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Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters here that belong to Ranma 1/2. The Ranma 1/2 cast belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. Nor do I own Suikoden 3 or any other characters that I put into this story except for my own OCs. Neither do I own any of the character in any of the crossovers I do. I'm just using them in this fanfiction and I have no money so don't bother suing me. You'll just lose money instead of gaining any. And remember to leave a review!
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Chapter 38 – Awaken
Sumire Kanzaki owner of the trading company of Windia that's being funded by Ranma as she more then once convince him to fund some of he projects. (Image of Sumire planting her shapely rump onto Ranma's lap.) She has been burying herself in her work since she found out what happened to Reni. At first she wanted to kill Chris for killing Reni but then she heard from Ranma what happen in the cave. Since then she has been working to keep her mind off of Reni as she has seen her. She was okay but her mind was lock away someplace locking Reni in a dreamless sleep.
Her latest project involved her big doll collection that she had taken along with her. It was not, she would cheerfully acknowledge, a great doll collection. It was almost entirely cheap plastic dolls bought at dime stores off in the mainland when they still lived at their island. She had, for example, five Michael Jordan dolls; three ten-inch ones, and two eighteen-inch ones she had found still in the box at a clearance sale. She had lots of fashion dolls, China dolls, Barbies, Sandies and others. That her parents had always sent to her on her birthdays as they were never around. There were also baby dolls, and Santas, which you could get really cheap right after Christmas as well as action figures she had gotten on the sides. And then there were the Beanie Babies.
Lilly had stumbled onto her collection when she had spotted Yun and Iris playing with some of her Barbies. She went nuts over them saying she wanted to buy one off of her as she never seen a doll like them before. No toy maker could make a doll look like that as they're made out of plastic that wasn't known in this world yet anyways. Then she convinced her to meet up with a Tinto merchant one that works for her father of course. One that would give her a good price on some of her dolls, that's she'll be willing to part with. She did get one of the dolls that she had her eye on a swordswoman doll from a manga called Utena.
It took Lilly a week to find the right merchant. Federico Venice was getting ready to return to Tinto. He had risked the war to come to Windia for reasons he preferred not to discuss. He had arrived weeks after the castle town first appeared, and he was desperate to be the first merchant to sell products from Windia in Tinto, so he wanted to buy quickly, and be on his way. As he already knew about the merchants and traders that gotten rich selling products from Lake Castle in the Grasslands then when the new city pop up he came running. Then he learn that Lilly was already there signing up trading contracts between the trading company already. So he waited around as Lilly needed Tinto merchants to get the trade goods back to Tinto.
Federico had been shown the dolls that, Sumire was willing to part with and he awe struck by the dolls. The dolls were unique, with their poseable limbs and inset hair, and made of something called 'plastic' which Federico was sure could not be duplicated, even by Harmonian. Even to approximate them would be the work of a skilled artist working for months using ivory or the finest porcelain.
When he tried haggling for a lower price for the dolls but Sumire didn't go to business school for four years for nothing. She proved to be a very keen-minded businesswoman as she got him to agree with her price as she said that she could turn to another merchant if he didn't want to do business with her. Which was true as there were plenty of other merchants in the city that would be willing to pay an even higher price for the dolls then what she is asking from him now.
Federico knew perfectly well what would happen when he reached Tinto with the dolls. There would be a bidding war, and the dolls would be shipped to royal courts, wealthy merchants, and everything in between, from one end of the world to the other. All of which would be at exorbitant prices. Some, a very few, would actually end up as the prized toy of a very wealthy child. Most would end up in various collectors' collections of rare and valuable knickknacks. Sumire was quite pleased with the money she making out of this deal as most of the money she's making is to help fund the war effort. As they needed funding to pay for equipment and pay the soldiers as well as pay for their housing and the food they ate.
"Hey Lilly let's go down to Anne's Pub," Sumire suggested as they finished up with their trading deal.
"Sure," Lilly said as she had enough with paperwork.
"By the way where are those two servants of yours?"
"I gave Samus and Reed a day off," Lilly said as she enjoyed not having those two around whining all of the time.
The two left the trade building and into the busy street. The crowds weren't as bad as it usually was during this time of day as the mood over the castle was still gloomy. But on the bright side they were making good time as the made their way to the Wild Horse Delight. They were going through the front door when they stop as gun firer filled the air, coming from inside the pub.
"Sound like Maria gotten into a fight," Sumire said as she figured that it be safer to wait outside.
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Inside the pub –
Clive with inhuman reflexes twisted his body around as, Maria fired her gun at his head. Years of brutal training has sharpen, his reflexes to the point where he can easily dodge most attacks even at pointblank range. He rolled on the floor jumping to his feet as Maria fired round after round at him. He never dealt with a person whose gun could firer that many rounds at once before as the guns that the guild could only firer one two three rounds before they had to be reloaded.
Using the crowd as cover, Clive reach into his cloak grabbing his rifle, Strom then duck behind the counter as, Maria continued to firer at him. He thought he was safe but then saw that, Maria bullets shot through the heavy wood of the making a bee line for the spot where he was taking cover. Knowing that if he stayed he would be shot as well if he jumps over the counter he would make an easy target as well. Then he heard the dry click of a gun and knew this was his chance.
He jumps up into a standing position aiming his rifle at her. His eyes widen as, Maria pulled out another gun out of her coat. It was strangely shape with a long handle on it. Sensing something bad was about to happen he jump out of the counter as she fired.
–tattatattatatta –
Maria was glade that she had learned how to use the hidden weapon technique as she could hold so many guns and ammo with her. Seeing that his rifle is a flintlock that she only sees in books or in displays she knew that once he fires it would take him a while to reload while her guns could be quickly reloaded. She aim carefully as she didn't want to hit any bystanders as some of the people that are in the pub weren't moving as this was the first gun fight they been in. She fired creating holes in the wooden table that, Clive grabbed throwing it up into the air sideways in front of him using it as a shield but her bullets could easily tear through it. She emptied her gun as she blasted the wooden table into pieces. Clive waited for this and fired two shots as he was embedded with a 'Double Beat' Rune allowing him to firer more then one shot before he had to reload his gun. The rounds hit but to his shock the bullets merely bounce off her coat but did knock her back a few feet when they struck her.
"Bullet proof coat!" Maria shouted to him as she quickly reloaded her weapons.
'Damn,' Clive thought to himself as he reloaded Strom. But stop when he felt someone grabbing his shoulder, turning he saw that tall redhead grabbing him.
"Got you," Kanna shouted as she threw him into the air landing on the counter.
Clive got his wits back together as the young Karayan woman bartender took a swing at him with a large knife aiming at his head. He rolled off as she buried the knife in the wooden counter. Then bursting out of the kitchen a female cook came running out holding a frying pan and splash the contents of olive oil that she was cooking with at him. Clive brought his cloak up covering his face and hands as the burns he would get from the boiling oil would leave huge blisters on any uncovered skin. Shielding from the boiling oil he rush forward at the cook, using the butt of his gun like a club took a swing at the side of her head knocking her to the ground.
"Why you!" a darker skin cook shouted appearing out of the kitchen with flames coming out of her hands. Clive duck as she hurled fireballs at him.
'Got to get out of here,' Clive thought to himself as he saw that he couldn't fight them inside as they would never let him reload his weapon in time. The redhead appeared in front of him again taking a hold of him throwing him into the wall breaking through it from the force she had used in throwing him.
"Are you okay?" a long red haired girl in a purple outfit asks wearing a feathered hat shouted helping him up.
Orihime suddenly appeared in the gapping hole, "Lilly, Sumire he's trying to kill Maria!"
"What!" a girl with shoulder length brown-reddish in a purple kimono shouted as she pulled out a naginata out of nowhere.
