Author's Note: Well, here's the next chapter. I apologize for the shortness of it, but it seems that as the situation gets more hectic, so does the chapter. For some reason I can't find a way to make it longer, and rather than writing some stuff that really doesn't fit I decided to leave it at that. The next chapter will most likely be short, as well; however, this story is nearing its conclusion. As I've planned it out so far, there will be 2 more chapters, and maybe an epilogue to tie up loose ends (or make some, hehe).

Chapter Sixteen: The Mark of Evil

Ranma looked around him, wondering what he had done this time to annoy one deity or the other that they would load him up with these problems. The pig-tailed boy was surrounded by a spreading darkness, and in the distance he could see fires burning. The sky above him shone with countless stars, but instead of comfort, he felt fear and anxiety. He turned around in a circle, trying to locate anything familiar, and when that failed, shrugged and set off towards the light of the fires.

It was a village, he noted as he approached it from over a hilltop, brightly illuminated by the burning fires and lanterns. Yet for some reason the place felt wrong, much like the rest of the area around him. It had a feeling of nothingness to it, as if it were unreal and real at the same time. Ranma wondered if this was something that was beyond his comprehension and his mind was trying to make it understandable for him.

The village, it turned out, was empty. The fires were burning, the houses were lit, but there wasn't a single soul on the streets, not a single animal roaming the place, not a single firefly hovering in the air. Then, all of a sudden, a life seemed to flood in, and people started appearing, going after their everyday tasks, little children laughing, playing. And ignoring him, as if he weren't there.

As he continued to wander the now populated streets, Ranma took care to watch the people that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. He smiled at the happiness, the peace that surrounded him, wishing he and his friends could live like this. A rumble in the sky broke the peace around him, and he glanced up, to see a wave of blackness sweep across the heavens, leaving only darkness behind.

It passed through the streets, eating up the town, the hills, the people, erasing them from existence. It continued until only Ranma was left standing in the middle of nowhere. And all of a sudden, he felt cold.

Ryoko ducked under a claw and retaliated by stabbing his fan through the joint of the appendage of the offending demon, before letting the fan drop open and sending a windblade towards the next youma. His breathing was labored, and more than once he found himself rubbing his eyes to rid them of the blurriness that was creeping into his vision. "Ryoko!" He reacted to Ukyo's call a split second too late and could only manage to bring his open fan before him in the hope to deflect some of the force of the blow when the youma was incinerated by a ki blast.

"Make sure you don't die on us," Herb snorted, a hint of amusement in his eyes. Ryoko nodded in return and shook his head to clear it. Damn. That was too close a call. He returned his attention to the battle raging before them, and rushed back in, crossing his fans to intercept an overhead blow, before slamming them wide and reaching in with a snap-kick to the youma's chest that would have smashed its ribcage, had it been human.

Kiima was floating alongside her lord as they continued to rain fire and arrows on the youma that had the defenders pinned down. The battle was not going well, the Phoenix woman noted, despite the fact that the portals had been sealed, the youma still held the advantage in numbers. She spared a glance at Saffron, and noted sweat running down his forehead as he struggled to keep up a continuous stream of fireballs. Phoenix warriors were dashing in and out of engagements all around them, striking whenever possible and retreating to the skies before the youma could counterattack.

This hadn't been part of the plan, she grimaced, but then again they had grossly underestimated their enemy's numbers. She just hoped their mages would be able to stop whatever events had been set into motion. The blood-red sky was starting to irritate her.

Herb turned to face the crowd of oni that had shoved their way in front of him. Mint and Lime stood next to him, cracking their knuckles. Wordlessly, the Musk prince shot forward, hurling ki blasts into their opponent's ranks, his two retainers only a step behind him as they plowed through the demon horde. The dragonchild didn't want to admit it to himself, but he felt his ki reserves dwindling away, and that wasn't a good thing. Still, he was determined to see this battle through. He noted the two girls who had accompanied Ranma falter, and shot a ki blast as large as he could manage between them and the youma that were trying to reach them, and noted that they had sot him a grateful glance, before regrouping.

