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 the Lone Wolf Series belong to Joe Dever. This story is created solely for entertainment purposes and no profit as gained from this.

Note.
Kai Names:
* Ranma Stormgard (Saotome) - Wild Horse
* Braxus Stormgard - Swift Blade

Wild Horse of Kai

By Montymouse

' ' - Thought
" " - Speech

Chapter Thirteen - Final Showdown

***

Inner Chamber of the Grand Palace

"Err... Braxus?" Ranma tapped on Braxus' shoulder as he glanced over his shoulder.

"What is it, Ranma? Can't you see I'm trying to find out the location of the Tomb?" Braxus whispered.

"I think this is more important right now," Ranma said, having suddenly caught sight of something moving the shadows.

Braxus turned around, wondering what Ranma was on about. He then quickly reached for the hilt of his shortsword as he saw two warriors creeping towards them from a passageway to their right. They were clad in jet-black armour and scarlet robes, and their hideous death masks revealed their identity to the Kai Masters.

"Drakkar warriors. Ranma, you take the right guy, I'll take the left." Braxus unsheathed his sword.

Ranma nodded as he drew his sword from the scabbard. The Darklord immediately turned his attention from probing the Zakhan's mind to the upper floor where Ranma and Braxus were currently hiding. He had detected something that could potentially destroy him: the Sommerswerd.

A terrible roar of hate and rage filled the hall from below as the Darklord had finally sensed the presence of the two Kai Masters. "Kill them at once!"

The Drakkarim unsheathed their black swords, eager to obey their master's command as they engaged the two Kai Masters. As they were fighting the Drakkarim warriors, Ranma saw out of the corner of his eye the silhouette of Darklord Haakon halfway up the steps, his spiked fist raised and pointed at them. Sensing the power building up within his fist, Ranma immediately dived to avoid the blast, while Braxus did the same as he also sensed what the Darklord was about to do.

There was a deafening crack as a bolt of blue lightning streaked from a stone in the Darklord's hand and hurtled at the two Kai Masters. As Ranma and Braxus dodged the lightning bolt, the two Drakkarim warriors, who were wondering why the two Kai Lords had suddenly broken off from their fight, glanced over their shoulders to see a bolt of blue lightning heading towards them. In a flash of light the Drakkarim were gone, leaving just cinders and the rotten odour of scorched flesh.

Looking at what had happened to the two warriors, Ranma and Braxus looked at each other in shock and awe at the power level of Darklord Haakon.

"Ranma, let's get the hell outta here now!" Braxus shouted as ducked under another lightning bolt.

"I'm going, I'm going!" Ranma had already started to run as another bolt was hurled from the hall, tearing into the ceiling with shattering effect. Splinters of razor-sharp marble whistled down, slashing their cloaks and tunics as they raced through a silver archway and along a balcony that overlooked another portion of the lower palace.

A peal of bells and the crunch of iron-shod boots echoed in their ears - the Zakhan had sounded the alarm, which meant that if they stayed here they would be surrounded by hundreds of guards. Another alarm was heard in a distant part of palace.

Soon Ranma and Braxus came to the end of the balcony where their route was split into another archway and a staircase, both of which seemed to be deserted.

"Which way?" Ranma said; he could hear the sound of men approaching ever nearer.

"The staircase," Braxus decided as he started down the stairs. Ranma was about to follow his brother, but stopped when he saw him racing back from the stairway and through the archway.

"My mistake, through the archway," Braxus shouted.

"Braxus, make up your mind will you?"

Ranma was confused as to why Braxus had changed his mind until he saw heavily armed guards climbing up the stairway. As soon as Ranma ran though the arch, he bumped into a black-robed palace guard. The impact almost threw Ranma off balance, but he managed to grab the wall to stop him from falling over. The guard lay sprawled upon the floor, but with incredible swiftness he drew a shining steel axe and lashed out at Ranma's legs.

Using his martial arts reflexes, Ranma whirled his feet away from the shining steel and narrowly escaped losing his legs as the axe bit several inches deep into the polished stone floor. The guard was about to strike at Ranma with another blow, which this time would kill him instantly when...

A blade suddenly stuck out of the guard's chest due to Braxus running him through with Excalibur to save his brother. The guard gasped before falling face first, dead, onto the marble floor. Braxus wiped his sword before sheathing it back in his scabbard.

"Ranma, will you stop playing around? We have to get outta here!" Braxus helped his brother get to his feet.

"I had the situation way under control!" Ranma replied.

"Whatever, Ranma; whatever you say," Braxus said sarcastically.

Ranma was about to say something else when he heard the sound of pounding feet and realised that the palace guard were on full alert: together with the Drakkarim, they were now hell-bent on finding and killing them as quickly as possible.

Beyond the hallway was a bridge that rose at a slanted angle over an enclosed garden, joining this part of the palace to a needle-like tower of white marble. Braxus noticed there were an awful lot of people forming a chain as they handed buckets of water to each other at the bottom of the garden. Looking ahead he could see that a large wing of the palace was ablaze and the people had tried to form a chain of bucket-carriers to put out the inferno that threatened to destroy a portion of the palace.

"I was wondering what the second alarm was," Braxus thought. For some reason, he couldn't help but feel a little guilty about causing the blazing inferno.

Seeing that they had no choice but to enter the tower, they both ran inside and slammed the door shut behind them. Ranma quickly placed a huge metal bar to secure it; but judging by the amount of pounding on the door, it wouldn't last long.

Braxus was currently trying to think of which way to go, as there were two flights of spiral stairs that met at a landing.

"Ranma, up or down?" Braxus shouted to his brother who was trying to hold back the door as numerous Drakkar warriors attempt to batter it down.

"What!" Ranma shouted. "Can't hear you with all that racket!" Ranma pointed to his ears due to the Drakkarim shouting and cursing on the other side of the door.

"Ranma, I said should we go up or down the staircase?"

"Up the stairs. Going down will lead to the ground floor and I don't think we can fight our way out!" Ranma quickly bolted up the staircase, and Braxus did the same as the door was knocked down and Drakkar warriors started to pour into the tower.

"Get them," growled one of the Drakkar warriors said as they caught a glimpse of Braxus' green Kai tunic as he ascended the stairs.

The stairs were high and steep. As Ranma and Braxus raced up the staircase, they forced their aching legs to climb while they could hear the Drakkarim less than a dozen steps behind them. Kicking open the door, they reached the top of the tower in record time.

An open arch led out onto a platform where a huge kettledrum stood; Braxus realised that the tower was used to send messages to other palace towers. A bleached hide was stretched across its surface and a black wooden beater hung from the side. Looking around, Ranma realised they were trapped as there was no other stairs leading down from the accursed tower. Ranma then had a sudden idea and started to try to push the kettledrum towards the stairway where he could hear the Drakkarim gasping for breath, but determined to kill them.

"Hey Braxus, do you mind giving me a hand?" Ranma was trying to move the huge drum with all of his strength.

Braxus soon realised what it was Ranma trying to do, and they used their combined efforts to move the heavy object. They succeeded finally as the heavy copper drum rolled from its wooden base and crashed down the tower stairs, a thunderous boom echoing from the dark as it careered on a collision course with the enemy. Ranma could hear the screams of horror cut short as the drum hurtled through the ranks of the Drakkarim, crushing them into the hard, stone steps.

"Heheheh, serves them right," Ranma said. Looking down the staircase, he could see the Drakkarim warriors lying dead and squashed while the drum continued rolling down the staircase with a loud racket.

"Eh... Braxus we're trapped aren't we?" Ranma enquired, noticing that the only way down was the stairway they had just climbed, and judging by the sounds of footsteps. The Drakkarim were coming back with reinforcements.

Braxus nodded slowly as he peered over the side. "It seems like we have to fight our way down." He reached for his sword in preparation.

"We could always jump?" Ranma suggested as he peered over the wall. Braxus gave him an odd look.

"What did I say?" Ranma asked innocently.

Braxus sighed.

