WEAPON Ranma: Side B

By Resurrector of the Dead

Summary: The Planet's original WEAPONs have gone rogue, so it decides to bring in a new WEAPON entirely.
FFVII/R1.5 crossover/AU/Divergence

Warnings: rated T for language, violence, angst, character death, some OOC.

Disclaimer: Ranma ½ belongs to Rumiko Takahashi and Final Fantasy VII is owned by Sony Playstation, Squaresoft and Square Enix. I am making no money from this and am using the characters without permission.

SIDE B: Ranma's Story

---

Chapter 1

---

…wake up, our child…

Ranma's eyes snapped open, and he sat up abruptly. For a moment he took in the lush surroundings and the blue sky in confusion, before his mind fully awoke and he was supplied his memories of the past few days.

Since arriving in this strange new world, his days had passed by in a blur. He had no real idea of where he was, nor where he was going, but he continued to move as the voice made of many voices instructed him. His body moved as though on autopilot – he didn't like the feeling particularly, but he sensed the urgency in the voice that spoke with him, and didn't feel it was worth putting up a fight in order to decide where to go. His whole body felt strange also; he felt stronger, faster. It had not escaped his notice that he'd gone almost three days with no food or water and yet wasn't feeling ill. He did need to sleep, however, although it took longer for him to get tired.

Taking a glance behind him at the large ball of rock that was headed for the planet he was on, he sighed and stretched quickly, pleased to find that he had almost completely adjusted to whatever changes had been made to his body. Guided by instinct – although he had a suspicion it was the voice – he began to run, picking up speed as he went.

When he had asked the voice what it was he was supposed to be doing, he had received a series of jumbled images, many of them disturbing. He knew he had to prevent the calamity from the skies – although how he was supposed to do that, he had no idea – and he assumed he had to destroy a strange being by the name of 'Jenova'. From what he could tell, this 'Jenova' was responsible for the meteor headed his way. Images of a silver-haired man had also been given to him. It was obvious he had to kill the man – along with the image of him and 'Jenova' a surge of fury had risen in him, adrenaline pouring through his veins and his blood pounding in his ears, although, curiously, he got a sense of pity and sympathy also. The feelings were so foreign he knew they had come from the voice.

Along with the need to destroy 'Jenova' was another worry. He knew that some very powerful beings had been unleashed upon the planet to protect it, but had gone rogue. Sensing their power, even so far from them, let him know that ridding the world of them would be a priority. The images in his mind flashed again, and he silently wondered at what he supposed was a feeling of sibling rivalry with the powerful beings.

The thing that had really confused him, though, had to be the staff weapons he held in his hands. The Kinjakan was clutched in his left and the Gekkaja in his right. For the life of him, he simply could not explain their existence. Saffron, as a member of the phoenix tribe's royal family, was the only one meant to wield the fire weapon. Besides, he'd left both staff weapons at Mount Phoenix when he returned to Japan.

He had to assume the weapons he held were copies of the originals, although they weren't exact. There were a few differences in the design – it looked as though the two staffs could join together, but he hadn't tried it yet. There was also this sense of power to the weapons. When he had them within his grasp, he felt almost invincible, and the thought scared him.

Jerking himself back to the present, he noticed that he could see what appeared to be an ocean in front of him. With the tree line disappearing, he surveyed the area he had come from, and was surprised to see what seemed to be the roofs of buildings set nearby. Leaping up with ease to land on a high branch, he focused his gaze at what looked to be a small town, slightly startled as the buildings seemed to come into greater focus. He put it down to another weird change.

As he watched, he could see some smoke rising from a few of the houses, and he mentally cheered. Ever since his arrival in this strange place, all he'd seen was wildlife and some monsters. The large and aggressive beings he stumbled into regularly, and had used them to practise using the Kinjakan and Gekkaja properly. He felt no remorse in doing so; something about the monsters felt so terribly wrong he would have felt worse simply letting them be.

Deciding upon his destination, he leapt over onto another branch, deciding to stay in the treetops to ensure that he did not go off course. The town seemed to be quite close, and as he approached, he lowered himself down to the forest floor, continuing on foot. He knew nothing of this world, and he might scare anyone who saw him. After a few more minutes of running steadily, the forest seemed become less dense, eventually opening up to the town.

