Ranma/Lone Wolf Crossover Fanfiction
Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma 1/2 or the Lone Wolf Series or any other characters. The rights to Ranma 1/2 belong to Rumiko Takahashi and for the Lone Wolf Series Joe Dever. This story is created solely for entertainment purposes and no profits are gained from this.
Wild Horse of Kai
By Montymouse
' ' - Thought
" " - Speech
Chapter Two - New Friends and Family
***
Early Morning in the Village near Durenor
As soon as the sunlight reached the room where Ranma was sleeping, he instantly awoke from his slumber; he was used to natural sunlight waking him up rather than relying on alarm cloaks.
'What? Where am I?' Ranma instantly thought as he yawned loudly to shake off his sleepiness.
'Oh yeah... now I remember. Braxus and his family took care of me when I was injured,' Ranma thought, recalling last night and his talk with Braxus.
Feeling a little better, Ranma got up from his bed and noticed that by the dresser there was large washbowl and a jug of water with a few clean towels folded neatly beside it. There was also a set of clean clothes draped over the wooden chair: a greenish tunic and some black, baggy pants. Ranma guessed that they were probably borrowed from Braxus, who was roughly the same size as him. Normally Ranma wouldn't wear this, preferring to wear either a Gi or a black shirt/pants combination.
'I don't really want to wear this, but what the heck? I got nothing else to wear,' Ranma thought. As he slipped on the green tunic he noticed embroidered on the shirt was some sort of pattern or design. After dressing, Ranma cleaned himself up with the washbowl.
"Hmm... I'd better go and check out the place where I am staying?" Ranma opened the door and stepped out of the room into the hallway. He was about to shout out if anyone was home but was beaten to it by someone calling out his name.
"Hey, Ranma, over here!"
Ranma looked to his left and saw Braxus trying to get his attention and gesturing for him to go over. Ranma could smell the aromatic scent of breakfast that wafted down the corridor, making his stomach rumble in agreement with Braxus' offer. Upon entering the corridor, Ranma could see his friend Braxus sitting around a large table laden with food. Sitting opposite him was an older woman in a white dress who was holding a cup of herbal tea. Ranma could see that she resembled Braxus and had the same colour hair, but with grayish-blue eyes. Her eyes followed Ranma's movements from the instant he entered the kitchen area of the house.
Ranma assumed that this woman was Braxus' mother and decided to make a good impression with her as she had helped him recover and had also looked after him while he was unconscious. As soon as Ranma had walked over to the table, Braxus got up from his seat and invited Ranma to join them for breakfast.
"Hi Braxus," Ranma said to Braxus.
"Ranma, why don't you sit down and join us for breakfast; we've got plenty of food here," Braxus offered.
At that moment Ranma was feeling very hungry just from looking at what was laid out on the breakfast table.
"Sure... why not," replied Ranma as he pulled up a chair and sat next to Braxus.
"Ranma, I want you to meet my mother Oriah Stormgard." Braxus introduced Ranma to his mother, who so far hadn't said anything.
"Hello Mrs Stormgard," replied Ranma as politely as possible.
Due to his training trip with his father Genma, manners and elegance had been thrown out of the window for the sake of the art, and this meant that Ranma was lacking in proper social skills. When Ranma looked into her eyes, he could see that she held great wisdom and intelligence behind her looks, which reminded him of his mother.
"Hello Ranma. There is really no need to be so formal, just call me Oriah like everyone else. I see that you've made a full recovery," Oriah said in low, soft and gentle voice.
"Oh yeah, well I do heal fast due to my conditioning. I would like to thank you for helping heal my wounds," Ranma said.
"It was nothing really. It's a healer duty to help the sick and poor people in the village; but I was surprised at how fast you have recovered," replied Oriah as Ranma grabbed a plate.
"Now then, Ranma, I would like you to answer some questions," questioned Oriah.
"Sure, go ahead, I will try to answer them as best as I can," replied Ranma as he started to help himself to the eggs, bacon and bread that was laid out on the table, piling the food on his plate.
"I've noticed that you speak well in our own language Ranma," Oriah observed as she took a slip of her herbal tea.
"What, but I thought you were speaking in my language?" Ranma said in surprise.
"No, Ranma, you are definitely speaking our tongue, and may I say quite well. Maybe you picked it up on your travels, perhaps?" replied Oriah.
'How can I speak their language if I don't know anything of their culture or tradition,' thought Ranma, but he soon dismissed it as he had other things to think about.
***
Somewhere in the universe of Aon
Ishir smirked as she watched through a viewing crystal Ranma in the company of Braxus and Oriah. She decided to watch to see how Ranma was coping with this family whom she had entrusted to look after him; and besides, it made her job easier as she had a keep an eye on another mortal who also had a special destiny.
'It's a good thing that I incorporated a language spell; now Ranma understands and speak all the common languages of Magnamund. Otherwise it would have been difficult for him to blend into the local population,' thought Ishir.
Although she couldn't really intervene in mortal lives (she believed that it was up to each mortal to carve out their own future and destiny, becoming independent and strong), she knew that sometimes a little divine help from them would go a long way.
The real reason why she had allowed Ranma to enter into this universe was that she had to find someone really special as she had failed to protect a young Sommlending named Landar from the agents of Naar. She swore that she wouldn't make the same mistake again, and would do in all in her power to make sure that Naar did not control this final world, which still had not been dominated by any of the Gods or Goddess.
***
Back at the Stormgard Home
Ranma was about to tuck into his breakfast when he noticed the odd looks he was getting from Braxus and Oriah.
"Err... Ranma, why do you eat like that?" questioned Braxus. He had noticed Ranma's awful table manners and was very surprised to see an entire plate of food eaten up in a matter of seconds; he thought that it should have been impossible by human standards.
Ranma paused for a moment as he digested the rest of the food that he had eaten in those few seconds. "What do you mean?"
"I mean that I've seen Giaks who have better table manners than you."
"Well, it's probably due to my training trip with my father where I kinda picked up his eating habits. Basically, if you didn't eat fast, you didn't eat at all," Ranma answered as he continued to eat his breakfast.
