Chapter 4

Fully changed, Ranma leaned against the wall and waited on Ryoga. He rolled his eyes as he watched him stare intently at the water whilst sliding into the burrowed shirt. Did he think that if he stared long enough and hard enough that the water would provide him with answers? Ranma frowned slightly. He had his own questions of course, ones that only Ryoga could answer, but they were not ones he could easily ask. He doubted Ryoga would ever tell him anything anyway. Ranma sighed, wondering how this latest occurrence fit into the bigger picture concerning Ryoga's recent reappearance.

'Damnit Ryoga' he muttered.

Ranma began tapping his fingers against the wall as Ryoga began to ever so slowly do up the wooden ties on the front of the shirt. Ryoga would probably insist on walking to dinner after this. At this rate there would be nothing left for them to eat by the time arrived. Of course Ryoga had said he wasn't hungry but Ryoga was an idiot; good food always aided a swift recovery.

He opened his mouth to say 'Hurry up' but stopped short, realizing that it would most likely have the opposite affect on him. The mechanisms of Ranma's mind whirred into motion as a new battle plan was formulated. He came to the conclusion that the only way to overcome Ryoga's stubborn, heal-dragging self was through the execution of a surprise attack. A smirk lit his features as he silently moved behind the still utterly oblivious boy.

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'Ranmaaa!' He cried out as the world sped by entirely too fast for his liking. Despite the fact he knew he wouldn't be dropped, he held onto Ranma like a barnacle to a rock. He would just never get used to being carried like this, especially at such breakneck speeds.

When they came to a stop, he felt very nauseous and seriously doubted he would be able to hold down anything even if he did try eating. Just when he thought his suffering was over, he world seemed to tilt dangerously, forcing him to close his eyes, and he felt himself being seated in a chair. When he opened his eyes it was to find himself staring down into a bowl of misu soup, only inches away from his face. It was a battle in itself to keep his face from plunging into the steaming yellow liquid.

'What happened to him?' came Nabiki's voice.

Ryoga looked up at Ranma, who sat opposite him at the table, wondering if he would spill the beans on him.

'Well you see...he…uh…fell off a mountain' Ranma replied nervously, scratching the back of his head.

Ryoga mouth fell open. Not because of the incredulous nature of the statement, but because somehow, even in his attempt to lie, Ranma had managed to stumble upon the truth, or at least part of it. He had fallen off a mountain.

Nabiki raised and eyebrow and turned to Ryoga, who was still staring at Ranma incredulously 'This true?'

'Yea' well he wasn't lying.

'Oh my Ryoga-kun, are you sure you're ok?'

'Do you need to see a doctor?' Akane asked her brow wrinkling in concern. 'I'm sure Dr. Tofu…'

Ryoga waved her off, feeling distinctly uncomfortable with the attention he was receiving. 'Nah, don't worry about me. I'm fine.'

Genma snorted dismissively 'What's a little tumble?'

Soun nodded sombrely 'I must agree, I remember back when we were training under the…' he never got to finish as Genma's hand clamped tightly over his mouth.

'Don't say it, you will bring his evil down upon us' warned Genma in a hushed tone. Soun promptly burst into tears.

Ignoring her father, Akane crossed her arms over her chest and looked at Ranma expectantly. 'You still haven't explained why you disappeared for four days'

Soun stopped crying immediately and looked at Ranma sternly 'Yes, Where have you been boy?'

'Uhh…just a short training trip'

'You didn't take your backpack' Akane stated accusingly.

Ranma scowled at her. 'I didn't need one for just four days'

'To think my own son would leave on a training trip without telling his own father. Oh what ungrateful offspring I have sired.' Genma said with his usual melodramatic air.

'Whatever pops'

Soun patted his friend on the back 'There, there Genma. The boy is simply growing up. You cannot expect him to stay a child forever. How the years have flown by.' he promptly burst into tears again.

Akane looked at Ranma like she wanted to turn him into Ranma pancake. "You know you cant just live in our house and go off wherever, whenever you please. If you're living under our roof we have the right to know."

