al709382@campus.ccm.itesm.mx
The Caller's Plight, by Jorge Pratt
Fourth Test, part D
Cast away the fears
"Heart of Weakness... In Esper language, it would be
'Dysithal'...
"A demon that acquires its might from others' fears, from
the despair of the people..."
"Everyone has to face this demon... and the way they deal
with such fear and despair marks their inner strength..."
"But as one loses fear, as despair makes way for hope, the
demon is sure to vanish... "
* * *
Ukyou, Konatsu and Mog suddenly awakened, blinking as they
found themselves back in Ucchan's.
Dysithal felt a bit of his strength diappear.
* * *
A gleaming vehicle flew high over Canadian skies, skimming
the clouds as it swooped down a few meters. With the sun
casting a strong light upon Epoch, the time-travelling ship
resembled a shooting star in the middle of the day.
At the helm, Phaeron sighed and turned to the back seat
for a brief instant. Sighing, he said to his twin, "Raphael, could
you take over for a while?" Then he turned to Akane, "I need to
have a talk with her. You think you could come to the front for
a minute?"
Both blinked at him, but silently nodded. Phaeron crawled to
the back while his brother slid over to the pilot's seat, then
Akane crawled to the front and sat at Raphael's right. Sitting
next to her, Phaeron turned silently to Ranko, but she slowly
turned away.
"Could you..." he began, addressing his twin again. He didn't
need to say more, Raphael simply snapped his fingers and a
barrier of Shadow magic separated the front and back seats,
then Akane reinforced the wall with a Silver shield of her own.
The pair remained silent for a few minutes, not knowing who
should start nor how. Finally, they both dropped their pride and
took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry," they said simultaneously. Blushing as deep blue
met blazing red, they turned away from each other and fiddled,
then slowly turned their heads to face each other again.
"I should've told you," Ranko was the first, now that the
apology had been sent. "I shouldn't have waited until now."
He shook his head, "Don't worry, Ranko-chan." He sighed, "I'm
the idiot here. I should have understood how much it hurt for
you to know it for so long."
"But you're the one who's gonna die. I should have told you
the minute you came back."
Phaeron smiled at her, "Ranko-chan, it's okay." He looked
downwards, "I mean, what difference would it have made? I would
still be dying anyway." He took her hand, turning to face her
again, "But I'm still grateful, you know? I had the chance to see
you again. Besides..." he gently squeezed her hand, making her
turn mild reddish, "...I might have killed myself back then, but
you... You brought me back. Thank you."
Ranko swallowed hard, seeing his eyes scanning into her
own, "N-no prob, Phaeron-kun." She slipped her hand out of his
hold, "I'd do to again if I had to."
"You don't mean that, do you?" he asked, worried.
She smiled amusedly, "It's an expression, Phaeron-kun." This
time it was she who took his hand, "But I still meant to use the
Caller back then. Because I... I never got the chance to thank
you."
* * *
Shampoo suddenly turned human, to the surprise of the
medical staff that was trying to use a defibrillator to revive
Cologne. Yelping, the old ghoul came to life and leapt out of the
way before the paramedic fried her with the electrical jolt.
"I-It's alive!!" the nurses gasped.
"Who're you calling 'it'!?!" she bonked them with her staff.
Dysithal's might was shattered.
* * *
"Ranko-chan...?"
She closed her eyes, smiling. "Phaeron-kun, I really want to
thank you for all you've done for us. Thank you for waking me up
and letting me come back to normal. Thank you for saving my life
all those times." She sighed, a slight hint of sadness in her
voice, "Thank you for being around when I needed you. Thank
you..." she looked up at him, "for being my friend."
Phaeron didn't know what shade of red to turn. The most
tomboyish girl in all of Japan, speaking like that? Where had her
bloated pride gone to?
* * *
The black-eyed dove suddenly shrieked and disappeared in a
puff of feathers, its gaze no longer paralized Mink and Mousse.
Shaking off the dizziness, they flew over to the counter and
looked for some hot water.
A shard of the demon's power fell. And another.
* * *
"There, I said it," Ranko snickered, turning away and
crossing her arms, returning to her usual mood. "But that's why I
brought you back," she said, "You've done it for me so many
times... I... I'm sorry for yelling at you when you were trying to
protect me," she smirked childishly, "I think I'm beginning to miss
those shields of yours." Her voice had been so low in volume he
hardly heard her words, as if she were trying to hide them. "But
I still wish there was a way to keep you from dying."
Phaeron put his hand on her shoulder, "Thank you, Ranko-
chan. But like He said, I will have to face my destiny as it is.
I'm grateful you brought me back. Thanks to you I've experienced
many things. And..." he sighed, "no matter what happens, I'll
always think about that." He smiled at her again, "Even if I have
to die, I'm ready, and it's not so bad. I mean, I've lived 1501
years already, I did a lot of things, it's time I pay the check."
He smirked, looking away, "Even when I still got a lot of things
to do."
* * *
Herb and Yuannyan suddenly woke up, finding themselves
inside the gymnasium in a rather.... compromising position.
"H-Herb-chan..." in Herb's arms, Yuannyan tried to cover
herself, aware of the prince's reaction to bare female bodies.
Herb _did not move_. He was completely frozen... even when
he fainted, a big grin on his face. Yuannyan giggled at him.
Another shard fell.
* * *
"Ranko-chan, it was my own decision to do that at the
Gates," Phaeron said, "You shouldn't blame it on yourself. If
anything, you gave me four more months of life." He moved the
hand he had placed on her shoulder, slowly bringing it down her
arm to finally hold her wrist. "And you're still trying to help
me," he took her hand in his, "Thank you so much, Ranko-chan."
"Pha... Phaeron-kun," Ranko gulped, already as red as her
hair. She had rarely heard anyone speaking with such sincerity,
she could hardly believe this was the same man who bellowed in
battle cries as he faced the World Devourer. But then again, she
hadn't been faced with this ever before either. The girl who
wouldn't flinch nor hesitate while fighting a mad sorceror was
now trapped in a corner as it was her turn to speak. But no
matter how hard she tried, only three words appeared on her
mind, two pronouns and a verb. Words that Phaeron's actions were
forcing out of her.
* * *
"Please, not again!" Ryouga bellowed as he burst through
the door. He successfully entered the hallway... then got lost
and ended up in the garden.
The final shard of Dysithal's power fell.
* * *
Ranko swallowed hard, and spoke. But before the words left
her mouth, she reversed Phaeron's hold and once more took his
hands in her own. "Phaeron-kun, I... I want you to know that... no
matter what happens..." she looked downwards, "I'll never forget
you."
"Ranko-chan..." he began to melt. But suddenly she released
him, sliding across the seat to reach the far end. With a deep
sigh, she rested her chin on her fist and looked out the cockpit,
staring into lake Ontario. Far away, she caught a glimpse of
Niagara Falls and smiled. Holding that smile, she turned back to
Phaeron and snickered at the position he was in.
"What do you say?" he asked, taking each of her hands in
his own. "I think we both need it."
She nodded eagerly. Very slowly, they put their arms
around each other in a tight hug. It was comforting, more to
release their pain than anything else. For once, neither even
hinted a blush. They just rested against each other, showing
broad, absent smiles. For one brief eternity they held each
other innocently, neither wanting to let go. But eventually they
had to, already missing each other's proximity. Their arms slipped
over the other's, finally meeting the hands and holding them,
then they just spread their fingers and intertwined them with
the other's.
"Should we...?" Phaeron asked, "At least one last time?"
Ranko giggled, and nodded.
* * *
The yashas cried as they vanished back into the Shadows.
Gasping, Nodoka hurried for Ranma and was relieved to see he
was all right. She could hear Ryouga's famous quote come from
the garden, she sighed in relief as everyone else was safe.
All of Dyisthal's power had come from Fear. From things
that make people be afraid, things that weaken one's will.
Everyone has their own demon, just as everyone has a guardian
angel. Sometimes, these demons are too powerful to be overcome
head-on. However, when the fears are confronted and cast away,
the demons lose their strength. Souls become stronger. People
regain their spiritual might.
It is then that one can defeat the personal demons. By
courage and strength of spirit, through will power and
determination. No demon, regardless of its might, can oppose a
person's strong will.
And now, the demon that plagued them had been defeated.
Not by physical means, nor through combat. The answer was so
much easier to come by.
Faith, pure and simple.
* * *
Akane and Raphael nodded. The people in the back should
have settled everything by now. In coordination, they both
retrieved their magic barriers and turned to the back seat. They
stared agape as it was... empty?
"Where..." Akane was about to say when a large red blur
zipped past Epoch. Blinking in surprise, she looked at it closely.
Ranko laughed good-heartedly as the Phoenix she was riding
swooped down, then climbed back up and twisted its trajectory to
fly around Epoch. Narrowing his wings, Phoenix darted straight
for the Horseshoe Falls , entering the moist winds and coming
out drenched. Ranko just flung her arms upwards while closing
her eyes, gleefully receiving the cold water from the cascade.
The poncho-wearing passengers of the "Lady of the Mist" boat
stared widely at the redhead and her fiery condor-sized mount.
"Ranko-chan..." Phoenix thought. looking back at her while
climbing up to head for the American side of the Falls, "Thank
you for all of this. I'll never forget it. But now, I promise you
to live to the fullest."
Ranko calmed down a little, stroking the moist feathers on
the Esper's neck. "Phaeron-kun... I'll always remember you."
The demons were indeed defeated.