"Ranma, we are about two hundred feet above ground," Braxus hinted to his younger Brother.

"So? I don't see what the problem is." Braxus placed his hand over his face and sighed again.

"So unless we sprout wings, we've got no choice but to fight our way down."

Ranma nodded sheepishly as he realised the implications that Braxus had pointed out. Braxus was about to say something else when he heard a very familiar mental voice.

*Master, I found you at last!*

Braxus turned around to see Kalona perched along the wall. Braxus rushed over to his missing companion. "Kalona, thank goodness you're still alive. I had thought that you'd left me."

Kalona shook her head. *No, master, I wouldn't leave you; it's just that it took me a while to find you in this huge city. Besides, I like you: you have treated me better than any of the other masters I have served.*

Braxus smiled at the friendship between them.

"Kalona, do you think you can help us?" Braxus asked, but realised that there was little magical bird could do in this type of situation.

*Hmm..." Kalona thought about it for a moment.

"Braxus, do you mind speeding things up? I don't think I can hold them off any longer." Ranma was trying to hold back the door as the Drakkar warriors were pushing their way onto the roof of the tower.

*Master, I do have an idea. Would you mind stepping back a bit?* Kalona mentally suggested. Braxus complied.

*A little more.*

"What are you going to do?" questioned Braxus.

*Just watch, master.* Braxus swore that Kalona had smirked as she flew up into the air.

Kalona circled around the tower a few times. She then stopped in midair as a brilliant light flashed forth, causing Ranma and Braxus to shield their eyes with their arms as the they were temporary blinded by the dazzling, white light. The people of Barrakeesh and the Darklord's warriors looked up to see a bright ball of light appearing above the tower. All were wondering what the hell it was; people started to cry out on the streets something along the lines of the holy return of the Majhan; others that the Gods are angry with them for something.

***

Somewhere in Southern Magnamund
A regal and elegantly robed black-haired man with a single silver highlight spat out his wine he had just sipped as his advanced magical senses picked up a unique magical source.

*Now dear, there was no need for that,* his wife communicated mentally. They were currently eating dinner in their personal citadel.

She was dressed in an elegant, purple evening dress. She was very beautiful, but underneath her looks was great magical knowledge and experience; she had been through a lot in her life, but with her husband by her side, she was happy and her husband felt the same way.

*I'm sorry, but did you detect that sudden change in the magical stream?*

He had just sensed a very powerful source of magic that closely resembled Shianti magic, but it was mixed in with two other unknown magical sources.

*Yes, I did. It seems to be coming from the northern region of Magnamund, but I can't pinpoint the exact location,* she replied as she took a bite of her meal.

*You don't suppose it's a...* the man suggested.

She nodded in acknowledgement. *But I thought they were supposed to be extinct?*

*So did I,* he replied. *I have a feeling that those two Kai Masters are somehow involved in this,* he concluded.

*Maybe we should arrange a meeting to contact them?* she suggested, but her husband shook his head.

*No, my dear, I have a feeling that they will soon know of our existence; and besides, I still want to see how good Wild Horse and Swift Blade will have become when they do arrive here.*

*I still say we should send an envoy to make contact with them to avoid confusion. Oh, I have something to tell you that is more important than concerning yourself with those two fledging Kai Masters.*

*Err... does this involve us having this lovely dinner you have made and why we have to dress up like this?* he questioned.

She nodded shyly. *A little.*

She leaned over and whispered something in his ear: *I'm with child, dear.*

She then sat back down. She was a bit nervous at how her husband would react, but her nervousness faded at his reaction.

Her husband fainted at the prospect at becoming a father, but sent her a message to say he was happy before he lost consciousness. He realised they would have a strong heir to master both his Shianti and her Wytchcraft magic.

*Well, at least he is happy at the idea.* She looked affectionately at her husband before materialising a cup of water to wake him up.

***

Soon the brilliance subsided and Braxus lowered his arm to see something that made his jaw drop. Instead of the blue feathered bird, he saw a gigantic bird looking somewhat like an eagle in shape and form, but far larger and with a crest of feathers rising from its head and along its neck. Each of the bird's feathers glowed with a white and blue radiance.

"Err... Kalona is that you?" Braxus asked hesitantly. Ranma was staring at the bird with awe and respect.

*Yes master, I am still Kalona; this is my advanced adult form, a Celastrix, divine messenger of Ishir and loyal servant to Alyss.* Her voice was filled with authority and a sense of peace.

*Err... why didn't you tell me you could change into that form?* Braxus questioned.

*You never asked,* Kalona mentally replied.

Braxus facefaulted at her reply 'I should've expected that.'

*I can only maintain this form for a couple of hours due to my restrictions. I would only be considered a young adult if I were with my own kind.*

Seeing the danger present, she quickly assessed the situation.

*Master, climb on my back. I will take you away from this wretched place; this place is tainted with evil,* she suggested.

*Now, let us leave this place now.*

"Ranma, come on; we're getting outta here!" Braxus shouted. Looking over his shoulder, he could see that Ranma was still staring in awe.

As Kalona was about to take off, Braxus immediately grabbed his arm and lifted him up on Kalona's back as the door finally burst open. The Drakkarim were shocked to see a huge bird on the tower.

*Hang on tight!* Kalona warned her master, but not Ranma as he still couldn't understand what she was saying.

"What did she say?" Ranma asked Braxus who seemed to understanding what she had said.

Braxus didn't say anything but he grabbed on tight as Kalona started to beat her powerful wings as she prepared to leave the tower. Ranma jerked backward in shock and almost fell from her; luckily his brother managed to grab his foot with one hand while the other held on tightly to her back.

Kalona flapped her large wings sending a huge shockwave at the Drakkar warriors who were thrown all over the place as if they were rag dolls before she took to the sky. One of the Drakkar warriors attempted to slash at Kalona with his black, tainted blade, but was soon plucked from the platform with clawed feet that crushed his body with ease before dropping it to the ground.

"She said hang on tight!"

Ranma followed the body's descent to the ground, landing with a sickening crack in the palace garden down below.

"Jeez, now you tell me!" Ranma was hanging upside down, and from where he was hanging he could see one of the guards attempting to shoot at them with his bow.

Seeing that they were in a vulnerable position, Ranma quickly unhooked his silver bow and attempted to fire his arrow from his awkward position. The arrow somehow managed to pierce the archer's armour and he fell off the tower. Once they were clear, Braxus helped Ranma to sit upright on Kalona's back as she started to gain more speed and height.

Glancing over his shoulder, Ranma could see the west wing of the Grand Palace completely ruined due to the fire that had somehow started.

"I don't suppose you know what cause that fire, do you?" Ranma asked pointed down below.

"Eh... Probably a accident?" Braxus suggested, sweating under Ranma's gaze.

"Hey, why are you looking at me like?"

Ranma shrugged. "Right; an accident," Ranma said, unconvinced by his brother's statement.

Ranma nudged his brother in the ribs.

"Tell me again, where on Magnamund did you find her?" Ranma questioned.

Braxus shrugged. "You know when Ranko transported me to that weird world? Well, it was like this..." Braxus started to explain to his brother the short version of how he had acquired Kalona. As Kalona gathered more speed and altitude, Ranma could see the golden domes of the Grand Palace growing ever smaller.

"Yahoo! We made it, I think we're safe for now!" Ranma celebrated as they had finally escaped the wretched city.

Braxus smiled at Ranma's celebration as he threw back his head and gave a triumphant yell that could be heard for miles around. Looking over his shoulder, his smile soon disappeared, replaced with a worried look.

Ranma stop his celebration when he saw his brother's expression. He looked behind him to see what had worried his brother. His worries were confirmed as he heard the echoing chorus of shrieks that pierced the sky. Fear returned to Ranma heart as he caught sight of what Braxus had seen: a flock of Kraan, hideous, leathery winged fliers, each one carrying a Drakkar warrior on its back. By his estimation they were about a mile behind Kalona and were closing quickly.

"Kalona, do you think you could fly any faster?" Braxus asked.