Ryoga sweatdropped. He had a funny feeling what she had meant to say was ' You're my fiancé! You can't just go off somewhere without telling me! I was worried about you' But of course a little something that he liked to call 'the Ranma effect' had twisted it horribly so it had come out as something entirely different.

Ranma pouted "Like I'd let an uncute tomboy like you know where I was goin. You'd probably follow me and beat me over the head for something I didn't do"

Nabiki and Kasumi sweat-dropped in unison, but this event went unnoticed by Ryoga and everyone else at the table.

Akane snorted and looked away indignantly 'Like I'd waste my time following a pervert like you! I couldn't care less what you do with your time'

'Exactly,' Ranma responded as he stuffed his mouth with more pickles, and just as quickly swallowed them 'you don't care, so it don't matter if I tell ya or not'

Akane bristled. "Fine! I don't care. Go spend some more time with that Chinese bimbo of yours"

Turning his head, Ranma fixed Akane with a glare. "Shampoo ain't no bimbo. She can speak two languages ya know. Could ya learn one as quick as she's learnt ours? Just cuz she don't speak Japanese as good as you do don't make her a bimbo' Ryoga couldn't help but wonder why Ranma was defending Shampoo over something so trivial.

'Why don't you go and marry her then!' Akane yelled as she shot up out of her seat

'Whatever tomboy, at least she can cook' he muttered as she stomped past him.

Ryoga's eyebrow twitched at the spectacularly cruel remark. It was cruel because it was true, and it played on far too many of Akane's insecurities.

Akane whirled around behind Ranma, her eyes brimming with tears. Shortly afterwards Akane's fist met the back of Ranma's skull.

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Ranma woke up to a dull aching of his skull.

'Ranma?' Ryoga's disembodied voice came from somewhere.

'Yea?'

'You're an idiot' he sounded pissed off at him.

Ranma tried to get up but was pushed back to the ground by the weight of Ryoga's foot on his chest.

'Why did you have say that to her?'

'What?' he asked, a little irked. Why was it always his fault?

Ryoga's face came into view above him, as expected there was glare firmly fixed upon its features. 'You knew it would upset her, but you went ahead and said it anyway. Do you just enjoy hurting her?' Ranma's eyebrow twitched at the accusation.

'She started it.' he retorted lamely.

Ryoga scowled. Ranma stared at him expectantly, waiting for the lost boy to come out with the customary 'this all your fault ', 'DIE!' or something along those lines. Ryoga kept his jaw clamped firmly shut, and Ranma wondered if perhaps Ryoga was aware of what he had been thinking.

When he finally spoke, it was not what Ranma expected to hear.

'Oh grow up,' Ryoga said with a look of disdain, before stalking away. To Ranma, it felt like a slap in the face.

He propped himself up on his elbows and glared at Ryoga's back as he disappeared through the doorway. What right did he have to tell him to grow up? Did he just expect him to sit there and take everything Akane threw at him and give nothing back?

Ranma huffed. Ryoga had gotten to him more than usual today, and it pissed him off. Usually it was the other way round. With a sigh he let himself drop to the floor again and stared at the ceiling, his fingers absently tracing the grooves in the wooden floor beneath him.

His thoughts drifted back to the argument with Akane. She had reminded again him today, with her talk of 'our house' that this place wasn't really his home.

Turning onto his stomach, he pressed his forehead into the cold wooden floor. He wondered what his mother was doing right now. Did she eat alone today? Ranma frowned at the familiar place his train of thought was taking him. He banged his head against the floor repeatedly. It was better not to think at all.

'Ranma? Where the hell are you?' Ryoga voice boomed from somewhere in the house.

Ranma got up, thankful for the distraction. He headed off in the direction of the cries in search of Ryoga, as it would take Ryoga far too long to find him.

When Ranma finally found Ryoga, he was pacing in the broom closet.

'Where's my backpack?' Ryoga asked anxiously, grabbing onto Ranma's shoulder.

'Um I left in the park' he replied dumbly.

'You have to get it back now!'

Ranma would have refused out of pinciple, but the panicked expression on Ryoga's face made him think again. 'I'll go get in now, Ok?'

