Disclaimer: This is a work of fanfiction, I do not claim any rights to any of the characters or
concepts created or owned by Viz Video or Rumiko Takahashi. This is just the work of one fan to the others. The only characters or concepts that I claim are the ones I created or introduced. That said, I bring you:
The Annals of the Heroine Akane, and the Dreaded Demon King. A Tale of the Mirrorverse.
Chapter 19: First Blood.
Xian Pu clung on for all she was worth to the strap of Nabiki's backpack as the roguish woman led the way ever closer to their goal. Xian Pu kept glancing back, letting her keen ears, eyes and nose inform her about their trackers the best they could. She hoped that this infuriating woman had been correct about how soon they would reach this keep of hers. She had every confidence that Ranma and his two retainers could handle the band that was after them, in their true forms. The problem would be the rest of the group they were traveling with. She was sure that she could beat Nabiki, because of who she was. And of course, Ranma would best the rest of them easily, even this so-called hero. Yet, she didn't want that to happen. She kept telling herself it was the possible risk to her Master if he were to fight the hunters and their current companions at the same time.
The might of the Hero alone was enough to give her Master trouble, at times. So, best to make sure that they didn't have to resort to that last chance tactic. Yes, it was all for her Masters sake, after all.
It had nothing to do with the rather confusing feelings that this infuriating woman she clung to caused in her. None at all.
Ryouga charged along between Ranma and Akane. He knew part of it was to protect his master, and to make sure that he did not get lost as often happened. The other reason, and the one that if he had been asked he would probably have freely admitted to, was that currently the rope around his neck was looped around the wrist of Kasumi. It seemed to give her some small measure of comfort and strength, and right now the priestess needed as much of both as possible. Ryouga cast his beedy gaze up at Kasumi, and then over at his Master. At that moment, he made up his mind. He would die for either of them, if it came to that.
Nabiki had a grim look on her face as she scouted ahead. They were in a race, and this was one they had to win. Every mile, every hour was being bought at the expense of Kasumi, and it was only a matter of time until she couldn't keep up the spell. And once she dropped it, there would be no way she could cast it again for several days, at the earliest. After eight hours of rest, she should at least be able to function, and harness the basics of her divine gifts. Until then, they were on their own. And Nabiki was all too aware that the force that followed behind their pursuers had to be large. There was no other explanation for the size of the forces they had encountered, and there would not be any wandering demons that had a grudge to settle this time, she was sure of it.
No, they would have to handle this on their own, and without the full force of two of their strongest.
Ranko cast a look at each of the humans, and shook her head in wonder. Why were they going to such lengths for a stanger and her pets? In the Demon King's domains, they would have been left behind to fend for themselves. That just was how things were among those that worshipped the Lady of Night. You were strong, and took care of yourself or you died. It was that simple. The way humans did things never ceased to perplex her. It went against all that she had been taught as Ranma, and he had never questioned it, not until the first couple of forays into the human's world. Now, he had to wonder what could happen. His parents had gotten along fairly well, even if his father was a disgusting man. Could they coexist with the humans? Were the teachings of the priests wrong?
Could there perhaps be a future standing alongside some of the humans?
The party continued to press onward as day turned to night, and the howls of their pursuers continued to grow closer. They pushed ever onward as night moved towards day, even as Kasumi became ever weaker and more drained by the hour. No one knew how much longer Kasumi could keep the blessing in effect, no one but Kasumi herself.
As the day dawned, the howls died off as their pursuers broke off the chase until the sun would set once again. Shortly after sunrise, they came upon the ruined keep. It's outer curtain wall was mostly loose piles of rocks, and the buildings besides the keep itself had collapsed at some time in the past.
Akane and Nabiki shared a quick look, and Nabiki nodded before she moved to scout the keep as Akane gently roused Kasumi enough to tell her that she could stop.
"It's okay, Kasumi. You can stop now. Rest, please." Akane said as she laid Kasumi down gently.
Kasumi nodded as she slowly let out her breath,and they could feel the sense of overwhelming vitality fade slowly from them. Kasumi reached out, and as her fingers slid over the great, hairy mass of Ryouga's side a relaxed smile graced her face before she slipped into blessed sleep.
Ryouga huffed once in a fond manner then settled down next to Kasumi as he watched her with one eye.
