Mamono Hunter Ukyou
Shinrou: Shadow of Fear
Part 5
By Edward A. Simons
Based on characters and situations created by Takahashi Rumiko. Ranma 1/2 and characters copyright Shogakukan, Kitty Animation Circle, and Takahashi Rumiko. Devil Hunter Yohko and characters copyright NCS, Toho Company, LTD., and Mad House. This story revised 2005 by Edward Simons.
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In the silence of the night
How we shiver with affright
At the melancholy menace of their tone!
For every sound that floats
From the rust within their throats,
Is a groan:
Edgar Allen Poe, "The Bells"
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Akane was still struggling, fighting for someone else's life. When Konatsu and Shampoo evaded its trap, the Mamono had slipped away seeking other prey. Lin-Lin and Ryouga's bodies also shuffled away, one swiftly, one slowly, but both propelled by the Mamono's will.
The Tendo girl sensed that this might be her last chance, and more importantly the last chance for the life she carried inside. It felt like swimming through tar, but her dark-coated form lurched into the elevator. She slumped against the side, and perhaps it was an accident that she struck the elevator button before collapsing to her knees with a thud.
The elevator began to rise and it felt like she was pulling away from the Mamono. Fear was replaced by confidence, as she continued to resist the creature's control. Until now she'd felt like she was falling - falling into the darkness, falling into the earth, falling into the grave. Now the relief from that sensation made her feel like she was flying.
Then she felt the pain, the crushing pain as the monster abandoned its attempt to control the girl and sought to destroy her; felt the pressure on every inch of her body, pressure like being entombed beneath tons of dirt and rock. She wanted to give up. She wanted to run crying to Daddy like when she was a child. But she knew her father wouldn't help. Since her mother died, he hadn't been a help to anyone.
No one else knows I'm here.
The black-shrouded form that was Akane writhed on the floor of the elevator, twisting in ways it shouldn't. A dark, lipless mouth opened in a soundless scream as pale, staring eyes bulged in pain. The form writhed for moments that felt like eternities and then the girl lay still on the floor of the elevator.
I have to be alive. I hurt too much not to be alive.
She sat up, and suddenly she could see as something dark and brittle flaked away from her face. She coughed and blinked.
"I made it," she whispered weakly. She was in an elevator, its floor now covered in a black powdery grit. Then Shampoo snapped the elevator cable above her and Akane plunged back into the darkness.
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Tofu rolled to his feet, biting back the pain. Blood flowed gently down his cheek, gently as the quiet falling snow, and several bits of shrapnel were embedded in his arm and shoulder. Normally he could have sensed his attacker, but something had muted the boy's natural life energies.
He could tell from the movements that this was Ryouga, even if the body now had skin the color of obsidian and lidless blank eyes the color of milk. Tofu circled to his right. The boy wouldn't deliberately endanger others with his chi attack, but possessed, Ryouga might do anything. This way if the Lost Boy missed, and Tofu certainly intended for him to miss, he wouldn't strike the hospital.
Tofu brushed the back of his hand across his cheek, wiping away the warm blood. He waited in forced patience for his opponent to make the first mistake.
He almost waited too long. Ryouga hardly moved, threatening attack, but doing nothing. It didn't make sense unless he was a decoy, but the doctor couldn't sense anyone else nearby. Tofu trusted his instincts anyway and sprang to his left, diving, rolling, and coming to his feet again.
A second dark form stood directly behind the place he'd been. It was shorter and female; perhaps it was Ran-Ran's sister. Whoever it was, he should have been able sense the girl. The Mamono had masked Ryouga's battle aura, but Tofu had sensed it just in time. He couldn't sense anything from this girl and that disturbed him.
Now she advanced, followed by the boy. Tofu assessed his odds. There might be more of them and he needed to find another telephone. It was time to withdraw while he still could.
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"I guess I'm still alive," Akane whispered and she smiled as she realized she could hear again. The emergency braking system had worked. The elevator had only fallen a short distance before coming to a stop between floors.
"I know there's still power, the elevator was still moving. That means I..."
The emergency phone rang and Akane nearly jumped in fright. Hesitantly, she fumbled for it and picked it up.
"He...Hello?"
"This is Miyo."
"Who?"
"The one who can foretell the future."
"What?"
"Miyo," the soft voice replied. "I'm in your class at school."
"What? Why are you even..."
"Listen, there isn't time for this. I'm Miyo, the girl..."
"Oh, yeah, I remember you," Akane laughed bitterly, "the phony psychic who predicted Ranma and I would get married before the end of the week. How many months ago was that?"
Miyo's tone remained calm. "I don't have time to argue," she replied. "The future is difficult to see, even when things aren't trying to obscure it. I can see patterns, but nothing is certain. That's why I was wrong before."
"Excuses, nothing but excuses," the Tendo girl replied, pausing as another fit of coughing came.
"Akane, you have to listen to me, for everyone's sake. Even I make mistakes, but I'm certain now."
The Tendo girl laughed again and prepared to hang up the phone. A quiet voice whispered, "It's a girl," and Akane froze.
"What?"
"You heard me and there isn't time to explain more. There are many futures, but I see two - stronger, more likely than the others. Two futures and the choice is yours."
"What?"
"Just shut up and listen, Akane," Miyo's voice remained calm in spite of the harsh words. "You have a choice. You can continue alone and you'll be the hero. Because of your actions, almost everyone that can still be saved will be saved. Probably."
"Probably? Almost?" the Tendo girl questioned.
"Or you can call Ranma. He's at his mother's. You can ask for his help. You can swallow your pride and resentment."
"What happens then? Then we'll save everyone?"
"The chances are better, much better. That's all I can tell you, Akane. I have a gift, but I can't be certain about the future."
"So maybe...I might be able to save as many people as Ranma could."
"It's possible. That choice is up to you."
Akane frowned. "How come you called me here? How could you call me here anyway?" If she remembered correctly, an elevator's emergency phone only contacted somewhere else in the same building. "And why didn't you call Ranma yourself?"
"Because he won't believe me." Miyo game a tired sigh. "I made an error before and now he doesn't trust me or my gift. If I call him, he won't come. But he trusts you. He'll always come if you need help. You know that and you count on it even though you hate it."
There was a click, then silence, then the hum of the dial tone.
Akane muttered under her breath as she climbed on to the roof of the elevator car. "So how am I supposed to call Ranma if I don't even know where I am?"
A soft voice from the shadows above her answered. "The hospital."
"Who?" Akane replied, dropping into a defensive stance. "Where are you? Who are you? What do you want?"
"It's Konatsu," the voice whispered from the darkness. "Please," he continued, "catch Shampoo and then I'll jump down."
"Wait." But the cat was already falling towards her. Reflexively, the Tendo girl caught her and put her down. Slowly, Shampoo began crawling towards the side, dragging her useless limbs behind her.
