Ranma 1/2 was created by Rumiko Takahashi and its characters belong to her, and her alone. I'm just Kinda borrowing them. A few others are mine. The story below is for entertainment purposes only, and not to be used commercially. ...Obviously.

"Learning Curve"

Part XXVII (v1.3)

by: J. Wagner

Far below the battlefield between Musk father and son, the now transformed people beneath Phoenix Mountain found a babe among their fields. Cold, alone, abandoned, he seemed to scream defiance to a world, to a nature, that would Kill him. He would not die. They adopted him, and he lived among them, as one of them, even as his power grew. While his brother took the Musk Throne, he dominated his peers, rose above them, and became their Lord, memories of his past life like a fleeting dream: vague, hazy.

In time, the actions of this Phoenix King became not just noticed, but of interest to his brother, the Lord of the Musk. It took little beyond the obvious to see what had occurred, and the two monarchs met. Things, however, did not go smoothly between the brothers, and indeed, soon enough a fight broke out between them, neither willing to submit to the other, both leaders and heirs to the throne in their own right. Lord Herb, older due to his brother's 'death' and far more experienced and trained, threw down his upstart twin brother and defeated him. The Phoenix King withdrew, still unwilling to submit, and now bitterly aware of his past. With the Phoenix people behind him, he attacked Jusendo in a bid to divide the Musk. After ravaging the Observatory, however, he was again defeated, and finally 'Killed' by his brother.

"Search the ruins! Upend every stone and brick! Find him, bring him; he will not be again as he has become!"

The Musk Lord had the battlefield searched for his brother, but to no avail. He had already been secreted away by his followers among the Phoenix, by those with no knowledge of his true origins. To them, he was a savior and a liberator. And so, for over two hundred years, the Phoenix Exiles cared for their King, and as his brother grew weak with old age, and passed on to his ancestors, Saffron returned to the Phoenix, and led them anew to Jusendo and finally to Phoenix Mountain. His nephew, now Lord of the Musk Dynasty, investigated this, and faced the returned Saffron. To the horror of the young Lord, his erstwhile uncle had become wholly Phoenix, sporting great wings of feather and flame - he was no longer Musk, and he would not join them. Nor would the young Dragon Lord submit to the Phoenix. Thus, without delay, he attacked with the full fury of the Musk, drew Saffron out, and after great effort, and a heavy heart, destroyed him once more.

But the Phoenix would not die.

And soon he rose again... more powerful and terrible than ever before.

***

Japan. Tokyo, to be exact.

Two men were walking down the street, minding their own business. One was dressed in bright red clothes, embroidered with a green and gold dragon. Beneath the Mao cap keeping the midday sun out of his eyes, he had a pigtail that curled slightly, bouncing against his left shoulder blade. He looked around, keeping an eye on his surroundings, leading his companion. The other man's only really distinctive feature was a large backpack, larger than his associate's, and a tendency to look down while he walked. He had a plain mustard colored crew shirt, cut roughly at the shoulders, and green pants with black lacings around the lower legs.

They weren't in Nerima yet, and no one really paid them much attention.

"Are you sure you don't want to just take the roofs?" Ranma sighed, his shoulders slumping.

"Nah. That'd just draw attention." The other traveler held tightly to the straps of his backpack. "I just want to blend in... look normal for a while."

"Whatever. You've been acting weird ever since... you know," Ranma said, eyes passing over some nearby shops, looking for something. "You've been mopin' and grumblin' and being depressin' even more than usual."

"I guess I'm just eager to get home." The lost boy didn't smile. "Before the stuff I got for Nabiki spoils."

"Which reminds me... I'm no good at this Kind of thing..."

"You mean finding something for Akane?"

"Yeah." Ranma nodded. "What do you get a violent tomboy like her, anyway? She wouldn't go for any of the stuff you get Nabiki. And I'm not gonna do any mushy romantic stuff, like writing a letter or nothin.'"

"You're on your own, Saotome," Ryouga said, walked a little faster, until he was almost side-to-side with Ranma. "You've got to find something from you, not me."

