Author's note : No interlude this time, mainly 'cause the act itself is so
short that there's not much to work with as is. I'm a bit behind in e-mail
so I promise I'll get back to you soon, Another Duck!
Act 4, Quest 1
The Fallen Angel
The portal's red glow encompassed Akane as she stepped through it. For a moment, she felt disoriented as the portal whisked her away to places unknown. She stumbled through the other side, watching her feet step across the stone floor. She knelt to the ground and looked up.
It appeared they were inside a cathedral. Massive spires rose to an empty ceiling and all Akane could see was an endless red sky. Light filtered through windows, though the source was unknown. A feeling of peace encompassed the area, one she had no felt since she and Ranma had been lost beneath Kurast.
There was a sound, something like the fluttering of wings. Looking up, Akane finally saw what the source of light was. A beautiful angel stood near the portal watching as the adventurers emerged. A small smile danced across her white face, two sapphire-like eyes stared at Akane.
Soun came through almost last, looking around the area and taking his bearings carefully. He saw Akane and followed her gaze. When he focused on the object of her stares, he let out a gasp. The angel turned towards him.
"Hello, husband," she said softly.
"Is it… is it you?" Soun asked softly.
The angel smiled and nodded. Soun stepped forward and reached a tentative hand forward but it passed through the white gown. The angel smiled slowly. "I am sorry, husband. But the ethereal can not be touched by the living."
"Mom?" Akane said, suddenly realizing what was going on.
The angel turned to her and it looked like tiny drops of diamonds came from her eyes. "Akane, my dear little Akane. You made it here," she said. "I am so happy I could see you again." She turned to Ranma. "Thank you for bring her here."
And words were lost on Ranma's lips as he stared at the vision of perfection in front of him. If he concentrated, he could see the family resemblance. He finally just settled on a nod.
"You are all here," the angel said, sweeping her eyes on the group before finally landing on Shampoo. "No, there is one missing." She paused and looked back over at the group. "One from each class began and yet there is one missing." She looked at Akane.
"Is there a way to get him back?" Akane asked hesitantly.
The angel looked at her quizzically. "Get him back? But why would you want to revive the dead? The dead are at peace, or torment if their deeds in life deemed that necessary. Either way, their fate has been cast."
"It's just that," Ukyo said looking over at Shampoo. "He kind of sacrificed himself to save another who was dead."
The angel looked at Ukyo and then Shampoo. "This is a matter that I will have to take up with a higher power. Please do not stray from the confines of the cathedral as the power of heaven cannot protect you beyond these walls."
There was a burst of light and she was gone.
* * *
"Well, considering we've spent the last few adventures in full fledged towns," Ryoga said, "this kind of sucks."
Ukyo shrugged. "We might as well see what they have here." She and Ryoga walked down to the stairs where there were two sellers though they were anything but normal. One looked like a giant cat, the other looked like a playing card.
"Boy, better hope Ranma doesn't come down here," Ukyo said, looking over at the cat.
"Too late," Ryoga said hooking a thumb back to where Ranma sat with the card guy.
"It's the Ring of Stupidity," the Gambling King was saying.
"What?!" Ranma cried. "But it cost 50,000 gold!! I want to try again!"
Ryoga and Ukyo quickly leapt forward. "NO!" they both cried.
"Ranma, don't you know how useless gambling is?" Ukyo asked.
Ryoga nodded. "All they ever give you is junk."
Ranma bowed his head. "I wish you guys had told me that earlier."
"What do you mean?" Ryoga asked. Ukyo let out a little shriek. Near Ranma was a pile of junk. "HOW MUCH MONEY DID YOU SPEND?!" Ryoga cried.
Ranma looked up innocently at them and twiddling his thumbs while mumbling something under his breath.
"WHAT?" Ryoga and Ukyo yelled.
"All of it," Ranma whispered.
There was a moment of silence. Then a strangled cry as both Ryoga and Ukyo pounced on Ranma.
* * *
"Dad?" Akane asked walking up to him. Her father had a far away look in his eyes. "Daddy?"
Soun blinked and looked up at Akane. "Ah, Akane… I'm sorry I was just… thinking."
Akane took a seat next to him and wrapped her arms around her legs. "So was it really her?" she asked softly.
Soun sighed. "Well, I used to tell you girls your mother was an angel… I didn't expect to be proven right by meeting her."
Akane nodded. "I wish I could have said more. But it was such a shock and with her asking about Mousse and all…"
"She'll be back," Soun said. "She said she would be. And then you can talk to her a bit."
"I don't even know what I would say," Akane replied. "I mean, I never expected her to suddenly be back. Are you going to say something?"
Soun looked back to the red sky. "I'm not sure I will say anything at all."
"Why?"
Soun sighed. "It's been a long time since she left us. And it took almost that long to learn to live without her. I came to terms with the fact that I had said all I needed to when she was alive."
Akane fell silent and mulled over her father's words. At times, he was such an emotional mess, crying at the slightest thing. Yet he stood here, faced with the prospect of a reunion with his dead wife without so much as a tear in his eye.
The words her mother had spoken rang in her head. The dead are at peace. Why would you want to raise the dead?