"What's wrong with her legs?"
"Not her legs, her spine. Please move her out of the way so I can jump down without hitting her."
Akane hesitantly picked the cat up, holding it like it was made of glass. "I...it is you, isn't it, Shampoo?"
"Mrow," was the mournful reply.
"I...we...we need to call Ranma."
The cat nodded as Konatsu dropped down beside them.
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This has to be a trap.
It made no sense at all. The Kuno mansion stood quiet and apparently empty. The only light came from the greenhouse below, and even after circling several times, he still saw no signs of movement.
It's too late to worry about that now.
The duck that was really a boy pulled in his wings and plunged through the glass top of the greenhouse. He threw out his wings again, slowing his fall as the broken glass tumbled away to slice unsuspecting plants or shatter on the floor below. A few swift beats of his wings and Mousse reached the first of his objectives.
It was much harder using a beak instead of hands, but he wasn't going to leave until he had all three items he needed. He paused for a moment, listening, but the boy heard nothing strange and returned to his work.
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Sasuke told himself he wasn't worried. Ukyou's restaurant was still closed and nobody was making flower deliveries with the city buried under a blanket of snow. Yes, Master Tatewaki had to understand.
The ninja lay back on his simple futon and sighed. He'd wanted to go searching for a florist at daybreak, but the clouds were a uniform darkness, smothering the world in shadow with no sign when or if the light would ever return.
Then the alarm went off, interrupting the ninja's thoughts. There were no bells or flashing lights at the site of the intrusion. The Kuno family didn't want to scare off any burglars; they found personal confrontation with the criminals more satisfying. The alarm didn't warn the police either, as there were some things even the Kunos might have an awkward time explaining. Instead, an electrical signal activated a buzzer in Sasuke's room. If it was a threat, he could warn the others and if it was a cat or other false alarm only the ninja's sleep would be disturbed.
Of course, he wasn't asleep anyway. He groaned and looked at the bank of video monitors, checking what the hidden cameras showed him.
There, in the greenhouse.
Ducks didn't normally wear glasses or carry satchels around their necks. They certainly didn't snip away bits of vegetation and stuff them into their satchels. Sasuke knew he'd have to investigate since all three Kunos were gone, but he didn't like it.
Truthfully, the ninja was somewhat cowardly and possessed only slightly better combat skills than Kasumi Tendo, so he investigated the disturbance cautiously. So cautiously he barely arrived in time to see the duck flying away.
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Akane slumped against the side of the hallway and slid down to a sitting position. A few paces away the elevator doors stood ajar. She hadn't realized how hard it would be to force them open.
She'd never felt this weary before. She didn't know how long she'd struggled against the Mamono, but she seemed to have used up everything fighting it. Breathing was the only thing she felt up to at the moment, and that hurt. Everything hurt. Her muscles ached, her bones ached, her skin ached, her hair ached. All she wanted to do was curl up and sleep.
Konatsu sat across from her, his normal cute demeanor erased. He held the crippled cat gently, softly stroking its fur, and murmuring gentle words Akane couldn't hear. Shampoo somehow managed to look pleased and annoyed at the same time.
The Tendo girl sighed and wished someone she cared about was holding her like that. I guess I'd better get used to it. Ryouga would be here if he could. He's probably in Okinawa right now.
For the first time, she really understood the Hibiki family curse, and how lonely it could be to live with it. A new ache blossomed within her heart, joining the ache caused by the loss of her sister, muting the aches of her body.
At least I'll see him again. Even in her thoughts, she shied away from the loss of her mother and sister. I'll cry later. There isn't time now.
She looked back at her companions. Konatsu had somehow managed to clean the grease off his hands, and his clothing hid the stains, but dark smudges were still visible on his cheek and the bandage wrapped around his head. Even though he looked pale and weary, the ninja still managed to exude a grace and femininity that Akane knew she'd never match.
Great, that's two guys I'm jealous of for looking better than me. But she was too tired to be really angry.
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"Hello?" She hadn't expected the phone to ring.
The voice on the other end was hoarse, breathless. "You don't know me, Mrs. Saotome, but I have to talk to Ranma. Is he there?"
"I'm sorry, he just left, Mr..."
"Doctor, Doctor Tofu. Was Ukyou with him?"
"Yes, she was."
"No," the doctor whispered. "Do you know why? Did they say where they were going?"
"Someone called and they left in a hurry, before I could ask questions. I hope they'll be alright."
"I hope they're coming here, Mrs. Saotome, for all our sakes."
"What's going on?" Nodoka asked, "Where is my son?" But the doctor had already hung up.
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The world was drained of sound and color. Darkness muted the light, fading all shades to gray, except the darkened sky and the pale snow that muffled their footfalls as still more fell silently from the darkness above. It seemed wrong to speak and shatter the silence; but after the laughter and noise back at Nodoka's house, the unnatural stillness didn't feel right, either.
It was starting to feel like home, like a real home, like my home. She couldn't remember what that was like. Most of her life was spent in travel and the restaurant was a business, a place to sleep, but not a home. She glanced over at Ranma. As long as he was there, she didn't need a home, but it had felt nice to pretend. She was even able to pretend she had a mother again and for a little while she could relax and forget her responsibilities.
Akane's phone call had shattered all that. It was strange for the Tendo girl to admit she needed help of any kind and that meant the problem must be serious. The sensible thing was to remain in the warmth and light, but duty drove them forward.
She felt warm and cold at the same time. Around her, the early morning was chilly, but there was a deeper cold of fear at what they could be facing. It had been there since that night on the ice. The battle at the school, where Ranma nearly bled to death, had made her even more afraid of losing him. All the conflicts before then, all those squabbles they thought were battles, even her ten-year quest for vengeance, were nothing compared to the struggle against these inhuman things that seemed to live on pain.
The warmth came not from the borrowed coat, or from the strong arm wrapped around her as they huddled beneath the umbrella. It came because of who that arm belonged to and why he held her close. She smiled as she gazed at Ranma's face and the determination in his expression. She'd followed him for ten years and she planned on following him the rest of her life.
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"Mousse?"
The duck ignored Ran-Ran as it arrowed toward the kitchen. When a boy in white robes emerged soon after, he continued to ignore the girl.
"Please," she stretched out a hand, needing someone to touch, to talk to, to provide some sort of comfort for her loneliness. She didn't get it from Mousse; he didn't even see her as he hurried upstairs.
Ran-Ran collapsed into a ball on the floor. She'd grown up in the village surrounded by friends and family. She was never alone unless she deliberately chose it and she hadn't liked it. Tears wound down the girl's cheeks, tears she would have denied as unbecoming to an Amazon warrior.