"What about some concrete blocks? She must go through those like water!"

"I... don't think that's wise." There was only a hint of anger.

Ranma frowned. Ryouga had been worse than brooding ever since the incident they'd had at the corner store they'd visited, days ago, he'd been apathetic. Hibiki Ryouga was *never* apathetic. He'd started holding back in their sparring more than usual - granted, they both held back when they sparred, but Ryouga wasn't just holding back, it was as if he was afraid to fight. He had acted somewhat extreme with the two scumbags that had tried to rob the store, but everything had happened so fast, Ryouga had struck without really thinking. Ranma did the same sometimes, when he was caught by surprise by someone, reacting with a typical foot to the face or something similar.

Ryouga, however, didn't even want to talk about it. He didn't seem anywhere near as enthusiastic as he had been about sparring and testing their techniques as he had been. He didn't even want to race against cars, or jump on the rooftops, or do any number of things they both used to revel in. Maybe was simply just anxious to get back home to Nabiki. Ranma knew Ryouga must have missed her, because he sent her a letter every few days, and sometimes gifts and other things - but at the same time, he had never really been in a huge hurry to get back to her and the Tendo home, either. Ranma shook his head, confused. Ryouga was still a mystery in his thoughts.

He was just... weird, sometimes.

"What about getting her a... uh... baseball bat?" Ranma asked. "Something to go with her mallet?"

Ryouga was silent.

"I dunno..." Ranma groaned. His eyes rested on something, and he got an idea. "Hey, what about a cookbook? 'Cooking for Dummies?'"

Ryouga's left eyebrow raised.

"Good," Ranma thought, "A reaction."

"Cooking for Dummies, Saotome?" Ryouga asked. He still didn't sound angry, just a little annoyed.

"Just look." Ranma pointed at the shelf, in a nearby bookstore, behind glass. "'CooKing for Dummies.'"

"Dare I say it Saotome?" Ryouga slowly shook his head, a very small smile creeping up. "That's a recipe for disaster, giving that to Akane."

Ranma grinned. "Yeah. Maybe. But it'll be amusing. I think I will get her that!"

Ryouga's smile disappeared, and he leaned back against the wall, next to the door. "Go ahead," he said, tone neutral. "I'll just wait out here."

"If you want to. Don't go wandering around now, lost boy." Ranma gave him a quick smirk, and walked in to buy the book.

Ryouga 'hmfed' and crossed his arms, waiting. Closing his eyes, he tried to shut out the world around him. Every moment, every impulse, tore at his mind. He ground his teeth together, built up the walls within him, and retreated to their high crenellations. They he would be safe, secure, his own master, and there, more importantly, the world would be safe from him. He needed a prison as much as a castle.

In the distance, he heard something crash.

"No! Everyone run!" someone yelled.

"A bear!" a man yelled, fear cracking his voice. "How did a bear get loose?!"

"Everyone, stay calm! Get into a building!" That was a woman. Ryouga looked to the side, not moving from where he stood. Apparently a brown bear, a large one, too, had escaped, from where, he had no idea. Where these giant rampaging animals came from was just one of life's eternal mysteries. Most people were running around like headless chicken - panicked, as people tend to panic. Frowning, he saw that one woman, in a Kimono and holding a katana in an improper stance, had decided to confront the animal and try and scare it off by waving the sword around with all the grace and finesse of a baseball bat.

It only took a millisecond for him to decide to act.

Powerful legs, enhanced and bolstered by his Ki, took him to the air. The wind blew past his face, blowing through his hair, which had grown longer than he normally let it. His body sang with the power, and he landed next to the woman, his feet cracking the asphalt.

"Don't move," Ryouga said, facing the bear, but talking to the woman. "If you run, he'll chase you."

"Who...?" She started.