"That's awful! No father should leave a child to starve!" Oriah said in shock and disapproval. She made a mental note that if she ever saw Ranma's father she would have some serious, stern words with him, and after that, probably give him a curse.
"Ranma, according to what my son has told me, you lack some social skills and that needs to be addressed. So the first thing we shall do is start giving you some basic table manners; and besides, there's plenty of food to go around as you can see, so what is the rush?"
Ranma nodded and allowed Oriah to teach him some basic skills. It actually took him a couple of minutes to digest what Oriah was teaching him, which was to actually chew the food first rather than swallow the food entirely, and few other important table manners.
"Ranma, I think you should tell my mother everything about yourself," Braxus said, as he knew that Oriah was more open minded than the villagers around here.
It took Ranma a couple of moments to decide if it was possible to trust her with his life-story, but decided that it was okay to tell her about his past life with Genma as he had done with Braxus the previous night. Also, he didn't want to lie to people who had helped and taken care of him.
"I agree with my son, I think that you shouldn't mention this to anyone concerning where you're from," replied Oriah, who surprised Ranma by being so understanding and concerned.
"You believe me then?" Ranma asked
"Of course I do, although it sounds unbelievable, I believe you, and nothing bad will ever happen." Oriah gave Ranma a hug to show that he didn't have anything to fear anymore. "I have experienced and seen many things in my life that most people around here wouldn't believe when I was a young healer-apprentice. Your explanation that you are from another world doesn't surprise me that much, but I think that certain other individuals may take it the wrong way," explained Oriah.
Ranma was listening carefully her advice. He felt that he could trust her more than he did his father. Braxus was also listening with interest, although he had heard it before the previous night.
"So, Ranma... How did you get those cuts and scratches all over your body? My son wouldn't tell, he just told me that I should ask you about it first," questioned Oriah. She wanted to know what had happened to this young boy, suspecting child abuse by Ranma's father.
It then took a couple of hours for Ranma to explain what had happened on the training trip with his father and the martial arts training techniques he had been put through including the Nekoken. He then started to vaguely explain how he had escaped from his father and how he had arrived here. When he had finished explaining his life story, the reactions he received from Oriah and Braxus varied between shock, sadness and finally anger. Braxus silently swore that if he met this Genma, he was a good as dead, while his mother had other plans on how to deal with him involving painful methods and curses.
***
Somewhere in China - Ranma Home Dimension
A bald, fat martial artist was being chased across China by a bunch of Amazon and Musk warriors having somehow managed to upset or anger them.
He felt his danger senses going into overdrive for no apparent reason.
***
Back at the Stormgard Home
"Well Ranma, I'm glad that you escaped from your dreadful father with your sanity intact. Ranma, I would like you to stay here at our home for as long as you like while you remain in our world. I'm sure we can find you something to do around here," offered Oriah.
Before Ranma could respond to her offer, someone interrupted him.
"Hello, is anyone home?" called out someone standing at the back entrance to the Stormgard home.
This stranger was wearing a light blue robe embroidered with stars and symbols. He had some sort of star-shaped amulet around his neck. He was roughly about the same age as Ranma and Braxus, but had blond hair with silver highlights. He also had deep, brooding eyes and a sense of something magical around him.
"Banedon! What are you doing here?" called out Braxus from the table. He rose up from where he was sitting and greeted his friend.
"What? Can't a friend just come by and say hi? Anyway, how are things going?" Banedon asked.
"Just fine, and of course you are always welcome here in our home," Braxus replied.
"Hello Oriah," Banedon said as soon as he reached the breakfast table.
"Hello Banedon, I see you are well," Oriah commented.
"Perfectly fine thanks, Oriah," replied Banedon as he turned to his best friend.
"Hey, Banedon, we're just in the middle of breakfast so why don't you join us?" Banedon nodded. "Come, meet our new guest," replied Braxus as he led Banedon to the breakfast table where Ranma and Oriah were sitting.
"Hello there, my name is Banedon," Banedon politely said as he bowed at Ranma.
Banedon noticed the unusual aura surrounding this new guest. He decided to make a mental note about this rather that say anything about it, as long he wasn't a danger to anyone.
"Saotome Ranma," replied Ranma as he waved to him.
Banedon nodded and sat down next to Ranma.
"So, Banedon, where have you been for the past couple of weeks?" Braxus asked. The last time he had seen his friend was two months ago.
"Well, I was just visiting the city of Toran in Sommerlund... and guess what, I've been accepted to become an apprentice of the Brotherhood of the Crystal Star," Banedon proudly stated.
"That's great news, you always wanted to become a Guildmaster," replied Braxus and he gave a great slap on the back to Banedon.
"Ouch, thank Braxus."
"Just like your father, following in his footsteps," said Oriah as she got up and started to wash the dishes and prepare for her routine duties as the village healer.
"Thanks," replied Banedon as he joined them for the remainder of the breakfast.
"What is this Brotherhood of the Crystal Star?" inquired Ranma. He noticed the confused look on Banedon's face.
"Banedon... err... Ranma's not from around here and he's quite new to the Lastlands," interrupted Braxus to avoid the subject of Ranma not being of this world. 'Maybe I could explain to Banedon about Ranma later on,' thought Braxus.
"Oh... Well then, the Brotherhood of the Crystal is a group of Guildmasters and wizards that are based in the city of Toran in Sommerlund. They are masters of elementary spells of Left Handed Magic... it's pretty hard to get in, but this is what I want to become," answered Banedon.
"I have to go now. Make sure you clean up after you've finished breakfast, okay?" Oriah said as she left the house.
"Okay mother," Braxus replied.
"Hey, Braxus, are you still going to join that Order of the Kai near Holmgard in the next couple of years?" questioned Banedon.
"You bet I am," proudly replied Braxus.
"How about him?" Banedon pointed out to Ranma.
"Well... I still haven't made up my mind on what I am going to do," replied Ranma.
'Maybe I will join the Order. According to what Braxus has said, it sounds quite interesting,' thought Ranma.
