Chapter Fifteen: Crimson Sky
"Well, Ranma, what do you think?" The pig-tailed martial artist turned around to stare at the person who was standing behind him in the wrecked training hall. "No clue. I think the Neko-Ken's somehow tied to m survival instincts, and whenever I feel a really strong emotion or someone is in real danger, my mind shuts down and it takes over." He sighed, "at least, that's the best explanation I've heard so far."
"Well, does it work for you?" Ranma nodded, sitting down and leaning against the wall. "I keep getting these...blackouts. Whenever I get into a fight the last couple nights, I can barely recall what I did at one instant, but I always know the youma's dead afterwards. It's been getting clearer, and when I think about the fight with Ryoga now, there's this one point where I remember everything, from the way my heart beat to the ki that I used to cushion the blow. I slashed at him, and there were those four barely visible ki blades."
Ryoko dropped down next to the pig-tailed boy. "So, what do make of it?"
"Dunno. At that fight I was kinda...scared, but I was angry, too. I think I know that wasn't really Ryoga somehow, and I hated whatever did it to him." The elder martial artist arched an eyebrow and stared at the boy next to him, extending his senses. There were subtle differences in the boy's ki flows, he noted, and there were several patterns in his aura that had grown in intensity, going from a nearly undetectable anomaly to taking up a major part of his aura.
"Channel your ki, try to raise your aura," Ryoko told him. The pig-tailed martial artist arched an eyebrow, but complied. His aura shimmered into existence, the electric blue glow slowly shifting towards a golden color. Ryoko stared at it, feeling the lines of power that emanated from the boy. There was a new set he had never noticed before, and it startled bhim to note that the Saotome heir's aura was composed of nearly pure ki. Purer than he should have been able to muster at this stage of his training.
Ranma opened his eyes and blinked, before glancing at Ryoko. "So?" The older martial artist sat back and shrugged. "I have a theory, not sure if it's right." Ranma grinned wryly. "Your guess is as good as mine," he said.
"Well, your aura's off." He held up a hand to forestall Ranma's comments, and continued. "It's not a bad thing, it's just...weird. Your aura is nearly completely pure ki. It's almost at my or Herb's level, and that's way farther than you should be able to access with your present training. I also sensed some ki paths through you that weren't there before. My guess is the Neko-Ken forms those pathways during the training, but they are buried so deeply beneath survival instincts and fear that they're almost gone."
"And because I didn't know how to access ki at the time, I-" "You tapped into pure ki on instinct," Ryoko finished. "Makes sense. It would explain why the trainee has to be a young child. The trainee must not have any knowledge of ki, or how to access it, or the Neko-Ken created ki flows will interfere with what's already there. And each time the Neko-Ken comes out, you loose consciousness and access these ki pathways. It's what makes the Neko-Ken so strong. But in order to bring them out, your mind has to let go of all it's buried under, so it shuts down."
By now, Ranma was nearly standing. "But with your training, when I learned how to access pure ki, it strengthened these pathways." Ryoko nodded. "Yes. That is why you've been able to use the Neko-Ken on occassion, when your mind can pierce through the fear and instinct that covers it. It also explains why you can remember what happened. It also means that you have to find a trigger for it, or you won't be able to control it."
"And if I can't?" The pig-tailed martial artist was starting to not like the direction this was headed. "If you can't and you loose control...then...don't think about it." Ranma sat back on his haunches. Why couldn't he ever do things the easy way?
V---------------------V
Ranma stopped in front of the door, unsure of whether he should actually enter. He snorted at the thought that the great Saotome Ranma was afraid of entering a girl's room. He raised his hand to knock and hesitated, but the choice was taken out of his hand when the door opened, and Nabiki stared at him. "Hey, Saotome." Her grin looked positively devilish, Ranma thought. "Hiya Nabiki," was all he managed.
The girl studied him for a moment, her gaze wandering from his eyes to his face and down his body, only to return to his eyes. She smiled slightly at what she saw there, a genuine smile she hadn't shown for years. He had that look, the one that told her she could trust him unconditionally, and that he would give it his all to protect them. Determination and compassion, she thought, something that he had shown them since the day he arrived on the Tendo Dojo's doorstep.
She pulled him aside quickly, and headed down the corridor for a few feet, before stopping and glancing at him again. "Saotome...I know you heard this before, from Akane, most likely. But if you ever hurt Kasumi, I'll make your life hell." She smiled, then. "But I know you won't, so you won't have anything to worry about. I trust you will do right with her, Ranma-kun. Make her happy."