"Please, ancestors," her quavering voice whispered in Mandarin, "Please bring back sister Lin-Lin and stupid Airen safely. Please, I don't need the whole village, I just need someone so I don't have to be alone anymore."
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"The patients!" Akane stood, her fatigue forgotten. Her legs reminded her and she slumped against the wall for support. Konatsu and Shampoo stared at her with a mix of confusion and concern.
"What if that thing decides to go after the patients?" she explained.
Konatsu stood more slowly, cradling the cat in his arms. "It could have already done that if it wanted to," he said softly.
"And it still could," the Tendo girl retorted, her anger bubbling to the surface again. "We have to do something. Just because the monster hasn't hurt them doesn't mean it won't. We can't just sit around waiting, hoping things will turn out."
Akane wished she could erase the edge in her words as she saw the ninja's expression harden. He'd changed. He wasn't going to meekly follow orders anymore and when he spoke, there was anger in his voice.
"And just what are we supposed to do, then? Tell me, just what are we supposed to do? None of us have weapons, I'm still injured, you can barely stand, and Shampoo...Shampoo is..." He hugged the cat close and fought against the tears. The silence lasted for a few heartbeats, then the ninja took a deep breath that contained the ghost of a sob. He faced Akane and there was something grim in his eyes and his tight expressionless mouth. His whispered words seemed as loud as a shout.
"Why shouldn't we wait? Isn't that what you're good at, Akane, waiting? Waiting for someone else to come rescue you."
"Wha...?"
"I watched. I listened. I heard Ukyou and Ranma chatter away while he devoured okonomiyaki like a starving man. I overheard the Kunos ranting away in their big empty house. I listened to the Amazons scheme in the darkness. I heard endless squabbles at your dojo. I was content to stay in the shadows, to sit there and watch and listen, it's what I was taught to do."
He was silent for a moment and Akane didn't reply. She wasn't sure what the boy was trying to say or even if the ninja knew. He took another breath and continued. He sounded old and tired.
"And I remember it all. People say you used to fight all the time, but there was nothing left of that Akane by the time got here. You don't fight anymore, you wait for Ranma or Ryouga or some other guy to come rescue you whenever you get kidnapped. You never fought back, you never took any risks, you let others take them for you and you expected it as your right instead of valuing it. Are you weak, like I am, or did you just come to expect that he, that Ranma, would always be there?"
"I..."
"Now you ran to him again, calling him for help again, so why not sit there and wait for him?"
"It's not like that." The edge was back in Akane's voice. "I called him because I'm not going to let pride get in the way of helping people. I'm not going to wait because," her voice broke, "because I don't know if he'll get here in time. I don't know if he'll even come."
"Because you know he's with her." Konatsu's voice was full of sympathy, even as his heart was torn between joy for the friends that freed him from his past and sorrow that he would never be that close to either of them.
"Don't worry, he'll come, they'll both come, you know that." Konatsu gave a tired smile. "Maybe now you understand how it was for her, never knowing when or if she could see him again. You could see Ranma every moment from the time you woke up until the time you went to bed. All she got were a few minutes a day to be with him, and she treasured every one of them."
"Absence makes the heart grow fonder?" Akane parroted the old saying, uncertain if she believed it.
"No, but sometimes it takes losing something to make us understand how much we truly want and need it, how many opportunities we missed, how much we took for granted. Ukyou learned just how important Ranma was to her when she was six. It took me so long to realize that. Those moments that were so precious to her, when she did see him, when he did come by, the way her face lit up like it never did for me, and when he wasn't there, her thoughts and her words kept coming back to him."
"I couldn't match that. I couldn't take his place. Did you see the way she fought for him in that battle at the school? Even when he hurt her, she would have died for him, she would have died to be with him. She...she almost did. Do I...do I love them that much? I don't know, Akane. I think I could, even though I'm not a fighter, but look at us, look at the way we are now. If we try to fight this thing, I think we'll all die. I hope I'd do that for Ukyou or Ranma, but can I do that for strangers?"
"It's a martial artist's duty to help others." Akane's voice was soft, gentle, wistful, sad.
"I'm not much of a martial artist, Akane. Those times I do fight, I just seem to hurt people. I'm not much of a man, either, I don't think I know how to be one any more." He still couldn't express his own confused feelings. "I don't think I can do this, Akane. Maybe...maybe...if I didn't have to protect Shampoo, then I..."
The Tendo girl didn't reply at first. If what she felt and Miyo believed was true, she had another life depending on her, a life more defenseless than Shampoo, a life she didn't have the right to risk, but she couldn't ignore the patients or the hospital staff.
"We...we still have to do something, Konatsu, because it's the right thing to do. You know they'd do it. I...we..." She focused on the unusually silent cat that Konatsu clutched in his arms. She'd almost forgotten Shampoo. "We all know Ranma has helped us before, and Ukyou would, too."
"You're right, Konatsu, this isn't a fight we can win with martial arts, but that doesn't mean we can't win. We just need to be clever. We have to try, for our own sakes as much as for these people."
The ninja nodded quietly, but didn't speak. He looked expectantly at Akane, waiting to hear how they could save the patients. Unfortunately, she hadn't thought that far yet.
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"It's all about choices, isn't it?"
No one answered her. Tatewaki was slumped in a chair, finally claimed by exhaustion. No one saw Kodachi's faint smile. She stood and stretched, then began her regular exercise routine. Though her movements were silent, her thoughts were not.
Sagegami had no choice.
Memories returned of a little sister so graceful and beautiful and kind that no one could hate her, not even the older sister supplanted in everyone's attentions. All that was ended by one careless driver in a spray of blood. She recalled repeated visits to a pale girl with raven dark hair, whose coma ended slowly and inevitably in a death that took weeks in coming.
The doctors meant well, but they only prolonged her death, not her life.
Kodachi sighed.
Mother made her choice to follow Sageo-chan and she didn't give the doctors a chance to draw it out. Father chose his own way to withdraw from the world, slowly numbing himself to reality until his own dream world, a world of whims and madness was real, to him at least. I tried both their methods, but neither was right for me, I see that now.
That still left her uncertain about the future; about what future she would choose. She was still mulling it over when the phone rang.
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He was the sensible, prudent one. Except for the derangement of Kasumi's presence, he remained calm and self-controlled. He never acted rashly. He always thought things through. He was very patient. He'd stayed focused throughout his attempts to reach help, but now all he could do was wait and hope and pray that help was coming and that it would arrive soon enough to matter. He knew it was best to wait for the help that could banish or destroy this Mamono.
Of course, he never thought very clearly when Kasumi was concerned. If it had been anyone but her, he would have been alright. There she stood, or more precisely a black waxen effigy of the girl, silent and unmoving as stone. He felt his mind begin to slip away, as he tried to maintain control.