As the trio ate breakfast, Banedon soon became friends with Ranma. Braxus noticed that outside it was a perfect day to practice their skills and abilities.
"Hey, Ranma, Banedon; why don't we go outside and start practicing our skills? It's starting to become a bit boring stuck in the house while the weather is so beautiful," Braxus suggested.
"Sure why not," replied Banedon as he got up from where he was sitting.
"Okay," replied Ranma. He wanted to explore the area and the village he was currently staying at, anyway.
***
Village Market Place
Ranma followed closely behind Braxus and Banedon as he was led through the village. He noticed that Braxus was carrying some sort of bag slung over his shoulder. As they passed by the various houses Ranma noticed that the village didn't really have much modern technology compared to the cities and towns that he had visited; it was more like one of the rural villages in China. He could see the villagers mainly relying on old-fashioned methods such as horse-drawn carts and candle-lit lanterns to light up the village at night. It seemed that the village had some sort of stockade surrounding it, probably to keep the people in the village safe and keep out any potential threats. He saw a few guards on duty along the stockade wall to back this up.
"Hey, Braxus, where are we actually going?" Ranma asked, wondering where he was being led.
"We are leading you to our local training ground where most of us practice; it's also a good place to meet new people," replied Braxus; he wanted Ranma to meet more people and to feel welcome in his world. From what Ranma had told him it seemed that he hadn't really had the opportunity to make new friends in his own world.
"Yeah... But first we have to go through the village town square and market place, as the training ground is on the other side of the village," replied Banedon.
"Oh... Alright then, lead the way." Ranma continued to follow them.
'I'd better follow them, I'd probably get lost in this village. Anyway, I need to know the area first,' thought Ranma.
They were currently in the village market place passing through the various market stalls and sales pitches. The market place was quite crowded today, as it was a Sunday; the place was filled with many buyers and sellers from Durenor, which meant that the trio took awhile to navigate through. The first few bazaars consisted of sellers selling of their goods of food, jewelry, and antique and domestic goods.
Further down the market place were the blacksmiths and weapon masters who were offering various armor and weapons. Braxus was looking quite interested at a particular sword until he found out the price. Opposite the blacksmith stalls was the mage stall that had attracted Banedon to look at the various scrolls and magical items offered. Ranma, on the other hand, was just looking around the place. He noticed a few stares and glances from the various people that were aimed at him, especially the girls. They thought that Ranma looked kind of attractive and cute: his looks and dress made him stand out a bit among the local population. After they spent a bit of time browsing through the stalls, they realised that they should start moving; otherwise by the time they got to the training grounds it would be too dark. Grabbing Banedon and Ranma, Braxus started to drag them from the market stalls towards their intended destination.
Ranma was starting to feel a little welcome and was just looking around when Braxus spoke.
"We're here, Ranma," Braxus said, interrupting Ranma's sightseeing trip. This caused Ranma to stop and look at the place to which Braxus and Banedon had led him. What he saw was an open field containing various people who were either chatting away, or playing some sort of game, or just training.
"So what are supposed to do here?" Ranma asked, wondering why it was he had led him here. His question was soon answered as he caught a wooden sword thrown to him by Braxus.
"Easy... I just want to know how good you are at fighting; and besides, I need the practice. Anyway, this is a good place to meet people your own age and to blend in." Braxus got into a ready stance with his wooden sword while Banedon just sat down on the sidelines watching them and basically playing ref.
"I don't really need this." Ranma threw the weapon back to Braxus.
'Now is the chance to see how good he is,' thought Ranma as he got into a stance.
"Why not?" replied a confused Braxus as he caught the sword that was thrown to him and put it away.
"As I said, I don't really need this; and besides, I was told that a weapon could hinder your overall combat potential," explained Ranma of what his father had told him.
"Really then... you're going to face me unarmed? So are you going to show me what martial arts is all about then?" asked a surprised looking Braxus.
"Yeah, I'm going to show you what the Saotome School of Anything Goes is about," replied Ranma.
'This is going to be fun! Besides, I haven't sparred with anyone for ages apart from my father,' thought Ranma.
He always sought the opportunity to practice his martial arts ever since he had left his last school back on his home world where he always sparred with his friend Ryoga. Ranma wondered whatever had happened to Ryoga when he hadn't shown up for the duel to which he had challenged him.
As Ranma and Braxus got ready, Banedon got up from where he was sitting, preparing to signal the start of the fight.
Making sure that both Ranma and Braxus were ready, Banedon explained the rules: "All right then... the rules are simple: first one to submit loses; first one to be in a position where the opponent has no choice but to submit wins, okay?" He received a nod in reply from both of them.
"Begin!" called out Banedon as he signal the start of their sparring match.
It was Braxus who made the first move, charging in with his wooden sword, hoping that his charge would catch Ranma off guard; but Ranma saw this and swiftly acted by sidestepping to his left, narrowly avoiding the potential hit he would have received. Ranma then got into a defensive stance and waiting for Braxus to attack again then counterattack. At that moment, Braxus was wondering where Ranma had gone when he realised that he was behind him. He then quickly turned around realizing that his back was unguarded and open to attack. He then saw Ranma standing a couple of yards in front of him in some sort of defensive stance that he didn't recognise. Braxus decided that the best option in this situation was to take the offensive and he started to run up to Ranma and delivered another slash across Ranma's chest.
Of course Ranma was ready for the swing of Braxus' weapon and quickly ducked underneath it, narrowly missing his wooden blade, and delivered a punch toward Braxus' stomach. This blew all the air out of Braxus' lungs and made him pause to regain his breath. Now was the time for Ranma to take the offensive and attack. Ranma launched a quick combination of punches to the head and chest areas of his opponent, little knowing that Braxus had anticipated this and was waiting for Ranma's attack. Braxus had faked being in a vulnerable position; he was much tougher than Ranma had at first thought. This of course surprised Ranma as he saw most of his blows blocked by Braxus' weapon while receiving some hits in return and he cursed himself for underestimating his opponent. He back flipped away from Braxus to give himself some time to consider his next course of action.
