Chapter Ten: The Alliance.
Ryoga wandered around aimlessly for nearly a day after he departed from the Tendo residence without a clear destination in mind. He figured that another training journey would help clear his mind and body of any further weakness and distraction, and had been toying with the idea of returning to the mountains to reflect. With luck, he might even be able to work up the courage to tell Akane how he really felt about her… after Ranma was defeated once and for all. He wasn't entirely disappointed with the outcome of their last fight; he had matched his rival blow for blow and if Ranma hadn't stooped to such dirty tricks the outcome might have been much different. If he could just get a little bit stronger, victory would be his for sure.
The only problem was that he couldn't find his way out of town! He quickly lost count of how many turns he had taken and so, he decided to just walk in a straight line and see where it led him. It was a normal solution to most of his problems.
He cursed in annoyance when he found himself walking through the back of Ranma's high school, past the stone statue of the fox that had been the source of one of his misadventures. "Damn it, I'm still in the same stupid town!" he complained, venting his frustration by punching a hole into a tree the side of a basketball.
It almost seemed as if destiny was keeping him here. Pondering this, he walked around the perimeter of the school as loud shouts and the sounds of combat erupted from somewhere ahead, sparking his curiosity. Following the noise, Ryoga found himself at the tail-end of a huge group of high school students and teachers. He bowled people over as he shoved himself through to the other side of the crowd.
What's going on here? He pushed his way around a particularly tall student and saw the source of the commotion. His eyes widened in surprise as he saw Ranma punch some weird guy dressed in combat armor with enough force to crush concrete. His opponent lashed back with a blow that made even Ryoga flinch as a sliver of sympathy for his enemy worked its way into his mind.
Ranma's getting beat pretty badly! Who the hell did he piss off this time? He watched as the unfortunate boy was thrown roughly across the school's field where he lay in an unmoving heap. His opponent began charging up to throw what Ryoga predicted would be a particularly nasty ki blast.
He gazed at his fallen rival again, studying him closely. Ranma's hurt bad! This fight is for real! He won't survive if he gets hit with a blast that strong. He's my enemy but even I can't just sit back and watch him die!
A brief period of indecision coursed through him as he struggled to decide what to do. He glanced over at the stricken Akane and at that moment, he knew what he had to do, even if he didn't like it. Pushing his way onto the field, Ryoga opened his umbrella and jumped in front of Ranma, shielding him from the intense blast as it crashed into them like a tidal wave. The strong energy played across his umbrella, forcing him to grit his teeth and lock his legs to keep from being blown backwards by the blast. The umbrella handle quickly began to heat up almost to the point of burning his palm. Thankfully, the Warrior cut off his attack wave a few seconds later, so he suffered no extensive damage or burns.
Ranma opened his eyes when the finishing blow never came. He was shocked to see Ryoga standing in front of him, the boy who had claimed to be after his life only yesterday, blocking the blast with his almost indestructible umbrella. "I don't believe it…"
The Warrior's shielded eyes blazed dark red behind his mask, seething more than nine hells. "How dare you interrupt our battle!"
Ryoga pointed a thumb at his chest. "Sorry pal, Ranma is my opponent."
He took up fighting stance and dropped his umbrella to the ground beside him. He didn't care that his strong opponent was mad, but then, he always had been a bit reckless. He actually took a measure of pride in pissing off his foes, and he had succeeded this time with the greatest of ease.
"You have no idea what sort of misery you have just unleashed upon yourself," the Warrior growled.
Ryoga flashed a toothy, arrogant grin, dropping his backpack to the ground. "Time alone will tell."
"Not as much time as you think!"
Ranma looked up at his rival with gratitude beyond measure. "I never thought I'd be so happy to see you, Ryoga. I was in a lot of trouble."
Ryoga gave him a savage, toothy grin. "It wouldn't be the first time, would it? Besides, I couldn't let you get killed by this guy. If anyone's going to kill you, it'll be me!"
Ranma smiled grimly. "Same old, same old, eh?"
