since gone out and all that was left were smoldering remains. Demons still roamed the area, seeking out any source of food that might still be there. All they found today was immense pain as the wave of light hit them. It swept through their bodies and tore them apart before sending them back to their home in Hell.

As soon as they were gone, the town shifted and changed. Burned wood slowly turned from black back to its natural color. Stones fell into place once more and the tree sprouted new leaves.

The streets suddenly became filled again. First with the smaller animals, squirrels and birds that scattered quickly to seek the safety of trees and bushes. Then the cows and oxen filled up the pens once more. And finally the townsfolk arrived, filling the streets with confused laughter.

* * *

The summit suddenly exploded, raining down boulders as the tip of Mt. Arreat began to cave in. Streams of light, small crystal shards of the WorldStone flew out of the collapse, racing towards the sky.

The Army of Light watched this unfold, wondering if the world was about the end. But somehow, the warmth of the light was comforting and their fears began to wash away. The screams of torment were not coming from them but from the demons around them as small particles of light hit them and dissolved their bodies into the ground. Even the great Portals to Hell suddenly began to collapse, the rock orifices falling into themselves against the pressure of the explosion.

And then it was over. The Army of Light found themselves alone on the battlefield, no trace of the demons remained. After a few moments of confusion, the celebrations began. No one was sure what had happened but one thing was clear. The war had been won and the world had been reset.

* * *

The Guardian's temple alone was saved from the destruction of the summit of Mt. Arreat, it's timelessness protected by magic. Thus neither the three stone statues nor the fallen bodies of the heroes had been damaged. But they didn't move either, the stillness of death still held on their faces.

"Does anyone else find this freaky?"

"Is very strange."

"Do I really look that fat in that outfit?"

Shampoo and Ryoga looked over at Ukyo with surprise. She glanced over at them with a small shrug and turned back to her body. It was a bit of a strange scene, the three of them standing on the ground, staring at their corpses on the ground.

"So what now?" Ryoga asked.

Shampoo shook her head. "Not know. Maybe this what happen when we die."

"I always thought there'd be a bit more… well…" Ryoga paused looking for the words. Shampoo and Ukyo looked at him.

"Fluffy white angels on puffy white clouds?" Ukyo tried.

"Dancing girls with not ending casket of wine?" Shampoo added.

"Food."

Ukyo and Shampoo looked at him. "FOOD?" they cried. Ryoga shrugged.

"You mean to tell me," Ukyo yelled, "that over all the years of your life, you came to the conclusion that the afterlife would welcome you with food?"

Ryoga nodded. "Sure." The girls continued to stare at him. "Hey, I spent a lot of times lost in the woods without food!"

Shampoo sighed and looked up at the sky. "Look like it going to rain."

Ryoga's face crumpled. "No way, there is NO way they're going to hold funeral services for a pig." He walked over to his body, quickly trying to use his body as an umbrella by floating above it.

"Ryoga," Ukyo started, trying to pull him away. "You're ethereal… the water is going to pass right through you anyway."

"Lay off," Ryoga said, shaking her ghostly hand from his. She pulled at him and he pulled back, suddenly floating into his body. There was a flash of light and suddenly Ryoga the ghost was gone while the Ryoga on the floor blinked in surprise.

"What the hell," he said standing up. He looked down and examined his body. "Hey! Look at that!" he cried out. "Hey… where'd you guys go?"

Shampoo and Ukyo hadn't left. They were caught between outright joy that Ryoga was alive again and total rage that by standing up, he had caused their bodies to drop into the mud. They finally reached the same decision and floated towards their own bodies, trying to repeat what Ryoga had done.

A second later, a mud covered pair of women stood up behind him. They cracked their knuckles and began to pummel him into the ground, yelling at him for manhandling their corpses.

Somewhere between the screaming and the hitting, it started to rain. And as soon as they took a moment to catch their breath, the trio noticed something very strange.

* * *

What had happened as the WorldStone exploded would be passed down from generation to generation as a legend. The way the sky had filled with light and vanquished the demons in an instant. The sense of calm that had filtered across the world as the fighting stopped. It was the turning point for the planet, a moment that people would dream about in the future and wish they could have been a part of.

But Ranma never saw any of it. He was on the ground, clutching the lifeless form of Akane as it happened. His eyes were clamped shut, knowing the moment he tried to open them, he'd lose it.

There was a pain within him, something he knew that potions alone wouldn't fix. It was a deep wound and one he knew would never go away. He shifted slightly, crushing her body to his chest.

"I'm sorry," he said softly. "I'm sorry about everything. I'm sorry I always called you names. I'm sorry we always fought. I'm sorry I couldn't… save you now. And I'm sorry… sorry I never told you… after all the fighting, the traveling… when I thought you were that doll… when I thought you liked Shinnosuke and not me…"

He trailed over and waited for a minute. "After all that, it took me until now to realize that I was scared of losing you too. Because… because…"

"Because of what?"

