Cologne used her staff like a pogo stick and leapt to the roofs. The two teenage Amazons hurried after her. Moments later the trio from the Nekohauten were entering the Tendo home through the hole Happosai had made on his way out.
"Both of you hold back." Cologne ordered. "I have to evaluate the situation and Ranma may well be very dangerous right now. Shampoo no glomps. Mousse no attacks."
Ranma crouched in the shadowy room, there was a look of disgust on her face as she licked at her blood stained clothes.
Cologne hopped off her staff and approached the redhead with a studied air of harmlessness. "Hello Son-in-law."
The Nekoken had a distinctive signature that overlaid Ranma's aura when he gave into the madness. His Jusenkyo curse left it's own mark on Ranma's life energy regardless of which form he was in. Together they made it challenging to do an in depth reading on Ranma's aura but Cologne would have to be blind to miss the confused mass of darkness eclipsing Ranma's normal emotional spectrum.
Ranma looked up from her task, she eyed Cologne warily.
"I just want to talk son-in-law." The Amazon Elder said reassuringly. Cologne hoped the trauma wasn't as bad as it looked. It was possible, physically Ranma was one of the toughest, most talented fighters she'd encountered in three hundred years of life; emotionally he was a child. He didn't know how to cope with an attack that struck at his spirit rather than his body.
Ranma dealt with emotional issues in the only way he knew how: When confronted with a fight he couldn't win Genma had taught his son to buy time, to retreat until he had a plan. Cologne doubted Ranma did it consciously, but that was how the boy dealt with emotions. He stalled; he pushed people away; he waited for a solution to present itself. In a way the Nekoken was the ultimate expression of the Saotome Secret Technique, even if Ranma's body couldn't escape his mind could. Ranma didn't have many options available to him when a competition didn't involve fists; maybe it wasn't as bad as it looked. Ranma's talent for not dealing with things he didn't know how to deal with had to reach its limit someday, and she'd always expected he'd break when it happened. It could simply be that the accumulated stresses had gotten to him.
In general Cologne felt Ranma's naivety was an advantage. It was unlikely that the boy would choose Shampoo freely, so they'd have to manipulate him. Normally the last thing she'd want to do would be to teach Ranma to be more socially savvy, but it was infinitely more appealing than killing him. If they could find out what was bothering Ranma maybe he could be taught to deal with it without resorting to using the Nekoken as an escape…
Despite Cologne's best efforts Ranma was feeling threatened by her presence. The redhead backed away until her back bumped against the wall. Then Ranma let out a startled yowl. She spun around and slashed at the unexpected attacker. The wall never stood a chance.
The giant panda in the hallway cowered back from the cat-minded girl. Ranma's eyes darted between the Amazons and the panda it was clear that to her they were the proverbial rock and a hard place.
After a moment's indecision Ranma leapt over the balcony railing.
For once Hibiki Ryoga wasn't wondering how the Tendo Dojo had come to be in Osaka or Kyoto or… He was simply relieved to have found it so quickly. The shriek he could never forget had broken the air only minutes earlier, he still had time to save them; he had to continue believing that.
Ryoga dashed inside not even pausing to kick off his shoes. In the dining room he found a tableau of people frozen with shock and worry. They stared after Genma's panda-form as the elder Saotome made his way upstairs.
A brief smile crossed Ryoga's face, Akane was safe, her family was safe; he'd gotten there in time. Ryoga's smile disappeared as he thought of what he had to do.
"Akane, everyone you're in danger." The lost boy proclaimed seriously. "Ranma's gone insane, he killed people."
Ryoga found himself on the receiving end of a number of hostile glares but it was Akane's reaction that he cared about. She stared at him with undisguised shock and horror in her deep brown eyes. "No." She whispered. Ryoga knew it was only reflexive denial.
"I trust you have some proof to back your accusations, young man." The traditionally dressed woman holding a sheathed katana asked sternly.
"Peasant, how dare you level such slanderous charges against my darling Ranma?" In the blink of an eye Kodachi threw off the school uniform she'd donned for tea with Ranma's mother to reveal the leotard beneath. The Black Rose was always ready to do battle.
"Ryoga-hon, on our friendship, I'm telling you you don't know anything about what happened." Ukyo stated as she fingered her spatula.
"Oh my."
"So the foul sorcerer finally reveals his true nature… but lo what of my Pig-tailed Girl?"