Ryoga turned back to his new opponent. "Ok, you, listen up! Ranma's in no shape to fight right now so I'll be his stand in."
"Interesting. Very well, I accept. In the end it doesn't really matter. If it comes down to it, I'll crush half the student body at this school to finish him off. If you truly want to go through with this then attack me at anytime. If you do so, rest assured that I'll kill you first. This is the only chance I'll give you to walk away and not look back. Do so, and I'll forget I saw you. Trust me when I say that nothing you do here today will change the outcome of this battle. Ranma Saotome will still lose his life!"
Ryoga grinned. "Quitting is not my style and besides, I never allow the weak to be bullied, not even my enemies."
At the sidelines, Akane's eyes snapped open as consciousness flooded back into her brain. "Ranma!" Blinking, she sat up and looked at her older sister with a panic stricken face, feeling very, very sick. "Nabiki, is he…?"
Nabiki shook her head, an effort that seemed to require far too much effort. "Ryoga saved him at the last second. He's fighting this guy while Ranma regains some of his strength."
Her voice still trembled with anxiety and even her even voice couldn't completely cover her panic. She knew how close Ranma had come to breathing his last and it had been enough to rattle even her cast iron nerves.
Akane stood up on shaky legs and thanked the powers that be a hundred times over for Ryoga's timely appearance. It always seemed that despite his horrible directional sense, he always managed to get into an engagement at exactly the right moment and at a time he was most needed. "Ryoga, watch out! He's really powerful!"
Ryoga looked over at Akane and gave her a thumbs-up. "Don't worry, Akane! I'll take care of absolutely everything!"
Dropping into a low combat stance, he smiled, inching forward. With her watching me, I cannot lose. The Gods will smile upon me and I'll show her I'm stronger than Ranma by vanquishing this foe!
"Let's get to it!" He leapt forward, throwing several of his razor sharp bandannas to cover his advance. The Shadow Warrior jumped nimbly out of the way but left himself open to a powerful jump kick from Ryoga that slammed him into the ground hard enough to form an impact crater.
Laughing, the Warrior climbed to his feet, shrugging dirt off of his form. "You are clearly as strong as Ranma. I believe I remember you now. This match should prove to be more entertaining than I first thought."
"Not likely, pal. You're still worn out from your fight with Ranma. There's no way you will beat me as trashed as you are."
"We shall see. This isn't the first time that you've interfered with my plans. I guarantee that it will be the last. Everything ends today. I gave you the generous chance to save yourself but if you are so eager to meet death at it's gate then so be it! Your bloody carcass will be added as yet another trophy in my collection of victories."
The Shadow Warrior extended his arms and locked his hands with Ryoga's. He applied all his strength at once, intending to break Ryoga's arms and finish him off in one foul swoop. Immediately, Ryoga threw his left foot back and dug it in the ground to keep from falling backwards from the strong momentum. His powerful muscles bulged with effort as the Warrior pressed down on him with all his might. Yet, no matter how strong he was, Ryoga knew he could not hold out in a prolonged test of strength. He was strong, but his opponent was clearly the stronger in endurance. He focused all his strength and forced the Shadow Warrior's hands closer and closer to his own armored body, thus eliminating the danger of getting his arms broken by a sudden snap to the side. It took a massive effort to pull it off and couldn't be held for long.
"Ha! Impressive! The last time I performed this move I nearly tore my opponent's arms off."
"I don't care about the details!" Ryoga fell down on his back and brought his foot up, flipping the Warrior over him, end over end. It was his only recourse given the situation. His arms couldn't have held up much longer.
The Warrior gracefully flipped in midair and landed on his armored feet without the slightest bit of effort. He dashed forward a second later and threw a magnitude of well aimed punches that Ryoga barely managed to dodge. Ducking and rolling backwards, he avoided another barrage of attacks and managed to snag a hold on his umbrella, which was currently imbedded into the ground. He jumped at the Warrior and swung down at an arc. The Warrior blocked the blow with his forearm, using the momentum to throw Ryoga back in midair.
