Ranma 1/2
I Saw a Light Shining and Thought of You.
A R1/2 and GGX/XX crossover. More or less the continuation of the previous chapter. I decided to make it two part as it made more sense to me. This will be the darker chapter of the two probably so be prepared. Oh, and some action and comedy will happen, but mostly dark… So, um, yeah, have fun. Or something.
Chapter 8: It's Dark in Here, Pt. 2
Waking up was hard, it had always been hard before but for some reason it was unusually so now. There was also the pain, his whole body hurt for some odd reason. When he tried to open his eyes they felt like they were the weight of his whole body. His vision was tinted a little red, maybe from blood or maybe from the extreme heat of the place. No, that just made him sweat profusely, his vision was red from his own blood running into his face. Ranma really hated cliché's like this. With a grunt he finally managed to open his eyes and take a look around at the area he was being held. The horse tranquilizers did little to help him move though. He managed a smile, tasting the blood on his lips as he did, they may have slowed the wild horse but he was far from tamed.
The area around him was mostly rock, so he was underground somewhere. He was restrained vertically on a rack, next to others who looked just as unfortunate as him. The rack hung from a chain and swung slowly in the air with a slight breeze from somewhere. Below him was a pit filled with what appeared to be lava, Ranma rolled his eyes and wondered if the people would ever come up with something original. Guards that looked the same, cliché meetings in secret, being suspended over a pit of lava. All that was left was to explain the plan slowly while he made a plan to escape.
"I bet you're wondering why I'm doing this," A voice from the shadows said.
Ranma sighed, again with the cliché's, how serious did these people expect him to take them, "Not really but go ahead and explain."
The voice, obviously a man, chuckled, "I know you may be tired of the cliché's, but I assure you that they will end soon. Along with your life if you're girlfriend does not cooperate."
This brought Ranma up short from making another sarcastic remark and made him yell in anger, "What did you do to Dizzy."
"Nothing at all, she is fine," The man said, "In fact I'll let you see her so you believe me."
The man snapped his fingers and Dizzy was brought forward out of the shadows. She looked fine, though her hands were bound by some technological looking handcuffs. The man sighed in relief but then anger took him and he growled at the man.
"Let her go," Ranma said as he struggled vainly to escape.
"How about no," The man said crisply, "You see, she is very important, she is a weapon that I will use to get my revenge on the world for... What are you doing?"
Ranma grinned as he stopped mocking the man, "Nothing, just continue telling me your plan so I can find a way to escape. You evil guys are so predictable these days."
That was a grimace from the man as he clenched his fist and yelled, "You think this is a game? I'll oblige you then and get on with it. Now Dizzy, work with us and nobody will get hurt."
The girl lifted her head from its downcast position slowly and Ranma could see the sadness in her eyes, and right there he wanted to end these peoples lives. She shook her head but it was clear that she was close to accepting their suggestion. Ranma shook his head, they must have forced her to watch the beatings he had taken where he was held, still he would not let her give up easily. Making up his mind Ranma decided to help her fight against what they were telling her.
"Don't do it Dizzy!" The man yelled from his position, "If you give in more people will get hurt, I know you don't want that."
The man in shadows looked over at the girl and grit his teeth, "That fool doesn't know what he's talking about. If you deny us all of these people will die," The man pointed at the others hanging beside Ranma, "You have four tries and I know you don't want to deny us after that, unless you want your boyfriend to die. Now I'll ask again, will you join us."
Dizzy looked up at Ranma and he shook his head, "Don't."
The girl looked down, "No."
With a sigh the man shook his head in disappointment, "I see you think we're bluffing. Do it."