Ryoga simply nodded, a haunted look in his eyes.

Without further delay Ranma ran for the nearest exit, wondering, not for the first time in the last few days, what the hell was going on.

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(Flashback: 5 years ago)

Ryoga sat within the cool shadows of the giant oak tree that grew in the corner of the school field. His body was nestled within a small nook created by the trees large roots, rendering him near invisible to the rest of the world. He stared enviously at the group of children playing in the distance. This was why he hated lunch hour.

A sudden yelp came from above and when Ryoga looked up, it was to see a dark object descending rapidly on his position. Instinctively he leapt out of the way, landing several metres from the tree. Turning around to see what it was that had nearly landed on him, he was more than a little surprised to see a boy sprawled awkwardly where he had been moments before.

Ryoga growled at the boy who had trespassed on his seclusion. 'Who the hell are you?'

The boy looked embarrassed for a moment but quickly picked himself up and struck a proud pose. 'The heir to the Sataome Ryu School of martial arts and soon to be greatest martial artist in the world'

Ryoga snorted 'You don't look so great to me'

The boy smirked. 'Think ya can beat me?'

'I could kick your wimpy ass'

The boy put his hands in his pockets and rocked back and forth on his heels 'Try me'

Ryoga narrowed his eyes and popped his knuckles. He didn't want to hurt the boy but he wasn't about to back down from a challenge. Without giving a warning he charged, fully intent on laying the boy out with a single blow. The boy didn't move. As he closed the distance his fist rocketed forward on a trajectory towards the boys face. To his surprise the boy twisted his body at the last moment, simply letting Ryoga's punch whiz past his face, before sending Ryoga crashing to the ground with an open palm strike to the side of the head.

Ryoga rolled quickly to his feet, realizing, with his head ringing, that he had vastly underestimated his opponent. He was given no time to recover as he was forced to jump over a legsweep only to receive a reverse elbow to the gut.

He back-pedalled from the hit, narrowly avoiding a rising fist to the jaw.

Ryoga blocked the next few blows before lashing out with a low kick. The boy swivelled sideways to avoid it.

Seeing his opportunity, Ryoga shoulder charged his opponent in the ribs. He succeeded in taking both of them down, but received a painful elbow to the back of the head.

They tussled on the ground, in a furious exchange of hits and holds. Ryoga managed to get through the boys guard and connect a vicious left hook to the jaw. He thought he had the advantage now, but a knee in the belly told him otherwise. The follow up palm strike to the sternum knocked the air out of him and sent him tumbling away from his opponent.

He got to his feet slower than before, wheezing from the pain in his stomach. Metres away his opponent also rose to his feet, a look of determination set upon his features despite the blood dripping freely from his mouth. Each stood, breathing heavily, eyes locked on one another.

Simultaneously, they charged.

Ryoga made his move first, twisting his body and aiming a snap kick towards his opponent's head.

His eyes went wide when the kick sliced through empty air.

The boy landed lightly on Ryoga's head and pushed off, using it as a springboard to launch himself towards the tree. Ryoga went stumbling forward, as the boy planted his feet on the trunk of the tree and sent himself flying back.

Ryoga turned around only in time to see a foot hurtling towards his face.

Instinctively he put his hands out in front of him.

The kick impacted.

Surprise registered momentarily on the faces of both boys.

Somehow Ryoga had managed to catch the boy's foot.

The momentum of the kick pushed Ryoga backwards, setting him off balance, but he managed to turn it to his advantage by turning his stumble into a spin.

'Oh crap' he heard the boy say.

Ryoga continued to spin, holding onto the foot as if it were a shot-put, making himself feel dizzy in the process. Finally when it felt like he couldn't spin any faster, he let go.

The boy shot through the air and hit the oak with a resounding thud. Pieces of bark fell off the tree as he slid down the trunk to rest on his head.

Ryoga would've been delighted with his luck, since he hadn't actually been aiming for the tree, but he was feeling far from fine. The world was spinning around him and his legs felt like they might give just way.