"I saw him!" Ryoga exclaimed. "At the park, he was covered with blood."
"Why is it that none of you care about getting the facts before jumping to conclusions?" Nabiki asked as she impaled the lost boy with a sharp glance.
"I was there! I saw…" Ryoga broke off as the redhead in question dove over the open balcony on the second floor of the Tendo house. At the last moment Ranma twisted in mid-air to escape landing in Kuno's arms. The redhead rolled as she landed and ended up crouched defensively in the center of the room.
The panda bounded down the stairs. Cologne and Shampoo took the direct route; they lit on either side of the surprised kendoist. Mousse waited on the balcony above as he readied himself for battle.
Ranma's hackles rose. She hissed at the crowd of people surrounding her in an attempt to ward them off.
Ryoga recognized the danger inherent in a confrontation with a cornered animal and put himself squarely between Ranma and Akane.
"Pig-tail Girl!"
" Sister, dearest."
"Is that blood?"
"Oh my!"
"Ranchan!"
"Ranko-chan?"
"Don't pressure him."
"Is bad!"
"Don't worry Shampoo, I'll protect you."
The voices rose in a senseless babble. Ryoga watched, Ranma's eyes darted around wildly, the terror in them was palpable but the blood on the redhead's clothes belonged to someone else. The lost boy reached into a pouch on the side of his pack. The gun was so cold it seemed to burn his hand.
Ryoga's hands shook as he aimed, he felt sick to his stomach.
Ranma's eyes fell on Akane, a desperate hope lit up her face and the lithe cat-minded teen sprung.
Ryoga's resolve solidified, his hands steadied. "I'm so sorry Ranma." He whispered as he squeezed the trigger.
The explosion from the gun was deafening in the crowded room. To Nabiki it sounded like the status quo shattering beyond all hope of repair. In her heart she knew that the point of no return had come and gone a week ago, but she'd still hoped… It was Ranma after all.
Nabiki had thought if she could just get the pressure off him for a week or two his incredible resilience would kick in and they could all forget about everything that had happened.
Seeing Ranma hurt, seeing him changed, tore at Nabiki's peace of mind. She wished it was just sympathy but she knew that there was guilt mixed in. She'd always treated Ranma as if he were bulletproof, and why not? Two weeks before she met him what should have been the foundation of his identity was made more changeable than the weather, he spent the intervening time being hunted across China by a girl who's people demanded she follow him to the ends of the earth to kill him then he arrived in Japan to find himself engaged to a girl he barely knew, who violently opposed the match. All that happened in just two weeks and Ranma took it in stride. How could any of Nabiki's schemes even being to affect him when he could shrug off something like his curse only two weeks after it happened?
Except Ranma had been hurt. He always seemed like he could bounce back from anything only he wasn't recovering. Deep down Nabiki knew he'd been hurt before, by her, by Akane, by all of them, it just hadn't mattered; Ranma got over things so quickly his pain didn't seem real, it hadn't seemed to count. Still they had hurt him, repeatedly and maybe if he hadn't had to cope with all those little stings he'd have more reserves to draw on when catastrophe struck.
Someone who didn't play by their rules had snuck into their world and pored acid on the lynch pin. Now the stresses that used to keep everything in balance were tearing Ranma apart. He was the center of everything; everyone wanted to defeat him or marry him or both in the Kunos cases; Akane wanted both too and it was more confusing for her because she knew it was the same person whom she needed to prove herself against and whom she wanted to protect her. If the center couldn't hold… It was all going to change. The gunshot was the last nail being driven into the coffin. The sound was so final Nabiki fully expected Ranma to be dead when she opened her eyes.
The Saotome School of Anything Goes specialized in aerial combat and Ranma reflexes had been drilled that school's exercises since he could walk, the Nekoken sharpened those reflexes to an inhuman degree. Ranma-chan arched away from the bullet's path. She yowled in pain and fury. Mousse echoed her shriek a moment later.
Ranma landed on Ryoga and violently kicked free of him. In the process she knocked Ryoga into Akane. Mousse fell to his knees his arms were wrapped around his stomach. Ranma-chan crouched in the corner, one arm curled against her body. Akane sat on the floor and stared at nothing as Ryoga's blood pooled in her lap.