Ranma slowed down instantly, stopping and looking around. It's more like a village than a town, he amended his earlier thoughts. Still, it's nice to finally see civilization. Most of the buildings seemed to be located on the ground, but there was a raised platform on which more of the wooden structures were placed. Those were what he had seen from the trees. He walked over to what seemed like the entrance to the small but peaceful village.

An old man sitting just inside of the overhead pathway looked up at him as he approached, looked mildly interested. Ranma walked over to him, hoping to finally answer some of his questions.

"Excuse me," he said as politely as he could – he needed the old man to trust him so that he could answer Ranma's questions, and his mother had, in the time since their first true meeting, been ingraining the need for manners into her son. "Could you tell me where I am?"

The old man eyed the stranger. Earlier on, another group had entered in search of their friend. It was unusual for their small village to get so many strange visitors in such a small space of time. "This is Mideel," he answered the teen, wondering why he hadn't simply read the sign attached to the upper levels. "Just like it says on that sign up over there."

Ranma had noticed the sign, but the characters written upon it were meaningless. He'd been worried that the white-haired man wouldn't understand what he was saying - he had enough troubles without language differences being added to the mix. He now knew the name of the town, but that really didn't help any. "Um, where exactly is Mideel?" If he was going to transverse this world, he supposed he was going to have to buy a map. He'd found it strange at first, but was now thankful to the monsters that dropped money and the occasional item as they disappeared.

The old man was looking at him strangely now, he noticed, but he wasn't overly surprised. With a sigh and a shake of his head, Ranma decided on a different approach. He didn't want to have to leave the village so soon, so… "Never mind. Is there anywhere I can stay around here?"

For a moment, he feared the old man wouldn't reply. After a moment, the old man nodded. "Sure, kid. Just over there, you see the sign?" No, Ranma did not see the sign, despite following the man's pointing finger. He kept quiet however, simply nodding. "You can try to rent a room at the inn, but there've been a quite a few visitors recently, so it might be full." Ranma gave a nod of thanks and headed off in the direction he had been pointed to.

He passed a few people, all of them dressed in simply clothes made from what looked to be hard and well-worn materials. In addition to the buildings, he surmised that this place – and quite possibly the rest of the world – was, in comparison to Tokyo, slightly primitive. Everyone in the town seemed to live as farmers or something similar, and the women weren't working, but rather buying supplies or walking with their children. When they glanced up at him, he noticed that they stared at his eyes before hurrying away, almost as though they were afraid of him. And yet, not one of them commented on the two staffs in his hands. Granted, they weren't the most fearsome-looking weapons, but in all honesty he didn't think they could be mistaken for anything else.

As he passed each of the buildings – although shops would be more accurate – he glanced inside, cataloguing what was there. His mental discipline had improved greatly since her, and with it a better memory. He'd always had a good memory for martial arts – almost but not quite photographic. He'd built on that unconsciously, and now his memory for certain things really was photographic. Even now he built a map of the town in his mind, remembering the location of each shop and what it sold.

Finally, he found one that seemed to be the inn. He entered, trying to look as confident as possible, although he had no idea what he was really doing. He walked up to the counter and the middle-aged woman standing behind it.

"Can I help you?" She asked pleasantly, looking him over. Her gaze passed over the staff weapons much like everyone else, until she looked into his eyes. She froze for a moment, blinked, and then looked away in a hurry. Noticing her reaction, Ranma stifled a sigh. Is there something wrong with my eyes? He wondered silently. Well, other than that weird zoom-in ability… he amended himself, before focusing on the task at hand.

"Do you have any free rooms?" He asked. "I'm only going to say for a few nights." He awaited the woman's reply, and a smile of relief tugged at the corners of his mouth when she confirmed that there was several rooms open. When she handed him the key to one of the rooms and informed him of the price, he realised he'd made a mistake. Although he had money – at least, it looked like some form of money – he had no idea how much the coins were worth. With a weak shrug, he dug into his pockets and pulled out a handful of coins. The innkeeper seemed surprised, with her eyes wide and staring at the money.