Ryouga ignored her and took a step towards the bear. His hands were at his sides, and the bear shuffled back a few feet, growling. It only took a few seconds, before the big bruin tired of the game and pulled the lost boy's bluff. The bear rose up to its full height and roared a challenge, a sound that make a lion's roar seem like one of Neko-Shampoo's pathetic meows. Ryouga smiled.

The lost boy looked into the animal's eyes and felt a Kindred spirit. The bear was big and mean... a rogue in the making, perhaps, over five times Ryouga's weight, and most of that muscle. The creature was obviously in its prime, which was a damn shame. In other circumstances, the lost boy would have considered it a beautiful animal. But now, here, it was just about anyone's worst nightmare. A rogue brown bear was about as bad as they came. No more fearsome, or deadly, an animal walked the land.

A low growl left Ryouga's throat.

His body itched, ever nerve and muscle wanting to strike out. Wanting to break and tear and smash and destroy. Their eyes locked, the bear dropped back onto all fours and backed up, snarling, even as Ryouga slowly walked towards it. The animal's claws, long and strong enough to smash through the door of a log cabin, promised death. Ryouga's hands clenched, swearing the same.

The bear snorted, and looked away. It was about to walk away, when two darts landed on its flank. It growled, annoyed at the pinpricks, and started to escape. It slowed after only a few strides, before slumping against a wall and onto its side. Four men poured out of a truck, and headed towards the fallen animal. One paused when he passed by Ryouga.

"Hey, Hey you!" the man said, voice untrained and unsteady. His heart was pounding, excitement more than obvious to Ryouga's hypersensitive senses. Even as the man spoke, however, Ryouga was falling back to earth; his body felt like it was withering away, like he was aging centuries in seconds. "What were you thinking? You could have been Killed!"

Ryouga turned his back on the man. "Do your job," he said, venom in his voice. "A lot of people could have been Killed."

The man scowled, and ran off to help his buddies take away the unconscious bear.

Ryouga was tempted to try and find the store. He looked around for Ranma, but didn't see him standing outside any of the nearly buildings. Not for the hundredth time, Ryouga cursed his terrible sense of direction. Passing by the woman with the katana, he paused. She looked a bit stunned.

"Are you all right?" Ryouga asked, some worry in his voice. Had his moment's hesitation and inaction led to more pain, more misery?

"Yes. Thank you." She looked down sheathed the katana and stated to bundle it in cloth. "What... what is your name?"

"My name?" Ryouga asked, unsure. "Hibiki Ryouga."

"Oh." There was a definite hint of disappointment in her tone. "You must be a powerful martial artist... to stare down that bear."

"I suppose." Ryouga replied quickly. He didn't want to risk getting even more lost. He needed to find Ranma, or it could be weeks before he got back to the Tendo Dojo.

"I was wondering if... you were from Nerima?"

"I'm not from Nerima, really. I spend a lot of time there, though. Why?"

"Some time ago, I heard about a very large fight on the news that involved two young martial artists in Nerima," the woman said, and paused. "Did you see it?"

Ryouga smiled, one fang peeking out over his lower lip.

"Yeah," he replied, "Yeah, you could say I saw it up close and personal."

"Was my son there? ...Saotome Ranma?"

Ryouga's mouth straightened out. Her son? Ranma? Ranma had never mentioned a mother before. Come to think of it, Ryouga had never really equated Ranma with someone who needed or had a mother. He weighed the options. One thought bugged him above the others. This woman and Genma?!?

Ewww.

He looked at her again.

*Genma* married this woman?!

"Yeah. Ranma was there," he said, after a few seconds delay. "You're Ranma's mother? That's... that's... well. No offense, ma'am, but he never mentioned you. Genma never said anything either."

The woman looked a strange mixture of excited and saddened.

"I'm... I'm sorry if I offended you," Ryouga quickly said, "I didn't mean..."

"No." Nodoka looked up, and smiled. "You didn't offend me. The last time Ranma saw me, he was a very little boy. It's just... I didn't quite expect to be told that he'd forgotten..."

"Well. He and I were traveling together..."

"Traveling together?" Nodoka looked at him sharply.