The words were spoken and with them the first platform lowered rapidly, the man on it screamed as he touched the hot magma below him. Ranma could see Dizzy flinch at the sound of the man screaming, and he felt for the girl as he watched her. It must be hard on her to hear those screams and know that she was the cause, but still she could not give in to these people. They asked her again and again she shook her head until only Ranma was left, and he could see her about to break down. Her body was trembling and she looked weak, then her eyes met his and slowly he shook his head no, and with that he was lowered towards the pit. His lowering was a lot slower that the others had been and a man stood behind the girl holding her head to make her look as he was slowly lowered into the lava. As his feet touch he saw her collapse to the floor and at that moment he felt the symbol on his forehead, the one he had not felt burn for so long, start to glow. The pain of the lava stopped and defiantly he looked at towards the shackles that held his arm. Experimentally he moved his arm against one and found it giving a little, so they did not know he was part gear himself apparently. He grinned up at the girl as she watched him and with a bit of struggle he forced words out of his mouth before he head went under.
"I said I'd protect you Dizzy!" Ranma yelled as he went under, "Don't give up!"
The man in shadows smiled and shook his head, "Now you see what you've done? You killed the one you loved."
Dizzy finally collapsed onto her hands and knees and started crying, her tears fell to the ground and the man laughed at her. He would have felt sorry but she had been given the choice, now she had to live with the death she had caused herself. Oh well, it would only make it easier to tame her later when they put her through the brainwashing. Really he hated to do it but she would not join them of her own free will so he would have to force her. Just as he was about to lean down and pick the girl up she lifted her head and let out a scream that rung throughout the whole cavern. The ferociousness of the scream caught the man off guard and he backed up just a little as she continued to scream and the cuffs around her arm began to spark. Then, slowly, her black and white wings started to form from her back, then her tail, then the cuffs sparked one last time before they exploded and the black wing formed into the entity known as Necro before flowing around her body.
The man backed up a little more and the guards in the room lifted their weapons towards the girl, firing but doing little to her. When the wings were done forming around her, the girl turned towards them and she seemed to change her personality totally. Grinning the girl pointed her finger at the guards and one of them and a spear of ice impaled him through the chest much to his surprise. The other guard screamed and unloaded his weapon at her only to sink into the ground through a portal from nowhere. Seconds later he fell from the sky and as he fell a ball of energy hit him from the sky from a giant black dragon head that had formed out of the black wing of the girl. All that was left now was the man in shadows, who had dropped the facade now and was made out to be a wiry looking man with long black hair slicked back and hanging to the middle of his back. His face was narrow and pale and he looked quiet weak in terms of physical strength. He screamed as the woman walked towards him slowly with a grin on her face as she pulled her hand back, her fingernails elongating in thin claws as she continued towards the man. As the Necro controlled girl was about the strike there was a sudden sound from the pit of lava and the two looked back to she a column of magma rise from the pit.
In the middle of the lava was a red tinted dragon man floating in the air in the middle of the geyser of molten rock. The man spread his wings and as he did the geyser fell into the pit and the man glided slowly to the edge of the pit and walked towards where Dizzy was standing over the man. The man tried to take the opportunity to run away but the dragon man caught him as he did so and lifted him into the air by his throat. The Gear form of Ranma Saotome looked into the eyes of the man as he lifted him into the air and they narrowed as he saw the intent of the man. It could be read easily on his face, he wanted to survive but there was something behind that, deceit and lies. Ranma squeezed the man's neck tighter and the man shook his head as the dragon Gear squeezed and then there was a sickening pop as a windpipe collapsed and the man lost the ability to breath. Then the Gear dropped the man to the ground and with a disgusted snort kicked the man off the edge of the pit.
The dragon Gear turned to Dizzy and the woman stared back at him for a second before she charged at him. The reptilian Gear blocked the physical attack and countered with an attack of its own. Somewhere in the back of the dragon's mind, Ranma woke from his slumber that allowed his beast to take over and saw what had happened. Dizzy was still controlled by Necro and his dragon had been fighting to save itself when he had attacked it. Dizzy charged again and this time Ranma was knocked across the cavern, over the pit and into the wall opposite where he was standing. The man extracted himself from the wall, blocked the next attack, a pair of axe like blades formed by the wings and spun like a figure skater, his wings forming their own blades. Really he did not want to hurt her but he saw no other way but to render her unconscious right now. As the girl flew through the air Ranma let one of his dragon energy attacks loose.