"I'm sorry," Ranma was quick to apologize, "but I'm not from around here, and I don't know how much the money is worth--" The woman cast a sharp glace at him, and he gave a sheepish grin.

"How's that? As far as I know, gil is used everywhere, even in Wutai." Seeing Ranma's blank expression, the woman sighed. "You really don't know?" Seeing how he shook his head, she sighed again. "Alright, I'll explain it." Under her breath she murmured, "Must be amnesia…"

Looking up at the teenager, with his almost Wutaian features, long black hair and unearthly eyes, she held out a coin. "This is 1 gil…"

After a restful sleep, Ranma opened his eyes, only to at the glare of the sun that came in through the small window to his right. For several moments he laid there, relaxing his tense muscles, and sorting out his mind. Once he was done, he lazy moved from the bed and over to his newly-washed clothes. Marie, the innkeeper, had spent the remainder of the previous day with him as business had been slow. After she'd taught him how the money – gil, he corrected himself – worked, he'd paid her for the room. She was a kind-hearted woman, and seeing as he had no pack or supplies to speak of other than the two staffs, she halved the price, something he was very grateful of. From there, she'd explained some of the more recent happenings. Despite knowing that she thought he was an amnesiac, he didn't correct her, and learned as much as he could about the planet – Gaea – he was on.

She'd even given him an old map and pointed out where they were, and then given brief descriptions of the major areas on the planet. Once that was done, they had engaged in small talk, and she asked about what he could remember. Ranma gave her some description of his past – he was a travelling martial artist who'd been with his father most of his life. However, playing up to the story of having amnesia, he'd said he couldn't remember much more. One thing she did not inquire upon were the two weapons he'd laid down on the countertop, within easy reach.

Overall, he found himself opening up to Marie, something unusual in itself. He'd been indifferent (some might say cold) even since the events on Mt. Phoenix. Since then it was as though nothing really mattered. All he'd known was one thing; she had died because he wasn't strong enough. Since then, he'd thrown himself into the Art. Day and night he would train, pausing only to eat the required food, and sleeping only when he collapsed from exhaustion. Marie was one of the few, such as his mother and Kasumi, who could make him leave his shell.

At the thought of those he'd left behind, Ranma felt an ache in his chest, and concentrated on collecting the newly-washed clothes set just inside the room after Marie had offered to wash them for him, lending some of her late husband's clothing to wear as he slept. He didn't allow his thoughts to linger on the past too much; his memories held to much pain. Besides, he was here for a reason. He had to protect Gaea. He smiled slightly. Now he knew the name of the one he was to protect.

He made his way to the small bathroom at the end of the hall and, seeing it was unoccupied, he entered, locking it. He stripped off and stepped into the first shower he had in what seemed like years. The warm water pounded down on him and he allowed himself to truly relax.

Once he was done, he stepped out and turned off the shower. The world still confused him; these people had electrical lights and working showers, so why were other things, such as their clothes and jobs, so basic? It confused him, and he dwelled on the thought as he pulled on his clean clothes. Gone was his red silk shirt; instead he had on a sleeveless shirt, black like his pants. They were new also, made of a tougher material and more practical design than the Chinese ones he'd once so treasured. His shoes had been disposed of too, replaced by thick, almost bulky boots. In fact, he mused, he'd changed his entire wardrobe, all but one thing; the long black hair he wore in a pigtail.

Once he was finished changing, he turned to the mirror, and froze.

"What the--" he leant in further and wiped the condensation from the mirror.

"Holy sh--!" He yelped, leaping back in shock.

For a moment he simply stared at nothing, calming his breathing and gaining courage enough to look back at his reflection. Now that the shock had worn off, he examined his reflection more closely.

His admittedly unusual grey-blue eyes (unusual for a Japanese, at any rate) were gone. Rather, his eyes were a bright blue, with green around his pupil and a purple tint around the edge of his iris. His pupils, too, had changed, becoming slightly thinner, longer, almost slitted, like a—

Ranma quit that train of thought. The almost slitted pupils were barely noticeable, and he was the only one who knew that his eyes had changed colour.

