Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Ranma ½ . They are the sole property of Rumiko Takahasi. Niether do I own the rights to Hellsing. Those characters are the property of Kohta Hirano. All characters used within are used without permission.
Prologue:
She had been watching the young man for months. She had seen the innumerable battles, both within and without. She had followed him as he sought to rescue his fiancé, and used his chi to drive the Demigod Saffron back into his infant stage. Somehow, through it all, he had remained pure, innocent, naive. And then there was the wedding, if it could be called such. His final chance at peace in this place, snuffed like a candle with the coming of dawn. Yes, he was imperfect, but even the finest steel needs smelting to burn out the impurities. She tired of her eternal existence. It was time to take this young man, and forge a successor, sire a childe, her ONLY childe.
All around him, the Dojo turned chapel remained in shambles. Splinters of wood from the walls, knocked out by fist, spatula, and bonbori, littered the floor, as did the broken cask that had held his hope, his cure, the nanichuan. Ranma had believed at least Uuchan would be happy for him. She WAS after all, his childhood friend. Apparently it wasn't enough. All of his friends had the same damned mentality. 'My way or the DIE way.' If Shampoo couldn't have him, she wanted him and the rest of the fiancé brigade dead to sooth her 'honor.' Kodachi's insanity spoke for itself. Ranma shuddered. Just thinking about that laugh made him cringe. Then of course there was Moose, who refused to acknowledge that Shampoo did not want to be with him, and that Ranma did NOT want Shampoo. Add to that his virtual blindness and he was a menace to himself and everyone around him. Next was good ol' Bacon Boy, destroyer of countless walls, streets, lampposts and sundry other objects in his quest to lay the misery of his life squarely on Ranma's shoulders. And the list just kept going. Top it off with the fact that his father was another major cause of misery and it was amazing that he hadn't snapped already, Kami-sama only knew he was close. Especially after today. He'd staked his hopes on today, on this wedding. Now, those dreams lay in ruins, scattered across the floor and trampled underfoot, like so much sand. Somehow the cake had survived the chaos, and sat nearby, untouched, uneaten, and inviting the ever hungry young man who had been denied entrance into the Tendo home until the Dojo was repaired and the cost recuperated, which was likely never. Glancing quickly about, he saw no-one to chide him for being hungry, especially since he'd been too nervous to eat this morning. Quickly taking up the cake knife, he moved to the table abd began searching for the best place to cut what was likely to be his only meal for quite some time. "Rrraaaaannnnmmaaaaa!" The shrill cry from the dojo entrance brought his head up guiltily as the fuming Akane stomped in wearing her dogi and cracking her knuckles. Shit, can today GET any worse? First I'm too queasy to eat breakfast, lunch gets drestroyed by the wrecking crew, and now Akane seems dead set on denying me any sustenance at all.
"Kami help me Ranma, if you touch that cake I'll lock you in a cell with Happosai. You don't DESERVE that cake." Yep, today has just gotten worse. Well, if she WANTS the damn cake, well...
"Ya' know what Akane?" quipped Ranma as he carefully removed the two figures from the top of the cake and tossed the bride to her "If this cake is that fucking important to you, SOO important you care more about it than me, you can fucking HAVE the damned thing. HERE!!!" And with speed born of rage never before seen in the young man, the cake was lifted from the table and hurled across the training hall, squarely striking the stunned Akane, knocking her off her feet, and covering her in angel food and white frosting. "I'm leaving, and if I ever see any of you again, you'll regret it. You can all rot in hell for all I care. GOODBYE!" And with that the young man stormed from the dojo, glowing with a faint red aura, and leaving burnt, smoking footprints in the grass and on the ground as he made for the gate.
"He is ready..."
As Ranma stalked down the street, his senses slowly began to draw in the night, and tingle of danger. Not the kind he was used to, but new, and it sent a cold shiver down his spine. He'd fought off a Demigod and this still scared him. It was then he heard the footsteps, paced, calm, and echoing on what shouldn't be an empty street, and yet was. Even as he stood and watched, one by one the streetlights flickered and died, bringing the darkness ever closer, until only the one above him remained on, a pool of light in a sea of darkness. Then he saw her, wrapped in black, beautiful beyond all imagining, and yet the very sight of her set all of his instincts jangling to run. But like a deer in the headlights of an eighteen wheeler, he stood paralyzed, unable to avoid the doom he somehow knew was coming ever closer.
"Are you ready Ranma?" SHE asked
"Who, what are you?" queried the now tremulous Ranma.
"I am much like you Ranma. I am tired of my current existence, and seek to leave it in favor of another. You may call me Pandora, and I am Nosferatu, or, if you prefer, a Vampire, or Cathayan. Perhaps a bit of both. Now, are you ready to die?"
"Die?" And then Ranma was engulfed in pain, however briefly, which was followed by the most exquisite pleasure imaginable. No victory, no mastery of a technique could ever compare to the sheer ecstasy he felt as he lay against the lamp post, Pandora at his neck. He shivered again, not in fear this time, but with a cold that penetrated to his very soul.
"I'm cold."
"You're dying." With this, Pandora took a finger nail and punched a small hole in her wrist, "Now sip, and move beyond all your wildest dreams..."
It was like liquid fire pouring down Ranma's throat, in fact it sort of reminded him of the time he'd accidentally gotten sake instead of water, but this was so much worse, as it burned down into his stomach. And then, it all went dark...