The pig-tailed martial artist stood, staring at the middle Tendo sister in confusion, until he realized the meaning behind her words. A smile spread across his face, as well, and he nodded. "Count on it, Nabiki. I won't let anything happen to hear, I promise." And Saotome Ranma always keeps his promises, Nabiki mentally added. And suddenly, she felt a tinge of sadness fall over her. Sadness and regret at herself and her actions that had driven this loyal and dedicated young man away from her the day he had stumbled into their lives.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, so quietly he wasn't sure if he had imagined it or not. He saw the unshed tears in her eyes, though, and hesitantly pulled her into a hug. Nabiki let go of the wavering control she had over her emotions, and the fear for their lives, her self-loathing and regret, her anger and pride manifested themselves as tears that soaked the front of Ranma's shirt. "I'm sorry," she muttered again, "for not giving you a chance."
The pig-tailed martial artist glanced at her in shock. Now that was something he hadn't expected. "What for?" He whispered back. Still sobbing, the girl's voice cracked as she spoke in a hushed whisper. "When you first came...I was afraid of what you were, afraid of the unknown. I tried to push all my troubles on you, looking for the easy way out. I made you my entertainment because I didn't want to let you close to me. I was afraid you'd be like all the other boys. I'm sorry."
Ranma just stood and held her, shocked at the confession. When she had calmed down somewhat, she looked up, and he could see the contentment in her eyes. Her lips curled into a crooked smile as she leaned up and kissed him quickly. Reflexively, he tried to pull back, before realizing he didn't feel anything. It wasn't a demand, or seductive...it was a gesture of comfort, much like Kasumi had given him several days before. Simple friendship, and, to an extent, brotherly love were what he felt for the girl in his arms, and she seemed to realize it. With a smile that managed to convey happiness and sadness at the same time, she let him go.
"We could have had something special," she said as she turned to leave. She could still hear his words trailing after her..."Thank you." And that was all it took for her. Tendo Nabiki was back, and the Ice Queen was gone.
V---------------------V
Ranma stood still in the hallway, staring down the direction Nabiki had vanished in. He smiled slightly, the girl was letting go of her facade. He hated to see her hurt, but he knew he could do nothing more to help her. He had done what he could, and he was confident she would be working through the remainder of it by herself.
With a smile still on his face, he headed back to the room the Tendo sisters shared, and knocked. Akane opened the door, and shot him an insecure glance at him. He smiled shyly at her, and Akane giggled. "Hey, you big baka. Come in." He chuckled and entered the room. "So, what did you want?" He could see a glimmer of amusement in her eyes. "Wanted to make out some more with oneesan?"
He was about to deny it to prevent her from going into her "all boys are perverts"-routine, but he didn't have to. Akane held the stern look for a moment before giggling. "You should have seen your face! It was priceless! You looked so scared!" The pig-tailed martial artist glared at her for a moment before seeing the humor in the situation and joining her. "I just wanted to talk," he said after they had calmed down.
"Ranma-"
"Akane-"
They stared at each other as they began at the same time, only for Ranma to shrug and wait for Akane to start. "I'm still not sure I can get used to you like this, Ranma," she giggled, "You're making it hard for me to get mad at you for anything." He raised an eyebrow. "That is the general idea, you know."
"It's going to take some getting used to, you know. Seeing you like this. You're so...different from before," Akane shrugged. "Anyway. I thought about what you said to me the other day, and what happened on your training trip. I started training again. Seriously." The determination in her eyes left no doubt as to the truth of that statement. "Ranma...I want to fight with you. When you go and fight the bastard who's responsible for this. I wanna come along."
"Akane, this is-" She cut him off with a wave of her hand. "Don't you start with that 'it's dangerous' thing again. I know it's dangerous. I know I'm not as good as you or Ryoga-kun, or Herb. But I want to help. I'm a martial artist. It's my duty to protect those who cannot protect themselves."
He was saved from having to answer that when the door opened and Kasumi came in. Akane grinned conspirationally and left, leaving Ranma and her sister alone in the room. "Ranma-kun!" Kasumi's face lit up in a smile. He blushed and turned away, only looking back at her when he felt her sit down next to him.
"Ka-Kasumi!" Great...now I'm starting to act like Doc Tofu! He mentally groaned and kicked himself, only to realize he had actually kicked himself, and that Kasumi was staring at him with a weird mix of amusement and curiosity. "Eh...hehe..." he chuckled, rubbing the back of his head. Kasumi smiled at his antics, and Ranma couldn't help but forget about his embarassment and smile, as well.