He finally understood what all of the people had been staring at.

His eyes glowed.

It was eerie, he decided, and definitely inhuman. He wasn't surprised people had stared; he was doing the same himself. He glanced over the rest of his form, looking for any other noticeable changes. To his relief he discovered none; he was the same as always, perhaps even enhanced. He had tri-coloured eyes that glowed with an unearthly luminescence as well as a voice at the back of his mind. What happened to me..? He wondered, fear starting to grow in him.

…do not fret, our child…

Ranma almost jumped; he managed to control the urge so that he simply flinched. He'd become used to the humming and crooning at the back of his mind, and the voice suddenly talking to him had startled him, although it had happened before. He had a sneaking suspicion about the voice.

"Gaea?" He asked, tentatively. He felt a surge of warmth settle around him, and a slight smile graced his features. He was reminded of when, after he'd arrived back in Nerima, his mother had walked up to him, having heard the news. Without a word, she'd taken him into her arms and simply held him, whispering words of encouragement. At the time, he'd been too distraught to even be embarrassed, and he'd taken strength from his mother's arms.

That's what this is like…he thought, revelling in the warm feeling he had rarely felt throughout his life. It's like being in a mother's embrace…

…we have been called such. We are The Planet…

Ranma gave a slight sigh as the warmth began to recede, but he could still feel The Planet at the back of his mind. I'm not alone, even in this place. The thought encouraged him, and he left the bathroom, almost running Marie over. "Ah-!" He yelped as he spun on his toes, using his momentum to turn himself around so that he was facing her back. She turned to him, eyes wide.

"Great Gaea, Ranma, you shocked me!" She exclaimed, calming. "Breakfast is ready, should you like some." Ranma nodded and gave her a half-smile in return.

"Thanks, Ms. Marie," he said, turning away and continuing down the corridor to his room. "Sorry 'bout running into you!" He called over his shoulder before disappearing inside to make the bed and collect his two belongings. Marie sighed and turned back towards the bathroom, collecting the sleepwear Ranma had left folded neatly on the hamper. She'd thought she'd heard someone yell, but apparently not.

Breakfast was a quiet affair, the two of them joined by another traveller who was planning on leaving after he'd eaten. The meal itself was nothing special; some bread and some toppings. Still, it was enough for Ranma, who still hadn't been feeling hungry. As they'd finished up, the man had turned to Marie. "D'you know where I c'n buy some fire materia?" Ranma had perked up, wondering what he was talking about.

"I believe the shop next door sells materia, but I don't know if he sells any fire materia…we're a small town, you see, and we have few visitors, so our stock is not a large as some of the mainland cities." The man nodded his thanks, picking up his pack and leaving a decent-sized tip on the table. Marie smiled and picked up the much-needed gil, placing it into the cashier.

Ranma helped her clear away the plates. Although the inn was not that small, she ran it by herself, since her daughter and two sons had left for the mainland. Either way, it gave him a chance to talk to her.

"What's materia?" The humming of The Planet seemed brighter at his question, and he wondered why. Marie had turned surprised eyes on him, and he assumed it was from his lack of knowledge. 'Materia' must have been commonplace here, then, but he still needed to know what it was. Thankfully, Marie covered up her surprise, a flash of what looked like pity crossing her face.

She gave him a reassuring smile. "I keep forgetting how little you know," she confessed, "and Materia is hardly my strong point, but I'll give you a brief idea at least – next door would probably be able to explain in more detail. Materia is made of Mako, which is brought from the ground by ShinRa, and is then processed to give a certain result, like Materia. They look like little balls of glowing light, and if you add them into some armour or a weapon, you can use magic."

She paused, and seeing that Ranma was still following, continued, "Depending on what the Materia is, depends on what magic you can use. Some of the more common Materia are Fire, Ice and Lightning. The more you fight with Materia equipped, the more powerful it gets, and you can use more powerful magic. Once it's at the best of its ability, we say the Materia has been 'mastered'. Of course, there are more practical uses for Mako and Materia. Why, all of our power comes from Mako energy. I'm sorry, but I don't know much more…"

Ranma shook his head. "You've been really helpful, thanks, Ms. Marie," he assured her. Magic…he certainly didn't dispute its existence, but for it to be so commonplace was making his head spin slightly. The ability to use such things as Materia…but the 'Mako' that came from The Planet was worrying. As Marie had been explaining that it was extracted from The Planet, he'd heard a saddening crooning noise in the back of his mind.