Shampoo's sharp intake of air was the first sign for Ukyo something was wrong, but the ki blast that cut them off from their opponents and gave them a moment's breathing space proved her wrong. A blast of this magnitude could only have come from three people, and Ranma was still caught in the spell trap, while Ryoga was on the other side of the battlefield. She glanced over at Herb and nodded a silent thanks, before she and Shampoo fell back, letting Musk and the few remaining amazon warriors that had come with them from Brush's war party take over.

"This not good," the lavender-haired amazon noted, as she steadied her breathing. Ukyo could only nod as she leaned on her combat spatula. "Sure ain't, hon." The oknomiyaki chef spared a glance at the crimson barrier that held Ranma. "Think they can get Ranchan out of it soon? We could sure use his help." Shampoo chuckled. "Husband too too godly martial artist, but too too lazy. Must pick on him later for letting us do all the fighting."

Ukyo couldn't help but laugh. The look of righteous indignation on her friend's face was so overdone she couldn't help herself. The amazon managed to hold the look for a moment, before joining her in laughter. After the two of them had caught their breath, they cast a look around the battlefield, and spotted Ryoga and Akane fighting off a group of spider-like oni. More specifically, it was Ryoga trying to keep Akane alive while she attempted completely useless attacks, all the while screaming in rage and frustration.

Neither of the two saw the youma coming up from behind them until it was too late, and Ryoga yelled out in pain as a claw cut deep into his shoulder. Akane had turned around and froze at the sight of the lost boy covered in blood, the claw still buried deep in his shoulder. Ukyo and Shampoo landed next to her, warding off the incoming demons with spatula and bonbori, while nudging a motionless Akane back towards the relative safety of the circle the troops had formed.

Ryoga felt the blood and sweat run down his face as he dropped to his knees in an attempt to dislodge the claw. Out of the corner of his eyes he could see a second pair of claws moving to decapitate him. Refusing to go down with a fight, he stabbed his finger into the ground with a shout of "Bakusai Tenketsu!" The soil exploded upwards at the youma, making it buckle backwards from the force of the impact, but it held on steady to his shoulder, and Ryoga could feel the serrated claw bumping and grinding against his flesh and bone, ripping up more of his shoulder in the process.

The youma's other appendage reoriented itself and jabbed at him in an attempt to stab him, and he turned aside. It wasn't enough, but it was sufficient to keep him alive. Instead of gutting him the claw grazed his ribcage, and he could feel several ribs cracking under the pressure. The lost boy felt blackness creep into his vision, and felt inclined to give in to it, just to escape the pain. Nice and warm...yeah, wouldn't hurt anymore...Wouldn't...He jerked himself awake when a brilliant silver glow turned the youma – including the appendage that had been buried in his shoulder – to dust. Ryoga was vaguely aware of Mint carrying him back towards the center of their makeshift fortification, while the Senshi held back the oni.

Ranma wandered the blackness around him for what seemed like a short eternity, until he gave up and sat down. There was nothing in the nothingness around him, and it was getting pointless to walk if he couldn't get anywhere. He felt cold, alone, and helpless, and he hated it. Every single second of being here, trapped kami knew where, while he was sure his friends and family were fighting for their lives.

He tried to raise his aura to provide some light and comfort, but he couldn't feel his connection to his ki anymore. He continued to try, until he gave up that futile effort, as well. Ranma slumped to the ground, laying down on his back, head pillowed on his crossed arms as if staring up into the night sky...only, there wasn't a sky. He felt exhausted and tired, fighting to keep his eyes from falling shut.

A single twinkle caught his eyes, and he squinted at it, fearing he had imagined it. But no, it was there, a single, dim light hidden among the black curtain around him. The pig-tailed martial artist sighed and let his thoughts wander. Ukyo, Shampoo, Akane and Ryoga, he knew, were out fighting. Kasumi, his mother, and Nabiki had remained at Jusendo. He wondered how they were. He smiled at the thought of Kasumi, and her face appeared before his mental eyes, smiling at him.

And as tired as he felt, as drained as he felt without his connection to his ki, the image of her smile revitalized him. The memory of their first, chaste kiss brought a blush to his cheeks, and he grinned. Sometimes, things have to be done. Her words echoed in his ear. But I feel so tired...lemme rest a while. Can save 'em tomorrow...He closed his eyes sleepily, only to have his mind invaded with the image of youma storming into Jusendo, and the vision of his dead family.