* * *
Shampoo stood on the fringes of the cathedral and examined Hell as it unfolded in front of her. It seemed fitting, she thought to herself, that she would find herself here. Cologne's departure could only mean one thing even if no one in the group had told her.
"Stupid Ranma." Turning around, Shampoo watched Ukyo approach her. "I can't believe he lost all that gold."
Shampoo raised an eyebrow and turned back to the red expanse. Ukyo came up next to her.
"How are you doing?" Ukyo asked quietly.
Shampoo's expression didn't change. "Feeling like found place Shampoo belong."
Ukyo frowned. "Don't say that."
"No tribe, no class," Shampoo said. "Shampoo no have even weapon to fight."
"But you've got us," Ukyo said, gripping the other girl's arm. "And we'll get you a new weapon… Hey maybe Ranma actually got something good but didn't recognize it. Come on, let's go," she said dragging her away from her position.
They reached the pile of junk and a quivering pile of Ranma. Searching through it, they found no spear or javelin that was worth anything. Even the swords were useless. Ukyo had to resist the urge to pummel Ranma even further.
"What this?" Shampoo asked, pulling out a bow. It sparkled in the red light, carved with intricate runes.
"That looks like a lightning enchanted longbow," Genma said as he joined them. Reaching down, he pulled up Ranma and pushed him back towards the entrance to the cathedral. "Let's go, our angel has returned."
* * *
"It is very difficult for us to see into Hell," she was saying as her wings settled onto her back. "But we can sense small disturbances. There is something wrong in Hell, as if there is something there that shouldn't be."
"Is it Mousse?" Akane asked quickly.
The angel shrugged slightly. "We can't see. But it is the only thing to go on."
"I think it's worth a shot," Ranma said. "It'll give us the chance to get accustomed to the area. From what Shampoo said, we have two more demons to track down."
"Yes," the angel said. "We have been watching their movements but have found no way to stop them yet. I will let you know if we do." She disappeared again and Ranma turned to the group.
"You heard her," Ranma said. "Let's go see what this disturbance is. Shampoo, you're with Akane and me. Ryoga, you and Ukyo scout out ahead. And pop… pop?"
Looking over he saw Genma-panda rolling next to Soun who had a disgusted look on his face. "Really Saotome, must you do that?"
The panda held up a sign that read 'Hell is not exactly someplace I want to go'.
Soun sighed. "Well, you've been told to go there enough as it is…"
The panda swatted him on the head.
Ranma just rolled his eyes. "Forget it," he said. "Let's just go."
"Hey," Ukyo said before they could move. "Why do Ryoga and I always have to scout ahead."
"Yeah!" Ryoga said.
"Well, because you two are the most qualified," Ranma said evenly. Ukyo smiled and grabbed Ryoga, pulling him towards the exit. "And," he said as soon as they were out of earshot, "I have to pay you back for that little pummeling you gave me not too long ago."
* * *
"Well, I'm going to go with just plain disturbing," Ukyo said as she leaned forward and examined the trio of writhing bodies.
"Look out!" Ryoga said bringing his axe down on them. "Geez," he said pulling back his axe on it. "Don't you know anything? If something is scary and eerie, you don't go looking at it. You go the other way! And they wonder why there are so many damsels in distress in the world."
Ukyo glared at him. "Hey Ryoga," she said. "What happens when you kill the dead?" Ryoga looked at her. "I mean, those guys were already dead but you killed them."
Ryoga's brow furrowed as the Barbarian tried to grapple with the philosophical question that Ukyo had laid out for him. Good, Ukyo said to herself. That ought to keep him quiet for a while, damsel in distress my ass.
She looked around the area and couldn't help but feel that Ryoga might be right. The more she stared at the fiery landscape, the more she had the urge to just run away. Most of the black ground was cracking under the heat of the lava that flowed around them. Some structures remained though it was as skeletons of their former selves. It made her wonder what was here before.
"Come on Ryoga," she said pulling the Barbarian out of his deep thought. "There's got to be something around here that could disturb the balance of heaven."
"How about that," he said pointing to a mass of black smoke that snaked in the air as it was alive.
"Ah…" Ukyo said. "I actually have no idea. That might be normal for this place."
"Well, I think it's worth a shot," Ryoga said. "Let's go find the others."
* * *
"So you know how to use that?" Akane asked.
Shampoo shrugged. "Was toy taught to children. Should no be hard," she finished holding the bow up.
"And lightning enchanted," Akane said with a smile. "That's going to kick ass! Nabiki could always cast a…" Akane trailed off realizing where Nabiki was.
Shampoo sighed and nodded to the other girl. "Shampoo understand. But we get Nabiki free."
Akane nodded. "Thanks Shampoo. And we'll find Mousse."
"Shampoo no care," she said half-heartedly, "if find duck-boy."
"Oi!" Ryoga called as he and Ukyo ran up to them. "We found something."
"Where?" Shampoo said standing up quickly.
"Across the valley," Ukyo said pointing to the horizon. "You can't really see it here."
"Where's Ranma?" Ryoga asked looking around.
"Here," Ranma said rejoining the group. "I was just… checking something out."
Ryoga glared at him. "What?"