And when it comes down to accepting one's destiny, what
better way to greet death than with a smile of joy?
Changes
"We're ho-- aagh!"
"You're safe!" relieved, Nodoka crushed her daughter in a
hug.
"Not... anymore..." Ranko gasped.
"Auntie? What...?" Akane started. This wasn't Nodoka's usual
"squishing relief" hug.
"What happened?" Phaeron asked, seeing a dizzy Ranma rub
the back of his head.
"Never mind..." Nodoka said, not releasing the redhead, "It's
all right now... Everything is all right..."
"I don't think so," Raphael snickered. Blinking, Nodoka
released the purple, redhaired mass she was holding.
* * *
"This is the best day of my life!" Happosai bounced towards
the Tendos with his four meter-wide sack, "Well, maybe the
second best..."
And it was. It was still morning and he now carried the
second largest bounty he had ever acquired. In fact, considering
all the houses he had yet to pillage, he would probably break
his own record by the time he reached the Tendos'. Just a small
"pit-stop" by that apartment house and it would all be over.
"Hi, Akemi-chan!" Happy sang out as he landed on the
balcony, staring happily (yes, I know. That's a bad pun ^_^)
through the redhead's neglig�.
"Ak! You again!" she hurriedly collected the undergarments
left out to dry and tossed the hanger at his head, "Get outta
here!" He idly swerved to avoid it, his eyes fixed on her chest.
"Hey, Kyoko! The old perv's here again!"
"Kyoko?" Happosai's eyes became even _larger_. He hadn't
yet been presented to this "Kyoko." He grinned evilly as he
began to imagine a young woman with dark, long hair, clad in a
tennis outfit...
"Here!" Akemi flung the daydreaming pervert towards a
tennis uniform-clad Kyoko, who let go with a mighty backhand
that sent him way, WAY up into the air.
"Hey, you've been practicing!" Akemi beamed while Kyoko just
brushed her hair.
The midget and his sack sailed through the skies, the grin
still locked on his face as he now started to drool. Ending up
all the way back to the Tendos, he peeled off his face from the
roof tiles and looked around...
"So, I hear you've been to Ikkoku..." said the Fire Phoenix
as he loomed over Happosai. "I've waited a long time for this..."
"That's my line!" Happy drew out an unlit grenade, "Now I'll
get even for those aura shields!"
"You can--"
"Happodaikarin!!"
"GoldBird!"
"Hm?" Nabiki looked up from her wads of money, then saw a
young man and a small freak fly off into the distance, the
latter's sack dropping underwear everywhere.
The Blue Thunder of Furinkan High strode mightily upon his
path, "What a heavenly vision of the Sun Goddess' ascention..." he
gazed towards the golden disk, then saw bright spots as he was
blinded by it. "Ah, tell me, heavens," he spoke, waiting for his
eyesight to return, "what path should I, the noble Tatewaki of
the house of Kuno, follow so I can enter the heart of my
beloved..."Clearing his head, he looked up...
Just as a bra fell on his face. Tearing away the item from
his face, he looked akwardly at it, "The heavens' answer..." he
whispered in awe. But then he caught a glimpse of the
personalized tag on the strap. "AAAAH!" he gasped at recognizing
the name of one of his loves on the tag.
"Hey, gimme that!" a pervert shrieked, lunging for the bra.
"Fiend! I shall smite you!" the kendoist prepared to slice
with his bokuto. Too bad Phaeron landed head-first on top of
Kuno's head.
"Hah! It is the miscreant bird-man, in an alliance with the
garment-snatching scoundrel!" having nothing in his skull, Kuno
recovered immediately, forgetting how Happosai was rubbing the
bra against his cheek. He aimed his weapon to a spiral-eyed
Phoenix.
"Oh, ho ho..." Happy grinned, "I didn't know I had taken
this..." his eyes were glazing over at the marvel.
"Cad! Release my love's garment!" Kuno suddenly turned back
to the pervert.
"The what!?" Phaeron stared in anger at the pervert.
"Aaahh... To think that I hold the brassiere of--"
"Stop that!" Phaeron booted him away, unconsciously
grabbing the bra.
"You... boor..." Phaeron sweated visibly when Kuno suddenly
became dark, lightning crackling all around.
"Huh?" a pigtailed redhead happened to be passing by. She
blinked quizzically at the lightning, considering there wasn't a
cloud in the sky and since winter had started long ago, the rain
season was over.
"Now... you will pay..." Kuno scowled menacingly at Phaeron,
who hadn't even looked at the bra's tag yet.
"Hey!" Ranko called, seeing the two about to fight,
"Phaeron-kun, what're you..."
He suddenly relaxed, dropping his arms and smirking. "Guess
there's a first time for everything," he said, putting a blindfold
over his eyes. "I'm gonna die, anyway," he thought, "I could cut
the guy some slack."
Ranko cocked an eyebrow, blinking at his odd behavior.
"C'mon. Attack me. I'll let you win," Phaeron said. Ranko
facefaulted.
"Fool!" Kuno rushed in...
* * *
"'There's a first time for everything,' you say. Stupid
baka," Ranko muttered as she nursed the bruised and beaten
Esper on the floor of the Tendos' living room.
"I understand that 'live to the max' thing," Akane said," But
letting Kuno win?"
"Next time he'll try eat your cooking," Ranko said before
ducking a swing of a nearby bokken, "Heh. Getting slow,
oneechan?" she grinned.
"Slow!?" Akane swiped at her again.
"Oh, right. You're a lightning," Ranko mocked as she ducked
again. "You-- urk." She found it hard to speak when Akane
slashed down and straight into the snickering face. "Then I guess
I better don't tell you what made them fight," Ranko rubbed her
nose.
"What?"
"Here," Ranko handed Akane a bra.
"This is mine..." she took it. Then glowed blue, "You
pervert!" Akane punched the redhead across the room.
Ranko just asked, "Why?" before crumbling.
"Oh, right, you're a girl too," Akane stopped herself, "Force
of habit, I guess."
"Yeah, habit..." came a weak voice from the floor. "Besides...
Phaeron-kun found it."
"He..." Akane looked down at the unconscious face. "You
pervert!" she added another bruise to Phaeron's head, bringing
him back to the conscious world.
"Oww..." he sat up, feeling his head, "I don't remember being
hit here..."
"What were you doing with this!?" Akane bonked him again.
"And what were you thinking, letting Kuno win?" Ranko
followed.
"Try to be kind to others before dying..."
"Then next time you'll let Gosunkugi beat you up?" Ranko
snickered, "Hey, there's an idea..."
"Gosun... Hey, that's right," Phaeron looked up as if
recalling something.
"You _are_ going to let him beat you up?" Ranko blinked.
"I just remembered why I wanted to come here," he replied,
rubbing his bruised head. "Akane, you think your father could let
me use the dojo for a day or two?"
"Huh? What for?" Akane blinked.
"Well, if I'm gonna die I don't want to carry any secrets to
the grave," he smirked, "I'm offering to train people and teach
them my techniques. But if I ask Mrs. Otonashi to let me use
Ikkoku's back yard to teach how to shoot ki blasts, she'll give
me the eye, so..."
"I'll tell him," Akane nodded. "When do you want to give
these lessons?"
"In about a week, maybe," he said. "I've still got a lot of
things to do before going," he added with a smirk.
"Oh? Like what?" Ranko asked. "Will you finally tell me
about China?"
"You don't give up, do you?" he snickered, "By the way, got
this for you," Phaeron handed her a video tape.
"Very funny," she glared at him, receiving the RayEarth
video. "Why do you people keep giving me these?"
"Well, you like that show a lot, don't you?" Akane giggled.
"How could she not like it?"Phaeron added, "The show's main
star looks just like her."
"Yeah, right. Like I've got a meter-long pigtail," Ranko
replied sarcastically. "And how can you guys say I like this? It's
sissy stuff and has way too much sugar."
"...she says as she puts the tape in the VCR," Phaeron
pointed at her, while Akane nodded in agreement. "Anyway..." he
continued, "I want to make use of these days. I want to go to a
few cities around the world, see the other Espers, you know, the
usual 'moribund activities.'"
Akane smiled at him. He had taken this death business quite
well since they went to the End of Time, two days ago. Now he
not only accepted his situation, but actually made fun of it. But
she knew that deep down, he was probably suffering. It was the
same deal with Ranko. Although she had also resigned to his
future parting, and had taken it in stride, Akane knew that when
the moment came, Ranko would be terribly hurt. And the fact that
the two had become closer since the trip to the End of Time
only made matters worse.
But still, Akane couldn't suppress a snicker when she saw
them sitting next to each other, with the TV singing out the
tape's opening score.
"Okay, I guess I _do_ like it. A bit," Ranko smirked.
"Then that explains why you want me to teach you Fire
magic," Phaeron replied. She snickered.
"Hmm..." Akane looked at them, "I was right. You two _have_
grown closer."
"W-what?" they were both hued deep red, sweating nervously
as they turned to each other.
"Oneechan! Will you cut it out!?" Ranko glared at her, "I
told you it's NOTHING like that! Can't we be best friends without
getting weird looks!?"
"Besides, you promised you wouldn't say anything," Phaeron
glared also, but only mildly.
"Say anything about what?" Ranko asked.
"About..." he was about to say, "N-Nothing! Nothing at all!"
he defended.
"Didn't you say you didn't want to take secrets to the
grave?" Akane giggled.
"What secrets?" Ranko cocked an eyebrow.
"Nothing, really! Nothing!"