*I'm sorry, master; due to the extra weight I am carrying I cannot go any faster. This is my top speed.*

"All right Kalona, I understand." Braxus then turned his attention to Ranma who was currently keeping an eye on their pursuers.

"How many do you see?"

"Too many. Will Kalona fly any faster?" Ranma asked, aware that he only had a dozen arrows left within his quiver.

Braxus shook his head. "Kalona is already at maximum speed. I don't want to push her otherwise she will become too exhausted."

"Well I think we'll have a chance to survive this encounter if we can evade them a little longer, and our chances of losing them will be higher if we can hold them off until night fall." Ranma explained his idea.

"Seems like a good plan to me," Braxus agreed. "How long till they catch us up?"

"About twenty minutes, and there's still about a hour of sunlight left. Anyway, do you know where this tomb is that we're suppose to find?"

Braxus pulled out a map of Vassagonia and started to work out where they were.

"Hmm... we're about a couple of miles from Barrakeesh so I think that we should be making our way towards the Dahir Pass, which means we have to fly over the Dahir Mountains. Maybe we could lose our pursuers over the mountains."

"Don't tell me that, tell Kalona! She's the one flying us there," Ranma pointed out. Braxus nodded and quickly leaned towards Kalona's ear.

"Kalona, I want you to steer south towards Dahir Pass; and try to fly low, we don't want to be sitting ducks, okay?"

*Dahir Pass it is,* Kalona acknowledged her master's command. *Hold on tight.*

This time Ranma was ready as Braxus silently signalled for him to hold on as Kalona swooped down to gather more speed.

Kalona nodded as she started to alter her course southwards. Soon they were over the mountainous Dahir range. Ranma was currently trying to pick off the Kraan with his bow and with his pinpoint accuracy they had started to fall like flies. Braxus watched them spiralling down, but he knew that although Ranma could keep this up indefinitely, he was quickly running out of arrows, and there was still plenty of those Kraan riders out there.

*Kalona, can't you do anything to outmanoeuvre them?" Braxus frantically asked her as their pursuers were almost on top of them.

*I do have one trick up my wing, but it's kinda more dangerous for us than them,* Kalona suggested as her mental defences were slowly being weakened by the constant mind bombardments.

"Do it," Braxus ordered.

Ranma was wondering what Kalona was going and was about to ask when he happened to look over his shoulder. Ranma saw someone that was beginning to annoy him to no end. On the back of one of the Kraan was a Vordak that Ranma had first encountered when he was travelling to Holmgard during Darklord Zagarna's invasion of Sommerlund.

The Vordak was closing in on them fast and spread its red-robed arms before it attempted to leap towards Kalona in a single bold move. Ranma knew that if the Vordak were to land on Kalona, its skeletal fingers would do great harm to her feathered flesh. Seeing the danger, Ranma knew what to do.

"Ranma, hang on tight, Kalona is about to..." Braxus glanced over his shoulder.

Ranma was nowhere to be seen.

"Ranma!" Braxus spun around fearing that Ranma had fallen and was about to ask Kalona to turn around and find him.

"Kalona, where is here? Do you see him!"

Kalona looked down below her to indicate that she had spotted Ranma.

*Down there.*

Braxus looked to where she was pointing to see Ranma engaging the Vordak on the back of its Kraan with the Sommerswerd drawn.

Braxus breathed a deep sigh of relief. "I've got to admit, he sure is courageous and brave; but sometimes I do question the motives of his actions." Ranma was known to do things before thinking; like jumping from his mount a couple of thousand metres in the air and onto another mount without a care in the world.

He could see that the Sommerswerd had started to glow and Ranma unleashed a vivid golden flame that shot out along the blade. The Vordak shrieked in terror as he realised that Ranma possessed a very dangerous weapon. With one swing of the Sommerswerd, the Vordak was easily cleaved into two as the blade went through him like a hot knife through butter. Unfortunately, the Vordak managed unbalance Ranma off the mount just before he met his demise.

Kalona saw Ranma falling off the Kraan and instantly knew what to do. She flew down at great speed in the hope of catching Ranma before he hit the ground. Braxus was currently holding tightly onto Kalona's feathered back as she dived at a ninety-degree angle. She swooped down and plucked Ranma in midair as gently as possible with her clawed feet.

Ranma looked up and gave the thumbs up sign to Braxus as he saw the concern written on his face. *Err... Master, there is something ahead that you should know about,* Kalona mentally said, looking at something ahead not commonly found.

"What is it Kalona?" Braxus said, focused upon trying to get Ranma back onto Kalona's back.

*It would be better for you to see it yourself.* Kalona suggested, spotting something emerging from a bank of cloud on the skyline.

"I'm a bit busy, is it more of those Kraan?"

*Nope.*

"Is it a thunderstorm approaching?" Braxus said, still not looking up.

*Nope, guess again.*

"Well what it is then?"

*A flying ship.*

"WHAT!" Braxus jerked his head up and saw something that he had never expected to see in his life.

Ranma looked forward as his jaw dropped in astonishment. "Err... do you what I see?" Ranma asked, not believing his eyes.

Braxus slowly nodded. "Yes, Ranma, I'm see a flying ship ahead. What are you seeing?"

"The same thing." Ahead of them was a small flying craft, slightly bigger than an Unoram river barge, with two triangular sails swept back either side of its curving prow. In the fading twilight, Ranma could see a long pennant that fluttered from its mast and could hear a faint humming emitting from the ship.

"Kalona, make with due haste towards the ship," Braxus said as the rest of the Kraan were closing the distance fast.

Kalona nodded and headed towards ship, currently very tired, both mentally and physically. She was almost there when one of the Kraan riders decided to fire a massive fireball spell at her. Sensing the danger, she immediately rolled over causing Ranma and Braxus to fall off her back and plummet towards the lake below. Kalona was in no position or shape to swoop in and catch them as she received a nasty burn under her left wing.

Ranma and Braxus thought that this would be the end until there was a terrific jolt followed by a flash as they realised that they were suspended in midair!

Ranma realised that they had been caught by a net of sticky strands like a fly in a web and they were being elevated towards the flying ship. Kalona had decided to return to her normal form to conserve energy and perched herself on the ship's railing.

A voice was heard above them: "Hey you two, need a lift?"

Braxus would instantly recognise that voice anywhere and he jerked his head upward to see a very familiar face that belonged to a certain blond-haired young man with deep, brooding eyes. He was dressed quite similar to his usual garb of a journey master. Braxus realised that Banedon was on his way into becoming a Guildmaster and it seemed that his old friend had achieved some distinction among his brother magicians since the last time they had seen each other. He was currently leaning across the outrigger with a large smirk on his face at the very shocked expressions on Ranma and Braxus' faces.

"Well, gentlemen, don't just stand there gaping at me. You're not goldfish. Are you going to come onboard or not?" the blond-haired magician said.

'It couldn't be?' Braxus' jaw dropped in astonishment.

"BANEDON IS THAT YOU!" Braxus managed to shout in joy and relief.

"Yeah, it's me." Banedon smiled. "So are you going to come onboard or not?" Banedon asked again.

"Banedon what are you doing here?" Ranma asked as the crew of the flying ship lowered a rope ladder.

Banedon scratched his chin as if he was in deep thought. "Well, you see I was in the neighbourhood and I saw you were in trouble. So, acting like a best friend would, I came to see if you needed a lift," Banedon said with a smirk.

"Banedon, incoming on the port side!" a crewmember shouted out.

As the flock of Kraan attacked Banedon's flying ship, Ranma and Braxus immediately started to climb up the rope ladder to get onboard. They were greeted by three bearded dwarves clad in bright, padded battle jerkins. The small sky ship was under attack from the Kraan riders and a large skirmish began onboard the ship.

"Ranma, take Kalona below decks." Braxus handed the weak and injured bird to his brother.

Ranma nodded and carefully carried her below. Braxus scanned the battle scene and spotted his friend Banedon on the fortified platform. Ducking beneath the boomsail, Braxus clambered onto the platform in time to see a desperate struggle between the blond-haired magician and the airborne riders.