Ranma looked back at him. "Nothing…"
"RANMA!" Ukyo screamed. "Did you go back to camp to gamble more?"
Ranma's eyes looked at Ukyo innocently but she didn't buy it for a moment. There was a slight ringing in the air as Ryoga drew his axe. "Apparently, you didn't learn your lesson the first time. "
* * *
"What did you just say?" Akane asked looking over at Ranma. He glared at her and tried to form the words from his bruised mouth. "Oh just forget it. Ryoga and Ukyo take left attack. The rest of us will round around the right."
Ranma nodded that that was what he was aiming for and picked up his sword, looking pathetic. Shampoo shook her head. "Serve Ranma right for gambling all money away."
"Yeah, Ranma," Akane said. "Where did you get more money to gamble with?" He mumbled something. With a sigh, Akane handed over a potion so he could heal.
Ukyo just shook her head and followed the retreating form of Ryoga. "Hey, you think taking this thing on is a good idea?"
Ryoga looked over his shoulder at Ukyo and then over to the source of live black tendrils. There was something trapped in them but the smoke was about to let it go. In fact, it seemed to enjoy attacking anything that came within fighting distance of it.
"No," Ryoga said. "But at least we have the element of surprise."
"YOU SOLD WHAT!!!"
"Or we did," Ryoga said as Akane's voice echoed throughout the valley.
The creature reared up, catching sight of the two groups of fighters advancing on it. There was a horrible scream as black tendrils shot towards them. Ryoga leapt up and saw Ukyo flip out of the way from the corner of his eye.
He raised his axe and brought it down hard on the black snake that was trying to reach him. Only the axe passed right through. What the hell…
"RYOGA!" Ukyo called out, seeing another tendril come towards him. Ryoga didn't have time to react. He watched it approach, waiting for it to make contact. It hit him and passed right through him.
Ryoga started to laugh. "It can't hurt us," he said. Turning around he yelled the same thing over to the other group.
"Well," Ukyo said, rejoining him, watching the black smoke pass through him a couple of times, "that's kind of silly."
"I guess it can only attack things that are from this plane," he said walking towards the source of the smoke.
The other trio joined them and Ranma could only shrug. They examined the creature and watched as it tried to swat them with its arms.
"Does anyone else have a feeling that this was too easy?" Akane asked.
"Shhh," Ukyo said. "Never say that. Every time you say something like that…"
"Ah guys," Ryoga said. "I think we have company."
Ukyo turned and saw where Ryoga was looking. Two herds of demons were approaching them. Ukyo glared at Akane. The creature above them lashed out but its attacks passed through the horde.
"Wonderful," Ryoga said pulling out his axe. "How about Ukyo, Ranma and me concentrate on the monster."
"What we supposed to do?" Shampoo asked.
"Find out how to free whatever is in that smoke case," Ryoga said, point upwards at it.
Shampoo and Akane exchanged a glance and looked back up at the smoke creature that was still writhing in anger. Wordlessly Shampoo cocked an arrow and let it fly upward. Akane watched horrified as it almost hit the figure within.
"Shampoo! Are you crazy?!?" she cried.
"Was just an idea," Shampoo said softly.
"Well, next time you have an idea, let's discuss…"
Akane was cut short as she felt an arrow whistling by her ear and clipping some hair before it landed on the ground. Shampoo grimaced. Oh yeah… she forgot that shooting an arrow into the air meant it would usually come down nearby. Silly her, she thought with a smile.
Akane didn't look nearly as amused.
* * *
The lead demon held a hand up, forcing the group behind him to come to a stop. It smelt something strange in the air but it couldn't place its finger on it. It took a step forward just as its tiny brain kicked up an answer.
Trap.
Of course by then, its brain was about twenty meters away from its feet. The rest of the horde fell into panic and tried to escape only to find more traps along the side. After a few moments, the survivors suddenly found themselves in the middle of an angry martial artist.
Ukyo sliced them down in a few seconds. There was nothing left but tiny little shreds of demons. Looking over at her shadow, Ukyo gave her a "thumbs up". The Shadow gave her an identical gesture, which caused the two to descend into giggles.
Across the plain, Ranma and Ryoga resorted to a standard hack and slash approach. And with two such high-level melee characters it wasn't too hard. In fact it was a bit fun. Ranma was trying out a few of his lesser- used attacks, and enchanting his sword with different elemental characteristics and shifting his aura so it became a rainbow of colors.
The monster for the most part had fallen when Ranma shot a boastful glance over to Ryoga. Of course, all the fighting had gone to head and he had forgotten what happens when you boast to a barbarian. They tend to take it personally and Ryoga was no exception.
"You want to play," Ryoga said. "Then watch this."
He extended his arms outward and in his best Tasmanian Devil imitation, he began to spin. Anything that came near him got sliced and diced.
Ranma would have been impressed if Ryoga did (a) look like such an idiot spinning around like a ballerina and (b) Ryoga's classic sense of direction were not leading him right towards him.
"RYOGA!" Ranma called out.
Ranma ducked just as the spinning Ryoga reached him. He felt his ponytail catch in the spinning blade. He turned just in time to see Ukyo rejoining and watched in horror as the blades caught her and tore her to shreds. He was about to panic when he heard her yelling.