"You don't want her to know?" Akane went on.
"Wha... What don't you want me to know?!" Ranko grabbed him
by the collar.
"No-- Uh-oh..." he caught a glimpse of Ranko's brand new
Hammerspace Membership card. "Please have pity on a dying man..."
"Or maybe you don't want her to know because it's a
surprise?" Akane switched the course of events.
"A... surprise?" Ranko blinked, then smiled in curiosity,
"What surprise?"
"A... A..."
"And maybe you will tell her soon?" Akane smirked
mischievously.
"T-Tell me what?" Ranko blushed.
"I..." Phaeron loosened his shirt's collar, feeling very hot
suddenly despite the winter weather.
"Maybe that 'something' has to do with a certain emerald
necklace...?"
"Ph-Phaeron-kun, you...?"
"Somebody help..." he thought.
"But maybe you should wait until Ranko-chan tells you
something..." Akane switched again.
"O-Oneechan...!"
"Tell me... something?"
"But then again, she wants it to be a surprise, right?"
"R-Ranko-chan...?"
"Oneechan!!"
"So who am I, revealing the surprises you have for each
other?"
"ONEECHAN!!"
"Akane, could you please be quiet!?"
"Oh?" she blinked innocently, showing a tiny smile. "Then you
_won't_ say it, then?"
"S-say what?" they both blinked.
"You know," Akane smirked as she scored a hit.
"Wh-what do you mean?" they stammered, turning very, very
red.
"Then you don't really mean it?" Akane blinked again.
"What are you talking about!?" Ranko was completely scarlet
by now.
"Akane, be quiet...!" Phaeron fiddled with his medallion
beneath his clothes, using this motion to remind her of the
promise.
"Hm?" she saw him play with the medallion, "Why are you
pulling your shirt, Phaeron-kun?" He blinked in surprise. "Oh,
that's right! You want me to keep quiet about the present you
bought for her!"
"Present?" Ranko blinked at him. "Phaeron-kun..."
"Akane...!"
"Yes, I remember! You bought her a dress!"
"Wha..." Phaeron could only feel Ranko's gaze crush him.
"Phaeron-kun! You mean you..." Ranko smiled widely.
"B-but I haven't bought anything!"
"You mean you didn't get her a Christmas present?" Akane
blinked.
"Oh..." Ranko slumped down. "It's okay, Phaeron-kun..."
"That's not what I meant, I..."
"Then you mean you wouldn't buy her anything? Isn't she
your friend?"
"Eh?" he sweated visibly.
"Phaeron-kun, is this true?" Ranko glared at him.
"Friends always get presents for each other," Akane
insisted, giggling.
"Phaeron-kun..." Ranko called a mallet from Hammerspace.
"AAARGH. Akane, could you stop it!?"
"But then again, you and Ranko-chan are _more_ than simply
friends, right?"
"Urk." They both turned a very powerful reddish hue.
"Oneechan, we're just BEST friends!"
"Akane, you promised!"
"If you're more than friends, then you should get very
special presents!"
"Wh-wha..." Ranko blinked.
"Ranko-chan, please punt me into the air before I go mad,"
Phaeron pleaded.
"How can you ask her to do that? After all you two--"
BOOM.
"There, you see that!?!" Ranko turned back to Akane, puffing
after fulfilling Phaeron's wish. "Since we're best friends, I can
get away with that and he doesn't get angry!" She blinked at
Akane, who was busy trying hard not to laugh. She didn't have
much success.
"S-sorry. Can't help it," Akane snickered. "Hey, creating
misunderstandings is fun!"
"Oneechan..." Ranko glared at her, "You did that on
purpose...?"
"I... I'm sorry...!" Akane laughed, holding her belly.
"ONEECHAN..." Ranko took a bokken. Akane had done this to
her many times in the past, so...
"Hm?" Akane, still snickering, stared wide-eyed at the
bokken held by Ranko.
"Akane no baka!" the fuming redhead chased her out to the
street, Akane laughing all the way.
* * *
"Okay, all set," Phaeron fastened the straps of his
backpack.
"Be careful, okay?" Ranko said, walking him to the door of
the Tendo house.
"Thanks for letting me use the dojo, Mr. Tendo," he said.
"Oh, it's no problem," Soun replied, gazing upon the treasure
he had been given as guarantee.
"Sure you want to go by yourself?" Akane nudged Phaeron,
who glared despite turning red.
"Did you forget what happened yesterday, oneechan?" Ranko
calmly retrieved her bokken.
"I'll be back in about five days," Phaeron said, coming out
of the house and flaring his aura. "Yes, I'll bring souvenirs."
"You don't have to as long as you don't die there," Ranko
said, worried that his time might run out unexpectedly.
"Don't worry," he smiled, "See you!" he waved as he ran down
the street, then leapt up and shot like a bullet towards Europe.
The others waved back, then turned away and began to walk
towards the house. Akane blinked as the redhead remained looking
up to the sky, smiling.
"Hm..." the redhead sighed, then turned around. Akane giggled
at her. "What?" Ranko asked, still smiling.
"Nothing, nothing..."
* * *
"Phaeron-kun!" Kyoko called, putting down the phone.
"What's up?" the Esper came to the hallway.
Before giving him the message, Kyoko couldn't help but smile
at the teenager. Just yesterday, he had returned from a trip
around the world, and the minute he arrived he was hounded by
the other tenants, who savagely assaulted his backpack in
search of souvenirs. But then there was that _other_ message
she had to give him...
"Your friend Akane just called," Kyoko said, "She said
everything is ready at the dojo. You can go to those lessons
whenever you like."
"Thanks," he replied, then began to walk back to his room
to search for his martial-arts garb and staff.
"By the way..." Kyoko called again, "You know that girl with
the pigtail?"
"Yes, what about her?"
Kyoko smiled, "She was coming here every day since you
left, asking if you had called or something. She seemed to be
worried about you."
He blinked, "Uh, th-thanks. I'll go to her house first
anyway." Nervously turning red, he began to walk back once more.
"Phaeron-kun," Kyoko called yet again. But when he turned
around, she said nothing. She was simply smiling at him. Slowly,
as he understood that smile, he blushed mightily and smiled back.
"It's just a hunch," Kyoko said, "But maybe it's true."
"I hope you're right," he replied, clutching the medallion
beneath his clothes.
Later in the day, two people walked past the gates of the
Tendo residence, wearing Chinese martial-arts uniforms. All the
way from the Saotomes' they saw the posters put up by Phaeron,
advertisements he had placed to let people know about the
lessons he would give today. Confident, the pair was sure that
there would be a large gathering at the dojo, considering how
many people would be interested in learing powerful techniques.
"I bet there'll be at least fifty people in there," Ranko
said as they went around the house to reach the dojo.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, but if there are three
people in there I'll be satisfied."
"Then let's find out," Ranko said, then opened the door to
the dojo.
They both stared forward in shocked surprise.
_Nobody_ had come.
* * *
A depressed Esper and a redhead leaned against a wall, at
mid-afternoon, finally admitting that no one else would come to
the classes. Feeling quite unappreciated, Phaeron just slumped
down, crossing his arms as Ranko rolled her eyes.
"C'mon, it's not so bad," she said, "I mean, a student
eventually showed up."
"Yeah, but it was Gosunkugi and he only wanted to learn
magic. Voodoo magic, at that." He sighed, "Oh, well, at least we
trained for a while."
"It was a good workout, but you didn't even teach me
anything," she replied, slight annoyance in her voice.
"Don't worry, I'll teach you tomorrow. But I want to go get
a few things from my house on Esper World first."
"You're going back there?" she blinked, "Could I come too?"
He looked oddly at her, "What for?"
She glared, "Did you forget? According to what Seraphim-
chan said, these are the last days you've got! What if you die
as soon as you come back? I'm coming with you just to make sure
you're okay, got it?"
"Ranko-chan..." he smiled, "Thanks."
She smiled back, "Hey, I have to look after my friends,
right? Besides, you already went around the world all by
yourself. And I still want to know how it is in Esper World
without having to fight somebody."
"Are you sure? Remember that its magic was beginning to
affect you permanently by the time we left."
"So I'll turn into Tinkerbell. So what?" She snickered.
"Anyway, this could be your chance to stay there."
"Stay... What are you talking about?"
"Mirei-chan told me that Esper World's magic could keep you
alive without having to use Seraphim-chan's energy. Is that
right?" Phaeron nodded. "So why not go back to Esper World and
live there?"
"Ranko-chan, we've already been through this. I'm gonna die
in a few days and that's it. Believe me, I'd stay in Esper World,
but that would mean I'd have to lose all the new friends I made
here," he sighed, "It would mean I wouldn't talk to you again."
"What?"
"Because I don't think any of you would like to return to a
place that can turn you into magic creatures or even monsters."
Ranko turned red before saying, "I could go too, y'know..."
Her voice was barely audible, a whisper almost. But he still
heard it, and her words made him turn another shade of red.
Sighing, he shook his head, "Ranko-chan, you don't know how much
I appreciate what you said, but it just isn't right. Remember
what we were told at the End of Time. I can't escape this
destiny. If it's my time, so be it. But I won't run away from it."
Ranko slumped down, although she knew he would say that.
"Can't blame me for trying, right?" she smirked. "And I'm still
going with you when you go back to Esper World."
"Okay, okay. I was planning on going today anyway," he
replied, snickering, then realized that sunset would soon come.
"Well, nobody else will come and that's a fact. Wanna train once
more?"