The other boy groaned from his position against the tree and fell to the ground in an undignified heap. Slowly, wincing in pain, he got up and walked towards Ryoga. Ryoga blinked in surprise. He had fully expected him to be out for the count after his head on collision with the tree. He tensed up, wondering if the boy would attack again.

'You ain't half bad' the boy said with a friendly smile as he approached.

Ryoga grunted from his position, leaning over with his hands resting on his thighs.

'Gonna to be sick' was all the warning he gave before leaning forward and throwing up his lunch. The boy sweatdropped as he narrowly avoided being caught in the deluge.

After he finished, Ryoga let out a groan and stared balefully at his former lunch.

An open bottle of water suddenly appeared in front of his face. Glancing upwards he saw the boy he had just fought smiling sheepishly and scratching the back of the head.

"Hi, I'm Ranma Sataome, sorry bout this.'

Ryoga nodded and accepted the bottle. He washed out his mouth and spat out on the grass, before taking a long swig of the water. Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand he handed the bottle back to Ranma.

'Thanks. I'm Ryoga Hibiki." He stood up fully and looked at Ranma questioningly "Who won?'

Ranma looked at the mess on the ground then reached round to rub the lump on the back of his head as if to assess its size.

'I think' he said with an impish grin 'we can call it a draw.'

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(10 days ago)

'So tell me, what is this Honour?'

For a while he mulled over how precisely to convey the meaning of honour and it's importance. No one had ever asked him to explain it before.

Clearing his throat he finally spoke 'I guess what it boils down to is a man's integrity, based upon his actions in light of his moral identity.'

'Moral identity?'

'Well yea, my moral identity is defined by the code of the martial artist.'

'Bushido?'

'Yes'

'But what exactly is bushido?'

'Um…its sort of like an unwritten code of moral principles, passed down through the generations from one warrior to another.' He paused 'At it's centre are seven core virtues - rectitude, courage, benevolence, respect, honesty, glory and loyalty.'

'I see.' Her eyes twinkled with suppressed mirth 'So according to this code it acceptable for you to deceive an innocent girl into believing you are a harmless animal, and worm your way into her arms and into her bed? '

'Wha…what?' Ryoga spluttered. 'It's not like that! It's not like that at all!'

'Oh?'

'I swear I've never done anything indecent!' he said with vehemence 'It's just that it's complicated. And I... I can't tell the truth because she will hate me.'

'Is that not a lack of courage to do the right thing?'

Ryoga's shoulders slumped.

She simply took another sip from her teacup.

'So you are also in keeping with this code when you blame others for your own misfortune and deficiencies?''

'What are you talking about?'

'Isn't Ranma your scapegoat?'

'Huh.' Ryoga stared in confusion for a moment before the words sank in. 'He is not my scapegoat!'

'Then perhaps he is more then?' She asked rubbing her chin in thought 'Weren't the two of you once friends?'

'No.' he said looking away.

'Really?'

'We were never friends' he snapped.

'You hate him then?'

'More than anything else in this world'

She sighed. 'The youth of today can be so melodramatic. Why exactly do you hate him?'

'He's ruined by life'

'I thought you said he wasn't your scapegoat'

'He has ruined my life' he said evenly

'How so?'

'Well for one thing, he's always insulting me and humiliating me some way.' He grumbled

'Isn't that just paranoia?'

'I'm not paranoid!'

'Well you are rather fixated with this image of Ranma as this person who's 'out to get you', are you not? Perhaps you are making mountains out of molehills, or mountains out of nothing at all. Perhaps next time you just stop and think before flying off the handle.'

'I don't fly off the handle' he growled

'Well if you say so.' she said in bored tone 'Is that it then? He's ruined your life by throwing a few insults?'

'No.'

'Well?'

Ryoga glared at the table 'He's cursed me…to be a pig of all things. Can you imagine what that feels like? I can't even remember the number of time I've had to run for my life from things that have wanted to make a meal out of me. Do you know how terrifying that is to be so small and helpless, with something hunting you down for food, and the only thing you can do is run?'

'Well at least you didn't fall into spring of drowned slug'

Ryoga eyes went wide and his face lost all colour at the thought of such a fate. He quickly shook his head free of the disturbing thoughts. He looked at Marla through half lidded eyes. Did she think that just because there was a fate worse than his made his any easier to handle?