His eyes snapped open, nearly glowing with the intensity of his stare. Tired or not, there was no way in hell he would let it come to that. He wouldn't let anyone hurt Kasumi or his mother...or any of his friends, for that matter. He...loved them too much to let them go. Ucchan...Mom...Kasumi...Shampoo, I'm coming.

A surge of power went through him, and his aura flared into existence, an ethereal golden glow that lit up the blackness around him, warring with the darkness for dominance. Ranma stood and let it happen, letting the ki course through him and fighting to push back the darkness around him.

Urd diverted a little of her attention as she noticed the pressure on her spell had decreased, and disrupting the barrier had become easier, almost as if...Someone's fighting it from the inside! Damn that boy, he's actually still willing to fight! She smirked and redoubled her efforts to break the warding spell. Out of the corner of her eyes, she noted Setsuna shooting her a questioning look, and gave her an imperceptible nod. The time Senshi glanced over her shoulder and broke contact with the barrier, taking her garnet rod to join the battle.

Cologne and Soap likewise noticed the weakening of the spell, and allowed themselves a short rest from attempting to adjust the energy flows in the area. I just hope we can weaken it in time, Urd thought.

"We just lost stabilization over the eastern hemisphere!" Chrono's anxious voice broke the silence. Peorth swore under her breath. The power surge had been coming in from Jusenkyo valley. Peorth knew what was going on there at this very moment, and for once she prayed Urd would hurry up with her spell, and throw caution to the wind.

"The power surge is originating from Jusenkyo, in China," Chrono reported, and Peorth swallowed hard. "The three focus points?" She asked, knowing what the answer was already. "Two are gone. The ancestral crystal in Joketzusoku and the Citadel are gone. The Dragon Tap is the only one left."

Peorth swore. Jusenkyo was home to the largest concenration of wild magic in the three planes, dangerous enough to be kept under strict seal by order of Kami-sama himself. The chaos magic would be enough to completely destroy Yggdrasil, Asgard, and Nifleheim if it ran its course unchecked, bringing chaos to the order. That was why the three seals had been erected in ancient times, long before the first people came to those lands. Three artifacts which channeled the immense energy of the cursed springs and smoothed their chaotic flow, sealing away the power of the valley, preventing anyone from harnessing that energy, and cursing the springs in the process.

Because of the enormous quantities of energy involved, the release had been a spell on the pools of the valley, binding a soul to each spring. And the only things holding that power in check had been the three artifacts that, ironically, the three dominant factions in Jusenkyo Valley had choosen as the center of their culture. The giant obelisk in the center of the amazon village, which had been revered as the center of their mages' and healers' spiritual powers for generations, had been the focal point for the raw energy generated by the cursed springs. The giant hemisphere the Musk had choosen as their Citadal stronghold had been the next step, dissipating the energy that flowed over from Joketsuzoku, while the Dragon Tap at the center of Mount Phoenix served as the third focal point. These three artifacts had created a seal around the valley by drawing upon its very own energy. And now, two of them were gone.

Time was of the essence, if they wanted to stop a complete systems failure of Yggdrasil. Chrono spoke up again, drawing the goddess out of her reverie. "Western hemisphere stabilizers are fizzling in and out, we're going to loose...we just lost the western hemisphere," she announcing, glancing at her readout nervously. "Try to shut down all nonessential systems and re-rout the main applications through their backups! We need the stabilizers back, or the energy backlash is going to tear Yggdrasil to pieces!" Peorth barked her orders half-hartedly, wishing Urd were here. Her rival and friend was supposed to be the sysadmin and knew every corner of the system much better than Peorth.

"We've got a secondary power surge incoming!" A goddess yelled from across the room, and operators dove for cover as their consoles exploded into showers of sparks once more, and more terminals went dead. "Bug containment is failing in sections one through sixteen!"

Peorth steadied herself against the railing. "Report!"

"Bugs are infecting the main library, we're having increasing file corruption!"

"OS backup files are non-responsive! We lost the energy buffers!"

"Yggdrasil data uplinks just went dead, we're loosing our connection to Midgard!"