Akane laughed as she sat down and relaxed for a few minutes while they waited for Nabiki to scout out the way ahead. "Kasumi seems to have grown Rather fond of your traveling companion."
Ranko laughed and nodded as she regarded Ryouga, who once again didn't look at her. She laughed and relaxed as well. "It seems to be mutual."
Akane grinned as she looked at Ranko. "It's not surprising, everyone and everything loves my older sister. It's only natural, after all. She was blessed by the Goddess of Light."
"Surely that's not the only reason?" Ranko asked as she moved a little closer to Akane.
Akane smiled and shook her head. "It helps, but mostly she is just a good person."
Ranko thought about that for a moment, then nodded. "I can see that. So, be honest with me. How bad are our chances here?"
Akane paused, then sighed. "As long as we can make sure that they can't come at us in numbers, and that we can control the engagement? We will be able to last for a while. I'm not bad in a fight, and I can handle several at once. As long as we can find someplace that has sunlight, we can at least limit the usefulness of the goblins, and they probably make up the bulk of their forces. Now, I expect that the riders were just to force us to go to ground, if they were not able to overrun us. I would bet that they will hold outside, and make sure that we can't escape. They will let their main force handle taking us out. It's what I would do. So, we do our best to fortify, make a defensible position, and hold out for a patrol. After that, we just have to wait until a force comes to rout them. See, not that bad." Akane said with a strained smile on her face.
Ranko eyed her and sighed. "So, that bad. I see." Ranko fiddled with the dagger on her belt, but didn't draw it. She would wait and see, and change back to her true form as a last resort.
Akane chuckled a grim little chuckle. "Don't worry. I'm the Hero, I will win. Or die trying."
"That would be the part that worries me right now." Ranko admitted to herself and Akane, and bit her lip. Why did things have to be so complicated?
The pair looked up as Nabiki came jogging back with Xian Pu perched on her shoulder still. "It looks as good as can be expected. The outer works are a lost cause, and most of the entrances besides the main doors are pretty well sealed. Now, the main doors are a problem. They are wide, and they look like they were bashed in. No help there, I'm afraid. We might be able to narrow the entrance some with debris, but it won't take them long to force their way through. There is one stairway at the back of the keep that looks like it is intact, so we can fall back to the second floor when we have to. I don't think they will be able to use the other stairs, not without a fair amount of work piling stones up. We can buy some time, but we will have to fall back to the second floor, and after that? There is a third floor, but I didn't have a chance to scout it. The entire floor could collapse for all I know."
Akane nodded and gently lifted Kasumi into her arms. The exhausted woman barely stirred. "Let's get to it, then. With any luck, we can at least get some rest before they try our defenses."
"You think they will risk attacking us without the main force?" Ranko asked as she picked up her backpack, and took Ryouga's rope in hand.
"They will. They will want to at least try, so that when their leader shows up, they can say they haven't just been sitting around. It won't be much, since they will keep back enough forces to make sure that we can't escape." Akane said, then followed Nabiki towards the ruined keep.
Ranko followed behind, as she wondered why she hadn't left already. It would be easy to leave, and let their pursuers deal with Akane and the rest of them. She was fairly sure that they were chasing down the hero, regardless of what Xian Pu had said.
Surely her little secret hadn't been let out of the bag.
They had a cold meal, and started to pile up stones and half-rotted timbers to seal off the entrance as best as they could. They made another barricade at the other entrance of the small entryway, and then half of them laid down to get some rest. Nabiki and Kasumi were the first ones to get to sleep, while Akane and Ranko kept watch. The pair remained mostly quiet, each intent on the view they were tasked with keeping an eye on, and their own personal thoughts. Xian Pu and Ryouga each laid by the human that they had taken interest in, or in Xian Pu's case, on her. It was a development that Ranko was still unsure of how to handle. She knew that in time it would be moot, since she was standing across the room from her worst threat and bitterest enemy, according to the rules that both existed by in their particular roles. Hero and Demon King.
The day passed, and around mid afternoon they swapped shifts, with Nabiki keeping a lone watch for a time to let Kasumi rest as long as possible. She sat and idly petted Xian Pu as she paced back and forth to keep a watch on the two best routes towards the keep. She had been fairly certain that they would not attack until the sun was down, but if they had enough orcs, that might not be the case. She looked down at the fidgeting cat she had cradled in her arms and smiled. 'At least if worst comes to worst, you should be able to get out of here, you little furry slut. I almost envy cats for how practical they are. People and dogs will happily die for their companions, while cats will escape and live to hunt another day." Nabiki laughed as Xian Pu made an indignant little sound and looked over at Ranko to make sure that she was in fact asleep before she rubbed her head against the hand of the woman who held her.