As the sparring match continued for a few more minutes, neither Ranma nor Braxus gained dominance. Of course, as the fight carried on it drew in quite a crowd from the village and the ones who were already on the training field. They really wanted to see how this foreign newcomer was doing against Braxus, who was the best fighter for his age and few opponents that he had faced could last very long against him, let alone win. The crowd was cheering on and giving encouragement as they watched Ranma dodge Braxus' sword attacks while at the same time trying to sneak in a few hits.
Meanwhile, Braxus had taken a cautious approach with his swordplay rather than swinging wildly, as he knew that Ranma was good at avoiding being hit. Both were trying to find weaknesses or cracks in their opponent's defenses. It was really hard to tell as Ranma had the speed and agility to avoid most of Braxus' attacks, while Braxus had the strength and skill with the sword to parry some of Ranma's attacks and return them back at him.
During the fight, Banedon was acting as referee and was currently reading a book as he watched them. He noticed that both Ranma and Braxus were equal and tough combatants. Judging by the outlook, it looked as though no one would be winning any time soon. As the minutes went by, both combatants were feeling tired from their constant sparring and they both knew the consequences if one of them decided let their guard down for a moment. Banedon decided to let them fight on.
'Ranma is quite good and if Braxus didn't have his sword then I think that Ranma would have won by now. They're both evenly matched right now, and it will probably take ages,' thought Banedon.
Banedon saw that no one would win this match; and besides, it was a simple sparring match not an official match.
"Both of you, stop what you are doing!" called Banedon. He saw the confused looks both of his friends gave him as they paused in their sparring match.
"What!" they replied as they looked towards Banedon.
"I have decided to call this match a draw because neither one of you had the advantage over the other for quite a while, and if this carries on we'll be here all night. Besides, this isn't an official fight, just a sparring match," stated Banedon. He could see the disappointment in the crowd, as they had wanted someone to win.
"Okay, Banedon, I trust your judgment, but I still would have won that match in the end," replied Braxus. Ranma reacted to this angrily.
"Would not! I would have won!" Ranma said, and they started to argue over who could have won this match.
Banedon just stood there and watched them acting like children, and the rest of the crowd soon departed to carry on with their own business.
***
Afternoon, at the village training field
Banedon's verdict on the sparring match was that it was a draw. Both Ranma and Braxus were annoyed that no one had won outright, but agreed that it was official and thought that maybe the next time they could see who was better for real. During their time at the training field Braxus introduced a couple of his friends to Ranma. They were a bit curious and cautious about the way Ranma looked as he different from them and wondered where he was from. Eventually they accepted him for who he was and assumed that he was from somewhere down south. They realised that Ranma was friendly enough to befriend and invited him and Braxus to join them in their game while Banedon start to chat to some young apprentice healers.
After a few hours Banedon noticed that it was getting a bit dark and suggested that they should retire for the night. Both Ranma and Braxus agreed to it and started to say their goodbyes to their friends. As they were walking back from the training field to Braxus' home, Braxus decided to make a comment about the sparring match they had fought earlier.
"Well, Ranma, I'm quite impressed with your combat skills. You've got to show me some of your martial arts sometime," asked Braxus. Not many opponents his age could keep up with him, especially without a weapon.
'Maybe I could learn from him; and I could become even better, especially as I'm going to the monastery next year,' thought Braxus.
"Yeah, Ranma, where did you learn that particular style of fighting? There's not many people who practice that style apart from the Kai warriors and some foreign tribal warriors I've encountered in my travels," Banedon added, impressed.
"As I told you before, I learnt all that I know from my father; he may be a stupid idiot, but he's no slouch in the ways of martial arts," explained Ranma.
'Hmmm... Braxus is extremely good with what he knows; he has that extra reach from his sword that prevented me from getting in close enough. Maybe I could ask him to teach me what he knows?' thought Ranma.
"Hey, Banedon, where are you staying?" asked Braxus.
"Well... I haven't decided where I'm going to stay yet; maybe at an inn somewhere?" replied Banedon.
"Nonsense, my friend, no friend of mind is going to stay at some inn! Why don't you stay at my home? We've got plenty of room, and mother would love for you stay for a while," answered Braxus.
"You're sure about that?" replied Banedon, making absolutely sure it was safe to stay with Braxus and Ranma.
"Of course," answered Braxus.
"Fine then, I suppose I could stay for a few weeks before I have to return to Toran," replied Banedon.
"Hey Ranma, Banedon's going to stay with us for a few days; maybe he could show some of his simple magic tricks to you!" teased Braxus, knowing that he could annoy Banedon about his magical skill and talent.
He did know not to p**s him off too much, otherwise he might do something bad to him; nothing permanently because he was a friend, but the last time he'd got mad at someone, he gave him a nasty electric shock.
"THEY ARE NOT SOME SIMPLE MAGIC TRICKS!!!" shouted Banedon. Ranma was surprised and caught off guard by Banedon's outburst.
'Man... Banedon's sure got a strong battle aura when he gets angry,' thought Ranma.
"Relax, Banedon. I'm sorry, okay? I'm only joking," replied Braxus, currently making warding gestures as he tried to calm him down, which Banedon did eventually.
"I'm sorry, too, about my outburst, but sometimes I get really annoyed with people who think I am a simple trickster rather than a wizard," apologised Banedon to Ranma and Braxus.
"Apology accepted," replied Ranma.
'Mental note to myself: Don't p**s off Banedon about his magical skills,' thought Ranma.
After that, the trio made their way back to Braxus' home.
***
Nearby the trio
A mysterious figure stood in the shadows watching the trio walking back home. No definite details could be determined about the person because of the hood/cloak that covered most of the face and body, except that it was a female, her red haired ponytail sticking out of her clothing.
'So those are three that I have predicted will contribute to the saving of Sommerlund; this could be fun,' thought the mysterious person as a mischievous smile came to her lips.
The mysterious figure watched the trio disappears around the corner, then she disappeared into the shadows.