The girl, Lilly quickly jump away from him as the girl, Sumire attacked with her weapon. Clive blocked her blow with his rifle then shifted his weight around pushing her back followed by a leg sweep knocking her off of her feet. Then he took off running as, Maria appeared coming out of the hole he had made firing at his fleeing form.
"After him!" Maria shouted as she and the girls took off running after Clive.
While back at the now heavily damage pub, Anna helps Mamie up as she looks around at her pub at the damage that the fight caused, "Great and we were going to host a party tomorrow."
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In the training area –
The big sandy field held several dozens of men and women. The city people present were a mixed bag, mostly younger people who became friends with the soldiers that were already in the Grassland army. There were enough crossbows for practice, and shields with padding bound around their rims, spears with blunt cloth-bound tips, extra-weighted wooden short swords. A few worked with bokken, wooden replicas of the katana and train under the watchful eye of Sakura. Nearly half of the Windia's complements were in the new armor that Moss was turning out, getting accustomed to the weight and heat. Trainees attacked wooden posts and practiced simple formations. Grunts, Rebel yells, and the thump and clatter of wood in wood and metal sounded across the dust rasied by so many feet. The Windia's instructors were busy hammering home the basics of close-order drill. Sakura watched with interest as a column of about thirty countermarched, each pair's spears crossing in an X as they turned. A little farther off two rows with crossbows faced a hastily-erected wooden wall back up by earth.
"Front rank!" Yuriri shouted who's a fierce warrior from Alma Kinan, she has the ability to speak with the spirits as most of the others of her clan can also do. She was helping drilling the troops as all of the women of AlmaKinan are well train in using crossbows, "Ready!" crossbows came to port-arms position, held across the chest. "Aim!" The weapons came up to their shoulders with a unified jerk. "Fire!"
WHUNNGGGG! The strings released in near-union.
"Reload! Second rank fire!"
The first rank braced the butts of their weapons on their hips and pumped the levers built into the forestocks. The second rank took half a step forward and fired in their turn. By the time they stepped back, the first rank were clipping bolts into the firing grooves of their weapons.
"So how's the crossbow drilling going?" Kohran asks Yumi as she came out to see how the equipment that they were pouring out of the metal works factory were doing out in the field. She was sporting the armor that she had made a couple of days ago.
"Great the other women of my clan are already replace their old ones with these pump action ones," Yumi said holding up her own, "These have a greater range and a much heavier punch to it."
"Not to mention a better rate of firer," Ranko said as she just finished putting the students in the dojo through some of the workouts for Anything Goes.
"Hi Ranko," Yumi greeted her, "So how's the training coming along?"
"Doing well they're learning how to move around with weighted clothes for now. Red Bean and Green Tea are working over their students now," the current redhead said.
The trainees all stop what they were doing as gun fire rang out through the air. The sounds that Ranko knew all too well as she been in too many herself of a chase scene happening in the city. From the sounds of it there were two people using guns one of them had a faster rate of firer which meant that it's coming from Maria while the other he a delay in its shots as it fired two shots before it had to reload. The sound came up to the walls of the compound then popping over the wall a blond man with a gray cloak jump over falling into the training area. He started running as the wall behind him exploded that reminded, Ranko of pig-boy meted of traveling by breaking walls. Kanna followed by Maria, Sumire, Orihime, and Lilly running after the man.
"He's from the Howling Voice Guild!" Kanna shouted gathering up ki firing them at the retreating form of, Clive, "Stop him!"
Clive cursed himself with his luck in running into one of the cities training areas as the soldiers in the training area started after him. Taking a quick look around the compound, Clive couldn't help but see first hand at the equipments that these people have at their finger tips. From what he sees they have, good weapons and armor and the trainees breaking formation good training. Give them a few years and who knows how powerful they would become. Then he saw a purple haired girl with glasses pulled out a long tube resting it on her shoulder and aiming it at him. His eyes widen as he realized that it was huge gun of some kind. But instead of a loud booming sound the gun let out a zap sound as an energy beam burst out. The blast from it sent him flying as the beam struck in front of him.
Clive got onto his feet dodging crossbow bolts aimed at him. He saw the girl with that strange weapon taking aim at him again, quickly he took a shot at her getting her in the gut knocking her to the ground.
"Kohran!" a girl in a flowing pink kimono shouted before she turned her rage onto him. Her sword glowed as she ran at him, then she slash into the air sending an energy blade beam thing at him. He managed to stop himself as the beam slice in front of him.
He fired a round at her but she saw it coming and deflected it with her sword, 'Got to get out of here.' Clive knew that he couldn't take all of these fighters as he ran through the compound. He ran into a large building at one corner of the compound quickly shutting the door behind him.
"He's mine!" Maria shouted as she fired a bomb shell at the door blowing it wide open into the food storehouse where the rations for the compound are kept at.
Once she made it inside, Clive open fire at her from behind a sack of grain. Shielding her face the two shots bounce off of her coat then opened fire with her UIZ as he duck for cover. As she fired keeping him pin down she aim's her, Samurai Edge loaded with Ice Shells to trap him without killing him. Once she had him in her sights as she fired causing a block of ice to burst up as the shell struck its target. Clive jump sideways firing two shots knocking Maria back losing her aim as he ran hiding behind other objects in the room for cover.
"You can't run forever!" Maria shouted as she fired more ice shells trying to hit him.
'I need to get a headshot,' Clive thought to himself as he saw that he was running out of places to hide and his bullets can't penetrate that armor coat of hers. He has dealt with heavily armored people before as all he needed to do was hit them at an unprotected area. Grabbing a sack of flour he threw it at her. Maria saw it firing bullets into it causing her to be blinded by the flour as it burst out of the bag.
As she was shaking off the flour from her face, Clive rush foreword reeling his rifle back like a club. He took a swing hitting the side of her head knocking her down then twisted it around aiming for her head. But he was cut short as a pigtailed redhead appeared grabbing him throwing him out of the room before he could get a shot out. He twisted in mid-air landing onto his feet looking around he saw he was surrounded by the soldiers in the compound.
"So you're, Clive the leader of the Howling Voice Guild."
Turning upwards, Clive saw a young man standing on top of the building he was thrown out of. He has dark hair dress in a red shirt and blue pants he looks like he hasn't been sleeping well for days as he has a grime look on his face. A long haired blonde stood next to him in a blue dress holding a knife in her hand.
"Well you're not going to get out of here not like that sniper you sent to kill Maria," the man said, "Take him out, Lachette!"
The woman, Lachette nodded as she threw the knife in hand at him. Clive dodged the knife as it embedded itself in front of him as brought his gun up taking aim at her when he notices that the people around him was backing away covering their faces. He stared down as he saw that the knife was flashing. He didn't even hear the knife bomb blowing up sending, Clive flying threw the air. He felt things break – his nose, a cheekbone, several ribs, a hip. He closed his mouth shut not letting out a scream as he had much worse done to him during his training. He fell badly hearing something breaking as he landed gritting down he got back onto his feet. The tall redhead that threw him through a wall almost breaking his back rush foreword and slammed her fist lock together in a double blow. The force of her blow knocks him down with a blow in the middle of his back knocking him flat onto the ground. Clive felt his eyes grow heavy as his body began to submit to the injurers that he had sustained during the chase and from the girls that he fought against.
Maria walk out of the storehouse followed by, Ranko. She walks up to the down form of, Clive aiming her gun at his head to make sure he'll stay down. But was stop as, Ranma appeared next to her putting his hand on her shoulder stopping her.
"Wait there are something's that, I want to ask him."
"Fine," Maira said as she waved some soldiers over telling them to pick, Clive up and take him to the castle for questioning. She picks up the rifle that he used looking it over, "Yup, I was right a flintlock musket."