Snatching up the Kinjakan and Gekkaja from where they lay at the side of his chair, he turned towards the exit. "I'll see ya later!" He called out as he left. Once the door had swung shut behind him, he set off in the direction of what had looked like a general store. He had no pack with him, let alone any equipment.

As it turned out, the store he'd seen earlier had been a general store, and he looked around for a short while. As he'd suspected, the general store contained things for travellers like himself; packs, tents, compasses and such rather than things for everyday life. He had a feeling such things were either traded or bought from the marketplace.

He approached the counter with a good-sized and well-made pack in his hands, remarkably similar to the one he'd used while travelling with the father. He was thankful that the prices weren't too high, and once more thanked Marie for showing him the gil monetary system. He handed over the gil to the man behind the counter, and when asked if he wanted anything else, he asked the first thing that came to mind.

"What are these?" He indicated the display on the counter; bottles with some strange-coloured fluids were kept there. The man regarded him strangely for a moment.

"Those'd be the hi-potions, m'boy, and we still have a few elixirs in stock." The confused look on Ranma's face gave away his apparent ignorance. The man sighed. "Hi-potions are there to restore your life when you're hurt, and the elixirs restore your magic if you use a lot of materia." Ranma nodded and bought several of each; it was better safe than sorry. He paid and left the store, deciding to have a look in some of the other shops.

The next store he entered was obviously a weapons store; swords and spears lined the walls, along with a variety of guns and more unusual weapons. Ranma relaxed slightly and decided to browse for awhile, admiring the weapons as he did so. Although he was a barehanded fighter himself, he did know how to use weapons, and could tell when they had been well made. There was a section devoted to bracelets and armbands also, with circular slots in them. Seeing this, Ranma assumed the slots were for materia. They were slightly pricey, so Ranma decided to wait before getting any. He was just leaving when something caught his eye.

He turned and picked the fingerless gloves from the display, turning them over in his hands. They were made from a good, sturdy material, with material slots in them also. He tried one on, pleased to find it fit him nicely, and glanced at the price tag. It wasn't overly expensive, and he decided to buy them. He'd cut his knuckles on one of the monsters he'd faced when he'd fought it without his new weapons, determined on not letting them become a crutch. Having extra protection over his hands would probably be needed if he was going to be fighting such creatures often.

Outside once more, he tugged on the black and red fighter's gloves, and was surprised to feel himself become slightly stronger. When he'd bought them the storeowner had babbled on about how much they would raise his abilities since he hadn't worn any before. He understood what had been said now; he felt tougher and, if possible, his body felt lighter. He passed by a few stores until the glimmering light coming from one caught his eyes. It was right next to Marie's inn, and he made a quick decision to enter, hoping it would be the materia store. He was not disappointed.

While the shop was small, and contained many miscellaneous items, it has a small display under the counter behind a sheet of glass. With a glance, Ranma knew they were materia. Even from several feet away, he could feel the power contained in them. He stared at them for a moment as the voice of The Planet surged in his mind, flooding his body with warmth. Just by looking at them he could tell what magic each materia held, and how much more usage they needed before becoming mastered. Knowledge of how to use the brightly glowing orbs settled into his mind as The Planet retreated, and he stepped up to the counter.

Jeb had been running his store for a good fifteen years and had recently passed it onto his daughter. Today was one of the few days he worked at the shop; his daughter had gone out to buy some food earlier and he was left minding the tills. When the young Wutaian-looking teenager entered, he hoped to sell at least something from his store, but he was stopped dead.

Never, not once in his life, had he ever seen materia act the way they did when the young man entered his store. His stared, slack-jawed, as the materia began to glow more brightly, a hum seeming to arise from them as if in reaction to the customer's presence. A soft smile graced the teen's foreign features, and the materia seemed to glow even brighter, if that was possible, only to dim and then brighten once more.