TBC...
***
Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma 1/2 or the Lone Wolf Series or any other characters. The rights to Ranma 1/2 belong to Rumiko Takahashi and for the Lone Wolf Series Joe Dever. This story is created solely for entertainment purposes and no profits are gained from this.
Wild Horse of Kai
By Montymouse
' ' - Thought
" " - Speech
Chapter Two - New Friends and Family
***
Early Morning in the Village near Durenor
As soon as the sunlight reached the room where Ranma was sleeping, he instantly awoke from his slumber; he was used to natural sunlight waking him up rather than relying on alarm cloaks.
'What? Where am I?' Ranma instantly thought as he yawned loudly to shake off his sleepiness.
'Oh yeah... now I remember. Braxus and his family took care of me when I was injured,' Ranma thought, recalling last night and his talk with Braxus.
Feeling a little better, Ranma got up from his bed and noticed that by the dresser there was large washbowl and a jug of water with a few clean towels folded neatly beside it. There was also a set of clean clothes draped over the wooden chair: a greenish tunic and some black, baggy pants. Ranma guessed that they were probably borrowed from Braxus, who was roughly the same size as him. Normally Ranma wouldn't wear this, preferring to wear either a Gi or a black shirt/pants combination.
'I don't really want to wear this, but what the heck? I got nothing else to wear,' Ranma thought. As he slipped on the green tunic he noticed embroidered on the shirt was some sort of pattern or design. After dressing, Ranma cleaned himself up with the washbowl.
"Hmm... I'd better go and check out the place where I am staying?" Ranma opened the door and stepped out of the room into the hallway. He was about to shout out if anyone was home but was beaten to it by someone calling out his name.
"Hey, Ranma, over here!"
Ranma looked to his left and saw Braxus trying to get his attention and gesturing for him to go over. Ranma could smell the aromatic scent of breakfast that wafted down the corridor, making his stomach rumble in agreement with Braxus' offer. Upon entering the corridor, Ranma could see his friend Braxus sitting around a large table laden with food. Sitting opposite him was an older woman in a white dress who was holding a cup of herbal tea. Ranma could see that she resembled Braxus and had the same colour hair, but with grayish-blue eyes. Her eyes followed Ranma's movements from the instant he entered the kitchen area of the house.
Ranma assumed that this woman was Braxus' mother and decided to make a good impression with her as she had helped him recover and had also looked after him while he was unconscious. As soon as Ranma had walked over to the table, Braxus got up from his seat and invited Ranma to join them for breakfast.
"Hi Braxus," Ranma said to Braxus.
"Ranma, why don't you sit down and join us for breakfast; we've got plenty of food here," Braxus offered.
At that moment Ranma was feeling very hungry just from looking at what was laid out on the breakfast table.
"Sure... why not," replied Ranma as he pulled up a chair and sat next to Braxus.
"Ranma, I want you to meet my mother Oriah Stormgard." Braxus introduced Ranma to his mother, who so far hadn't said anything.
"Hello Mrs Stormgard," replied Ranma as politely as possible.
Due to his training trip with his father Genma, manners and elegance had been thrown out of the window for the sake of the art, and this meant that Ranma was lacking in proper social skills. When Ranma looked into her eyes, he could see that she held great wisdom and intelligence behind her looks, which reminded him of his mother.
"Hello Ranma. There is really no need to be so formal, just call me Oriah like everyone else. I see that you've made a full recovery," Oriah said in low, soft and gentle voice.
"Oh yeah, well I do heal fast due to my conditioning. I would like to thank you for helping heal my wounds," Ranma said.
"It was nothing really. It's a healer duty to help the sick and poor people in the village; but I was surprised at how fast you have recovered," replied Oriah as Ranma grabbed a plate.
"Now then, Ranma, I would like you to answer some questions," questioned Oriah.
"Sure, go ahead, I will try to answer them as best as I can," replied Ranma as he started to help himself to the eggs, bacon and bread that was laid out on the table, piling the food on his plate.
"I've noticed that you speak well in our own language Ranma," Oriah observed as she took a slip of her herbal tea.
"What, but I thought you were speaking in my language?" Ranma said in surprise.
"No, Ranma, you are definitely speaking our tongue, and may I say quite well. Maybe you picked it up on your travels, perhaps?" replied Oriah.
'How can I speak their language if I don't know anything of their culture or tradition,' thought Ranma, but he soon dismissed it as he had other things to think about.
***
Somewhere in the universe of Aon
Ishir smirked as she watched through a viewing crystal Ranma in the company of Braxus and Oriah. She decided to watch to see how Ranma was coping with this family whom she had entrusted to look after him; and besides, it made her job easier as she had a keep an eye on another mortal who also had a special destiny.
'It's a good thing that I incorporated a language spell; now Ranma understands and speak all the common languages of Magnamund. Otherwise it would have been difficult for him to blend into the local population,' thought Ishir.
Although she couldn't really intervene in mortal lives (she believed that it was up to each mortal to carve out their own future and destiny, becoming independent and strong), she knew that sometimes a little divine help from them would go a long way.
The real reason why she had allowed Ranma to enter into this universe was that she had to find someone really special as she had failed to protect a young Sommlending named Landar from the agents of Naar. She swore that she wouldn't make the same mistake again, and would do in all in her power to make sure that Naar did not control this final world, which still had not been dominated by any of the Gods or Goddess.
***
Back at the Stormgard Home
Ranma was about to tuck into his breakfast when he noticed the odd looks he was getting from Braxus and Oriah.
"Err... Ranma, why do you eat like that?" questioned Braxus. He had noticed Ranma's awful table manners and was very surprised to see an entire plate of food eaten up in a matter of seconds; he thought that it should have been impossible by human standards.
Ranma paused for a moment as he digested the rest of the food that he had eaten in those few seconds. "What do you mean?"
"I mean that I've seen Giaks who have better table manners than you."
"Well, it's probably due to my training trip with my father where I kinda picked up his eating habits. Basically, if you didn't eat fast, you didn't eat at all," Ranma answered as he continued to eat his breakfast.