'Well, are you going to carry on or is that it?'

He ground his teeth together and continued. 'He's taken the girl I love, and treats her like shit. And despite how he treats her, she still cares about him.' There was a pregnant pause 'And he…he stole my damn bread!'

'Really?' she said leaning forward and raising an eyebrow 'I get the impression there is more, but we will come back to that later. How exactly has he taken this girl you loved?'

'Well he's engaged to her isn't he?'

'Weren't they both forced into the engagement by their fathers?

'That's not the point!'

'Then what is?'

'That bastard doesn't deserve her!'

'And I suppose you do?'

'I didn't say that' he growled.

'Well in any case he can't exactly leave her to you now can he? He is honour bound to fulfil the engagement and so is she. Neither of them can back out of the engagement without causing loss of face to their respective clans. Come to think of it, is it not dishonourable of you to interfere in such a matter?

'That's just bullshit! A girl should marry out of love not duty, and I'm not going to step aside and shelf my feelings just because of some stupid agreement between their parents!'

'And what of honour?'

Ryoga opened his mouth to reply but found no words forthcoming.

Marla smiled wryly 'Ryoga you can't have it both ways you know' She shook her head slightly and clapped her hands together. 'Anyway, back to how Ranma ruined your life.'

Ryoga was left feeling dazed at how casually she changed of subject. 'Huh?'

'Oone of the things that you hate him for, but didn't mention, is the fact that he is a better fighter than you?'

'I'm just as good as he is'

'Are you sure? I mean he is rather good.'

Ryoga snorted derisively. 'Why does everyone think Ranma's so great? It's like the entire world revolves around him, Ranma this, Ranma that. I've beaten him plenty of times.'

'Oh, I see. Attention starved as you are, you crave some of the attention he seems to get in abundance.' Her tone was patronizing. 'You're simply jealous'

'I'm not jealous' he muttered.

She shrugged 'Have you ever considered that maybe the world seems to revolve around him because your world does?

Ryoga's brow wrinkled in confusion.' What?'

'Well you did spend five years following the boy, and one way or another, you do spend an awful lot of time thinking about him. It seems like quite an unhealthy fixation you have there.'

Ryoga eyebrow twitched but he chose not to respond. He no longer trusted his mouth to speak for fear that, in her hands, his own words would somehow betray him.

'Tell me then, why is it that you really followed him all those years? You know and I both know that it wasn't over a bread feud.'

Ryoga remained silent and gazed into the crackling orange flames of the hearth. She was playing with him. She was pulling out his insides and poking fun at them as if his life was some trivial and amusing matter. He wouldn't give her any more.

"Well, if you won't tell me, I'll have to tell you instead.' Ryoga glanced away from the fire to see her reclining in her chair looking decidedly smug.

'I think you were a very lonely boy. Then one day one Ranma Sataome appeared into your life and for a while you weren't alone. But in the end he had to leave. And you were alone again.' She leaned forward in her chair and placed her teacup on the table, not taking her eyes from his. 'You resented him because he left you behind, and you chased him all those years because you couldn't stand to be alone anymore.'

The empty teacup that he had been holding shattered in the grip of his hand. The old woman didn't know what she was talking about. Who was she to tell him how he felt?

'Deny it all you want, but I can see the truth better than you.'

'What do you want from me?' he asked, his voice suddenly raspy.

'You have given me all that I wanted' She raised her hand and waved it casually towards him. His chair flew backwards into the wall and he was sent crashing to the floor with a resounding thud. He tried to get up but he found that he could no longer move his body.

She rose from her chair and walked over to him. 'Congratulations Ryoga, you've passed.' She reached into the pocket of her dress and pulled out something metallic. It was an amulet. 'Here is your gift.'

She crouched down in front of him. 'For the next fourteen days you will be free from your Jusenkyo curse. If you wish it to be a permanent simply get this amulet around Ranma's neck. You will be forever free from you curse whilst Ranma will be altered irreversibly into his cursed form.'