"Yeah. We're Kind of rivals. He's the only one my age I can fight with."

"Oh. A training trip?"

"Exactly." Ryouga didn't add that he took a lot of 'training trips' without even wanting to. "We were on our way back to the Tendo Dojo, in Nerima. Unfortunately it looks like I Kind of lost him... last I saw him, he was going in a store to get a book for Akane."

"Akane?"

"She's Ranma's fiancée," Ryouga explained, not adding that he had a couple others here and there.

Nodoka raised a dainty hand to her face. "Would she be Tendo Akane? Soun's daughter?"

"You know Tendo-san?"

"He was best man at our wedding!" Nodoka bowed her head. "Excuse my manners... I haven't even introduced myself. I am Saotome Nodoka. Could you please take me to my son? Can you tell me about him?"

Ryouga grinned nervously, scratching the back of his neck.

"Um, Mrs Saotome..." He chuckled foolishly. "I, er, may not be the best choice for that first part..."

***

Saffron came to age under the harsh guidance of a different, desperate Phoenix leadership. They were grooming him into a weapon as much as a leader, but they got something else entirely. Saffron became convinced of his divinity. Biding his time and solidifying his rule through fear, under his guidance the Phoenix came to prefect the mass production of surikomi eggs, and had his most loyal agents gather artifacts of power to him. Saffron then turned against his people, and with the surikomi eggs, he secured his total, unquestioned rule over the Phoenix Tribe, and proclaimed him their God King.

Hesitant to again attack the insular Phoenix, and focusing on grooming his heir, the reigning Lord Herb either did not recognize the growing danger of Saffron, or ignored it. Around this time, he took an Amazon mistress, hoping to diminish the perpetual feuding between the Joketsuzoku and the Musk - two groups that had been diametrically opposed to each other for millennia. However, as time passed, Saffron grew more powerful and increasingly bold. Inspired by events earlier in the century, he launched quick, bloodless, probing attacks at border villages, and neutral towns. His forces would descend, and in less than an hour, the entire population would be subverted to Saffron's will, and dedicated to his worship. As his forces swelled with these common peasants, he made preparations to strike out against the Musk.

Saffron's fanatical warriors attacked early in the spring, and cut into early Musk attempts to put down the insurrection into their territory. Every village that fell only fueled Saffron's war machine and bolstered the numbers in his army. Now vastly outnumbered, and largely unprepared, the Musk turned to their neighbors - the Seven Lucky Gods Clan, the Jyusenkyou Preservation Society, and the Joketsuzoku - to form an alliance to push back the Phoenix. As they did, and began to meet Saffron's forces on more equal terms, things ground down to a stalemate over the winter. Cannily shifting his forces, and the focus of his assault, Saffron planned for one last fall offensive through a mountain pass, and into the more vulnerable Bainkara Lowlands.

The issue came to a head at Soryn Pass.

***

"Spare the meats and woven wools!" Herb watched, as his men advanced. "But brook no man, woman or child who takes up arms against us!"

At his command, they broke into a run.

Xaodin was an important trading post, as well as farming center. Its fields would well support Herb's forces, and when it fell, they would feast amid what remained of the place. The support trains were behind, waiting for the order to move in and clean up - Ukyou was with them, protected by the ever-present Mint. She would not see the battle, or the carnage. She had not asked for this, but Herb had ordered it. His eyes narrowed from where he floated, as the battle began.

The village had walls around it, from which Amazon archers and their assembled local militia loosed arrows on the advancing Musk. Herb uncrossed his arms, and silently signaled for their own bombardment to begin. A horn sounded, and the Togenkyou archers moved forward, into position, and fired their own volleys of flaming arrows, lit by portable braziers. They landed in the open areas approaching the village, first, and several sections of land lit up instantly in flame. As expected, they had prepared tracks of oil and tar as a trap.

The advancing Musk easily avoided the flames.