"God damn it, Ryoga, do you know how freaking hard it is to raise a Shadow?" Ukyo asked following with a shift kick to his shins.
Ryoga stopped spinning and took to wandering around like he was drunk. "See Ranma," he said, his eyes spinning. "Told you…" He collapsed on the ground from dizziness.
"Baka," Ukyo said looking at him. She would have added further insults if the sky hadn't suddenly exploded into light.
* * *
"Ummmm…" Akane said looking at the Shadow Creature above her. "Maybe…" she cast Inferno and aimed it upwards. Nothing happened.
"Shampoo be able to help if sorceress no send her way over here," Shampoo said from her position several meters away.
"You and your bow just stay right there," Akane said. "I'll figure this out… somehow," she added under her breath.
Shampoo sighed and rolled her eyes. One bad shot and Akane had sent her as far away as possible, like she had shot that arrow on purpose. Shampoo looked at the smoke creature and decided she wasn't going to be much help in this. There was probably some secret technique to destroy it that was locked away in a century old scroll.
Mousse probably would know what to do.
Stupid Mousse, Shampoo thought to herself. Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid, noble, stupid Mousse.
She looked up at the shadow creature once more, wondering if it was him trapped in there. Then something caught her eye. Reaching for her bow, she cocked an arrow.
"Akane," she called. The sorceress turned and saw her holding a loaded bow in her direction. "Duck."
Akane hit the ground just as Shampoo let her arrow fly. It sailed towards the target, a glimmer that Shampoo had seen in the smoke. As it impacted, there was a huge burst of light and Shampoo found herself half blinded.
As soon as her vision cleared, she saw someone standing over an unconscious Akane. Long black hair danced in the aftermath of the explosion. Shampoo's heart skipped a beat. She watched the figure raise its hand and Shampoo thought it was a wave.
Something glistened in the red light and Shampoo realized the figure was holding a knife and it was aiming for Akane.
"AKANE!" Shampoo called, drawing an arrow and firing it at an alarming speed. It hit the center of the figure's hand. As the person turned to face Shampoo, she realized what a mistake they had made. Kodachi only smiled.
"Stay out of this," Kodachi said pointing to Shampoo. "This is between me and the bitch that trapped me in this hell."
Shampoo's only response was to cock another arrow. Ranma, Ryoga and Ukyo chose that moment to return, causing Kodachi to crouch down with the dagger at Akane's neck. "Not a step closer," she hissed. "And you with the bow, the dagger is laced with poison so don't try anything. The slightest touch will be enough to kill her."
"What do you want?" Ranma demanded.
Kodachi looked up and smiled. "It's you, my King to be," she said with a smile. "Actually, I have what I want. My freedom… and my revenge."
"Wait!" Ranma called out as the knife moved downward. "There has to be something else."
Kodachi looked at him and closed her eyes. Her mouth moved but she spoke to no one present. Her eyes fluttered open and she smiled. "Not me, but my lord requires something. A stone you retrieved when you killed his brother. Deliver it and I'll let the girl go."
Somehow, Ranma doubted the sincerity of her words. Kodachi had a murderous look on her face. Akane would be dead before they made it back to the enemy's camp.
"Take me instead," he said, throwing his sword to the ground.
Kodachi's eyes glittered. "You want to come with me?"
"I want you to leave Akane here." He turned to Ryoga. "You guys go back and get the stone."
Ryoga glared at him. He knew what Ranma was really saying. Find out why they want the stone and then don't give it to them under any circumstances. "Right," Ryoga finally said.
Kodachi jumped up with a laugh of glee. She grabbed Ranma's arm and cast a portal spell. A second later they were gone.
Akane groaned as she started to wake up. She held her head as she started to stand up.
"What happened?" she asked, looking around. "Where's Ranma?"
Ryoga and Shampoo looked at Ukyo. "Oh no," Ukyo said. "Why the hell do I have to keep delivering the bad news."
"What bad news?" Akane asked softly.
Ukyo sighed and wrapped her arm around Akane. "Akane, I don't know how to say this. Kodachi was the one trapped in the smoke creature and she was ready to take you away. But Ranma took your place as Kodachi's captive."
Akane's head sank. Her shoulders started to tremble. Ukyo realized Akane was crying. "It's okay Akane," she said soothingly. "We'll get him ba…"
"RANMA NO BAKA!" Akane suddenly yelled. Ukyo realized it wasn't sadness but rage that was building up inside of her friend.
"Hey!" Ukyo called watching her stalk off. "Where are you going?"
"To get him back," Akane called out.
"Shampoo go with her," Shampoo said already chasing after Akane. "Barbarian and Assassin go get stone."
Watching them go, Ryoga sighed. "Why are they always shoving us together?" he asked.
"Because we were meant to be together," Ukyo said looking at him with big eyes.
That statement puzzled him more than the whole how do you kill the dead question. He just kind of stared at her with a look of confusion on his face. Until she started laughing.
"As if I would ever fall for a dimwitted barbarian," she said with a laugh, skipping off in the direction of the camp.
Ryoga blinked and let the words sink in. With a growl, he turned towards Ukyo. "I think we need to talk," he said, hand resting on his axe. With a little squeal, Ukyo took off, deciding it would be better to run back to camp.