"Need any help?" Braxus shouted.

Banedon whirled around after shooting down a Kraan rider.

"Some help would be greatly appreciated." Banedon smiled as Braxus joined the struggle.

Braxus and Banedon were currently fighting off the Drakkar warriors who were trying to gain possession of the fortified command platform. They had managed to deal with all those attempting to overwhelm the Command Bridge thus far.

"Just like old times, don't you think, Banedon?" Braxus swung his sword in a wide arc and Excalibur cleanly sliced through Drakkar sword and armour.

Banedon chuckled a little. "Don't you think it's a little strange that fate bought us three together on this day?" Banedon levelled his magestaff at a Drakkar, zapping him to a crisp.

"Now that you mention it, I think you're right; it is a little too convenient." Braxus parried a blow from a Drakkar who had managed to dismount from his Kraan.

Looking onto main deck, he could see that Ranma had the situation under control and was managing to help fend off the incoming assaults. Ranma gave a thumbs up to say that he was okay and also to say that Kalona was safe below decks as she needed time to rest and recover.

Banedon was about to reach for the ship's helm but was ambushed by a Drakkar warrior who had jumped off his flying mount and landed behind the young magician.

"Banedon, watch out!" Braxus cried out a warning to his friend.

Banedon whirled around at hearing Braxus' warning and attempted to block the twisted black scimitar. The blade went through his robes, but luckily Banedon managed to divert the blade away from his vital organs with his Guildstaff. Banedon stumped down onto the floor as the Drakkar attempted to finish off the young, wounded magician.

Braxus came charging in furiously and killed the Drakkar by slicing his head off with one clean arc with his sword. He was so preoccupied with aiding his wounded friend that a Kraan rider swooped down towards Braxus with a crossbow levelled at his head.

He fired and the bolt shot towards Braxus' head. Then a shrill, metallic whine rang out in his ear as the bolt miraculously ricocheted away, deflected by an invisible shield.

Looking over to where Banedon lay, he could see him lowering his staff, the trace of a wry smile appearing on his pain-wracked face.

"Braxus, you must learn to cover your own back. I can't be always there to help you, you know," Banedon joked. "Help me to my feet, we must escape before they drag us from the sky." Braxus nodded.

"Banedon, are you seriously wounded?" he asked in concern.

"I'll live; but we must get rid of these annoying pests, otherwise the ship will be in danger!"

Ranma soon appeared on the bridge wondering what was happening and, seeing them in trouble instantly rushed up to them and helped fend off the invaders while Banedon reached for the console.

While Ranma held off the invaders, Braxus helped his friend grasp the ship's helm - a radiant crystal sphere with hundreds of glowing facets set on a slim silver rod. No sooner had his hands closed around the crystal than a tremendous explosion was heard.

A huge cloud of smoke, which engulfed a cabin perched on the rear deck, followed the explosion.

"What the hell was that!" Ranma said as he held onto the railing, thinking that the ship had been hit by something.

Braxus was currently trying to heal Banedon as best as he could. Although his injuries were bad, they weren't life threatening as he had managed to avoid being hit into the vital parts of his body. Banedon insisted that he remain on the bridge to control the ship, as he was the only one able to do so despite Braxus' suggestion that he should go below decks.

The smoke cleared to reveal the grinning face of a dwarf at the cabin window. A smear of soot blackened his rosy cheeks and exaggerated the whiteness of his crooked teeth. Ranma noticed that in his hands was some sort of device that resembles a rifle from his original dimension. Although the weapon was very inaccurate and crude, it had served it main purpose: to scare the creatures away from the ship.

Ranma could see that the Kraan were terrified by the noise, and they turned their leathery tails and flew away as their Drakkar riders uselessly tried to stop them.

"Banedon, it's all clear!" Ranma shouted as the Kraan were now in the distance. "Let's get outta here!"

Banedon then used all of his strength to steer the craft about, banking steeply until the ship faced the darkening peaks of the southern mountains and the distinct V-shaped cleft of the Dahir Pass.

As soon as they were out of danger, Banedon finally allowed himself to relax. The dwarves were currently clearing the deck of battle debris while Ranma helped carry the wounded below decks so that they could receive proper treatment. Braxus helped Banedon to his feet while applying his advanced Healing techniques on his wounds.

As Braxus was helping Banedon with his wounds, he started to tell him what had happened from the moment they had arrived in Vassagonia right up to this fateful meeting. Banedon listened intently to Braxus' account and came to the logical conclusion on what they should do.

"The future of Sommerlund rests in our hands, Braxus. We must stop Darklord Haakon from destroying the Book of the Magnakai." Banedon's voice was full of grim determination.

"I don't suppose you know where the Tomb of the Majhan is?" Braxus asked hopefully.

"Hmm... I have heard tell of the Tomb of the Majhan from the nomads of the Dry Main. They say it is a terrible place, a place of horror and death - for what little there is left to die there." Banedon was feeling much better and his strength was returning due to Braxus' help.

"Well that's just great! We managed to escape from one hellhole with our lives and now we have to go to another one!" Ranma commented as he clambered up onto the fortified platform to see how Braxus and Banedon were doing.

"We've got no choice, Ranma. The future of the Kai order is a stake."

Banedon nodded in agreement. "Yes, you are right Braxus. The only problem we face is that I do not know the actual location of the Tomb of Majhan. All I know is that the tomb lies beyond the Dahir Pass and near the oasis of Bal Loftan. The Tomb is isolated in the inhospitable Dry Main, many miles from human habitation, and its location has been lost for centuries. There are only a few traces that remain of the Majhan's glorious rule, but most have long since disappeared beneath the shifting sands of the Dry Main." Banedon noticed the disappointment on Ranma and Braxus' faces at the bad news.

"However, all is not lost," Banedon said to lift their spirits. "There is a man who can guide us there; his name is Tipasa Edarouk - Tipasa the Wanderer. It is he who we must seek, for he is the only man who has ever entered the Tomb of the Majhan and lived to tell the tale."

"So, where does this Tipasa live?" inquired Ranma.

"Oh, that's easy. Tipasa lives in Ikaresh, as it's his birthplace and the home of his family. He spends most of his days roaming the Dry Main, but he always returns to Ikaresh. Ikaresh is just a little to the west of where we are and we should arrive there in the morning." Banedon got up, feeling much better.

Banedon then took over the helm of his extraordinary ship, the Skyrider, as the dwarves called it. It sped through the gathering darkness towards the Dahir Pass. Visibility diminished with each passing minute until they could not see further than the outriggers. Ranma and Braxus were clinging to the ship's railing as the Skyrider veered but a fraction off course - but remained with safety limits. Braxus thought that if the Skyrider veered a little more then they would be smashed to pieces against the mountainside.

"Do not worry, Swift Blade." A dwarf walked over to Braxus and introduced himself as Nolrim, the senior member of the dwarf crew.

"The Captain will see us through." Braxus could see that Banedon was standing with his hand resting lightly on the glowing crystal, relaxed, as if in a trance. His eyes were closed and a crackle of energy, like fine white lightning, traced an intricate pattern over his forehead and temples.

Braxus decided to stay on deck with Banedon to keep a watchful eye open for any trouble while Ranma decided that he had other things to do and went below decks.

Ranma went to the ship's mess hall at the rear end of the Skyrider, as he wanted something to eat, not having eaten anything for the past twenty hours. Kalona was in the corner of the room quietly sleeping as she tried to regain some of her energy after her ordeal. Braxus and Banedon were on the bridge, catching up on old times. Also in the mess hall was a couple of off-duty dwarves.

"Master Wild Horse, please come and sit with us; we have plenty of food." Nolrim invited Ranma to come and sit with them as they excitedly recounted their victory over the Kraan riders.

Ranma gladly accepted their offer seeing that the table was cluttered with plates of steaming food and jugs of foaming ale. The rich smell of spiced meat and Bor-brew filled his nostril and Ranma immediately tucked into the hot meal.

