Chapter 9: Zelda Equals Phoenix~
Ranma never thought dying would be like this. Being chained to a huge stake, that had stacks of bamboo rods piled under it like a mile high. He was two miles high ,definitely.
All of his friends were staring up at him. Slack jawed and sorry, some of them in tears. Ranma saw that even Ryoga, who had pretty much hated him all his life, was crying buckets. He wondered for a brief second if they could have been friends now...if he wasn't chained to a stake in his girl form , about to be roasted, that is.
Link was shaking his head, begging the witch for an alternative.
"You can use your magic, turn me into a woman. Just...don't..."
"No, Prince Link, I am sorry. The thing is done now."Din replied, lifting her fire rod.
"Noble hearted Princess Zelda, prepare to die!" she called, and with a chuckle, she waved the fire rod.
"No, no, NO!" Akane begged, and took a leap forward, fists swinging at the air. Nabiki caught her by the waist of her pants, otherwise she would have toppled right into the everlasting fire with Ranma.
He cringed. He had felt a lot of pain in his life , but never any like this, and the fire hadn't even reached him yet!
"RANMA!" Akane wailed, "NO!"
Something very unexpected happened then. Ranma was just closing his eyes, trying to drowned out Akane's screams...
"Ah just go ahead and kill me so I don't have to hear her hollerin' anymore!" he complained inside his head.
When a savage, searing, desperate pain, enough to drive even the mightiest of warriors completely insane, and make Phoenix Gods cry like little girls, coursed through his entire body. His teeth grit. Saotome Ranma didn't cry out. Wasn't gonna give that freaky witch the satisfaction of a scream.
After awhile he couldn't breath. He was hoping that meant he was dead, so this would be over now. But the pain just got worse, and worse, and worse. His bones turned to charcoal inside of him.
So! much! PAIN!
But then there was a blinding golden light, from out of the fire. At first Ranma thought maybe it was an angel or something coming to take him to heaven.
" I figured this out the first time Din tried to kill me with fire..." said Zelda's voice in his mind, somewhat labored, as she also was experiencing the maniac pain."
Ranma felt an explosion out of his back, and wondered maybe if that wasn't his soul getting away. But then, huge golden wings, swept around him, and gathered up the fire of his terrible pyre.
He gasped, and opened his eyes, daring to look at his body now.
He was clothed in armor of iron, and rubies, and his hair was white gold like Zelda's. He had two samurai swords on his belt, and his shoes were boots that could hover over the ground. His head was crowned in a halo of eternally hot, ballistic fire, like the kind that had nearly killed him.
The pyre fell away like a bunch of ashes fall off the end of a cigarette.
He floated to the ground, and lifted his hands,both of his palms igniting with 3 foot pillars of flames.
He understood just then.
He was a Phoenix, somehow...his girl form had turned into a Phoenix?!
"Zelda...equals...Phoenix..." he heard his voice say, and then smiled sadistically at Din.
"And it's time to fight fire with fire!" he cried, taking a fighting pose, the swords drawing without his realizing it.
"Wha? But I don't use weapons...most of the time." Ranma complained.
" But I do..."Zelda corrected. "Sorry, Ranma, this is my fight. But I would appreciate it if you helped out."
Ranma rolled his eyes, "Help out? You mean do all the work? Ok."