Dizzy recovered in the air and blocked the attack, sending a spear of ice up from the ground that was barely dodged by Ranma. The dragon charged forward but was pushed back by a triple lance of energy arrows right into a portal. Stunned and unable to do anything he fell into it and was caught by the same dragonhead energy attack she had released earlier. Being in his Gear form however he was somewhat stronger than he would normally be and he was only stunned slightly by the attack. Summoning his energy the dragon man dashed forward with a ball of energy around his fist and hit the woman in the stomach with an upward motion, following her into the air he twirled with his wings outstretched in the same blade weapon he had used earlier and this was followed by a downward mid-air axe kick that forced her into the ground with enough force to leave a crater. Ranma dropped to the ground hoping that that was all he had to do, he felt pain every time he hit her even though he knew in the back of his mind that she would remember none of it, he knew that he would. Unfortunately she rose once again, though a little out of it. Ranma took the moment of her being off guard to rush forward and grab her. The woman growled and with a flurry of motion she launched him into the air once again. Ranma decided to change out of his Gear form in mid-air and he landed hard on the ground and slid across the ground, rising in time to see Dizzy landing near him once again. Coughing a little Ranma got into a defensive stance, this next try was a long shot but he was out of ideas. He did not want to hurt her anymore.
"Dizzy, stop!" The man yelled, "We don't need to fight, wake up. It's over!"
The girl paused for a second but then charged forward and hit the man with a punch in the stomach. Ranma felt his ribs collapse under the hit and blood flowed out of the corner of his mouth. Still he did not relent, wrapping his arms around the girl and putting his mouth next to her ear.
"Stop this," The man said desperately, "Please, you need to stop, I love you, Dizzy."
With those words the girl stopped attack him and her wings, which had been just about to slam down on him once again with a hammer-like weapon, drew back into their original form and he felt her fist come out of his chest. He hit the ground on his side and lay there panting, it hurt to breath and he probably had a punctured lung, but it was worth it. He heard a gasp and looked up to see Dizzy looking at him in horror, and he realized that she knew what had happened.
"God Ranma, I'm sorry," The woman said, "I'm so sorry, you probably hate me for what I've done."
The man grit his teeth and tried to speak, "Dizzy, no I-" Then violently a cough was ripped from his throat and with it came blood.
Ranma clenched his chest and his knuckles went white as he continued to cough up blood. His hands unclenched and he clawed at the ground to try and stand but every movement hurt too bad. He felt Dizzy wrap her arms around him and he tensed but accepted the embrace. Tears fell from her eyes on top of his head and he tried to reach up but pain assailed him even then.
"Don't move, idiot," Dizzy said as she closed her eyes and hugged him even more, "You don't move, please, if it hurts just stay still!"
"Dizzy," Ranma trailed off as he saw her face, is eyes felt heavy, he was so sleepy, "I love you."
"Idiot," Dizzy said, "Please live."
For all of her pleading though, Ranma closed his eyes despite all of her protesting. The girl hugged the man even tighter and her body began to shake with her sobbing. Shaking her head she still protested and slowly she began to glow with whiteness. It was not like an aura of power, more like a calming glow. The door burst open to the cavern then and there stood the team that had come to rescue them. Behind them the room they had been in was filled with knocked out guards and destroyed guns. They began to walk forward but stopped short as they saw Dizzy, the glow around her growing to fill most of the cavern by then. Then the white wing on her back unfolded to its full length and became its true form, the angelic create known as Undine. She embraced both the girl and the man and the white glow as transferred between the two of them. All present stood in awe at the sight.
As the glow grew to engulf the cavern, Ranma's wounds began to heal themselves. His marks, the ones that made it apparent that he was a gear began to glow orange as the wounds closed up. Then the two of them started to rise into the air and the saturating white energy closed in and formed a containing column around the two people. Ranma suddenly flared with energy and his Gear form came out, its wounds healing even faster than they had been. After what seemed to be the longest time the energy stopped flowing and the Gear Ranma became human once again. The two slowly floated to the floor, the woman still embracing the man tightly as they settled back into their original position with Ranma half sitting in the young woman's slender arms.
Baiken was the first to run up to the two, followed by Ryouga and Ky, "What the hell was that, Dizzy?"