They acted as though they were alive. He'd never even heard of summons doing that. It finally dawned on him just what he must be looking at. He was jolted from his contemplation when he was approached. The dark-haired young man was definitely a fighter; Jeb could tell from his build alone, without having to look at the strange staffs strapped to either side of the pack he was carrying. He cleared his throat. "Can I help you?"

Although he'd seen the materia glow when he'd entered, and the way the brightness changed when he admired them, Ranma didn't think anything of it. He approached the elderly man minding the counter; he seemed slightly out of it before snapping into focus and asking what Ranma needed.

"I was hoping to buy some materia," he explained. The old man nodded and, without an explanation, ducked below the counter, rummaging around before pulling out a dusty box. Ranma blinked, wondering what was inside, until a glow began to seep out of it. "Um…" He stated, but the store owner opened the box and Ranma's breath caught.

Five materia lay in the box; the different colours were hypnotising. Blue, yellow, green and purple materia; he listed them off in his head. They glowed brightly as he admired them, and he was interrupted by the shop keeper.

"These are my rarest materia; they belonged to a son of mine, a SOLDIER, who died several years ago. Comet, Fullcure, Pre-Emptive, W-Magic, and All." He pushed the box towards Ranma. "I'm pretty sure All and Pre-Emptive are mastered as well. Please, take them." His shock must have shown on his face, for the man took his hand and placed the material into his gloved palm.

"I-I can't just take them!" Ranma exclaimed. From the prices on the display next to them, he knew materia were expensive, let alone levelled and mastered materia. Plus, they used to belong to the elderly man's son – it wasn't right to just take them. After a few more minutes in which the man absolutely insisted he take them, he sighed. "Fine, but only if you sell me an HP Plus and a Gravity materia for twice the usual price." The old man gave in and nodded, pleased he'd accepted the gift. Most of his gil gone, he looked at the materia in his hands, and wondered where he'd keep it up until the kind shopkeeper had given him a thick corded bag to store it in. He attached the bag to his waist, but didn't insert any materia into his gloves yet. He thanked the man profusely and left, a small smile on his face.

Behind him, Jeb called, "M'name's Jeb! Feel free to come back any time!" The young man gave him a wave as he left, calling back his own name, and Jeb sank onto a nearby chair normally used when business was slow. I can't believe it, he thought. The way those materia reacted to him…he HAS to be an Ancient! The glowing-eyed teen had been friendly and polite as well. He nodded to himself. He could depend on Ranma to look after those materia, he was sure.

After his lucky break with the nice owner of the materia store –Jeb, he'd said his name was – Ranma had taken to exploring the town. As he'd done so, he'd dropped by Marie's place, and had taken a message to a young maid living in the upper sections that the room she'd asked for her visiting family had been booked for her. The young lady had given him a ribbon in return, and he'd been embarrassed by it, especially since she'd tied it around his arm. He wondered if he'd overlooked something when she sent him away with a smile, telling him it would protect him from any ill effects. At the time he thought she meant sickness, but in this strange world, he couldn't be sure.

He'd also browsed around the market, buying a few much needed clothing and other supplies. Everyone had been slightly wary of him at first, but anyone who he spent more than a few minutes talking with seemed to warm up to him. He supposed that the reason they were so unnerved by him was not just down to his eyes, but his being a stranger as well.

Mideel had a restful quality about it. Nobody was in any real hurry to go anywhere, had nothing important to do. A chunk of space rock was heading for The Planet, but the inhabitants of the small town could do nothing to prevent it, and so they didn't worry about it, happy to go on with their lives whilst turning a blind eye to the dark omen that hovered above them.

Ranma himself was wondering what he was waiting for. His task was to prevent the calamity from the skies – 'Jenova' and the meteor – and time was ticking away. However, with The Planet murmuring in the back of his mind but not actively trying to get him to move, he was content just to let himself catch up with what was happening to him, to assimilate the differences between this world and his own. He was so deep into his musings that the sudden, soft wail of The Planet caught him off guard, and he jumped.