She leaned over his prone body and gently draped the amulet around his neck 'One more little thing. If by midnight on the fourteenth day you have failed to get this around her neck you will never again walk on two legs. I hope I've made myself quite clear.' Ryoga listened numbly, as darkness crept into the corners of vision.

'You said you hated Ranma. Is this not the ultimate revenge?' She whispered in his ear as his world turned black.

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(Flashback: 5 years ago)

'Ranma?' he called. It had taken him four whole days but he had finally made it, on his own. His chest was puffed up with no small amount of pride.

The lot was empty and silent.

'Ranma?' he called again, this time a little uncertainty edged into his voice. Was Ranma hiding from him? Waiting for him to drop his guard so he could attack?

His hands balled into fists and he yelled with all his might 'Come out and face me like a man!'

He waited eagerly, his body tense with anticipation. Any moment now he expected Ranma to appear, standing in his lazy stance, and smirk at him, perhaps make a jibe or two about his punctuality. They would fight for a while, neither holding back, but eventually Ranma would flash a toothy grin and call it a draw. Then Ryoga would ask the question he had been meaning to ask ever since he had found out they were leaving.

He would ask them to take him with them.

His eyes drifting across the parking lot as he shifted restlessly on his feet with the passing of minutes. Yellowed shoots of grass and weed poked through cracks in the asphalt. An old newspaper sat quietly in the corner, happy in the shade of its retirement beneath the wooden fencing.

A dry wind stirred the silence.

And finally it hit him, like a solid fist in the gut, his cheerful expression crumbling under the weight of realization.

'You coward' he spat accusingly as he sank to his knees.

Angry tears fell onto sun baked asphalt and quickly evaporated from the hot surface as if they had never been. His head hung low, unruly black bangs falling over his eyes, in an attempt to hide his weakness from the world. He slammed his fist into the ground; an almost imperceptible spider-web of cracks blossoming around the bloodied point of impact.

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(10 days ago)

Ryoga returned to the world of the waking and was welcomed by a throbbing headache. It was almost as if he was suffering a hangover after drinking an entire barrel of sake. He propped himself up on his elbows and looked around grimly. The sky wore the evening colours of pink and lilac rather than the dark blue he was expecting. Next to him laid a rather broken looking tree, its trunk snapped in two. His backpack lay only a few metres away against another tree, though that that tree was still standing.

He rolled on his stomach to look behind him and saw a very familiar looking boulder sitting some distance away, a trail of destruction in its wake. Everything told him that this was where he had fallen from the ledge, though he could have sworn he had left this place a long time ago.

He looked around again. There was no Giant Redwood labyrinth, no cottage, and no evil old woman in a faded black dress. He quickly looked at his watch. It read 6:30 on the 17th day of the month. Only a few hours had passed since he was sitting up there on the ledge.

Had it all been a dream? How else could he explain it? He had been knocked out by the boulder and had the mother of all nightmares.

He began to laugh, almost hysterically. It had just been a dream. For a while he had been worried, but now he just felt foolish. Of course it had been a dream, the whole thing was just too ludicrous to be true.

Grinning like a madman he pushed off the ground with his arms to gain a sitting position.

Something swung down from his neck and hit his chest.

His laughter caught in his throat and died. The grin melted from his face. Slowly, his eyes travelled down.

A silver amulet sat against his chest, glimmering in the evening light.

He took the amulet in his hand and brought it closer to his face. It was circular, roughly two inches in diameter and about half an inch thick. There was an outer ring of plain silver, and within this circular frame was an extraordinarily detailed silver butterfly. He flipped the amulet around to observe the other side. The butterfly's delicate legs were clutching a small diamond the size of a hummingbird's egg.

Ryoga let the amulet drop from his hand, and just stared numbly at the ground between his legs. This little piece of jewellery meant that everything that had happened, no matter how ridiculous it had seemed, was somehow real.

He had really messed up this time.

He got up mechanically and walked towards his backpack, swinging it up and sliding the straps onto his shoulders. Carefully removing the amulet from his necks he reached back and slipped it into one of the side pockets of his backpack. He didn't want the thing hanging around his neck.