He landed gracefully on the ground and swung his umbrella out again. His opponent sidestepped a stomach intended jab and wrenched the weapon from his hands with one fluid slap. His armored knee found Ryoga's stomach a second later, doubling the boy over until his chin fell, resting on the ground. With pain-filled eyes, the Lost Boy glared up at his opponent with naked hatred, grimacing against the pain.
The Shadow Warrior relaxed his stance slightly, taking a deep breath. "Is that all you are truly capable of?" he asked, looking down at the fallen boy. "That was utterly pathetic."
"Bakusai Tenketsu!" Ryoga slammed his pointer finger into the ground and released a storm of rocks at the Warrior before he back-flipped to his feet. Shards pelted his armor and obstructed his vision and Ryoga used this cover to jump up and attack. Proving that his reflexes were greater still, the Warrior dashed to the side at the last second and kicked Ryoga square across the ribs. Again, Ryoga fell to the ground, wincing and grabbing his burning torso.
The Warrior stalked forward. "So then, this really is the limit of your skills. You're finished."
"Not yet!" Ryoga back-flipped to his feet. He charged forward and delivered a painful overhead smash to his foe's helmet. As the Warrior tried to punch him in mid-air, Ryoga grabbed his wrist and flipped him end-over-end into the hard ground, splintering the rock. When he rose clumsily to his feet, Ryoga rushed in close, delivering a full powered uppercut and then several punishing jabs to the Warrior's plated gut.
Recovering with inhuman speed, the Warrior blocked several more of Ryoga's quick attacks and worked his way inside the boy's defenses. The two fighters squared off at close range, delivering savage kicks and punches. Ryoga received the worst of it. None of his attacks could fully penetrate the armor and the Warrior's attacks started to grow stronger and stronger with each passing second. Blocking a sudden strike aimed at his still burning ribs, he found the Warrior's other hand wrapped tightly around his neck like a Python.
"The same move worked on both of you. How ironic. I don't have any more time to waste on worthless opponents like you. Its time for you to die."
He lifted Ryoga high over his head and tightened his grip. Ryoga could feel his windpipe crack as it neared the breaking point. No matter how he struggled, he couldn't break the iron grip that held him. His feet lashed out, bashing the Warriors face plate but the grip didn't slacken.
This guy isn't human!
The grip tightened further and his muscles started to slacken against his will as the lack of oxygen began to take its toll. The road to oblivion opened up before him and he began to fall towards it. In the distance, he saw Akane, tear-eyed and sobbing as she stood over his grave. Spurned on by this image, he redoubled his efforts to free himself.
No! I can't fail! I must succeed for... Akane! Gritting his teeth, Ryoga swung out with the strongest kick he could muster. His foot slammed into the side of his opponent's plated head, bending it in. The Warrior's head snapped to the side but the grip on his throat didn't slacken. Cursing silently, his body went limp again, weaker than before.
"Just die!" The Warrior's fists slammed over and over again into Ryoga's stomach, rocking his body like a punching bag on a chain. The punches sapped more and more of the boy's strength, leaving him helpless to the neck crushing strength of his opponents grip.
I can't break his grip…I should have known better…than to get involved… He closed his eyes, awaiting the end. It was all over, there was no hope left for him. That's what I get for helping that pervert...Damn it all! Damn you… Ranma...
A blur flashed before them and the Warrior's grip was finally broken as Ranma planted a strong kick on his elbow joint, numbing his arm from shoulder to wrist. Freed at last, Ryoga fell to the ground, massaging and grasping his swollen throat, gasping for air. The pain was excruciating! He clawed at the ground, willing the strong, painful fire to fade away but relief was slow in coming.
Ranma stood in front of him, eyes blazing blocking the Warrior from trying any cheap shots against the fallen combatant. "The way I see it, Ryoga, we can't beat him individually. This is one opponent who's seriously out to kill us. We have no other choice but to pair up. If we don't, we're dead!"
Ryoga growled and rose to his feet. His hand fell from his throat and tightened into a fist as a mask of rage struck his face that frightened Akane as she gazed on. "Fine by me!"