"I...well...just wanted to...uh..." he attempted to stutter out what he'd come here to say, only to have the words stick in his throat and refuse to come out. Damn, why does this happen to me? He scrunched his brow in frustration, before taking a deep breath and tensing, as if firing off a ki blast. Kasumi noted absently that his aura had become almost tangible. She knew he would eventually come out and say what he had wanted to tell her, so she allowed him the time to form the right words.
"I...wanted you to know...that I care for you." He took his time with each word, making sure it was perfectly understandable and clear, so that he wouldn't have to repeat himself. Kasumi smiled at his words, understanding the underlying meaning. "Thank you, Ranma-kun," she said, her hold over her own emotions growing frailer by the second. She felt happy and content, knowing that he was developing feelings for her, and pride that he'd had the courage to come and tell her.
"I'm sorry," Ranma said, his eyes downcast. He hadn't been able to say those three words, after all. He'd still had his doubts, his fears about the outcome of this whole situation. A comforting hand rested on his shoulder, and he looked up into Kasumi's brown eyes, seeing no reproach, no sadness there, only joy and understanding. "I understand," she whispered. "You will be able to say it when your heart is ready. And I'll be waiting."
V---------------------V
"Glad you could join us," Urd noted as Setsuna and Ryoko entered the throne room which now doubled as improptu war room. "We think we have a plan." Ryoko arched an eyebrow. "You think?" The goddess shot him a dirty look, before continuing.
"We are agreed on the fact that we can't hole up here forever. Eventually, the constant attacks are going to wear us down," Urd glanced across the room and took in the tired faces of the assembled. "More than they already have," she amended. "So, we'll have to fight back."
Cologne hopped forward on her staff, indicating a map that had been hung up on the wall. "This is a map of Jusenkyo Valley. Firkraag has holed himself up here," she indicated the amazon village, "We do not know if he has any other troops than the youma he has been using to attack so far. But we will have to risk attacking them, before the spell can gain power and be completed."
"Because of the spell's magnitude and power, it has to be channeled through some physical form, most likely a mandala. The plan is to disrupt it and discharge the energy in a purification spell that will clear the entire valley of anything demonic," Urd took over. "We won't have enough troops to fortify Jusendo and lead the attack...so we'll have to make the first strike count." She stepped aside as Herb and Kiima moved forward.
The Musk prince exchanged a glance wih the Phoenix woman, who shot him a mild glare. "Joketsuzoku is naturaly fortified. We have neither the time nor the firepower for a frontal attack, so we will have to 'divide and conquer,' so to speak." Indicating the map, he continued, "We will stage diversions here, here, and there. The main strike force will come in from the west, where the rainfall of this season has caused landslides and damaged the forts and walls. A small complement of the Phoenix and myself will bypass the walls and open the gates from the inside."
Kiima looked as if she had more to say, but closed her mouth and sighed. She didn't like having the Musk prince commandeer her and her troops around as easily as that, but she had to admit his tactics were sound. So, she cleared her throat. "Once inside, we will secure the village, and. Our first priority will be disruption of the spell, then termination of those creatures. We have no idea of the enemy's numbers, but this is the only chance we have."
V---------------------V
Dawn was nearing, and the flanks of Mount Phoenix were strangely devoid of creatures. An unearthly silence fell across the plains as the few scattered oni and youma searched for victims, and found none. Few arrows flew over the walls of the fort that was home of the phoenix, and not a single warrior was found outside.
With the first ray of sunlight, the demonic army began to fade away. And far in the distance, at the gates of Joketsuzoku, the battle began.
In a heartbeat, the silence around the village shattered, the battlecries of Musk and Phoenix alike piercing the morning air as they rose from their hidden posts and rushed forward. Morning fog parted as the Musk swiftly stormed towards the gates of the amazon village, under the cover of the Phoenix who were melting their way through the village's fortifications from the sky.
The few youma that lingered around were quickly overwhelmed, and one by one the walls around the village fell.
V---------------------V
Herb glanced at the young Phoenix guard who Kiima had assured him was one of their best, and nodded. The young Phoenix ignited an arrow and shot it high into the air. On his signal, Herb and a complement of Phoenix rose into the air, rising quickly from their hiding spots and passing the defensive walls, then dropped as quickly has they had taken to the skies. Herb didn't waste time with the gates, blasting the hinges from the inside, melting the massive metal clasps that held the impressive wall in place.