Xian Pu enjoyed their hunts, and the attention that she received from this annoying human. Perhaps she would help, if it suited her. It would be for the benefit of her master, after all. If he didn't have to fight, then the chances of him being able to keep his true identity a secret were higher, after all. She nodded to herself and rubbed against the human's hand again. Yes, it was all for her Master's sake.
As night fell, Nabiki woke the others. It was an hour later when they saw movement at the edge of the woods, and shortly after that a number of small figures started to skulk towards the keep in the pale moonlight. By the time the small force had reached the entrance, the party was ready for them. They had intentionally left some gaps, so that the attackers would be more likely to try this entrance, instead of opening one of the others. Their best chance lay in dictating the fight as much as they could. They could hear the sounds of the goblins as they explored the outer walls of the keep they sheltered in. One particularly daring goblin climbed up and looked in through one of the narrow slits that served as windows on the first floor. He received a stone for his initiative, and they didn't see any others that tried that particular tactic again. A bit later, small hands began to try to pry apart the barricade, and those that sheltered within readied themselves. At Akane's nod, Ranko stoked up the small fire so that they would have more light, and she grabbed a sturdy chunk of wood. A makeshift club was better at first than the daggers she carried, and was easily replaced. Akane was sure that they would be able to salvage something for Ranko to use, once they repelled this first foray.
The sounds of the goblins outside grew more excited as they managed to pry away a few more stones and bits of wood, then they were through the outer barricade. They rushed towards the scant few defenders with almost wild abandon. They were fair from the best looking goblins the party had seen. They had scars and missing fingers or eyes. There were the damaged and least useful members of those that had chased them.
An expendable force that would throw themselves at their foes in the name of the Lady of the Night.
Ten of them rushed towards the inner barricade as they brandished the assorted crude weapons that they were equipped with. The lone archer at the back fell with one of Nabiki's daggers in his eye before he had a chance to get a shot off, and then they were engaged.
Kasumi stood towards the back of the room, and hoped that she would not have to call upon the Goddesses miracles too soon. She had rested enough to feel better, but the divine grace that her Goddess had bestowed upon her would take more time to fully return to her. She could manage a number of lesser castings, but of the greater ones she would be able to manage one, maybe two at most.
Ranko was stationed behind Nabiki and Akane, and hid behind her own little pile of rubble with just her eyes peeking out above it. She was the last line of defense for Kasumi in case they somehow made it past Nabiki and Akane. She shook her head as she looked at the makeshift weapon in her hand, and longed for the dark blade that was her birthright as the Demon King.
Akane and Nabiki were behind the inner barricade, and were the vanguard of their defenses. Akane with her sword and shield and the heavier armor she wore was a wall that would hopefully break their opponents' charge. Nabiki had both of her hands filled with her daggers as she darted back and forth around Akane, and handled any that tried to press past the stalwart form of the Heroine.
The engagement lasted only a brief period of time, as Akane proved her mettle against the superior number of foes. In fact, with the narrow confines of the entryway the very numbers that the goblins counted on were their greatest weakness. Sadly, both Nabiki and Akane were all too aware that with sufficient numbers, they would be overwhelmed and forced to fall back or be overrun.
As Akane cleaved two of her foes in twain with a particularly vicious swipe of her blade, the last two attempted to flee from them. Nabiki killed one, but only wounded the other. She looked at Akane to see if she wanted the rogue to run down the fleeing goblin, but Akane just shook her head. They couldn't risk there being more of them waiting outside. Better to let one of them escape and inform the leader of what he saw, than to risk any more injuries.
Kasumi moved forward to tend to the minor injuries that Akane and Nabiki had sustained in the brief fight, as Ranko wondered where the unstoppable warrior she had faced had gone. Akane seemed no more than a human, a skilled one, but the preternatural skill and might she had shown before was not evident now. It was something for Ranko to ponder over, when they were not fighting for their lives, at least. Or maybe she would just ask Akane, not that the Heroine was likely to tell some random person that she had decided to travel with.
For now, they had best collect what was usable, and move the bodies out of the way until they could dispose of them tomorrow.