Act 4, Quest 1
The Fallen Angel
The portal's red glow encompassed Akane as she stepped through it. For a moment, she felt disoriented as the portal whisked her away to places unknown. She stumbled through the other side, watching her feet step across the stone floor. She knelt to the ground and looked up.
It appeared they were inside a cathedral. Massive spires rose to an empty ceiling and all Akane could see was an endless red sky. Light filtered through windows, though the source was unknown. A feeling of peace encompassed the area, one she had no felt since she and Ranma had been lost beneath Kurast.
There was a sound, something like the fluttering of wings. Looking up, Akane finally saw what the source of light was. A beautiful angel stood near the portal watching as the adventurers emerged. A small smile danced across her white face, two sapphire-like eyes stared at Akane.
Soun came through almost last, looking around the area and taking his bearings carefully. He saw Akane and followed her gaze. When he focused on the object of her stares, he let out a gasp. The angel turned towards him.
"Hello, husband," she said softly.
"Is it… is it you?" Soun asked softly.
The angel smiled and nodded. Soun stepped forward and reached a tentative hand forward but it passed through the white gown. The angel smiled slowly. "I am sorry, husband. But the ethereal can not be touched by the living."
"Mom?" Akane said, suddenly realizing what was going on.
The angel turned to her and it looked like tiny drops of diamonds came from her eyes. "Akane, my dear little Akane. You made it here," she said. "I am so happy I could see you again." She turned to Ranma. "Thank you for bring her here."
And words were lost on Ranma's lips as he stared at the vision of perfection in front of him. If he concentrated, he could see the family resemblance. He finally just settled on a nod.
"You are all here," the angel said, sweeping her eyes on the group before finally landing on Shampoo. "No, there is one missing." She paused and looked back over at the group. "One from each class began and yet there is one missing." She looked at Akane.
"Is there a way to get him back?" Akane asked hesitantly.
The angel looked at her quizzically. "Get him back? But why would you want to revive the dead? The dead are at peace, or torment if their deeds in life deemed that necessary. Either way, their fate has been cast."
"It's just that," Ukyo said looking over at Shampoo. "He kind of sacrificed himself to save another who was dead."
The angel looked at Ukyo and then Shampoo. "This is a matter that I will have to take up with a higher power. Please do not stray from the confines of the cathedral as the power of heaven cannot protect you beyond these walls."
There was a burst of light and she was gone.
* * *
"Well, considering we've spent the last few adventures in full fledged towns," Ryoga said, "this kind of sucks."
Ukyo shrugged. "We might as well see what they have here." She and Ryoga walked down to the stairs where there were two sellers though they were anything but normal. One looked like a giant cat, the other looked like a playing card.
"Boy, better hope Ranma doesn't come down here," Ukyo said, looking over at the cat.
"Too late," Ryoga said hooking a thumb back to where Ranma sat with the card guy.
"It's the Ring of Stupidity," the Gambling King was saying.
"What?!" Ranma cried. "But it cost 50,000 gold!! I want to try again!"
Ryoga and Ukyo quickly leapt forward. "NO!" they both cried.
"Ranma, don't you know how useless gambling is?" Ukyo asked.
Ryoga nodded. "All they ever give you is junk."
Ranma bowed his head. "I wish you guys had told me that earlier."
"What do you mean?" Ryoga asked. Ukyo let out a little shriek. Near Ranma was a pile of junk. "HOW MUCH MONEY DID YOU SPEND?!" Ryoga cried.
Ranma looked up innocently at them and twiddling his thumbs while mumbling something under his breath.
"WHAT?" Ryoga and Ukyo yelled.
"All of it," Ranma whispered.
There was a moment of silence. Then a strangled cry as both Ryoga and Ukyo pounced on Ranma.
* * *
"Dad?" Akane asked walking up to him. Her father had a far away look in his eyes. "Daddy?"
Soun blinked and looked up at Akane. "Ah, Akane… I'm sorry I was just… thinking."
Akane took a seat next to him and wrapped her arms around her legs. "So was it really her?" she asked softly.
Soun sighed. "Well, I used to tell you girls your mother was an angel… I didn't expect to be proven right by meeting her."
Akane nodded. "I wish I could have said more. But it was such a shock and with her asking about Mousse and all…"
"She'll be back," Soun said. "She said she would be. And then you can talk to her a bit."
"I don't even know what I would say," Akane replied. "I mean, I never expected her to suddenly be back. Are you going to say something?"
Soun looked back to the red sky. "I'm not sure I will say anything at all."
"Why?"
Soun sighed. "It's been a long time since she left us. And it took almost that long to learn to live without her. I came to terms with the fact that I had said all I needed to when she was alive."
Akane fell silent and mulled over her father's words. At times, he was such an emotional mess, crying at the slightest thing. Yet he stood here, faced with the prospect of a reunion with his dead wife without so much as a tear in his eye.
The words her mother had spoken rang in her head. The dead are at peace. Why would you want to raise the dead?
* * *
Shampoo stood on the fringes of the cathedral and examined Hell as it unfolded in front of her. It seemed fitting, she thought to herself, that she would find herself here. Cologne's departure could only mean one thing even if no one in the group had told her.