He'd found her again. He sensed she was still alive, but he couldn't do anything to help. Tofu stared at his empty useless hands and shuddered. His medical training meant nothing; it couldn't save her. His martial arts skills meant he could sense Kasumi's life force, but they also meant he could feel it slowly fading. This was the night he lost Nabiki, with the pain magnified a thousandfold by his feelings for Kasumi.
He couldn't pull his eyes or heart away from her, he couldn't leave her alone in the darkness, but he couldn't end it for her, either.
His hand reached forward, trembling, longing to caress her cheek, to pull her close and never let her go. His mouth was dry and empty; no words could express how he felt. He didn't see the lines of darkness snaking across the floor, probing towards his anguish.
He couldn't hear the fire alarm shatter the silence.
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"I don't wanna go there." Ranma exhaled, his breath a fading puff of whiteness. The hospital loomed less than a block away. There were no signs of the Mamono that Akane had warned them about over the telephone.
"But you'll do it." Ukyou brought her face close, feeling his breath on her face. She saw his eyes, haunted by death and pain, by memories of the price Nabiki and Shampoo paid. "I know you will. It's one of the reasons I love you."
He matched her gaze, no longer afraid of it or her words. He smiled, but the pain still shaded his eyes. "Thanks. It might be safer if you waited," he sighed, "but you ain't gonna do that."
"I never was too smart when you were involved, Ranchan."
He laughed and his second smile was real. "We ready to do this, Ucchan?"
She kissed him fiercely, pulling away only when she needed air. "Now we're ready."
He held her close as she murmured the transformation chant. For a moment he felt warm skin pressed against his chest, traced the muscles of her back with his hands, before rich purple silk formed between them.
"Thanks for helping me cover up, Ranchan. The dress was bad enough."
He opened his mouth, but the clamor of the fire alarm overwhelmed his words.
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Akane had expected the alarm; after all, she'd set it off. It wasn't a perfect plan, someone could get hurt in the rush to escape. Yet it was also the fastest way to clear everyone from the building, and if they stayed the Mamono would do a lot more than hurt people.
She looked at the ninja and the cat that was a girl. They said nothing; they hadn't come up with any better ideas. They had to trust the hospital staff to keep things calm and organized, but Akane worried about the Mamono's abilities and what it might do to cause panic.
She forced one exhausted leg to take a step, then followed with the other. A glance back showed the others hadn't moved.
"Come on, we have to help them evacuate the patients."
"Mrow, " Shampoo agreed emphatically. Konatsu said nothing, but he followed Akane.
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Shinrou was significantly less than happy. It had been extremely painful when Akane escaped and Ryouga's and Kasumi's resistance were draining it of energy, instead of feeding the creature. It was willing to let most of the hospital patients and staff go for now. They'd be easy to acquire once the real opponents were eliminated.
The creature had been considering Konatsu when it sensed the Mamono Hunter's sudden appearance and approach. It remembered her and the boy who was her source of strength and weakness, recalled how close it had come to seizing both of them. Now, both seemed stronger and Shinrou considered fleeing.
Without her powers or alone, the Mamono Hunter could have been wrapped in her fears and destroyed. But she wasn't alone anymore and Shinrou knew it needed to be cautious or she could destroy it. Deception and confusion would be the best tools and it didn't dare strike directly. It didn't need to. The boy was not as well shielded and Shinrou sensed that if it destroyed him it would destroy the Mamono Hunter.
Its puppets would serve for decoys, expendable if necessary, while Shinrou finished off the true danger.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Doctors and nurses did their best, but the frightened people flooded out of the exits in semi-controlled waves. In their rush someone was caught up in the crowd, torn away from his companions, and dumped sobbing into the snow.
"Konatsu?" Ukyou knelt beside him while Ranma kept watch for danger.
The ninja shook his head as tears dropped softly into the snow. The bandage around his head was covered in grease and blood and his arms trembled as they tried to support his weight. He barely sensed Ukyou murmuring or the scarlet glow of her Yoma ring. Fatigue and injury vanished, but not the pain. He shook his head again.
"Please, Konatsu," his employer urged. "We have to know what's going on so we can help."
"Sh...Shampoo...she...I wasn't strong enough. I lost her...lost her in that crowd."
"That's okay. I'm sure we'll find her."
"She was a cat." The ninja shuddered, imagining the helpless girl beneath the feet of the mob. Ukyou turned pale and Ranma looked grim. They almost forgot about the Mamono, but it hadn't forgotten them.
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
She didn't know which was worse, the oppressive darkness or the weight pressing down on her, forcing her breath away. She was too weak to fight anymore; too weak to free herself, let alone help anyone else.
She couldn't even scream.
Being dropped from Konatsu's straining arms was bad, being partially trampled by the mob was worse, but Shampoo had received more damage during some of her training. The deepest wounds were to her pride, for Akane had protected her and paid the price for it. Miyo had predicted the Tendo girl would save others, but she hadn't said anything about Akane's fate. Now the cat lay pinned beneath her would-be rescuer's unconscious form and the girl's weight was slowly crushing Shampoo's breath away.
At least on the ice I would have died a warrior's death. This isn't the way an Amazon should die.
In the stories, the Amazon warrior always saved her village and left this world surrounded by ranks of slain enemies who would serve her in the next life. Fate seemed unwilling to grant Shampoo a single shred of that glory or dignity.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Calm.
It wasn't working.
Breathe slowly, deeply, evenly. Focus on the rhythm of life. Feel your blood flowing softly like an endless sea. Let the cares, the worries go.
The darkness had touched Tofu, but he refused to let it claim him. Shadowy tendrils clung to his leg and he teetered on the edge of the abyss, but he still resisted.
It's alright. It will be alright. Patience. Wait for Ukyou and she will set us free.
He wanted to close his eyes; it would help him focus inward and resist the Mamono's touch. He couldn't do that. He couldn't look away from Kasumi. The Mamono's web of darkness still covered her, but he felt her inside, shining like a star, enduring with patience until the light would come again.
Breathe. Focus. You can't save her if you let this thing take you.
The darkness inched upward, probing the edges of his fears, seeking to climb higher, and slowly it was eroding his control. All he could do was slow its inevitable progress.
That's enough. Buy enough time that they can save Kasumi. That's all that matters. Keep it busy till they save her.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Ranma felt the Shimi-Seki stone pulse a soundless scream of warning. He flipped backwards over the battered remains of a phone booth and landed in a crouch. The crowd scattered like leaves in the wind and he saw his attacker.
He recognized the movements, he'd fought Ryouga too many times not to, but the Lost Boy's actions were slower, if only by a fraction. The darkness that covered him hadn't affected the boy's strength, though; the pavement had shattered beneath his blow.
"Ranchan!"
"I'm okay," he called back.