Braxus soon came down from above decks after making sure that Banedon was okay. The rich smell coming from the mess hall was too much of a temptation for him as it reminded him of how ravenously hungry he was.

"Hi," Ranma greeted his brother. "I suppose you're hungry too?"

Braxus nodded, "You bet I am!" he said as one of dwarves moved along to allow more room for their Kai guest.

He was immediately given a plate of hot food.

"How is Banedon, is he okay?" Ranma asked as he made short work of his meal.

"He's fine, just feeling a little weak, but he will make a full recovery by the morning," Braxus said, his meal almost finished.

Once both Ranma and Braxus had finished their meals, they noticed that the dwarves were staring at them, not because of the sheer speed at which they had eaten their meal, but due to them not touching their jugs of ale.

"Err... Braxus, I think they expect us to drink this ale?" Ranma whispered.

"I don't really drink much and I heard that Bor-brew is so strong that many cities of Magnamund have banned it for the fear of the havoc it can cause," Braxus replied. "Oh what the heck, what can a jug of ale do to you?" He threw caution to the wind and lifted the jug.

Ranma smiled and did the same. Both of them took a large gulp of the ale, which they found to be thick and creamy with a taste like malted apples. They then placed the half-empty tankards onto the table and wiped away the froth from their lips with their sleeves.

The dwarves pretended to continue their meal as they watched the two humans take a gulp of the ale. They then paused in their meal as they started to light their large hooded pipes. Through the bluish hue of the pipe smoke that clouded the low cabin roof, Ranma noticed that they were casting nervous glances at him and his brother, as if they were about to explode at any moment. They hadn't expected Ranma or Braxus to take the drink so easily.

Five minutes passed; then Nolrim raised his tankard and proclaimed a toast:

"To Wild Horse- A MAN AMONG DWARVES!"

The dwarves guffawed at Nolrim's wry toast and raised their tankards in a salute to Ranma's courage and fortitude.

"A man among dwarves! Three cheers for Wild Horse!"

Ranma's left eye started to twitch for no apparent reason while at the same time he received a chilling feeling as if someone had walked over his grave.

***

Somewhere in Nerima

Genma Saotome was running as fast as he could, trying to get away from the person that he most feared, even more so than his dreaded master, Happosai.

Was it the Musk Dynasty tribe?

Nope.

Was it the Amazon people?

Not even close.

Was it all the people and their families that he had cheated by using Ranma as his bargaining tool?

Yeah right, like he really cared about those arrangements.

The one thing that he was absolutely afraid of was...

His wife, Nodoka Saotome, who was chasing her husband across Nerima. In one hand she waved a piece of paper that looked like some sort of contract, while in the other hand she was wielding a very sharp looking Katana.

"GENMA! YOU COME BACK HERE AND FACE YOUR PUNISHMENT AS WRITTEN IN THIS SEPPUKU CONTRACT!" she shouted.

Most of the people along the sidewalk seeing this amusing chase thought it was quite funny to see a crazed woman wielding a Katana chasing after a giant panda.

"HOW COULD YOU LOSE MY BABY! YOU SAID YOU WOULD RAISE HIM AS A MAN AMONG MEN!" She swung her Katana in a wide arc, trying to disembowel Genma.

*Honey, can we just sit down and talk about this?* were the words he wrote on a wooden sign, as he couldn't talk while he was in his cursed form.

Nodoka's Katana sliced the wooden sign into two pieces.

*Maybe not,* Genma immediately wrote on another sign that appeared from nowhere.

'Hmm, the North Pole seems like a good place to go," Genma thought as he continued to outrun his wife by turning left down an alleyway.

Nodoka followed him down the alleyway, which led to dead end. She wondered where her husband was; it seemed that he had simply disappeared and she was about to leave the place when...

A red-haired, pig-tailed young lady appeared from nowhere and silently pointed towards a couple of large garbage bins.

Nodoka silently thanked the young woman as she crept towards the largest garbage bin.

"Here, you may need this." The young lady handed Nodoka an extra sharp and long Katana.

"Why thank you." She gracefully accepted as she sheathed her family Katana; no point spilling cowardly blood over it.

She then politely told her to leave, as this could get a bit messy.

Lifting the bin lid up, Nodoka found what she was looking for.

*Err... hi honey?* were the last words that Genma wrote as he saw a dangerous glint in her eye.

(Where the hell does he get these wooden signs from? I mean pandas do not have pockets.)

***

Back on the Skyrider

"Ranma, I think you should take your brother to one of our bunks," Nolrim suggested as he saw the condition Braxus was in.

"What do you mean?" Ranma asked, confused until he turned his attention towards his brother. "Oh..." Ranma said as he saw his brother had collapsed.

"It seems that master Swift Blade couldn't seem to handle the Bor-brew like you could," Nolrim said.

Ranma nodded. "Be back in minute." He rose up from his seat and grabbed his brother's left arm over his shoulder as he carried Braxus through to the next room where there were a couple of bunks. Nolrim pointed helpfully to the largest bunk they had.

Carefully placing him onto the bunk, Ranma sighed as realised that his brother was going to have one heck of a hangover when he woke up. Making sure that he was comfortable, Ranma went back to the mess room to find Nolrim was the only one there as all the other dwarves had decided to call it a day and retired to their respective bunks.

Ranma sat down opposite Nolrim, who was smoking his pipe.

"So, Nolrim, how did you meet Banedon and how did he manage to gain possession of this marvellous ship?" Ranma asked. Nolrim lowered his pipe.

"Hmm..." Nolrim scratched his forehead. "Three years ago, our former captain, Quan, lost his ship, cargo and crew whilst gambling at cards."

'Man, and I thought I was bad at cards," Ranma thought, making a mental note not to play against Banedon in a game of cards.

"It seems that Quan was unaware of Banedon's true profession until it was far too late. As a result, our blond-haired magician became our first non-dwarf captain and ever since then we've had many bold adventurers with him across the lands and skies of Southern Magnamund," Nolrim explained as he offered Ranma his pipe.

Ranma refused politely. "You still haven't answered how Banedon got hold of this ship?"

"Oh, that's easy; this flying ship was the reward for Banedon when he helped the Magicians of Dessi to defeat the Gagodoth: a terrifying creature that terrorised their land, and over which their own sorcery could not prevail."

"Wow, I didn't know Banedon was that good!" exclaimed Ranma in surprise.

Nolrim nodded. "Captain Banedon is indeed a talented magician, but from what I have seen in you in last twenty four hours, you are a skilled warrior worthy of the title Kai Master, Lord Wild Horse," Nolrim commented.

Ranma thanked him. He then yawed loudly as the fatigue of his ordeal finally caught up with him and he was finding it more and more difficult to keep his eyes open. "Follow me, Wild Horse. I'll show you to your quarters." Nolrim showed Ranma to a bunk in the hull of the Skyrider.

Ranma then climbed into bed and pulled the blankets over his aching limbs.

"I'm sorry for the size of the bunk; it is designed for dwar..." Nolrim was interrupted by the sound of snoring as his words fell on deaf ears; Ranma had already fallen asleep.

"Well Goodnight, Master Wild Horse," Nolrim said as he closed the cabin door.

***

It was late afternoon when the Skyrider finally reached its destination. Banedon carefully landed the ship behind the hill that overlooked the town of Ikaresh. He moored the Skyrider to a pinnacle of stone before lowering a rope ladder to the ground. Banedon suggested that Ranma should stay behind and watch out for any Kraan patrols. Ranma grudgingly agreed and watched as Braxus and Banedon climbed down the ladder and walked the rest of the distance by foot to locate Tipasa while Ranma, Nolrim and the crew waited in hiding for them to return. Banedon realised that the sight of the Skyrider hovering above the mountain town would be sure to arouse unwanted interest in their arrival and hinder their search for Tipasa.