"That's awful! No father should leave a child to starve!" Oriah said in shock and disapproval. She made a mental note that if she ever saw Ranma's father she would have some serious, stern words with him, and after that, probably give him a curse.
"Ranma, according to what my son has told me, you lack some social skills and that needs to be addressed. So the first thing we shall do is start giving you some basic table manners; and besides, there's plenty of food to go around as you can see, so what is the rush?"
Ranma nodded and allowed Oriah to teach him some basic skills. It actually took him a couple of minutes to digest what Oriah was teaching him, which was to actually chew the food first rather than swallow the food entirely, and few other important table manners.
"Ranma, I think you should tell my mother everything about yourself," Braxus said, as he knew that Oriah was more open minded than the villagers around here.
It took Ranma a couple of moments to decide if it was possible to trust her with his life-story, but decided that it was okay to tell her about his past life with Genma as he had done with Braxus the previous night. Also, he didn't want to lie to people who had helped and taken care of him.
"I agree with my son, I think that you shouldn't mention this to anyone concerning where you're from," replied Oriah, who surprised Ranma by being so understanding and concerned.
"You believe me then?" Ranma asked
"Of course I do, although it sounds unbelievable, I believe you, and nothing bad will ever happen." Oriah gave Ranma a hug to show that he didn't have anything to fear anymore. "I have experienced and seen many things in my life that most people around here wouldn't believe when I was a young healer-apprentice. Your explanation that you are from another world doesn't surprise me that much, but I think that certain other individuals may take it the wrong way," explained Oriah.
Ranma was listening carefully her advice. He felt that he could trust her more than he did his father. Braxus was also listening with interest, although he had heard it before the previous night.
"So, Ranma... How did you get those cuts and scratches all over your body? My son wouldn't tell, he just told me that I should ask you about it first," questioned Oriah. She wanted to know what had happened to this young boy, suspecting child abuse by Ranma's father.
It then took a couple of hours for Ranma to explain what had happened on the training trip with his father and the martial arts training techniques he had been put through including the Nekoken. He then started to vaguely explain how he had escaped from his father and how he had arrived here. When he had finished explaining his life story, the reactions he received from Oriah and Braxus varied between shock, sadness and finally anger. Braxus silently swore that if he met this Genma, he was a good as dead, while his mother had other plans on how to deal with him involving painful methods and curses.
***
Somewhere in China - Ranma Home Dimension
A bald, fat martial artist was being chased across China by a bunch of Amazon and Musk warriors having somehow managed to upset or anger them.
He felt his danger senses going into overdrive for no apparent reason.
***
Back at the Stormgard Home
"Well Ranma, I'm glad that you escaped from your dreadful father with your sanity intact. Ranma, I would like you to stay here at our home for as long as you like while you remain in our world. I'm sure we can find you something to do around here," offered Oriah.
Before Ranma could respond to her offer, someone interrupted him.
"Hello, is anyone home?" called out someone standing at the back entrance to the Stormgard home.
This stranger was wearing a light blue robe embroidered with stars and symbols. He had some sort of star-shaped amulet around his neck. He was roughly about the same age as Ranma and Braxus, but had blond hair with silver highlights. He also had deep, brooding eyes and a sense of something magical around him.
"Banedon! What are you doing here?" called out Braxus from the table. He rose up from where he was sitting and greeted his friend.
"What? Can't a friend just come by and say hi? Anyway, how are things going?" Banedon asked.
"Just fine, and of course you are always welcome here in our home," Braxus replied.
"Hello Oriah," Banedon said as soon as he reached the breakfast table.
"Hello Banedon, I see you are well," Oriah commented.
"Perfectly fine thanks, Oriah," replied Banedon as he turned to his best friend.
"Hey, Banedon, we're just in the middle of breakfast so why don't you join us?" Banedon nodded. "Come, meet our new guest," replied Braxus as he led Banedon to the breakfast table where Ranma and Oriah were sitting.
"Hello there, my name is Banedon," Banedon politely said as he bowed at Ranma.
Banedon noticed the unusual aura surrounding this new guest. He decided to make a mental note about this rather that say anything about it, as long he wasn't a danger to anyone.
"Saotome Ranma," replied Ranma as he waved to him.
Banedon nodded and sat down next to Ranma.
"So, Banedon, where have you been for the past couple of weeks?" Braxus asked. The last time he had seen his friend was two months ago.
"Well, I was just visiting the city of Toran in Sommerlund... and guess what, I've been accepted to become an apprentice of the Brotherhood of the Crystal Star," Banedon proudly stated.
"That's great news, you always wanted to become a Guildmaster," replied Braxus and he gave a great slap on the back to Banedon.
"Ouch, thank Braxus."
"Just like your father, following in his footsteps," said Oriah as she got up and started to wash the dishes and prepare for her routine duties as the village healer.
"Thanks," replied Banedon as he joined them for the remainder of the breakfast.
"What is this Brotherhood of the Crystal Star?" inquired Ranma. He noticed the confused look on Banedon's face.
"Banedon... err... Ranma's not from around here and he's quite new to the Lastlands," interrupted Braxus to avoid the subject of Ranma not being of this world. 'Maybe I could explain to Banedon about Ranma later on,' thought Braxus.
"Oh... Well then, the Brotherhood of the Crystal is a group of Guildmasters and wizards that are based in the city of Toran in Sommerlund. They are masters of elementary spells of Left Handed Magic... it's pretty hard to get in, but this is what I want to become," answered Banedon.
"I have to go now. Make sure you clean up after you've finished breakfast, okay?" Oriah said as she left the house.
"Okay mother," Braxus replied.
"Hey, Braxus, are you still going to join that Order of the Kai near Holmgard in the next couple of years?" questioned Banedon.
"You bet I am," proudly replied Braxus.
"How about him?" Banedon pointed out to Ranma.
"Well... I still haven't made up my mind on what I am going to do," replied Ranma.
'Maybe I will join the Order. According to what Braxus has said, it sounds quite interesting,' thought Ranma.