He didn't look at her. He couldn't take that chance with an opponent of Ryouga's strength and skill. The stone pulsed again, echoing his own knowledge of the Lost Boy's moves, and his ability to sense the muted pattern of the other boy's chi. Ranma spun lightly to the side, letting his opponent's blow pass through emptiness.
He danced backwards, avoiding repeated blows in a strange silence empty of Ryouga's usual threats. It seemed eerily similar to his last battle with Kodachi. Somewhere behind him Ukyou chanted faintly, preparing to free Ryouga from the Mamono. Ryouga paused unexpectedly and Ranma used that time. In a fluid movement almost too swift to be seen, he removed the Shimi-Seki pendant and threw it over his shoulder. Pale blue stone glittered in the faint light as it arced away from him.
His fiancée was too busy to notice, but he'd planned for that.
"Konatsu, catch the stone. Ucchan's gonna need it."
Then something struck him from behind. He hadn't sensed Lin-Lin's movements. Where there should have been a pattern of chi, a swirl of life energies, there was emptiness. In spite of that, the girl seemed stronger than before and she clung to him, pinning his arms as Ryouga swung again. Ukyou screamed Ranma's name as he leapt over the attack.
He twisted as he fell, but the Amazon clung to him tenaciously. She swung her weight to the side, throwing him off balance and they landed heavily, knocking the wind out of him. Ryouga swung at him, but he rolled away from the blow. Concrete shattered, peppering Ranma with debris, but neither of his opponents reacted to the flying rubble.
Ukyou stepped forward, but Konatsu caught her and gently slipped the pendant around her neck. "Now you can help him. I'll keep the crowd away so you can do this."
"Thanks."
"I know when I'm not needed," he whispered, but Ukyou didn't hear him, her heart was full of someone else. He turned, only to see the bystanders had all wisely fled.
"I guess I'm really not needed." His shoulders slumped and he stared at nothing. He barely heard the conflict behind him.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
The ceiling detonated and debris rained around Tofu. He wanted to move, but his feet were pinned to the floor, wrapped in Shinrou's web of fear, forced to stand helpless and pray that Kasumi would be unharmed. The darkness edged upwards, claiming more of him. If Kasumi had been hurt the Mamono would have finished its job.
But Kasumi wasn't injured. The same could not be said for the cat and the girl who plunged through the broken ceiling. Shampoo had escaped smothering by using the breaking point technique, but even healthy cats don't always land on their feet.
Shampoo hissed in pain and looked around the room. Akane lay unconscious. Another girl was a waxen effigy in black, and the same dark substance had climbed to Tofu's waist.
"Get out. It's not safe," the doctor whispered urgently. "Please."
Shampoo hissed in frustration this time, hating her curse and her injuries, wishing she could face this battle as a warrior. Fate had robbed her of strength, of reach, of movement, of even speech. She couldn't win this fight.
That didn't mean she was going to quit.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Lin-Lin's arms were dark bands of iron contracting across Ranma's chest, squeezing the air from his lungs while the clinging darkness burrowed into his back, probing for his heart. He heard Ukyou scream his name, but she seemed so far away. He strained to hear or even see her as something dark began to cloud his vision.
Shinrou could have forced its puppet Ryouga to crush the boy, but it was more satisfying to use Ranma's buried fears to do that. The monster pulled at a thread, finding an imagined future instead of a tortured past.
Ranma stood alone on a sidewalk, utterly alone in spite of the uncaring holiday crowd pushing past. Ukyou's restaurant stood in silent, empty accusation. He'd given her ten years of pain, until one night she disappeared without word of explanation. Dark rumors claimed she could be found in Kansai, at least the tattered remains left after the angry sea had cast them against the rocks along the shore.
The Neko Hanten was empty, too, deserted for weeks and Shampoo hadn't needed the Reversal Jewel to tell Ranma she never wanted to see him again. Akane had done the same, punctuating her words with only slightly more physical violence. His mother had disappeared as well, saying he was no son of hers, that he was no man at all.
He hadn't chosen. He'd been afraid to, afraid to lose any of the few friends he had, and he'd needed them, needed them all to reinforce his confidence, needed the girls as living proof that he was a man, that he really was a man. If strong, beautiful girls were willing to do that, he had to be a man.
Didn't he?
Shinrou pulled another thread. Ranma had so many layers to his fears, and surely if it explored them all, the boy could be destroyed, and after him the Mamono Hunter.
I'm a man. A real man. One you'd be proud of, Mom.
It was hard to convince himself when he turned into a girl half the time and Shinrou found other memories that made it harder. Ranma's first kiss...was from a boy, Mikado Sanzenin. He was almost willing to get another from Tatewaki Kuno during an actual date, when the Blue Thunder had blundered on to a wish-granting sword. And the time he thought he was a girl, a belief that lasted even when he was in boy form. Akane was embarrassed by his actions at the time, but later she thought it humorous.
I didn't. Was it just a way to run from all my problems, all the pressures everyone put on me? Or did it mean I really wanted to be a girl?
He had reasons to ask himself. Those memories were buried, buried deep, but they hadn't died and they stirred in their restless grave.
No! I wouldn't do that!
But he had. He had been in love with a boy.
No, no, I wasn't!
It began with a simple mark on his body, but it grew until he was willing to die for that love.
It wasn't me. It was that stupid magic Koi Fishing Rod. I...I couldn't...couldn't love him...I couldn't...not Ryouga...not another guy.
But he had, if only for a short while, and the fear he couldn't bury, the fear that never left him, was that some part of those feelings were his, not just the effects of the magic Ryouga had accidentally used on him.
Shinrou pulled another thread, so closely twined with this one.
No! It wasn't ...I couldn't...I didn't...
A different incident, the same fear, more than doubled by repetition. The magic Umbrella of Love. Not the moment when Ukyou was barely under it and he was reduced to babbling.
Kami-sama, please, he pled.
Trapped beneath the umbrella, holding hands with Kuno, overwhelmed with feelings for another man, until Ukyou had knocked him clear with her battle spatula. The bile rose in his throat, just like it had after his fiancée freed him, but this time the scene remained frozen, endlessly replayed by something darker than the night.
Ranma stumbled forward and fell to his knees as the Lost Boy loomed above him. He jerked his head to the side, staring at the pavement, unwilling to see his opponent, unwilling to take the chance that Shinrou's whispers might be true.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Akane felt a rough tongue on her face, and blinked.
"Ranma?"
"Mrew?" It was Shampoo.
The Tendo girl groaned. "Sorry, I don't feel so good." She tasted blood in her mouth, warm and salty. At least nothing seemed to be broken. Akane rolled onto her back, closed her eyes, and sighed.
"Mrow!"
"Oh, be quiet, Shampoo. Just let me rest. I'm so tired."