Three hours passed as Ranma waited for his brother and Banedon to return from Ikaresh. To pass the time, Ranma decided to practice his swordplay as he had been neglecting his weapons training over the past few days, instead concentrating on his martial arts. After enough training, he decided to play a few card games with Nolrim and the crew to relieve his boredom.

Several hands later, Ranma heard one of the dwarves call out that he had spotted Braxus and Banedon appearing atop the hill as they made their way back from Ikaresh. As soon as they were aboard the Skyrider, Ranma rushed up to greet them, but was puzzled to see that only Braxus and Banedon had returned.

"Well, did you find him?" Ranma asked.

Both of them sported sad expressions as they shook their heads.

"What happened?"

"Tipasa was kidnapped a few days ago by a band of Drakkar warriors and they are using to him to find the location of the Tomb of Majhan."

"Damn!" Ranma smacked his palm with his fist. "Now what are we going to do?" he said in an angry tone.

"Fear not Ranma, I do have something that will lead us to the location of the Tomb: Tipasa's diary of his travels through the Dry Main." Banedon showed him the book that he had under his arm.

Ranma opened the book to see that it was full of cryptic symbols, numbers and pictograms, and he had no clue on where to start looking.

"Ranma, those symbols and drawings represent the night stars - an astronomical drawing. With my star charts I will soon unravel Tipasa's cryptic clues. I'm sure that this book contains the answers," Banedon explained, noticing the confused look on Ranma's face as he flipped through a couple of pages.

"Nolrim, prepare to set sail," Banedon ordered.

"Aye, Captain." Nolrim nodded. "Trim the boomsail men," he shouted to the other dwarves. Banedon signalled to Ranma and Braxus to meet him in his cabin while he prepared the ship for take off.

The Skyrider rose into the clear, blue sky and Nolrim was handed the helm by Banedon who then went to his cabin where his friends were waiting. For three hours Banedon pored over his charts, making very complex calculations, checking instrument readings and racking his brain for the solution that would pinpoint the Tomb of the Majhan. Braxus tried to help him with his calculations, but he was finding the last clue difficult. Ranma was sitting in the corner patching up his torn Kai cloak.

"It's no use," Banedon said; the numbers on the last page made no sense. "I cannot fathom these numbers." He slammed his fist in frustration.

"What's wrong?" Ranma said, walking over to the table where Braxus and Banedon were still trying to work it out.

"I can't seem to work them out; these clues make no sense!" Braxus explained as he showed Ranma the diary page in question. Banedon had assumed that the numbers were the positions of the stars encoded to three numbers that would hopefully give the precise location of the Tomb. Ranma took one glance at the page and instantly knew the answer to their problem as Banedon and Braxus recalculated and checked their work to see if they had missed anything.

"Oh that's easy: it's 373," Ranma simply answered.

Banedon and Braxus stopped dead in their tracks and looked up to stare at Ranma as if he had grown another head or something. A dead silence filled the cabin.

"Care to share how you managed to work that out?" Braxus asked, wondering if this was the real Ranma they were seeing.

"Yes, Ranma, an explanation would be helpful?" asked Banedon as he wondered how the hell Ranma had worked it out.

"You see, Tipasa wrote the clues upside down in his diary and also in tiny writing." Ranma pointed to the writing in the diary. "The answers to the clues are: there are three oases on the trail between Ikaresh and Bir Rabalou; there are seven cities in Vassagonia; while there are only three main islands off the coast of Cape Kabar. So, put together, this gives you the answer of 373," Ranma explained, aware of the surprised expressions of Braxus and Banedon.

"Well Ranma, it's nice to see you have a brain!" teased Braxus at his brother's sudden burst of intelligence.

"That's it! Ranma you're a genius!" exclaimed Banedon as he got up and shook Ranma by the shoulder before stabbing his finger at a map of the Dry Main covering the table.

"One hundred and fifteen miles due west of Bir Rabalou; one hundred and fifteen miles due south of the oasis of Bal Loftan," muttered Banedon as he picked up a quill pen and marked the spot where the Tomb of the Majhan lay.

Ranma and Braxus looked at the map where Banedon had marked the spot. Banedon noticed their looks of dismay and quickly tried to put their minds at ease.

"Fear not, we'll be there before the dawn; and with the three of us working against the Darklord and his minions, we can accomplished anything," Banedon said to liven up the atmosphere as he left to inform Nolrim of the Skyrider's new course.

***

Dawn was breaking on the horizon of low hills, blurred and dotted with small, tufted trees. Swiftly the Skyrider had voyaged through the night to arrive at the foothills of the Koneshi Mountains undetected, having managed to avoid the Kraan patrols.

"How far is the Tomb of the Majhan?" Ranma asked as the trio prepared to disembark, Banedon having decided that it would be too dangerous to fly directly into the immediate area. Also, they wanted to keep the element of surprise on their side.

"About twenty fives miles to the north, across the landscape of barren rock and dry brush," Banedon said as he checked his map and his co-ordinates to ensure they were correct before they left.

"Twenty five miles!" exclaimed Ranma. "You could have flown us in a bit closer couldn't you?" he suggested to Banedon.

Banedon shook his head. "No, Ranma. If we flew in closer, the chance of surprise would be greatly decreased, and we must maintain it if we are to gain the upper hand over Darklord Haakon," Banedon explained.

"Yeah, Ranma, aren't you up to a twenty five mile hike through the desert?" Braxus challenged his brother, knowing that Ranma wouldn't back down from any challenge.

"Of course I am! Let's go." Ranma grabbed his pack and his sword and ran down the gangplank.

"You know, Braxus, you shouldn't do that to him." Banedon started to follow the young Kai Master.

"Do what?" Braxus said, not knowing what he was getting at.

"I mean you shouldn't encourage Ranma to take on all the challenges he faces. In my experience some challenges aren't worth the hassle while others may mean the difference between life and death. It is up to Ranma to make these choices himself," Banedon explained as they finally caught up with him.

Braxus nodded and quickly wrapped himself up against the cold in a camouflaged, khaki-coloured cloak; his old one would be easily visible against the desert background. Kalona was still too weak to help so they left her on board the Skyrider on Braxus' recommendation. The trio set off before dawn, anxious not to waste either time or the protective cover of darkness. They all agreed they should carry on non-stop until they reached the Tomb as time was against them.

Resting at the top of a sand dune, Ranma wondered why Banedon had signalled them to remain here while they waited for something to happen.

"Banedon, why are we here? Shouldn't we be making our way to the tome?" Braxus whispered.

"We're already here," Banedon simply replied.

"What do you mean?" Ranma said. All they could see ahead of them was a huge sand dune and darkness.

"Watch and see." Banedon pointed. Ranma and Braxus looked where he was pointing to see the great golden disc of the sun rising in the sky revealing their goal for the first time.

What they saw was a massive excavation exposed in the heart of this scorched land, delving deep around the tombs of its forgotten ancestors. They could see with their keen eyesight thousands of Giaks, spiteful and malicious servants of the Darklords, labouring unceasingly to remove rock and sand from this quarry, forced by the Drakkarim to drag their backbreaking loads up ramps to the rim of the crater.

Ranma and Braxus then turned their attention to Banedon who was grinning at their reactions. "Banedon, how did you know where we were?" Ranma inquired as they hid their heads behind the sand dune to avoid being seen. They had been travelling through the desert without a compass or any recognisable landmarks to tell them where they were. Even the stars were clouded so they could not rely on them for navigation. This left the question: how did he manage to lead them to the exact location of the Tomb in the dark?

"Yeah, Banedon. How did you know where we were?" Braxus said, also interested. He had thought they were off course by miles, but here they were on the site of the Tomb of Majhan.

Banedon waved his hand to signal Ranma and Braxus to come closer.

"It's a secret." Banedon tapped on his nose and the two Kai Masters facefaulted - but very quietly.

Banedon smirked as Ranma and Braxus tried to recover from their quiet facefault.

"Come on, you two, there is still hope we can still retrieve the book of the Magnakai. Look!" Banedon peered over the sand dune and pointed to a huge flying creature, which Ranma instantly recognised as an Imperial Zlanbeast.