He began walking, not really aware of where he was going. His mind was preoccupied with his new situation and how he was going to deal with it.

…………….(A while later)…………

Ryoga shivered at the sudden cold that had claimed the forest. His breath condensed like a cloud of billowing smoke in front of his face. Such abrupt weather changes were not uncommon in these mountainous regions. As such he continued to trudge forward unperturbed, he noted the slight fog that was building but didn't give it any further thought.

However, after only a few minutes had passed the fog had thickened to the point where visibility was reduced to only a few metres. His thoughts were conflicted. He didn't want to stop because he knew that with nothing to do his thoughts would spiral around the events concerning the amulet that sat in his backpack. He didn't want to think about it anymore, he had been thinking about it for far too long already and it had gotten him nowhere. On the other hand, travelling with such poor visibility could be dangerous. It would be wiser to set up camp and wait for the fog to lift. In the end though his desire not to stop won through and he continued moving forward. It was just a little fog after all.

A deep resonating cry sounded of in the distance.

He froze. It hadn't sounded like any animal he had ever come across before, and whatever had made that noise was definitely not of the small variety. Grasping his shoulder straps more tightly, he began to walk a little faster. At least it had sounded quite far away.

Another cry sounded off, closer this time.

His heart began to beat faster. Was there more than one of those things out there? Or was there just one, and it had simply gotten closer to him? Without further thought he broke out into a run, deciding it was better to be safe than sorry. He didn't really want to find out what was capable of making such a noise. The fog hindered him greatly as he ran, and he found himself running into trees frequently. Nevertheless he continued.

Without warning his foot caught on something and he found himself falling to the damp forest floor, gaining a mouth full of wet leaves. Spitting the foul contents from his mouth he pushed himself off the ground. The dampness had soaked through his clothes and it left him feeling even colder than before.

The cry sounded off again.

It sounded close, too close, less than a hundred metres away. He dismissed the possibility of multiple creatures out there. Now it seemed like there was only one creature out there and it was closing in on him, fast.

He was being hunted.

Letting his bag drop to the ground, he brought out his umbrella, its presence in his hand helping to calm his rattled nerves and lending him confidence. Turning around to face the direction he thought the cries were coming from, he waited with his muscles tense and ready for action.

Minutes passed but nothing happened. His mouth was dry. It should have appeared by now. What was it doing out there? He shifted on his feet and looked around, uncertain now of where the attack would come from when it came.

The hairs on the back of his neck rose up. He could feel it. A part of his mind urged him to flee, told him that the prey was no supposed to stand and fight. But he couldn't outrun it, not in this fog. His ears picked up a slight crunching of leaves behind him and he whirled around, his grip on his umbrella tightening. An enormous shadow appeared in the fog in front of him.

And then it came at him, its massive black mass tearing through the air towards him. But all he could see were the teeth, glassy translucent teeth the size of fingers.

Instinctively he grabbed onto his umbrella with both hands, and held it in front of his face. The thing landed on him, sending him crashing to the ground and pinning him down with its large mass. Now the umbrella, lodged firmly in the creature's massive jaws, was all that kept those teeth from slicing into his face.

However the umbrella was slowly being pushed back down and the teeth inched closer. Warm liquid from the open maw dripped onto his face and hot acrid breath invaded his nostrils, causing them to flare up in protest.

With grimace of determination Ryoga pushed his muscles harder and managed to prevent the gnashing jaws from descending any further. With a swift movement, he let one end of the umbrella drop down, causing the creatures jaws to slide down the shaft, and used the raised end to strike the creature in the side of the head. Its body was sent toppling off of his.

Ryoga immediately flipped onto his feet, his breath ragged from fear rather than exertion. The creature had disappeared into the fog again but he knew it wasn't over, not by a long shot. He could feel the sting of cuts on his left shoulder where the creature's claws had struck, but they were inconsequential.

A guttural noise came from his left and he whirled around to face it. The creature came part way out of the fog to stare at him with soulless black eyes. Its hulking body was thick with an unholy amount of muscle; it's back arched upwards like that of a bison due to the extent of the muscle around its broad shoulders. The only way Ryoga could think to describe the beast was as a strange amalgamation of bear and rabid werewolf. Whatever it was, it was an abomination.