The Shadow Warrior crossed his arms and chuckled. "Well, well, Ranma! Are you still able to fight? I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Both of you have always been quick to recover. Breaking you both is going to be a fun challenge!"
Shouting battle cries, Ranma and Ryoga charged forward on the offensive. Their punches played havoc on the Warrior's strong armor as each attacked from a different angle, supporting the other. He had to concentrate entirely on defense in order to block the multitude of attacks aimed as his defeat. The feat seemed was all but impossible, even for a highly skilled person such as himself and yet, his defenses formed a nearly unbreakable wall that kept him safe for a time. The three moved back and forth across the field, as their attacks broke on each other. To everyone's surprise, even his own, the Warrior held up his solid defense, for a time.
But his success was short lived. The two men kept attacking with seemingly limitless energy that eventually broke his defenses down entirely. He slumped over slightly, exhausted and dazed and his vision blurred for an endless moment. His posture drooped with exertion and he started to breath heavily, giving them the chance they needed.
"Now, Ryoga, hit him hard!" The two boys coordinated their attacks, moving to compliment the other. They threw two strong punches to his face mask and two solid kicks to his chest so properly coordinated that an onlooker might have thought they were seeing doubles of the same person. The timed attacks created double the punishment and sent the howling Warrior skidding backwards across the sports field, forcing him to hunch forward and slam his fingers into the ground to stop his movement, forming a long line of rivets as the resistance caused him to slow to a stop, many meters away from where he had just been.
As he stood up straight, the pain nearly toppled him. Though he did stagger, he refused to fall. He set his feet and brought his arm up to attack, struggling to catch his second wind. It was a seemingly impossible act, especially for a person who had just taken the strongest physical attacks Ranma and Ryoga could offer. He was one opponent who was quickly showing them that he was a master of the impossible.
The Warrior growled again with inhuman rage, stepping forward, retracing the ground he has just lost. "Now I'm starting to get pissed off!"
He broke into a run that was surprisingly fast, swinging his fist and catching Ranma in the jaw so hard that the boy's vision flashed white and he fell to the ground. The pigtailed boy hit the ground head first, his eyes shrinking to mere pinpoints as shock set in.
"Your turn!" He spun on his heels and kneed Ryoga hard in the chest. His body snapped backwards and blood trailed from his mouth onto the bright green grass below.
"Now do you see? I will be the victor here. You have both given a valiant effort but neither of you possessed the skills necessary to defeat my determination. It's a sad reality, but true."
Ranma jumped up then helped Ryoga to his feet, neither moving as quickly as they had before. "Our normal attacks won't bring him down, Ranma," Ryoga said. "It looks like we gotta' use our ki attacks. "
Ranma frowned. "I dunno, he took the Hiryu Shoten Ha and broke it down. He might be too strong for our energy attacks."
"We gotta try," Ryoga insisted, glaring at the Warrior as he stood passively, waiting their next move. "One attack might fail but two combined is enough to handle anyone, human or not."
Ranma thought a moment. "Alright, when I give you the signal, use your Shishi Hoko-Dan attack! We need to maximize its power by combining it with my own at precisely the right time! Your right, all out energy convection is our only hope. If we can both hit him at the same time, he won't stand a chance!"
He shot Ryoga a serious look. "Before you got here, that guy promised to kill Akane when he was done with me."
"What!?" Eyes flashing red, Ryoga ground his teeth so hard together his gums started to bleed. Rage and frustration hotter than magma burned through his body, and hot on its heels was an overwhelming sense of depression. He didn't have the strength to beat this foe alone and win Akane's affections, and so he had thrus far failed to keep her safe from a nutcase who wanted to kill her, kill his Akane! This would not be allowed! He summoned the great depth of energy within him, casting energy from his body with great speed that exploded like a shockwave. He crossed his hands over chest and found that he had started screaming in rage, his limbs trembling as he bent his knees.
He glanced over at Akane, his angel, and saw the fear in her eyes and ceased to be a man as his vessel became a weapon, bent only on violence. The Warrior would pay. Oh, how he would pay!