Akane's eyes snapped open. There, to the left. Her eyes flickered that way. She felt more than saw that the form encased in darkness was Kasumi. Much of Tofu remained visible, and she sensed him struggling against his fears.
"Mrow," Shampoo repeated softly.
"Sorry. I guess we need to get help." She felt a strange calmness, a mix of fatigue and hope.
Akane climbed to her hands and knees. The effort left her panting. She reached a trembling hand towards the cat and pulled the protesting feline towards her. The effort nearly made her fall on her face.
"C'mon, Shampoo. I can't risk anything happening to you or the kid." She leaned against the wall, struggling to pull herself to her feet. She nearly fell again, but caught herself.
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
It was like suddenly seeing the whole spectrum after years of colorblindness. Her combat training allowed her to sense others' chi, to feel their life force, their battle aura. This was a thousand times more. Ukyou knew the Shimi-Seki stone would enhance her mystic abilities, but it was something else to experience it.
She saw the world as she'd never seen it before. She saw Ranma as she'd never seen him before. She sensed his joys and sorrows and all the feelings he kept bottled up inside as glowing lights and strange shadows whose colors she couldn't fully describe. Beneath it all, she sensed the vibrancy and passion, the honor and the honesty that had drawn her to him, once she'd let go of her anger and seen past his faults to the real Ranma.
But she didn't have time to taste the new sensations. Ryouga was a feeble fading glow of light buried in the darkness and from Lin-Lin she sensed nothing at all. Ukyou felt a coldness deeper than the weather. She didn't notice the single tear slip down her cheek.
And something froze her to the core. There was no sign of the Mamono, it must be hiding, but the darkness that was and wasn't Lin-Lin still clung like a vise to Ranma. That darkness was spreading, covering the light that was her fiancé, trying to extinguish the life within.
"No." The first time was a whisper. The second was a shout as she erased the distance between them. While she still drew breath, she wouldn't let the darkness claim him again.
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
The monster's puppet, Ryouga, stepped back, though he remained poised to strike. Ranma struggled against the ebon bindings, but he couldn't break their hold.
It's waiting for Ucchan to get here, then he'll try to pulp me.
Then realization struck and a new, greater fear enfolded him.
It's not trying to kill me. The monster's waiting for Ucchan to get close. It's using me as bait so it can kill her.
He couldn't speak; he seemed to be robbed of speech, unable to shout a warning. He raised his hands, fingers curled like claws. The only way out now was madness, descent through the primal terror of a hunted being to the feral strength of the Cat Fist state. But that meant losing control, surrendering part of what he was to the mindless brutality of the beast and praying he'd still be in control when the madness passed.
That was another of his fears. He'd never truly harmed anyone in that state. He'd still managed to sense the difference between friends and foes.
What if I can't this time?
The thought made his stomach twist. His heart trembled, imaging sightless gray eyes staring at the sky, blood pooling in the snow, something warm and salty and raw between his teeth, steam rising from a torn thing that had been a friend and perhaps even more, but was now only cooling meat. Ranma gagged, feeling the contents of his stomach rise in revolt.
He sensed that Shinrou had driven him into the Cat Fist State when Lin-Lin and Ran-Ran attacked. Now he felt the cats screaming, the glowing eyes burning through him, the needle teeth shredding his flesh and soul. And through it all he felt the mocking presence of the Mamono. It had learned from past mistakes. This time it would drive him deeper into the fear, past the point of any self-control, so deep he might never return.
No.
He was tired and he was still afraid, but there was grim determination in Ranma's soul.
Even if I die, even if I fail again, I ain't gonna ever, ever do that to Ucchan.
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Konatsu blinked. The hospital door opened and a wheelchair slid softly through the doorway. Shampoo sat in it with Akane cradled unconscious in her lap. He hurried forward, then stopped in confusion.
"Where are your clothes, Shampoo?"
"There wasn't time to go looking for them and a hospital robe doesn't cover much anyway. Besides, Akane passed out again and I needed to get help for her."
"But..." The ninja looked confused.
"I had hours to read about magical healing on Ukyou's computer while I waited for one of you to come home from school. I know what it can and can't do. I probably know more about it than she does. I could probably quote it in my sleep."
Konatsu nodded mutely, trying not to stare at Shampoo's exposed chest or speculate about parts hidden beneath Akane's unconscious form.
"I...uh...I'll go get them, um, her...Ukyou that is." He blushed as he realized Shampoo had noticed him noticing her. She smiled broadly and for a moment Konatsu felt like a mouse in front of a hungry cat.
"You may dress like a girl, but you still think like a boy, Airen." There was laughter in her voice. "Go get help for Akane and I promise to scrub your back when you get cleaned up afterwards."
The ninja blushed so fiercely he was certain his footprints would melt holes in the snow.
"You be a good ninja and I'll even scrub your front," Shampoo purred.
Konatsu gave a strangled cry and fled in confusion while the Chinese girl frowned at his retreating back. Ranma had acted the same way, too. She wondered why Japanese men were so shy.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
She gave a wordless scream of rage and swung her battle spatula. The weapon rang from the force of the blow as Lin-Lin's dark shrouded form sailed through the air, impacting into the wall hard enough to crack the concrete, then dropping limply to the ground. The shorter teen's body rose slowly to its feet, but didn't advance. It didn't need to.
"No," Ukyou whispered.
Ranma was on his knees, struggling to break free from the tendrils of darkness still stretching between Lin-Lin and himself. She saw and felt the darkness growing, attempting to extinguish the light of Ranma's soul. She dropped her soulblade. Mini spatulas appeared between her fingers and the gems of the Yoma ring pulsed, charging the missiles with magical energy. A fiery nimbus formed around them.
"Ucchan!"
She spun just in time to see Ryouga's swing, then she felt Ranma's foot strike the back of her leg and she was falling away from her attacker. Time seemed to slow and she saw the Lost Boy's fist, its inky blackness illumined by blue and white light pulsing from the Shimi-Seki pendant she wore, and knew it would miss. A lone shuriken, the last weapon Konatsu carried, lodged in Ryouga's wrist, but he didn't react. Reflexively, she used the momentum of her fall to spin away from her attacker. She felt the snow scrunch beneath her shoulder blades and continued the backward roll, coming to her feet well out of reach of her opponent.
Ranma was on his feet again, straining against the web of darkness, trying to move between her and Ryouga. The Lost Boy advanced slowly and she sensed the emptiness that was Lin-Lin closing rapidly from behind. Mini spatulas whistled through the air, striking the strands connecting the Chinese girl to Ranma. Lin-Lin fell to her knees with a gasp, the first noise she'd made. Ranma stumbled forward as the tension released. He chuckled and advanced toward Ryouga.
"You ready to lose, Pig Boy." The words were confident, but he still felt the Mamono's touch, its darkness still clung to his body and soul. He ignored it, seeking the cold calm center that he used in the Hiryu Shouten Ha and nearly finding it.