Another horn sounded, and the Togenkyou Archers turned their attention to the walls and palisade around Xaodin. The fires would keep the villagers and militia occupied stamping them out, which was more important than doing any actual damage. Herb watched, detached, as the light troops moved around to encircle the opposite side of the town, ready to run down any who tried to escape or flee. One quarter of the town, the far side from where Herb stood, bordered rocky hills, and it was unlikely that anyone would flee across it.

Herb signaled, and another horn trumpeted. This was no louder than the ones previous, but it echoed down into the battlefield. The assembled lines of Musk divided, as the Assault troops formed into spearheads, and lead the advance. The others fell back and slowed, falling in behind their more heavily armed and armored brothers. Then came the streaks of light and fire - Ki attacks. They were weak blasts, to be true, drawn from emotions and weapons, but they were more dangerous than un-enhanced arrow or bolt to a Musk warrior wearing armor. Fortunately, Musk armor was not normal armor. It was primarily built of lead, and thus quite heavy, but its construction was specifically made to absorb and disrupt offensive externalized Ki.

It was the only thing that could offer any sort of protection from a Ki enhanced weapon. Through the power of Ki, a dull blade could cut through a tree, or a sharp sword, wielded by a master, through solid steel. The crafting of this armor was a well-kept secret of the Musk. The only thing similar that Herb had heard of was an inferior Amazon contraption, designed to discourage the release of 'hot Ki' and used in teaching their Heavenly Blast of the Ascending Dragon.

The palisade defending the down was smashed aside like cardboard as the Assault Musk simply plowed through to the mortar walls. The attacking forces were divided into three prongs, and Herb frowned as one of them bogged down. Another form of trap, he realized, and his vision narrowed on the moment. It was difficult to see from so far out, even with his superb senses.

"Binoculars." He held out his left hand, and one of his many attendants handed the Prince what he desired. Looking through them, he saw what had gone wrong with the left prong of the attack. Roots and weeds had sprung up at the approach of the Assault Group, and bogged them down. They were currently engaged and busy trying to tear themselves free of the rapidly growing jungle, while other troops tried to cut them free, and ended up getting entangled.

Herb's frown deepened. There was something afoot there. The plant growth would halt the forces there, but it would not keep them at bay indefinitely. At two other points, the walls had already been beaten and battered down, Assault troops taking the middle of the town, and the granary, to ensure that it would not be tainted or destroyed by any potential Amazon 'scorched earth' tactics. Medium troops, Musk regulars, would be right behind, engaging any defenders and taking to the walls. Herb realized that the entangled Musk forces were adjacent to where the rocky hills began to become distinct. He blinked in realization.

"I'm moving to aid the left flank personally," Herb said, plainly, and his attendants stepped back and away. His Ki flared, and the Prince took off, heading towards where he knew the Amazons were about to break out. Rolling in midair, rising slightly, and building speed, he saw explosions from underground, and felt the subtle ripples in Ki.

Blasting Point Explosions.

The air around him erupted, his speed incredible. It would take only seconds to get there, but in those seconds, Herb saw the hidden Amazon Warriors stream out from their underground lairs. The ensnared and surprised Musk Warriors immediately moved to defend themselves, and their honor. But their lines had been broken, their martial discipline thrown to the wind. The entire situation had degenerated into a free for all, and amid the growing carnage, Herb saw a small fast shape, darting between his Warriors, and aiding the Amazons.

"Lai Zhol!!" Herb appeared above the melee, his battle aura a twisting helix of tightly controlled power. As his voice cut into the pitched battle below, the Musk rallied a warcry to their Lord, and fought with an even greater intensity and furor. Herb's eyes searched through the chaos, and found their target near the broken and blasted earth from which the Amazons had emerged.

"You cannot run from me, old woman!" He roared, and raced towards her. "Stand and fight, or die as you lived! A COWARD!"

She ducked down, and Herb followed. He landed next to two angry Amazons, each brandishing a spear. They lunged as one, with what would have been frightening speed to a normal man. To Prince Herb, however, they were like flies moving through molasses. With both palms raised, he calmly swatted them away, sending both flying up and out of the deep depression in the earth. There was a tunnel leading down, and Herb made ready to continue the chase to its much-desired conclusion. He spared the corpse at his feet - a fallen Musk, caught right under the explosion, and stabbed while prone - a silent prayer.