"Will you teach me something this time?" she cocked an
eyebrow.
"Sure, c'mon," he motioned for her to follow. "But first..."
he took out his topaz Brindstone and focused on it. The gem
suddenly began to glow as he channelled his magic into it, he
grimaced slightly as tendrils of light were pulled from his body
and into the jewel.
"You okay?" Ranko asked.
"S-sure. Just a minute..." with a great effort he managed to
infuse the gem with all his magic power, in a flash of light he
suddenly transferred his four Elemental Forces into it.
"What did you do?" she blinked.
"Okay, now we're on equal footing," he smirked, "I just put
my magic power into this stone. For a few minutes, at least, I'll
be a human again, until the stone overloads and is forced to
return my powers."
"And why did you do that?"
He smirked, "I didn't want to have an advantage over you.
It would be too easy."
"Easy, eh?" she smirked, "I can take you on anytime!"
"Then let's go!" Phaeron dashed for her, "I can still use my
ki, though! That was never a magic power!"
"Let's see you try to use it!" Ranko smirked, also dashing
towards him. "Moko Takabishya!"
"BlueBird!"
A few minutes passed, with several strong lights coming
from the dojo's windows. But as the lesson went on, new shouts
and odd names came out of the redhead's mouth as Phaeron, in
the middle of the fight, taught her his techniques. But after a
while, the training was over, even though there was still a
strange glow coming from the recint.
"Phew..." Ranko put her hands on her knees, dispersing her
aura, "That was some workout... Thanks."
"Thank _you_," Phaeron replied, "Now, even if I die, you
could teach those techniques to other people." He put his staff
aside, "But you're really a fast learner."
"Hm?"
"I mean, I already taught you most of the Birds, your aura
shields are steadier and stronger, and you can shoot regular
blasts more easily." He paused, "But why couldn't you use the
RedBird, anyway?"
"I dunno," she replied, "Okay, BlueBird is based on
friendship, WhiteBird on hope and GoldBird on confidence. What's
RedBird based on?"
"I... uh, better ask Akane about that. She knows about it
too."
"Ask her? But _you_ developed that technique!"
"Yeah, but..." he turned deep red, "Okay, I'll tell you. Come
closer." She came near him, listening carefully as he whispered
RedBird's source to her ear. She blushed rapidly and stepped
away, glancing oddly at him.
"Then that's why Akane used it to save oniisan?" she asked.
"And... how did you...?" she started, with a timidness that came
unexpected from her.
"D-don't get me wrong," Phaeron stammered, "but that's one
of the things you've got to remember about China." He then said
under his breath, "Even if you helped me create the Four Birds."
"What was that?"
"Nothing, nothing!" he defended. "Well, guess we're through
with the training anyway." He turned away, taking his staff
again, "Or maybe..." with a sudden twist, he shot off a large
fireball towards her.
"Hah!" Ranko pulled down an aura shield, dispersing the
fireball into mere hot wind, "What'd you do that for!?"
"Yep, we're through all right," he smirked at her. "Guess I
can get my power back now." He took out his Brindstone, which
was beginning to glow.
"Hmm..." the redhead flashed a feline smirk at the sight of
the topaz...
"Now stay back," Phaeron warned, "This'll start casting off
energy in a second and if you get hit you'll--"
"Got it!" she cheered childishly as she grasped the jewel
and ran off.
"WAH!! Hey, gimme that!" he dashed in pursuit.
"Not until you tell me about China!" she stuck her tongue
out at him. "Besides, if Mink could use Shampoo's magic, I wanna
see if I can get YOUR magic too!"
"Are you crazy!? Give that back! You could get hurt for
playing with a Lunbrindel stone!"
The redhead ignored him, "Now let's see... You've got Fire,
Wind, Light and Silver, right?" Making a sharp left turn around
the house, she headed for the pond, and looked at the gem.
"Huh?" Phaeron suddenly felt himself recalling the magic
from the stone, "Ak! Ranko-chan, drop that stone!"
"Eh?" she sweated visibly when the topaz cast a dozen of
beams in all directions. "Wak!" she managed to get out as a one
beam hit her and engulfed her body in a white sphere.
"Ranko-chan!" Phaeron hurriedly stretched his hand. The
Brindstone suddenly flew to his hand, all of its beams spiraled
around his body as he was once more filled with his Esper magic.
"You okay!?" he reached into the sphere, HOPING to hold on to a
hand or a wrist rather than... something else.
"Uuhhhh..." the girl's eyes were spirals as he pulled her
out, with a small whirlwind around her head and silvery glimmers
flashing over her. "Wha happene..." she asked in absent voice.
"I told you to--" he started, but suddenly blinked and
snickered, finally bursting out in laughter.
"Huh?" she came to. "Hey, what's so funny!? Quit it!"
"Look," he pointed at her hair.
"Huh? Waah!" she noticed her pigtail had caught on fire.
Screaming, she dunked her head into the pond and unbraided her
hair, shaking off the sparks that wouldn't drown. Sitting back up,
she fumed at the snickering Esper.
"It's NOT funny, you jerk!" she yelled as she punched him
into the air.
"Pack lightly, okay? I'll drop by your house in an hour..."
his voice trailed off into the distance...
* * *
"Agh!"
"Are you okay?" Raphael kneeled by Seraphim, worried to
see her double over in pain.
"It... It's okay..." she whispered. "But I'm losing my
strength..."
"Phaeron left for Esper World a few minutes ago. You
should be okay by now..."
"It's just that... I'm afraid..." she turned to Raphael.
"Fiducia..." he held her.
"I... I don't have any strength to keep him alive... Esper
World should keep him alive longer, but..."
She suddenly turned to him, sheer worry in her face, "I'm
afraid that... when he comes back, I'll only have enough strength
to keep him alive for one more day..."
* * *
The wormhole caused by the Barrier Penetrator closed
behind them, releasing the pair into the skies of Esper World.
Although it was sunset when they left Earth, it was already
past nightfall upon arrival at the mystic planet. Combined with
the world's inherent magic, the stars above glowed brightly in
welcome.
"Yaa!" Ranko suddenly noticed they were suspended over two
miles over the peak of Seraphim's Beacon. As with all animated
characters, she didn't start falling until she realized there was
no ground beneath her.
"Calm down and use your aura," Phaeron reminded, pressing
down with his palms to create an ascending current of Wind.
Slowing down, he looked up and aimed a hand at the redhead,
catching her in another field of Wind. "I'll turn into a phoenix as
soon as we land on the Beacon's roof," he said, "Try to enjoy
the scenery in the meantime."
Calming down as she felt the warm currents decelerating
her drop, Ranko spread her arms and looked around. Despite the
fall, all the world beneath seemed to pause for her to admire it.
To the West, she could see the faint lights of the cities of
Eliann and Artanis, which had been brought out of the oceanic
depths. To the East, Sapphire Giants gleamed in the double
moonlight, honoring their name. To the South and Southeast there
were Kassir Canyon and the dreaded Cat's Eye. And finally, to
the Northwest, Silvermoon Lake shimmered to greet the arrivals,
the dark forest encasing it like a mirror's frame.
"You should see most of the world from here," Phaeron said,
strengthening the currents as they touched down softly on top
of the Beacon. "Look over there," he pointed, seeing she had
landed next to him, "Valran's in that direction. And Jurtahs is
over there," he pointed towards the North. Spreading his arms,
he morphed into the phoenix and turned back to her, "So?"
Shifting the weight of her small shoulder-bag, she nodded
and sat down on his back. Since they would only be staying for a
day, at most, there was no need for backpacks or luggage. With a
heave, Phoenix leapt away from the Beacon and rode the air
currents towards his house, in the entrance of Crisande Woods.
* * *
The light of dawn entered widely through the bedroom's
windows, illuminating the room with its golden light. Many avian
creatures from Esper World, like white cats with wings and beak,
chirped cheerfully as they greeted the sunrise. A few tiny
dryads stretched their arms in the powerful light, yawning,
before crawling back into their homes in the trees.
A low crackling sound came from one of the rooms of the
house, as the kitchen came to life by itself and began to
prepare breakfast. A warm scent floated away through the door,
filling all the habitations with its essence. A few of the small
winged cats came near, waiting for the owner of the house to
awake and perhaps share the meal with them.
Esper World had always been a peaceful land, yet today it
seemed to grow in natural joy. Already most of the planet was
busy with activity, commerce and other occupations were
beginning to take place between the many cities. However, it was
in Crisande Woods where most of the action was. The crystalline
trees reflected and filtered a great deal of light from the sun,
giving the valley a pale white glow with a very faint touch of
red, nearly pink. With the trees shedding their leaves, even the
ground itself was pinkish white, the winged cats were nearly
ghostlike in this environment.
With a light yawn, Ranko slowly opened her eyes, cuddled
beneath the covers on the bed. Rolling to her left, towards the
large window, she vaguely saw the bright glow that came from
outside. She smiled faintly at seeing the winged creatures
resting their paws against the glass, all of them setting their
squinted eyes on her. Fortunately, the differences between the
creatures and normal cats were more than enough for her to
remain calm.
Rubbing her eyes, she slowly spun to sit up on the edge of
the bed. Phaeron was still asleep on a couch in the living room
but, given how little time he had left, she decided to let him
sleep. Snickering, she saw one of the smaller creatures press
against the glass. She got up, then headed for the window and
opened it. She was nearly buried as all the creatures
affectionately rubbed their heads against her, some of them
passing beneath her hands to make her pet them. Giggling, she
stood up again and petted a few, gently pushing them out before
they wrecked the place.