Its lips curled back in a snarl, again revealing the set of glassy teeth, as it stalked forward. It opened it jaws slightly, a strings of saliva connecting the huge canines.

'Fuck you too' growled Ryoga, as he charged forward leading with his right shoulder, intent on caving in the creatures skull with his umbrella.

The umbrella swung forward towards the creatures face but before it could complete it's arc the creature leapt forward, with speed unbecoming of its size, straight into the attack.

Ryoga cried out in pain as he felt claws sink painfully into his side before sending him hurtling away. His body crashed through one tree and came to a jarring halt against another. The large tree shuddered from the impact. With a grunt he got to his feet, ignoring the pain in his side. His vision was suddenly filled with blackness as the creature launched itself out of the fog towards him. He narrowly managed to duck and roll out of the way as the strike from the creatures arm severed the tree he had been standing against.

Without hesitation it turned and came at him again but this time Ryoga was ready. He jumped over it as it lunged forward, driving the end of his umbrella hard into its neck. This elicited a howl of pain, as the creature collapsed onto ground.

Wasting no time, Ryoga jumped onto it's back and used his umbrella to gain a sleeper hold around the creature's thick neck. The thing regained its footing and began to thrash about wildly and he struggled to maintain his position on its awkwardly shaped back. Suddenly it broke out into a very fast lope, and Ryoga tightened his hold on the umbrella hoping against hope that he could asphyxiate the beast. They crashed through one tree after another, but Ryoga clung on in desperation unwilling to let go of his best hope.

The creature came to a jarring halt.

Unfortunately for Ryoga the momentum carried his body over the creatures head so that he was lying on his back with the creatures drippings jaws looming above him.

Ryoga eyes went wide as the teeth bore down upon his face. He tried to roll out of the way but he wasn't fast enough. The glassy razors sunk into the flesh of shoulder, slicing through muscle, sinew and bone. Ryoga screamed at the excruciating pain, his grip on his umbrella relinquishing as the rest of his arm went numb. A large paw descended on his chest, pinning him down and carving into his chest with its curved claws. A sudden jolt passed through him, originating from his shoulder, causing him to spasm slightly.

He could feel it. A strange corruption had appeared in his ki, starting at his shoulder and slowly spreading outwards. As it spread his will to fight began to drain away from him.

No! He thought with every ounce of determination he could muster. I won't just fucking die!

He felt the corruption in his ki begin to recede a little.

In desperation Ryoga reached for his shoulder with his working hand, and made a futile effort to pry it free from the jaws that held it. His hand was slick with his own blood, and he struggled to even find a grip. Not giving up yet, his hand moved upwards until he found what he was looking for. Without restraint he plunged his fingers into the creatures eye, feeling it burst under the pressure and thick viscous liquid begin to leak out onto his hand.

Finally the creature relinquished its hold on his shoulder, and staggered backwards as it roared in anguish. Ryoga grabbed his fallen umbrella with his good hand and rolled away. The creature receded into the fog behind him and he found himself colliding into his backpack. With a grunt of effort he pulled up his body and propped it up in a sitting position against the bag. He felt terribly woozy having lost a lot of blood. He had a suspicion that the creature had been draining it from him. The corruption in his ki was also spreading again, but there was nothing he could do.

He stared impassively into the fog, waiting for the creature to come, as he knew it would. His trusty umbrella was positioned under his armpit ready for the final confrontation.

It was only moments before it made its noisy entrance. The frenzied creature charged haphazardly towards him, jaws agape. Ryoga smiled bitterly as he brought up the umbrella at the last possible moment, the tip facing away from him towards the creatures mouth. As the umbrella speared the creature through mouth under its own momentum, it let out a strangled cry. Both it and Ryoga were sent tumbling backwards.

And suddenly they were falling.

Ryoga stared past the creature's shoulder as it fell away from him and observed casually that they had fallen off the side of a cliff. He had been right about it being dangerous to travel in the fog.