The girl looked up for a second but said nothing and returned her gaze to the man in her arms. Baiken blinked her eye and sighed, pulling out a her pipe and placing it in her mouth, though not lighting it. Ryouga scratched his head and shrugged at Dizzy's attitude, it was as if she was not really aware that they were there. Ky ran a hand through his hair and sighed at the sight of the two together, it was obvious that Ranma was going to be alright now though he wondered just what the hell had happened.
"There's a lot about that one that we have yet to find out," Said a man from behind them, and the three turned to see Sol standing with his sword in its normal position over his shoulder, "I would suggest letting them be for a while after you get them out of here. She doesn't understand what happened any more than you. It's going to take her a while to come to terms with what happened."
Ky sighed, "Great, so she will be like this for a while then."
"Let's get to work then," Ryouga said as he approached Ranma only to be greeted by a wall of ice rising in front of him.
The man looked at Dizzy in surprise before he backed off and the wall disintegrated. Sol shook his head in disbelief at the man as he walked forward. They should know that it would not be that easy, she was very protective of him right now. Taking the cigarette that he had been smoking out of his mouth the man bent down and put it out on the floor before standing again.
"Dizzy," Sol said neutrally, "We understand you want to protect him right now but we have to get you home. He needs rest in a warm place where he can be looked after."
She shook her head but said nothing, Sol gave an irritated click of his tongue and spoke again, "You stubborn girl, no harm will come to that man. I promise you, now you two get your asses out of her before I force you out."
Dizzy looked up at him defiantly and shook her head no, Ryouga chuckled, "It's like a daughter talking back to her father."
"Hurk," Sol almost swallowed his cigarette as his eyes went wide at that then he turned and growled, "Shut up you bastard!"
Baiken laughed out loud, "Sol as a father, I feel sorry for that kid."
"Yes," Ky agreed as he chuckled himself, "I would have to voice my affirmation for that as well."
"All of you just shut the hell up," Sol yelled, "Damn girl, if you would just do as I say this would never have happened!"
Dizzy stuck her tongue out at the man.
"Maybe you should put her in the corner," Ryouga hooted, "That's where parents put naughty children."
Sol slugged Ryouga in the face with a growl and continued what he was doing, "Just listen to what I have to say, girl!"
Rubbing his face, Ryouga managed to shake his head, "You really have no idea what you're doing, do you?"
The woman shook her head at their antics and finally Ranma opened his eyes and chuckled, "Alright, Dizzy, that's enough. Do as they say, I'll be fine."
With a sigh, Dizzy nodded silently, "Alright, Ranma."
( )
They were back at home when he woke again, it was dark out and he felt her breath rise and fall against him. It had been a long past few days but he had a feeling that it was not over quiet yet. Looking over at the girl next to him he felt a bit of regret flow through him at what had happened. He knew she remembered little of it herself, except for him laying in front of her. At some point he admitted to himself that he was not even sure what had happened after he had lost consciousness. All he knew was that he woke fully healed with Dizzy still embracing him protectively. She had said nothing to him after that because he had passed out shortly after.
Now he was laying in bed with Dizzy asleep, looking so peaceful in her sleep that he did not want to wake her up. She was so close to, and warm, and her scent was sweet in his nose. There was no perfume, no soap, just her, the girl he had saved so many years earlier. Ranma moved close to her and wrapped his hands around her waist. Drawing her close into his chest he kissed her deeply and felt her embrace him back as she woke up.
"Ranma," She said, her words muffled slightly as he moved to kiss her again and broke the action off, "Wait a second."
The man blinked and looked at her in the eyes, those captivatingly red eyes, "What is it?"
Dizzy sighed as if she really did not want to say the next words, "Do you… Do you still love me after what I did?"
The man gave a small laugh, "You mean after you wiped the floor with me, yeah."
She gave him a hurt look and turned away, "Never mind."
Ranma sighed and shook his head, "Dizzy it's nothing to worry yourself over. I'm still here, aren't I. My wounds are healed so no harm no foul."
She did not turn back to him but instead she seemed to move further away from him, or maybe that was his imagination. He put a hand on her shoulder and he could feel her tense up.