Ranma too opened his mind and soul and felt the warm energy tingle across his skin and into his hands. Using his mind, he shaped the energy into a tight ball and cupped it in his palm.
The Shadow Warrior laughed again. It was a terrible noise that sounded less pleasant than nails on a blackboard. "It's almost insulting to see that you two think I haven't prepared for this kind of situation. Your strategy will not succeed. Surrender now and I swear that your deaths will be painless."
"Ryoga, hit this bastard with everything you've got! Moko Takabisha!" Ranma's arms outstretched and his eyebrows beetled as he concentrated deeply, summon what reserve energy he could muster. He knew he'd only get one shot to save his life. It was a time of action and even though the tension was high, he felt only confidence. This influx of power only served to strengthen his attack further. He was a martial artist, he would not fail, couldn't fail! He flexed the muscles in his arms and howled out in creation's name, firing a beam of power stronger than any he had ever used before.
"You don't have to tell me twice! This bastard is going down!" At the same time, Ryoga threw his hands outward and willed his eyes to close, tearing his gaze from Akane. From the depths of his mind, he conjured up the vilest of depressive and dark memories. Akane lying in a pool of her own blood, his own death at the Warrior's hands, Ranma finally winning over Akane and gloating to his face; these potent thoughts brought a greater torrent of dark energy into his body, electrifying him with its negative soul-shadowing power. The negativity he felt became raw energy that quickly coursed down into his hands. Dark emotions, arguably the strongest things a human could feel, were his weapon of choice. Thru it, his target would be destroyed!
"Shishi Hoko-Dan!"
The two devastating columns of energy, one blackish blue, one a vibrant yellow, shot forward like missiles. As the twin beams bared down on the Shadow Warrior, it seemed for a moment that their attacks would at last finish the job. However, instead of crying out in terror as others would have, their enemy just laughed and raised his hands as if he meant to embrace the chaotic power that charged at him.
"Your attacks are worthless!"
His smug laughter turned into a bark of madness. Only a person who was truly insane would willingly stand in the way of such power. His crazy laugh grew louder as the adrenaline pulsed through his veins. Reaching up to chest level with his open hands, he caught each of the blasts in his hands and fought back against the powerful shockwave that slammed into his body. The energy pushed him backwards several hundred feet thru sheer momentum, threatening all the while to destroy him. His laughter choked off altogether and turned into a growl as he fought against the flow of energy that sought to break him in half. His hands were slowly pushed back closer and closer to his chest. Digging his heels into the ground, he stopped his movement and began pushing back against the current. It was an impossible feat! Surely he wouldn't succeed! The crowd gasped in horror and, as a whole, took several cautionary steps backwards.
Ranma's eye's narrowed in fury and he turned the power level up to its final notch. The beam grew fatter as more and more power fed itself into the already impressive ki current. Ryoga too submerged completely into the negative emotions he had summoned, losing his ability to think. Revived waves of black aided his slightly faltering beam of energy as electric particles sizzled with new power on its ever-changing surface.
"I will win!" The Warrior's own energy pulsed to life and he slowly forced his hands away from his chest again as if he were doing a pushup, defying the twin beams of power as they struggled to overcome him. As everyone watched in horrified fascination, strands of green power winked to life, snaking out from his fingertips and wrapped around the two beams of energy as they continuously slammed into his palms. These tendrils seemed to fight and pull against Ranma's and Ryoga's energy, trapping it like a spiderweb ensnares a fly. The hungry webs of dark energy spread across the Warrior's hands, forming twin bubbles that greedily suck in more of Ryoga and Ranma's power more like an undeniable vacuum.
The Warrior cried out in determination. He had to maintain perfect concentration to hold up his defensive orbs. One slight slip and he'd be left with no way to defend himself against their attack. Setting his feet, he still began to slide backwards across the ground due to the momentum alone.