"Grandfather preserve you, warrior," Herb nodded, and headed down the tunnel. "Grandfather preserve us all."

The burrow was rough and hastily prepared. No doubt the Amazons had only very recently dug out the tunnels, hid their finest down below, and waited for the attack. These must have been the preparations Pantyhose Taro had mentioned Lai Zhol was overseeing. It was a cunning trap, and it would wound his Musk forces more than Herb had expected in this attack, but it was a futile endeavor. The Amazons did not have any substantial numerical advantage over their surprised foes aboveground, and one on one, an Amazon was no match for a Musk.

They never had been.

It was why the Musk had always been the predator, and the Amazon always nuisance at most, prey at least. The halls grew darker and danker as Herb ran down, descending the twisting tunnel. His internal sense of direction told him that he had swung around, and was heading for an area just beneath the foothills outside Xaodin. The walls became rockier and sturdier as he continued. This would not have hindered the burrowing Amazons' efforts, however, due to their use of the infernal Bakusai Tenketsu.

At last, he came to a great open area.

It was pitch black, save for a single lit torch in the middle of the room, held by his prey. Even so, Herb saw everything perfectly, his vision beyond compare. He stepped forward, slowly, and noted that he was in an almost perfect dome, solid curved walls arching up to an apex thirteen feet above the flat ground. There was a faint... feeling to the walls, which made Herb hesitant to dismiss them outright.

"Greetings, stripling," Lai Zhol said from where she stood. The old woman held to an ornate cane, intricately carved with a jewel at the face that caught and reflected the light of the torch she carried in her other hand. Lai Zhol was the youngest of the Three, and while she betrayed her age through her shriveled appearance, she was not as shrunken as her compatriots, and still walked, using her cane sparingly.

"Finally decided to give up running, old bat?" Herb took a wary step forward. He was walking into a trap, and knew it. "You know why I have come for you, do you not? ...You must."

"I know you believe us responsible for your father's failures, Musk Prince." Lai Zhol eye's followed him, and him alone. "I did not lure you here to talk, however."

"The rabbit would fight the fox?" Herb felt the song suffuse his body. Power threatened to ripple out of him in great waves, but he kept it contained. The mental exercise he began when he decided to enter the fray brought his focus and control into perfection.

62 1938.

16 484.

"In her own warren, the rabbit faces the fox."

66 1934.

Herb almost smiled at the audacity of it.

"Then..." Herb's power began to flare. 17 483. "In her warren, the rabbit shall be buried!"

Lai Zhol threw up the torch, and moved like lightning. As it twisted, head over tail, in the air, the light of the flame barely illuminated the speeding fighters within the confines of the hollowed out dome. Herb and Lai Zhol passed, just as both unleashed a Ki sphere at point blank range. Herb twisted, and it flew over his shoulder. Incredibly enough, Lai Zhol was able to avoid his Ki blast as well. Herb had known that she was fast, faster even than Khu Lon, but it still surprised him to actually see it. The two touched the ground, more than landed, before exploding into action.

70 1930.

Lai Zhol, sheathed in her own battle aura, moved with practiced ease. She could not fly, as he did, but she had an incredible energy and speed. The place was confined enough that she could move, and dodge, and attack, without ever touching the ground. As they passed again, and again, Herb suddenly realized that there were more Ki spheres bouncing around than there should have been. Additionally, he noted, he'd not heard an explosion or impact from the two that had missed in their first pass.

18 482.

Spinning as he moved, Herb had to totally reverse his momentum as a Ki blast; his own as he recognized it, shot off the wall behind him. Not being able to spare the instant to look over his shoulder, the midair spin served its purpose, and it caught the hint of light from an inscription on the wall. This was the trap he had known they would spring. The walls were Ki infused, and warded, and would reflect any Ki attack that hit it. A very powerful attack, of course, would overwhelm the warding and destroy the wall, but anything of that power would also backlash, destroying and collapsing the cavern, burying them both.