But suddenly she was stopped by an odd sensation. All of
the creatures became surrounded by a mild, dark blue glow. A
wavy tendril of bluish light slowly detached from them, then
joined with her chest. Gasping in surprise, she quickly stepped
away. The glow ceased. On the nightstand, her emerald necklace
stopped shimmering.
"What the..." she started, noticing a strange tickling all
along her back and on her forehead. Shrugging as the tickling
faded, she yawned and sat on the edge of the bed again. Smiling,
she took her necklace and put it around her neck, looking
absently into the gold-framed jewel. Mixture of sadness and
hope, a sigh escaped her mouth as she lay back against the
bed's wooden headpiece. Casually looking to the side, she caught
a glimpse of the picture on the nightstand. Like a few others in
the house, it had been put down, as if trying to hide the image.
Curious, she took the picture, looking towards the open
door and into the corridor beyond, making sure Phaeron hadn't
awakened. As she slowly flipped the object, she wondered why he
would hide the picture, considering where she had found it.
"Huh...?"
The puzzled voice left her mouth without her even noticing.
With a few crystalline reflections being cast off, the frame's
glass surface shimmered in the abundant light. But it was her
eyes which sent off many reflections, as she stared silently
into the picture. A picture of herself.
The emerald on her chest hummed mildly, then slowly became
filled with light. An undescribable warmth began to spread in her
chest, the feeling slowly shaped a smile on her face. Awakened
by the constant pecking of beaks against glass, Ranko blinked
several times and looked around, realizing the winged creatures
were still hungry. With a mild red hue accompanying her absent
smile, she quickly changed out of her pajamas and leapt into her
normal clothes, as though nothing at all happened.
"Hey..."
Phaeron rolled on his side, groggily dismissing with his
hand.
"Hey, wake up," the female voice came again, joined by a
gentle prodding on his shoulder.
"Just five more minutes..." he replied, half asleep.
"C'mon, get up!" Ranko pushed him, "We've got to train!" She
paused for an instant. Although she almost asked him about the
photo, she decided to keep quiet when he began to open his
eyes.
"Okay, okay, I'm up," he groggily sat up, shaking off the
drowsiness. "Train, huh?"
"Sure, c'mon!" she eagerly pulled him to his feet and tossed
him a set of clothing from his own wardrobe, like a large auburn
coat with a black shirt and light brown trousers. No wonder he
had picked a "Rocketeer" outfit upon arriving on Earth, most of
his clothes were basically the same in color.
Blinking at her behavior, Phaeron took the clothing and
went to the bedroom. She was acting odd today, even for her. Oh,
well, he thought, as long as the death business didn't depress
her again...
Ranko could do nothing to remove that smile from her face,
even as she waited for him to come out of the room. Smirking
evilly, she quickly went all around the living room, searching for
more pictures. She was surprised to find many images of ordinary
Earth cities, from all different ages, and a few more of Esper
friends and the like. But then another picture caught her
attention: it was the largest, and was placed face-down on the
chimney's mantelpiece. She hurriedly walked over to it, with an
almost-childlike expectation to find an image like what she found
in the bedroom. Reaching out, she felt the carved wooden frame
that encased the photo. It was a bit heavy, but she slowly
lifted it...
"Hey," Phaeron suddenly came back, startling her. Puffing
slightly, she rapidly put the picture back without looking at it,
nearly being caught by his gaze. "Breakfast is ready, y'know," he
said, "C'mon!"
They were quiet as they disposed of the meal, with only
occasional comments about fighting styles and good-hearted jokes
about the demon that could no longer harm them. As they ended,
though, Ranko asked him about the winged creatures that awoke
her previously.
"Oh, they're just a few of the beings born in Esper World,"
he explained, "They live right here, in Crisande Woods, and I
guess they were hidden during the war." He snickered, "Those
guys you saw were the pets I had during the centuries I spent
here. They know that I'll go out and feed them in a little while,
but they were probably excited at seeing someone new here."
"I'll say. They practically buried me," she smiled.
Phaeron couldn't help but sigh sadly, "Guess I'll have to
ask Crystallus or Nadir to come over and take care of them in
the future." Understanding, Ranko silently looked down. "By the
way..." he suddenly said, "Did you feel anything unusual when you
saw those guys?"
"Huh?" she blinked, "Oh, right. Well, they started glowing
blue and I felt tingling all over."
He nodded in realization, "Just as I thought. Remember that
you were becoming affected by this place's magic?" She nodded.
"Since you've come back, Esper World tried to change you again,
but now you have magic of your own, so..."
"It's trying to change me again, but it's harder for this
world to do it," she finished.
"Right. Since those were creatures native from this planet,
they also have inherent magic," he turned to her, "Next time you
see another Esper animal here, stay away for a little while or
else Esper World will make a bridge between their magic and
yours."
"So in other words, if I come near one of those little guys
I'll be turned into an Esper?" she guessed.
"Roughly, yes," he replied, standing up and taking the
dishes to the sink. "But you should be okay as long as you
_don't_ have your Brindstone with you while you're in contact
with another Esper. It would act as a magnet for Esper World's
magic."
"Too bad..." she said, holding the gold chain in her fingers
while looking at the emerald that hung from it. Setting it down
again, she crossed her arms on the table and rested her head on
them, looking absently at Phaeron.
To think he was going to die soon... But at least they
spent great times. She hoped this could all be avoided, even
though she had to accept his near demise as a fact. Maybe if
they spent a little while longer on Esper World, despite the
magical threat that loomed over her...
"Phaeron-kun..." she thought, blinking slowly. "What did that
picture mean?" She smiled again, almost timidly although his back
was turned to her. "Could you... Do you..."
Blushing, she rapidly shook her head, negating her own
thoughts. "No, no, forget it, girl. You know it's not like that.
Besides..." she thought with a sigh, "even if you did, he sees you
as friend." She closed her eyes, turning away, "We're friends.
That's it. We're just friends."
Steeling herself, she turned back to him and stood up,
silently walking towards him to help with the dishes. He was
surprised, but readily moved aside to let her help. Smirking, she
lapped a bit of water and threw it in his face.
"Hey!" he countered the same way.
"Sorry," she stuck her tongue out at him. Pausing for a
second, she spoke, "You mind if I ask you something?"
"What?"
"Well, uh, you said you spent about five hundred years
here," she said, slightly hesitant.
"Yeah, what about it?"
"Wasn't it kind of lonely?" she asked. She sound of the
faucet kept her from hearing a heart hit the floor. "I mean..."
she continued, even more hesitant, "Didn't you find... someone?"
Phaeron of Fenix turned to ice.
"Uh, sorry," she apologized, noticing the look on his face. "I
didn't mean to..."
"That's okay," he dismissed, sighing. "It _was_ lonely. But
you shouldn't feel sorry for me," he turned to her. She felt his
gaze as if he had put a hand on her shoulder, and had the same
effect. "You were the one who spent a millenium and a half in
that spring."
"That's not what I meant. It hurt to be there, but, well,
it's not like I could _get out_. But you were already here..." she
didn't know how to follow, but then smirked, "I'm surprised you
didn't go off and marry somebody from this world."
He snickered, thinking, "Why do you think my Brindstone is a
topaz? And how do you think I got the nickname 'Phaeron'?"
Smiling, he joked, "What, you mean you wanted me to accept
Mireillia's offer?"
Ranko gagged, "That's not what I meant either!"
"Then what _do_ you mean?" he leaned a bit towards her.
"Eh..." she blinked, trapped by the question. "Hmph," she
turned away, miffled, "I was just curious, that's all. Besides, how
could I think a teenager would have the guts to get married,
anyway?"
"You forget, mentally I'm five hundred and seventeen years
old, chronologically I'm 1517," he snickered, "Just try and call me
immature."
"You _are_, but if you think you're not..." she lifted her
hands, walking away towards the cabinet.
"Looking for something?"
"Yeah, what do you feed those guys?" she pointed at the
winged cats that were peeking in from the glass door.
"Oh, right. Here, I'll show you," he walked over to her and
put his hands on her waist. Her eyes widened, "What're you...
Hey!" she was suddenly lifted towards one of the higher shelves,
which she couldn't previously reach. "Grab that brown bag and the
yellow vase," Phaeron said, waiting for her to do so. With the
nourishment in her hands, she looked down as he lowered her to
the floor again. He then turned away, opening the door.
The creatures chirped excitedly, all six of them walking
eagerly around the wooden plates where Phaeron usually served
their food. "Okay, first fill half of each plate with the stuff
from the bag," he said, turning to Ranko and taking the vase
from her hands, then waited until she filled the plates with an
odd reddish powder. Then he doused the clear white liquid into
the plates, turning the powder into an edible dough that the
creatures promptly crowded.
"What's this?" Ranko asked, poking the dough with a finger
and taking a small bit on the tip.
"What, you wanna try it?" he smirked. "Huh? You crazy!?" she
stared at him.
"It's not half bad, actually. Food's food, after all."
"No thanks," she pointed the finger at the smaller creature
from before, letting it lick away the substance. "So, let's go
train," she stood up.
"Okay, we just have to go that way," he pointed into
Crisande, then stood up and lead her out.
"Huh?" she felt a slight push in her calf. Looking down, she
giggled. The small creature was standing on its hind legs,
resting its paws on her leg and emitting a loud chirp.
"Looks like you made a friend," Phaeron snickered.