"Dizzy," Ranma said quietly, "Hey, are you listening to me. I said I'm fine. Hey, stop ignoring me."
The woman sat up suddenly and before he could react, he felt a stinging on the side of his face as her hand lashed out. Ranma sat there in stunned silence for a while as he stared at the tears running down the woman's face. Her face was twisted in a cross of anger, despair, and self-pity. Ranma reached up to touch the area where he had just been slapped before he dropped his hand and looked at it.
"You died, Ranma!" The woman said as her eyes shut tightly to fight the tears but they kept coming, "You died again, how many times do you plan on doing that before it's one too many. Will it be next time, is that when I'll lose you? Should I live in fear every day of you not coming back to me?"
The man sighed, "I couldn't tell you."
"That's my point," Dizzy said as she looked down, she was a little more calm but still she was racked with sobs, "I know it's in your nature to do what you feel is necessary, I know it's impossible to tame you. But I just wish you would think before you act sometimes."
Ranma wanted to hold her, to tell her it would be okay, but how could he when he could not even convince himself, "I admit, it's my turn to be sorry, Dizzy."
The girl clenched her fist and looked like she wanted to do anything but stay where she was, "So that's how it's going to be?" She whispered, "You're just going to continue doing what you do and leave me behind! If that's it I would rather leave now then wait for you to be forced to leave me."
Ranma's eyes widened as the woman suddenly jumped out of bed and ran out the door in nothing but a nightgown. Cursing he jumped out of bed, running after her in only his boxers and following her as she threw the door open. The man sprinted after her as she changed her clothes on the fly and started to take off into the sky. Just barely he managed to grab a hold of her arms and pull her back to the ground where she stood with tear filled eyes and clenched teeth.
"Do you want me to change?" Ranma asked quietly, "I'll stop fighting, I'll stop running, if you want I'd even stop breathing. You want me to change I'll change, because damn it, Dizzy, I CAN'T live without you. Remember what I said when we met again all those years later, back when Hinata thought her father was dead. I said that I lived on because thinking you were alive brought me hope. If you leave now what will I have to live for? And what about Hinata? How do I explain that her mother left because I'm a horrible father who can't even do a good job of taking care of those I love. I know this isn't a game, I'm trying my best. 'Cause… If I didn't try to make it less than it is, it would hurt you even more… So if you want to leave then go, but know that if you do you really won't see me again…"
Ranma knew it was pathetic, but it was the truth, he could even feel his eyes start to get moist, how long had it been since he cried? Years, probably, ever since that day when he wound up alone in the ruins of what had been called Japan. He had cried then because for all of his strength he had no idea what to do. Now he was in a similar situation where one of the people he cared for was about to be lost to him again. And for what, what purpose did all of this serve? He had already lost so much, it would do no good to have him lose something else he cared for. All of those years alone, he had wallowed in his own hate and spent nights in a fitful sleep as he dreamed of fire and blood and death. Then a girl, an angel, had fallen on his doorstep and he had hated her for it. He had wanted to just hate everything, hate what he had become, he had wanted to hate her for trying to save him. But he could not do that. In the end she had saved him from himself and his only regret was that he was unable to do the same because for all intensive purposes, she was an angel and he was just a mortal being. He did not deserve her and so how could he blame her for leaving him behind. Leave him before he was forced to leave her. Maybe she was right after all.
"Go," Ranma said again after a long pause, "please, if it saves you from the pain just get away from me, and take Hinata. Tell her whatever you want! If me being around cause you pain then I'd rather you were gone!"
Dizzy stopped and looked at him for a second before she sighed and shook her head. So many times she had felt sad because he was gone, could she really expect it to be any different this time. Could she just leave, was it really that simple? There would be regrets, that was for sure, but she might be able to deal with that. He was right, she would have to take their daughter with her if she left. She would probably have to go back to the Jellyfish Pirates again for a little while in between finding a home. In the end all she would be doing was running though. She had been running all her life to get away from her trouble, even in the forest with Testament she had been running away, hiding, from all of the others. Then on the airship she had been running then too. She was good at running, at avoiding fights, when faced with a predator the prey will run. Ranma was not a predator though, he was just a man whose world was turned upside down when the two of them met. Yet he took it in stride and accepted her for who she was. Sure he had hated her at first, and after hearing his story she could hardly blame him. Yet in the end it had come down to her running away yet again. Maybe she should fight this time, maybe, at least this time, running was not the right answer.