"Maria you're okay?" Ranma asks her.
"My bulletproof coat protected me," Maira said.
Kohran walked up to them rubbing the spot on her armor where she was shot at, "Ouch that rifle of his sure can pack a wallop. Good thing, I'm wearing armor."
"Glad that you girls are safe," Ranma said to them, "I'm going to check on the kids."
They watch as, Ranma jump into the air hoping from one roof top to another, "He has really change since that day," Kohran said to Maria.
"Yes, I hope that it's not for the worse," Maria agreed with her.
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South of the Nation of Zero –
Toran is a temperate region situated south of the former Dunan region. This area used to belong to the Holy Kingdom of Harmonia. In IS 230, a powerful aristocrat, Kranach 'Knight of the Scarlet Moon' Rugner proclaimed independence from Harmonia during a civil war. The Scarlet Moon Empire was thus formed, and ruled the area for the next two centuries until the late Emperor Barbarossa Rugner was ousted by rebels in the Gate Rune Wars in IS 457. The area is currently ruled by the Toran Republic.
The most noticeable feature in Toran is Lake Toran, a saltwater lake connected directly to the ocean through a wide channel to the Northwest. The entire region is surrounded by tall mountains to all directions other than the Northwest, Northeast, and Southeast. However, the vast Karakas desert and the 'badlands' lie Northwest, the great ocean to the Northeast, and the vast Moran Forest to the Southwest, which keeps this region relatively isolated. Toran is also known to have a native species of reptilian draft animals called 'Gul-horses' which are often used in the cavalry of armies in Toran. But they weren't that wide spread outside of Toran as their breeding cycles are long apart from each other.
Gregminster is the largest city in the Toran region. In the same location stood Harmonia's Holy City of Rupanda, but after the rise of the Scarlet Moon Empire, Kranach Rugner renamed it Gregminster. Since then, Gregminster remained to be the political and bureaucratic center of the Scarlet Moon Empire. Gregminster was actually destroyed during the Succession War (IS 446) by the forces of Geil Rugner, but the late 'Golden Emperor' Barbarossa Rugner rebuilt the city to new heights. The capital city has been the house of many high officials of the Scarlet Moon Empire. Coupled with the long history of this city, people who live here tend to have a certain elitism over the rest of Toran. The bulk of the economy at Gregminster comes from mercantilism, and Gregminster is known mainly for its art and ceramics. This is all due to the late Barbarossa's policy of protecting and nurturing art and culture which is still a policy even now. The architecture of the city reflects this, and all houses are built with ivory-colored walls and contrasting red doors.
In the middle of the city stands the 'Golden Goddess' statue. This statue was made by the renowned artist, Basil. It is said that the statue is a mirror image of Barbarossa's late wife Empress, Claudia. Political corruption led to the Liberation Movement, and the Scarlet Moon Empire perished after 230 years of prosperity, but Gregminster remains to be the capital city now of the Toran Republic.
In the largest inn of the city at the small bar in the dining room a woman, with long light brown hair and wearing a pair of long white gloves, and a red dress under a bronze colored breastplate and matching pair of shoulder guards sat at the counter. A long sheathed rapier hangs off of her belt. She's one of the Six Generals of Toran her name is Valeria.
Valeria was born in a small village in the Great Forest. She always wished to make it big in the real world and has been practicing swordsmanship since her youth. By luck she was able to study the Falcon Style Fencing under the master Roundier Haia in Kanakan and perfected the style. After that, she entered the Scarlet Moon Army and was placed under Kwanda Rosman as a Lieutenant. However, when Kwanda started burning the forest with the Burning Mirror, Valeria decided to defect and tried to convince the Elves to stand up against him. However, she was instead captured and imprisoned by the elves. In the prison she met Tri McDohl when he and his party were taken prisoners and decided to join forces with the Liberation Army. The party escaped with the help of Sylvina and they were able to win the trust of the Dwarves. As the party was heading back to Toran Castle, they were ambushed by Imperial Soldiers. The soldiers demanded that the rebels hand over Valeria and she volunteered to leave. However, the Imperial Soldiers broke the agreement and tried to capture Tri and the rest of the party. Just when all hope was lost, Mathiu Silverberg brought the Liberation Army with him to attack Pannu Yakuta. The Imperial Soldiers scurried off in terror when they saw the larger force. Valeria was freed and after the Liberation Army defeated, Kwanda's army in battle, Valeria volunteered to enter Pannu Yakuta to defeat Kwanda Rosman. Shortly after, Pannu Yakuta was liberated after they freed, Kwanda from the Black Rune that was controlling him.
Since then, Valeria was a powerful force within the Liberation Army and after they were victorious, Valaeria was named as one of the new Six Great Generals for the Toran Republic. In her new capacity, she participated in Toran's war against Tinto and South Window and was also chosen as the general for the military aid sent to the Zero Allied Forces by the orders of the now President of Toran, Lepant. After she came to Zero, she met with her old rival, Anita. Anita was also a student of Roundier Haia and the two often got into fights due to their different ideas on being a sword mistress. However, they could always be found in the bar, drinking together. After the Zero Unification War, Valeria went back to Toran to continue her duties.
And speaking of which sitting next to her is her rival/friend. Anita studied under Roundier Haia, is one of the bearers of the Falcon Rune, and is the rival of Valeria. She dress like Valeria but has short light blonde hair wears a blue and white outfit and silver colored breastplate and shoulder pads. She has fought duels with Valeria eleven times before, but she has won only once. She claims that she could beat Valeria in everything other than swordplay, but even that is questionable. Now with fifteen years having pass since the Zero Unification War while they are still rivals they have mellowed out quite a bit. But their rivalry has been passed to the new generation.
Both of them got pregnant at the same time and given birth to girls. Valeria's daughter, Raupasha is the splitting image of her mother at fifteen and since she was old enough to learn how to wield a rapier like her mother. Anita daughter, Lindesfarne also look very much like her mother at her age but had longer hair tied into a long ponytail. She's skilled in swordplay and like her mother before her, she fights against Raupasha all of the time. And they were seated at one of the dining tables eating while shouting at each other as they had a duel this morning and. Raupasha lost and now was saying that, Lindesfarne only won by an accident.
"You know, I hope that we weren't that bad when we were at that age," Valeria said to her friend as they watch their daughters shouting at each other.
"Next they'll be fighting with each other when they spot a cute looking guy," Anita said, "Then next when we get some grandchildren from our kids they'll fight with each other over who has the best child just like how their mothers did with them at that age."
The two shared a good laugh at that, "Speaking of which" Valeria spoke up, "You know Milia's daughter Sharon has a boyfriend now. I heard it from a passing Dragon Knight about the letters from their commander about how she wants a Golden Dragon pup to be sent to the Grasslands for her daughters wedding gift."
"So who's the lucky man?" Anita asks.
"Have you heard about the new castle, Windia that had suddenly pop up in the Grasslands and that place Lake Castle where all of those mangas and other trade goods are coming from?"
"Yes, I know about those mangas, Lindesfarne gotten a hold of that Utena manga about a school girl who has to fight against other students in sword battles for the Rose Bride."
"Mine as well," Valeria said as her daughter had been spending a lot of money on buying the issues that turn up in the trading shops and beating the other girls who have fallen in love with the Utena manga in buying them before they sold out. As the fencing schools in the city have been filling up with young girls that want to learn to be fencers like their idol, "Well the master of, Windia is the one that Milia's daughter has her eye on."
"Wow how did she do that?" Anita asks.
"Well you see, Sharon went off on a journey to the Grassland with, Emily, Mose and Ronnie Bell's daughter, Sanae the daughter of Freed and Yoshino Yamamoto, Belle, Meg's child and Mamie the daughter of Bashok," Valeria counted on her fingers, "Well they met the master of the castle before it was built and currently all of the girls are after him."