"Stupid Ranma." Turning around, Shampoo watched Ukyo approach her. "I can't believe he lost all that gold."
Shampoo raised an eyebrow and turned back to the red expanse. Ukyo came up next to her.
"How are you doing?" Ukyo asked quietly.
Shampoo's expression didn't change. "Feeling like found place Shampoo belong."
Ukyo frowned. "Don't say that."
"No tribe, no class," Shampoo said. "Shampoo no have even weapon to fight."
"But you've got us," Ukyo said, gripping the other girl's arm. "And we'll get you a new weapon… Hey maybe Ranma actually got something good but didn't recognize it. Come on, let's go," she said dragging her away from her position.
They reached the pile of junk and a quivering pile of Ranma. Searching through it, they found no spear or javelin that was worth anything. Even the swords were useless. Ukyo had to resist the urge to pummel Ranma even further.
"What this?" Shampoo asked, pulling out a bow. It sparkled in the red light, carved with intricate runes.
"That looks like a lightning enchanted longbow," Genma said as he joined them. Reaching down, he pulled up Ranma and pushed him back towards the entrance to the cathedral. "Let's go, our angel has returned."
* * *
"It is very difficult for us to see into Hell," she was saying as her wings settled onto her back. "But we can sense small disturbances. There is something wrong in Hell, as if there is something there that shouldn't be."
"Is it Mousse?" Akane asked quickly.
The angel shrugged slightly. "We can't see. But it is the only thing to go on."
"I think it's worth a shot," Ranma said. "It'll give us the chance to get accustomed to the area. From what Shampoo said, we have two more demons to track down."
"Yes," the angel said. "We have been watching their movements but have found no way to stop them yet. I will let you know if we do." She disappeared again and Ranma turned to the group.
"You heard her," Ranma said. "Let's go see what this disturbance is. Shampoo, you're with Akane and me. Ryoga, you and Ukyo scout out ahead. And pop… pop?"
Looking over he saw Genma-panda rolling next to Soun who had a disgusted look on his face. "Really Saotome, must you do that?"
The panda held up a sign that read 'Hell is not exactly someplace I want to go'.
Soun sighed. "Well, you've been told to go there enough as it is…"
The panda swatted him on the head.
Ranma just rolled his eyes. "Forget it," he said. "Let's just go."
"Hey," Ukyo said before they could move. "Why do Ryoga and I always have to scout ahead."
"Yeah!" Ryoga said.
"Well, because you two are the most qualified," Ranma said evenly. Ukyo smiled and grabbed Ryoga, pulling him towards the exit. "And," he said as soon as they were out of earshot, "I have to pay you back for that little pummeling you gave me not too long ago."
* * *
"Well, I'm going to go with just plain disturbing," Ukyo said as she leaned forward and examined the trio of writhing bodies.
"Look out!" Ryoga said bringing his axe down on them. "Geez," he said pulling back his axe on it. "Don't you know anything? If something is scary and eerie, you don't go looking at it. You go the other way! And they wonder why there are so many damsels in distress in the world."
Ukyo glared at him. "Hey Ryoga," she said. "What happens when you kill the dead?" Ryoga looked at her. "I mean, those guys were already dead but you killed them."
Ryoga's brow furrowed as the Barbarian tried to grapple with the philosophical question that Ukyo had laid out for him. Good, Ukyo said to herself. That ought to keep him quiet for a while, damsel in distress my ass.
She looked around the area and couldn't help but feel that Ryoga might be right. The more she stared at the fiery landscape, the more she had the urge to just run away. Most of the black ground was cracking under the heat of the lava that flowed around them. Some structures remained though it was as skeletons of their former selves. It made her wonder what was here before.
"Come on Ryoga," she said pulling the Barbarian out of his deep thought. "There's got to be something around here that could disturb the balance of heaven."
"How about that," he said pointing to a mass of black smoke that snaked in the air as it was alive.
"Ah…" Ukyo said. "I actually have no idea. That might be normal for this place."
"Well, I think it's worth a shot," Ryoga said. "Let's go find the others."
* * *
"So you know how to use that?" Akane asked.
Shampoo shrugged. "Was toy taught to children. Should no be hard," she finished holding the bow up.
"And lightning enchanted," Akane said with a smile. "That's going to kick ass! Nabiki could always cast a…" Akane trailed off realizing where Nabiki was.
Shampoo sighed and nodded to the other girl. "Shampoo understand. But we get Nabiki free."
Akane nodded. "Thanks Shampoo. And we'll find Mousse."
"Shampoo no care," she said half-heartedly, "if find duck-boy."
"Oi!" Ryoga called as he and Ukyo ran up to them. "We found something."
"Where?" Shampoo said standing up quickly.
"Across the valley," Ukyo said pointing to the horizon. "You can't really see it here."
"Where's Ranma?" Ryoga asked looking around.
"Here," Ranma said rejoining the group. "I was just… checking something out."
Ryoga glared at him. "What?"
Ranma looked back at him. "Nothing…"
"RANMA!" Ukyo screamed. "Did you go back to camp to gamble more?"