Cologne felt ill. Three of the children seriously injured in as many seconds. The top of Ryoga's hipbone showed through the gash in his side like an island of white in a river of blood. Cologne knew his survival was doubtful. Mousse was doubled over as he clutched his stomach. Red stains spread from behind his arms. His eyes had the glazed look of a person going into shock. A steady stream of blood trickled down Ranma-chan's arm to puddle beneath her. Still the redhead was snarling ferally at the whole world.
The tall boy beside Cologne took a step forward. "Pig-tail Girl, let me…"
Cologne swung her staff; she landed a solid blow at the base of the boy's skull. He crumpled to the ground, his sentence unfinished. "Kami-sama, deliver me from fools." Cologne muttered.
The panda had gotten Mousse to lie down and was applying pressure to his wound. The Tendo Patriarch was using his gi top as a rough bandage for the lost boy's gaping injuries. Cologne felt a measure of surprise; perhaps the idiot fathers weren't as completely worthless as she'd believed.
The middle Tendo girl had made her way to the telephone. "… mauled by a wild animal…"
Kodachi's eyes darted around the room wildly. Her ribbon was clutched in a white knuckled fist.
"Ranma? Where? Ranko?" Nodoka's voice quavered uncertainly. She clung to her sword as if it were a lifeline.
"Ranchan-honey?" Ukyo was shaking with fear as she crawled toward Ranma. "It's Ucchan, you wouldn't hurt me would you? You just relax and come with me and I'll fix you up with the biggest Okonomiyaki you've ever seen."
"Don't pressure him." Cologne ordered her gaze included all three women.
Kodachi spun toward the unexpected voice and lashed out with her ribbon. Cologne caught it. "I said settle down!"
Kasumi calmly walked up behind Kodachi and tapped a point in the center of her back. Kodachi slumped; she was asleep on her feet. Kasumi gently eased the girl into a chair. Cologne nodded approvingly to the girl.
Ranma limped backwards on three limbs as Ukyo and Nodoka approached her.
Soun glanced up a moment before Ranma would have stumbled over Ryoga and Akane. The older man summoned a weak demon-head. "Shoo!" He ordered.
Ranma squawked at the unexpected, large threatening thing then leapt over Nodoka and Ukyo and dashed into the garden. She was over the outer wall before any one could blink.
Outside they heard alarms approaching. Cologne turned her stern gaze on Akane. "On your feet girl. We don't have time to offer explanations and you're our best shot at controlling Ranma when he's like that."
Akane stood up mechanically. "I have to change." She said, her voice flat as she gestured to her blood soaked skirt.
Cologne nodded and gestured toward the stairs. Taking Akane out like that would be inviting police questions and the Amazon Elder wasn't sure how Ranma would react to the smell of Ryoga's blood on Akane.
"I'm coming with you." Ukyo said firmly.
"Shampoo come." The lavender haired Amazon stated.
Cologne hesitated.
"Ranma's out there, scared out of his mind, hurt, bleeding… I have to find him." Ukyo said. "I'll go on my own if I have to."
"Let him come to you if he will. Don't try to force him." Cologne stated. "Don't crowd Akane, we know he'll go to her. Make sure you don't startle him away and if you value your lives don't get between them."
Akane stripped off her blood soaked clothing… Dirty, it was just dirty.
She had to get changed quickly because she was late for school. She could hear the alarm bell coming closer and if she didn't hurry she'd be late. Ranma had gone on ahead and she had to hurry if she wanted to catch up with him.
Uncle Saotome's growl sounded frustrated, Daddy must be cheating more effectively than normal but why were they playing in the upstairs hall instead of on the veranda?
As Akane hurried downstairs the panda shifted around to let Nodoka; with her more delicate, human hands; take over tying bandages around Mousse's abdomen.
Kasumi ran out of the kitchen with an armful of towels. Nabiki hovered anxiously while their father tried to staunch the blood flow from the gaping wound on Ryoga's side and hip.
He'd done it on purpose, she'd been cooking all afternoon and Ranma deliberately bumped into her and spilled it all over the dining room when she tried to bring it to the table. Akane winced as she noticed the color, she was sure miso soup wasn't supposed to turn out red. She shouldn't have gotten so mad at Ranma; now that she was looking at it she knew there was something wrong with it. Still, he couldn't have known that, Ranma never even gave her a chance. He couldn't even pretend to be sorry about spilling it.