"Wait this guys has those girls all after him?" Anita said with an odd look on her face.
"Well according to rumor from the traders that have come back from the Grasslands that the master of Windia whose name is, Ranma has many of the young women that live in the castle want him to be their husband."
"Sound's like this, Ranma guy is living out, Sheena dream," Anita said, "And speaking of that playboy where is that dirty guy at anyways?"
"Oh he's back in the city," Valeria sighed as he hasn't change that much since she had first met him.
The son of Lepant and Eileen, Sheena received the gift of swordsmanship from his father and magical talent from his mother. He is also a flirt and is constantly chasing after young women that catch his eye. He joined the Gate Rune Wars when he was found by Lepant, flirting with an inn maid in the town of Seika. He then remained with the Toran Liberation Army until the end of the war. He then left his parents again to travel around the world to improve himself but many like her believe was to find more cute looking girls.
Later, he ended up in Jowston. He wanted to cross Lake Toran from Coronet, but Tai Ho who was also a former member of the army refused to help him. Later on, he suddenly appeared in the Zero army Headquarters and offered to introduce them to his father, who was the current President of the Toran Republic. He helped Lexx and his party forged an alliance with Toran, but in the process Lepant asks, Lexx to put his son to a better use. Thus, Sheena served in the Allied Army until the end of the War. After the war, Sheena returned to his parents, but after a short stay, Lepant sent him out again. This time, he went off traveling towards Crystal Valley with, Oulan as his bodyguard. He found Apple on his way to Crystal Valley and tagged along (he claimed he was protecting her). In one village he hit on Jonah the daughter of Butz and went on a date with her. However, she was kidnapped by a renegade dragon. With the help of a fellow Nash Latkje, Humphrey Mintz and Futch, Sheena was able to rescue Jonah and then resumed his travels towards Crystal Valley. He and Apple are rumored to have been married, and later divorced. Which, Valeria have found hard to believed as why would, Apple marry him in the first place.
"Well he better not hit on our kids," Anita stated.
"Yup or he's going to get it," Valeria said back, "And also, I found out that Maximillian disappeared from his home. His servants said that he told them that he's going to the Grasslands and help his grandson, Fred with the war there."
"Yeah, and I heard that Zero is sending troops to help the Grassland to fight off the Harmonian army that's invading," Anita said, "Also, I heard that the master of the castle and the leader of the Grassland forces is also quite the fighter and is quite the stud too."
"Really maybe, Raupasha should meet this, Ranma fellow," Valeria said as she began thinking that setting her daughter off with someone that would be able to support her easily would be nice. And that she been thinking of having some grandchildren running around underfoot saying grandma to her would be wonderful.
"Forget it he already has way too many girls after him already," Anita said shooting down her friends train of thought, "Besides if you did try that, I would tag along with my daughter and since she's much prettier and more built then yours and that she would easily beat her to him."
"Oh really!" Valeria said glaring at her friend/rival causing sparks to fly.
"Well there they go again," Marie the inn keeper said as she watches the mother and daughter pairs glaring at each other. She just hopes that they won't start swinging swords wreaking her inn and scaring away her evening customers, again, "Some things will never change."
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On the gate of on the wall –
A short haired blonde man sat at a table dress in a loose green shirt over a tight red shirt underneath and brown pants. He's in an intense game of cards with some of the gates guards. They're playing the new card game that suddenly pop up in the Gordon Trading Company in the city. The son of the former owner said that his father had gotten a hold of these cards from a trader from the Grasslands and they flew off the shelves. So he shipped a couple of crates to Gregminster where they got really popular.
"Now, I play 'Red Eyes Black Dragon' destroying what's left of your life points!" the blonde said as he played his strongest card.
"Damn it!" the guard he was playing against said as he lost the game.
"Now pay up!" the winner said as the guard handed him a small bag of coins, "Now whose next?"
"Sheena why don't you play the castle guards?" the captain of the gate guards said as his men are too in with playing this new card game then paying attention to the close gates as they were always close during the night.
"Why, I'm doing just fine here," Sheena said as he already won a large sum of money from the guards already.
"You're just trying to stay out of you fathers sights," one of the guards said.
"Well he's has been bugging me about settling down," Sheena said.
"Like the last time," a guard said as he knows about him being married for a short time.
"Hey she's the one that wanted to break it off," Sheena said.
"Well it's my shift," one of the guards said as he walks out of the room towards the gear room where the levers to open the gate were kept. But he didn't get far as they saw him going out to the walkway when they heard him shout, "Hey what are you!" His voice was cut short as a gurgled sound and him stumbling backwards with several arrows sticking in him.
Without a word the guards and Sheena grab their weapons running out of the guardroom. Outside they saw small figures dress in black armor that would have blended in the shadows of the night. What guards were on the walk way were all dead as the attackers must have sneak up on them and seeing how they're able to climb up the walls as some are doing right now it wasn't hard to see why they were able to sneak up on them. Those carrying bows fired a volley at the guards running out of the guardhouse shooting some down.
"They're opening the gate!" the captain shouted as some of the attackers begin to open the main gates. He charged at the attackers followed by his men.
"I sound the alarm!" Sheena shouted as he saw that they couldn't stand up to these kinds of numbers as more of the attackers were climbing up the walls joining the fight on the walkway. Running back into the guardroom Sheena climbed up on the roof lighting the alarm fire that was to but lit when there's an attack alerting the other guards of an attack. Looking down in front of the gates, Sheena eyes widen as he see the scope of the attacking force. Waves of those waited outside of the gate while others scaled the walls. The guards that were close to the main gate ran over towards the gate forming a line in front of the opening gate doors while the ones on the wall help to fight off the swarming attackers on the walls. Grabbing his sword Sheena ran back down to help defend the city.
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Inside one of the large houses of the city –
Three people in their forties to early fifties were having dinner. The master of the house was in his room upstairs thinking about his life. Where was his life leading up to as he was bond to the Rune embedded on his right hand. He hasn't age since he became the barer of the rune. He wonders what his life would have been like if he didn't have the rune that he had sealed it away. He heard of ways that other True Rune holders who used writings of spells from the Sindar people to seal away their runes. Finding those kinds of spell are extremely hard as they were so rare to find. The only person that he knows who may know how to seal the Rune would be the Archmage Crowley who fought along side with him twenty years ago. But he knows that once he did seal the rune away then he would have long to live as he remembers another True Rune holder who gave up his rune.
Joshua for many years was the holder of the Dragon Rune which allows dragons to exist in this world. He had helped the late Barbarossa during the Succession War and became friends with both Humphrey and Kreutz. During the Gate Rune Wars, he agreed to help the Toran Liberation Army after they had help him cure the disease that made the dragons sleep. At the final siege on Gregminster, he helped amplify Leknaat's Gate Rune by using his Dragon Rune, which allowed Leknaat to send all of Windy's monster army back to the netherworld. He later gave up his Dragon Rune and position as the Captain of the Dragon Knights to Milia, and retired. The Dragon Rune was one of the rare True Rune's where the person that gives it to another person would be able to live without the Rune power anymore. As for his Rune he had asks, Crowley about it when he had found his training hiding spot about what would happen if he would seal the Souleater away. Crowly told him that once the rune was taken away for him then he would shortly die afterwards. The though of dying did scare him it was the thought that once he was gone then someone else would find it and would have to go through the same path that he took.
He is Rand McDohl (1) the son of Teo McDohl and was the leader of the Toran Liberation Army after the death of the original leader, Odessa Silverberg. After the Toran Liberation Army defeated the Scarlet Moon Empire, McDohl left without taking a position of leadership within the newly formed Toran Republic. He had been traveling with his servant, Gremio. He was briefly involved with the Zero Unification War as well before returning home. That was fifteen years ago and he still looks like he did twenty years ago. While he hasn't age the people around sure did. His mind drifted off to the three people that he has always thought of being his family.