Ranma's eyes looked at Ukyo innocently but she didn't buy it for a moment. There was a slight ringing in the air as Ryoga drew his axe. "Apparently, you didn't learn your lesson the first time. "
* * *
"What did you just say?" Akane asked looking over at Ranma. He glared at her and tried to form the words from his bruised mouth. "Oh just forget it. Ryoga and Ukyo take left attack. The rest of us will round around the right."
Ranma nodded that that was what he was aiming for and picked up his sword, looking pathetic. Shampoo shook her head. "Serve Ranma right for gambling all money away."
"Yeah, Ranma," Akane said. "Where did you get more money to gamble with?" He mumbled something. With a sigh, Akane handed over a potion so he could heal.
Ukyo just shook her head and followed the retreating form of Ryoga. "Hey, you think taking this thing on is a good idea?"
Ryoga looked over his shoulder at Ukyo and then over to the source of live black tendrils. There was something trapped in them but the smoke was about to let it go. In fact, it seemed to enjoy attacking anything that came within fighting distance of it.
"No," Ryoga said. "But at least we have the element of surprise."
"YOU SOLD WHAT!!!"
"Or we did," Ryoga said as Akane's voice echoed throughout the valley.
The creature reared up, catching sight of the two groups of fighters advancing on it. There was a horrible scream as black tendrils shot towards them. Ryoga leapt up and saw Ukyo flip out of the way from the corner of his eye.
He raised his axe and brought it down hard on the black snake that was trying to reach him. Only the axe passed right through. What the hell…
"RYOGA!" Ukyo called out, seeing another tendril come towards him. Ryoga didn't have time to react. He watched it approach, waiting for it to make contact. It hit him and passed right through him.
Ryoga started to laugh. "It can't hurt us," he said. Turning around he yelled the same thing over to the other group.
"Well," Ukyo said, rejoining him, watching the black smoke pass through him a couple of times, "that's kind of silly."
"I guess it can only attack things that are from this plane," he said walking towards the source of the smoke.
The other trio joined them and Ranma could only shrug. They examined the creature and watched as it tried to swat them with its arms.
"Does anyone else have a feeling that this was too easy?" Akane asked.
"Shhh," Ukyo said. "Never say that. Every time you say something like that…"
"Ah guys," Ryoga said. "I think we have company."
Ukyo turned and saw where Ryoga was looking. Two herds of demons were approaching them. Ukyo glared at Akane. The creature above them lashed out but its attacks passed through the horde.
"Wonderful," Ryoga said pulling out his axe. "How about Ukyo, Ranma and me concentrate on the monster."
"What we supposed to do?" Shampoo asked.
"Find out how to free whatever is in that smoke case," Ryoga said, point upwards at it.
Shampoo and Akane exchanged a glance and looked back up at the smoke creature that was still writhing in anger. Wordlessly Shampoo cocked an arrow and let it fly upward. Akane watched horrified as it almost hit the figure within.
"Shampoo! Are you crazy?!?" she cried.
"Was just an idea," Shampoo said softly.
"Well, next time you have an idea, let's discuss…"
Akane was cut short as she felt an arrow whistling by her ear and clipping some hair before it landed on the ground. Shampoo grimaced. Oh yeah… she forgot that shooting an arrow into the air meant it would usually come down nearby. Silly her, she thought with a smile.
Akane didn't look nearly as amused.
* * *
The lead demon held a hand up, forcing the group behind him to come to a stop. It smelt something strange in the air but it couldn't place its finger on it. It took a step forward just as its tiny brain kicked up an answer.
Trap.
Of course by then, its brain was about twenty meters away from its feet. The rest of the horde fell into panic and tried to escape only to find more traps along the side. After a few moments, the survivors suddenly found themselves in the middle of an angry martial artist.
Ukyo sliced them down in a few seconds. There was nothing left but tiny little shreds of demons. Looking over at her shadow, Ukyo gave her a "thumbs up". The Shadow gave her an identical gesture, which caused the two to descend into giggles.
Across the plain, Ranma and Ryoga resorted to a standard hack and slash approach. And with two such high-level melee characters it wasn't too hard. In fact it was a bit fun. Ranma was trying out a few of his lesser- used attacks, and enchanting his sword with different elemental characteristics and shifting his aura so it became a rainbow of colors.
The monster for the most part had fallen when Ranma shot a boastful glance over to Ryoga. Of course, all the fighting had gone to head and he had forgotten what happens when you boast to a barbarian. They tend to take it personally and Ryoga was no exception.
"You want to play," Ryoga said. "Then watch this."
He extended his arms outward and in his best Tasmanian Devil imitation, he began to spin. Anything that came near him got sliced and diced.
Ranma would have been impressed if Ryoga did (a) look like such an idiot spinning around like a ballerina and (b) Ryoga's classic sense of direction were not leading him right towards him.
"RYOGA!" Ranma called out.
Ranma ducked just as the spinning Ryoga reached him. He felt his ponytail catch in the spinning blade. He turned just in time to see Ukyo rejoining and watched in horror as the blades caught her and tore her to shreds. He was about to panic when he heard her yelling.