"C'mon, P-chan, you can do better than that."
The taunts would normally have driven Ryouga into a blind rage, but he couldn't hear them and the Mamono controlled his movements. Ranma continued to dodge, but wouldn't let his opponent get past him to his fiancée.
Behind him, the glow of magic lit up the night. Ukyou's pendant shone blue-white like cold fire. Crimson and emerald lines of force swirled around the Yoma ring on her upraised left hand. Ukyou murmured the last words of the spell and the summoned energies spiraled forward, striking her intended target.
Ranma stumbled again as the magic struck him. Warm waves of crimson fire danced across him. He saw them flare along his arms and arch between his fingers. Ryouga's form stepped back, shielding sightless eyes with arms dark as night.
But there was no pain, only a warm gentle glow starting in Ranma's heart and flowing outwards, consuming doubt and fear, erasing the last traces of Shinrou's attempt to control him. He laughed, really laughed for the first time in quite a while, and he smiled, certain he sensed the Mamono's weakness.
Konatsu spoke in the lull of battle. "Lady Ukyou, Akane is badly injured. You need to come heal her."
"I'm gonna stay with Ranchan."
"She didn't look good," the ninja insisted. "I don't know if she's going to make it."
"What?" Ukyou hissed. She glanced toward the hospital entrance, then back at Ranma, who was nimbly dodging Ryouga's awkward blows.
"Go help Akane," her fiancé called. "Pig Boy never could beat me and I know how to take this Mamono down, too."
"But..."
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
"But what about Ryouga? We've got to save him, too."
"He'd want you to save Akane first. I'll keep this thing busy till you get back."
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Ukyou knelt beside the wheelchair, concern in her eyes. Shampoo had returned to the warmth of the building, but she still cradled Akane in her lap. At least she'd acquired a hospital robe. Ukyou glanced up at the Chinese girl and nodded.
She'd cast the healing spell so many times the day Ikari attacked that it was reflex. Akane's battered, unconscious form was bathed in glowing energies that slowly faded.
"Now it's your turn, Shampoo. I bet you can't wait to walk again."
The Chinese girl smiled, but Konatsu noticed the smile never reached her eyes. "I can wait. Ranma needs you now and I don't want to slow you down."
"But..."
"There isn't time to argue, Ukyou. Just go. You know you want to be with him."
The Kuonji girl nodded and disappeared out the door. Awkward silence followed as Konatsu stared into Shampoo's eyes. "You didn't tell her something. I see it, but she was too worried about him to notice. What didn't you tell her?"
The Chinese girl stared back and he was certain she'd never answer, but she broke his gaze and sighed. "You'll find out anyway. Like I told you, I read the notes Ukyou's grandmother sent to her. I understand how the spell works. It accelerates your body's natural healing to an incredible rate, restoring in moments what would take weeks for your body to repair on its own."
"So there really wasn't time for Ukyou to heal injuries as bad as yours?"
Shampoo shook her head. Moisture glistened in her eyes, but she wasn't actually crying. "No, Airen, that's not the problem. The body doesn't heal that kind of damage. Nerve cells that are destroyed can't be repaired or replaced by the body. I won't ever walk again, no matter how much she uses her magic. It doesn't work that way."
"I'm sorry." His words felt totally inadequate, but the way she smiled made Konatsu believe his words did matter to her.
"I'll tell them later," she promised, "after they finish fighting the Mamono."
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
There was always a risk in battle, but Ranma lived for it. It forced him to do more than he could have done, to be more than he could have been. It challenged him in ways that sparring never could. He almost laughed as he evaded another of Ryouga's blows. It seemed as if his rival was slowing down.
Actually, Ranma was speeding up, his entire body approaching the speed he used in the Kachu Tenshin Amiguriken. The boy seemed to blur as he leapt and spun, evading every move of his attacker, yet staying tantalizingly close enough that Ryouga continued to pursue him.
No, that's not really Pig Boy, it's something using him like Ikari used me to hurt Ucchan.
Between that and what had happened to Nabiki all those weeks ago, he'd been reluctant to use his chi powers for fear of hurting anyone possessed by a Mamono. But he wasn't afraid anymore.
"Moko Takabisha."
Energy flared and a ball of chi no bigger than his fist flew towards his opponent. Ranma deliberately held back the energy of the attack. If the plan didn't work, he didn't want to really hurt the Lost Boy. The energy struck the other boy's leg and flickered like fire. When it faded, the darkness was gone from that part of the Lost Boy and the tattered ends of darkness writhed like blind worms. Ryouga's pants and the leg inside were unharmed.
Ranma crowed with joy.
I knew it would work. A Mamono of Fear can't stand up to an attack based on confidence.
He readied a larger blast, but Lin-Lin had moved too close, so he targeted her instead. The girl's body hurtled backwards to slam against the wall and slump bonelessly to the ground.
Ranma flinched and hurried to her side. The Chinese girl was still breathing slowly and evenly. Her pulse was weak, but steady. He smiled, then ducked as Ryouga shattered the wall inches above his head. He scooped up the girl's body and rolled away from the wall.
The Lost Boy spun slowly, limping awkwardly as the darkness sought to flow downward and regain full control of the limb. Ranma hadn't moved very far. There was something wrong about the way Lin-Lin lolled in his arms like a broken doll. He looked up to see Ukyou running toward him and smiled.
Then Ryouga tapped the ground. The boy said nothing, certainly not Bakusai Tenketsu, but the ground shattered beneath them, and they plunged into the earth.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
She screamed his name, but kept running. She didn't hesitate when she reached the jagged edge of the pit, but sprang into the darkness. She splashed into icy water that rose almost to her knees. The curved concrete sides showed this must be a storm drain of some kind. The water didn't feel clean, but it lacked the stench of the sewers.
"Ranchan!" Muted noises echoed out of the darkness and she prayed he would be alright. She gestured and a ball of crimson light hung in the air. The glow seemed pale and feeble, making the sluggish water flowing around the broken chunks of debris look like clotted blood.
"Ranchan." This time it was a whisper. A body floated slowly towards her, drifting face down in the gentle current. Hair and clothing looked red in the dim light and the clothing was definitely Chinese.
She felt her heart stop. Her breath exhaled in a strangled gasp and she fell to her knees in the icy water. Ukyou turned the body over and saw the blank staring eyes and the slack lifeless mouth. She pressed her lips to those of the shorter girl, trying to breathe life back into the limp body.
Lin-Lin might have tried to kill her before, but she still fought to keep the Chinese girl's life from fading away.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
It was dark as tar and coated him like a second skin, but Ranma couldn't see the Mamono that enfolded him. One moment he was pinned beneath the water by Ryouga's strength powered by the remorseless will of the Mamono. He'd felt his lungs blazing as they starved for air, his ribs creaking as Ryouga bore down on him, heard his blood pounding in his ears.