"Too bad I can't take you back," she took the creature in
her hands, letting it rub its head against her chin. Giggling
again, she put it down and walked away. Chirping, the creature
scurried back to the plates, pushing its way between the others.
* * *
"Haaaah..."
They both reared back to defensive stances, inside the
crystalline chamber made by the trees' foliage. Relaxing their
postures, they slowly returned to a stand-up position and bowed,
letting the last remains of battle aura fizzle in the atmosphere.
"I really like this place," Ranko said, looking at how the
trees were so closely huddle together that they formed walls.
"No wonder you built your house here."
"Yes, Crisande is one of the most beautiful places in this
world," Phaeron also looked around, then turned upwards to see
the overhead of white, nearly pink crystal leaves. "Too bad
there were clouds covering the moons last night. You see how
the sunlight fills this place with white light?" Ranko nodded.
"During the night it's even better, because the forest seems
made out of silver and diamond."
"...and you keep insisting on going back to Earth," Ranko
mocked.
"Well, if you like this place so much I could give you my
house," he said sincerely. She blinked, not expecting that retort.
"I mean, I won't need it, right?" he snickered.
"Yeah, right..." she tried to join him in that snicker, but
somehow couldn't anymore. "So..." she noticed how the sun was
beginning to set, "You know what time it is back home?"
"Hmm..." he looked up, "About seven pm, why?"
"Maybe we should go back," she said, "Mom could be getting
worried."
"You're right. Let's go pack, then."
* * *
"Okay, I'm ready," Phaeron said, waiting in the living room.
"Wait a sec... Alright, let's go," Ranko followed him to the
door.
For a moment, both stopped to look back at the interior of
the house. One, with the feeling that he would never see it
again. The other, thinking about all the things that had taken
place there, thinking about the picture she couldn't see but knew
what its image was. Both, sadly realizing that this house, this
_home_, would be deserted from now on.
"C'mon," Ranko pulled his arm before he became sad once
more. "Uh-oh..."
"Gaah! Quick, get away!" Phaeron stood back, noticing that
Esper World's magic was trying to influence Ranko again, through
him, especially now that she had her necklace on. For a few
instants, the dark blue glow that covered the pair hummed and
flashed, but then sputtered and faded. The emerald ceased
glowing again.
"That was close," Ranko said, still feeling a tingling
sensation on her back and forehead.
"Let's just visit Silvermoon and we'll leave," Phaeron said.
She wouldn't contest him, knowing that this would be the last
time he could see the shimmering waters of the magic lake.
They silently walked away from the house, passing through
Crisande again and headed for the pass between the two large
mountains that separated the forest from the lake. It was
narrow, almost like a cave, but the pass lead them to the shore
of Silvermoon lake. Once more, they both stood on the edge of
the lake, letting the breeze brush against them as they gazed
upon the calm waters.
"Huh?" Phaeron suddenly felt something was missing. He
quickly searched into his pack and snapped his fingers, "Great."
He turned to the redhead, "Ranko-chan, please wait here for a
minute. I forgot something very important back home."
She just nodded, seeing him turn into a phoenix and fly
back to his house. Sighing, she sat down on the grass and held
her legs in her arms, resting her chin on her knees. The wind
picked up slightly, she could feel both her braid and necklace
waving in the air.
"How much time does he have left?" she thought, worried.
"It's been two weeks since I told him... What if Seraphim-chan's
not strong enough to keep him alive when we get back?" Her gaze
aimed to the ground just as her shoulders slumped down. It had
been so painful to admit what was going to happen, but now that
it was so close she still wished it could be a mistake.
She couldn't let him die, even if it was his fate. Even
though she had promised Seraphim to never use the Caller again,
the Ageless One _had_ said that prayers always help. Then again,
she spent _three years_ praying for a way to bring him back,
and even then the Caller backfired.
But why hadn't it worked? She had asked herself that exact
question ever since she arrived at the Gates for the second
time. Cologne had said that techniques along those lines were
powerful enough, even if the user couldn't withstand the energy.
What was wrong with the Caller?
She sighed again, looking into the lake. Many images
appeared on the surface, images revived by her memories. The
moment when she saw Phaeron again, on the street, after having
a fight with her brother the previous night. How she felt when
she saw him in the Tendos' living room, once Seraphim had
brought him back. All those times during the Esper War,
especially after being brought back to life by Chaos and the
moment when she gave him back the medallion. Why, she could even
remember the moments from her "second childhood," and how easily
she could show her emotions back then.
The tiniest of tears formed in the corner of her eye. She
couldn't help it, there had to be a way to vent out what she
felt. How much she would miss him.
She was brought out of her thoughts as her emerald began
to shimmer wildly. She gasped when she recognized a navy-blue
glow around her, only this time it would not fade. Looking
around, she realized what had happened.
The small winged creature, which she had held, had followed
them. And it was rubbing its head against her.
Slowly, the tendril of light detached from the animal and
hit her chest, connecting with her necklace. Almost immediately,
bridges of bright blue light began to join her and the creature.
White glimmers spread from it, they all circled Ranko and encased
her. Four large bolts of energy appeared from thin air,
connecting with her emerald.
"Agh!" she felt a searing pain on her forehead, like a
branding iron. Almost immediately, she felt long, thin needles
sprouting from the base of her back, just where the sacrum was
located, one inch above the beginning of the buttocks. Likewise,
her shoulders suddenly felt disproportionately heavy. All of a
sudden, she felt too light, the wind almost pushed her away.
* * *
Phaeron sighed as he placed the picture in his pack, a
picture with a carved wooden frame. Suddenly sensing something,
he closed his pack and dashed out of the house, morphing into a
phoenix before launching towards the column of light at the edge
of Silvermoon lake.
* * *
With a powerful leap, Ranko tried to get away. Her spring
had been so rash, she didn't notice she had leapt right towards
the lake. But it was too late anyway. The animal blinked as it
saw her change. She never touched the water.
* * *
The phoenix landed on the shore, wildly looking around in
all directions. No other being was there aside from the winged
creature and a few dragonflies. The lake was deserted.
"Ranko-chan! Where are you? Are you okay?" he called out,
turning back to human.
"I.. I'm here," came a voice, directly in front of him.
Phaeron's eyes widened as the space before him rippled, then
slowly, very slowly, a trasluscent creature appeared, hovering a
few feet over the water yet creating small ripples on its
surface. Then the creature materialized. The last thing Phaeron
saw before fainting was a white "V."
"Phaeron-kun...!" Ranko called, seeing him drop on the grass.
* * *
After fainting a few dozen times, Phaeron was finally
slapped back to consciousness by a half-Esper redhead. Fixing
his eyes on the being in front of him, he nearly passed out
again until he noticed the look in her eyes. She was very
confused. And she needed help.
"What... happened?" he asked.
"Ask him," she pointed at the winged cat, who chirped
happily. "I was sitting over there when I felt weird, then the
next thing I know that little guy is glowing."
"And how do you feel?"
"How do you think? I feel strange. Like I was turned inside
out or something like that. I mean, those are okay," she pointed
at a new part of her anatomy, "but _that_ just looks weird," she
pointed at another new part. "And this!" she tugged at her
clothes, which had changed in relation to her new body, "What's
this supposed to be!?"
"Actually, with that new... tail... those clothes fit you..."
Phaeron's face reddened.
"Sure they do," she fumed, puffing up her new tail and the
various other parts she had acquired.
"Do your shoulders hurt?" he asked.
"That's the funny part. I thought I'd be like Rouge, and
that I'd have to use pain-relievers, but it doesn't even hurt. I
can move those things just as if they were arms."
"And about your forehead?"
"Oh, I think I just got this for looks," she pointed at her
forehead, then saw her reflection on the lake, "It's kinda cool,
though."
"Okay, then stand up," Phaeron said, pulling her to her
feet. He almost felt like he had pulled too hard, she floated
upwards slightly before touching down with her toes. Phaeron
stood back to analize exactly what had changed.
The first --and obvious-- thing he noticed was that she
had become half bird. There was a pair of half meter-long wings
growing from her shoulders, although the main feathers reached
down to her knees. The wings were mostly white, but turned faint
pink as they reached the ends and there were blue streaks
between the feathers. Her peacock-like tail was the same way. It
grew from the base of her spine, reaching to her ankles.
Although it followed the same color pattern as the wings, it was
flanked by a pair of long, steel-blue feathers, which were thumb-
thick and reached beyond her heels, trailing a bit behind her.
Also, there were several antennae-like feathers growing from the
top of her forehead, white and roughly shaping a "V" that
reached about half a meter over her head. Like the two long
feathers on her tail, these were thick as a thumb and pointed.
Next were less evident changes. Her skin was paler, her
hair's color had become faint, almost pink. Her eyes were
completely white, with an almost imperceptible glow. She had
become slightly taller, but only about an inch or so. But despite
her size and anatomy, her bones had become full of air sacs,
like a bird's, making her weight diminish.
Her clothes had also changed radically. She now wore a
beige suit. It began with a ring of cloth that engulfed her neck,
then came down her torso and completely hid her chest. The cloth
also went to the sides to shape two wide horizontal straps that
held on to her arms, just beneath the shoulders, then these
straps descended to leave all of her back bare. The dress was
also covering all the front of her torso, then the cloth joined
the straps and circled her hips, to cover everything necessary
without hindering her tail's movement. The skirt of the dress
reached down to her knees, its edge was finished in braided
threads. Then her calves were covered by what resembled leg-
warmers, like large wool socks that lacked heel and toes.