Peorth felt like laying down and sleeping, hoping it was all a bad dream. And it was suppose to be her day off, too. Chrono returned from the data storage room, a grim look on her face. "We can't back up anything, Peorth-sama. Random system errors keep crashing the library terminals, and the mainframe has been corrupted. Time Control has been overrun with bugs, and everything else is going to...well, hell."

Ryoko dodged a tentacle and slashed at it with his fan as he went, before launching himself back into the air, firing off vaccuum blades as he came down. The area around the martial artist was scattered with the remains of countless oni and youma as he continued to fight. Sparing a glance around the battlefield, he took quick note that Ryoga was out of the battle, injured as he was, Herb and Saffron looked extremely tired, and Kiima was out of arrows. Shampoo and Ukyo were currently covering the Senshi as they made their retreat with the help of Mint and Lime.

He himself felt the exhaustion as well, but he refused to pull back. Willing his muscles to keep moving, he kept cutting deep into the ranks of creatures arrayed before them, and, to his satisfaction, he could see those ranks thinning out. Ducking under a claw, he stabbed at the joint and flicked his wrist to open the fan, blowing the appendage off. He backed away for a moment to catch his breath, smirking as the youma surrounded him.

As they closed in, he closed his tired eyes and reigned in his battle-aura, letting it surround him in a soft silver glow. He waited, until the demons were nearly on top of him.

"Soyokaze!" The explosion of ki rocked the youma off their feet, sending them crashing backwards into each other as the shockwave slammed into them. Ryoko wiped the back of his hand across his forehead, and stood. That should have bought them some time.

Firkraag stood atop one of the hills that surrounded Joketsuzoku, smirking in satisfaction. They wouldn't be able to break his spell in time. He decided to add insult to injury, and activated the geas he had placed on a certain person, to make sure that meddling nuisance was gone.

Akane stared in shock as Mint hauled Ryoga out of the battlefield, and barely noticed Ukyo and Shampoo dragging her along. Ryoga had come so close to dying, and she realized she hadn't been of any help. She hadn't even managed to scratch one lousy youma, and he'd had to keep protecting her. She felt her rage boil, the familiar sensation of anger feeling comforting to her.

She was angry, at herself, at the youma, at Ryoga. This wasn't what was supposed to happen! I worked so hard, tried to impove so badly...and this is the result! Nothing! I was better off before I started training! Her gaze fixated on a group of youma. They'll pay.

Red started to cloud her vision as she began pounding on the nearest creature with a viciousness that made Ukyo and Shampoo stand back in shock. The only thing on her mind was to punish someone for her failure, for her suffering the sight of her injured friend. Familiar strength coursed through her as her rage lend her power.

She struck out at the nearest target she could find, and then the next, and the next. She didn't notice what she was hitting, and as long as she heard the satisfying crunch of bones, she didn't care. Somewhere along the line she had picked up a broken lance off the ground and was hacking at her targets with it, not caring she was spraying blood all over herself.

Ryoko lashed out with his fan, the resulting windblade cutting it neatly in half, and stood back, catching his breath. His eyes opened wide in shock when he felt a stabbing pain, and stared down in disbelief at the bloody metal tip that emerged from his torso. He reached around him and tried to grab a hold of the shaft, when it was roughly pulled out, and he whirled around to look at his assailant, his fan raised to strike a killing blow.

The attack died on his lips as he saw just who had attacked him. Her blood-red eyes spoke of blood thirst, and the feral snarl on her face widened as she smelled his blood. "Geas," he whispered, raising his fan to defend himself.

Urd felt a stabbing pain and broke her concentration to look over the battlefield, to find Ryoko frantically dodging Akane's attacks. She searched the battlefield for his sister, noting the time Senshi was already running towards them as fast as she could. Torn between concern and duty, the goddess frowned and continued to break apart the barrier, a single tear running down her face.

He could feel the blood seeping through his fingers, through the shirt he wore. His vision blurred, and he resorted to clumsily deflecting Akane's attacks, until he stumbled and crashed to the ground. Looking up, he stared at the girl's crimson, unseeing eyes, and closed his own. The dull thud of a body hitting the ground was impossibly loud to his ears, even as he surrendered to the darkness.