As the trio ate breakfast, Banedon soon became friends with Ranma. Braxus noticed that outside it was a perfect day to practice their skills and abilities.
"Hey, Ranma, Banedon; why don't we go outside and start practicing our skills? It's starting to become a bit boring stuck in the house while the weather is so beautiful," Braxus suggested.
"Sure why not," replied Banedon as he got up from where he was sitting.
"Okay," replied Ranma. He wanted to explore the area and the village he was currently staying at, anyway.
***
Village Market Place
Ranma followed closely behind Braxus and Banedon as he was led through the village. He noticed that Braxus was carrying some sort of bag slung over his shoulder. As they passed by the various houses Ranma noticed that the village didn't really have much modern technology compared to the cities and towns that he had visited; it was more like one of the rural villages in China. He could see the villagers mainly relying on old-fashioned methods such as horse-drawn carts and candle-lit lanterns to light up the village at night. It seemed that the village had some sort of stockade surrounding it, probably to keep the people in the village safe and keep out any potential threats. He saw a few guards on duty along the stockade wall to back this up.
"Hey, Braxus, where are we actually going?" Ranma asked, wondering where he was being led.
"We are leading you to our local training ground where most of us practice; it's also a good place to meet new people," replied Braxus; he wanted Ranma to meet more people and to feel welcome in his world. From what Ranma had told him it seemed that he hadn't really had the opportunity to make new friends in his own world.
"Yeah... But first we have to go through the village town square and market place, as the training ground is on the other side of the village," replied Banedon.
"Oh... Alright then, lead the way." Ranma continued to follow them.
'I'd better follow them, I'd probably get lost in this village. Anyway, I need to know the area first,' thought Ranma.
They were currently in the village market place passing through the various market stalls and sales pitches. The market place was quite crowded today, as it was a Sunday; the place was filled with many buyers and sellers from Durenor, which meant that the trio took awhile to navigate through. The first few bazaars consisted of sellers selling of their goods of food, jewelry, and antique and domestic goods.
Further down the market place were the blacksmiths and weapon masters who were offering various armor and weapons. Braxus was looking quite interested at a particular sword until he found out the price. Opposite the blacksmith stalls was the mage stall that had attracted Banedon to look at the various scrolls and magical items offered. Ranma, on the other hand, was just looking around the place. He noticed a few stares and glances from the various people that were aimed at him, especially the girls. They thought that Ranma looked kind of attractive and cute: his looks and dress made him stand out a bit among the local population. After they spent a bit of time browsing through the stalls, they realised that they should start moving; otherwise by the time they got to the training grounds it would be too dark. Grabbing Banedon and Ranma, Braxus started to drag them from the market stalls towards their intended destination.
Ranma was starting to feel a little welcome and was just looking around when Braxus spoke.
"We're here, Ranma," Braxus said, interrupting Ranma's sightseeing trip. This caused Ranma to stop and look at the place to which Braxus and Banedon had led him. What he saw was an open field containing various people who were either chatting away, or playing some sort of game, or just training.
"So what are supposed to do here?" Ranma asked, wondering why it was he had led him here. His question was soon answered as he caught a wooden sword thrown to him by Braxus.
"Easy... I just want to know how good you are at fighting; and besides, I need the practice. Anyway, this is a good place to meet people your own age and to blend in." Braxus got into a ready stance with his wooden sword while Banedon just sat down on the sidelines watching them and basically playing ref.
"I don't really need this." Ranma threw the weapon back to Braxus.
'Now is the chance to see how good he is,' thought Ranma as he got into a stance.
"Why not?" replied a confused Braxus as he caught the sword that was thrown to him and put it away.
"As I said, I don't really need this; and besides, I was told that a weapon could hinder your overall combat potential," explained Ranma of what his father had told him.
"Really then... you're going to face me unarmed? So are you going to show me what martial arts is all about then?" asked a surprised looking Braxus.
"Yeah, I'm going to show you what the Saotome School of Anything Goes is about," replied Ranma.
'This is going to be fun! Besides, I haven't sparred with anyone for ages apart from my father,' thought Ranma.
He always sought the opportunity to practice his martial arts ever since he had left his last school back on his home world where he always sparred with his friend Ryoga. Ranma wondered whatever had happened to Ryoga when he hadn't shown up for the duel to which he had challenged him.
As Ranma and Braxus got ready, Banedon got up from where he was sitting, preparing to signal the start of the fight.
Making sure that both Ranma and Braxus were ready, Banedon explained the rules: "All right then... the rules are simple: first one to submit loses; first one to be in a position where the opponent has no choice but to submit wins, okay?" He received a nod in reply from both of them.
"Begin!" called out Banedon as he signal the start of their sparring match.
It was Braxus who made the first move, charging in with his wooden sword, hoping that his charge would catch Ranma off guard; but Ranma saw this and swiftly acted by sidestepping to his left, narrowly avoiding the potential hit he would have received. Ranma then got into a defensive stance and waiting for Braxus to attack again then counterattack. At that moment, Braxus was wondering where Ranma had gone when he realised that he was behind him. He then quickly turned around realizing that his back was unguarded and open to attack. He then saw Ranma standing a couple of yards in front of him in some sort of defensive stance that he didn't recognise. Braxus decided that the best option in this situation was to take the offensive and he started to run up to Ranma and delivered another slash across Ranma's chest.
Of course Ranma was ready for the swing of Braxus' weapon and quickly ducked underneath it, narrowly missing his wooden blade, and delivered a punch toward Braxus' stomach. This blew all the air out of Braxus' lungs and made him pause to regain his breath. Now was the time for Ranma to take the offensive and attack. Ranma launched a quick combination of punches to the head and chest areas of his opponent, little knowing that Braxus had anticipated this and was waiting for Ranma's attack. Braxus had faked being in a vulnerable position; he was much tougher than Ranma had at first thought. This of course surprised Ranma as he saw most of his blows blocked by Braxus' weapon while receiving some hits in return and he cursed himself for underestimating his opponent. He back flipped away from Braxus to give himself some time to consider his next course of action.