V---------------------V
The attack force rushed into the village through the open gates. By this time the youma and oni had regrouped and were forming a protective circle around the town square. The incoming warriors crashed into them.
V---------------------V
Ranma whirled his sakabatou around him as he encountered the oni. He had insisting on accompanying the attack, and had been the first to rush in. Instinctively, he reversed the blade and began slashing his way through the horde standing between him and whatever they were protecting. Their opponents may not be very tough to fight, and may not know how to fight...but they made up for it in sheer numbers.
The pig-tailed martial artist frowned and switched the blade to his left hand, and began unleashing his father's sealed techniques.
V---------------------V
"Hinokuruma!" The purple ki blast slammed into the ranks of the youma, incinerating most upon contact. Ryoga charged forward, swinging his umbrella left and right. As soon as Ranma had announced he'd be in the first attack wave, Ryoga had voiced the same request. The lost boy had never fully gotten used to battle, but it was something that had to be done. And so, for the first time in over ten years, he swung his umbrella, aiming for killing blows.
To either side of him, Ukyo and Shampoo were charging into the fray headlong alongside him. Neither of the girls was fond of killing, but they had been trained for it, had known what it took out of them. Ryoga had never actively trained to kill someone, and in a way he envied them. They had been prepared for this sort of thing. He hadn't.
V---------------------V
Ryoko gritted his teeth as he slashed around him with his fans, clearing a path for him that lasted only moments before new youma filled the gaps he tore. Urd was a step behind him, keeping the oni that tried to sneak up on him off his back. He shot a glance over where Herb and Cologne were fighting, then his eyes flickered to Kiima instructing her troops from high in the sky as the Phoenix rained fireballs and arrows into the fight.
V---------------------V
Firkraag smirked as he heard the commotion. He knew they would come eventually, but he never would have thought that it would be so soon. It would be a minor annoyance. He paused in collecting energy from the pools of Jusenkyo and summoned a portal, luring out youma and oni. They would run to their doom. The portals remained open, more demons rushing out to the smell of fresh blood.
V---------------------V
Ranma turned around and stared outside as he reached the town square. The demons had turned around and were now surrounding them. He slowly backed off till his back hit something. He threw a quick look over his shoulder and noticed it was Ryoga. "Hey P-chan." His rival smirked. "'lo Ranko. Good day to die?"
The Saotome youth shook his head and grinned. "Nah. Bad day to die. I plan to live to a great old age, ya know." The lost boy copied his grin. "Then let's get to it!"
"Môkô Takâbishâ!"
"Hinokuruma!"
The twin yells were accompanied by two blasts of energy that lanced outwards from the two boys, cutting into the ranks of the youma. "Nice shot," Ryoko commented as he joined them. He tossed a glance at Urd, and the goddess nodded, levitating off into the air and began casting a spell as soon as she caught sight of the portals.
Thunder crashed above them even though it was still early morning, and the sky darkened ominously. The air crackled with unreleased power as the goddess began to draw energy from her surroundings. The demons shied back from the small ring of Musk, Phoenix, and martial artists, nervously holding the circle around them, neither charging forward nor backing off.
The spell Urd had prepared unloaded itself, and the portals closed. The youma, instinctively knowing that their path home had been cut off and the divine magic had been dispelled, roared in anger and bloodlust, and attacked once more.
V---------------------V
Ducking a claw that was aiming to take off his head, Ranma lashed out in a legsweep that connected with an armored appendage of the youma in front of him, and he winced slightly. Spinning away from the youma, he backed off and narrowed his eyes. His sakabatou changed hands to his right, and he swung it upwards in one smooth motion. "Do-Ryu-Sen!" The hail of rocks and dirt bombarded the youma, but it ignored the projectiles and charged him again.
This time he was ready. Bringing his left arm across his chest and flinging it back out again, he sent a vacuum blade flying at it, cleaving it neatly in half. He swore when his foot caught on something, and he heaved upward to free it. It wouldn't budge. Ranma looked down to see what had happened, only to see a glowing circle trace itself around him, inscribed into a six-pointed star.
Before he could open his mouth a shimmering red barrier raised itself between him and the rest of the world. He banged against the inside of it, attempting to get out, but reeled back as he burned his hands. "Môkô Takabishâ!" The ki blast slammed uselessly against the inside of the ward, dissipating into smoke as it hit the barrier.