"You don't cause me pain," Dizzy replied to his yelling with a small voice, as if she was a child being scolded, "I have been running all of my life, Ranma. It was natural for me, I'm such a coward, I really do want peace but even when I do have to fight I just run in the end. No, you don't cause me pain, you just cause me to doubt myself, I get scared and because I'm scared I run. I've been the prey so many times that it's all I know how to do. I see you hurt and it hurts me, so to deal with the pain I run from what causes to the pain. But this time… This time I will fight, at least this time I do not want to run from what's hurting me because in the long run it will probably hurt me more."
There was a pause after that and Ranma and Dizzy just stared back at each other between the open space between them. It was quiet except for the breeze and the leaves drifting along on the wind. Animals scurried around in the background and kicked up small rocks as they did so. The wind blew their clothes and hair around, and Dizzy could see how blue her hair was as it blew into her eyes. She had always been aware of the differences between the two of them. Ranma had been born human, he had black hair and blue eyes, she had blue hair and red eyes. She had wings and a tail, he had nothing at all like these. He looked normal right now. And it was with this that she realized that he was her anchor to the world she lived in now. He was her protector, her savior, if she was his angel, he was her priest.
"I feel horrible right now," Dizzy said at last, "Like I've just been set adrift in an ocean without a life raft. I think I might drowned."
Ranma looked away for a second and then looked back towards her, "I'm not sure what to do, I want to hold you close right now but if I do I'm scared that you'll just walk away. If I have to stay like this I will. If it will keep you here."
"You don't have to," Dizzy said in almost a whisper, almost lost on the wind itself, "I told you, I'm done running away from my pain."
"I would probably keep running after you anyways," Ranma responded, "No matter how much I say different."
Dizzy finally drew a hand across the side of her face to get the hair out of it, "I'm glad though, this is what I really wanted I think. Maybe I could stay and you could keep me from running away again, maybe you could be my life raft."
Ranma smiled and this time he did move forward to embrace her as he had wanted to do some time earlier, "I will be, Dizzy, I will keep you afloat no matter what. And I promise I will think before I act more, if it causes you less pain then that is what I will do."
And with that she wrapped her small arms around his to return his embrace, "Thank you," she kissed him deeply and when they parted she asked him one more thing, "By the way, how did you survive the lava pit?"
Ranma was slightly surprised by the change in subject but smiled nonetheless, "Well it seems that my dragon form has an affinity for things that are hot enough to melt flesh from bone. It's like a hot spring I guess you could say."
Dizzy chuckled slightly, still feeling emotionally drained, "Well that's good to know. Maybe next time I won't overreact."
"That would be a good thing," Ranma said as he lifted her up into his arms and walked her back towards the house, "You don't need things like that to happen again. I know you don't like hurting people. Necro on the other hands seems to have no problem."
Dizzy laughed lightly and responded, "He says he takes offense to that, he was only trying to protect me."
"He was grinning the whole time," Ranma said in astonishment.
The girl laughed even harder and Ranma could not help but grin at her as she smiled at him. They walked upstairs and lay back in bed, tired from everything that had happened. Embracing each other there was a form of peace in the room that could not be penetrated by any outside force. Still, Ranma knew he had other things that needed to get done before that peace would be permanent. For one thing they had to find out who was really behind all the attacks and stop them, because as much as he tried to convince himself he just could not believe that that man he had choked the life out of earlier was the leader. There was someone higher, someone with a lot more power lurking in the shadows.
(End Note.)
Not the end of the overall story, just this chapter. As for my other story, well, I've put that on hold until this is finished. Do not worry, I'm almost done, it just got too hard to work on two stories at the same time. Sorry for any inconvenience. Trust me, when this is done I will continue my work. Man it's hard to work for the fans. Anyways, hope you have enjoyed the story.