As the sparring match continued for a few more minutes, neither Ranma nor Braxus gained dominance. Of course, as the fight carried on it drew in quite a crowd from the village and the ones who were already on the training field. They really wanted to see how this foreign newcomer was doing against Braxus, who was the best fighter for his age and few opponents that he had faced could last very long against him, let alone win. The crowd was cheering on and giving encouragement as they watched Ranma dodge Braxus' sword attacks while at the same time trying to sneak in a few hits.
Meanwhile, Braxus had taken a cautious approach with his swordplay rather than swinging wildly, as he knew that Ranma was good at avoiding being hit. Both were trying to find weaknesses or cracks in their opponent's defenses. It was really hard to tell as Ranma had the speed and agility to avoid most of Braxus' attacks, while Braxus had the strength and skill with the sword to parry some of Ranma's attacks and return them back at him.
During the fight, Banedon was acting as referee and was currently reading a book as he watched them. He noticed that both Ranma and Braxus were equal and tough combatants. Judging by the outlook, it looked as though no one would be winning any time soon. As the minutes went by, both combatants were feeling tired from their constant sparring and they both knew the consequences if one of them decided let their guard down for a moment. Banedon decided to let them fight on.
'Ranma is quite good and if Braxus didn't have his sword then I think that Ranma would have won by now. They're both evenly matched right now, and it will probably take ages,' thought Banedon.
Banedon saw that no one would win this match; and besides, it was a simple sparring match not an official match.
"Both of you, stop what you are doing!" called Banedon. He saw the confused looks both of his friends gave him as they paused in their sparring match.
"What!" they replied as they looked towards Banedon.
"I have decided to call this match a draw because neither one of you had the advantage over the other for quite a while, and if this carries on we'll be here all night. Besides, this isn't an official fight, just a sparring match," stated Banedon. He could see the disappointment in the crowd, as they had wanted someone to win.
"Okay, Banedon, I trust your judgment, but I still would have won that match in the end," replied Braxus. Ranma reacted to this angrily.
"Would not! I would have won!" Ranma said, and they started to argue over who could have won this match.
Banedon just stood there and watched them acting like children, and the rest of the crowd soon departed to carry on with their own business.
***
Afternoon, at the village training field
Banedon's verdict on the sparring match was that it was a draw. Both Ranma and Braxus were annoyed that no one had won outright, but agreed that it was official and thought that maybe the next time they could see who was better for real. During their time at the training field Braxus introduced a couple of his friends to Ranma. They were a bit curious and cautious about the way Ranma looked as he different from them and wondered where he was from. Eventually they accepted him for who he was and assumed that he was from somewhere down south. They realised that Ranma was friendly enough to befriend and invited him and Braxus to join them in their game while Banedon start to chat to some young apprentice healers.
After a few hours Banedon noticed that it was getting a bit dark and suggested that they should retire for the night. Both Ranma and Braxus agreed to it and started to say their goodbyes to their friends. As they were walking back from the training field to Braxus' home, Braxus decided to make a comment about the sparring match they had fought earlier.
"Well, Ranma, I'm quite impressed with your combat skills. You've got to show me some of your martial arts sometime," asked Braxus. Not many opponents his age could keep up with him, especially without a weapon.
'Maybe I could learn from him; and I could become even better, especially as I'm going to the monastery next year,' thought Braxus.
"Yeah, Ranma, where did you learn that particular style of fighting? There's not many people who practice that style apart from the Kai warriors and some foreign tribal warriors I've encountered in my travels," Banedon added, impressed.
"As I told you before, I learnt all that I know from my father; he may be a stupid idiot, but he's no slouch in the ways of martial arts," explained Ranma.
'Hmmm... Braxus is extremely good with what he knows; he has that extra reach from his sword that prevented me from getting in close enough. Maybe I could ask him to teach me what he knows?' thought Ranma.
"Hey, Banedon, where are you staying?" asked Braxus.
"Well... I haven't decided where I'm going to stay yet; maybe at an inn somewhere?" replied Banedon.
"Nonsense, my friend, no friend of mind is going to stay at some inn! Why don't you stay at my home? We've got plenty of room, and mother would love for you stay for a while," answered Braxus.
"You're sure about that?" replied Banedon, making absolutely sure it was safe to stay with Braxus and Ranma.
"Of course," answered Braxus.
"Fine then, I suppose I could stay for a few weeks before I have to return to Toran," replied Banedon.
"Hey Ranma, Banedon's going to stay with us for a few days; maybe he could show some of his simple magic tricks to you!" teased Braxus, knowing that he could annoy Banedon about his magical skill and talent.
He did know not to p**s him off too much, otherwise he might do something bad to him; nothing permanently because he was a friend, but the last time he'd got mad at someone, he gave him a nasty electric shock.
"THEY ARE NOT SOME SIMPLE MAGIC TRICKS!!!" shouted Banedon. Ranma was surprised and caught off guard by Banedon's outburst.
'Man... Banedon's sure got a strong battle aura when he gets angry,' thought Ranma.
"Relax, Banedon. I'm sorry, okay? I'm only joking," replied Braxus, currently making warding gestures as he tried to calm him down, which Banedon did eventually.
"I'm sorry, too, about my outburst, but sometimes I get really annoyed with people who think I am a simple trickster rather than a wizard," apologised Banedon to Ranma and Braxus.
"Apology accepted," replied Ranma.
'Mental note to myself: Don't p**s off Banedon about his magical skills,' thought Ranma.
After that, the trio made their way back to Braxus' home.
***
Nearby the trio
A mysterious figure stood in the shadows watching the trio walking back home. No definite details could be determined about the person because of the hood/cloak that covered most of the face and body, except that it was a female, her red haired ponytail sticking out of her clothing.
'So those are three that I have predicted will contribute to the saving of Sommerlund; this could be fun,' thought the mysterious person as a mischievous smile came to her lips.
The mysterious figure watched the trio disappears around the corner, then she disappeared into the shadows.
TBC...
***