He frowned as sweat trickled down his face. It was going to be close. His energy nets couldn't hold much more. If things lasted too much longer they would overload just as Ranma's Hiryu Shoten Ha had moments before. Growling stubbornly, the Warrior's body was eclipsed by a loud explosion that disrupted the air around the trio, shrouding the field frm in dust.
Sapped of too much power, Ranma and Ryoga finally cut their attacks off and slumped as exhaustion took hold once more, leaving them barely able to stand. Wheezing for breath, Ranma and Ryoga looked first at the opposite end of the field, then to eachother.
"D-did we get him?" Ranma gasped.
"Dunno..." Ryoga struggled to stay up of his own power, his form shaking. For a moment, all was silent and he allowed himself to think the job had at last been completed. But this conclusion was crushed just as quickly as it was created within the conflicting confines of his mind. Even with his energy levels so far diminished, he still felt the intimidating power of his enemy in the air around them.
The Warrior hadn't died!
Ryoga's eyes squeezed shut tightly. "Impossible…"
A renewed, terrible laughter filled the air and the dust cloud dissipated as if an invisible hand had brushed it aside. Before them, the Shadow Warrior held his hands up for all to see. In each hand, he gripped their collected energy as tight as a selfish child grips a piece of candy. Green power swirled around his closed fists, containing the two powers within the intact energy bubbles. Ranma and Ryoga stared at the horrifying sight in dead silence.
"Using my Ki to create a bubble, I was able to contain your attacks. So long as I concentrate, I can do so indefinitely. I told you both that you were waging a foolish assault, did I not?"
Their reactions caused him to chuckle. "Don't look so shocked! To your credit, even I wouldn't have survived if I hadn't known how to do that little trick. You did manage to skin my palms a little."
He held up his still smoking hands as he held tight to the pulsing spheres of power.
"You bastard..." Ranma gritted his teeth hard.
"R-ranma, he caught our attacks!" Ryoga couldn't believe what he was seeing. It was just too much for him to take in. It was a nightmare beyond comprehension. Energy was a powerful and violent force. It was somewhat easy to block such attacks, or redirect them… but to actually catch such tremendous force in one's hands was a feat neither youth had ever seen before.
"This battle ends now!" The Warrior threw the blasts back in the direction they had come, striking the two boys in the chest before they could move. The energy tore into them unmercifully, cutting into their souls, robbing them of any further strength and willpower to resist his onslaught. As the energy shut down their nervous systems, it ripped Ranma's awareness away and everything became night before his eyes.
As the two boys hit the ground, far from the places in which they had been standing before, Ryoga somehow managed to remain consciousness and struggled to rise to his feet. Perhaps it was because his beating had been less severe, perhaps he had found a bit of strength left. Regardless the reason, his efforts were still in vain. He couldn't even muster the strength to attack. Closing his eyes tight, he cursed his fate and awaited the invertible end that was surely only a moment away. His soul relaxed, and he too succumbed to the pain that ravaged his body, falling backwards onto the soft grass as it reached up to tickle at his skin.
The Warrior stood triumphant at last. He chuckled evilly, stepping towards his defenseless prey with murder as his intent. As the armor moved across his body, he noticed small pieces broke off and fell the ground with each step. Still, the majority had remained intact, withstanding the test of battle. It was truly of fine quality to have absorbed such violent attacks. He was very pleased and smiled behind his identity hiding mask. His gloved hands flexed as he prepared to carry out the bloody conclusion to his long quest, excitement taking him by storm. He would take their lives without the slightest bit of remorse or mercy. Oh, how he had waited so long to do so!
He stepped up to Ranma Saotome and knelt at his side, running his hand through his felled opponent's hair in an almost gentle fashion. Channeling a bit of energy into his hand, he positioned it over Ranma's head, letting his knuckles rest on the boy's forehead. The Warrior coolly estimated that one good blow would crack his skull clean open. Licking his lips he savored his absolute victory.
His cold, metallic laughter pierced the air and the wind carried it to the ears of every frightened attendee. "And now, Ranma Saotome… you die."
Nabiki placed her hands over her mouth and screamed until her lungs refused to work anymore.