It hurt that he was better at everything than she was, even girl stuff like cooking, he didn't have to rub it in. It scared her; Akane was sure that one day Ranma would choose one of the other girls. They both cooked a lot better than she did, they were better martial artists and Ranma didn't call them names. When he did, the only thing she'd have left was her pride. That was why it was so important that she' never let him know that he could hurt her, that she wanted him to choose her. He didn't even bother to wait for her to change before leaving for school and it was all his fault that she was a mess.
Akane sighed; she had booted him out of the house after he crashed into her and sent all her hard cooked food across the floor. He could have avoided her if he tried, he could have stopped her from hitting him, Akane knew how good Ranma was. He could have just apologized for being a jerk but it was easier for him to expunge his guilt by letting her hit him. That was why it would have meant so much more if he'd just say he was sorry for making her unhappy.
"Get a move on it girl, we don't have all night." Cologne snapped.
Akane slipped into her shoes, snatched up a jacket and her school bag then followed Cologne, Shampoo and Ukyo outside. The two Amazons took the lead. They easily followed the trail of blood Ranma had left behind. Still, even with his injury, Ranma was moving fast and they weren't catching up with him.
Ukyo hustled Akane after the Amazons. "This isn't the way to school." Akane commented with a confused frown.
P-Chan and - a cat had gotten into a fight. They'd both been injured and she was looking for P-Chan. No, P-Chan was back at home, Daddy was looking after him. She was out looking for the cat because even if it wasn't hurt as bad as P-Chan it was out in the cold, alone. He needed help and she was the only one he trusted.
She didn't like it when Daddy wouldn't stand up to Grandpa Happosai and made the cat sleep outside in the cold, but she hadn't even given him a chance to get his shoes or coat, let alone his tent. It was getting later and colder. He still wasn't back and she was starting to worry, but going after him would be like admitting she was wrong and he'd been such a jerk.
Only she was looking for the cat, because he had been injured… In the fight with P-Chan. Even if the cat made her so mad sometimes she didn't want anything bad to happen to him.
"Don't go in after him. Call him to you." Cologne's staff blocked Akane from entering the drainage pipe in the side of the canal. They'd lost Ranma's trail during a brief downpour, it had taken them nearly an hour to pick it up again. It took them here. The pipe was about two feet in diameter, an inch or two of icy water ran through it and there was a red smear just inside it's mouth.
Akane knelt in the freezing water. "Here kitty, kitty… Ranma? Ranma, I'm sorry."
It wasn't blood, it was a red braid, hacked off and left in the trash and she knew; something bad had happened to Ranma. If she'd just gone out and looked for him last night. It was her fault but where was he? What if he needed help? She couldn't fall apart now. She'd think about it later, once everything was back to normal.
"Ranma! Please Ranma, I'm sorry."
"He's been bleeding for a long time. What if he passed out?" Ukyo said. "We have to go in after him."
"What if he hasn't?" Cologne replied. "He'll kill you. He's injured and cornered. His thoughts aren't human. There will be no dodging in there. If he's startled Ranma will rip you to shreds. Inside of that pipe facing the Nekoken would be suicide."
Akane crawled forward and peered into the drain. The water washing over her hands raised goose-bumps on her skin, she started shivering. "Ranma?"
"Grandmother, Airen could die." Shampoo protested. "Is cold, wet, loosing much blood, will go into shock soon."
Cologne looked away from the girls. Ryoga's death was likely. She hadn't gotten a chance to evaluate Mousse's wounds. Happi would be licking his wounds for years to come. And if this night had irrevocably pushed Ranma over the edge, she'd have to kill him. Cologne couldn't risk the death of another child, not for what was most likely a lost cause and if Ranma were lost she couldn't risk facing him when she'd be at such a severe disadvantage. She didn't know how to tell the girls that she was thinking about cutting their losses.
While the others were distracted Akane crawled into the pipe. The water chilled her to the bone; it left her feeling brittle and fragile. Her eyes were useless in the pitch-black tunnel. Akane squeaked when she set her hand on a clammy, unmoving ankle.
"Ranma?" Akane asked. Her voice echoed back at her mockingly. Akane crawled over the smaller girl's body and pressed her ear against her fiancé's back. After a long moment a sound that was half sob, half hysterical giggle escaped her. "Hold on, I'll get you help."
Awkwardly Akane maneuvered the unresponsive body onto her shoulders and started backing out of the pipe.
Notes: Shinigami, it orginally planned as two stories, the first being five parts, but plans change. In the rough draft this chapter was a lot shorter and would be have been in chapter five with the recovery being separate. In the current draft it's one story, with nine chapters.