The energy wall itself was translucent, and he could see the battle raging around him through a reddish tinge.
V---------------------V
"Ranma!" Ryoko turned to the female shout, only to see a red barrier rising around the pig-tailed martial artist. He swore under his breath and rushed over, launching a windblade at the barrier, knowing it would do nothing. "Urd!" The goddess was already on it, chanting as she drew upon what was left of her divine powers. Her aura rose around her in a silver light, extending to the globe that held Ranma, the silver warring with the red for dominance as she fought to break through the shield.
Ryoko turned his back towards them and eyed the incoming youma. Cologne and Soap passed him, their own magic wards in hand. He received a curt nod from the amazon matriarch, and called out to Herb and Kiima to pull the troops into a defensive perimeter. They were now completely surrounded, with Ranma and the spelltrap holding him in the midst of them.
V---------------------V
Ranma sent several more ki blasts against the walls holding him captive, but each attempt met the same result, and by now he was struggling to breathe. He felt tired and cumbersome, and a small part in the back of his mind reminded him that he shouldn't be feeling this drained after only a handful of attacks. He sat down on the ground, trying to catch his breath and watched as Urd attempted to break the barrier from the outside.
His eyes slowly drifted shut, and he had to jerk himself awake. When he realized what was going on, he didn't have enough strength left to stand up. I'm being drained. My ki...it's like Hinako-sensei's technique, only slower. Cologne and Soap arrived outside of the barrier and a flash of light indicated the Senshi had teleported in. He caught Cologne's attention, and mouthed, "Ki drain," before slumping back onto the ground.
The elder's eyes grew wide, and she quickly consulted with Soap in Mandarin. The two were joined by Setsuna. The time Senshi attempted blasting the sphere with her Dead Scream once, only to find out it was immune to condensed temporal flux. The three watched silently as Urd's dispelling magic crept its way over the barrier, strands of silver slowly worming themselves through the red.
Setsuna could feel the magical energy being drawn from the nearby valley of Jusenkyo towards the spelltrap, could feel it mingling and gaining power. "It's a trap!" Urd cracked one eye open, sweat running down her forehead as she kept up her concentration. "I know," the goddess replied, "it's not just a spellward. It's a powerdrain array. If we don't shut it down soon he'll have collected enough energy to shut down Yggdrasil."
The emerald haired woman nodded grimly, and began focusing her own magical powers into the goddess's spell. Cologne and Soap shared a quick glance, and sat down to meditate, attempting to lessen the ki flows in the area that were streaming over from Jusenkyo.
V---------------------V
Ryoko looked up from where he had cut a youma to pieces as an ominous rumble went through the sky. "This isn't good," Herb noted next to him. The martial artist could only nod. The Musk prince indicated back towards the spelltrap. "Saotome is unconscious." Ryoko's blood froze as the sky continued to rumble and clouds began to form.
Bright light flared from behind them, emanating from the spelltrap, extending far into the sky, shooting upwards in a brilliant crimson beam of light. The wind howled and for a moment Ryoko swore he could hear the souls of the dead scream in agony as the energy that bound them to this world was ripped away.
The sky went dark.
V---------------------V
"We've got a massive power surge incoming!" Peorth whirled around so fast she nearly slammed into Chrono as the young goddess showed her the readouts. "It's larger than anything we anticipated, our pattern buffers won't be able to handle it." There was a hint of panic creeping into Chrono's voice.
Peorth couldn't fault her. She looked at the numbers, and, for the first time since she could remember, she prayed. Consoles all over the Yggdrasil control rooms went dark and exploded in sparks as gods and goddesses scurried for cover. The room went dark.
V---------------------V
Kiima landed softly on the ground and glanced up at the darkening sky, and the energy beam piercing to the heavens. The Phoenix woman could feel the power radiating off the spell, and it frightened her. She was untrained in the magical arts, and everything that held enough energy to be noticeable to the untrained and unsensitive was something that should not be messed with.
Setsuna took note of the events around her, of the sudden power surge, but fixed her concentration on the task of breaking the barrier with Urd.
The Senshi looked up fearfully. It reminded them too much of the time Beryl had attacked the Moon Kingdom. The skies had been turned black with her evil and her youma. The Senshi shuddered as the memories resurfaced.
Herb could only stare heavenward as the skies rumbled and protested. Next to him, Ryoko was clenshing his jaw and tightening his hold on his fans until his knuckles turned white.
And the sky turned crimson.