Ranma's eyes shot open and he slowly uncurled himself, looking down in the blinking eyes of Akane.

"A…Akane?"

She smiled. "Ranma."

"But… but…"

"I don't know," she said answering his question. "I was just there, watching you and I reached out… and here I am."

He waited a moment longer before crushing her again, no longer in the painful embrace of loss but in something much, much more joyous. She laughed a bit in his embrace and he let her go.

She smiled up at him. "Ranma no baka," she teased. "Are you trying to suffocate me?"

He could only smile back before his face took on a more serious look. She caught the change in his demeanor and mimicked it. Akane had heard it all, all that he had said to her when she was lying there dead. It looked like it had hurt him so much.

His black ponytail came tumbling off his shoulder, landing on her arm as his head tipped downward. Akane's eyes fluttered closed as she felt her heart start to speed up and the color rush to her cheeks.

They missed the rebirth of the world, but they'd have another story to pass down to their descendents. It was the story about how two people finally overcame their fears and arguing and made a world-changing move themselves. A perfect little moment, perfect until…

The cold water hit them both at the same time, causing them to turn in the direction of the attack.

"What the hell!" Ranma called out and then stopped short.

"Hey, lovebirds," Ukyo said as Ryoga dropped the bucket. "Good to see you made it out in one piece."

"Ukyo? Ryoga?" Akane said standing up with a smile. "Shampoo?"

"Is me," she said with a nod. "No understand how but…"

"You were floating near your body, touched it and came back to life," Akane filled in.

"Yeah," Ukyo said with surprise. "Exactly like that. What the hell happened?"

"I think Ranma's the only one who can tell us that," Genma said, pushing his way out of the brush.

"Pop!" Ranma yelled happily. "They said you were dead!"

"Well I was but then I was floating…"

"Know story already," Shampoo said with a wave of her hand.

"Well, all right then," Genma replied, somewhat disappointed. "After I climbed down the tree, I heard you all talking."

"What were you doing in a tree?" Ukyo asked, realizing his story wasn't exactly the same.

Genma paused. "All I remember was hitting the wall after that demon died, your mother was talking to me," he said nodding to Ranma," telling me I had to go someplace safe… and then I was at the tree." The group looked at him perplexed. "Well it's not as crazy as it sounds. You were all dead after all and now you're smiling like morons again."

"It's not crazy," Ranma said. "I saw mom and Akane's mom. They said they were going to destroy the WorldStone because it had been tainted."

"Destroy the WorldStone?" Ryoga cried.

"Hmmm," Genma added, putting a hand to his chin. "But if it was tainted, it might have corrupted the barrier between here and Hell. Destroying it would be one answer but the results…"

"Well, I think we are the result," Ukyo said. "And while I love the whole resurrection bit, does this mean that all the demons got resurrected too?"

There was a bit of silence. No one had tried to keep track of the number of demons that had fallen by their hands. But the thought of them all coming back to life and probably remembering who had done them in… that didn't sit well with them.

"What if we weren't the only ones to come back to life?" Ryoga said suddenly. If it meant that small chance that his parents, his friends…

They were rooted in place. The ramifications of what had happened were almost too much to understand. To be given a second chance to see all their friends who had died over the past few months… it was almost worth facing the never-ending horde.

"Wait a minute," Ranma suddenly said. "Ryoga… what did you hit me with?"

"What?"

"Before, when you walked in when…" Ranma trailed off, blushing slightly. Genma raised an eyebrow.

"That's right!" Ukyo cried. "With the whole reunion thing… Ranma, we hit you with cold water!"

Genma blinked and ran up to his son, placing two hands on his chest. Ranma quickly batted him away but Genma's mind had already made the calculations. He reached down and picked up a handful of water from a puddle. He threw it on Ranma a couple of times before he did it to himself.

"We're not changing! We're NOT CHANGING!" Genma cried happily.

"The curse must have been reversed too!" Ranma said returning the hug his father was engulfing him in.

"It's like the entire world reset," Akane said happily. "Maybe Tristram…"

"It's a possibility, anything is a possibility," Ranma smiled looking at her.

"That means that scroll is back in place," Genma said. "This time we can make the right wish and…"

"NO!" the rest of the group screamed, realizing that Genma was actually considering returning to the source of all their curses.

"Ah… if all your curses were broken," Ukyo started, turning to Shampoo. The purple-haired girl looked at her for a moment before realization hit her along with the rest of the group.

Whatever was waiting for them out there, the group wasn't going to wait to find out anymore.

* * *

Kasumi stood next to Akari as the other girl desperately tried to regain order. The events following the explosion of Mt. Arreat had taken them all by surprise. All the injured had suddenly been healed. And if that wasn't enough to cause chaos, a whole group of Barbarians came stumbling into town from the graveyard.