Prologue:
She had been watching the young man for months. She had seen the innumerable battles, both within and without. She had followed him as he sought to rescue his fiancé, and used his chi to drive the Demigod Saffron back into his infant stage. Somehow, through it all, he had remained pure, innocent, naive. And then there was the wedding, if it could be called such. His final chance at peace in this place, snuffed like a candle with the coming of dawn. Yes, he was imperfect, but even the finest steel needs smelting to burn out the impurities. She tired of her eternal existence. It was time to take this young man, and forge a successor, sire a childe, her ONLY childe.
All around him, the Dojo turned chapel remained in shambles. Splinters of wood from the walls, knocked out by fist, spatula, and bonbori, littered the floor, as did the broken cask that had held his hope, his cure, the nanichuan. Ranma had believed at least Uuchan would be happy for him. She WAS after all, his childhood friend. Apparently it wasn't enough. All of his friends had the same damned mentality. 'My way or the DIE way.' If Shampoo couldn't have him, she wanted him and the rest of the fiancé brigade dead to sooth her 'honor.' Kodachi's insanity spoke for itself. Ranma shuddered. Just thinking about that laugh made him cringe. Then of course there was Moose, who refused to acknowledge that Shampoo did not want to be with him, and that Ranma did NOT want Shampoo. Add to that his virtual blindness and he was a menace to himself and everyone around him. Next was good ol' Bacon Boy, destroyer of countless walls, streets, lampposts and sundry other objects in his quest to lay the misery of his life squarely on Ranma's shoulders. And the list just kept going. Top it off with the fact that his father was another major cause of misery and it was amazing that he hadn't snapped already, Kami-sama only knew he was close. Especially after today. He'd staked his hopes on today, on this wedding. Now, those dreams lay in ruins, scattered across the floor and trampled underfoot, like so much sand. Somehow the cake had survived the chaos, and sat nearby, untouched, uneaten, and inviting the ever hungry young man who had been denied entrance into the Tendo home until the Dojo was repaired and the cost recuperated, which was likely never. Glancing quickly about, he saw no-one to chide him for being hungry, especially since he'd been too nervous to eat this morning. Quickly taking up the cake knife, he moved to the table abd began searching for the best place to cut what was likely to be his only meal for quite some time. "Rrraaaaannnnmmaaaaa!" The shrill cry from the dojo entrance brought his head up guiltily as the fuming Akane stomped in wearing her dogi and cracking her knuckles. Shit, can today GET any worse? First I'm too queasy to eat breakfast, lunch gets drestroyed by the wrecking crew, and now Akane seems dead set on denying me any sustenance at all.
"Kami help me Ranma, if you touch that cake I'll lock you in a cell with Happosai. You don't DESERVE that cake." Yep, today has just gotten worse. Well, if she WANTS the damn cake, well...
"Ya' know what Akane?" quipped Ranma as he carefully removed the two figures from the top of the cake and tossed the bride to her "If this cake is that fucking important to you, SOO important you care more about it than me, you can fucking HAVE the damned thing. HERE!!!" And with speed born of rage never before seen in the young man, the cake was lifted from the table and hurled across the training hall, squarely striking the stunned Akane, knocking her off her feet, and covering her in angel food and white frosting. "I'm leaving, and if I ever see any of you again, you'll regret it. You can all rot in hell for all I care. GOODBYE!" And with that the young man stormed from the dojo, glowing with a faint red aura, and leaving burnt, smoking footprints in the grass and on the ground as he made for the gate.
"He is ready..."
As Ranma stalked down the street, his senses slowly began to draw in the night, and tingle of danger. Not the kind he was used to, but new, and it sent a cold shiver down his spine. He'd fought off a Demigod and this still scared him. It was then he heard the footsteps, paced, calm, and echoing on what shouldn't be an empty street, and yet was. Even as he stood and watched, one by one the streetlights flickered and died, bringing the darkness ever closer, until only the one above him remained on, a pool of light in a sea of darkness. Then he saw her, wrapped in black, beautiful beyond all imagining, and yet the very sight of her set all of his instincts jangling to run. But like a deer in the headlights of an eighteen wheeler, he stood paralyzed, unable to avoid the doom he somehow knew was coming ever closer.
"Are you ready Ranma?" SHE asked
"Who, what are you?" queried the now tremulous Ranma.
"I am much like you Ranma. I am tired of my current existence, and seek to leave it in favor of another. You may call me Pandora, and I am Nosferatu, or, if you prefer, a Vampire, or Cathayan. Perhaps a bit of both. Now, are you ready to die?"
"Die?" And then Ranma was engulfed in pain, however briefly, which was followed by the most exquisite pleasure imaginable. No victory, no mastery of a technique could ever compare to the sheer ecstasy he felt as he lay against the lamp post, Pandora at his neck. He shivered again, not in fear this time, but with a cold that penetrated to his very soul.
"I'm cold."
"You're dying." With this, Pandora took a finger nail and punched a small hole in her wrist, "Now sip, and move beyond all your wildest dreams..."
It was like liquid fire pouring down Ranma's throat, in fact it sort of reminded him of the time he'd accidentally gotten sake instead of water, but this was so much worse, as it burned down into his stomach. And then, it all went dark...