Braxus realised if an Imperial Zlanbeast was here, it meant that Darklord Haakon was here too, and that thought chilled his blood, but Ranma reassured him that there was still a chance as the Giaks continued to dig deeper, meaning that they hadn't found it yet.

Banedon then signalled for Ranma and Braxus to come with him and they climbed down the huge sand dune. He then started to draw a diagram of the excavation site on the sand while using stones to represent various parts of the uncovered temple.

"Now, Ranma, Braxus, listen to me carefully: I assume that Tipasa is likely being held captive inside the encampment and, considering they are still digging, I assume again that he is alive; I hope," Banedon said.

"Don't worry, Banedon, Tipasa is alive as along as Darklord Haakon does not get his hands on the Book of the Magnakai," Ranma reassured the worried-looking magician.

Banedon nodded and continued his explanation.

"It is impossible to approach the crater unseen, so we have to wait until darkness before you two can enter the tomb." Ranma and Braxus nodded in understanding. "Now, the Tomb of the Majhan is split into four main chambers and, according to Tipasa's diary, this is the main one where the book is suppose to be held." Banedon pointed to the large rock in the centre of his layout.

"Err... Banedon, what does this represent?" Braxus pointed to a reddish-copper stone, wondering if this was some sort of barrack or armoury tent.

"That's just a stone," Banedon said and Ranma started to laugh quietly.

Embarrassment appeared on Braxus' face as he looked at Ranma and Banedon sheepishly. "Oh." Ranma started to laugh even more at his brother's expense.

As soon as nightfall settled in, they continued to make their way towards the Tomb while Banedon had gone off to see if he could rescue Tipasa. The Giak guards posed a few problems, but they could not overcome Ranma and Braxus' stealth and warrior skills. Additionally, they were pretty much knackered due to the Drakkarim overworking them to the point of exhaustion. Only the Drakkarim showed any sign of vigilance, but they were fewer in number compared to the thousands of Giak warriors - less than a dozen patrolled the entire crater.

Hiding behind a large structure, Braxus peered around the corner to see a lone Drakkar on guard at the main entrance to the Tomb, his cruel eyes glinting behind his twisted iron death mask.

"Now Ranma, I will be going around him and you should..." Braxus whispered, but turned around to see that Ranma was missing.

Braxus frantically looked around him to see where he had gone when he heard a bird whistle that seemed to be coming from the main entrance.

He then peered around to see that Ranma had already crept behind the lone Drakkar and taken him out without a sound. He was currently dragging the body into the Tomb. Ranma waved as Braxus sighed before he ran across to join him and they entered the temple. 'So much for teamwork!' he thought as they entered. The tomb was dimly lit by torches, which lined along the long and straight, sandstone corridors that seemed to slope away forever into the distance.

At regular intervals, rough-edged slabs protruded into the main corridor. Ranma's Sixth Senses detected something wrong with them. Deciding to find out, Ranma crouched down and took a closer look at one of the slabs and, beneath it, he found something frightening.

"Braxus, the whole place is booby trapped with nasty traps!" Ranma warned.

"I can see that," Braxus replied.

"How do you know?" Ranma wondered.

Braxus pointed to the traps that had already been set off as dozens of Giak slaves lay either skewed or crushed to death. Braxus came to the conclusion that the Darklord had deliberately used the Giak slaves to set them off rather than walking through the death-trap corridor himself. Once the traps were sprung, it would clear the path, allowing passing without harm. Pit traps in the floor seemed to have been neutralised in the same way, set off by the luckless Giaks.

"I think this guy is lazy," Ranma commented.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it seems that he gets others to do his work rather than do it himself." Braxus chuckled at Ranma's joke as they carefully navigated around the traps and made their way down to the end of the corridor.

Just over a mile along the corridor, Ranma and Braxus eventually arrived at a large stone door. The stone surround bore evidence of chisel-work, but the door itself was rock solid.

"I don't suppose you have any explosives on you?" Ranma asked.

Braxus shook his head. "Hmm..." He noticed a faint beam of light descending from a hole in the ceiling.

"What are you thinking, Bro?" Ranma asked as he tried to shift the stone door; but his efforts were wasted as it wouldn't budge.

"Ranma, I don't suppose you have some sort of crystal or prism on you?" Braxus asked as he realised the means of opening the door.

Ranma searched his pockets. "Will this do?" He showed him the reflective crystal that Loi-Kymar had given to him when they were in Kalte.

"That will do nicely." Braxus took the crystal, realising that the faint beam of light created a small circular pool of light, a little to one side of a similar hole in the floor. In the wall near to the door was a triangular indentation.

Braxus then held the crystal in the centre of the beam and diverted the light towards the hole in the floor. His success was heard as the sound of stone grating on stone; slowly the doorway opened to reveal a large chamber.

The chamber was dimly lit. Ranma and Braxus cautiously entered the room and immediately saw the rough stone throne, facing the wall on the far side of the chamber. Behind them the door slid shut with unnerving speed.

The throne began to revolve. A terrible howling could be heard, changing almost instantaneously to the growling of a harsh, guttural language, the like of which Braxus had never before heard, but Ranma knew instantly who it was. Words and sounds that the mouths of men could never be shaped to speak rolled through the chamber like thunder. Ranma knew that only the Darklords themselves spoke the Dark Tongue.

They realised that they weren't alone in the chamber as they saw their nemesis sitting on the throne.

Haakon, Lord of Aarnak, Darklord of Helgedad.

He rose from the throne, the ghastly voice still echoing from his unnatural mouth. A spiked fist opened to reveal a glowing stone: blue flames smouldered around its surface and they could feel the currents of power that radiated from its core.

Suddenly, his words changed to a familiar language - Sommlending.

"Welcome to the Tomb of Majhan, resting place of the dead - and soon to be yours, I will make sure of that! Look on your Doom, Kai Lord!" He pointed his spiked fist at Ranma.

Ranma immediately unsheathed his golden sword on instinct alone, just in time to deflect the bolt of raw energy. It screamed from his blade and exploded into the chamber wall, gouging a hole several feet deep in the steel-hard rock. The impact jarred the Sommerswerd from his hand: the blade arced through the dust-choked air to embed itself, upright, in the stone floor. Ranma and Braxus rolled across the floor in different directions, taking cover behind the stone pillars.

Looking across the chamber, Ranma could see that Braxus had unsheathed his magic sword and silently signalled to him to grab the Sommerswerd while he distracted Haakon. Ranma nodded and prepared to race towards the golden blade as he waited for Braxus' signal.

"Come out, Kai Lord, and meet your doom!" Haakon started to blast the pillars with his spiked glove and was getting close to the one Ranma was hiding behind.

Braxus, seeing that he was preoccupied in flushing out Ranma, ran towards the Darklord, hoping that he would catch him off guard, while at the same time, Ranma ran half-crouched toward his golden blade, grabbed the hilt and continued at full speed towards another pillar. Breathing a sigh of relief, he peered around the corner and watched in horror at the events unfolding.

Braxus hadn't been so lucky. The Darklord had sensed his goodly aura and turned around and tried to blast him with his fist. Braxus' attempt to dodged the blast but was a fraction too slow and the blue bolt exploded at his feet. He was thrown violently backwards against a pillar by the shock of the blast, though not before digging Excalibur right into the Darklord's dark breastplate, causing agonising pain to Haakon whom howled.

"BRAXUS!" Ranma cried out as he saw his brother fly across the chamber, knocked unconscious, his Kai tunic burnt and torn due to the shrapnel from the Darklord's blast.

The Darklord staggered back as he tried to wrench the cursed blade from his breastplate. Normally he would be dead by now, but the Darklords were powerful creatures of Naar and needed something more to finish them off. Finally the Darklord pulled the blade out and threw it to the floor.

Ranma was about to rush over to his brother but stopped as he noticed a mist as black as the grave seeping from Haakon's mouth.