Matching with these were the beige fingerless gloves that
reached up to her elbows.
"But... a bird?" Phaeron still wondered.
"Maybe it was because this little guy was the one who
changed me?" now Ranko could safely pet the winged cat, whose
wings were patterned in the exact same colors than hers, and
had "armlets" and "anklets" of beige fur.
"You're right..." he absently analized the creature, noticing
similarities between it and Ranko's new physique. "But you know,
you're very lucky. At least you remain human when you change."
"Human?" she fumed, nearly yelling, "I turn into a freak!"
"Freak...?" he blinked at her. "Then you think of Espers as
freaks?"
She quieted down, "No, I didn't mean it that way..."
"Maduin and Ifrit are humanoid. Shiva is human. Titan is
mostly human. Starlet is... well, she's semi-angelic. But Palidor
and Andellia were born with wings. They don't look too freakish."
He smirked, "Besides, this way you'll get to show off before
Seraphim and Cordis. They don't have tails."
"Very funny," she toasted him with a glare.
"But look," he took her by the shoulders, realizing she
wasn't so short anymore, and made her look at her reflection.
"Who's that?" he asked. "Do you see something freakish in her? Is
there anything ugly? Esper World makes sure that even if you
become an Esper, your new body is in perfect harmony with
itself, both organically and aestethically. What would you say if
you had been turned completely into a bird? Don't you think you
were lucky?"
Ranko just nodded in acceptance, looking at herself in the
water. It wasn't so bad, even if she would rip all her clothes if
she were to use them as an Esper. Besides, she still didn't know
what sort of magic she had gained.
"Don't you feel like there's some sort of power you gotta
get out?" Phaeron asked.
"Sort of. It's like I got to say something, but I don't know
what."
"Well, can you use your magic?"
"I'll try..." she aimed her hand upwards, easily creating a
Light sphere. But suddenly her arm was surrounded by Wind and a
small glimmer of Silver that spiraled around her hand. "Huh?" she
blinked, "I didn't have those before..." Concentrating as she tried
something she aimed her hands forward, "Luminaire!"
Nothing happened. Only a small globe of Light fizzled out in
front of her. She tried to use her Lightning again, but with the
same results.
"Looks like you got new magic," Phaeron said, "But try to
use it with your Brindstone," he pointed at the necklace, which
had been blown away onto the grass by her transformation. She
took it in her hands, looking away as it suddenly flashed. A ring
of fire surrounded the emerald, but she wasn't hurt by it. In
fact, as soon as she put the necklace on, the ring was
transferred to her left wrist. Her eyes were opened widely, the
Brindstone had absorbed the bit of Esper magic that she
received from Phaeron's topaz. "I get it," he said, "No wonder
your change was so quick. When you got hit by my magic you
probably received a fraction of my Esper essence." He eyed her
with an "I told you so" look on his face.
"Okay, okay, I get the message," she defended. With her
Brindstone's help, she could summon Lightning again, as well as
Fire. But all of a sudden her hands and white eyes began to
glow. "What..." she started, but quickly fell silent as a pair of
words came up to her mouth.
Phaeron saw a faint golden ring shape exactly in front of
her. Detached from the world, Ranko let her body move freely as
her hands moved beneath the ring, finally shaping fists as if she
were gripping a staff. Then a pair of triangular, silvery glows
formed beneath the ring, above her hands.
"I see..." she thought, "This is what I got..."
The triangles moved to the sides, still very close to the
ring. She tightened her fists. With a thin flashing shaft of
energy, a long, smooth staff materialized in her hands. It
connected with the ring, the two triangles joined to the staff
just below.
"Hah!" Ranko swiped the staff sideways, releasing a potent
arc of light. The artifact materialized completely, shedding its
blinding glow. The perfect-white staff's length was almost one
and a half times Ranko's height, and there was a gold hoop on
its top. This end of the staff was actually a carved figurine of
a winged female, the hoop emulated a halo as it connected with
the figurine's head. The two triangles had become a pair of
silver wings, pointed and open to the sides. On the waist of the
figurine was a red thread that fell down, each end joined with a
ball of string that became a cylindrical brush. And finally, on
the other end of the staff was a sharp spike, made of a bluish
crystal.
"Now I know!" she said, her mind being filled about
instructions about using Esper magic. Seeing a white glow
covering her, Phaeron gulped and stepped back. Way back.
"Aurora Dream!" Ranko thrust the spiked end of the staff
into the ground. Suddenly a large sphere of bright light detached
from her until it became eleven feet wide. Phaeron could only
see her dark silhouette and her glowing eyes inside the sphere
as the skies became roseated. Her wings and tail flared widely,
creating a powerful blue wind that engulfed Phaeron and the
winged creature. The wind had the same effect as Andellia's
technique, Orpheus' Song, in that it was a healing spell.
But without warning the staff morphed. It became a
broadsword, the angelic figurine was reshaped into a lavish blue
hilt, the halo stretched to become a golden blade. The odd color
pulled away from the sky, revealing a star-filled canopy. Ranko's
sphere glowed even brighter.
"Uh-oh..." Phaeron gulped when he realized she was
discovering an Esper's full power.
"Borealis Trace!" she slashed diagonally upwards with the
sword, then straight down. The force caused the heavens to
change color again, but this time only an aurora borealis
appeared. The drapes of light gleamed, then a few of them
extended to the ground.
"Gak!" Phaeron quickly mounted a massive aura shield to
withhold the pink and purple beams. He struggled against them,
feeling the earth crumble beneath his feet as he was pushed
down. His own body was glowing as he had to use his maximum
strength to resist the attack, but finally he blasted the shield
upwards and fired off a Lightbird-Phoenix to disperse the glowing
courtains on the sky.
He turned back to the sphere. Ranko was still unmoving,
locked in the end of her slash. Her eyes were glowing, her tail
was fanned out to its maximum. Small sparks of electricity ran
along the V-shaped feathers on her forehead.
Seeing there was no more danger, the winged creature
scampered out from beneath Phaeron and walked towards her,
hesitating before rubbing its head against her calf.
All of a sudden the sphere vanished, she blinked several
times as her mind returned to normal. The sword turned back into
a staff, then glowed and vanished in a puff of glimmers which
surrounded Ranko's right wrist. Still confused about what had
happened, she kneeled and held the winged animal in her arms.
"What... was that!?" she asked, looking at the glimmers
around her wrist.
"I was gonna ask you the same thing!" Phaeron stared at
her. "Did you do those yourself?"
She shook her head, "It's like something came over me. I
just sorta _needed_ to do that." She paused for a moment, "Were
those... my..."
"I'd say so," Phaeron replied, still impressed, "Seems like
that 'Aurora Dream' is your Esper technique, like my Rebirth, and
the 'Borealis Trace' is your max attack." He kneeled by her,
taking her shoulders, "But listen to me. Never _ever_ use that
again. Remember what a full-power Esper attack can do."
"Yeah, I remember," she shuddered, recalling the Espers'
ultimate techniques from the battle with Kefka. "But how do I
control this?"
"It'll take you some time," he replied, "But it looked like
you needed that staff to summon your magic." He analized the
ring of glimmers around her wrist. "So far, the only Espers I
know that use staves are Ramuh and Andellia. Maybe that's
because they have to use a staff to channel their power."
"Well, whatever," she stood up, "But can I still change
back?"
"Hmm, you _could_, I guess," he also stood. "For the time
being, while you learn how to change back and forth, let's just
go to Valran and have Maduin use his magic to change you back.
I'll teach you how to morph later."
"And all because of this little guy," she petted the winged
cat's head, making it chirp happily. Spreading her arms, she
released the creature to the wind, letting it fly back to its
home. "Okay, let's go," she eagerly spread her wings, hinting for
him that she wanted to learn how to fly.
"Sure, I'll show you," he said, standing in front of her and
turning away. He morphed into a phoenix. "Now, try to follow my
wings' movements," he said, spreading his wings. Slowly, he moved
them upwards, then pushed down and forward, all while moving the
feathery limbs on ovals. "Remember, you don't just flap up and
down like you did with fairy wings. Think of yourself as swimming
and you got it." After a few moments, he morphed back and saw
her practice, "No, no. This way," he stood behind her and grabbed
the wrists of her wings, then moved them up and down in ovals.
She swallowed hard, but shook her head and let him continue to
coach her.
"Okay, now to get off the ground," he said, morphing again.
"Just push down hard, opening your quill feathers as much as
you can as if you were spreading fingers." He turned back to
see her. She flung her wings downwards, but the air current was
too strong and she couldn't ride it, sending herself into a face-
first fall instead.
"You okay?" Phaeron kneeled by her, carefully pulling her
to her feet. He once more took her wings, although he was now
in front of her. "Like this," he said, slowly flapping her wings
again. But suddenly, they both noticed the minimum distance
between them and turned bright red, stepping away.
"I think I got it," she said, still blushing. "How's this?" she
pushed down, sending herself upwards. She flapped again, gaining
a higher altitude. "Hey, this is great!" she flew upwards, the
complete freedom of movement shaped a smile on her face.
"Wait up!" he morphed and flew upwards.
"Race ya!" she called cheerfully, gliding away. He smirked,
and followed.
* * *
It was already dark when they arrived at Nerima. The moon
gleamed brightly in the navy-blue field, its light shining off the
few snowflakes that dropped from above. The glow was
interrupted briefly by the winged silhouette that glided through
the air, headed for the Saotome house.
"So, you think you can do it yourself?" Phoenix asked.