Then there was silence, dark and empty as the grave. The pain was gone as well. It was as if the earth itself had entombed him. The Mamono had been waiting, hiding, using its puppets to lure him into the wrong place, then shatter the earth so he could fall into the monster's grasp.
Am I dead?
No one answered. He felt a strange peace. He didn't have to struggle anymore, didn't have to fail anymore.
That's what I'm really afraid of. Battles were easy, even if I lost, I knew I was good enough to come back and win eventually. But I was so afraid Mom would think I failed that I hid from her, even though it hurt her, and I kept it up till I got more afraid of hurting her again. I never chose a fiancée because I knew I couldn't win and if I did choose I'd hurt people I cared about. But not choosing just hurt them more and being afraid to fail guaranteed I would.
The whole endless dance was my fault and it wasn't going to change until I had the guts to choose. They all say they love me, except the one who's afraid to admit it. All of 'em but Kodachi have done a lot to try to help me. Shampoo and Ucchan are the only ones who forgive me. Ucchan's the only one who really trusts me.
So why did I make it so hard? I'm tired, but I ain't quitting. I'm tired of being afraid. I don't know if I got what it takes to make this kinda stuff work, but I'm gonna try.
"Please come back, Ranchan."
Was that real or did I dream it?
"Please, I need you."
Doesn't matter, it's what she'd say.
He couldn't see her long dark hair, her eager smile, or the longing in her eyes. He couldn't feel her lips against his or her warmth as he held her close. He couldn't hear her words, but he held them in his heart, and she gave him the confidence to do this.
He felt the power calling, calling to be used, and he finally felt the Mamono struggling, trying to batter his will away, repeating the fears he'd faced before. His mouth curved in a smile no one could see.
You had your chance, you bastard. Now it's my turn.
"Moko Takabisha!"
Shinrou struggled to contain the power, struggled and failed. Folds of darkness tore like rotten cloth, and Ranma sensed more than heard the creature screaming as the expanding sphere of chi annihilated it.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
"Lady Ukyou?"
Konatsu could barely see her by the reddish glow. She knelt in the water below holding someone in her arms.
"Can I help?" he added, moving to the edge of the shattered opening.
"Here, take Lin-Lin." The smaller girl's body flew into his arms, nearly knocking the ninja prone. She felt limp in his arms, but she was breathing steadily. The eyes were open, but strangely unfocused.
"Ukyou?"
She'd disappeared upstream, looking for Ranma. Konatsu sighed and lifted the Chinese girl in his arms. He was still turning away when the energy flared, filling the area below. The ninja threw himself prone, covering the Chinese girl's body with his own, as icy water fountained from the depths below.
He reached the edge before the light faded. No light, no sound came from below.
"Lady Ukyou?"
She didn't answer.
"Lord Ranma?"
He didn't either.
Konatsu turned sadly away, recalling Ranma's recent Perfect Shishi Hokoudan. So it's over. I'm never going to see them again. He wiped away the tears, imagining them laughing together.
It wasn't his imagination.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
"Yes!"
"What?"
"I said yes. Of course, it's yes. How could it be anything else?"
Tofu had almost forgotten the question. Moments ago the darkness that was Shinrou had almost enfolded him. Now all that remained was a black powdery grit that flaked away from him. Kasumi was covered in the same dark residue, but she looked beautiful anyway. It scrunched forgotten beneath her feet as she hurled herself into his arms.
He didn't remember much after that, but he was dimly aware of his glasses fogging up the first time she kissed him.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
"Akane?"
She blinked her eyes and tried to focus, but there were so many people.
She lay on a hospital bed and Kasumi knelt by her side, clearly relieved. Tofu stood behind her sister. Lipstick marks explained, but did not hide the goofy look on his face. There were tears in his sleeve, but his injuries were gone, thanks to Ukyou.
"How?" Akane took a breath. "Where's Shampoo? Is she..."
"She's making sure Lin-Lin's okay," Ranma replied.
Akane's eyes shifted left. Ranma and Ukyou were soaking wet and it wasn't till later she realized how close they stood to each other. She felt a twinge of jealousy over how feminine they both looked.
She might have felt the same about Konatsu, but he held a wet and weary P-chan. The pig bweed happily and jumped into her arms. She called his name as he snuggled close.
When she looked up, everyone was staring, including Shampoo who had just returned. Even Tofu was shocked into sensibility and Akane realized she'd just called Ryouga by his real name.
Kasumi turned to Ukyou. "My sister must have hit her head. She can't even tell the difference between her pet and Ryouga. Please, you need to heal her."
"I...um..." Ukyou stared at the floor.
Kasumi turned back when she heard her sister sigh.
"I guess I'd better tell you." P-chan squealed a frantic negative, which Akane ignored. "It was going to come out anyway. Ukyou found out the day we fought that second Mamono at the school, however long ago that was. It feels like weeks."
"Ukyou found out what a couple days ago?"
"Jusenkyou curse. Spring of Drowned Black Pig." All eyes turned to Shampoo as she spoke. "What, you didn't know?"
"Oh my." Kasumi looked like she wanted to faint and Dr. Tofu caught her. "My...my little sister has been sleeping with Ryouga for over a year." P-chan tried to hide in Akane's lap while she wished the bed would swallow her up.
"It's not like that, Kasumi," Ranma interrupted.
The older Tendo girl turned to him. "You knew? And Ukyou just found out. And Shampoo knows."
"And Mousse," the Chinese girl added, "And my father. And great-grandmother."
P-chan put his head down and covered it with his front hooves. When death came, he didn't want to see it.
"And Pops and the Jusenkyou guide," Ranma admitted. "Wait a minute; Pantyhose Tarou has gotta know."
Shampoo nodded. "When he was tracking down and attacking the male curse victims."
"Yeah, he attacked Ryouga right after he beat up Mousse," Ranma finished. "Those Musk guys have gotta know, too."
"Does everyone know but me?" Kasumi whispered.
Tofu shook his head.
Konatsu nodded. "Sorry, but I'm a ninja. It's my job to know secrets."
His statement was greeted by mass silence that was eventually broken by Ukyou's quiet whisper. "Ranchan, I think we should leave them to work this out."
He nodded, laughed nervously, and spoke much too loudly. "Um, yeah, me and Ucchan gotta go get outta these wet clothes and take a hot shower so, um, we'll be seeing you."
"You mean that, Ranchan?" the girl beamed. He blinked in confusion as his fiancée eagerly dragged him away. That meant they missed Shampoo giving Akane the Kiss of Life for saving hers and seeing Kasumi, Akane, and P-chan faint in unison. Konatsu followed moments later.