"Now what?" Ranma assumed an offensive position as the mist crept along his outstretched arm and settled like a cloud in the palm of his upturned hand. Whirling shadow shapes drew into focus: wings and tentacles sprouted and took form; a curse in the Dark Tongue shook the whole chamber as a deadly flood of horror hurtled from his hand.

Ranma, not wasting a second, rushed forward as his golden sword sliced and diced the Crypt Spawn as they appeared. Ranma was so preoccupied with the three Crypt Spawn that he hadn't noticed one of them had managed to creep around him and it reared its tentacles to slash at Ranma's head.

Ranma gasped, sensing something evil behind him, and turned to see that the Crypt Spawn remained motionless, a shortsword imbedded in its foul head. Ranma looked around the chamber to see whom it was that had saved him.

He saw that Braxus had regained consciousness and was currently trying to get up using his sword to aid him. Blood dripped from the corner of Braxus' mouth, but as he gave the thumbs-up to say that he was okay, Ranma could see the pained expression across his face. Braxus then continued to help him slay the last of the Crypt Spawn as if nothing had happened to him.

Moments later as Ranma and Braxus slew the last of the Crypt Spawn, Haakon reeled back as if weakened by the death of his creatures. The two Kai Masters stepped forward towards the Darklord intending to inflict the greatest amount of pain on him.

"Ranma, it's up to you to fight him!" Braxus said.

"Huh, what do you mean?" Ranma turned to see that Braxus had finally collapsed from exhaustion as battle fatigue had finally caught up with him. Ranma was reassured by his Kai senses that he wasn't in a serious condition, just exhausted.

Ranma raised the Sommerswerd just as he had against Darklord Zagarna and willed the blade to discharge a bolt of power that would burn the evil Darklord from the face of Magnamund forever.

The blade shimmered with golden fire, but no searing blast issued from its tip. Ranma stared in shock for a moment, realisation soon dawning on him: the Sword of the Sun needed the sun from which to draw its main powers; considering that he was beneath the earth, he would have to do it the old-fashioned way.

Haakon uttered a terrible laugh that shook the floor as he had also realised what had happened. "What's wrong, Kai Lord, doesn't your little stick work?" mocked Haakon as a beam of blue flame from the stone in his hand formed a fiery blade that crackled and spat as it cut through the dust-choked air. The stench of death and decay filled Ranma's nostrils as the Darklord prepared to attack.

"I will enjoy seeing you die by my hands!"

"We see about that! I don't feel like dying today, so bring it on!" Ranma taunted as their blades clashed together.

(Think of Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader with their respective coloured lightsabers, but Ranma has the golden sabre while Haakon had the red.)

***

Ranko was currently with her friend Skuld as they watched the battle to the death between the Vader-look-alike and Ranma Stormgard. They were watching the action through her viewing crystal.

"Wow, Ranko, this is one the most exciting fights I have seen for quite some time. It's better than that science fiction film, Star Wars!" Skuld commented as she munched on the large tub of popcorn-favoured ice cream.

Ranko was cheering Ranma with victory flags and fans.

"Go Ranma! Kick Haakon's butt back to where came from!"

She saw Ranma backflip and dodged Haakon's attempts as he went on the defensive. While Haakon had the strength and power to defeat almost anyone, Ranma, on the other hand, seemed to have the better speed and agility as his body twisted and contorted like a reed in the wind. His sword deflected Haakon's inhuman blows with astounding speed, making him a difficult and virtually impossible target.

Ranko could see that Ranma wasn't holding back this time and his true skills and combat potential were finally being revealed. Ranma realised that this battle was not just between him and the Darklord, but was for all of Sommerlund and, most importantly, the resurrection of the new Kai order.

***

Currently, Ranma was on the offensive, delivering a flurry of strikes against the Darklord as anger built up within him and he started to lose his focus.

Haakon swung his weapon in rage at a downward angle hoping to catch him off guard. Ranma narrowly missed the blade as it imbedded the flame-weapon into the dusty, stone floor, cracking it and leaving a large gash.

Seeing that Haakon was momentarily vulnerable wrenching his blade from where it was embedded, Ranma launched a savage counter-attack at him, combining his martial arts and swordmanship in a complex pattern that left Haakon completely defenceless.

Blow after blow of Ranma's punches and kicks fell upon Haakon's body and he staggered back at the force before Ranma raised the Sommerswerd, which had started to glow, high above his head.

Haakon's evil eyes widened in fear as Ranma's sword was bought down in a fierce overhead arc, the golden blade smashing through Haakon's blackened armour and his rotten, decaying flesh. Haakon let out a final scream before he fell face first onto the dusty floor.

Ranma collapsed to one knee, regaining his breath back after that ordeal with the Darklord. Looking around to where the Darklord had fallen, Ranma could see there was no sign of his body. He sheathed the Sommerswerd back within its jewelled scabbard. The atmosphere was strangely calm and peaceful, as if a great and evil shadow had been lifted.

Ranma then sensed something that he hadn't detected when they had first entered; it was as if someone was telling him that he should look to the throne where Haakon had sat. Trusting his senses, Ranma walked over to the throne and noticed that beyond it lay a portal, an ancient inscription carved deep into the blood-red stone. Below the carving was set the impression of a human hand.

Instinct and intuition guided Ranma's hand to the door and the carving matched it like a glove.

Silently the portal slid back to reveal Ranma and Braxus' destiny - The Book of the Magnakai.

Set on the pedestal, the book lay open, its secrets revealed to Ranma's eyes alone. Lifting the sacred book, the very air throbbed around Ranma with the vibration of the force locked within its sun-gold cover. With a pounding heart, Ranma closed the book and rushed over to his brother who was still unconscious.

"Braxus, wake up!" Ranma began to use his Healing techniques to wake him up. Placing a hand over his chest, Ranma concentrated on his Kai skills of Healing and, as a warm glow of his power started to take effect, his Healing started to repair the internal damage and bruised ribs. Braxus slowly woke up.

Braxus' eyes opened a little, focusing on the book that Ranma had under his arm. "I knew that you could do it. What is it now, two Darklords you've defeated?" he whispered. He tried to get up with the strength remaining in his body.

Ranma nodded and smiled as he helped him to get up. They slowly left the chamber and walked out of the Tomb.

By the time they reached the foothills of the Koneshi Mountains, Banedon had successfully completed his mission and he and Tipasa were waiting for the two Kai Masters to arrive. As they saw Ranma carrying Braxus under one arm, they could also see him clutching the Book of the Magnakai with his other.

"This is a night of triumph!" Banedon said, barely able to contain his excitement. "This will herald a new dawn of hope for Sommerlund. The Kai are reborn."

Ranma and Braxus smiled as they sat down and waited for the Skyrider to appear to pick them up.

***

Onboard the Skyrider

Banedon, Tipasa, Ranma and Braxus were safely picked up and they headed northwards across the barren desert region.

"Banedon, what course do we set?" asked Nolrim.

Banedon glanced over his shoulder to see Ranma and Braxus were absolutely exhausted, both asleep on the deck of the Skyrider. Ranma was clutching the Book of the Magnakai as though his life depended on and it would need something supernatural to remove it from him.

"Should we wake them up?" asked one of the dwarves.

Banedon shook his head as a smile appeared on his face as he looked at his two sleeping friends. "Leave them be, they deserve all the rest they can get."

The dwarf nodded and resumed his duties.

"Captain, the course?" Nolrim repeated his request.

Banedon turned to face Nolrim. "Oh, yes; Nolrim, set course so that we can drop Tipasa off at Ikaresh, then we head north to our homeland, Sommerlund," Banedon ordered.

"Aye Captain, Ikaresh then Sommerlund!" Nolrim relayed the captain's orders to the other dwarves.

As the Skyrider headed toward the horizon and the sun began to settle, the destiny of Wild Horse and Swift Blade and their magician friend Banedon had finally begun! But for now the trio deserved a well-earned rest before they began their next stage of the long and arduous path to Kai Grand Mastership.

***

End of Book One - Wild Horse of Kai

***