"I think so..." riding on his back, Ranko looked at her hands,
recalling the instructions he had given her for morphing to
Esper shape. "Okay, so first I gotta be standing on somethng
solid, then I must concentrate on growing from the inside out,
getting some kind of warm chill. Right?" The bird nodded. "Then ,
for changing back, I must concentrate on sending out every bit
of magic and ki from my body."
"And remember to wear clothes with open backs whenever
you want to change, or else you'll tear them up," he snickered.
"I'll remember, alright," she glowered at him, then opened
her shoulder-bag and looked at the Esper clothes she had been
given during her transformation.
The mystic bird landed right outside the house, which still
had the porch's light on. Ranko blinked in surprise at seeing a
panda's silhouette against the window, as if waiting.
"Well, see you tomorrow," Phaeron morphed back.
"I had a great time, Phaeron-kun," she smiled at him, "I
can't wait to show off to oniisan and Akane."
"Yeah, I know," he messed up her hair, once again noticing
how different her height was in comparison to her new body.
"G'night!" he called, walking away, but still waiting for her to go
indoors before leaving. Waving as she closed the door, Ranko
returned the farewell.
But just as she took off her shoes, a sad memory came to
her. He was still in risk of dying any moment. She couldn't leave
him alone just like that...
After a few more minutes, a pigtailed figure came out of
the Saotome house. Headed straight for Ikkoku-kan, Ranko crossed
her arms and grunted slightly, flaring her ki. Since she wore her
Esper clothes, her new limbs and tail tore nothing as she
morphed. With a strong kick, she leapt upwards and took to the
air, gliding towards the apartment house.
On the roof, a dark figure nodded as his plans proceeded
perfectly. Smiling, Raphael sighed sadly at his twin and took off,
headed for a motel, wishing something could be worked out by the
couple.
* * *
Silence reigned upon the building, both outside and indoors.
It was only midnight, but for some unfathomable reason the
tenants were all asleep. Even Mr. Soichiro slept like a rock.
Quietly touching down on the entryway, Ranko looked around
to make sure nobody was eavesdropping. Smirking in victory, she
clenched her muscles again and suddenly her Esper body phased
out of sight, becoming a faint suggestion of an image. In this
ghostly appearance, which she had been turned into at first, she
easily walked right through the front door and scanned the
corridors. Vigilant, she floated towards the door to room 3 and
phased her head into it.
She was relieved to find Phaeron sleeping soundly in his
futon, a smile locked in his face. Seeing she didn't have any
immediate worries, she phased her whole body into the room,
lifting her tail to sit down next to him. She rested her face on
her hand, smiling absently at his sleeping face. With only a light
grunt, she solidified her body and changed back to her original
shape.
So she had decided to look over him during the night. Her
family already knew, anyway, except for her brother. He wouldn't
understand anyway. But somehow, she felt that the dreaded day
was close, _too_ close... And she _had_ to be there when it
happened. Maybe it was a little paranoid to stand guard all the
time, but one can never be too careful.
Reaching into a small bag, she took out her normal clothes
and a nightshirt. Blushing for an instant, she quickly made a
break for a shadowed corner of the room. She then took off the
Esper dress and pulled the blue cotton nightshirt over her head.
It was about four sizes too large for her, but right now it
would have to do. After combing her hair with her hand, she
tucked the dress and the Chinese clothes back into her bag. She
was about to come out of the shadows when she heard a low
noise coming from a hole in the wall.
"No... not him..." she thought of Yotsuya immediately, then
quickly tiptoed towards the opening and waited next to it. First,
the widening beam of a flashlight came out from it. Being next to
the hole, she remained hidden, but her bag was very visible in
the middle of the room.
Yotsuya had already made an inventory of most of
Phaeron's and Raphael's belongings. And that bag wasn't part of
them. With ninja-like stealth, he peeked his head through the
hole.
Ranko eeked silently, standing on one leg to Yotsuya's
right. He turned to that side. She quickly changed legs to stand
on the other side. He turned to the left. She changed legs again.
Then Yotsuya began to switch back and forth between right and
left, making Ranko hop from leg to leg. Then he stopped, and
looked straight up.
Trying to hold her breath, Ranko was flat on the floor to
his right. Crawling as quickly as she could, she hid behind the
lump of Phaeron in his futon. Yotsuya scanned the entire room
again, feeling another presence inside it.
Ranko didn't even think of moving. Pressing herself against
the floor, she held her breath... until Phaeron began to roll in
his sleep and put an arm on her shoulder, reflexively bringing in
his hand and pulling her. She screamed inwards, then concentrated
on her Wind magic. First she used it to lift Phaeron's arm all
the way and flip him to the other side. Seeing she had aroused
Yotsuya's attention, she then aimed at a book that was on a
shelf right next to the hole. With only a brief gust the book
fell, landing next to Yotsuya with a barely-audible thud that
still made him jump slightly. Swiftly, before he could turn around
again, Ranko made a break for Yotsuya, mallet at the ready. Like
in cricket, she smashed the mallet on his face, sending him back
through the hole and onto his futon, knocked out. He never knew
what hit him.
Sighing in relief, Ranko swung the mallet back towards the
hole, covering it with the weapon's mass. Finally, after locking
the door, she dropped on the floor next to him, resting her head
on her arm. Exhausted from all that happened during the day, she
closed her eyes to rest, inadvertedly drifting away to sleep...
* * *
Nerima, Tokyo, five am.
The winter breeze wailed as it filled the snow-covered
streets with its chill. The sun was lazily showing its very first
ray, although the skies were still dark. It seemed like the
beginning of another peaceful day, a kind very scarce in the
Nerima ward.
Phaeron opened his eyes almost in synch with the change on
his clock from 4:59 to 5:00. Rubbing his eyes, he yawned widely,
turning to the side...
And his open jaw dropped all the way to the floor when he
saw a pigtailed redhead sleeping on the floor next to him. How
did _she_ get here? And _what_ was she doing!?
He quickly looked all around, blinking at the mallet that
was stuck in Yotsuya's hole. He then turned to the redhead
again, blushing mightily at the sight. Nervously gawking at her,
he quickly pulled himself out of the futon and opened it. With
immense care he picked her up in his arms, depositing her inside
the futon and closing it over her shoulders. She sighed deeply
in her sleep, the freezing cold being replaced by a soothing
warmth.
Phaeron just watched her silently. What was she doing
here? Was she actually worried?
The thought brought an unexpected smile from his face. She
must have come to look over him, given how little time he had
left. But she was so tired from that Esper transformation she
probably fell asleep the minute she got there. Smiling again, he
put a hand on her shoulder, accidentally making her pigtail fall
right onto her face.
Still asleep, Ranko sneezed when the wispy end of her
pigtail tickled her nose. Snickering, Phaeron gently lifted her
pigtail, but due to the nightshirt's size the braid's end brushed
part of her shoulder, causing her to shrug and release a light
sleepy whimper.
Phaeron could sense a familiar warmth spread within him,
the topaz on his bookshelf flashed a couple of times in
agreement. To see her in his room, so worried over his health...
"Does she..." he began to wonder, sighing, "Maybe she's
remembered..."
He shook his head, keeping from fooling himself, "No, she
probably hasn't remembered. She still sees me as a friend..." he
lied down on his side, resting on an elbow. "It's actually better
that way, or this would hurt even more."
Standing up again, he sneaked a peek between his window's
curtains. Daylight was almost here. Okay, he'd let her sleep
longer. Nothing would make him disturb her.
Another hour passed slowly, each minute seemed to last
ages. But suddenly he heard another whimper come from the
futon, he smiled at noticing Ranko was waking up. Surprising her,
he opened the curtains and let a broad beam of light enter the
room.
"Hi," he whispered, kneeling by her side. Ranko suddenly
realized where she was, turning mild red when she noticed he had
put her in the futon. But she blushed even more when he took
her hand, "Thanks."
She understood his message perfectly. "Don't mention it,"
she smiled back. "It's just that I'm worried about you, that's all."
He felt an incredible lightness in his chest, but decided to
say nothing. He only squeezed her hand gently and stood up,
turning away as she slowly changed into her clothes.
"Come over here," he then said, beckoning for her. Rubbing
her arms for warmth, she joined him as he looked out the window.
"Isn't that beautiful?" he said. The entire landscape was white,
the pale blue sky enhanced the feeling of tranquility. Turning to
each other, they smiled and walked away from the window. Ranko
grabbed her bag, Phaeron lent her a winter coat. Snickering, they
hurried out of Maison Ikkoku before anyone saw them. With
Phaeron morphing to a phoenix, they took off towards the West,
hoping to have breakfast somewhere on Kyoto.
* * *
With a soft sigh, Kasumi Tendo fluttered her eyes open.
That dream... she had that dream again. Curious, she turned to
the calendar on the wall.
"Oh, but today _is_ Christmas Eve!" she said to herself, a
smile forming on her face.
* * *
Seraphim could take it no more. Her strength was fading.
She wasn't as powerful anymore.
She had dreaded this moment ever since she brought him
back. During four months she tried to forget it, to put it aside,
but she couldn't resist this any longer. And now it would happen,
with Seraphim unable to do anything about it.
She was being drained. Feeling tears gather in her eyes,
she knew this would be the day she had foreseen.
"Brother Phaeron... Sister Ranko... I'm... I'm so sorry..."
And an angel cried.
WARNING:
Get your hankerchiefs ready.
The TerBril
(who might have gon a bit too far with the events of the next section.)