Gremio a tall blonde haired man that wore his hair in a lose ponytail and wears a green cloakall of the time. He was a soldier under the command of Teo McDohl during the Succession War. However, he decided to become a servant of Teo McDohl after Teo saved his life in battle he still carries a scar on his face from that battle. Gremio raised him due to his father being busy with his army and because his mother died after giving birth to him. Thus, Gremio acted as a parent to him during his childhood. Gremio followed him into the Gate Rune Wars and protected him wherever he went. He even lost his life protecting him, but was miraculously brought back to life by the powers of the Gate Rune and the 108 Stars of Destiny. After the Gate Rune Wars, Gremio left Toran with him, and was briefly involved with the Zero Unification War.
Then there's, Pahn a powerful hand-to-hand fighter who wears a red headband as long as he could remember. He had served under Geil Rugner during the Succession War. However, he was defeated by his father in hand-to-hand combat during the war and since then has served under Teo McDohl, almost as a live-in servant / bodyguard. When Ted was being pursued by the Imperial Guards, Pahn told the Imperial Guards where Ted was in fear that the incident would cause trouble to the McDohl's in Teo's absence. Since then he continued to work for the Empire, but when Kraze abducted Lepant's wife, Eileen, he turned against Kraze. Later on when Teo McDohl attacked Toran Castle and defeated the Liberation Army, Pahn bought some time by dueling with Teo. After the Gate Rune Wars, he traveled elsewhere to perfect himself, but he returned a few years later when he ran out of money.
Then there was Cleo the only woman in their group. She's a light brown haired woman who wears a headband with purple flaps covering her neck and had a taste for brown and purple clothes. She fought valiantly by his side during various wars and is a seasoned veteran. She actually received a fire rune from Leknaat personally, and she is a good magician and a good fighter as well. She is a highly competent fighter. After the end of the Gate Rune Wars she retired from military duty and lives in the McDohl manor taking care of it until they all return back to their home years later.
Thinking about his friends, Rand began to think about his friend the one that bare the Souleater before him. He also gain the memoirs of, Ted's life that he had lived for three-hundred years. Ted was born in the Village of the Hidden Rune and was the sole survivor of an attack on the village by Windy, Neclord and Yuber. Since then, he had wandered the world as the barer of the Rune of Life and Death--Souleater. His rune was stolen at one time, but he found it once again after a few years, which made him age a few years during his three-hundred years of wandering. Very little of what happened is known but to Rand and those who heard tales from the Island Nations that, Ted spent some time on the Fog Ship that appeared now and then on the ocean. It happen when Ted was eventually, worn down by the Rune's curse and the social exclusion that it brought, Ted accepted the offer of the mysterious Fog Ship Guide to hand over the rune and disappear from the world. His exile lasted years, but when he saw the actions of the bearer of the Rune of Punishment (another heavily cursed rune) Ted decided to leave the Fog Ship and return to the outside world. When, Ted questioned Jack about his rune and eventually decided to leave as well. The Fog Ship Guide was unwilling to part with the Souleater and battled for possession of it and the Rune of Punishment. He was defeated and Ted's rune was restored. Following the Guide's defeat Ted reclaimed the Rune and aided the Bearer of the Rune of Punishment in the war between the Island Nations and Kooluk. However, once the conflict was over Ted returned to a solo nomadic life. Ted helped, Jake throughout the rest of the war and vanished once it had ended. He was followed by Aldo who died from a mysterious incident which, Rand knew the dark truth of what happened.
During those years of he was involved in many other fights as well, which made him skilled in the use of many different weapons. His expertise of bo sticks surprised Rand when he sparred with him, to which Ted replied, "I never used this weapon before, but I had to defend myself often in the past..." During the Scarlet Moon Empire's war with Jowston, Teo McDohl found Ted in the battlefield. Thinking that Ted was an orphan of war, Teo invited him to his household. Ted gladly joined Teo McDohl, but instead of living in the McDohl household, he borrowed a small house nearby.
It didn't take much time for Ted to become friends with Rand. They got along as if they had known each other all along. Ted even accompanied him in his earliest quests when he had joined the Scarlet Moon Empire Army's Royal Guards under Kraze. However, his Souleater was discovered by the Court Magician Windy and Ted suffered a heavy wound when he escaped from Windy's clutches. After arriving at the McDohl household, he passed the Souleater onto, Rand while Ted himself stayed behind as a decoy. This in the end forced Rand, Gremio and Cleo to fight against the Scarlet Moon Empire. Since then, the rune bent the fate of those around Rand and dragged them into the clutches of death, starting with Odessa Silverberg, then with Gremio, Teo McDohl his father, and even its own ex-bearer, Ted. When it was learn that, Ted was kept alive by Windy, slowly losing control over himself through Windy's Conqueror Rune. Windy summoned Ted at Seek Valley and forced him to ask Tri to surrender his rune. However, due to the fact that the Souleater still considered Ted to be its owner, Ted was able to communicate to Rand through the rune. Then, Ted commanded the Souleater to take his own soul and it is believed that Ted ended his life at that moment.
Rand still wondered what the memories that he has seen in the Rune meant. If all of the people that have their souls taken into the Rune were alive or it was only their memories were left behind that he sees. He had look into the Rune to see what was written about the rune written down in books from Harmonian as they do research in True Runes. However, it is uncertain whether having one's soul being sucked by the Souleater means death, as the spirits of those who have died live on within the bearer of the Souleater.
His door suddenly burst open as, Gremio ran into the room with a worried look on his face carrying his long handle axe, "There's an attacking army at the gate! The guards are asking for anyone who can wield a weapon to help defend the city."
"What?" Rand said as he grabs his bo stick running down the stairs with, Gremio following behind him. Pahn and Cleo were already dress in their old armor and carrying their weapons.
"Master you're going to fight?" Cleo asks with a worried look on her age face.
"Don't worry, I can handle myself," Rand replied as they still treat him like a child even after so many years had gone by.
"We'll watch your back," Pahn said as he hasn't been in a fight for sometime now.
When they step outside the streets were in panic as townspeople fled towards the castle for safely while guards and people armed ran towards the gate to fight off the attackers. They began running to the gate when a ball-and-chain crash into the pave road in front of them. Looking up as the chain-ball flew back to the one who threw it they spotted a figure standing on one of the houses.
"Well so you're the bearer of the Souleater," a woman dress like a clown said as her arm whipped around as the chain-ball rewined into her left arm, "Names Jestbomb and, I'm going to take it!" She whips back her arm and threw her mace at them again. They dodge out of the way as it crash into the middle of their group but then the mace suddenly explode send them flying in all dictions.
"What was that?" Pahn said as he got back up worse for wear but still okay as with the rest of the gang.
"My mace has an Explosion Rune embedded in it," Jestbomb said as she rubs her mace as it return back to her, "Anytime, I want it to it blows up with any contact with any object that it hits."
A loud spinning sound started causing the group to look around as they had never heard something like it before. The house wall that's in front of their house burst open as two drills came flying out almost hitting Pahn who duck under them. Once the dust cleared away they saw a fairly tall man who was almost looks normal coming out of the hole he made. But he has two metal tentacles popping out of his back and a large drill sticking out from the top of his head. The two metal tentacles came out from where his shoulder blades are. They're tipped off with two drills just like the one on his head. He's dressed in a green uniform with a pair of goggles on his forehead. And also he has on a metal chest plate that has a gun barrel in the middle of it.
"Jestbomb don't play around," he said as he walks into the streets, "We got a job to do and we got to do it before the castle guards fight off the Skull-Gobs."