No one knew what was going on but somehow, joy was overpowering confusion as old friends reunited. Unfortunately, after about an hour or so of this, Harrogarth's streets were completely flooded with people.

"Please, we need some of you to move outside!" Akari called again but to no avail. They were just milling about, marveling at the completely restored town.

"Please go outside," Kasumi tried but her voice was softer than Akari's.

"Let me try."

Kasumi and Akari looked over with a bit of confusion as the man stepped up next to them. There was a flash of light and a huge Fire Golem appeared. People backed off as the monster surveyed the area.

"Now," the caster said. "This half of the town, go outside," he continued, motioning outside.

"He means that way, folks," Akari said, moving Mousse's arms to right direction.

Mousse sighed. Apparently, his theory that his bad sight was a curse was completely unfounded. Well, guess you can't get everything in the world. He was just glad he had his mind back to himself.

"Do you have any idea what happened?" Akari asked him as people started to move.

Mousse shook his head. "I just remember a flash of bright light and then everything was very clear."

Akari nodded and looked up at the summit. "I hope everyone's okay up there," she said softly.

"AKARI-CHAN!"

Akari blinked and looked into the crowd, suddenly catching the sight of her father. With a muffled sob she dove into the crowd, heading towards the chief of the Barbarians. Mousse and Kasumi smiled at each other. Well… Kasumi smiled at him, Mousse was facing a tree when he did it.

There was a rumbling in the mountain and the huge door in the back of town pushed open. Shampoo stumbled out first, backing up quickly when she saw what was going on. Harrogarth was reborn, in more ways then one. All structural damage was gone and the number of Barbarians could only mean…

Ryoga got out next and his eyes opened at the scene. He caught sight of Akari and a familiar group of Barbarians around her. It was true. Everyone had come back to life!

While Ryoga was reunited with his parents, the rest of the group was taking in the view from the door. It took a moment but they all saw it. A huge Fire Golem in the middle of town was sort of hard to miss. Sure it could have been any Necromancer's creature but the way this particular one was ambling about like it had no idea where it was supposed to be facing could only mean one thing.

Mousse was attempting to talk with Kasumi when he got hit. The first person to hit him knocked him a few feet backwards. By the time the last one had reached him, Mousse was on the ground, flailing about under a pile of people.

From a small perch against the mountainside, Nodoka sighed at the scene below. She stood up and pulled at her clothes, shifting the sword at her side as the soft light came next to her. She smiled slightly, a bit sad to find herself human again but glad for a second lease on life. Then she started to laugh.

"What's so funny?" the angel said. "I thought you liked being an angel."

"I did," Nodoka said through the laughter. "I just imagined what Genma must have thought when he woke up in a tree!"

The angel frowned a bit and shook her head. "Maybe it's better that you turned back to a human." The two fell into silence as they surveyed the glittering landscape.

"Well, the effects of our actions appear to have been for the better," Nodoka said as the angel settled next to her.

"They remember everything you know. It means… it means that the demons will remember too."

Nodoka nodded. "How far back were things reset?"

The angel paused for a moment, her eyes closed as she made a silent communication with her superiors. "From what we can tell, right before Diablo was able to return to the world."

"Which means, that it will be only a matter of days before he returns," Nodoka said. "But if we can find him when he's still weakened and in the human vessel, we can prevent history from repeating itself."

"Possibly," the angel replied.

"Then I'll go," Nodoka said, looking up at the cliff of Mt. Arreat.

"What about…"

Nodoka smiled. "I'll see them when I get back," she replied, slowly climbing, moving away from the reunions that were occurring below her.

The angel frowned as Nodoka disappeared. They had had this discussion before but Nodoka didn't remember it. And she didn't remember setting out for Diablo all those months ago, ultimately failing in her pursuit. Everything else about this 'reset' was perfect.

Something did sit well. It wasn't just Nodoka's memory loss. It wasn't the fact that everyone had retained their memories and the skills they had acquired during Diablo's reign of terror. It wasn't the fact that the demons were in the same situation, their hatred only growing in the face of this defeat.

It was the fact that the WorldStone was already reforming.

* * *

It took several weeks for the confusion to pass. Most of the Army of Light dispersed after the two days of celebration, slowly heading back to their hometowns. People had already teleported into Harrogarth, bringing news of the world's changes or rather… return to normalcy.

Nothing prepared the heroes for the reception they received. Apparently it hadn't taken long for story of the WorldStone destruction and Saffron's defeat to make its way across the camp and subsequently around the world. It was nice to be lavished with accolades but after a while, it got to a bit overwhelming.

Akane had to deal with a multitude of people asking her how she cast that final Mastery spell. But she could only shrug and smile over in Kasumi's direction. They offered her a nice position with the council of Sorceresses but Akane got all the reward she could ever want when Nabiki came through a portal with Kuno close in tow.