It was a beautiful trap.

74 1926.

Herb closed to range, energy crackling down his arms and into his wrists, forming Ki blades. It was, in the Japanese, his 'Hitou Ryu Zan Ha' or Flying Blade Dragon Beheading technique, and one of his personal favorites. At his beckon, Ki surged down his arm, coalescing just above the knuckles. It then formed into a Ki blade between one and three feet long, as well as producing a solid Ki shield that extended down the arm to his elbow.

The Ki blade excited the localized air at its edge, heating it, and giving it a bluish glow as a result of ionization. It was this layer of superheated air, one molecule thick at the edge, which did the actual cutting. Behind that, the Ki blade functioned identically to that of a solid shield, allowing the Ki blade to block or parry attacks. If he wished it, the blade could also be detached and thrown as a projectile. Severing the Ki connection with his body, however, caused the Ki to eventually discorporate, and the Ki blade typically disintegrated five seconds after it was 'thrown.' At the speed her and Lai Zhol were moving and fighting, however, five seconds was a substantial amount of time.

"Let's up the ante!" Herb hit the ground, rolled, and threw his arms out and wide, the Ki blades shooting out. In a heartbeat, they hit the walls, which flared with brilliant blue runic inscriptions, and bounced back. Herb heard Lai Zhol curse softly as she dodged and moved, before letting loose another Ki blast in his direction.

19 481.

The air was thick with Ki blasts rebounding off the walls. Herb knew he was fast, but he was having a damn tough time avoiding the projectiles. He was caught in a game of chicken with the Amazon Elder, the two Ki masters letting off blast after blast, hoping that the other would slip up first, and get hit. Or sliced in half.

78 1922.

Lai Zhol was barely visible, not just through the hazy of bouncing Ki blasts, not just through the dim light of the flickering torch still in midair, but because of pure speed. Herb felt the sting of a stray blast brush past his right arm, even as he twisted to the point of pain avoiding it. As it flared past him, an electrical blue hue danced over his arm - it was his always-present Ki shield, the layer he kept over his body whenever in battle. It would protect him from the heat and vibration of a Ki blast, but not the Kinetic energy impact of it. In a situation like he was now in, an impact throwing him off balance could prove deadly.

20 480.

He knew a new approach was in order. Lai Zhol was at least as fast as he was, despite dumping vast amounts of his energy into increasing his speed. Additionally, she was shorter than he was, and had a smaller target profile. He had walked right into the Amazon's trap, without realizing just how well they had drawn him in unaware. His mind raced as his body blurred.

82 1918.

Herb winced as he dove into two of Lai Zhol's rebounding Ki blasts, the Ki shields on his arms absorbing the blast, and his momentum negating the impact. He tumbled, for just the blink of an eye, before going airborne. He tried to track Lai Zhol's movements, tried to find an opportunity to weave through the thick mass of erratic Ki blasts and strike her directly.

21 479.

He danced.

86 1914.

He bulled.

22 478.

He charged.

90 1910.

He lunged.

23 477.

He failed.

94 1906.

She was too fast. Too damn fast, too damn small. He could see her, he had adjusted better to their mutual speeds, but it went both ways. She, too, could see and track his movements. Without all the stray blasts in the way, he had a much better chance of getting up close, where he could cleave her into quarters with Ki blades. However, in the trap, in the Amazon burrow, he had to work and maneuver his way through to his target. He had taken a beating to his defenses already, even though he hadn't fired off any more Ki projectiles, and even as Lai Zhol twisted and turned her staff, spouting glowing orbs from its crystal head ornament.

24 476.

She was in control of the fight. She'd dodge anything he threw. At the thought, Herb smirked, got into position, and let four quick blasts fly from his fingertips. As he anticipated, Lai Zhol dodged them, fired two blasts of her own back at him, and dodged the two of his that rebounded in her direction. She either didn't know or didn't care that she was being herded into a select spot.