"So that's the reason for the attack but its going to take more then you two to beat us," Cleo said as she prepared to cast a fire spell. Then her eyes widen as she found that her magic was block off, "What happen?"
"Sorry but we know what the Souleater can do," a voice from above said.
Looking up they saw a wing figure hovering above them they thought it was a winger but then they saw it was something else. Outwardly, she has a humanoid form with pale white skin and long, flowing purple hair that went down to her slim waist. She was dress in a simple white tunic under a golden breast plate with tight red shorts that hug her rear. She has lively green eyes and a lithe form that made her resemble a nymph. However, that was where the similarities to humans had stopped. As her ears are large and pointed like that of an elf's, and on her back are two, large dark blue dragon wings. Then they saw what she held in her hands a large golden double bladed sword that they all recognize as the sword that had belong to the late Emperor Barbarossa and the True Rune that's embedded on it.
It's a True Rune representing absolute rule, the Sovereign Rune has been the Rugner family as a family heirloom since Kranach Rugner created the Scarlet Moon Empire. Before that, the Sovereign Rune belonged to the Holy Kingdom of Harmonia, and was protected within the Holy City of Rupanda (later renamed Gregminster). The rune's powers are still a mystery, but it grants its bearers complete immunity to all runes, and also allows its bearer to change into a three-headed dragon. The late Barbarossa, as its bearer, had chosen to embed this rune on his Dragon King Sword.
"Where did you find that sword?" Gremio eyes widen as they have been searching for that sword ever since, Barbarossa jump off the heights of the palace with, Windy in his arms.
"Simple the master found it," the dragon girl said before turning her attention to Rand, "And we're taking that Rune of yours!" Her body started glowing as she transforms into a giant three-headed golden dragon. Her three heads turn their sights to Rand group as they all let out a roar.
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At the front gate –
It was chaos as the soldiers of, Gregminster tried to push the invading army back through the gates. It was hand-to-hand fighting as well as some of the soldiers with runes casts attack spells on the attackers as well casting healing spells on their own troops. On the walls soldiers with bows fired arrows down upon the attacking mop while others fought off the ones climbing up the walls. A large force of the small attackers had managed to reach inside the city and fights were breaking out everywhere as some of the attackers are setting some of the houses on fire.
A scream burst out of the maw of the small attacker as it leap at Sheena lashing out with its claws. He duck under the swing cutting its leg off as it pass by him. Another one followed as it attacked with a lance. He dodged it by jumping to the side looping its head off with a back swing. An arrow nicks his neck as an archer shot an arrow at him growling he grab a fallen spear and threw it at the archer getting it. Sheena seeing more of them running at him cast a powerful earthquake spell upon them sending them falling into a massive crack in the ground sending them felling into it before closing upon them. But new attackers replace them as more of them had climb over the walls or broken through the line in front of the gate.
"This is getting us no where," Sheena said to himself as he ran as a large number of the dark armored attackers chase after him.
"Sheena over here!" Anita shouted waving at him standing at a corner of a building. Finding new speed reached her as she grabs his arm pulling him around the corner. The attackers ran around the corner only to be struck down as a wave of arrows flew at them. Sheena fell flat on his back when Anita pulled him down with her as the two lines of archers could firer over them.
"Thanks for the save," Sheena said to the swordswomen.
"Those attackers just keep on coming," Anita said as she got back up as another wave of attackers came around the corner.
"Attack!" Valeria shouted appearing with a unit of soldiers charging into the wave of attackers as the archers reloaded then fired volleys into the ranks of enemy soldiers.
"So where's your daughter?" Sheena asks as he fought off an attacker side by side with Anita.
"She's with Valeria's daughter guarding Marie's inn," Anita shouted as she jabbed into the face of one of the attackers.
"Ever seen these things before?" Sheena asks parrying a sword thrust at him.
"They kind of remind me of goblins but they never wear armor like this or fight this good," Anita said kicking one of them away from her as she stab between the armor of another.
"You know this attack seems pointless," Sheena said as he was taught in the arts of war even if he never really paid that much attention to it he still picked up a thing or two. And while these goblin things had great numbers of them they weren't really fighting like an attacking army would. With their numbers they were keeping every soldier that's in the city busy and those who got through are causing panic in the streets he couldn't shake off the feeling like there was something else another plan then this attack on the city, "It's like they're holding us off for something?"
You mean a diversion?" Anita said as she fought off a new attacker.
"Yeah they have numbers in manpower but it's all over the place none of it forces on any one spot," Sheena grunted as he knocks away a clawed hand cutting off his opponent arm off, "They're making us fight them all over the place and if we break away they'll over run the city and it be house to house for weeks till we root all of them out."
"True but your right about them keeping us busy," Anita agreed with him.
"So what are they doing this for to keep us busy for then?" Sheena asks.
Anita eyes widen as she thought of something or should she say someone that was important enough to waste forces on to get to, "Rand they're aiming for, Rand!" Anita shouted as she quickly stabs her opponent as she ran for his house.
"Hey wait for me!" Sheena shouted as he ran after her.
They ran through the chaos filled streets as the made a bee line for, Rand's house. They ran faster when they heard a roar that sounds like a dragon's roar coming from the direction of Rand's house. The houses around the area were turned into rumble as a fierce battle took place there. Once they reach Rand's house they found the household members of the manor spread out looking very worse for wear. Cleo was leaning back against some blocks of rubble one of her left arm hanging loosely as it was broken during the fight. Pahn was hanging off of a wall as he was buried halfway in it a crater outline showed the force that he was thrown. Gremio laid in a heap his axe that has been with him for years laid broken besides him. And Rand was holding himself up with his bo as he face off with three figures a man armed with drills, a woman dress as a clown and a dragon girl holding a glass orb in front of her.
The dragon girl chanted some words making the orb to glow and causing Rand to start screaming. Sheena and Anita saw the Souleater flash above Rand before being drawn into the glass orb.
"Rand!" both of them shouted as they ran to the fallen former leader of the Allied Army.
"What did you do to him?" Sheena shouted at them as Anita readied her weapon at them.
"Starfire, Jestbomb you two leave and tell the Skull-Gobs to retreat," the drill man said, "I'll handle these two."
"Don't be long Spindrive," Starfire said as she and Jestbomb step through a portal that the clown woman made.
"Who are you?" Anita asks.
"And what you want with Rand's wound?" Sheena shouted.
"Sorry but that's the least of you worries," Spindrive said as he aim his cannon at them. A loud click echoed as he fired a cannonball at them. Their eyes widen as the cannonball crash in front of them exploding sending flying threw the air. Spindrive adjusted his goggles as he looks at his handy work, "Well that was easy." He turns around walking into the awaiting portal.
"Damn it!" Sheena moan as his body wouldn't move. His clothes were ripped to shreds his body broken and burnt badly thanks to the blast. He look over and saw Anita in the same shape as he was and saw that she was still breathing then he felt the darkness over take him.
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The seaport town of Yaser –
The once abandon seaport town was a very busy place. Fishing boats were unloading amid a raucous swarm of gulls at one of the docks. The wharfs were quickly built after the town was taken over form the pirates that took over the town after the townspeople left it. That part of the port hadn't been as densely built before the take over, and the new waterfront there was full of fish-drying sheds, workshops, warehouses, and timberyards built. Urukkins, Fossils, Skull-Gobs and workers labor building up the seaport into a working sea base.
Laborers unloaded a broad-wheeled wagon full of steel bars and barrel staves and charcoal along with tan hides. They had come from the nearby Dwarf Village brought through middle men as besides by sea it was the only why to get fresh supplies to the port. Another was being loaded with barrels of white lightening. That was wildly popular with the dwarves because they had never been exposed to distilled liquor before. Most of the trade goods they been getting from the dwarves were traded with the barrels of liquor that the seaport were producing.