"God damn it, Ryoga, do you know how freaking hard it is to raise a Shadow?" Ukyo asked following with a shift kick to his shins.
Ryoga stopped spinning and took to wandering around like he was drunk. "See Ranma," he said, his eyes spinning. "Told you…" He collapsed on the ground from dizziness.
"Baka," Ukyo said looking at him. She would have added further insults if the sky hadn't suddenly exploded into light.
* * *
"Ummmm…" Akane said looking at the Shadow Creature above her. "Maybe…" she cast Inferno and aimed it upwards. Nothing happened.
"Shampoo be able to help if sorceress no send her way over here," Shampoo said from her position several meters away.
"You and your bow just stay right there," Akane said. "I'll figure this out… somehow," she added under her breath.
Shampoo sighed and rolled her eyes. One bad shot and Akane had sent her as far away as possible, like she had shot that arrow on purpose. Shampoo looked at the smoke creature and decided she wasn't going to be much help in this. There was probably some secret technique to destroy it that was locked away in a century old scroll.
Mousse probably would know what to do.
Stupid Mousse, Shampoo thought to herself. Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid, noble, stupid Mousse.
She looked up at the shadow creature once more, wondering if it was him trapped in there. Then something caught her eye. Reaching for her bow, she cocked an arrow.
"Akane," she called. The sorceress turned and saw her holding a loaded bow in her direction. "Duck."
Akane hit the ground just as Shampoo let her arrow fly. It sailed towards the target, a glimmer that Shampoo had seen in the smoke. As it impacted, there was a huge burst of light and Shampoo found herself half blinded.
As soon as her vision cleared, she saw someone standing over an unconscious Akane. Long black hair danced in the aftermath of the explosion. Shampoo's heart skipped a beat. She watched the figure raise its hand and Shampoo thought it was a wave.
Something glistened in the red light and Shampoo realized the figure was holding a knife and it was aiming for Akane.
"AKANE!" Shampoo called, drawing an arrow and firing it at an alarming speed. It hit the center of the figure's hand. As the person turned to face Shampoo, she realized what a mistake they had made. Kodachi only smiled.
"Stay out of this," Kodachi said pointing to Shampoo. "This is between me and the bitch that trapped me in this hell."
Shampoo's only response was to cock another arrow. Ranma, Ryoga and Ukyo chose that moment to return, causing Kodachi to crouch down with the dagger at Akane's neck. "Not a step closer," she hissed. "And you with the bow, the dagger is laced with poison so don't try anything. The slightest touch will be enough to kill her."
"What do you want?" Ranma demanded.
Kodachi looked up and smiled. "It's you, my King to be," she said with a smile. "Actually, I have what I want. My freedom… and my revenge."
"Wait!" Ranma called out as the knife moved downward. "There has to be something else."
Kodachi looked at him and closed her eyes. Her mouth moved but she spoke to no one present. Her eyes fluttered open and she smiled. "Not me, but my lord requires something. A stone you retrieved when you killed his brother. Deliver it and I'll let the girl go."
Somehow, Ranma doubted the sincerity of her words. Kodachi had a murderous look on her face. Akane would be dead before they made it back to the enemy's camp.
"Take me instead," he said, throwing his sword to the ground.
Kodachi's eyes glittered. "You want to come with me?"
"I want you to leave Akane here." He turned to Ryoga. "You guys go back and get the stone."
Ryoga glared at him. He knew what Ranma was really saying. Find out why they want the stone and then don't give it to them under any circumstances. "Right," Ryoga finally said.
Kodachi jumped up with a laugh of glee. She grabbed Ranma's arm and cast a portal spell. A second later they were gone.
Akane groaned as she started to wake up. She held her head as she started to stand up.
"What happened?" she asked, looking around. "Where's Ranma?"
Ryoga and Shampoo looked at Ukyo. "Oh no," Ukyo said. "Why the hell do I have to keep delivering the bad news."
"What bad news?" Akane asked softly.
Ukyo sighed and wrapped her arm around Akane. "Akane, I don't know how to say this. Kodachi was the one trapped in the smoke creature and she was ready to take you away. But Ranma took your place as Kodachi's captive."
Akane's head sank. Her shoulders started to tremble. Ukyo realized Akane was crying. "It's okay Akane," she said soothingly. "We'll get him ba…"
"RANMA NO BAKA!" Akane suddenly yelled. Ukyo realized it wasn't sadness but rage that was building up inside of her friend.
"Hey!" Ukyo called watching her stalk off. "Where are you going?"
"To get him back," Akane called out.
"Shampoo go with her," Shampoo said already chasing after Akane. "Barbarian and Assassin go get stone."
Watching them go, Ryoga sighed. "Why are they always shoving us together?" he asked.
"Because we were meant to be together," Ukyo said looking at him with big eyes.
That statement puzzled him more than the whole how do you kill the dead question. He just kind of stared at her with a look of confusion on his face. Until she started laughing.
"As if I would ever fall for a dimwitted barbarian," she said with a laugh, skipping off in the direction of the camp.
Ryoga blinked and let the words sink in. With a growl, he turned towards Ukyo. "I think we need to talk," he said, hand resting on his axe. With a little squeal, Ukyo took off, deciding it would be better to run back to camp.