Ranma for his part was enjoying his new found fame with the Paladins. Having never studied with them, he never made friends with anyone in his class. Now everyone was intent on hearing exactly how he had cast Heaven's Fist. It took a few times before he made it through the story without pausing at the point that Akane died and looking over to make sure she was still there.

Ukyo had gotten a similar proposition as Akane, a chance to teach future assassins. It was a great honor for someone so young. And one that Ukyo would seriously have to consider. It meant great changes for her, including the chance to work next to her mother and possibly work on their relationship.

Shampoo had gotten more than she could have ever wanted. The Amazon's reinstated her into their class. Even if Cologne's insistent (but of course, secretive) campaigning hadn't been enough, the war had changed their outlook on things. It was time that they moved away from isolation and joined the rest of the world so that something like this could never happen again.

Mousse got what he wanted too… in a way. Shampoo had spent two days yelling at him for what he did. And then she had softened, just a bit, to thank him, before she stopped talking to him for the next three days. He could only sigh and wait for her mood to change again.

Ryoga was the only one who was not caught up in the celebrations. His reunion with his parents had been joyous but when all the clamor died down, something became crystal clear. This war, no matter the happy outcome, had shown them all how vulnerable to attack. There was already talk among the classes about creating a unified army to prevent this from happening again.

The elder Hibikis had volunteered to be part of the founding members, their battle experience necessary to strengthen a fledgling army. But doing so left Harrogarth's leadership a bit shaky.

So that was how Ryoga ended up agreeing to go through with his marriage with Akari. It was reasoned that with Ryoga at their side, they should be able to route out any remnants of Gosunkugi's betrayal. But whether Ryoga was happy or not was hard to tell. All he could do was stare at the gate of Harrogarth in silent thought.

He wasn't alone. The rest of the group did the same thing, eventually tiring of the constant attention. To think that after all these months of adventuring or wishing for a few moments of peace, none of them could sit still.

The day of the wedding they had all gathered around the fire for one last sit down together. But even though the mood around them was joyous, most of the adventurers could barely find the energy to smile.

"Come on guys," Akane said finally. "We're acting like this is a funeral! This should be a happy occasion." She smiled over at Ryoga who mustered up a small smile. Her mood quickly changed but Ryoga held up her hands.

"I am happy," he said firmly. "Akari's a great girl and well… this is what I should do."

"Right," Ukyo said with a sigh, "just like I should be heading back with the Assassins to start teaching. So why the hell I am still here?"

"Same reason we all are," Ranma said. They all looked at him. "Come on, I see the way you all stare at that gate like trapped animals. You're like me, you wanna get out."

They feel silent after that, knowing what Ranma had said was true. It was just hard to admit it. How do you give up all the prestige offered to them? It was like they were children wanting to play outside rather than do their schoolwork. There was no justification for giving up the offers that had been presented to them.

"Well," Mousse said standing up, "I guess this is it then. Time to head back home."

Shampoo looked up at him and smiled a bit. "Shampoo still under contract, have to take dumb duck boy home… even if he not know where home is."

"Yeah, it'll be a lot of wandering about again," Mousse said.

"Hey," Ukyo said suddenly standing up, "you know I think there was a Necromancer town near the Assassin's camp. I can show you where it is."

"Isn't that on the way to Tristram?" Akane asked, looking over at Ranma. "Ranma and I were headed back there after the wedding."

"That's true," Ranma smiled, seeing where this was going. Sure, they could have probably teleported to their respective destinations but the chance for one last adventure before they settled down was all the reason they needed to overlook the obvious.

Ranma was happy until he realized they were missing one important part. The group slowly turned to Ryoga but the young man stood up and waved off their concerns.

"Come on," Ryoga said with a smile, "you know I'd get you all lost anyway."

"Ryoga…" Akane started.

"It's all right," Ryoga continued. "I have a lot of work to do here and Akari's waiting and all…"

"And I'll wait a while longer." The group turned as Akari walked down the steps to join them.

"Akari…"

"Ryoga," she said with a wave of her hand. "I don't want you to stay if you want to go. You need to follow your heart's desire. My father and I can handle things here for a bit."

Ryoga paused, looking between her and his friends. In a quick motion, he ran up and gave her a hug, running back to rejoin his friends as they gathered up their belongings to head out again.

Akari sighed as she watched them head towards the gate. The soft crunch of snow next to her made her turn away. She smiled at the small barbarian next to her.

"Wedding's off I guess," Andreas said, motioning towards the retreating forms.

"I guess," Akari said with a shrug. "But all that food and beer… whatever are we going to do with it?" She smiled a bit. "I guess we can't let it go to waste."

Andreas smiled and offered her an arm to lead her back to party. In the background the gates opened and the adventures set out on the road, ready to face whatever was waiting for them.