In one of the Rune Cannon factories a young female Urukkin was busy at work. Her 'volunteer' was a young pirate name, Noe that had joined the army once his shipmates met their end at the hands of the fossils. He's pretty good with a bow taking to the rune cannons like a fish to water and was able to hit a target with acceptable accuracy, conscripted when he gawked too long at her cleavage which she never bothered to hide simply because she had torn the uppermost three buttons from her dull brown burlap overalls and she wasn't any good at sewing. And she developed a liking for him. He loaded the eight-foot long cannon that would need a fossil to carry and began using his water rune to power up the rune shell. The target was a simple one, three rings of colour around a white centre, yet someone had taken paint to the thing and it also bore two dots and a smile, an image no one in the army could let go unmolested.
The light cannon fired tearing a fist sizes hole through the target. The female Urukkin named, Keluid got her results and liking them. She began shouting to the pirate to continue to fire at the other targets.
After an hour, Noe could not hear well enough to know what to do and so was let go for the day. Fifty rounds in quick order had seen the barrel work admirably, and if her boss ammunition concept could be worked through, it would let factories produce one type of Rune Shell Round for one type of weapon and solve a hell of a lot of supply problems. When they first got started they made all kinds of cannons of shape and sizes before the boss got wind of what was happening and order that the rune shells be able to fit into any of the cannons. The only differences would be how much weight the cannons could firer. A standardized size meant for faster manufacture, interchangeability, and more efficient working. As the army was gearing up for war, ideas like this would be more valuable than gold.
And speaking of gold, the town's new head engineer would soon increase her pay for this day's work. It would mean that she and Noe who she let him move in with her since the few humans left in the town sometimes found themselves face to face with an hungry fossil could move out of their cramped apartment and get a real house, one with two or three floors, space, and a bedroom that didn't do double duty as a library. The thought of silken sheets against her body, a mattress filled with goose down and not straw, and enough clean water to properly bathe in did more to arouse, and she retreated to a quiet place to be alone. Most of the houses were already been taken and only a few of them were left open to be brought. Most of the troops in the city slept in barracks and the few that had houses to themselves were of higher rank or were paid more then the other soldiers were.
Emerging a few minutes later, wiping her brow and adjusting her overalls, Keluid decided that she needed the real thing; which meant that she would have to jog over to where the foremen, Fribik was busy running the smelter through another few tons of ore and rubbish-heap scrap and asks for the rest of the day off. Not that it bothered her, it was a quick jaunt there, and the screech and smoke of the foundry was less disturbing than the noise and stink of her factory; and along the way she could extort some weed from the worker who supplied the stuff and make the trip really worth it. One of the traders that were used as middle-men had introduced the weed to the seaport and it quickly spread.
Not that he was easy to find; those in control knew that workers would seek out such delights and probably get themselves killed when the head-full of smoke they purchased saw them wander into the moving parts of a much less forgiving machine. At least one of the workers a day got themselves killed inside one of the industries within a few blocks radius of any point, but there were always more to replace them. But word was that the boss was putting out a bounty on anyone that gets rid of the dealers as it was putting delays in productions and he didn't like the fact that good workers were being killed by it. A few coins exchanged hands and she didn't bother to strike the dealer when he grabbed a handful of her behind since he would just charge her more next time if she did such a thing. But of course she could turn him in and get some much needed funding to get a house.
Even easier to find was the foremen Fribik, standing on the catwalk barking orders at workers who barely knew how the factory they worked in even operated; when she strode across the floor and made her way to the stairs, he started to bark at her but caught himself when he figured out who she was.
"Takin' a break, Kel?" Fribik had to raise his voice just to be heard over the noise of the smelter and his face was nearly concealed behind a grimy glass face shield that was tinted a light green. He wore so many clothes to protect himself from the heat, he would have been unrecognizable had she not known how to pick him out.
"My gun works, Frib, an' I'm lookin' to celebrate," She dangled the small bag of dried, grey-green herbs with one hand and twirled a steel pipe in the other; one she had made herself a few years ago from fine steel tubing, her first fabrication project. The drug and the wicked smile upon her face was not an unknown sight to Fribik.
"Lookin' for some fun with that human of yours babe?" her boss said as he grab the bribe for letting her go off for the day looking at her chest knowing that she wore nothing under the burlap overalls which barely contained her charms.
"That's right," Keluid said as she took off to grab Noe and have her way with him. But stop in her tracks when she spotted a figure standing on the catwalk.
"So a foremen taking some weed as a bribe," Anarchy said as he steps into their view.
"Boss," both of them said as they had only seen him when he surveying the shipyard a few weeks ago.
"While, I don't mind the smoking of this weed that you people taken a liking to on your free time," he began, "What, I don't mind is that workers smoking this on the job and getting themselves killed and costing us time and funding."
"Sorry sir," Fribik said tossing the weed into one of the open vats of liquid metal, "I won't happen again sir."
"As for you," Anarchy turning to Keluid, "You said that gun of yours works right?"
"Yes sir," Keluid said nervously, "It can fire any size rune shell that's in its firing weight."
"Good have the plans for the cannon be deliver to the workshop desk before you take the day off," Anarchy said, "Also for that dealer you won't be seeing him again as, Fangface is seeing him for lunch."
"I do it right away sir," Keluid said as she ran off.
"Umm sure what brings you here boss?" Fribik asks.
"The four ships that were sent off to the Island Nations will be docking soon," Anarchy said as he walks off for the docks.
Fribik let out a sigh of relief as he saw the boss leave with just giving him a warring about his smoking, "I should quit before its too late," he muttered to himself.
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At the docks –
Four ships had docked into port they were the ones sent to the Island Nations. The loot that they took from the Elf village were being lifted out of the holds. Cranes running on stream lifted the stolen goods onto the pier where the dork workers quickly took them away. Luthiv watched as her troops that had survived the attack enjoying being out of the ship for the first time in almost two weeks out at sea as they walk down the gangplank going into the town.
"So how was the trip?" Anarchy asks as he walks up to his newest general.
"It went well the village is destroyed and the object is at hand," Luthiv said handing him the Goddess Key that she took from that old frat of an elder house.
"Excellent work," he said as he took the key looking it over, "Also what's with those two?"
Behind Luthiv staying close to her two twin elf girls dress in long drab gray shirts with hunted looks in their eyes. But they stay close to the redheaded elf as she was their only solid ground they could grab onto as she was the only thing that kept the other monsters away from them. "Oh these two are my new personal servants as they're the first elf twins, I have seen."
"Anymore elves your men have taken prisoner?" he asks.
"Yes all of the pure blooded elf women that weren't killed and the children that survived the attack," Luthiv smiled as Urukkins were leading the woman out of the holds. The elf women wore rags as their clothes they had worn during the raid were mostly been ripped off of them. She could still remember their screams down in the deck as the Urukkins had their way with them for the entire two weeks that they were out at sea. Their eyes were sulked as they had never faced such acts of cruelty or perversion before. They have been used like toys by the males as well as the females during the long voyage here and from the looks that they were getting from the ones in the harbor their horror had just beginning. The cages with the elf children that were caught during the raid were being lowed down. The children had stop crying as they had entered a state of shell shock which she was glad as they had cried nonstop for the first couple of days. "So what should, I do with the brats?"
"Send them to the workshops they'll make good laborers," Anarchy said as he saw the children being wheel off, "As for those women do what you will with them."
"Alright sir," Luthiv said as she walks off to oversee the unloading of her ship barking out orders.
"Marko, Trojan, Range how was the attack on the other island?" Anarchy asks turning to the three other generals as they walk up to him.
"The item of your request is here, my lord," Trojan said ask he offers the glass orb holding the Rune of Punishment to him.