98 1902.

Herb collected his power, formed it in his mind, and directed it to do his bidding. Two explosions clipping his side, he put both hands forward, towards Lai Zhol's projected vector, and fired an unfocused blast, more powerful than the ones previous, but wider. Such blasts were normally fairly useless, except against a particularly weak opponent, which Lai Zhol was not. Because the blast was unfocused, and covered a much larger area, it was less intense overall. As expected, Lai Zhol halted her momentum so as not to expose herself, and crossed her arms and cane in front of her. Yellow light flashed as she easily blocked the Ki he'd thrown at her.

25 475.

Then the Amazon Elder's eyes widened, her mouth opened to soundlessly scream, and she fell forward. She had forgotten about that the reflective wall behind her was concave. The energy that had gone past her from his unfocused blast had hit the wall, and been reflected, each point of it at a different angle - every angle leading it to focus onto a single point: Lai Zhol's back. Like an ant under a magnifying glass, the Ki had hit her fully focused, terribly intense, and ultimately deadly. Even if she had been expecting it, even if she had been ready, even if she had channeled her power into a defensive shield, it would still have crippled her.

Lai Zhol was dead.

Her torch hit the ground.

***



There, at Soryn, the largest army Saffron had yet assembled for one battle, including the majority of his airborne Phoenix Warriors, met a desperate group of hastily assembled Musk Warriors, the combined resources of the Seven Lucky Gods, a small motley band of Jyusenkyou Preservation Society Mercenaries, and several contingents of nearby Joketsuzoku Amazons. Except that the Amazons never showed up, not leaving their camps in the valley nearby. The Amazon Elders, who were suspicious of the Musk Lord's motives, had interrogated Lord Herb's mistress, who was pregnant with his child. They alleged that she had conspired to weaken the Council of Elders in the war, and replace them with herself as Queen, a station unoccupied among the Joketsuzoku for centuries. Whether this was true or not, or even if King Herb knew of this, is unknown - what is known, is that the Amazons were absent at Soryn when Saffron attacked.

The fighting was brutal. Wave after wave of fanatical zealots slammed against the defending Musk, while the Lucky Gods barely held on against the flying Phoenix. The Musk left flank, exposed and weakened by the Amazon's absence, was eventually crushed and fell back, reformed, only to be crushed once more. As the two leaders dueled in the sky anew, it seemed as if the battle would soon turn completely against the Musk, and into a total rout. Then, however, in a perfect moment of bravery and sacrifice, the Lucky Gods steered their airship down and into the vast mortar bridge that spanned Soryn Pass. Enraged, Saffron let loose a massive attack, hulling the great flying ship from keel to stern. Fall to the ground; carried only by momentum and a single Lucky God at the helm, crushing a great number of the enemy under its bulk, the airship weakened the bridge to the point of collapse before skidding to a broken, ruined halt. As the remains of the bridge fell, and the gorge became impassable for supplies or peasant troops, Saffron bitterly retreated from the field, defeated, but at a horrible price.

With the winter over, Saffron began a new offensive, directly targeting the Musk, to break the back of their depleted numbers. In assault after assault, he smashed through Musk fortifications, forcing withdrawals, until, finally, at Fortress Leao Mon, he again faced the Lord of the Musk in personal combat. As the battle raged between the two assembled armies, Saffron and Herb dueled. The skies burned red and yellow from their conflict, when, at last, the exhausted Dragon Lord plunged through Saffron's flames and fury, the maelstrom burning him away layer by layer, until they were finally face to face. Hands on his Uncle's shoulders, Herb's Ki erupted out of his body, devouring both Musk Lord and Phoenix King in their brilliance. Their master destroyed once more, the Phoenix retreated in disarray, while peasant forces died lamenting the loss of their God.

On that day, the six-year-old Prince Herb the Fifth, Heir of Seventeen Generations, took his father's place.

And the seeds of hatred, of the Serpent, had been sown.