The wail came again, a deep, sad sound with no sense of words, just the feelings, and he turned automatically towards the white building. The bland look and the white curtains at the windows began to tip him off, but much like when he had first awoken on this new world, The Planet moved him inside.

It was a clinic, just as he'd thought – he'd been inside the clinic in Nerima enough times, having Tofu bandage him up from one fight or another – but the atmosphere inside was darker than he'd expected. There was a sense of hopelessness, the inability to do anything, and an overall feeling of depression setting over everything, even the young nurse standing behind a small desk.

The Planet called out again, and without a thought, he moved into the next room, full of empty white beds, completely ignoring the nurse's indignant cry that he shouldn't enter without –

His eyes locked onto a form at the end of the room, and he made his way there, continuing to stare at the blond young man in the wheelchair. A dark-haired woman who seemed to be of the same age was watching worriedly as a doctor finished looking over the blond, but they didn't matter. Somehow he could just tell that…

A low groan was uttered from the wheelchair-bound man, his voice flat and dead, and at the same time, The Planet cried in his mind, feeling the pain of the young man, as though he was The Planet himself. Without explanation, he knelt down in front of the blonde – only his senior by a few years – and tried to understand just what The Planet was telling him. He stared into a face void of all emotions, as though the man was brain-dead. A shiver ran down his spine.

No, he thought, he's not brain-dead – his mind is just…not there. He reached out his senses, attempting to sense the man's aura, and was shocked at what he saw. A halo of light green surrounded him, but it was faint, as though it was just a half-finished copy of what it was truly meant to be, and it was shot through with thin streamers of dark purple, almost black. The sight of it gave him the chills – there was something completely wrong about it…

Jenova…The Planet almost hissed the name, and a feeling of overwhelming fury swept through him. It taints all it touches, even the innocent…

That didn't help him answer why the man was in such a state though. How can he have bits of this 'Jenova' in his aura? It doesn't make sense…he reached out a hand and laid it on the unresponsive man's shoulder.

To the surprise of everyone in the room, the blonde jerked back with a slight cry as silent thunder cracked in the air. Ranma leapt to his feet and backed away also, listening as though from a distance as the dark-haired woman shook the young man's shoulders – "Cloud! Cloud!" – but all he could focus on was the pain he had felt once he'd touched the blond.

That feel of intense pain, going as deep as the soul, was much too close for comfort, reminded him too much of those months he'd spent in mourning after returning to Japan. He could still remember standing there, in the rain that so suited his mood, the umbrella held over his head thrumming with the sound of the raindrops hitting it, but all he could see was the name engraved so delicately on the gravestone.

…Akane…

Without a sound, he turned and fled the clinic, too caught up in his own downward spiralling thoughts to notice the nurse calling after him. He'd been so close to almost completely forgetting, so close to removing the pain and regret and forcing it into the corner of his mind all of his worst memories were stored, locked away, never to affect him again.

…Akane…I'm so sorry…

He had reached the tree line before he could blink, and forced himself to slow down, utilizing the unbreakable determination that had kept him going so far. Once he had stopped, not even breathing hard, he forced himself to calm down, ruthlessly throwing himself into the Soul of Ice. His emotions were still there, but locked away in a corner of his mind, and he took the opportunity to sort them through, make certain they were not as overwhelming as they had been.

Slowly, he turned around, heading back towards Marie's inn, his good mood gone along with his emotions. A small piece of him wondered why he had connected to the strange young man in the wheelchair, but Ranma was too dead inside to care.

---

AN: The reason why Ranma is acting slightly (although more so at parts) OOC will be revealed later, if it isn't already obvious. I have been trying to keep him true to himself, but there are limits to that. Ranma calls the planet 'The Planet' rather than 'Gaea' because that's what the planet said its name was. All through the game it was called 'The Planet', so I decided to stick with it in this way. Also, I know I said that the FFVII characters would show up this chapter, but it was getting a bit long, so I cut it off here – but Tifa and Cloud did show up, if only briefly…

Next chapter: The rest of the group show up, although the meeting isn't as smooth as it could be, and Mideel is drowned in Lifestream.

Comments and constructive criticism welcomed…no flames, please! Does anyone know the Japanese names and their translations of Ranma's moves?