"Was there any trouble on your part?" he asks taking the orb.
"None that we couldn't handle," Marko said.
"One ship did get by me but only because, I saw that one of the crew was wearing Luthiv necklace so, I let it through all others, I sunk before they knew what hit them," Range reported.
"Good it should take them awhile to build up their forces to attack us," Anarchy said, "But by that time it will be too late to stop my plan."
"What's the next move then?" Trojan asks.
"I have all of the pawns in place where, I want them now. So it's time to get rid of my only real threat to my plans," Anarchy said his eye narrowing, "Time to get rid of Ranma Jones."
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In Windia –
Ranma stood watch as Reni was beginning to show signs of waking up. He hadn't left her side since she started tossing and turning. Tuta said that she should be waking up at anytime now and that they should just let her wake up on her own. As it be harmful to force her to wake up as it might force her into a relapse. Everyone was waiting outside as, Ranma wanted to be alone with her when she wakes up the only one that was in the room with him was Chris.
"Thank you for letting me be here," Chris said softly as she sat on the other side of the bed from, Ranma.
"I need to know what, Reni thinks of you know," Ranma said as he watches over his daughter.
"Well at least you be able to kill me know," Chris smiled as sad smile.
"Chris," Ranma began but then stop as he spotted, Reni eyes fluttering opening and closing before her eyes open wide.
"Reni!" both parents said as they saw Reni sitting up.
She lifted herself up as a rag doll would do. Her face was unreadable as she wore a faded expression on her face it wasn't sad or was it anything else it was just devoid of any kind of expression. She turns her head slowly at the person sitting to her left. Her face slowly began to change from an expressionless face as it slowly turned from shock to one of fear. Her mouth open gasping her skin became paler as it broke out in a cold sweat as her eyes widen her pupils became round as she stare at, Chris. She let out a soundless scream as she scrambled backwards from her taking deep breaths as her body went into panic mode. A hand suddenly clamped down onto her shoulder and before she could free herself she was pulled into a hug.
"Reni, I'm here," Reni stop scrambling as she turn her head and saw it was her father holding her. She quickly latches onto to him as she buried her face into his chest as she held him for comfort as she took in ragged breaths.
Chris eyes lowed as she saw what, Reni thought of her now. That expression of fear was something that she knew too well as she seen it in battle before when a soldier saw death in front of them as the foe they face they knew that they face with their death. Reni didn't see her as her mother now just her killer. Chris quickly got up and left the room heading for her room in the castle. Rushing pass the others in the hallway she slam her door shut as she couldn't deal with any of them now.
"Hard isn't it letting go of something that you love like that," Jimba said from one corner of the room.
"You're Jimba right? What are you doing here?" Chris asks turning to the Karayan fighter as he walk up to her.
"It's been a long time hasn't it Chris."
"We met before?"
"You're the splitting image of you mother at that age when, I met her."
Chris eyes widen as memories of her childhood came to her. Of her parents as she realized who Jimba really was. She never thought about her parents as it brought up some bad memories as her mother died and then her father suddenly disappearing on her. She stared at the man standing in front of her as her mind pieced the pieces together. "Father?" Chris asks stepping back.
"It's been a long time since, I heard you say that to me," Jimba said as he gave her a warm smile.
"Father," Chris gasped as everything that she's been holding back was let go as she threw herself to her father arms letting all of her pain out. She wasn't a woman than as she was now a lost child who had found her father after all of this time. All she could hope for was that, Reni would see her as her mother again… before, Ranma kills her.
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In the Harmonian camp –
Franz sat with his unit near their cook fire waiting for their rations to be ready to eat. He's a master Mantor trainer from the Harmonian-controlled town of Le Buque. Compared to the other Mantor trainers, he is the most obedient to Harmonia, as he seeks to gain second-class citizenship so he and the other people of Le Buque may have a better life as opposed to being treated as slaves by Harmonia. This causes friction between him and his Le Buquean neighbors, who don't feel so strongly the same way. The situation came to a head when Harmonia ordered them to attack another Grasslands clan, promising second-class citizenship for them. He's also romantically involved with Iku, also from Le Buque, and cares for her greatly. His mantor, Ruby, is among the finest in the town, and Franz likes to make that known. Ruby, Franz mantor, who help's his master with his great strength and agility in battle. He will do anything his master tells him to, and nothing his master does not tell him to as he was so well train.
His men under his commanded haven't seen any action in along time. Since the last time they had engaged the Grassland troops they fled when Ranma the master of the city of Windia daughter opened fire on them. If they had stayed they would have been shot down easily as the Mantors wouldn't be able to dodge the fast moving bullets unlike arrows. And during the siege of Brass Castle they couldn't fly to give air support as the air was full of smoke. Thanks to that as they were already look down upon by the other soldiers they were lower now as they hadn't lost any of theirs in the battles as they had ran away.
Some of the men kept on sleeping where ever they could find a dry spot to sleep at as it had been raining for the last few days. The rain turn the roads into mud and the supplies from Harmonian were barely trickling into the camp and as they were at the bottom of the barrel they been getting less to eat making the soldiers of Le Buque weary. But the magic word 'food' and the savory smell that wafted from the stew kettle got a good many up and moving.
"What you got today?" Franz asks the cook as he got into the line.
"Boiled kasha, with onions and meat," the cook answered.
They still weren't his top choice, or anywhere close to it, but they filled the belly nicely. He knew better than to ask about the meat – horse, donkey, maybe dog? He didn't want to know. Had it been beef or mutton, the cook would have bragged about it. The meat could even have come from one of the monsters on the plain for all he knows. Since their failure to help with the last two battles they have been getting less rations as the results.
He dug out his mess tin, and held it out to the cook. The cook ladled out a big dollop of steaming stew. He attacked it with gusto. His stomach complained for a moment; it wasn't used to taking on a heavy load in the early hours. Then it decided that it like being full and shut up.
Franz saw the bottom of his bowl when he saw some of the soldiers rushing over to the east part of the camp. They look excited about something as they ran by. Gulping down what was left of the stew he ran following the soldiers to see what got them up all of the sudden.
"What's the big hurry?" he asks one of the soldiers running along with the crowd.
"There's an army coming to help us in the upcoming battle," the soldier said as he ran to the end of the camp along with others who wanted to see this army for themselves first hand.
When, Franz got to the end of the camp he got a good look at the army approaching them. They march in formation as they came over the horizon. From what he could make out they came in three sizes. Small loosely organized soldiers made up more then a third of the new army but what was odd they were all walking hunch like. Then came there were the man sizes ones they were more heavily armed and armored then the smaller ones. There were some that were bigger and more armed then the shorter ones. Then there were the ones in the back they towered above the rest of the army like walking mountains of muscle and armor. They were Lizard like from what Franz could make out but they were must bigger then the Lizard clan and they didn't have that air of bloodlust over them.
"So that's the Underworld Army (2)," one of the captains said as they were all briefed about the army that was joining them.
"How many are there?" one of the soldiers asks to no one.
"About ten-thousand, I say," Franz answered as he stared at the army marching towards them. He couldn't shake off the ill wind he's feeling coming from that army. It was like something was going to happen that's going to change everything for them.
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Next Time – You all knew that it was going to happen. As the Harmonian army along side with the Underworld army attacks all of the forts and bases of the Grassland Army. The siege of Bass Castle as well as Windia begins. And Ranma and Anarchy face off as they come face to face for the first time. Who is Anrachy? Has anyone figured it out yet?" Well be on the look out for the clue on the next chapter of Suikoden ½ in 'Face Off'. Also, I still need a pre-reader!
Author's Notes
1 – The name of the Hero in Suikoden 1 in my game.
2 – Does anyone have a better name for this army? That's the only name, I could come up with.
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